Echo (The Halo Series Book 2)

by Melody Robinette

  Aurora’s words came out in an angry growl, like a cornered animal threatened by a dangerous predator. “Where are they? What did you do to them.”

  David pressed a splayed hand to his breast in mock hurt. “Why, nothing… Not yet, that is. Your dear mother and brother are in a safe place. They are unaware that they are in any danger.”

  Aurora backed up until she hit the side table nestled between the matching blue corduroy couch and armchair.

  Reaching around, she grabbed the first thing her hand closed on—a candleholder, the dusty, unlit candlestick tumbling to the ground as she swung it around before her, holding it out like a weapon.

  “Tell me where they are. Now.”

  One side of David’s mouth quirked up into an amused half-smile. “Are you supposed to frighten the information out of me with that?”

  Aurora knew she probably looked ridiculous, but she had nothing else to defend herself with. No crux, no sword, no knife, no—

  David beat her thoughts to the punch. “No Stellar boy here to attack me with now, huh?”

  Tears of panic pricked the backs of her eyes as Aurora realized she was helpless. She couldn’t beat the information out of David any more than she could sweet-talk him into telling her what he’d done with her family.

  Her words came out in a strained whisper. “What do you want?”

  David’s perfect blond hair didn’t displace by even one strand as he tilted his head to the side, a smile lifting his face. “I want you to meet me here. Alone.”

  Looking around in confusion, Aurora said, “Meet you…here? What do you mean? I am here.”

  A chuckle rumbled from the depths of David’s chest. “Don’t be foolish. You’re dreaming, little lamb. But remember dreams always have an ounce of truth to them. And, when you wake, you’ll remember what I’ve asked of you. It is up to you to decide whether you think this is truly just a dream or reality. The decision is yours.” He turned to walk away from her, out of the doorway, throwing a final stream of stinging words her way. “Just know, if you choose not to come…your dreams may be the only place you’ll ever see your mom and brother in again.”

  The door to her mom’s apartment slammed shut, and Aurora sat bolt upright in her bed on Echo. The terror that usually left with the end of a nightmare lingered on as she recounted every detail of the haunting dream.

  Had it only been a dream, though? Was she willing to take the chance of it not being one?

  No.

  She wasn’t.

  Chest heaving, Aurora flung off the suffocating covers on her bed and dressed in her Halo armor as quickly and quietly as possible, lacing up her boots with unsteady fingers. Pulling her hair back into a ponytail, she slid open the door and tiptoed out of her room.

  A tug in the region of her chest made her bite the inside of her cheek as she passed by Gray’s room. He couldn’t know where she was going, or he’d surely follow her there.

  David had told her to come alone.

  But, she couldn’t just disappear without a word, so she tore a page out of her sketchbook and scribbled a quick note on the paper.

  I’m okay.

  I’m sorry.

  Don’t come after me.

  -Aurora

  LUNA

  Luna hadn’t been able to sleep. After being cooped up in her little room with hours of cyclic ‘I’m sorrys’ and ‘How could yous,’ Gray had fallen asleep on Luna’s bed in one of their long stretches of tense silence.

  He’d thought she’d wanted to break up with him. Or perhaps he’d hoped. But she wasn’t giving up that easily. Not now she had made a literal deal with the devil. Or deal with a fallen angel, rather. Either way, there was no going back now.

  She sat, curled in the porthole window, the lights of the city bathing her face. A sign of movement in her peripheral vision made her sit up straighter.

  It was Aurora, fleeing from the ship in her dark red Halo gear. She was alone, looking over her shoulder as if to be sure no one was following her.

  He’s done it, she thought in awe. The fallen angel had fulfilled his promise to her. In a timely manner, at that. Now she had to uphold her end of the bargain.

  Sliding out of the window seat, Luna left Gray in her room, walking on the bare pads of her feet down to the kitchen. As she’d suspected there may be, a single sheet of paper had been left on the countertop.

  The note lay next to Aurora’s sketchbook. Curiosity outweighed her need to destroy the letter as her delicate hand moved forward to flip open the thick leather cover of the book.

  Aurora’s drawings filled the pages. She was a good artist, Luna thought reluctantly. Mostly landscapes met her eyes as she flipped through. That was, until she opened to a grey-scale image of a face she knew much too well.

  Gray.

  Aurora had managed to capture him almost perfectly, though there was something slightly off. Something amiss. Perhaps it was his eyes.

  Luna ran her fingertips across the smooth grain of the page as if she were stroking his face, the pads of her fingers coming away with the gray residue of the lead.

  Burning rage blossomed in her core like an inverted phoenix and Luna’s hand slashed out again, ripping at the page to reveal yet another drawing of the man she loved.

  Rip. Rip. Rip. Rip. Rip.

  Each page fluttered to the ground until the entirety of the sketchbook had been gutted, leaving nothing but the binding and leather cover behind.

  Her chest heaved as she quietly and methodically picked up the shredded paper and crumpled it into balls, tossing them into the wastebasket.

  The last paper was Aurora’s note, still waiting to be read.

  I’m okay.

  I’m sorry.

  Don’t come after me.

  Oh, don’t you worry, Aurora Coel, Luna thought. He won’t.

  The paper made a satisfying crunching sound as she balled up this last piece of Gray’s Stellar and tossed it into the trash.

  Thirty-Three

  GRAY

  Waking up in Luna’s bed was disorienting at first. Gray couldn’t remember precisely how he’d wound up there, though he wasn’t sure how he could forget the marathon fight/talk they’d had.

  He should have known their brief conversation at Holey Moley's wasn’t all that was going to happen. She’d seemed so aloof and almost understanding. But when they made it back to Echo, and Luna had lured him into her room, she closed the door behind her and flipped a figurative switch. A terrifying switch.

  He felt like they’d just relived the infamous Ross and Rachel “we were on a break” fight, only he didn’t care nearly as much about Luna as Ross cared about Rachel. Which made him feel like the worst person in the world.

  The shower he’d hoped would wash off some of that guilt was unsuccessful, so he begrudgingly pulled on his Halo gear and moved downstairs to find Luna sitting alone in the kitchen, flitting about with a carafe of coffee. Logan, Brielle, and Sev could be seen outside on the deck.

  “Morning, Babe!” Luna bounced up to Gray and planted a small kiss on his cheek. “Coffee?”

  Her cheerful demeanor and term of endearment caught him off-guard. The last thing he remembered her saying was something along the lines of, “I just feel like you’ve broken me into a million pieces.” And now she was offering him coffee. Maybe it was laced with poison.

  “Uh…sure.”

  Flashing him a broad smile, Luna pulled an oversized mug from the open shelves and filled it with the steaming liquid before placing it in his hand with both of hers.

  “How did you sleep?” Her voice remained bright and bubbly, as if last night and the events leading up to it had never happened.

  Girls, he thought miserably. He’d never understand their multi-layered complexities. And he wasn’t sure he wanted to.

  “Okay, I guess… How about you? Where did you sleep? Sorry, I sort of took up your bed.”

  Luna waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, don’t worry about it. I slept in the porthole window.
It’s actually pretty cozy with a little blanket. Though, I probably should have curled up next to you. It got kind of chilly near the cold glass of the window.”

  She’d never spoken this forwardly towards him, and he wasn’t quite sure how to respond, so he just sipped awkwardly at his coffee and moved out onto the deck to join the others. Luna trailed with a bounce behind him.

  It was clear everyone knew something had occurred between him and Luna, judging by their quick glances and the way they shifted in their seats.

  Gray couldn’t have been happier to see Chord appear through the open door leading out of the kitchen onto the deck. He could always be counted upon to change any awkward or tense subject.

  “Where the hell are those damned Dominions?” he said without greeting, pouring himself a mug of coffee and swiping a piece of toast off of Sev’s plate, who shot him a mingled look of amusement and annoyance. “Let’s get this damned city locked and move on with our angel lives.”

  “Well, we could always go hang out in another pub or bar,” Logan said dryly from the lounge chair on which she sat. Brielle sat low between her legs, leaning back against her as Logan ran her fingers through the brunette’s hair. Gray figured they must have come to some agreement about revealing their apparent coupling to the others, who had all sensed the tension between the two girls long before now. Logan wound Brielle’s silken hair around her index finger as she continued, “We could get a few patrons killed again by a band of demons and beasts. That seems to make the Virtues and Dominions appear.”

  Chord regarded her with a tilted head. “You, me, and Aurora should form a band. We would be an unstoppable force of sarcasm and bitchiness. We could call ourselves the Three Little Pricks.”

  Logan snorted and then flashed Chord a wink. “Only if I get to be the drummer.”

  “Deal. But Aurora may fight you for that spot. She strikes me as the type who would enjoy hitting things with sticks. Though, if we’re being candid, I’m probably the most experienced of the three when it comes to handling phallic-shaped instruments.”

  This comment made Logan choke on her coffee and Sev blush deeply.

  “Where is Aurora anyway?” Brielle asked, voicing the thoughts Gray had been careful not to speak.

  Logan went back to playing with Brielle’s hair after mopping up the coffee she’d spilled on her shirt. “Sleeping, I guess?”

  Luna spoke suddenly, her voice taking on a different tone than before. “She went to visit this tea shop she’d read about.”

  “Really?” Logan said, her eyebrow quirking upwards. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

  Shrugging, Luna kept her eyes trained on the table, her index finger drawing slow circles in the condensation that had formed on the glass. “I didn’t think it was that big of a deal. She said she’d be back later on.”

  “What was the tea place called?” Brielle asked.

  Luna shrugged again in answer to Brielle’s question. “Don’t remember. I’m gonna go take a shower. Who knows if the Dominions will show up before I get another chance.”

  Gray surveyed the others to see if he was the only one who thought Luna’s behavior was a bit strange.

  Judging by the looks on their faces…he definitely wasn’t.

  AURORA

  “One ticket to Seattle.”

  The teller at the Greyhound station regarded Aurora with mild surprise as he took her cash in exchange for a ticket to Seattle—after stopping at many, many other locations first.

  Apparently, Aurora wasn’t the typical passenger aboard the infamous cross-country buses. Well, it was either this or a plane that may or may not fall out of the air as the pilots’ souls were locked with the cities below. She wasn’t sure how all of that worked, and she wasn’t about to test it out.

  If the Light had thought to gift the Halos with wings, she wouldn’t be in this grungy bus station in the first place. But, alas, there she sat, on the dirty ground next to the vending machine, which was a bad idea because it was probably the highest traffic area in the station, second only to the bathrooms.

  “Hey there, Blondie,” a man with half of his teeth missing said to her. “Not traveling alone are ya’?”

  “Not at all,” she returned with false sweetness. Then, pulling aside her overcoat to expose her plethora of weapons strung through her belt she added, “I’m traveling with several friends. Keep talking to me, and your gut will get to meet one of them.”

  The man’s eyes widened, and he clearly decided she was crazier than even he was, as he hobbled away in search of a slightly less-armed companion.

  The television in the station was tuned to the news. Aurora went from watching the screen to watching the people in the station. They were transfixed by the news anchor updating the country on the growing number of cities that had become infected by the “sleeping virus.” That’s what they were calling it, apparently. The world was growing increasingly more panicked as each new city fell under the “sleeping spell.”

  If only they knew what was actually coming for them. Compared to Caducus and his evil army, a sleeping virus didn’t sound so bad.

  Thirty-Four

  LOGAN

  That whole “twins can communicate telepathically” thing was a crock of shit. Sure, Logan had always been able to discern the general direction of her sister’s thoughts, but that was mostly because she knew her so well. Not because she could read her mind.

  The way Luna was acting now, though, was borderline bizarre. And Logan was going to try to get to the bottom of it.

  The problem with Luna was that, when she was trying to hide something, she usually hid it pretty well. Once upon a time, Luna had been an open book. She would tell Logan her deepest, darkest secrets without much prodding. Logan had prided herself in being her twin’s only confidant.

  Now, though…it seemed Luna wasn’t telling anyone anything.

  “Twin!” Logan banged on the door to Luna’s room. “Let me in.”

  She heard a sigh from within, and a susurration before the door slid open enough to let Luna’s face peek through the crack. “Yes?”

  Logan hadn’t realized how different her sister looked now. After just a few days on this little journey, Luna’s fair skin appeared bruised beneath her eyes, which had changed color somehow. Their gray-blue had grown darker, reminiscent of a sky with a violent storm brewing within its depths.

  “Can I come in?” Logan asked uncertainly.

  Luna looked over her shoulder with a small frown. “Um…”

  “Luna, let me in your room. What the hell is the matter with you?”

  Logan registered a flash of anger flare up in Luna’s eyes that left as quickly as it came.

  “Nothing. I was just about to get dressed, is all.” Taking a step back, Luna permitted Logan to enter her room.

  “It’s not like I haven’t seen you naked a gazillion times,” she muttered, moving to sit in the porthole window, swinging her legs up and under her. “We basically have the same body anyway.”

  This wasn’t exactly true, though. Luna had always been thin and waif-like where Logan was more muscular. Luna was frail where Logan was strong.

  Luna voiced Logan’s thoughts as she moved to gather her Halo armor and ducked into her open bathroom. “We don’t have the same body.”

  “Okay, whatever.” Logan grabbed one of the purple pillows off the windowsill and fingered the swirling gold threads. “What’s going on with you? What happened with Gray yesterday, and why were you two in your room all night? Were you fighting? Were you…not fighting?” Surely her sister hadn’t had sex for the first time without telling her about it.

  Luna was silent for a few beats too long for Logan to believe what she said next. “We were just talking. Chill out.”

  “I am chill, Luna. I just feel like you’ve been keeping something from me lately.”

  Luna’s typically airy tone turned dark, like a light wind changing into a violent gust. “Well, maybe I am. Who the fuck cares?” Logan’s
eyes widened at her sister’s curse, which she’d never heard her use before in her entire life. “It’s not like you told me about you and Brielle being a thing now.”

  Logan’s teeth clenched. “I was going to tell you last night, actually, but I didn’t exactly have the chance, given the fact that you and Gray were holed up in here for hours.”

  Luna reappeared from the bathroom, dressed in her armor. She’d swept her ashy-blonde hair up into a high ponytail. Logan’s eyes narrowed as Luna’s hands moved to rest impatiently on her hips.

  “Was that all you wanted?” Luna said in a tight tone.

  Logan slid off of the windowsill and approached Luna, who stood her ground. They were face to face now. Narrowed eyes flashing at one another.

  “Something’s going on with you,” Logan said in a low tone. “And I will find out what it is. You can’t hide things from me for long. You’re no good at it.”

  As she left her sister’s room, she swore she heard a small giggle followed by the words, “People change.”

  * * *

  “What do you think is wrong with her?” Brielle asked from beside Logan. The two of them stood at the side of the boat—the side facing the restlessly bustling city. The people always seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere here, though Logan didn’t blame them given the biting wind that blew through the streets.

  Logan rested her folded hands on the railing, leaning forward as Brielle threaded an arm through hers until they were locked together like a chain. Despite their Halo gear, she could feel the brunette’s warmth as she sidled closer.

  As they had all afternoon, Logan’s thoughts returned to her sister’s odd behavior, and she shook her head in frustration. “I have no clue what’s wrong with her. It’s not just about Gray. It’s something more. Something serious. I can see it in her eyes. I just don’t know what it is. And clearly, she isn’t about to tell me.”

  Brielle moved her free hand along Logan’s forearm until their fingers were threaded together. “I’m sorry, Lo. I wish I had some kind of advice. I’ve always been an only child. I actually used to wish I had a sibling to fight with.”