Dissonance: An Echo Trilogy Novella (Echo Trilogy, #2.5)

by Fairleigh, Lindsey

  “I—I—” Neffe stammered. “Of—of course not, Great Father.” She cleared her throat. “I wouldn’t have actually … I mean, I—”

  “It is fine, child,” Re-Nik said, touching Neffe’s arm. “I understand more than you think. Now, shall we begin?”

  2

  Wanting & Waiting

  “I am so excited,” Kat said, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she stood at the bottom of the grand stairway in the main house—what I’d come to call simply “the house.” It was easily a mansion, and as classically designed as it was on the outside, it was equally modern and subdued on the inside. And the thing was enormous, boasting at least a dozen bedrooms and enough secondary rooms to complete a small neighborhood.

  Watching my youngest—that I knew of—sister from one of several understated gray couches in the sitting room beside the entryway, I smiled to myself. In her cut-off jean shorts and flowy T-shirt, and with her hair coiled up in a messy topknot and the worn leather satchel containing her sketching supplies that seemed to be on her at all times lately hanging easily across her body, she looked the stereotypical eighteen-year-old. She looked carefree and confident, not a worry in the world. My smile wilted. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

  “I think we’re all ready to get out and stretch our legs somewhere that isn’t here,” I said, interrupting my souring mood by filling the silence. “… and isn’t packed full of Nejerets.” I glanced at Neffe, who was seated on the opposite end of the couch from me, flipping through a scientific journal like she was skimming for the season’s latest and greatest in a fashion magazine. “I meant no offense, of course, it’s just …” We’d been cooped up in the compound for the past week, and I was fairly certain we were all starting to feel like caged animals.

  “Trust me, Lex, I get it.” Neffe offered me a minute smile without actually looking at me. “I’m as eager as young Kat for our little trip into the city.” As was I, though after the dream I’d woken from again this morning, I wagered I had very different reasons than the others. More than anything, I needed to reassure myself that the recurring nightmare had been only that: a mere figment of an overwrought mind’s overactive imagination.

  I returned my attention to Kat, taking note of her suddenly stiff posture and how her hands balled into fists at her sides. She took a deep breath. Then another. And I waited for the impending explosion. She could stand Neffe calling her “young Kat” less than Neffe could stand Nik’s nickname of “princess.”

  Kat took one more, deeper breath, and I was in the middle of mentally commending her for her unusual show of self-restraint when she opened her mouth and yelled “Marcus!” up the stairs. Very, very loudly. My ears rang from the unexpected influx of way too much sound. Sometimes heightened Nejeret senses could be a real pain.

  “Okay!” I jumped up and rushed to the stairway. “Let’s not do that again … ever, hmm?”

  Kat turned to me as I approached, her expression sheepish. “Sorry.”

  I touched her shoulder as I passed her and headed up the stairs. “I’m going to check on Marcus. I’m sure he’s getting ready right now.” He’d better be, if we wanted to make the ferry. Ascending the final few stairs, I glanced back at Kat. “Go track down Dom and Nik, will you? Let them know we’re about to head out.”

  “Yeah, okay.” And just like that, she was back to bouncing as she skipped along the hallway that led to the other rooms deeper in the house.

  “Thank you for not leaving me alone with her,” I heard Neffe say under her breath, just loud enough for me to hear.

  I rolled my eyes. Family …

  ***

  I stared down at the sparkling ripples of water from the upper deck of the ferry, seeing another time, another place in the Puget Sound’s inky depths. In my mind, I was surrounded by jagged limestone outcroppings and sand and the driest heat I’d ever felt. Before me, Marcus—or, rather, Heru—knelt on the rock-strewn sand, a tall wall of limestone on one side of us, a pile of boulders on the other. My memory of him staring up at me while he pledged his life to mine was so fresh in my mind it might as well have happened mere hours ago, not thousands of years ago.

  I shook my head and frowned, embracing the refreshing sea air. It was a perfect August day in the Sound—a solid eighty degrees, ideal tank-top-and-sandals weather. Ideal ferry weather.

  “My father would have enjoyed the ferry ride greatly today,” Neffe said from beside me. She’d been my silent companion at the deck railing for some fifteen minutes, and I’d utilized that time to thoroughly lose myself in thought.

  “Mm-hmm.” Thinking of Marcus—or, more specifically, of his absence—I suppressed another frown.

  “Whatever the Council of Seven was discussing must have been very important for him to miss this,” Neffe added, and I glanced at her, just long enough to see the concern in her eyes. I’d fought hard to keep our little day trip alive once it became clear that Marcus wouldn’t be able to leave his virtual meeting with the Council for hours yet, and Neffe had been my main ally, but I hadn’t expected Marcus to actually agree. As silly as it sounds, considering I’d gotten my way, I felt a little let down.

  “It was important,” I said. “—ish.” I caught a glimpse of Nik out of the corner of my eye; he was leaning against the railing several dozen feet up deck from us, his back to the water as he kept a close eye on everyone and everything within his range of sight. Marcus and the Council had been discussing him, specifically whether or not they should force him to be the ninth member of the Council of Seven, what with me being the honorary eighth member and the Council having a hard time making any decisions now that they boasted an even number of members. Remotely, I wondered if they’d be changing the name now that the “of Seven” no longer applied.

  Marcus had called for a short break when I’d come upstairs to check on him, but not before I’d heard the heated voices coming from the conference room.

  “I can’t leave right now, Little Ivanov,” Marcus told me, regret filling his burnished golden eyes. “We’ll have to postpone until tomorrow.”

  I pressed my lips together and studied his resigned features. “Are you sure you have to be here for this?” I asked, flicking my eyes toward the shut door behind him and the conference room with its six monitors, one for each of the members of the Council of Seven. I’d ducked out of the meeting when Dr. Sands had arrived a couple hours earlier, and it had been little more than a silent standoff when I’d been present. The discussion was pointless, which I’d already expressed … thus the silent standoff. But none of them knew Nik—or Re—as well as I did, not even Marcus. I’d tried to tell them that nobody could make Nik do something he didn’t want to do, especially not when Re himself had no interest in taking part in the Nejeret governing body, but several of the Council members had refused to believe me. Surely Marcus’s time was better spent elsewhere … like in Seattle with me.

  Marcus reached out and curved his hand around the side of my neck, brushing his thumb slowly over my lips until they parted. He made a low, guttural sound, something between a groan and a sigh. “Much as I hate to see such disappointment in your eyes, Little Ivanov, yes, I need to be here for this.”

  Grasping his wrist, I turned my face to the side and kissed his palm. Meeting his eyes, I pulled back a hairsbreadth and said, “But I don’t.”

  I watched Marcus’s striking features tense. “Lex …”

  I stood a little taller. “There’s no reason I shouldn’t go without you.” Before he could protest, I barreled on without thought. “We’ve had zero indication that anyone has any interest in hurting me right now, and Saga and Heimdall already scoured the stable portions of the At and saw nothing to be worried about in Seattle today. Besides, Dr. Ramirez rearranged his entire schedule today to fit me in.” Apparently he had an artifact for me to look at, though I had no idea what it was or where he’d come by it, just that it had made him think of me. His email a few days back had sparked unexpected happiness, as though
he was my last true connection to the purely human world, and now with the dreams about him dying, I was especially determined to visit him today.

  “Plus,” Neffe said from behind me, “both Nik and Dom will be there, and even you’ve all but admitted that Nik is better at protecting Lex than you are.” I sucked in my breath and leaned back a little as soon as the words were out of Neffe’s mouth. That had been the absolutely wrong thing for her—for anyone—to say to Marcus.

  My bond-mate withdrew his hand and clenched it into a fist, and my whole body tensed in anticipation of what I was betting would be a rather grand argument. Marcus closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly released it, then relaxed his hand and looked at me. “Very well, Little Ivanov, if you still wish to go into the city today, you have my—”

  My eyes narrowed in anticipation of the next word that would come out of his mouth, and he paused. So help me, if he even started to utter the word “permission” …

  Marcus’s perfect, chiseled cheek twitched. “You have my blessing.”

  I flashed him a humorless smile. Clearly we were still working some of the kinks out of our relationship.

  “Yes, well, my father can spend all day in his precious meeting for all I care.” Neffe nudged my shoulder. “At least we get to get out and have some fun, yeah?”

  I met her gaze and smiled, knowing full well it didn’t touch my eyes. I felt off, and not only because Marcus hadn’t been able to join us. No, it was something else. Something different. It was as though I was waiting for something to happen; I just didn’t know what I was waiting for. It’s probably just the dream, I told myself.

  Neffe touched her fingertips to my forearm. “I’m going to run in and grab a coffee. Do you want anything?”

  I shook my head. “Thanks, though,” I said absently, and she walked away. In my periphery, I spotted Kat approaching from the stern, her sketchbook hugged to her chest. Her expression darkened suddenly, and she made an about-face and headed instead toward the bench where Dominic was sitting. Turning to confirm my suspicion of what she’d seen, I leaned my hip against the railing, not the least bit surprised to find that Nik had moved closer. His back was still to the water, but he now stood right beside me.

  I crossed my arms over my chest and narrowed my eyes. “You know, you have the most interesting effect on people.”

  He glanced at me sidelong, his pale eyes glittering. “I hadn’t noticed.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’m sure.”

  “I’m not the only one who has an interesting effect on people, you know.” Nik turned his face to me, his usual smirk absent for once.

  “What are you—” My eyes widened. “You mean me?” I said, touching the tip of my index finger to my chest.

  Nik tucked his hands into his jeans pockets—they were a dark gray instead of his usual black, his concession to the warm weather—and shrugged one shoulder. His gaze grew distant, and he nodded slowly. “You know, when I first met you in that temple back in Men-Nefer, I thought it was the sheut you carried, but then when I sat with you on the bus, more or less sheut-free, well … that blew that theory all to hell. I was actually a little nervous to talk to you.” He laughed to himself. “I mean, even with just a sliver of Re’s sheut, you were still the most intimidating person I’d ever met—other than the Great Father, of course.”

  “Of course,” I said dryly, mostly because I was too caught off guard say anything else. I was intimidating? Like, Nik-level intimidating? I turned back toward the water and leaned my forearms on the railing.

  And still underneath the confusion at Nik’s revelation, I felt it: that oh-so-strange sense of waiting.

  3

  Was & Is

  Dominic drove the Range Rover off the ferry, Neffe in the front passenger seat, Nik and me right behind them, and Kat in the very back, earbuds in and iPod blaring something with equal amounts of whininess and yelling and that was downright terrible. I was eternally grateful for headphones, especially where Kat’s music was concerned. I just wished I could turn down my heightened sense of hearing so I wouldn’t be able to hear the ear-sore at all.

  And then there was Neffe, who’d taken control of the SUV’s stereo system and was continuing her mission to convert us all into smooth jazz enthusiasts. It wasn’t that I disliked her taste in music; rather, it just sort of faded into the background whenever I was listening to it. When Nik started humming along, I glanced at him, surprised that he was familiar enough with the tune to harmonize with it perfectly. But he didn’t notice, just kept on staring out the window and humming softly.

  Some twenty minutes later, we were exiting I-5 and making our way down Forty-Fifth Street toward the north end of the University of Washington campus. I stirred out of my car coma when Dominic continued straight through an intersection instead of turning right and heading toward the hospital, where Neffe would be spending the afternoon in the better-equipped labs running tests on Tarset’s blood, tissue, and saliva samples.

  Money, I was quickly learning, could buy almost anything, including access to world-renowned research facilities via an exorbitant donation. And if there was one thing Heru’s line wasn’t lacking in, it was money. Being able to see the future and all that … But it was the doors that money could open that might just prove invaluable. Neffe would be using this expensive opportunity to compare her samples to what Aset claimed was one of the most extensive libraries of poisons, toxins, and pathogens we were likely to find outside of a CDC facility.

  I leaned forward and placed my hand on the top of Dominic’s seat. “Where are you going?”

  “To the lot behind Denny.”

  “But why? Then Neffe’ll be wasting a solid forty minutes walking to and from the hospital, and she could use that time in the labs.” I shook my head. “All I’m doing is meeting with Dr. Ramirez, and that’s not for another hour. At least drop her off first.”

  “I don’t mind the walk,” Neffe said. “I prefer it, actually. It helps me process my findings.”

  “And this is the best way to minimize your exposure to danger.” Dominic’s eyes met mine in the rearview mirror for the briefest moment. “Which is my main priority, considering your condition.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” I snapped. “I’m pregnant, Dom, I’m not an invalid.” But even as I said the words, I knew that to the other four Nejerets in the car, an invalid was exactly what I was. The nearly impossible physiological phenomenon that had allowed a Nejerette like myself to even become pregnant muted my body’s natural ability to regenerate, making me as vulnerable as a regular ol’ human. This didn’t seem nearly as worrisome to me as it did to them; after all, I’d spent two and a half decades as a vulnerable human and barely half a year as a Nejerette. The others’ silence following my hasty protestation only confirmed what I was just now coming to accept weeks into the pregnancy. For the next eight months, I’d be weakened, fragile, vulnerable—an invalid. Damn it.

  Instead of arguing, I crossed my arms over my chest, stared out the window, and kept my mouth shut as Dominic parked in the small lot behind Denny Hall. The century-old anthropology building was stunning as ever, with its chateau-like exterior, proud bell tower, and windows gleaming with reflected sunlight. I wasn’t the least bit surprised that being back here felt a lot like coming home. Even if I was a tad bit irritated.

  Neffe hopped out almost as soon as we came to a stop, not even waiting for Dominic to turn off the engine. “I’ll text you when I’m on my way back,” she told Dominic, then started to shut the door.

  My half-brother reached across the center console and stopped the door from shutting completely with a palm on the side panel. “Perhaps it would be wise to take Katarina with you.” I glanced back, not the least bit surprised to find Kat staring out the window, apparently oblivious to the conversation … or to the fact that we’d even parked. “She could assist your work.”

  “She would only get in my way,” Neffe said. “Besides, I’m sure she’d much prefer to stay with
you and Lex and …” She cleared her throat. “With you and Lex.”

  I watched Kat in my peripheral vision. She gave no indication that she’d heard, which wasn’t surprising considering that her earbuds were still in place. Except I could no longer hear her music. Which meant that earbuds or no, she could definitely hear Dominic’s and Neffe’s mutual attempts to pawn her off on the other.

  My heart twanged with sympathy and more than a hint of empathy. I was no stranger to feeling like an unwelcome burden, either; after all, Marcus had run far and fast and had stayed away for months as soon as he’d figured out who I really was. I couldn’t stand the idea of Kat feeling unwanted all day, not when today was supposed to be our one outing for who knew how long. Not at all.

  “Good!” I said, hoping the single word hadn’t sounded overenthusiastic. “This’ll give me a chance to show her all my old haunts … maybe convert her into a future Husky.” I didn’t miss the way Nik’s eyes narrowed the slightest bit, the way the corner of his mouth tensed, like he was holding back a frown, or maybe a smile.

  “How lovely,” Neffe said. “Can I go now? I do have a lot to do in a short period of time …”

  In one smooth motion, Dominic let go of the door and straightened in his seat. Just as quickly, Neffe shut the door and was walking away from the car.

  I twisted in my seat and patted Kat’s knee. “Ready, Freddie?”

  She made a show of pulling out her headphones as she turned red-rimmed, glassy eyes my way. She averted her gaze down to her phone almost immediately. Oh yeah, she’d definitely heard everything.

  Kat and I had to wait a solid ten minutes for Dominic and Nik to scout the area immediately surrounding Denny Hall. Kat moved up to Nik’s middle seat instead of waiting in the back.

  We were silent for several minutes, her phone forgotten in her hand and her eyes locked on the seemingly abandoned campus just beyond the window while I stared out at the small patch of road that had played so prominently in the dream. Physically being here, so close to the spot where I’d seen Dr. Ramirez die—real or not—was proving to be even more unsettling than the dream itself had been.