Tab Bennett and the Inbetween by Jes Young Read Free Book Online

hand and silenced us both. “What kind of proof do you require?”
     
    I tapped my finger against my lips. “I’ll tell you what I want for Christmas, and if Santa brings it, I’ll know you’re telling the truth.”
     
    Pop sputtered in surprise at my rudeness. Alex raised his hand, silencing Pop again. I made a mental note to ask him about the hand thing. That was a trick I wanted to learn.
     
    “I know this is difficult for you to believe,” he said.
     
     “Seriously? Do you really expect me to believe I’m an elf?” I folded my arms across my chest in a posture that said ‘because I don’t’ as clear as words would have.
     
    “You are Elvish, Tabitha; it’s not a question of belief. But since you only just found out,” Alex glared at Pop before continuing, “I understand your need for proof. With your permission, Bennett?”
     
    Pop was not in a permission giving kind of mood. He wanted to refuse so badly I swear he was almost shaking with the desire to say no. But he gave it anyway. He didn’t really have a choice.
     
    “Look at me,” Alex said, “I am going to show you that I am as I say.”
     
    A desk lamp provided the only light. It cast shadows against the objects in the room, making everything seem unfamiliar. Pop and I sat across from each other with the expanse of his desk between us and he was the most unfamiliar thing of all.  “Well watch him,” he groused.
     
    “Are you ready?” Alex asked as he moved a few feet away from me. When he closed his eyes the air began to sparkle and sway. A bright, white light swelled in front of him, wrapping itself around him. He stood, radiant, at the center of the glow. I was breathless, jealous, desperate for the light to hold me too. I took one step toward him and he disappeared.
     
    “Alex?” He reappeared when I said his name. “That was amazing.”
     
     He made a little bow and then said, “Now listen to your grandfather.”
     
    “Can you do that?” I asked Pop.
     
    “Of course,” he said indignantly. “All of We of the Light can do that.”
     
    “Can I?” My eyes were wide open at the thought.
     
    Alex laughed. “Soon, love, you’ll be able to do that and much more.”
     
    Pop cleared his throat. “Are you convinced then?” he asked.
     
    The magic of Alex’s disappearing act was hard to ignore but some part of me, the part that had long ago given up on the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny, wasn’t buying it. The whole story was too crazy to just believe. I was intrigued but cautiously so.
     
    “You have my attention.”
     
    After an annoyed grunt, Pop reached into his desk drawer, pulled out a box, and placed it in front of me on the desk. “This belonged to your mother,” he said. “Now it belongs to you.”
     
    You’ve heard the phrase expectant hush, right? Well, one of those fell on us as I scrutinized the unexpected gift. Alex smiled and gestured toward it, his face full of a happy kind of tension. He wanted me to like it. He wanted me to put it on and say yes and be happy too. Something in his expression reminded me of the way Robbin looked right before he asked me to marry him.
     
     “It’s not a box of snakes, Tabitha. Just open it,” Pop snapped.
     
    After a moment of hesitation I picked up the ornate wooden box and carefully worked open the silver clasp. Inside, a delicate circle of braided platinum vines and flowers and diamonds flashed and sparkled. I touched it tentatively, just with the tip of my finger, and the flowers and vines burst to life, transforming into living roses and ivy and vibrant blue forget-me-nots. Clustered around the diamonds, the flowers so alive and fragrant were more beautiful than the platinum version could ever hope to be.
     
    “I’ve kept this safe for you just as I have tried to keep you safe while we lived in exile here among Those of the World. Perhaps I have made some mistakes but I have always acted out of love and loyalty to you. I have always done