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with him, I won’t win.
    “We’ll see. That’s the best answer I can give you.”
    He chuckles. “That’s better than no.”
    I shrug again.

 

    I UNBLOCK DAD’S voice and brace myself for the headache from hell. I have to talk to him.
    Daddy?
    A?
    I’m sorry I’ve been blocking you. I just thought it’d be for the best. I’m sorry.
    Come home.
    You know I can’t. It’s complicated.
    A, my army is ready to destroy Gaia to bring you home.
    I won’t let you do that. I won’t risk you or anyone else I care about getting hurt. I’m okay here. How’s Mom?
    Going crazy, wondering how you are.
    Reassure her that I’m fine and safer here than I would be there. My abilities are more out of control than they ever have been. Uncle Harim thinks it’s because I’m getting older and being in Gaia has strengthened them. He and Cohen are teaching me control. Well, they are trying to anyway.
    Dad is silent for a moment.
    A, I’m sorry. This is my fault. I shouldn’t have tried to hide you. I thought I was doing the right thing. Instead, I’ve put you at risk.
    It isn’t okay, and I won’t say it is just to make him feel better. But I don’t want him to feel worse than he already does.
    I just hope we can figure something out, so I can see you and Mom again.
    I love you, A. And I promise, we will figure something out.
    Love you, too.

    I eat lunch then go out back to train with Uncle Harim and Cohen. However, I don’t see them anywhere. Instead, Isaac is sitting on a bench. He stands and smiles.
    I pull the hair band off my wrist and pull my hair into a ponytail.
    “Where’s my Uncle and your dad?”
    “They’re taking the day off. You were too much for them yesterday.”
    I laugh. “And you’re here because?”
    “I’m training you.”
    I raise a brow. “Isaac, you saw what I did to them.”
    “And I’m younger than they are.”
    “Why does that matter?” I notice he has on shoes.
    “Because. We age depending on how much of our abilities we use. That’s why you don’t see us going around using them all of the time. And different things cause different amounts of aging. Tib will explain all of that to you. Anyway, Dad and your Uncle used a lot of power yesterday to keep you from killing them. It took years off their life.”
    “Oh my god! I didn’t know, or I wouldn’t have let them do that!”
    He laughs it off and shrugs. “No problem. It’ll be a very long time before they go anywhere.”
    I nod, but I still feel horrible. “All right, but there’s no way I’m going to train and allow you to take years off your life to teach me control.”
    “If someone doesn’t teach you control, your own life will be cut short because of your inability to center your abilities. Every time your abilities go crazy, years are taken off your life. ”
    “I’m more concerned about the safety of others than my own. It’s fine; I’ll train myself.”
    “Like hell you will! And drop the savior bullshit, A. If any of us were that concerned about our lives, we wouldn’t offer to help.”
    Next thing I know, Isaac catches me off guard and forces power toward me. I’m thrown to the ground. I retaliate quickly and shield myself. He breaks the shield with ease, and I can feel his magic burning against my skin. I hiss in pain and clench my teeth.
    Isaac starts sending lawn furniture in my direction. I crouch down in the grass and remember what Uncle Harim and Cohen told me. “ Always be aware of your surroundings, and use everything to your advantage. Everything is at your will. You can manipulate everything, even time if you try hard enough.”
    I grin evilly and close my eyes as I keep my abilities that are trying to spin out of control at bay. I rewind time back to the first moment Isaac caught me off guard. I run over and tackle him to the ground and hold him down with my magic. He isn’t going anywhere.
    “I can’t move.”
    I laugh, and a few strands of hair come loose from my ponytail and fall