“I realized earlier that I don’t own any actual sweatshirts. I have t-shirts and shorts. That’s about it. So, if any of you are ever missing a sweatshirt, I probably took it. Just letting ya know.” All the guys nod their heads, accepting my warning.
“You could always borrow one of mine,” Emma suggests.
“Emma, you only wear pink sweatshirts. And if they’re not pink, they’re covered in pink. I’d rather wear one that’s way too big than be covered in pink.”
“Your loss. You’d look cute in pink.”
“You’d probably look cute in a banana suit, but I don’t see you wearing one.”
Emma looks over to David and shakes her head. “She’s impossible.”
Crossing my arms on the table, I lean forward and rest my head against my forearms. I can’t believe how tired I still am. A few hours ago, I was in Dravin’s cell. “Thank you guys for coming to rescue us,” I mumble against my sleeves. “I got your note Larkin.”
“That yellow piece of paper?” Colton says.
“Yeah, I’m assuming that someone working for Dravin isn’t totally loyal to him.” I lift my head and look toward Larkin, who is nodding in agreement. He has friends inside the compound that could possibly help us from time to time. “How did you know it was…oh, wait the mirror…?”
“Yeah, that was a two-way mirror. We could see you, but you couldn’t see us. We saw and heard everything,” says Colton.
“Everything?”
“Yeah, we heard your sarcastic retorts to Dravin. We saw each time one of them hit you or Dravin used his power on you. We heard you singing and doing those little flips. Why were you talking back to him, Ryanne? That could have been dangerous,” Liam says.
“I don’t know. Last time he kidnapped me they’d try to get information out of me until I passed out from the pain or they knocked me out. I could barely move. This time, I could move around. They didn’t hurt me that much. So, I tried a different approach. I wanted to show Dravin that I wasn’t afraid of him. I wanted him to know that I’ll take whatever he dishes out, because I know he’s too much of a coward to face me when I can use my magic. I wanted him to know that I’m not going to cower in the corner from fear when I see him and that I’m not helpless. I can defend myself.
“When I saw those men carry you guys in…I don’t know. I kind of flipped. I was so mad at him for involving others when it’s me that he wants. It makes me mad that he’s trying to use you guys against me. I panicked and started yelling at him.” I laugh. “What did I call him? A psychotic lunatic?”
“You called him a freaking crazy psychotic lunatic who is obsessed with power,” Colton says.
“And he is. And it felt really good to call him that. Just like it felt really good to kick Adam upside the head, even if he did slap me so hard that I saw stars. I wanted to make an impression. I’m not going to let them get away with hurting me anymore.”
“Oooh, angry Ryanne is hot,” Larkin says and flashes his arrogant smile.
“Since you’re letting me wear your sweatshirt, I’ll ignore that comment and not knock you out of your chair like I really want to.” I let a piece of magic flow toward him. Not enough to do anything, but enough to prove that I will do it.
His grin widens when he feels the magic around him. David and Liam start laughing. “Hmm, I think I might want my sweatshirt back. Do you have a shirt on under there?”
I sit back in the chair and shake my head at him. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve already seen everything before.” He winks at me. I stare at him, mouth hanging open. I know that I am blushing. David knocks his head on the table when he leans over laughing. Colton looks angry, while the others try to hide their laughter. That’s it. I call more magic to me. Larkin’s grin falters a little when he realizes what I am doing. I push the magic toward him and crack up when he falls out of his chair, landing on his butt on the linoleum tile.
“And it’ll never happen again,” I say.
Larkin pushes himself off the ground and grins at me, “It’s a good thing I have a photographic memory.” He transports out of the room before I can do anything else.
“What exactly happened?” Emma asks me.
“Nothing really. He just transported into the room while I was changing. I had shorts on and was looking for a shirt, so I was just standing there in a bra.”
“A black lacy bra,” Larkin says behind me. I turn around to hit him, but he transports again.