by Laney McMann
“Go back?” My arm drops, leaving my shirt covered in little green specs. “What are you talking about?”
“I … I don’t want you to get in trouble.” He averts his gaze.
“Since when are you worried about me getting in trouble?” I ask.
“Never mind, it’s nothing.” His smile is fake.
I’m not buying the mock reassurance. “Max, what’s going on?”
“Nothing.” He bites his bottom lip, his gaze skirting the trees. “I’m trying to look out for you.”
“Uh-huh. What’s up?”
“I told you. Nothing.” He shoves his hands in his pockets.
“Max …”
Lifting an eyebrow, he grins. “Race you to the falls.” He crouches forward like a cat ready to pounce, hands resting on his knees.
“Distractions won’t work.”
“No?” He takes off running.
I catch his hand as he turns and catapult myself past him.
“Hey, no cheating!”
I laugh, as he runs up behind me, his breathing steady. Our pounding feet sink in the thick wet grass of the open field. Max is taller than me, with longer legs, but I’m faster, and he hates it. The rush of crashing water leads us to the ledge, each of us pushing harder to stay in the lead.
“Don’t jump, Layla!” He reaches out.
His hand in mine, I pull us both off the ledge in a blind leap.
We plummet into the depths of the waterfall, Max‘s hand gripping mine. As our heads break free of the churning froth, he lets go, splashing me in the face.
“Hey.” I push water back at him. “What was that for?”
“For getting here first.” As he shakes his sandy brown hair out of his face, droplets of water run down his golden skin, and the corner of his mouth lifts in a grin.
I splash him again and swim to the edge of the pool, climbing onto the bank in dripping wet clothes. He follows, and sits next to me, wiping the water from his grey eyes.
“Lay, we’ve been friends for a long time.”
“Yeah.” I lean back against a gardenia bush covered in pure white blooms, their rich sweetness intoxicating the air.
“You’re my best friend.”
“I know that. You’re acting so weird today.” I nudge his shoulder, and say, “Beat you to the ledge again,” and spring to my feet, leaving him sitting on the bank.
“Layla!” He races after me.”Wait!” Grabbing me around the waist, he sends us both over the ledge in a tangle.
“What are you doing?” I shove him as our heads rise above the surface of the water.
“Be quiet.” Putting his finger to his lips, he drags me behind the falls onto the rock shelf. “Someone’s coming.”
Distant footsteps approach, crunching through the crisp leaves on the forest floor. Voices reach us.
“Stay still. It’s Lorelei.”
My mother walks through the forest, her sister at her side.
“They are here. You must find them.” She paces through the trees. “This is not safe.”
“Sister, please. There is no need for your concern. They are in no danger here.”
“No danger? My daughter is to be nowhere near the boy. I warned him to stay away.”
I try to shift my position, but Max pushes me back. “Stop moving.”
“Warned him?” my aunt asks.
“Yes.” My mother’s gaze sweeps past our hiding place. “The bond grows stronger by the day. Their connection, their energy. Teine must be kept hidden. Away from this world, away from the boy. They must be separated.”
“That isn’t necessary No one knows they exist.”
“We know! Others might know as well.”
My aunt gathers her cloak around her body. “It wasn’t I who placed the curse. That untimely deed falls on your shoulders, sister.”
“Once the truth of the children’s existence is revealed, my simple curse will no longer matter. I will be hard pressed to keep our enemies at bay.” My mother wrings her hands.
“Your attempt to sway the children must end. As long as the light shines, we will remain safe.”
“You presume too much, and do not speak to me in that tone. I am still the eldest.”
“Tone? I speak with understanding, but my patience wears thin. You renounced your position here. You are a fool to think you can keep the children apart. Let them be, or I am afraid you will regret it.”
Max turns to me. “You have to go.”
“No.”
“Your mother is trying to separate us. You have to go.”
“We’re not doing anything wrong.” I start to rise, but he grabs me by the shoulder, eyes staring into mine.
“You heard your mother. She believes you’re not safe here. She thinks it’s dangerous for us to be together.”
I stare back into his face, confusion welling up. “Then I’ll explain it to her.”
“Layla, please. For me. Go back now. Stay safe.” He pulls me into a hug before standing.
“But … wait.” I reach for his hand.
He wrenches it free, his gaze roving over my face. “I’m sorry.”
“Max!”
I sit alone with only the sound of water splashing against the cliff.
“Max!”
• • •
“Layla.” Benny’s terrified voice rang out above me. Her fear-filled eyes came into focus as glaring fluorescent lights radiated down from the ceiling. “Can you see me?”
“Who else would I see? You’re in my face.” I shielded my eyes from the light’s glare, the vision reverberating through my mind. The same vision I’d seen a hundred times before. The one I thought had to be a memory but knew couldn’t be. The vision that made my heart ache as if it were being ripped out.
A crowd of dancers hovered around, all gazes fixed on me as I hastily wiped my damp eyes.
What did I do?
“I told you she was crazy,” Dena said.
“Shut your mouth, Dena, or I will.” Benny’s threat came out calm and controlled.
“Let me up,” I said.
“Back away. Back away now.” Ms. Trudy pushed her way through everyone and knelt down. “Layla, are you all right?”
My head throbbed, mind spinning as she rose to her feet, pulling me slowly to mine. As my knees buckled, Benny swooped in and draped my arm over her shoulder.
“Let’s get you some water.” Ms. Trudy steered me into the hallway. “I believe you’re overheated. It’s very warm today.” The chill from the air conditioner, and Ms. Trudy’s jasmine perfume, sent shivers up my spine and made me want to gag. “Benny, you may go back to rehearsal. I believe I have the situation under control.”
“No, ma’am, I’ll stay.” Benny’s tone was unthreatening but firm and Ms. Trudy didn’t argue.
“I’m okay, Ben, really.” My voice, on the other hand, must have given her the impression I wasn’t because she tightened her grip.
“Sit down for a few minutes until you compose yourself. I’ll get you some water.” Ms. Trudy headed down the hall, wringing her hands.
“What happened?” Benny hissed under her breath after Ms. Trudy rounded the corner.
“I don’t know.” I slid down the wall, to the floor, shaking. “I closed my eyes for a second and then I woke up with you crouching over me.”
Her scrutinizing, unbelieving eyes narrowed. “You just passed out?”
“I guess.”
Ms. Trudy rushed back, carrying a glass of water. “Drink this.” She thrust the warm, right-out-of-the-tap water into my hands.
Gross. I handed it back.
“Perhaps you should see the nurse.”
“No. No nurses. I’m fine, really.”
“Well, if you say so, but no rehearsal for you today. Benny, please help Layla into the dressing room so she can get changed.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Benny tugged on me as though I was five years old.
“I can walk on my own.” I pulled my arm out of her grasp.
>
“What the hell was that, Layla?” She shifted in front of me, blocking my way. “Tell me what’s going on.”
“Nothing’s going on.” I pushed passed her. “I … blacked out.”
“Blacked out?” She ran up beside me. “Blacked out? You think that’s normal? That’s not normal.”
“I didn’t say it was normal.”
“No, you didn’t. You don’t say anything lately.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” What does she mean by that?
She stomped passed me. “You’re going to give me a heart attack, I swear.” She ranted along under her breath and disappeared inside the dressing room.
I tried my best to control my trembling limbs. If Benny thought I was in a panicked state, I’d end up at the E.R. with her hovering over me. Hallucinations at school weren’t something that had happened before, and I’d never passed out. Ever. Not that I should have been too surprised. What should I have expected after having become a semi-insomniac?
I pushed the vision into the depths of my brain, shook off the eerie chills that accompanied it, and made Benny promise not to tell Devon what happened.
• • •
He tracked me down in the outside courtyard during study hall.
“I went to the nurse’s office.” He hugged his chest. “To the dance studio and the girls’ bathroom.” He gripped his side, leaning over the picnic table, trying to catch his breath. “Are you all right?”
Benny, unable to keep her mouth shut, had spilled the truth.
“I’m fine. Benny’s overreacting.” I glowered at her where she sat with me at a table.
“Scoot over.” He nudged my shoulder and slumped down. “Don’t scare me like that again.” He huffed, his breath still ragged.
“I told Benny not to tell you.”
He stopped breathing altogether and glared at me. I didn’t say anything else.
• • •
During lunch, Devon asked the cafeteria lady to create an ice pack out of zip-locks and paper towels, after I’d refused again to go to the nurse. He held it on my head himself. Between him and Benny, I was lucky not to have been admitted to the hospital.
I poked around at my pizza—usually my favorite, but my appetite seemed to be lying on the floor in the dance studio.
The cafeteria, my least favorite place in school, made my stomach turn. Not to mention the inescapable deafening high school drama prattle. I’d never been that girl who attended every football game, and cried on the last day of school because summer break meant three whole months away from the cheerleading squad. I wanted out of high school.
I squinted through the cafeteria window, bringing the ocean into view in the far distance, and pretended to listen to the sound of crashing water, to block out all the lunchroom noise.
“You should eat something.” Devon dismantled my lunch tray, one item at a time. His mouth overflowed with my pizza, as I glanced over and down at my emptied plate. “Oh … sorry.”
“I’m not hungry, anyway.” I shrugged, looking up at him. Dark brown hair framed his golden eyes, a sheepish grin playing at his lips.
“Listen, don’t worry about helping at the shop later.” He raised the ice pack to my head again, and I swatted it away, while Dena sat glaring in our direction froma cross the cafeteria.
The little clan of cliquey chatterboxes at her side followed her lead and turned toward us.
The sight of Devon doting over me had to be too much for her.
I smiled to myself.
She tossed her long dark hair behind her shoulder, her black painted nails glimmering under the florescent lights. It seemed like only yesterday that she ran barefoot and played baseball better than anyone. Then again, I remembered so little, maybe she’d always been that way, and my deluded brain had it all backwards.
“I said I would help. I’m helping.” I spoke to Devon, not breaking my eye contact with the one who had nothing better to do than stare at me. Dena’s lips moved, and they all turned their heads away.
“Layla, seriously,” Devon said.
“I. Am. Helping.”
“Layla!” Benny rushed across the cafeteria, waving a fluorescent yellow piece of paper, her dance bag swinging wildly on her shoulder. “Oh, good, you ate.” Her breath came out in a huff. “Here.” She thrust the paper at me. “I got the nurse to sign you out early. You can go home.”
I shook my head, sure she had run from the nurses office. “I don’t need to leave early.”
“You passed out.” She kept her voice low, head turning as if searching for something.
“So?” Truthfully, I would rather have gone home, but giving Benny a reason, any reason, to believe something was actually wrong was a bad idea. I’d rather suffer than have her pamper me. Devon was already taking care of that.
“So? So … you will be the death of me, Layla LaBelle, I swear.” She stomped off, throwing the note in the trash as she went.
The rest of the school day, I spent in a dazed stupor. The custodian had to cut the lock off my locker because I couldn’t remember the combination, and I laughed out loud when Mr. Jones, the Algebra teacher, asked me to solve a quadratic equation on the white board for the class. Algebra. What a waste. Who, ever, uses algebra after high school? If my school didn’t have a Performing Arts program, I probably would have ditched every class.
My head pounded by the time I pulled into the parking lot of the shop where Devon worked. A giant sign above the door read: ‘TOURISTS WELCOME’ in bright blue letters, reminding me of Bike Week in Daytona, Florida, where all the businesses felt compelled to remind everyone that ‘Bikers are welcome’, as if, for some reason, they wouldn’t know without the signs. Tourist season was the money maker in Historia. With the colleges, beaches, and historical sights, the city had a natural pull.
The owner of the shop stood in the doorway, smiling and waving at random passersby, unable, or unwilling, to hide his smile. “Good afternoon, Layla. Thanks for giving us a hand today.”
I stifled a yawn. “You’re welcome. It’s no problem at all.” I wasn’t the best person to help at a retail store, due to my lack of interest in customer service, but I said I would, so I did.
“Yes, good afternoon, Layla. How are you today?” Devon strolled up one of the aisles with a sarcastic grin. “Tired, I see.”
“Tired.” I nodded. “But here.”
He leaned down and kissed my cheek. “I think you should go home.” He glanced at the owner, his voice low. “I can handle it.”
I put my car keys behind the counter. “It’s almost the summer season. You need my help.”
“Don’t start with that. You hate how busy it is this time of year. Seriously, listen, I’m starting to worry about you.”
“Starting?” I walked away before he could continue.
He shook his head and wandered off toward the display cases.
I squatted down behind the counter, digging around for a magazine to read, and rested my throbbing head in my hands. The entrance bell chimed on the front door, and I popped back up, wobbling slightly.
Afternoon sun flooded through the shop’s front windows in sheets, creating a back lit silhouette in the doorway. Dust particles floated past my scope of vision like miniature ghosts, and the clear grey eyes glancing at me made my breath end in my throat.
The room spun and slowed to a time-warped crawl, and the spicy sweetness of gardenias wafted through the air. Visions rushed up to the surface, flooding my brain, blowing the circuits. My magazine dropped to the floor, and I swayed, grabbing the counter for support, forcing myself to blink.
“Layla?” Thudding feet echoed in the distance.
Blood sped through my veins as I gripped the edge of the counter, gazing into the face I knew so well. A shadow of confusion crossed his expression as he stared back at me before the corner of his mouth drew up in a slight grin, and my face flushed with a burning heat. Goosebumps shivered down my arms, the air seeming to quiver with a faint breeze.
“Layla, are you okay?” Someone shook me by the shoulder. “Layla?” Devon’s voice rang from far away.
I tried to speak, but words wouldn’t form. I remembered his face, the waterfall, the forest. The warmth of his hand in mine. Droplets of water cascading down his golden skin. His eyes reflecting the sunlight like crystals. The rush of wind as he ran beside me. His laughter. The sound of his voice when he called my name.
“Max …” I strangled an inaudible whisper, unable to breathe, consumed by the light in his eyes.
“Lay.” He stared back at me, seeming unable to move.
He couldn’t be real. I swayed, my eyes rolling upward, and dropped to the floor.
3
I’m falling. Spinning and twisting through darkness and heat. Smoke and fire. Stone and ash.
• • •
“Layla?” a soft unfamiliar voice asked. “Can you hear me?” A cool gentle squeeze of my hand followed. “You’re in the hospital. My name is Dr. Jessup. Can you open your eyes for me?” My lids fluttered. “Good. Try to squeeze my hand.” I gripped it. “That’s right, Layla. You have a concussion, but you’re okay.” He patted my hand and something cold touched my palm. “Hold this. It’s the button for the nurse. Push it if you need anything.” His footsteps faded, replaced by whispers from somewhere close by.
“I can’t believe you are even here. You need to leave.”
“I’ve been keeping my distance. I didn’t mean for her to see me, Lorelei.” The voice sounded excited but cautious.
“Keep quiet, or she will hear you. Her protection relies on your secrecy.” My mother’s cold, distant voice reached me.
“I can’t walk away from her again. It almost killed me the first time.” That voice—the one pleading—I’d have known it anywhere.
“Have you forgotten the dangers?” My mother spoke again. “The risk? You will draw our enemies to our doorstep and risk her life. Be sensible. She can never know the truth.”
“I haven’t forgotten the danger, but …”
“Good. Now, go. “
“Lorelei …” The pain in his voice crushed my heart. “… you can’t stop this anymore. I can protect her now.”
I pushed hard against the weight pinning me down, my eyelids flitting.