Equinox (Beyond Moondust Trilogy Book 2)

by J. E. Nicassio

  “Don’t worry; I rinsed it out first. Drink up.” A half-smile lit up his face. “You’re getting to be a real pain.”

  “Does he know what’s going on?” I said, looking over at Dusty.

  “He knows you’re having a reaction to the drug O’Neil gave you. He seems to be oblivious to what happened back at Oakridge.”

  “Dusty has the same medallion you and your family wear, or did you know that, too?” I said between sips of water.

  “No, I didn’t know that, not until I saw what he did. I didn’t need to see the medallion.” Cassiel looked at Dusty, his brow arched.

  “The fire?”

  “Yes, it’s pyrokinesis. He can start fires with his mind, unlike us. He’s young and immature and doesn’t even know he can do it, which is dangerous because he doesn’t know how to control it.”

  “The trash can, Dayton’s sneakers…. Oh, my God.”

  “What are you talking about?” Cassiel surveyed my face.

  “In group when the kids were bullying Dusty, Dayton’s shoe laces caught fire. And the trash can—O’Neil thought someone had thrown a lit cigarette in the can. It was Dusty all along,” I said, amazed.

  Cassiel looked in Dusty’s direction. “He’s a walking inferno, and he doesn’t have a clue how dangerous he is.”

  “My dad’s going to think I was in the fire. We have to tell him, Cassiel,” I said, panicking.

  “We can’t. He can’t know you’re with us.”

  “But when they can’t find me, he’s going to assume I didn’t make it out of the fire. He’s going to think I was killed.”

  “Jordan will think of something. He always does.”

  What doesn’t that man think of? As much as I hated my dad for bringing me to Oakridge, I would never want him to suffer.

  “There has to be another way, Cassiel. My father’s suffered enough. Jordan will under-stand. Let me call him,” I pleaded.

  “Out of the question. Not until we get to the ranch.”

  There was no point in arguing. Besides, I didn’t think I had the strength.

  I started to get up, but Cassiel stopped me. “Just lie there. Unless you feel uncomfortable with your head between my legs….”

  “Not exactly my preferred location,” I replied, starting to feel like my old self.

  “I’m sure my brother wouldn’t mind.”

  Oh, I’m sure he would. He was so sure of himself. His arrogance sickened me some-times.

  Cassiel looked into my eyes. “You’re changing.”

  “I am. I can see Finn.”

  “Your brother?” He shifted his body.

  “He’s been coming to me like he’s alive.”

  “Amazing. Anything else?”

  “No. I feel different, like my skin is not mine anymore. My thoughts are echoed.”

  “Can you read my thoughts?”

  “No. Will I?”

  “I don’t know. But your eyes look like mine, only more intense, like Lucien’s. Can you move anything with your mind? Have you tried?”

  I lifted my hands and held them in front of me, trying to move Cassiel’s amulet. Nothing. I lowered them and shook my head.

  My eyes shifted back to Dusty as I watched him skip pebbles in the creek. I could see him clench his jaw the same way Lucien used to do. He did it when he was worried about some-thing. He looked like a child playing, unaware of what he had done back at Oakridge.

  “He doesn’t know what he is?” I asked, suddenly sad.

  “No, but he will,” Cassiel said, staring in Dusty’s direction.

  Heavy, dark clouds rolled in, casting a shadow. I looked at the sky and sighed. “I hope those aren’t a sign of a storm to come.”

  “Too soon to tell.” Cassiel yawned.

  I don’t recall ever seeing Lucien yawn. Strange.

  Cassiel chuckled. “You never saw Lucien yawn? Maybe it’s because you bore me.”

  “Stop that. It’s so rude reading my mind. I don’t care if you can or not.”

  “It’s a gift I certainly cannot live without.” His brash tone infuriated me.

  “You are so not like your brother. Can you even be serious?”

  “Okay, okay, I have your complete attention. Go on,” Cassiel said, trying to display a serious expression.

  “Dusty said he dreams of the future. He dreamt I was in danger, and he dreamt of a place called Greenbrier.”

  Cassiel was quiet after I said that, his arrogant attitude gone. I turned and looked at him; he was staring at Dusty with the same concerned look as me. I still couldn’t believe this was all happening: UFO’s, aliens, germ warfare, mutant hybrids, the government’s involvement, now a deadly flu, and the destruction of Earth. Suddenly tired, I started to drift off to sleep when Cassiel startled me.

  “Did they hurt you?”

  “Didn’t you read my mind?” I said, mocking him.

  “Sam, you’re right. I apologize. I swore to Lucien I wouldn’t delve into your mind. Well, I try not to.” He gave me a smirk.

  “They scared me more than anything.”

  He took my hand and squeezed it tightly within his. I looked down. It was something Lucien would have done, not Cassiel. Then he let go of it just as fast as he had taken it. One thing I would never get used to was their gift of telepathy. I hated it, especially when Cassiel did it.

  His eyes went back to Dusty. “I will have Jordan tell him who he is.”

  With that said, Cassiel took my hand and scooped me up, carrying me to the Jeep, setting me down firmly. He hollered over to Dusty, and we were back on the highway. The Jeep was silent until we saw the sign ahead, “US-54, welcome to Corona, population 65, Home sweet home.”

  Surely he was joking. My eyes strained to see outside the Jeep’s window. I felt almost normal again, but what’s normal when your life is spinning out of control and your only hope of survival is your alien boyfriend’s relatives?

  39 Becoming Alien

  The warm sunlight shimmered over the snowcapped Sacramento Mountains as a misty fog rose across the horizon. Any other morning, Mother Nature’s splendid scene would seem beautiful, but not today. It was shadowed by last night’s terrifying events. One thing I’m glad of was Jordan arranging for Alex Marks to teach me how to defend myself. I re-member when Cassiel threw me the gun back at Area 51 when Lucien was taken. The thought of actually killing someone seemed impossible then. But now anything was possible.

  Cassiel drove the Jeep up to the two-mile dirt road leading to the ranch. The scenery was brown from the winter months with no promise of spring in sight. The black gate which kept out unwelcome visitors remained closed. Cassiel edged the Jeep up to the familiar intercom. He punched in the secret code on the keypad, which, by the way, was the word “believe.” All the times I’d seen Lucien put the code in and I had never paid attention until now. I never doubted the possibility of intelligent beings from other worlds. I had no idea I would be part of such an incredible reality. However, my new-found certainty scared me to death. My part in a normal future was unclear.

  The gate opened. The cameras followed us through, one after another, until Cassiel pulled alongside a black Cadillac Escalade and a metallic Land Rover. I thought for a moment it was my school friend Lexy’s gold Hummer. Lexy Lain had introduced me to the Fosters’ phony band named Equinox. It seemed like a lifetime ago. I hadn’t known the importance of an equinox before. It had an entirely different meaning now. I remembered that Lucien said an equinox happened two times a year. In reality, it’s a single moment in time— night or day—whenever the days and nights are alike in length. Lucien described it so elegantly, I could still hear him saying, “Think of it as the equator’s plane that stretches endlessly into the trillions of stars of space. The equator planes dive in like an eagle or an enormous wind tunnel fan’s blade.” He’d smiled and sai
d, “Sam, visualize the eagle soaring from one solstice to another, from the North Star aiming toward the South Star. The moment of the equinox is when the Earth touches the point at the start of spring, and again at the beginning of autumn.”

  I had heard him say he would return on the equinox, but which equinox? Would I have to wait until March of this year, or September of next year? I couldn’t imagine waiting for a year or years. My heart felt heavy in my chest, thinking about how long I may have to wait. I held my hand there, wishing the pain didn’t hurt so much.

  I turned my attention to Cassiel. Hopefully the diversion would take away my anguish. I studied his expression for some clue helping me figure out who the owners of the Escalade and the Land Rover were. Cassiel was good at hiding his feelings behind his alien eyes, un-like Lucien.

  He turned off the ignition. We sat in the Jeep a few moments, gathering our thoughts until Cassiel gestured for me and Dusty to get out of the Jeep. I unbuckled my seat belt and hesitated a moment. I was just about to open the door when Cassiel took hold of my arm. In a low voice, he asked me to let him do all the talking. Like, duh, I had no intention of saying a word. I didn’t like going there, especially without Lucien.

  Even though the Fosters rescued me, I couldn’t stop feeling like I wasn’t safe there. I had to remind myself it wasn’t a dream; it was more like a nightmare and I wouldn’t be waking up from it anytime soon. I had so many questions, but my biggest concern, besides my safe-ty, was the fire and my father, what he must be going through. I didn’t understand the point of letting him think I was dead. This would kill him. It was cruel and inhuman.

  I was right behind Cassiel and Dusty as I looked around. Still weak, I leaned against the passenger door looking at the Pueblo-style ranch, which was used as a secret underground domain for the Foster clan. The property was used as a dwelling for the refugees of the 1947 Roswell crash. A picture-perfect home in America’s west––but beneath the walls, a different world unknown to visitors.

  My eyes roamed to the corral where Lucien and I had enjoyed our last time at the ranch together. The memory was bittersweet. Cassiel instructed Dusty not to ask any questions until he was spoken to. Judging by his face, Dusty was thinking this place was not to his liking. I didn’t blame him; it wasn’t my favorite place either. There would be no arguing with Cassiel. I could tell Dusty sensed it was best to keep quiet, not fully realizing the seriousness of his predicament. I wasn’t sure I knew, either.

  I took Dusty’s hand in mine, knowing the Fosters’ ranch could be pretty intimidating. He gladly took it, squeezing tightly. For some motherly reason, I suppose, I felt I needed to protect him and holding his hand was the only way I knew how. His golden locks were going every which way, reminding me so much of Finn. Dusty nervously tugged on his jeans, which were two sizes too big for his frame.

  Cassiel walked around the Jeep and waved for us to follow him onto the front step. The metal roof had to do with the magnetic force for the satellites, which were concealed beneath the ground. I took a breath, anticipating this was not going to be a social call.

  My eyes followed the security cameras watching our every move, making me feel self-conscious. Cassiel pressed the buzzer on the intercom. Eden’s voice answered him, and the door clicked open. We entered. It was quiet inside like it always was.

  Dusty marveled at Cassiel when he waved a hand and the door to the ranch opened. Cassiel went to the refrigerator and took out one bottle of water that contained the salt he needed and two bottles of water without salt. I didn’t realize how thirsty Dusty was until I saw him take the bottle, finishing it in one gulp. If he wore the same medallion as Cassiel, how could he drink water that contained hydrogen? Hydrogen was the Fosters’ kryptonite, the only element that they were defenseless against.

  Cassiel casually walked up to the cactus tapestry, lifting it. Dusty’s face lit up.

  “Sick. What’s this place?”

  Cassiel gave Dusty a proud smile. “Home.”

  “You live here?”

  “Not exactly,” I said with a timid smile. I wasn’t sure how Dusty was going to handle any of this and it worried me.

  The door to the elevator opened. Cassiel went in first, then Dusty and me. I held onto Cassiel, still not feeling completely normal. I remembered my first trip on the elevator taking me underground. I never was quite sure how far underground the compound actually went. It must go down really deep for my ears to pop. Dusty went to the ground as he braced himself on his ankles from the force of the elevator. I did the same thing. A quick glimpse into the past, and I was overwhelmed with thoughts of Lucien. As soon as the elevator stopped, Dusty stood, breaking into a nervous laugh. I couldn’t help but laugh also.

  40 Back to the Ranch

  The metal door opened to the Fosters’ underground dwelling. The atmosphere changed immediately. The temperature was cool, but the humidity was high. Dear Lord, please don’t let Lucien be one of those creepy reptilians who love the humidity like the ones we saw at the Roswell museum.

  We stepped out one at a time. Dusty looked around like he was seeing everything through a looking glass, expecting to see the Mad Hatter.

  Eden met us, still in her black leather. She stood tall, leaning against one of the Greek white pillars, not looking happy at all. “Jordan’s waiting in the tech room.”

  I paused, letting Dusty’s hand go. Eden looked radiant against the granite marble flooring and walls, not at all unearthly. I felt a twinge of envy, but it still freaked me out how the Fosters’ complexions changed, depending on the light.

  “How did you like your trainer I got you at Oakridge?”

  “Alex Marks? So it was you?”

  “Yes. I hate to take all credit when Jordan arranged it. Are you upset?” She shifted, her gray eyes twinkling proudly under long black lashes.

  “No, not all. In fact, I’m glad you did. Thank you,” I said, touching her hand.

  She pulled away. “Samantha, I just suggested you learn to defend yourself. If you’re going to be hanging with us on a more regular basis, you need to be able to handle yourself. You should thank Jordan, not me.”

  “I will. I just want to…never mind.”

  I don’t know why I bothered trying to be friends with her. I hurried my step to catch up with Dusty and Cassiel. They were just about to enter the room that held all the computers and satellite-tracking equipment when Cassiel paused outside the door. All was still except for the humming from the cylinders that removed hydrogen from the water. It didn’t make sense to me why Dusty wore the same necklace as the Fosters. If he’s an alien, he mustn’t be the same species as them because I’ve seen him eat everything. His skin is normal like mine. The only things that aren’t normal about him are his gift of seeing the future, and his ability to start fires with his mind.

  “Wait here. I’ll go see what we’re in for,” Cassiel said, his body rigid. “Ugh, never mind.”

  “What?” I said.

  Cassiel’s eyes met Dusty’s. “Just keep an eye on him.”

  “Cassiel, what is it?” I asked, hoping he would be straight with me. “What aren’t you telling me?”

  Cassiel motioned for me to come to him. He leaned his head close to mine. “Something feels wrong. I’m picking up some seriously bad vibes.”

  “What kind of vibes? What do you see?” I whispered.

  “I don’t see anything. I read minds, but this is different. I don’t understand it.”

  “You know what I mean. Are we in danger?” I said, looking around the corridor.

  “I don’t know, that’s what’s bothering me. But I’ll figure it out.”

  “You’d better.”

  Cassiel went through the glass enclosure of the computer room. He motioned for me stay back while he checked things out. A moment passed and he was back.

  The pegboard, full of overlapping newspaper clippi
ngs of UFO sightings and maps of the United States, covered the walls. These were the same that had been there when I was here before: posters of space crafts, the notorious Roswell crash, and the Project Blue Book. My thoughts kept rocketing back and forth from the past to the present. When Lucien and I had come here for the first time, Lucien had been standing among the maps and posters when I noticed that his skin was paler and his gray eyes seemed to glow. I remembered walking up to him and touching his face. Every vein pulsated on the surface. He seemed so uneasy and turned away, almost embarrassed. It was the iridium in his blood, he told me. His photosensitivity caused the change.

  I remembered how his skin glowed a rich tan when he stepped out into the sunlight. It was like his body was protecting his delicate cells. The change always sent chills down my spine. It was a subtle change, but still. I loved it and hated it. It was a reminder of where he had come from.

  41 Not Normal

  Jordan Taylor was the glue that held the Fosters together. He had the huge responsibility of being the guardian and caretaker of precious cargo lost and left behind from a billion light-years away. He taught the Fosters how to act human. He taught them everything they know about Earth.

  “Samantha,” Jordan said. “It’s good to see you well.”

  He shifted in his chair to stand, then staggered in my direction. He seemed fragile, not well at all. I was going to comment on his health, but chose not to. He took my shoulders firmly in his grip and kissed both my cheeks. I still wasn’t all that comfortable in his presence, especially without Lucien at my side. Besides his declining health, he looked the same as I remembered. His hair was the same: silver, thick, wavy, and shoulder-length. I had never noticed it before, but his icy blue eyes had specks of gold in them. He was wearing his usual attire: black pants and a white turtleneck. It amazed me how handsome he was for a man in his seventies.

  Gabe was sitting behind a computer monitor, clicking away at something. His eyes never left what he was doing, which suited me just fine. I looked at the crop circle of the Flower of Life on the wall, thought about how it all made sense, how it always came back to the existence of alien beings. They had been here on Earth all along, just like Lucien said. We just hadn’t looked closely enough to see them.