Spell Cat by Tara Lain Page 0,47
who sat back on the couch. “Nothing but the best, though I’ll confess I got the pot at the Salvation Army. And since we’re likely getting into some uncharted territory today, why don’t you call me Killian?”
“Hey, thanks, Professor—uh, Killian.”
Killian poured tea in a cup, added a little milk and a couple of heaping teaspoons of sugar to it, and handed it to Jimmy. The kid sipped and closed his eyes.
“Wow. That’s good.”
“Sugar has that effect.”
Jimmy grinned into his cup. “Yep. Guess I have got a sweet tooth.”
Killian leaned back in his chair with his own tea. “So what’s up? What was so important it couldn’t wait?” He had a good idea, but he wanted to hear Jimmy explain it.
Jimmy sighed. “I’m Neo.”
Well, that wasn’t what he’d expected. “Excuse me?”
“Did you ever see the movie The Matrix?”
What the…? Oh, of course. Killian started to laugh.
Jimmy hurried on. “I tried these experiments, and I could lift rocks with my mind and move stuff whenever I wanted to, and then I took this spoon and—”
“There is no spoon.”
He shrugged. “Right. You don’t seem very surprised. Hell, that’s the second time.”
“You did tell me some of this about your ‘friend,’ as you’ll recall. You prepared me.”
“So what does it mean?”
“I’m not completely sure yet. Why not give me a demo?” He pointed to a heavy textbook on the coffee table beside the tea tray. “Make it fly.”
“Uh, okay. I’ve never showed anybody except my best friend.”
“Did it freak him out?”
“Uh, not exactly.”
“It’s okay. Go ahead. Al and I won’t tell, will we, Aloysius?” The cat flipped his tail.
“Uh, okay.” Jimmy stared at the book, but nothing happened. So maybe he had some accidental powers….
“Wait. I always forget it’s not about will. It’s about intention.”
“What?”
The book flew to the ceiling, bounced once, and settled back to the table. Well, damn, he couldn’t have said it better himself. Intention was the key. “Jimmy, tell me about your parents.”
“Not much to tell. My dad’s a businessman. Broker. He does pretty well, I guess. My mom owns a shop. She sells women’s clothes. They’re great parents, but they worry about me a lot.”
“Would you say they’re unique in any way?”
Jimmy shrugged. “My mom is really pretty. They always say my dad fell for her hard when he first saw her. They’re unique because they’re really happy together. They love me and my sister a lot, but what they have together is special. That’s what I want with my girl.”
“Have you ever seen them do anything weird?”
“When I was sixteen, I would have said everything they did was weird, but now I think they’re just your regular parents.”
“Have you ever seen them lift objects without benefit of a tea tray?”
“You mean like…. Shit, no. I think I’m a freak all by myself.”
Killian laughed. “Maybe not entirely by yourself.”
“You wouldn’t think it was funny if you knew my girlfriend’s father.”
What? “What about her father?”
“He hates me as is, and I imagine if he knew I was some kind of freak, he’d hate me even more.”
“Why does he have to know?”
“He’s some kind of big-time godfather or something. Freaky scary. He has my girlfriend watched. Probably me too.”
“Once you get married, he’ll no longer have control over your girl.”
“That’s the fucking thing, Professor—uh, Killian. He doesn’t want her to marry me, because he has some other dude picked out for her. I mean, who does that anymore, except maybe in China? And even then, it’s not life-threatening if you don’t go along. But I think this guy might do something really bad if he doesn’t get his way.”
This was sounding way too familiar to be true. “Is your girlfriend’s name Lavender?”
Jimmy’s eyes widened. “How did you know that?”
“Because I’m the other dude.”
“Holy shit.”
“Yes.”
Lavender flew to Killian’s apartment the second he called her and told her he had Jimmy there. Flew by cab, since witches couldn’t fly, despite the myth. Broomsticks were only for sweeping. Now she sat on Killian’s couch, holding Jimmy’s hand, across from where Killian lounged in the armchair. “Show me, darling.”
“Oh, baby, I don’t want you to think I’m a freak.”
“I won’t. I promise. Show me.”
The big book rose from the table, hit the ceiling, made a circle around Lavender’s head, and settled back on the table, opening to a spot that discussed witches’ powers.
Killian laughed. “Okay, now you’re showing off.”
The boy looked down. “Sorry.”
“Just kidding, Jimmy.”
Lavender looked at Killian. “So he’s a witch.”
Jimmy jumped up. “What? What the fuck?”
She took his hand and pulled him back