Just then my cell phone vibrated from within my pocket. I removed it and looked down. A text from Liam:
“Practice turning invisible longer. You suck at it.”
I chuckled. Liam seemed to always know when I was in need. He denied that he could hear things miles away, but I often wondered.
I stood up and stretched my arms as I prepared to use my ability to “go dark.” It used a lot of my Light, which was the only thing that kept the Vyken poison at bay. I swirled my hand; a light the size of an apple appeared hovering softly above my palm. I leaned toward it, felt its warmth against my face, and smiled.
It was only a year ago that I had learned to use Light, not only as a weapon, which went against the Auran way of life, but also to help and comfort others. However, after Mr. Steele, my math teacher in Utah, bit me, I stopped using Light for good and only used it as a weapon, which only fed the darkness inside me. If it hadn’t been for Liam teaching me how to control it, I probably would’ve eventually killed someone, thereby becoming a full Vyken. But as long as I was diligent, I managed to stay in control.
I extinguished the ball of Light and instead focused on the Light inside me. After a few seconds of intense concentration, my insides began to warm to the point where I felt feverish. I took a deep breath and imagined the Light expanding all around me. A searing pressure left my body, and I glanced down. I was invisible, clothes and all.
I only made it to about three minutes when I became too hot to continue. My body was still exhausted from earlier. I was about to turn around when I heard a sound, like a woman gasping. I glanced up at the full moon’s placement in the sky. It was probably about two in the morning. Who would be out this time of night?
I jogged forward until I was on the edge of the forest, just before the small road gave way to a much bigger one. Eventually it led to a new subdivision just outside of Cold Spring.
The opening to the trail was to my left. I avoided it and instead walked toward a small blue house set back from the road. A row of trees hid the structure from people driving by, but if someone drove slowly enough, they’d see the home’s white trim and shuttered windows. The best part of the home, in my opinion, was its front yard. It was full of various rose bushes, all different colors. A woman with long silver hair was hunched over a yellow bush, wearing a black robe.
“Hi, Rose,” I said. I’d giggled inwardly when I first learned her name was Rose and that she loved roses.
She looked up at me and smiled warmly. “What are you doing out here, Llona? This is late even for you.”
“I could say the same for you.”
She smelled a cut rose in her hand. “Ah, but you know how it is. Everything is more vibrant at night.”
I agreed, thinking how beautiful she was beneath the moonlight. I wondered if she was this pretty during the day. I met Rose the same night I went running on the road for the first time, the same night Christian had died, in fact. I’d seen her several times since, but it had been awhile.
Rose was an eccentric old woman who spoke mostly of her roses, but sometimes she spoke of a graveyard she played in when she was a child in France. Her stories were so strange (once she claimed she’d met Isaac Newton) that I wondered if perhaps she had dementia.
“You look tired, dear,” she said.
I looked up from the rose in her hand. “A little, maybe.”
“You should sleep more. When I was your age, I slept ten hours every night, plus I’d often take a nap on my mother’s grave.”
This was a new development. “How old was your mother when she died?” I asked, feeling instantly connected to her. My own mother had died when I was young.
“Barely thirty. She died giving birth.”
I tightened my lips and frowned. “That must’ve been hard.” Poor woman, living all alone. I glanced at her house, wondering how she managed to take care of herself when she was clearly confused.
Just then I noticed something I’d never seen before—the silhouette of an oddly shaped figure peering out the front window. For a fraction of a second, a pair of eyes, wider than they should be, glowed the way a cat’s does when exposed to light. A shiver crawled up my spine, too slow for comfort.
“Who—or maybe what—is that?” I asked.
Rose glanced behind her. “Nothing you should concern yourself with.”
“I thought you lived alone.”
“I never said that.”
“No, I guess you didn’t. I just assumed.”
Rose took hold of my arm, startling me. The blue from her eyes was gone, leaving only two all-white eyeballs. The chill that was still slowly going up my back now raced up my spine.
“You should never assume a rose is just a rose,” she said. “Look past the appearance.”
“I really want to keep my skin,” I said and looked down at her tight grip. Her nails were clawing at my wrist.
She let go and giggled, an odd sound for an old woman. “I can be so strange sometimes.”
“Are you okay?” I asked but stepped back carefully. This woman was all kinds of strange.
“I’m wonderful. Why wouldn’t I be?” She returned to working on the rosebush in front of her.
“Um, maybe because of the whole white-eyed-trance thing?”
“Nonsense. Now you run along. It’s late.”
I looked back at the house. The odd figure was gone. “Right. Okay.”
“Don’t be a stranger,” Rose said as she snipped at the base of a dying rose.
“Uh-huh.” I turned away, wondering what had just happened. Rose had always acted a little off, but not that much. And what had I seen in the window?
I decided to walk back. Whatever energy I did have left was drained by Rose’s awkwardness. All that was left now was a sort of dread about returning to Lucent Academy. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to see my friends, especially May, but it was more the memories the place held. The many Auras who had died, the ones who had been taken. And Christian. His death was always on my mind.
The night was quiet. With winter approaching, the crickets had lost their song, leaving only the sound of my footsteps against the road. I wrapped my arms around me, but not because I was cold.
“I miss you, Christian,” I whispered to the voiceless crickets.
“Llona.”
I froze and slowly turned my head to the side, to where I had heard my name being called. The voice was familiar—too familiar.
I stopped breathing.
THREE
Not far away, a figure stood next to a tree, and by its height, I’d guess it was male. He was bathed in darkness, the moon’s light unable to penetrate through the heavy canopy of trees. Although I couldn’t see him, there was a stillness to him that disturbed me.
But the voice.
I took a hesitant step forward.
“No,” the voice commanded.
I gasped. “Christian?” It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be. I stumbled forward, not caring if I wasn’t supposed to or not. I had to know.
I kept my eyes on the figure, afraid to look away for even a second, but then I blinked, and he was gone. Huh? I hurried faster toward the spot where I’d seen him, but when I reached the tree, no one was there.
“Christian?” I whispered.
I strained my ears, using my sensitive hearing, an ability I’d inherited from my Guardian father, but heard nothing. Just a forest, as cold as it was silent.
I stayed there for several minutes, wondering if I had imagined the whole thing. I must have. I saw Christian get buried by a wall of dirt, thanks to Cyrus and his power to control earth. And I was at Christian’s funeral.
But that voice!
Even the way he had said my name, so full of emotion. It had to be him! I instinctively reached up to touch the necklace he had given me. The Greek word etched into the metal pendant meant “Endure to the End.”
When nothing else happened, I decided to head back to Lucent. A few hours of sleep would give me a better perspe
ctive on what I’d seen and heard.
Before I walked through Lucent’s front doors, I took a deep breath. My chest felt tight as I stepped over the threshold, but when I saw May asleep on a couch in the lobby, I relaxed.
I went over and sat next to her. May had been my best friend ever since a lab accident during our junior year. A beaker had exploded into a ball of flames, catching my hair on fire. It was then that I learned May was different, because I saw her cause the fire, and she had seen my hair grow back, a strange DNA mutation from being an Aura.
It was later revealed that May was a Fury, a person who could create and manipulate fire. When Sophie found out, she invited May to Lucent Academy too, because Furies were extremely rare. Plus, we had Dr. Han, who was a Fury himself. He trained May daily on how to control the Fury’s fire, which he always insisted was power hungry, but May never exhibited the qualities he was worried about. May was good. And my best friend.
I nudged her on the shoulder. “May?”
She moaned and moved to turn over, but then froze and opened her eyes wide. “Llona?”
I smiled. “I’m back. You really didn’t need to wait up.”
She threw her arms around me, squeezed me hard, then pulled away. “But today was special. You got him, Llona.”
“Took forever, but, yeah, finally.” I sank farther into the sofa.
“We need to celebrate. First thing in the morning with Kiera and Tessa. Finally, our best-friend foursome will be reunited.”
“So, anything new since I’ve been gone?” I had left two weeks ago to go to Jake’s wedding. Afterward I met up with Liam in New York City to follow some leads, which led us to Jackson.
“Kiera’s doing a good job teaching your class,” May said. “I can’t believe how much she’s learned. She’s a natural at it.”
I stared at the ceiling. Carved wood trim made squares against crème-colored paint. “All the Auras would be if they let go of Lucent’s ancient rule of no fighting. It’s stifling them. You’d think after what happened they’d be lining up to learn this stuff. Speaking of which, any more sign-ups for the class?”
“A couple. Still, though, that only makes six. Are you tired?”
My eyes lowered to May’s. Dark circles were visible under her eyes. “A little,” I lied. I was hoping to talk to her about what I’d seen in the forest, but it could wait.
“Get some rest then,” she said. “We can talk more in the morning.”
I stood up, taking her with me. “Good idea.”
We rode the elevator up to the third floor. The whole way she told me about Dr. Han and some new things he was teaching her about being a Fury. I was surprised there was more for her to learn. In my mind, May was already a pro at controlling fire.
“I’m glad you’re back,” May said when we reached her room.
“Me too.” And I meant it. Even with all the painful memories, Lucent also held good ones.
I opened the door to my room. Everything was just as I had left it, even the smell of blood. It used to really bother me to know that a girl had killed herself in my room after going crazy from being bitten by a Vyken, but now I used it as a reminder of what could happen to me if I ever gave in to the Vyken poison.
I went into the bathroom and started the shower. I hoped it would calm my mind and relax my tense muscles. But thirty minutes later I was still wound as tight as the clock in the tower staring back at me from the window. Beyond it, the sky was turning a dark gray as light began to invade the night.
I backed away from the window, wrapping the towel around my body tightly, and went into my closet to get dressed. There was no way I was going to sleep, not with the way my mind was racing. Jackson was just downstairs in the basement. Besides knowing about Sophie, he might know something about what I had heard in the forest.
Dressing in jeans and a black sweater, I opened my bedroom door. My sensitive hearing heard some girls already awake in their rooms. May’s room was quiet.
I was slow going up the stairs to Cyrus’s office on the fourth floor. As of yet, that was the only way to get to the secret basement where Jackson was being held from inside the school. The only other entrance was underground and about three hundred yards outside Lucent Academy. This was how Cyrus had been sneaking Vykens into Lucent, but now that entrance was sealed shut with a new security system.
The closer I came, the more my heart began to pound. Face my demons, Liam had said. Cyrus was the demon—more like the devil—who took those I cared about the most.
As I expected, I found the door locked. Technically this should have been Dr. Han’s office now, as he was the new president, but Dr. Han had no desire to change rooms. I reached into my pocket and removed a key. Dr. Han had given one to everyone who knew about the secret rooms in the basement, which was just a handful of people. The lock clicked, despite my shaking hand, and I pushed open the door.
The room looked exactly the same. Oversized chairs, oversized desks, and bookcases. The room was as big as Cyrus’s lies.
This was the first time I’d come back since that night I raced after Sophie to stop her from seeing Cyrus. I had failed. Now Sophie was gone, and Christian was dead. No matter what I thought I saw or heard earlier, I couldn’t deny the fact that I’d seen him die.
My breath escaped my lungs in shorter and shorter intervals. It was stupid of me to come up here. I thought enough time had passed since that horrible night.
I was wrong.
The memories of that night bludgeoned my mind, and I blinked rapidly, trying to push them away. One after another, I recalled how Cyrus had tricked Sophie to come closer where he would be able to grab her. I should’ve stopped her. I knew there were Vykens in the room. Why didn’t I try harder?
I stumbled back until I was against the wall.
After Cyrus took Sophie, Vykens came. More than I could count. We tried to protect the Auras by barricading them in the kitchen off the dining room. People were bleeding. People were dying.
I slumped to the floor, fighting hard for every breath.
Cyrus had appeared briefly in those last moments, when I wasn’t sure if any of us would survive. And when he left, Christian went after him.
Once again, I should’ve done more. It’s like I let him die.
My vision blurred, turning a dark red. I was going to pass out.
“Liam,” I said, knowing his highly sensitive hearing would hear me.
And he did. Picking me up, he carried me behind the wall and down the stairs.
For the first time, I cried for Sophie. I cried for Christian. The pain squeezed my heart until I thought I would crumble.
Liam set me down on what I assumed was his bed. My eyes were closed. His hand gripped mine. I don’t know which of us was squeezing harder.
I thought of Christian’s funeral back in Utah. Guardians from all over the world had come to pay their respects, not necessarily just for him, but also for his father, who was well known by Guardians and Auras everywhere. Many spoke to me that day, but I couldn’t remember what they’d said. I just remember wanting to run away.
Liam was right. I hadn’t grieved. Stay busy, that is what I told myself every day. But what I’d been trying to avoid hit me like a freight train now. I continued to cry, quietly and painfully, until the tears began to slow. My breathing matched their pace.
And then I fell asleep.
FOUR
I opened my eyes and blinked. Where was I? Pale walls came into focus across from me. Next to me was an empty wooden chair. I realized I was in Liam’s bed, a heavy patterned quilt pulled up around my shoulders. I threw it back and sat up.
The room was empty, and the door was closed. Because I was in the basement, there were no windows to give a hint as to what time it was. I hoped I wasn’t late for breakfast.
I stood up and stretched. My muscles were relaxed and my chest felt lighter. That must’ve been some power nap. And some major tears. They seemed to have padded my once-raw heart.
After opening the door, I peered into the hall. It was different down here from the rest of the school, with only concrete floors and partially finished walls. There were several small rooms that seemed more like prison cells. We could only assume they had been used by Vykens. Liam and the twins used a couple of them whenever they visited, which was a lot.
I stepped into the hall, listening for sounds. It was quiet except for . . . I turned my head, straining my ears. Someone was breathing in one of the closed rooms at the end. Most likely Jackson. I went to the door and looked in through the small barred window. Jackson was lying down, staring at the ceiling.
“What do you want?” he said.
“Nice digs you got here.”
“I won’t be here for long.”
“Really? Cause, um . . .”—I gave the door a good hard tug—“this door isn’t opening any time soon.”
He didn’t say anything, but his brows were drawn together tightly. I didn’t know if this meant he was angry or worried. I noticed a plate of half-eaten spaghetti on a table next to him, and this made me wonder if it was later in the day than I had thought. I better hurry and ask my questions. “Do you know where Cyrus is keeping Sophie?”
“Yes.”
My pulse raced. “Where?”
“Disneyland.”
“Don’t do this, Jackson. Just tell us so we won’t have to hurt you.”
“You won’t get the chance.”
I exhaled. This was going to be harder than I expected. “Do you like working with them? The Vykens?”
He snickered. “They’re better than Auras. At least they don’t complain about everything.”
“But they’re also murderers, Jackson. And I know at some point in your life, you knew this was wrong. So what happened?”
“I happened. I knew I wasn’t going anywhere as a Guardian. It’s a dead-end job. Literally. And trash collectors get paid more money than I ever would.”
I sighed, bored. “And you never thought you could just go be a doctor or something?”
“School’s too long and then there’s all that student loan debt.”
Fractured Truth Page 2