Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Another failed mission,Maddox Fray thought miserably, staring at the blood-streaked asphalt.
What should have been his easiest success had turned out to be his most spectacular failure yet. He was supposed to be guarding their neighbour, Taylor, and making sure he didn’t use his magic for even the most simple task.
Instead, he’d allowed Taylor to stop that truck-which had ostensibly been driven by a local criminal-with a spell and been unable to do anything but watch as it backfired, steering the eighteen-wheeler right into the client.
Maddox had never seen a dead body before. Well no, that wasn’t entirely accurate. He’d gone to a few funerals of his relatives and seen their bodies in the open caskets, but he’d never seen the body of someone who’d just been killed. And definitely not the body of someone whose death was technically his fault.
He found himself unable to look away, caught in the horror of what he’d caused. Taylor’s body had gotten completely mangled; the metal of the truck had come apart and torn through the flesh of the older man’s stomach,and there was a puddle of crimson already congealing on the sidewalk,some of which had splashed onto Maddox’s sneakers.
The confusing thing was when Maddox had seen that truck careening off the road, strands of power drawing it straight in Taylor’s direction, he hadn’t stopped it. He could have, possessing his own magic and the knowledge of several spells that could have been woven fast enough to save both his client and the driver, yet for some reason, he hadn’t. He’d just stood there, frozen, while the vehicle had plowed straight into his client, killing him instantly.
He couldn’t believe himself. How could he have let this happen? His parents were not going to be happy.
*
“Maddox!“his father, Nate, exclaimed as he and Max’s mother came rushing into the hospital waiting room, their faces a storm of distress. “Oh,my god, are you okay? Is Taylor? What the hell happened?”
Maddox wasn’t immediately forthcoming with a response, mostly because that last question was answered when the doctor appeared a few minutes later with a grim expression on her pale features.
“We tried everything, but I’m afraid we couldn’t save Mr. Addams. Magic can only do so much; I’m very sorry.”
Fora moment, no one spoke, struck by the news that a client had actually died.His parents shared a glance, something passing between them that Maddox was pretty sure he wasn’t going to like, before his mother turned.
“Thank you,” she said to the other woman somberly. “Could we have a moment alone?”
The doctor nodded in understanding and stepped away so it was just the Frays in the waiting room.
“What happened?” his father repeated, returning his attention to Maddox, his voice softer than his wife’s had been, though the horror and disappointment was still painfully evident.
Maddox shrugged.
“He used magic because he thought the driver of the car was after him, it got out of control and it hit him.”His voice sounded as if it belonged to a stranger, utterly defeated, like it couldn’t have been helped.
His mother exhaled sharply, shaking her head at him, askance.
“What are we going to do with you? Neither of your siblings ever caused this much trouble; they both succeeded within their first few missions. Lilee even succeeded on her very first one. They certainly have never let a client die on their watch. The Frays don’t lose people. That’s not how we work.”
Maddox shrunk in his seat, hanging his head. He’d heard some variation of this speech after every single one of his previous failures-every time he didn’t live up to the example of his perfect sister-and it made him cringe even more each time. He didn’t know what he could say to defend himself, and maybe he shouldn’t, anyways. After all,someone was dead because of him. So, he didn’t say anything.
His mother definitely didn’t appreciate the lack of response, however,and leapt to her feet, demanding, “Well, what do you have to say for yourself?!”
Maddox finally lifted his gaze, meeting hers contritely.
“I don’t know what to tell you, Mom. I’m sorry; I don’t know how this keeps happening, why I can’t seem to get this hero thing right. I would like to keep trying, but I don’t want to be responsible for hurting anyone else, so maybe I should quit while I’m behind.“It was the last thing he wanted-he’d rather have begged her for one last chance-but maybe stopping now was for the greater good.
His mother heaved a deep, exasperated sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose. Maddox could tell that she was struggling with how to deal with the situation since, as she’d pointed out, it had never occurred before. She was probably considering what consequences were equal to letting a man die, short of simply sending Maddox to jail.
“I think,” she declared after a pregnant pause, flexing her hands at her sides. “I think we need to re-evaluate whether or not you’re cut out for the family business, Max. With all the chances we’ve given you, we thought eventually you would succeed or at least get better, but instead you only seem to be getting worse. We can’t have clients dying on our watch;that’s not okay, and it can’t happen ever again. So, until we can be certain it won’t, you’re suspended from missions, and I’m sending you to counseling with Evie.”
That gave Maddox pause.
“Evie,Mom? Come on,” he protested; their family Mentor was not someone he wanted to see, not even if it meant getting another chance. She still treated him like a child even though he was in his twenties now.
Unfortunately,his father agreed that he didn’t have a choice.
“Your mother’s right, Max. Either you go talk to Evie, or we bench you permanently.”
The three of them engaged in a brief staredown, Maddox casting about for some method of convincing his parents to change their mind.Objectively, he knew that this was the most lenient punishment they could give him, but that didn’t mean he liked it.
His parents refused to budge, however, and he knew that if he didn’t do what they said, they would bench him permanently. He liked that idea even less.
“All right,” he eventually relented, stuffing his hands into his pockets and dropping his head again.
His father continued to eye him for a few seconds before his stern expression dissipated and he lowered himself into the chair beside Max.
“You know this isn’t supposed to be a punishment, right? We want to help you, Max; your mother and I have done everything we can to guide you,to get you to overcome your failures and become the protector you are meant to be, but we’re out of our depth here,” he elaborated,switching to a more conciliatory manner, grasping Maddox’s shoulder.“We love you, and we don’t want to see you or anyone else get hurt again, either. Evie will know the best way to prevent that.”
The youngest Fray didn’t argue because he knew his parents were right. Evie was annoying, but she did have the family’s best interests at heart. That was her job.
“I know,” was all he said instead.
His mother folded her arms while his father wrapped his around him. “Come on, I’ll take you home. You can’t do anything more here; your mother will talk to the hospital about arrangements for Taylor’s remains.”
Neither Max nor his mother argued with that, and Max let himself be steered onto his feet and out of the hospital. He did really want to go home-he couldn’t stand facing his mother’s disapproval any longer.
*
Once he and his dad got home, Maddox trudged straight to his bedroom,shutting the door behind him and flopping gracelessly onto his bed.
He closed his eyes, overwhelmed by grief and guilt. He hadn’t really known Taylor Adams, but it didn’t matter. He’d been their neighbour for a decade, a friend of his parents and to their community, and now he was gone. All because of Maddox’s negligence.
What was wrong with him, he wondered, bottom lip catching between his teeth. He’d trained his whole life to be a hero, to help people like his family had been doing since the time of his great grandfather. It was what the Frays were known for across the country; it was in Maddox’s blood. Yet,hecouldn’t seem to save anyone.
Opening his eyes, he let out a heavy, frustrated exhale. He hoped Evie would have some sort of solution to fix whatever was broken inside of him because he was desperate. Being a hero wasn’t only about continuing his family legacy, it was all he’d ever known.
If he couldn’t be one, what was he supposed to do with his life?
