by Jan Harman
Aunt Claire pointed at my chair, trying to get me to sit. “Your father wouldn’t want you to abandon the valley.”
“I think you’ve got that backwards. Not that it matters what my father wanted or thought. This place killed him. Now I’m the target. Dad would never have wanted me in this position. That is the real reason he never brought me here. Given what is happening, he would expect you to keep me out of it and safe.”
Shadow jerked away from the counter, his body instantly vibrating. “What does she mean, the valley killed her father?”
“Privileged information,” Aunt Claire answered, shutting him down. “Olivia, I won’t allow you to give up so easily on your birthright.”
“Why, for some outdated tradition? You’ve been skating around key facts and dangling a welcoming home in front of my face like a carrot. Enough already. Just tell me.”
I waited while she washed up two coffee mugs. Then it hit me; that was her response. I shoved the chair under the table. “Obviously we’re still just strangers. This place might as well be a bed and breakfast selling hype to the gullible tourist. Thanks for your vote of confidence.”
She recoiled as though I’d slapped her. Instantly, I regretted my show of temper.
“You’re acting like a spoiled child. Apologize,” Shade scolded.
I glared at him. If he couldn’t take my side, he could at least be quiet. “Shadow, your brother is looking a bit green. He should’ve stayed in bed. Please drive him home. Shade, don’t make me order you.”
The air rumbled. Shade shoved back from the table. “Is running your strategy for life when things get too hard?” Aunt Claire gave him a stern look. His clenched jaw stretched skin, opening up a cut on his chin. He swiped off the blood with a napkin that he balled up in his fist.
“Don’t talk to me about hard. Hard is struggling to convince your legs to walk properly or living another day when all you can feel is guilt and loss. This . . .” I shook my head and took a deep breath. “Leave me alone. Go home.”
We locked eyes. Chair legs tapped against the floor as Shade fought the impulse to obey. He shot to his feet. The sweeping motion of his hands flung his folded newspaper across the kitchen, smacking it into the start button on the microwave. The appliance beeped and began to whir. He staggered and knocked his chair over.
“Ease off, can’t you see he’s hurting,” Shadow yelled, grabbing his twin’s arm.
I couldn’t bear Shade’s suffering. I turned and fled to the back door, yanked on the first pair of shoes I saw, and then grabbed my coat off the hook as I went by.
In retrospect, the whole get out of the house idea had not been well thought out. For starters, my crutch was buried somewhere on the side of a mountain. My bad knee was swollen. And now, thanks to the battering I’d taken, my good leg had gotten a three-inch gash that had required stitches. To top it off, during the night a cold wave had settled in the valley, plummeting the temperatures into the low teens. I turned up my collar and pulled my hands inside my sleeves. Regardless, the house and all it represented was still too close. I limped three steps out onto the patio, sinking past my calves in the snow. I sucked in the frigid air, feeling its paralyzing progression all the way down my windpipe. Heavy, wet snow soaked my jeans, encasing them against my legs. My knees locked. Even with my eyes scrunched tight I could still see white.
“I would’ve thought you had your fill of snow yesterday.”
I jerked, released from my private terror by the magnetism of Shade’s earthy drawl. He was standing so close that his warm breath ruffled the hair on the back of my head. I wondered, momentarily befuddled by his proximity, whether he knew the power his voice had on me?
“Whatever you do, don’t fall. I doubt I could pick you up,” he admitted.
The subtle reminder of his repeated assistance blasted through my ego, clearing the foolishness out of my head. Still, I couldn’t ignore the strain he tried hard to mask. “You’re a stubborn one, Shade Grisland. Do I have to order you again?”
“If it’ll make you feel better, go for it. I told you in the end it comes down to my will. Order me to leave. Do it until your mouth is too dry to speak. One time or a thousand, the end result will be the same. I place your best interest over mine every time. You need me as your guide and protector.”
Warm hands squeezed my shoulders. I clutched my arms across my chest and stared down at the ring he’d worked so hard to earn. Danny should never have put his friend in this position. Those terrible moments kept replaying in my head, churning up feelings that thickened my voice and made the words harder to get out. “Last night in my nightmares, I was attending your funeral. Please, Shade, sever the oaths,” I begged, trying but failing to pull his hands down. Through the layers of down, his grip dug into my shoulders, drawing me snug against his side. I wanted to believe his strength and determination would be enough to keep us both safe. “One twist the wrong way and you could’ve snapped your back.”
“Oh please, I’m a diamond level viber. They’ll need to do better than a wind shear. Before I was midway down the tube, I felt their pattern rubbing out ahead of mine. I allowed the situation to play out to see how far they were willing to go.”
“Of all the stupid, fool-hearty, risky ideas with the ego to match,” I snapped, whirling around, prepared to let him really have it. The amber glow from the porch light highlighted ugly purplish-black bruises that disappeared into his hairline. I shoved a hand out of my sleeve, and brushed the yellow blond streak behind his ear. Coarse stubble from his unshaven cheek tickled my palm. My breath hitched and I whispered, “These are nasty. Should you be out of bed?”
His cool, macho shrug was all it took to reignite my temper. “Don’t make light of this. The rest of us didn’t have the benefit of your first-hand insights. Do you know what it was like for me to watch as you careened down that slope? Then to have my worst fears played out before my eyes as you were tossed about? Even Shadow was panicked. You’re not unbreakable.”
“All for show, or at least most of it,” he answered, drawing a hand across his jaw. “If I apologize for frightening you, could we go inside?”
“Take me seriously,” I shrieked, shoving his chest. Color drained from his face. I cried out, frightened for him. “Oh, God, Shade, I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you?”
“Shake me tomorrow, okay?” he replied, grimacing slightly when he breathed.
“What were you thinking leaving your bed? Is anything broken?”
“My pride. I really wanted to win.”
“Men!” I said crossly. “I’m worried about you, and all you care about is that stupid race.”
“This isn’t just about winning a race. If we concede a single activity, that puts a win in their column. I won’t do it, and I won’t let you either. Don’t look so worried. I’m battered, but not broken. We heal very fast. Another day and I’ll be good to rev.”
“What do you mean? You can’t vibrate?” I demanded, looking him up and down.
“Dr. Long doesn’t want me to risk aggravating anything. So why don’t we step inside where the nice furnace can do the job of warming you up, until I’m fit again?” he asked hopefully, peering down into my face, the corners of his lips lifting to form a tentative smile. His brow furrowed. “Apparently we’re going to stay out here and have this out. Why can’t you just let the council worry about the situation?”
“Am I your warden in name only?”
“Sure, throw my words in my face. Ask anyone, you’ll see I’m not so easily manipulated. No orders,” he said when I opened my mouth. “Fine, I’ll explain my behavior yesterday.”
“No one should be questioning your behavior. You were having fun,” I replied, enjoying the contest of wills. I felt stronger knowing he didn’t see me as a doormat. “Do you believe the purists were behind the snow twisters and the attack at the ski run?”
“My bureau chief believes so. Unfortunately, when multiple minds are involved, it’s almost impossible to identify indivi
dual vibration patterns. Unless a witness comes forward, the enforcers don’t have much to go on.”
“Did they intend to kill you?” I asked, my voice trembling.
His expression was unreadable, but his fisted hands gave away what he truly thought. “I may be young in their eyes, but I’m a force to be reckoned with. After yesterday, they know it as does the individual responsible for these,” he said, touching the cuts on his jaw. “The attack at the ski run was an introduction. Someone out there has a healthy range they’ve been keeping quiet about.”
“Another diamond?”
“Possibly. Had I considered even for a moment that they meant something more than a warning, that they had intentions towards you, I would’ve frozen the individual’s vibrations in a heartbeat. They’d have seen me standing at your side. From now on, I won’t be as forgiving.”
A low simmer ignited deep within my chest, reminding me of the Soul Oath and the inevitability of our linked futures. I stepped back into the snow, sinking deeper. The move was futile. Not even today’s frigid temperatures or yesterday’s ice shell could extinguish the flame. Both of our futures need not be consumed. I strove to sound calm and unaffected, but had to settle for the slight quiver in my voice. “Now that they’ve tested you, they’ll probably give you a wide berth. When word gets around that my aunt has taken over as warden and I’m going out east for college, they’ll figure out I’m powerless.” And you’ll be safe, I refrained from saying.
“You can’t change who you are. You’ve Pepperdine and Whisperer inside of you. It’s a powerful combination. Sister Willow agrees,” he said with conviction.
“Because I can snatch up someone’s memory? Watch out, scary weapon,” I said, holding my hands out with my fingers curved like claws ready to strike.
“Memories, impressions, and ideas can be. Knowledge is power.”
“It’s creepy and unethical.”
He shook his head. “Only you would be worried about the ethics of picking up the plans of those who mean the valley harm.”
“I suppose you’ve never heard that two wrongs don’t make a right?”
“You’ve got it all wrong. You live in a valley where a significant portion of the population routinely links minds.”
“Then you or Sister Willow should have no trouble finding those behind this.”
He stared at me patiently. When I didn’t get his point, he explained. “We only pick up on the emotions or thoughts an individual brings to the link. Someone with the skill to execute a sustained, precision attack of the magnitude unleashed on gate five—without being detected by enforcers watching the race—has the mental control to put forth only what he wants people to know during a connection. Granted, if we had a suspect, Sister Willow has the gifts to penetrate his walls. Without strong cause, the Pact won’t allow the violation.”
“Alright just say it. Where do I come in?”
“Once you become the warden, you are the Executer of the Pact. As well as being the only one permitted to call into question acts that you deem of possible harm to the clans.”
“I’m above the law?” I asked, wondering what idiot had decided it would be a good idea to give one person that much power.
“You are the law.”
My eyes widened at the distinction. I sort of hobbled a step back. Warm, steadying hands pulled me forward out of the drift. “That’s heady. I don’t want that responsibility.”
“It comes with the position. The warden isn’t restricted by clan boundaries nor does the warden need to obtain council permission to act.”
“Privacy is a right people have died to protect. I can’t trample it. I won’t.”
“You saw firsthand how ruthless these people are. Not even children’s lives carry any weight.”
“I’m not a dictator. It’s wrong!” I replied in a high tight voice. I knew I sounded desperate to be released from my fate, but this was too much. I tucked in my upper lip, biting it lightly with my lower teeth, going numb inside at the thought of what these people found acceptable let alone that Shade expected me to be that sort of person. Aunt Claire, she couldn’t issue an order like that, could she? But then, the purist had hurt people and needed to be stopped.
Shade leaned closer, revealing choppy seas breaking across thinning white bands. Ice wedges amassed like soldiers in formation. “So you’ll just hand your enemy what they want. To what end? Do you want to be responsible for the misery of untold generations? The warden’s voice stands between a community and chaos. Stop denying your heritage and help us,” he shouted, punching the air with his palm, knocking the fresh powder off the railings.
Neither of us said anything as a circle of snow melted into a pool of slush extending a good eight inches past our feet. I rocked back and forth, my shoes sloshing a channel to drain the water, while I contemplated snow twisters, wind shears, and what Shade could potentially do should he really lose his temper. I shifted position, so I could see my snowman guarding my back yard with his off center hump that Shade had playfully exaggerated. I breathed easier thinking about this side of him. In a thoughtful voice I asked, pointing down at the slush, “You can do this and you need my help?”
His head swung towards the back door. “Your aunt wants to keep your life simple. As your protector, I would arm you with knowledge. I’ve waited years to show Danny’s little sister the wonders of our community. I regret that lost opportunity. We’ve been stained by ugliness.”
The sadness in his voice made my heart thump loudly. He turned back and gave me a quizzical look. To cover I said, “Contrary to popular opinion, I’m adjusting. I’ve not ordered you to drive me to the airport.”
“I’d be quite conflicted if you did.”
“I wouldn’t want to cause you more pain. I’ll wait until tomorrow,” I replied in a playful tone. His lips pressed together forming a tight, white line. I felt a pang of regret for his sacrifices. For his sake, I tried to be what he needed. “Please explain how the warden isn’t a dictator.”
“Yours is the call that unites the clans. Without the Pact and our warden some would find the temptation to stray too great to resist. We would be diminished. Should too many stray we, Whisperers and humans alike, would suffer greatly.”
“Why give the warden so much power?”
“We dare not. Our ancestors were aggressive, arrogant, and amoral. Unlike humans, this nature hasn’t been as suppressed into our subconscious as we would like. Even though our species was on the verge of extinction, the dominants subjugated lesser males as hunters to execute the mates and offspring of their rivals. Unclaimed lessers banded together to combat the emotional barrages released by the dominants. In most cases, these tentative alliances led to internal bloodbaths. After a particularly violent period of carnage and raging emotional storms, territories were assigned to small contingents. Our pre-Roland attempt at civilization met with limited success as long as we kept our physical, mental, and emotional distance. Then humans encroached. Waves of invaders and an endless succession of wars forced us to live as they did in towns and farming villages. The noise of all those minds with their emotional spikes overloaded our most vulnerable, our young. Many children were lost. Dominants re-emerged, risking our discovery. People lost hope and feared they were destined to be savage, insular beings. Our communal experiment was on the brink of failure.”
“What did Roland do, that everyone now expects from me?” I asked, fiddling with the zipper on my jacket, trying my best not to panic at the idea that there might be a dominant in our valley.
“Our ancestors discovered within Roland the ability to connect and hold the wash of many minds. We became a unified people not combatants.”
I tugged the zipper up and crossed my arms. “Just because this is a conversation and not an order, you don’t get to gloss over the details. Are you afraid of scaring me off?”
“Let’s say I’m cautious because you didn’t grow up here experiencing us as friends and loved ones before being exposed to o
ur history and darker aspects. Strong-willed egos and emotional releases ruled the collective until Roland’s compassionate touch drew into the forefront our empathetic nature. In the same way I bolstered you by projecting emotions during our joining, the collective’s intermingled thoughts and emotions sustains us with its consistent background presence. Bound to the whole, we function at our best when the collective grazes our minds on a regular basis. The oneness bridges the emptiness that drives reason to the side. Thanks to Roland’s patient influence we as a people became grounded. We became a community.”
“At the risk of melting my back yard, it sounds to me like your ancestors traded their individuality for order rather than working through their difficulties,” I replied.
“It’s because we’re interconnected that strong emotional spikes no longer overwhelm an individual. The community need not live in fear of enslavement by those individuals with abilities and talents in the upper ranges. I’m always an individual. This is possible because our warden treasures and safeguards the motivations of our hearts. As our warden, you will be our binding voice that holds us together in peaceful co-existence because your humanity fosters our empathetic nature.”
My hand shook as I pressed it to my forehead and drew it across the top of my head. “You don’t ask for much, do you? From a newcomers perspective it sounds like you’ve created your own weakest link. A corrupt warden could undermine the fabric of your community. I can understand why some might view Roland as your people’s single greatest mistake.”
“Our people,” he corrected. “That pivotal moment kept us from succumbing to our savage side. Roland was a godsend.”
“Whisperers aren’t savages anymore. They’ve evolved. Has a warden ever attempted to step back and allow the collective to operate without outside interference?”
“Would you be willing to risk the fate of so many lives? I told you our history is one of brutal domination.” He shook his head. “To this day, some Whispers argue that we deserve to be as nature intended, dominance driven with humans enslaved or exterminated. This disdain for our intense oneness, fostered by those who advocate a return to the old ways, has led to experimentation. In some cases, the temptation to yield to our inner demons couldn’t be silenced.”