“It’s difficult to explain,” started Garner, “but the short of it is that Catrina Flummer is of great importance to us. We had feared her dead upon leaving Eidolon’s Valley, and when Colin became the focus of Jusliska Blackwell, he informed us he had been protecting her all along.” He paused adding, “And we need Catrina.”
“Because she's a Projector,” confirmed Meghan, unsure why they would need this girl, who had proven to be dangerous.
“Um, no. She's not, Meghan,” spoke Billie in a low, trembling voice.
Garner then explained that Catrina was a song spinner, and what that meant. “We are stuck in a battle of wits,” Garner told her. “One that Catrina Flummer is at the very heart of. She, you see, is our secret weapon in this battle, which shall possibly rage on for many months and years to come.” He did not elaborate and she did not ask.
Meghan mind was spinning in thought, once again. She still did not fully understand what Ivan was up to, or Bird, but now, Garner and Billie appeared to have their own battle waging. She did not want to be a part of it. Good or bad, for Juliska or against Juliska, she just wanted her brother… her thoughts swirled around Colin. “Wait a minute,” Meghan said slowly. “The Stripers said they tracked the power of the Projector to the Svoda. They said it disappeared after Catrina and Colin...” she trailed off. Her eyes opened wide, dawning comprehension. She took a step back, leaning against the wall for support.
“I'm sorry, Meghan. So sorry,” said Billie. “We didn't know when we let them go, and not that we would have stopped them. We needed Catrina safe and for now, she is. But as Colin's powers increase…”
“Stop!” said Meghan, backing out of the room. “I don't want to hear any more.” She nodded her head in agreement with herself. Apparently, she had reached her toleration point for undesirable discoveries.
“Meghan,” spoke Garner sternly, seeing her wanting to shut down, “Whatever happens, whatever you learn, whatever you see, there is one thing I can tell you with complete certainty.”
She waited breathlessly for him to speak, assuming he was about to explain how this would be an instant death sentence for her brother, but instead he said, “Trust only one person. Trust Ivan. If he tells you to do something, do it, without question. If tells you to run, do not hesitate.”
“Ivan. How do...” she stopped again when Billie shook her head no.
Meghan understood they could say no more.
“Just listen to my brother, he speaks the truth,” she assured.
“Okay,” Meghan mumbled incoherently as she turned and left Billie's, her mind a murky, gloomy haze that threatened to suffocate her. She walked right past Maura without a glance, again falling into a trance-like walk. Nothing… nothing was real. Nothing was true. Nothing in this place held any ounce of sanity, apparently, the one exception being Ivan Crane, the one boy that infuriated her at the mere thought of him.
Tomorrow morning, she and Ivan would free Bird, and then, at last, she would force them to tell her everything. She needed to know it all, and all at once, like yanking a strip of stuck tape off her skin.
Just do it, get all the hurt over with, and move on.
If she could find the strength to move on.
Part Six
Colin had spent the previous week, since getting his second soul, with Jasper Thorndike testing his reactions to certain emotional triggers. Mostly, Colin handled them fine. At one point, Jasper had literally resigned to trying to spook Colin into a reaction and jumped out at him, just after dusk, from behind a shrub growing on the backside of his boat deck.
Colin had lost his balance and nearly fell over the side of the boat, into the marshy river below; however, while falling, he realized he didn't have to, and suddenly, he stopped himself in mid fall. He then walked up the side of the boat and back onto the deck.
Jasper nodded in approval and then headed toward the front of the deck where Catrina had just made iced tea.
“We might be protected in this little bubble of yours, Jasper,” she said, “But the muggy bayou heat is just about more than I can take.”
Colin joined them, grabbing a cold tea as well, inwardly debating something. A smile lit across his face.
“What?” asked Catrina.
Just then, a pure crystallized snowflake landed on her nose.
She looked up laughing.
“You're making it snow,” she said, dancing in twirls across the deck. “It is winter, this seems much more realistic,” she added. After a few minutes, the flakes stopped and the heat returned.
Colin turned to Jasper, who had an odd expression on his face.
“Colin, I don't want to sound too excited by your progress, because we do still have much to learn, but I admit I am pleased that you have bonded with the second soul so easily. I’ve seen it take many months, if not years, to adjust to the intrusion into one’s mind.”
“Oh, well, thats probably because I'm used to intrusions in my mind.”
“How so?”
“My twin sister, Meghan. We can read each other’s thoughts. Since we were little. So the Magicante is really just like having another sister in my head.”
“That's a very lucky skill, Mr. Jacoby, although, I find it rather odd that you haven't mentioned your sister, not once.” Jasper looked as though he wanted to say more, but held his tongue.
Colin's heart went cold at the thought of her. He shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about it. There’s nothing to talk about,” he affirmed. Snow began falling again, more heavily.
“What don't you want to talk about?” Jasper prodded.
Colin refused to answer. He started tapping his fingers across the tabletop. His leg started shaking up and down, faster and faster.
Jasper continued his assault. “I find it hard to believe, that even after all the time you’ve been here, that you don't want to talk about your sister, Colin. How she, the one that always protected you… every day of your life… betrayed you...because of what she thought Catrina Flummer was… a dangerous, evil girl that was stealing away her brother!”
“I said. I don't. Want to talk about it!” Colin snarled. He stood as he did so, a surge of hatred rushing through his veins. He took hold of the table’s edge, tossing it into the air, uncaring of where it landed. But he heard no crash.
Jasper raised his arm and the table came back down, landing back in its place.
“And here we get to it,” Jasper whispered, motioning for Catrina to back away.
She did so, but warily, as she watched Colin unraveling.
“What do you know?” Colin shouted vehemently, as his body started to shake, violently.
Colin felt the Magicante’s strength weakening and the link to his stream of thoughts, sputtering. Almost like it was having a difficult time keeping up with the flood of angry thoughts screaming through his brain. The boat started to shake now, the old wood creaking and moaning.
Colin grabbed onto the first coherent thought he could, hoping this would slow his mind and keep the connection from breaking completely. Instead, he found himself lingering on the thought with every fiber of his being.
The thought his mind had stopped on was of he and Meghan, standing just outside of the Mochrie house. He had put his arm around her shoulder and she was happier than he had ever seen her.
He did not want to see that. Her happy. She wasn't allowed to be happy. Not after what she did.
Colin let out a pained cry that shook the entire bubble world Jasper had created. The snow disappeared, but so did something else. Translucent ridges whizzed and popped all around them, as the protective cloak crackled and dissolved.
Catrina shouted something but Colin did not hear her.
Jasper stood, gazing overhead and then snapped his head just in time to see Colin vanish.
Catrina gasped, looking to Jasper.
Jasper frowned, searching the boat for him.
However, Colin was no longer on the boat.
“Where did he go?” Catrin
a asked him in a hushed voice.
“I have no idea,” said Jasper, his face a canvas of concern. “I… He … this should not have happened…” He gazed overhead, befuddled by the protection cloaks demise. “This is very, very bad,” he mumbled.
##
Colin materialized in a place that looked familiar, but he did not recognize it right away. His emotions still fumed angrily. His breath came out in heavy torrents as he struggled to catch his thoughts again. It was like not being able to breathe deeply enough, and only getting enough shallow air to stay alive.
The book’s magic revved up to top speed, catching his thoughts once again, but Colin noted a sense of control over the book. Like if he wanted to, he could take over and force the book to do his will. Nevertheless, he let go, allowing the book to take over for him.
Colin realized this entire experience had been another of Jasper’s tests, and he had failed, miserably. Worse yet, how was he to get back to Jasper and Catrina?
Taking a deep, cleansing breath, Colin searched the area around him, finally realizing where he had sent himself. Back to the spot where it had all began for him. The first time he had used magic. He was home, standing underneath the great oak tree, where Meghan had first fallen ill in the Cobbscott campground. Somehow, that day, he had used magic to get her home when he thought she was dying. When he’d thought he was going to lose her…
“Why Meghan?” he cried out. “Why did you do it?” He leaned his head onto the trunk of the great oak. He wanted to confront her properly and force her to explain why she had betrayed him to Juliska Blackwell.
There was a loud pop behind him and he spun around. “Colby?” he called out in surprise.
“Gotcha,” Colby replied, grinning wickedly.
Someone else popped in next to Colby. Colin recognized him as the Striper leader, named KarNavan.
Colin's first worry was whether he could get back to Jasper's boat. His second worry was over Catrina’s safety. His third worry was could he duel this boy in his current state of mind? His fourth worry was why is Colby here, and why did he drag along KarNavan? Colin felt that everything pointed back to him. They were all tracking him. The Projector. He questioned whether returning to Jasper and Catrina would be the right thing to do, seeing as he might just be putting them in harm’s way.
He wondered if he could get safely back into Jasper’s bubble, where he would be hidden by the cloak, but then realized he had no idea how he had escaped out of it to begin with.
Colby just stood with his arms folded, as if bored and waiting for something.
Colin focused his mind on what he wanted. To return to Jasper's boat. As he felt himself being lifted away, he distinctly heard Colby say, “See you soon.”
What did he mean?
Colin was suddenly standing back on the deck of the boat.
Jasper sighed in relief.
Catrina rushed forward, wrapping her arms around him.
“What happened?” Coiln asked Jasper. “I thought I couldn't leave the boat.”
“It brings up many questions,” Jasper said rapidly. “First things first though, the protective cloak must be…”
“Something just happened. Something bad I think,” Colin broke in quickly.
A voice echoed over them, from the highest point of the deck.
“That depends on whose point of view you’re looking from,” spoke Colby haughtily. KarNavan and his treasure hunting gang stood at the ready behind Colby.
“They followed you,” said Jasper, not sounding overly concerned.
“I'm sorry,” Colin said. “This is all my fault.”
“Not to fret, just keep it together,” ordered Jasper. “We can take them, it’s not an issue,” he said, sounding quite sure.
“I don't see it that way,” said Colby, eyeing Colin and Catrina.
Colin blocked Catrina, hoping to keep her out of danger, and then fretted whether he might be more harmful to her than Colby if he lost control again.
Jasper, upon seeing Colby eyeing Colin and Catrina, did something unexpected.He waved his arm around Colin and Catrina as if working magic.
They saw nothing happen, but in the next moment Colby demanded, “Where did they go? What did you do to them?”
KarNavan and his gang of treasure hunters searched the boat to no avail.
Colin and Catrina suddenly found themselves sitting on the shore, watching the boat float by. No one could see them. Jasper had made them invisible, hiding them from the intruders now scouring the boat.
“Jasper must have re-cloaked us,” Colin said, feeling stupid. “This is completely my fault and now we can't even help.”
“You got in and out before, do it again,” Catrina said, nodding toward the boat.
“I don't really know how I did it… I was really angry.”
“Try,” she said calmly. They trekked along the mossy shore, following the boat as it slowly floated down the river.
Back on board, Colby was making a snide remark toward Jasper. “Doesn't matter. It’s him we came for today, anyway.”
Jasper raised his eyebrows. “Sorry, but I'm afraid I'm not going to make it that easy for you.” With his next breath, the weapons carried in the Striper's hands turned to sand, seeping through their poised-to-fight fingers, to the deck floor. They looked at each other as if to ask “What do we do now?”
“I do not want to kill you,” advised Jasper. “But if you force my hand...”
“That's why I brought a little leverage,” said Colby.
A face Colin recognized suddenly appeared onto the boat deck.
“Meghan,” he muttered. “They couldn't have.” He gulped hard, feeling the connection with his book racing to keep up with the angst currently filling his heart. Yes, he was angry with her, but he did not want her to die. And that was the truth. He did not want her to die.
Catrina rubbed his arm, telling him it would be okay.
“Jasper is really good, just breathe Colin.”She could see his struggle overwhelming him and feared he might pop out again and disappear.
Meghan could not speak as they had gagged her, and she could barely walk as they had bound her feet together with thick rope. She struggled to get free, but they had her hands tied up into a balled fist in front of her.
In the next moment, things happened very quickly and succinctly.
Jasper closed his eyes and willed Meghan to his side. He pushed her behind him, using his body as a shield.
“You were saying something about leverage. You really should have put a little more thought into this plan.”
Jasper gasped, staggering quite suddenly.
He looked down.
Blood was seeping through his shirt.
Colin sucked in a breath. This could not be. Meghan may not be perfect but she was no killer.
Then everything became clear. Jasper fell to his knees, a great white knife sticking out of his back. The girl that had looked like Meghan began to shift and change. At the same time, the one standing on the deck that looked like Colby shifted into someone else, someone he did not know.
Colby stood over Jasper eagerly waiting for something. He never took his eyes off the knife. Suddenly, the white knife began to glow a fiery red and at that moment, Colby withdrew the knife, relieved by the outcome.
He walked around, knelt and looked Jasper in the face. “You were saying something about planning… my father will be most pleased. Thank you.”
“I'm not healing, why aren't I healing,” mumbled Jasper in confusion.
Colby held up the knife and allowed Jasper to gaze at it. “Because, I have all your powers now, stored right here. All that’s left of you is a dying old man.”
On the shore, the protective cloak covering Colin and Catrina vaporized. They gazed worriedly at each other, and then towards the boat.
Jasper eyed the boy, unflinchingly, understanding what had happened. He had been outsmarted. They eyed each other, hard, for a full minute, neither blinking nor moving. Fi
nally, Jasper saw a fleeting glimpse of what he was looking for and threw Colby a sad smile. “There it is,” he said weakly.
“There what is?” demanded Colby.
“You’re a smart boy, I’ll give ya that. But I see it,” Jasper spoke quietly. When Colby refused to reply, Jasper added, “I see the fear in your young face.”
Whatever Jasper had seen, anger, not fear, now flitted across Colby’s face.
“You poor disillusioned boy,” continued Jasper. “A pawn in a game you know so little about.”
Colby closed his eyes, ignoring the feelings and questions begging to surface. He had his orders. He had to obey. That was it.
He ignored Jasper and turned to rejoin a sneering KarNavan.
“Should we kill him master Colby?” asked the Striper leader.
“Why? He's practically dead already. Let him have his last moments. Let him contemplate his sorry end...” With that, Colby dematerialized alongside the Striper's, but to Colin's surprise and horror, the deck did not remain empty.
Another shadow emerged, not too far from the ailing Jasper. The shadow started out like a dense fog, which darkened as it swirled into a form; a human form.
Colin stomped his foot into the thick moss, furiously trying to figure out how to get back on the boat, without causing more problems for Jasper.
On the boat, Jasper had slipped off his knees and now sat on the deck, leaning his back against a wall, clutching his bleeding chest.
The shadow grew more prominent. Colin and Catrina watched as the shadow became solid, slipping a cloak off its head. It looked like a man, except that his features looked much more ragged and worn than a normal man’s did.
Catrina gasped and grabbed Colin's hand. “Grosvenor,” she told him shakily.
“What?” he replied, dumbfounded.
She just nodded, wide-eyed, unable to speak the word again.
“I have to get back over there!” Colin spat fearlessly.
“Colin, even if we can get back on the boat, we can’t fight an immortal!”
“I can’t leave Jasper, not after everything he’s done to…” Colin choked up, caught himself and then took hold of Catrina’s hand. Whatever happened, whatever he did, he would keep her close by. They moved cautiously along the shore, trying to think what to do. She grabbed his arm and pointed. There was an inlet and if they hurried, they could stealthily hop back on board the boat.
Divided (Book Five) (Fated Saga Fantasy Series) Page 12