“Me,” Remi replied. Her attention left me and zeroed in on her son instead. “When you coerced me into attending college all I wanted was an easy job where my mind could afford to wander, spending my time coming up with my ideas and then someday, I would make them a reality. How? I have no idea, but that was the life I wanted.”
“Those ideas again,” she complained and rubbed the bridge of her nose.
His dad’s voice finally joined in. “You said that was what you wanted then, but is it still what you want?”
She smacked his arm. “Don’t encourage him!”
“No,” Remi replied. His emotions showed me he was surprised by his dad’s question. “I no longer want that.”
“Thank god,” his mom sighed.
“I’m moving to Klumven. With Juno. I won’t be able to reach you over the phone or have internet access. I’m leaving and I’m not returning here.”
They gaped at him. “You’re leaving the country to live in Klumven?” his mom asked, likely thinking she’d heard wrong.
“Yes, with Juno.” He was calm and spoke perfectly, not a single hint that he was unravelling inside with unease, that was only for me to know.
“Is this a self-discovery journey?” his dad asked, not sounding disappointed but more intrigued.
“What would he need to discover, Vince?!” his mom hissed. Then her attention returned to Remi, a stern look on her face, “you can’t leave. We need you here.”
“Why?” both Remi and I asked in unison.
“We just do!”
“Well, I’m still leaving.”
I got a sense of fear and worry from Remi, telling me this wasn’t normal behavior from them. I needed to say something. “My father wants us to visit him tomorrow, so we aren’t leaving today. You’re welcome to join us. That way you have a little more time together.” I hadn’t thought much about what I would say to get them to let us leave, but I didn’t feel safe here anymore, and I definitely didn’t want to use my magic on them.
“No one is leaving,” his mom hissed, grabbing a knife, and I knew I had to do it anyway. Letting my magic out, I made them slump down in their seats.
“We need to get out of here, it’ll only hold for about an hour,” I said, pulling Remi up with me. He didn’t say anything, but his emotions showed relief and still held a bit of fear. “We need to head to the portal and tell my dad, something is off here.”
We got a cab and had the driver drop us off near the forest. Once we were surrounded by trees, Remi finally spoke. “She was so…”
“Cold?” I supplied.
“Scared.”
“Oh,” that actually made sense, she was acting out of fright or need. She definitely didn’t want him to leave.
“Do you think someone is forcing them to keep me here?” Remi asked, his tone worried. I hated that he cared about his awful parents this much, although I had a feeling his father wasn’t as bad as his mother, but he was firmly on her team so I judged them both equally.
“I have a suspicion that something is off,” I replied. “Which is why we’re leaving. I need you to be safe.” I held out my slate and called my dad.
“Hey, son. How’s your week of exploring going?”
“Hi, Dad. Bad news. We’re thirty minutes from the portal, please meet us there.”
“Of course, I’m already here. Do you need the others?” I knew he meant the rulers.
“Yes, please.”
“See you soon,” he said, his voice worried.
Then we hung up.
Chapter Nineteen
