“She didn’t,” Meg insisted, but she seemed less certain now. “Regardless, I have a hard time believing she would have wanted you anywhere but here, with David and me.”
I turned away from her, my chin quivering. I knew if I spoke I would dissolve in tears. To think that I could have known my father all this time.
He wasn’t some mythological creature. He was human, and he was real.
And he had wanted me.
“When did you meet Sebastian?” Meg said with suspicion, as though it had only just now occurred to her to ask the question.
I swallowed hard, making an effort to control my anger. “I first saw him the other day at school. I was on the track. He was watching me.”
The crease between her eyebrows deepened. “You first saw him. Do you mean to tell me you saw him again?”
“In the woods. Twice. He, uh. He told me some stuff.”
Meg closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. She seemed to want to say a lot of things at the moment, but she settled on just one question. “What sort of stuff?”
“He told me that I have a brother. A half-brother. Did you know anything about that?”
Meg’s eyes widened as she shook her head. “No, but I guess that doesn’t surprise me. He’s entitled to his own life, too.” She turned and began slicing a tomato into wedges.
“There’s more,” I said. “It turns out my half-brother is Caleb.”
The knife clattered to the cutting board as Meg spun to face me. “Caleb. Caleb Moon? Charley’s son?”
I nodded. “The one and only.”
Meg slumped against the counter with her hand against her chest, as though she was afraid her heart would burst through her ribs. “I certainly didn’t see that one coming.”
“There’s a lot of stuff I didn’t see coming,” I said.
We stood in silence for a few minutes before Meg asked if I’d spoken to anyone else about this. I shook my head. “I told Priscilla about Sebastian, but that was before I knew who he actually was.”
“But you haven’t talked to Imogene or anyone else?”
“It’s such a convoluted mess, Meg. I don’t even know where to begin.”
“I think we need to call a meeting,” she said decisively.
“Don’t you think I should talk to Caleb first?”
Meg studied me for a moment before nodding. “Do you want me to talk to him with you?”
I thought about it for a moment. This was something I just didn’t know how to do. I would need all the support I could get. “Yeah. I think that’s probably best.”
She handed me the phone. “Then invite him for dinner. He won’t say no. Teenage boys are always hungry.”
NINETEEN
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Caleb said as he not-so-subtly inched to the right.
“Sorry,” I said, realizing I had been staring at him. “I just wanted to make sure that you’re okay. You know, after your—”
“I’m fine.”
Imogene often told me how much I looked like my mother, but did Caleb look like our father? The more closely I stared, the more I realized how very little of Charley was actually in him. He had to look like our father.
As if my hand had a mind of its own, I reached out to touch his face. He jerked back and swatted it away.
“Dude, what are you doing?”
I shook my head and bit the inside of my bottom lip to hide the sudden urge to smile. Caleb was my brother.
I had a brother!
Linking my arm through his, which only seemed to annoy him more, I said, “Come on. Dinner’s almost ready.”
Meg and David were just finishing setting the table. Meg seemed flustered. Her hand holding the water pitcher shook as she poured out the drinks. David’s eyes kept traveling between Caleb and me, as though he couldn’t believe we were actually related. I could hardly believe it myself.
“Uh, thanks for inviting me over,” Caleb said when Meg gestured for him to take a seat.
She smiled as she placed a napkin in her lap. “Well, I know that you and Sarah have been working hard on some school project together.”
Caleb looked at me from the corner of his eye. That’s the story I had fed David and Meg so they wouldn’t wonder why I kept sneaking off to be with him.
“We thought it was time to get to know you a little better.” Meg raised her glass and took a sip, never once taking her eyes off him.
David rested his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers. “Let’s cut to the chase.”
Caleb’s mouth twitched as he divided a glance between Meg and David, probably sensing then that this wasn’t your average weeknight dinner. “Did I do something wrong?”
I almost laughed, seeing the normally self-assured Caleb acting nervous. I took a deep breath and dove right in. No sense in beating around the proverbial bush.
“Caleb, have you ever heard of a man named Sebastian?”
He shrugged, the corners of his mouth turning down in a frown. “No. Should I have?”
My heart pounded as I took another deep breath. “Does the name Lucas ring a bell?”
This time I saw a dim flicker of recognition in his eyes. “Maybe. I don’t know.”
“Think,” I said.
He looked at me like I was out of my mind. But after a moment he said, “Awhile back my mom took me somewhere. It was a reservation. When you said Lucas . . . I don’t know. I immediately thought of that place.”
“Did you meet someone by that name while you were there?” Meg said, watching him intently.
Caleb shook his head. “I don’t know. I saw my mom talking to someone, but only from a distance. I can’t say for sure, but I think she might have been arguing with him.” He looked around the table. “Why? Who is this Lucas guy?”
“My father,” I said.
“Your father?” Caleb’s eyes widened. “But that means . . . Victor’s wife . . . and . . . why would my mother be talking to him?”
I took a deep breath and steeled myself. “Because he’s your father, too.”
Caleb paced the floor, hands covering his ears as though he refused to hear what I was telling him. “No!” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t believe you. My father walked out on us.”
“Why did he leave so suddenly?” I prodded.
“How the hell should I know?” Caleb raged. “Because he’s a jerk! But that doesn’t change the fact that he is my father and not this Lucas guy.”
I grabbed his arm, forcing him to stop and look at me. “Nathan Moon left because he witnessed what you could do. And then when he confronted Charley, she must have told him the truth. Think about it, Caleb.”
“What do you mean, what he can do?” David said.
Caleb turned to me. “You haven’t told them?” I couldn’t tell if he was surprised, angry, or relieved.
“It’s not my secret to tell,” I said with a twinge of guilt, seeing as how I’d already confided to Priscilla.
Caleb flicked his fingers at the unlit candle sitting in the middle of the table. Meg gasped as the flame flickered to life and then suddenly went out again.
David cleared his throat. “That was unexpected.”
“How did you do that?” Meg said more pointedly.
Caleb slumped into his chair and put his face in his hands. “I don’t know,” he said miserably. “I just know that I can.”
Meg laid a hand on his shoulder. “What does the Council have to say about it?”
“The Council doesn’t know. No one knows except my mom. And Jasmine.”
“Why?” David questioned.
Caleb lifted his face. “Because my mother told me never to tell anyone.” He laughed, as though something had suddenly struck him as funny. “She would flip if she knew the three of you had found out.”
“But why wouldn’t she want anyone to know?” I wondered.
“Look where it got Shyla,” he said. “I guess she was trying to save me the grief of people knowing I was differe
nt. And anyway, I wasn’t real thrilled about showing others what a freak I am.”
“Is that how you see me?” I said. “As some sort of freak?”
“There is a lot here we don’t understand,” Meg said, before Caleb could answer. She sat down in her chair and pinched the bridge of her nose, as though warding off a headache. “And I feel like there is something important we’re missing here.”
She uncovered her face then and said, with a decisive nod of her head, “We have to talk to Imogene.”
I had expected Caleb to protest, but he didn’t. He sat back in his chair. “Fine. I’m tired of carrying this secret around. But leave my mom and Jasmine out of it for now.”
Meg rose. “I’ll call Imogene.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Imogene said, laying her hand against her heart.
Caleb had just given her a demonstration of his powers by placing a hand on her brown and sickly fern and restoring it back to good health, if only temporarily. Shyla sat in a corner chair, stunned and silent and looking hurt.
“We’ve got a few things to discuss,” Meg said, “the most obvious of which is Caleb’s abilities. Imogene, have you ever heard . . .”
I got up and left the room, the sound of Meg’s and Imogene’s voices growing dimmer. I pulled on my hoodie and stepped outside. I should have stayed to talk things through with them, but I desperately needed air.
I leaned my elbows on the rail and drew in a deep, cleansing breath. My head was swimming, flooded with too much information. Exhausted, I felt like I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. This had been a very long day.
A few minutes later, Adrian pulled into the driveway. Without speaking, I watched as he got out of the car and walked toward me, all the while keeping his head down. He came to stand beside me, back against the rail. Neither of us said anything.
“Why were you avoiding me at school today?” I said, finally working up the courage to ask.
“I wasn’t avoiding you.”
I rolled my eyes, even though he couldn’t see my face. “At least have the decency to tell me the truth.”
“I could say the same for you,” he said, his voice hard.
I gritted my teeth and kept my own voice as even as possible. I was so tired of fighting with him. “I’ve told you the truth. I’ve been telling you the truth all along. There is nothing going on between Caleb and me. And if you only knew . . .”
“If I only knew what?”
“Maybe you should go inside and ask Caleb yourself.”
“Or maybe you could just tell me. You’ve gotten really good at keeping secrets lately. You and Caleb both.”
I looked at him. “Caleb can . . . do things like I can.”
His eyes widened. “Magic, you mean. How do you know?”
“Because he showed me. Weeks ago, while on the reservation.”
Adrian’s mouth fell open in disbelief. He turned and began pacing the front porch, running his hand through his hair in agitation and muttering under his breath.
“Don’t be mad, Adrian,” I said, reaching a tentative hand toward him.
He turned on me. “Why shouldn’t I be mad? Caleb and I are best friends, and yet he kept the biggest secret of his life from me, even though he told you!”
“Yes, he told me! Because we are alike! And I know how he feels!” I clenched my fists at my sides. Where the heck did he get off being mad at me?
“Today at school I asked you where you were last night,” I said, “and you told me nowhere.”
“That’s the truth,” he said, his words clipped.
“You can’t be nowhere, Adrian. Your grandmother said you were out, and I know for a fact you weren’t with Caleb—”
“Because you were?”
“And you didn’t answer your cell when I called,” I said, refusing to take the bait.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” he said sarcastically. “I didn’t know I was required to answer every time you called. Sometimes I have better things to do than talk to you.”
I gasped and stood staring at him, emotionally bruised. “Adrian, we can’t keep doing this.”
His shoulders slumped and he exhaled through his nose, eyes closed. “I know.”
I trudged over to the porch swing and sat down, patting the space next to me. “Sit down, Adrian. We need to talk.”
He took a deep breath, hung his head, and slowly made his way to me. “You’re going to break up with me, aren’t you?” he said, without sitting down.
I stared at him for a moment, my mouth agape, before breaking out in laughter. “Not at all! I actually thought you wanted to break up with me.”
He laughed, too, seemingly in relief, and then collapsed on the swing next to me. “Why would you think that?”
“Why wouldn’t I think that? We’ve been going around in circles for weeks now, fighting with each other. We just can’t seem to get back on track.”
“That doesn’t mean I want to break up with you,” Adrian said. “All it means is that we have some problems that need ironing out.”
“You’re right. We do.”
He patted my thigh, his hand traveling down to my knee where he kept it. “So what did you want to talk to me about?”
“Well, I have something to tell you, and it’s sort of major.”
Adrian took a deep breath. “Even more major than learning Caleb is a human flame-thrower?”
I laughed. “He’s actually not very good at controlling that element, but yeah. Even more major than that.”
“Okay. So what is it?”
I swallowed hard. “I found out the other day I have a brother. Not a full brother,” I said quickly, seeing the confusion on his face, “but a half-brother. We share the same father.”
Adrian’s mouth worked silently for a few moments as he struggled to form a question—any question. “You have a brother? That’s awesome. I think.”
He grabbed my hands suddenly. “How do you know? Have you met him?” And then a stricken look came over his face. “Have you met your father?”
“I haven’t met my father, but I have met my brother.” I bit my bottom lip. “And so have you.”
His brows knitted into a straight line, like a very dark caterpillar resting over his eyes. “I have?”
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. “It’s Caleb.”
“Caleb . . . Moon?” he said in disbelief, blinking repeatedly.
I bit my bottom lip again. “Yeah.”
“As in Charley’s Caleb. Jasmine’s brother. My best friend. That Caleb?”
I shrugged and gave him a sheepish smile. “Yeah.”
Adrian sat back, nervously zipping and unzipping his jacket. I waited in silence as he got over the initial shock. “Wow,” he said after a few moments. “Just . . . wow. I can’t believe it.”
I laughed a little uncertainly. “I know. Weird, huh?”
“How did you . . . I don’t understand how you found out. Did Caleb know? Is he the one who told you?”
I tucked an errant strand of hair behind my ear and cleared my throat. “Well, it’s sort of a long story. There’s this man named Sebastian—”
“Who’s Sebastian?”
I looked at him. “My uncle, apparently. My father’s brother.”
“How did you meet Sebastian?” Adrian said, running his hand through his hair, obviously overwhelmed.
I waved my hand, impatient to get through this. “I told you it’s a long story. Just listen.”
“Fine,” Adrian said. “So this Sebastian guy told you that Caleb is your half-brother?”
I nodded. “I told Meg and David, and we confronted Caleb about it. The poor guy didn’t even see it coming.”
“I’ll say.”
“When you saw us together at the creek the other day, it was only because we were practicing our magic. I couldn’t tell you then what we were up to because no one knew about him. He didn’t want you to know because he didn’t want you to look at him any differently.
“Adrian,” I said, grabbing his hand suddenly. “I want you to know that there was never anything between Caleb and me but friendship.”
“I see that now,” he said. He shook his head. “God, I feel like a colossal idiot.”
He met my eyes. “I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”
“It’s okay,” I said. “I’m sorry, too.”
“And just so we’re clear, there’s nothing going on between Jasmine and me. The reason I didn’t answer your call last night was because I was with her.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
Adrian squeezed my hand. “No! That didn’t come out right. Do you remember last year, before we hooked up, when you saw Katie Cunningham getting into my car?”
Boy, did I ever remember that. I’d been beyond mad, not to mention hurt. That was back when I was still trying to figure out how Adrian really felt about me. Katie had been an interfering pain in my backside as she kept trying to make a play for Adrian. In the end, Adrian had stood up for me and told Katie to butt out.
Understanding dawned on me at once. “So it’s like that?”
He gave me a lopsided grin. “Pretty much.”
I looked down at the ground. “I feel like such a jerk.”
“Don’t,” he said. “I was the one being a jerk for getting mad at you. And then I was a hypocrite for avoiding you this morning. I should have been upfront, but I knew you were hiding something from me, and I was jealous, and . . .” He let his voice trail off.
I met his eyes again. “What did she say?”
“Jasmine’s had a crush on me for as long as I can remember, so I guess I never took it all that seriously. She was just Caleb’s bratty kid sister. But Shyla told me I had to do something about it once and for all or risk losing you.”
I lowered my head to Adrian’s shoulder. This felt good. It felt right. We were back to where we were supposed to be. The air had been cleared, and nothing would ever come between us again.
“So what now?” Adrian said.
I leaned against him and nestled into the crook of his arm. “Well, I have a few questions for Charley.”
“Such as?”
“Such as why she tried to pass Caleb off as Nathan Moon’s son .”
The Prophecy Page 15