The Glittering Gems

Sighing, I plopped the gem into my palm. I could always take it to a jeweler to get it appraised, though finding out how much it was worth wouldn’t help me find the rightful owner. Idly, I stroked the gem with the fingers of my opposite hand. As I did, the gem shimmered, a light that seemed to come from within flashing brightly.

I blinked, wondering if it was a trick of the light. Before I could try it again, faint orange light swirled up and around beside me. I blinked harder, wondering if air from a vent was causing dust motes to dance. The light glowed brighter and became thicker, coalescing into a humanoid form.

Time seemed frozen as the light died down, revealing a handsome young man sitting beside me on the couch. My heart jumped to my throat, and I couldn’t look away. This definitely wasn’t a trick of the light.

The young man smiled, half-lidding his eyes. “I know I’m sexy, darling, but are you going to stare at me all evening, or are we going to set up a contract?”

His words broke through my stupor and I let out a strangled scream, jumping to my feet and stumbling backward.

“Well.” He raised one orange eyebrow as he leaned back, snaking his arms along the top of the couch. “That’s some greeting.”

His hair, eyebrows and all, was ridiculously orange. It was a color carrots would be jealous of, though I wasn’t sure they’d be as jealous of how wild and tousled it was. He wore an open vest that was a milder orange over a bare, toned chest, white puffy pants, gold shoes that curled at the toes, and a gold bracelet around one bicep.

This had to be a prank. Somehow. But how did he get here? “Where did you come from?” I demanded, my voice breathless.

This time, he raised both eyebrows, and I realized his eyes were orange too. He pointed a finger at his chest.

I blushed at my attention being drawn to the muscles there. I’d only ever seen bare chests on TV and at the pool. And our beach vacation, but Mom was so offended at the general amount of skin showing that she’d shoved me under an umbrella and kept me there. The guys at the beach and pool had not looked like this.

“You are asking where I came from while you hold my gem?” The finger switched to point at me, his eyes going to my closed hand.

I dropped the gem like it was lethal.

“That was rude,” he tsked, holding out his palm. The gem vanished from the floor and reappeared in his hand.

A squeak escaped my mouth. Tricks. These were elaborate tricks that were part of some elaborate prank. Except I didn’t know anyone here, let alone someone who would prank me. The wild idea flashed through my mind that my mom had hired someone to break into my apartment to scare me into running back home, but not even she would go that far. At least, I didn’t think she would.

He sighed. “I know it can be dazzling when we first appear, but it’s not like you didn’t know what to expect. Didn’t you mentally prepare yourself?” A thought seemed to occur to him, and he straightened. “You’re not new to this, are you? They wouldn’t give me to someone new. That’s a job for elementals.” He seemed insulted.

I wanted to respond, to demand that he leave, but his words were so bizarre I couldn’t think of a response. It was like his nonsense was short-circuiting my brain.

“Well, who are you?” He leaned against the back of the couch again, looking me up and down with an unimpressed air. “Which branch of the McMichael family are you from? Are you one of Jeanine’s brood? Rand’s?” A cruel smile tilted the corners of his eyes. “Or perhaps you’re a closer relation of that late bastard Criton? Though I thought he only had two children, and they’re both supposed to be childless.”

“I’m not a McMichael!” I burst out. Though the names he’d spouted sounded familiar. “I’m a Bianchi! And I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Scenarios other than a prank or my mom hiring someone ran through my head. It was stress. This was my first year at college, my first time on my own, and I had so much riding on this. If I didn’t get a reliable degree, if I didn’t graduate with good grades, I would never be free. I’d put too much pressure on myself, filled my schedule with too many classes, and this was the result. It was a stress-induced hallucination. Which was terrifying, but I would leave for work early, and when I came back, it would be to an empty apartment.

Deciding this was the most likely scenario, I spun on my heel, away from my hallucination, intending to change for work. I didn’t even take a step before he was in front of me. I gasped and stepped back, then told myself that a hallucination couldn’t hurt me.

He tapped his lips with a finger as he surveyed my expression, then chuckled darkly. “My, oh my, you stole a gem from the McMichaels? How bold. Though I’m impressed you evaded their defenses. And your timing was impeccable. Any earlier or later and I’d have had another master, and stealing me wouldn’t have done you a bit of good.”

He took a step toward me and, despite what I’d told myself about hallucinations not being able to hurt me, it was a fight not to take another step back. He had to be at least half a foot taller than me and leaned down several inches to put his face next to mine.

“You got more than you bargained for by stealing me, darling, but you’d best not try to sell me, or the McMichaels will introduce you to horrors like none other in this world.”

“I didn’t steal from anyone!” I snapped, raising onto my toes to bring our faces even closer together. The accusation brought tears of anger to my eyes. Hallucination or no, I wouldn’t let someone believe I’d committed a crime. “A bird dropped you at my feet while I was studying in the park!” I flushed red after the words left my mouth, only then realizing how stupid they sounded.

To my surprise, he blinked and leaned back. “A bird?” he repeated. He opened his mouth, then closed it, rubbing the back of his head as he stared down at me. “You’ve got some awful kind of luck, darling.”