It's Not Magic

Eleven

Kane

The plan. We'd been over it about a thousand times, and each time, the chances of this succeeding decreased. But if Hain wanted Lilia Matthews saved, then she wanted her saved. Even if it was from the HQ.

I failed to mention to anyone that the chances of Matthews still being alive were slim. McPherson most likely wanted information, and without a doubt, torturing her for it would be his go-to. And with McPherson being the leading officer of her interrogation, she wasn't bound to last long. As soon as she gave up anything relating to what he wanted, he'd kill her. And knowing McPherson, having participated in some of his torturing schemes, Matthews wouldn't last long. No one does.

Three days after Hain told us what she wanted, she sent us out, seemingly determined to see that this girl was saved. I figure she can't technically be identified as a girl though, since she technically was an adult, at nineteen years of age.

She gave us a day to save Matthews. A single day to break into the HQ, without being spotted, find and save a girl I'd only seen a picture of. Not even an updated one. The picture Hain had was from her last year of school, which was the year before McPherson shot her brother, which would put her at thirteen.

And then there was Wallace Bray and Maxis Tate that I had to contend with. Neither of them had field experience, much less legitimate training with guns. Hain had ordered that they come with him on this rescue mission, despite their clear lack of any ability to do anything that involved shooting guns, using any weapon, for that matter. Although, there was much more potential for Bray than for Tate. But neither of them were good company, especially when they were together. Most of the time, they just spent any minute they could next to each other, whether it be holding hands, or just rubbing their shoulders against each other. I wasn't against their gay relationship, but I was against their constant affection.

But on the plus side to having them, they had more powerful magic than I did. Well, at least Max did. All I could count on Wally for was healing any wounds that may be obtained while we're inside. And maybe Matthews' wounds. If she was still alive. Otherwise, we might be dragging a dead body back to Hain.

Hain was generous enough to take us to the next town over, Maison, where we were closer to the HQ than we were in Castel. But that also happened to be where my family lived. And my family thinks I'm dead. And I'm assuming the entire HQ knows of my magic, so that just made the plan harder. Needless to say, déjà vu hit me like a truck when we drove into town. I did my best not to show it, and with the training I received at the academy, it wasn't too hard to accomplish. But every cell in my body revolted at the idea of being back here. I ran to fucking escape here, to escape my past, and everyone that was in it. Especially Jade.

She was someone that I had to leave behind, no matter how much it devastated both her and my family that I was dead. But it was better that way. Before I discovered my magic, she told me she loved me, and if that held true, then maybe she'd know that she had to move on. Jade was reasonable enough to know that.

We'd been left at the edge of town, but far enough that we weren't in Maison, but that we weren't close enough to the HQ to be spotted. In reality, we were closer to the academy than we were to anything. Hain had trusted us to take care of ourselves for the evening, and in the end, we ended up splitting it. I slept in the SUV, and Bray and Tate slept outside with a couple of sleeping bags. I heard them running through the plan for most of the night, Bray trying to reassure Tate that they were doing the right thing by rescuing Matthews. If I didn't already suspect it, I'd say that they knew her in some way. They didn't like talking about it, or even mentioning her, really, but their attitudes betrayed them.

One day. That was all we were given. And today was that day. Hain didn't hesitate to remind us how long Matthews had been held, and that we needed to hurry up. I didn't like how Hain was so impatient about her rescue. What was so important about her, anyways? When Hain left us at the edge of town, she didn't fail to say that it was the third day since Matthews was captured. One day, she told us. Otherwise, Matthews was on her own.