Current Impressions by Kelly Risser Page A

Seriously?”
    He nodded. “The Blue Men of Minch.”
    When he said their full name, I vaguely
remembered reading about them in one of the books I gave Evan last
Christmas. I couldn’t remember too much. I knew that they lived in
some strait and sunk ships. “Why are they an enemy?” I asked.
    My dad covered my hand with his. “They hate,
and they destroy.” His eyes grew sad, and he squeezed my hand.
“They killed my parents.”
    I gasped. I couldn’t help it. “When?
How?”
    “Many years ago.” Dad’s expression was far
away. “It feels like yesterday though. They held them for ransom.
When we wouldn’t give in to their demands, they murdered them.
Their bodies were found near Dublin, mutilated and almost
unrecognizable.”
    “I’m sorry,” I said. “I wish there was
something I could do.”
    “There is,” my dad said, surprising me. “You
can train hard and be careful.”
    When he stood and kissed my cheek, I
promised I would.
    ****
    “You’re not trying hard enough!” Kieran
snapped.
    “I’m trying as hard as I can!” I yelled,
biting back the insult lurking on the tip of my tongue. I was
exhausted. Last week, he drilled me on transporting. By the end of
the week, I managed to move myself from the bottom of the cove to
the top of the cliff. I was impressed; Kieran was not.
    This week, he was teaching me weather
control. A fluffy, white cloud floated above us. He told me to make
it rain. As if I could make that silly thing do anything. I asked
Kieran how to do it, and he told me to picture it like a sponge
filling with water, then wring the sponge cloud in my mind and
watch it rain. Ha! Like anything was ever that easy.
    He blew out a breath and stalked over. His
face was inches from my own. I could feel the heat radiating off
his body. I wanted more than anything to take a step back, but I
held my ground. I wouldn’t let him see that he affected me.
    “Clear your mind.” He drew out each word
between clenched teeth.
    “I am. I did.” My tone mimicked his.
    He rubbed his temples and closed his eyes. I
watched him with some level of fascination. Did I really have the
ability to make him this frustrated or was this just his normal
personality? Temperamental and irritating.
    He smiled at me. Too bad it didn’t reach his
eyes. They still looked pissed. “Let’s try again, shall we?” he
murmured. “Close your eyes, Meara.”
    I did as he said. With my eyes closed, I
could feel his breath on my cheek. Couldn’t he back up a pace or
two?
    “Picture the cloud.”
    I saw the small cloud in my head. Not much
bigger than a cotton ball, wispy and soft like one, too.
    “Can you see it filling?”
    I did. I saw the wisps growing heavy with
dew, the white turning dark with moisture. The air cooled around
me, and a breeze raised my hair off my shoulders.
    “Good,” Kieran whispered. “Good.”
    The edges of the cloud grew black in my
mind, saturated to the point of bursting.
    “Now, release it.” Kieran’s voice was a
sharp command. I started and saw the cloud puncture like a water
balloon. My eyes flew open when the rain drenched my skin.
    Kieran beamed at me. “You did it!” His arms
circled my waist, and he spun me around. I raised my face to the
sky in awe.
    I made it rain. I. Made. It.
Rain .
    Kieran set me down, but he pulled me into a
tight hug. “You’re amazing.”
    Without thinking, I slid my arms around his
waist. My body fit against his easily. I missed this closeness with
another person. My fingers brushed against his T-shirt. He rested
his cheek on my hair.
    My euphoria began to fade, and I stiffened
and jumped back. What was I doing? This was Kieran, not Evan.
    Kieran dropped his arms to his sides. I
crossed mine over my chest. We stared at each other in silence
until he cleared his throat. “That was good,” he said. “You caught
on faster than I expected.”
    “You were yelling at me before,” I
grumbled.
    He shrugged and picked up his cap where it
was laying on a