The Light Keeper

by Gabriella Lepore

  The men were on the other side of the road now, heading deeper into town. They hadn’t noticed us. It looked like we were home free… until Elana hiccupped.

  I winced.

  One vampire turned, and his stare locked onto us in the blink of an eye. The others were quick to follow his gaze. There were around ten of them in total.

  Ten vampires against one of me.

  I didn’t like those odds.

  Time for some quick thinking. I swung Elana around, repositioning her out of their sight, and pressed my mouth to her throat.

  Her breath faltered. “What are you doing?” she gasped. She grappled to regain her footing as I dipped her slightly.

  Nice. Keep struggling, That made it more believable.

  I could feel the vampires’ eyes on my back. Near as I could figure, one of three things was going to happen. One, they’d see through my phony act and kill us both. Two, they’d believe my act, but decide to join the feast… and then kill us both. Or three, they’d leave us alone and let me feed in peace. Obviously I was hoping for option number three.

  I bit.

  “Ow!” Elana cried.

  It was only a nip.

  I held her there for what felt like an eternity, trying my best to emulate a vampire. We remained locked in our embrace for what felt like minutes. The street had fallen quiet again. My ears remained pricked, listening for every pin drop.

  Silence.

  Whadda ya know? So my acting skills weren’t so bad after all.

  I withdrew from Elana and released my pretend victim—but not before planting the smallest of kisses on the groove of her neck. Just for fun.

  I grinned.

  She didn’t.

  “What? I just saved your life.”

  She wiped her neck. “Was it necessary to actually bite?”

  “Yes.” Probably not.

  She pressed her palm to her throat. “I think you drew blood.” She examined her hand beneath the low streetlamp light, determined to find a trace of blood.

  I laughed. “I barely touched you.”

  Aside from the intimate embrace part, I mean. The taste of her skin still lingered on my lips, sending my heart rate wild.

  Elana folded her arms across her chest. “I think you enjoyed that a little too much.”

  “I didn’t.” I did.

  “You bit me!”

  I flipped my palms up. “Method acting. I was getting into character. I created a rich back story for myself. I had layers.”

  “What else is there to add to a blood-sucking vampire? It’s a one-dimensional role.”

  “I was the Hollywood version of a vampire. A vampire in love.”

  Elana choked at my words.

  I cringed when I realized what I’d said.

  She scrunched her nose. “You were pretending to be in love me with me?”

  I laughed loudly. “You wish.” I took hold of her elbow and steered her back on course. “Anyway, walk faster or I’ll be trying out a new role—vampire in mourning.”

  As luck would have it, the rest of the trek went off without a hitch. Although it was dark, it wasn’t dark enough for the streets to be crawling with demons yet. We made it to the garage without stumbling into any more trouble.

  However, by the time we arrived at the garage, it appeared that it, too, had the good sense to be closed. Fortunately, our car was parked out in the yard, window fixed and gleaming in the moonlight. Unfortunately, the keys were locked safely inside the office.

  “Oh no,” Elana’s hands flew to her face. “Now what?”

  I tried the El Camino door, rattling the handle.

  Elana groaned. “We’re going to die here!”

  “If we were going to die here, I’m pretty sure it would have happened already.”

  I booted the office door and it swung open into the darkness. I strode into the small trailer and ransacked the desk draws until I found my keys.

  With the hard part over, we retreated to the El Camino.

  I collapsed behind the wheel while Elana clambered into the passenger seat beside me.

  She breathed a long sigh. “I never thought I’d be so pleased to be in this car.” She stroked the dashboard affectionately. Then, to my surprise, she leaned across the gearbox and hugged me.

  “Thank you,” she said, squeezing her arms around me.

  I stared into the starry night sky beyond the windshield. “For what?”

  “Everything.”

  “Oh.” I cleared my throat. “I’m just doing my job.”

  She rested her chin on my shoulder. “I mean it,” she murmured. “Thank you.”

  “Hey, now, Witch, don’t go getting all touchy-feely on me.” I shifted in my seat. “We’ve got work to do. Let’s keep this professional.”

  I felt her smile, her cheek pressed against mine. “Understood. Professional.” She laughed softly and her breath brushed my ear, sending my pulse into overdrive. She didn’t let go, though.

  And that was fine by me.

  ELANA

  Chapter Twelve

  The Tangled Webs We Weave

  It was dawn by the time we reached the bridge to the High Peak. I’d expected some sprawling golden crossing, but if anything it seemed rickety and shoddy. What took my breath away, though, was the view from it.

  Traveling along the slowly rising mountain road, I hadn’t actually realized how high we’d come. But now, suspended above the world, cruising along the gap between the two mountains, I was awestruck. We were in the clouds, driving through the feathery mist as the iridescent colors of the new day dawned around us.

  The forest sprawled below. From this height it appeared as one continuous expanse of green. I saw towns and hills in the far distance, but they were so removed from the mountains that they might as well have been part of another world. My life in Ashwood Hollow felt like another world.

  I glanced at Jake. One hand was rested atop the steering wheel, and his rich brown eyes were trained on the straight route along the bridge. I found myself watching him in a dreamy sort of way, wondering about him, imagining him in different circumstances. How would he fit into my English Lit class? Would we have been friends?

  I pictured him sitting at a desk, surrounded by classmates. Being normal. He’d probably play sports, I thought. He’d probably date all the pretty girls. Marissa would throw herself at him, no doubt. And he’d probably love it. I frowned. I knew I had no hope of forming any relationship with him. His only affiliation with me was this journey. Work, nothing more, just like he said. If he were in school with me, I’d be invisible to him.

  But at least he’d be there.

  Something caught in my chest—a tug, as though my heart were a magnet drawing me to him.

  It was silly to be daydreaming about Jake attending Ashwood Hollow High—especially since I didn’t know if even I would be going back there.

  I flinched at the thought. Was I going to go back?

  Reaching the bridge had sparked a symbolic turning point for me. I knew I had to make a decision. We’d arrived at the High Peak, and my time was running out. It came down to this: fight or flight. Either give in to my so-called destiny, or else escape for home, and try to forget that any of this ever happened. I could drink herbal tea with Astra, argue with Marissa over what movie to watch or what pizza topping to get, and go to boring Saturday night dances in the community hall—I wanted it all back. I missed it. I missed the patchouli scent of Astra’s clothes, I missed the dumb old community hall, I even missed being mad at Marissa. Maybe the demons would decide to stay put on their own and we could leave this whole ugly mess behind us.

  It could happen.

  I stared ahead, watching white wisps of fog break across our windows. Could I really forget this? Was it possible to turn back now, after the things I’ve seen? A man had lost his life yesterday. Demons were out there and, as much as I wanted to convince myself otherwise, they would venture beyond the secure boundaries of the mountains unless I stepped up to
stop them. Could I really walk away from that?

  I looked down at my hands.

  “You’re quiet,” Jake noted. “You’re not usually quiet.”

  I mustered a smile. “I’m thinking.”

  “About?”

  “Me,” I said. “And home. And school.”

  His eyebrows drew together. “Why are you thinking about school?”

  “Will I ever go back there?” I cast a tentative glance his way. “And…”

  “And?” His fingers twitched on the steering wheel.

  “What would you be like if you were at school?” I watched for his reaction.

  “If I was at school?” Jake smiled strangely, and I wondered if he’d ever considered that concept before. “I’d be bored, for one thing.”

  “Would we be…” I squirmed in my seat, “friends?”

  He laughed.

  I guess that was my answer.

  “Who would you be friends with in school?” I knew it was a ridiculous question even as the words were leaving my mouth.

  Jake exhaled wearily. “I don’t know. You, probably.”

  “That’s because you only know me.”

  “I don’t only know you. I know plenty of people.”

  “Would you play sports?” I asked. “Who would you sit with at lunch?”

  He frowned impatiently. “I don’t know. I wouldn’t sit with anyone. But I’d probably play sports. Only the contact ones, though,” he added with a wicked laugh.

  I sighed.

  He sighed too. “Would it make you happy if I said I’d sit by you at lunch?”

  “Not really.”

  “If I didn’t play any sports?”

  “No,” I said.

  “Then what would make you happy?” His voice was tense, almost desperate.

  I fiddled with my charm bracelet, trying to put it into words. “To know that if our friendship wasn’t entirely based on these circumstances, we’d still have met.”

  “We wouldn’t have.”

  It felt like my heart had turned to lead and was plummeting into my stomach.

  Jake tried to elaborate. “Without this, how could we have met? What would we have in common?”

  I sighed again, louder and more deliberate this time.

  He lifted his hands in a blameless gesture. “I can’t help it—that’s just the way things are.”

  “So you wouldn’t sit next to me at lunch?”

  “Probably not.”

  I crossed my arms and stared out the window, watching the bridge’s supporting beams pass by in a blur.

  “What’s up with you, anyway? You’re acting weird.” Jake paused. “Well, weirder.”

  “Excuse me for having feelings. I’m sorry that I’m not a total robot like you.”

  His eyebrows raised. “Ouch.”

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean that.”

  And I was sorry. Kidnapping aside, none of this was Jake’s fault. I took a deep breath. “I’m just…” I exhaled slowly. “I’m going to miss my life.”

  Jake gave me a sympathetic look. After some moments he reached into his jeans pocket and took out his phone. “We’ll be losing service soon. The High Peak isn’t exactly a hot spot for reception. So I just thought, well, if you wanted to call anyone…” he hesitated, offering me his phone. “You know, to say goodbye…”

  “I get it,” I said quietly, taking the phone.

  More than anything I wanted to speak to my mom. I crossed my fingers, willing her to be back from the peace rally out of town. I dialed, trying not to get my hopes up.

  It rang once, twice, three times…

  “Peace, love, and light to you, caller.”

  My heart gave a little leap at the sound of my mother’s familiar greeting.

  “Astra,” I gasped. “It’s me.”

  “Hey, hon! Where on earth have you been?” She wasn’t angry. She never was.

  Where on earth? That was a good question.

  “I’m in the mountains,” I said in a wobbly voice. “I’m with…a friend.”

  “Oh. Okay, babe. I only got back in town myself last night. Oh, Elana, the rally was unreal…”

  I listened as my mother relayed her story, enthused about the demonstration that she and her friend Harry had protested at. I let her words saturate my every fiber, afraid that I may never hear her voice again. Once she’d finished filling me in on every detail of the protest, the conversation returned to me.

  “Will you be home in time for dinner?” she asked.

  The question made me want to cry.

  “Mom,” I said, and she didn’t correct me, “what would you do if you could save the lives of others, at the cost of yourself? Hypothetically speaking, of course,” I added.

  She was silent. I heard her soft breathing across the line. “Oh,” she said after a lengthy pause. “So it’s finally happened.”

  I frowned.

  “I always wondered how this day would feel,” Astra said, her voice distant now. She laughed sadly. “I’ve practiced it a thousand times, hoping it would soften the blow.” She paused. “It hasn’t.”

  “Practiced what?” I twisted the little silver moon charm between my thumb and forefinger as my heart rate quickened.

  “This,” she breathed. “This conversation. This moment.”

  “What moment, Astra?”

  “The moment you tell me you’re becoming the Light Keeper.”

  All of a sudden I couldn’t breathe. “You know?” I choked. “About the Hidden Mountains? About the Light Keeper?”

  I felt Jake’s eyes on me now.

  When my mother’s voice returned to me, it was so weak that I struggled to hear her. “Yes,” she murmured. “I know.”

  My fingers had tightened around the moon charm, and I was squeezing it with such force now that it began to hurt. My mother had known this horrible secret about me and never thought to share it?

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, breathlessly.

  Silence.

  I held the phone closer to my ear, suddenly feeling stiflingly hot and icy cold all at once. “How long have you known?”

  She sighed, a long gust of air blowing through the speaker. “I’ve always known, Elana. You were… made for this.”

  “What do you mean?” I was already dreading the answer.

  “This won’t be easy for you to hear.”

  I shrank back in my seat, enveloped by it. “Tell me.”

  She cleared her throat. “Honey,” she began, “you’re old enough now, and it’s time you knew the truth. The relationship between your father and me wasn’t exactly…conventional.”

  My mouth went dry. “How unconventional was it, exactly?”

  There was a brief hesitation before she continued. “Your father was sent to me from a line of Light Keeper witches. They needed a female witch to carry the future heir to their bloodline, and…well…” she laughed nervously, “I’m a witch.”

  I couldn’t speak. The road ahead began to blur before my eyes. I blinked, trying to regain focus.

  “I was thrilled at first,” Astra went on, dreamily. “It was an honor to bear the child who would one day serve such an imperative duty. But then it all went wrong.” She exhaled into the receiver again. “The day you were born, I couldn’t give you away. I loved you—you were my baby! I wouldn’t let him take you away from me—”

  “Him? You mean, my father?” My words sounded fuzzy.

  “No. Your father wasn’t needed anymore. The man who came to take you was called Rufus...”

  I could feel my hand trembling around the phone. How could this be true? I’d been conceived for the sole purpose of becoming the Light Keeper?

  “I tried to trick Rufus,” Astra went on. “I told him you weren’t the child he thought you were. But he demanded to have you tested.”

  “Tested?” I whispered. “For what?”

  What sort of test could they run to determine something like that?

  “Everything,” she answered.
“Your genetic makeup, your DNA. The tests all came back inconclusive. Your blood type is beyond rare—it’s matchless. Non-existent, really. That’s how he knew you were the one.”

  My mind raced. I was a genetic freak, born to be exiled to the Hidden Mountains? I stared out at the expanse of trees fringing the stretch of land on the other side of the bridge. The deep green hue ahead of us spanned like a velvet curtain into a world unknown.

  “Why didn’t you tell me any of this before?” I cried again.

  “You didn’t need to know. You were going to have a normal childhood and a normal life. It didn’t matter who they thought you were—I didn’t care. You were my child, and no one was going to take you away.”

  I took a sharp breath. “How did you stop them?”

  “I’m a witch, Elana,” she said, as though it were the most obvious solution in the world. “I used every spell I knew to buy you some time. I bargained with them, eluded them, blocked them… I made it so that they’d leave you alone until it was time for you to fulfill your destiny. A destiny, which I’m afraid, was always inevitable.”

  “And now my time’s up,” I murmured. Those were the words Jake had used when I’d first spoken to him outside the dance. Their meaning finally made sense.

  All of a sudden, the car felt as though it were closing in around me, suffocating me. I fumbled to open the passenger window, and a torrent of cold air poured in.

  “If you want to come home,” Astra said quickly, “I’ll help you escape. Forget the consequences, it’s your decision. I’ve said that all along. Harry agrees with me—”

  “Hold on,” I interrupted. “Harry? As in your friend Harry Brooks? He knew, too?”

  Beside me, Jake spluttered. But I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. All I could do was stare blankly through the dusty windscreen.

  “Yes,” my mother answered.

  “You told Harry but you didn’t tell me?” My voice went up an octave.

  “I didn’t tell Harry,” Astra explained, “Rufus did. Harry found me a few years ago, and he told me his story…”

  What kind of story did Harry have? And how was it connected to me? “Is he a Light Keeper, too?” The label sounded strange on my lips.

  “No,” my mother answered gently, “but he lived through his own involvements with Rufus. That’s why he came looking for me. He’s had his share of loss and sacrifice, so he was able to help me come to terms with mine.”