Mark of Four

by Tamara Shoemaker

  “Let’s go see what’s waiting in the common care ward.”

  Alayne raised an eyebrow, but followed Felycia without asking any more questions. When they entered the next room, each patient was stretched out on a clean bed. Kyle had apparently returned to the shuttle landing to wrap up everything.

  Alayne took a deep breath. “F—Felycia?”

  The nurse leaned over Melody, who lay in a bed near the end of the common care ward. She laid the back of her hand over the girl’s forehead and prepared an IV. “Make yourself useful, Miss Worth. All of these students need water, as much as they will drink.”

  Alayne nodded, scrambling to the other side of the bed and gathering moisture, trickling it from her fingers into Melody’s mouth.

  Felycia inserted the needle into Melody’s vein and taped it in place. “You had a question?”

  Alayne pulled her attention away from the water elements in the air around her. “Oh, yes. I just wondered if you would know from—from their physical symptoms if any of these students are Shadow-Casted.”

  Felycia’s hands paused as she adjusted the bag next to Melody’s bed. The girl moaned, and Felycia lightly smoothed Melody’s brow. The girl relaxed. “Miss Worth, none of the students, now that they are here at Clayborne, could be Shadow-Casted.”

  “How do you know?” The question wasn’t impertinent; it came from honest curiosity. Felycia didn’t seem to mind.

  “Shadow-Casting, at its best, is done within feet of the victim. Even the best Shadow-Casting examples that CommonEarth has seen, done by experts, has still been only four or five hundred feet from the subject. The subject can fight back when the hold is more tenuous. So now that the students are within the safe walls of Clayborne, even the best Shadow-Caster wouldn’t be able to throw a Cast far enough to reach within the property boundaries of the school.”

  Alayne’s stomach dropped like a stone to her feet. What had she missed in the cave? More importantly, whom? The shuttle pilot had informed them that the cave where they had found the students was only one in an entire network of similar caves, trails and tunnels all along the canyons and crevices of Cliffsides. Just how close had the Caster or Casters been?

  * * *

  The media frenzy Kyle had promised happened overnight. He started it by leaving information on Stanwick Jones’s tipline, and then the storm began. Reporters from Continental Media and a thousand smaller outlets showed up on the steps of Clayborne, flashing their badges to any professor or student they could find.

  Parents also flooded the MIUs in the library and common room. Panic ensued, and Alayne wasn’t exempt from it. She’d evaded her parents’ frantic messages that arrived on her media account, knowing that as soon as she talked to them, her mother would insist she come home, and there would be no room for discussion. If she returned to Skyden, she would feel ineffective and helpless in the search for Marysa. At least at Clayborne, she could find out what was happening.

  Professor Sprynge seemed incapable of handling the panic and the flooded MIUs. He locked himself in his office and refused to see anyone. “I think something slipped in Sprynge’s head during that last bit with Walters, Pepper, and Foy,” Kyle whispered to Alayne as they stood outside his office three days later. She’d knocked four times, but no one had answered. They could hear footsteps inside, low muttering, but no one came to crack open the door.

  “Can you blame him?” Alayne asked as they turned away. “He’s technically responsible, and now look at what’s going on.” She waved toward the window at the far end of the hall. The staff had insisted that the media remove themselves from Clayborne’s threshold, and grudgingly, the media had complied, setting up shuttles and airbuses on the boundaries of Clayborne. Reporters and news anchors milled among them.

  Manders was down there now, she knew, having seen him shrugging on his jacket and adjusting his bowtie as he practically ran past her for the chute. He’d be on Continental Media’s footage in the commissary this evening, brushing his fingers through his dark hair, adjusting his horn-rimmed glasses as he answered questions. As he’d explained to the student body at breakfast, no one would be going home. Security was much tighter at the school than at individual homes. Experienced Elementals worked in and around the facility to keep students safe, and a whole contingent of High Court Elementals had arrived from the Capital, their entire job description being to surround Clayborne’s perimeter and sense the shifts in the Elements, shutting down any Caster’s ability to penetrate the school grounds.

  Alayne was thankful for Manders’s efficient handling of the matter. He’d spent hours reassuring parents already, helping to alleviate what had promised to be a parent stampede on the school.

  Alayne thought back to the conversation she’d overheard in Manders’s office at the beginning of the semester. Had they been discussing her? And if so, why? She couldn’t understand.

  Part of her wished she could go home, let her mother pamper her, hide out of sight, bury herself beneath her covers and never emerge.

  She blew out an impatient sigh and left Kyle in the chute as she entered the library. She checked the messages that had stacked up from her parents on her account. The latest one said, “Stay put. Don’t talk to anyone. We’re coming to get you.” Sent only ten minutes ago.

  Alayne pulled the hologram of her parents’ home into the air in front of her. “Mom? Dad?”

  She could hear the grandfather clock in her parents’ living room ticking slowly in silence. Perhaps she was too late. Alayne ran a hand into her hair, catching her braid. If they came to the school, there would be another huge row as she tried to make them understand that she couldn’t leave, not until—

  “Alayne?” Bryan’s voice cut into her thoughts. His tall form appeared in the doorway from the bedroom, an overnight bag hanging open in his hand. “Wynn!” he called. “Layne’s calling!” Wynn appeared behind him, her face pale, her lips trembling. She rushed forward, collapsing onto the ottoman in front of their MIU.

  “Layne, honey, are you all right? Marysa’s parents have been sick with worry; they’ve been at the Capital trying to get this straightened out, and your dad went with them to help them contact private investigators. We should have been at Clayborne earlier to get you. Honey, please tell me you’re okay.”

  Alayne forced a smile. “I’m fine, Mom. Don’t come and get me. Manders is putting out an official announcement now that all students are to remain here at Clayborne. The Shadow-Casters were outside Clayborne’s walls, and the High Court has sent Elementals to reinforce the protection around Clayborne. By far, the safest place for any student is at Clayborne, on our grounds.”

  “It’s not the safest, Alayne. No one is more interested in your safety than your father and I, and I certainly think—”

  “You and Dad aren’t even Elementals; how under the skies above do you think you would protect me from a Shadow-Caster anyway?” Alayne hated fighting with her mother, especially at a time like this, but it needed to be said.

  Wynn blanched, and Bryan moved to fill Alayne’s vision. “Layne, I think you’re right, but you must understand that this situation is very tentative. We’re going to be watching the nightly news, keeping our eyes and ears open, and you should be ready to come home at a moment’s notice if the situation escalates at all.”

  “Bryan,” Wynn interrupted, “we agreed—”

  “No, we didn’t agree, you stated.” Bryan sank onto the nearby couch. “I love you, Wynn, but you’re taking Alayne’s life into your hands if you bring her home.”

  Alayne watched their silent communication, suddenly thankful that no one had yet mentioned her presence at Cliffsides to them. If Wynn had gotten word of her trip, she would have died of shock—and then resurrected long enough to kill Alayne.

  Wynn abruptly stood and retreated to the bedroom. Bryan heaved a deep sigh. Alayne bit her lip. “Are you and Mom—all right, Dad?”

  Bryan forced a smile. “Yeah, Bug. We’re fine. Just leave your mother to m
e. She worries because she loves you, and don’t you forget it.”

  “I know. I love you guys, too.”

  “Take care of yourself, Bug.”

  “I will.”

  After Alayne switched off the machine, she stared blankly at the wall, struggling to shake herself from the shock that had followed her for the last few days. She wanted to go back to Cliffsides; she was sure she could find something she’d missed the first time around.

  * * *

  A trip to Cliffsides didn’t happen. Sprynge had yet to talk to her, so Alayne had tried Manders. The professor had nodded his understanding, but had shaken his head when Alayne asked if she could use a shuttle to return to Cliffsides. “We have scores of searchers down there already, Miss Worth,” he'd explained. “High quality Elementals from the Capital.”

  “It's not that long of a flight, Professor. I could be back by evening, and wouldn't miss any classes if I went this weekend.”

  Manders’s normally calm gray eyes turned stormy. “Alayne, you went on a trip to Cliffsides without proper chaperones—yes, I know Professor Sprynge was with you, but he tried to get you to stay behind—and you came back without a student. A kidnapping, Alayne, is a serious business, and could possibly be construed in the High Court as your fault. You endangered yourself, Mr. Pence, Miss Blakely, Professor Sprynge, and a shuttle pilot. I am well aware that your intentions to help were honorable, but your judgment was deplorable.”

  Words fled Alayne's mouth. She stared speechless at the professor.

  “I didn't tell your parents what you did, Alayne, but if you sneak out of here again, I most certainly will. Do I make myself clear?”

  Alayne licked her dry lips. “Yes, sir.”

  His gaze softened almost imperceptibly. “We'll find her, don't worry.”

  But Alayne did worry.

  Marysa’s absence was an empty hole in Alayne’s life as the days wore on. She climbed to her bedroom each night, the stillness of her dorm room mocking her with ghosts of Marysa’s laughter, her quirky sense of humor, her impulsive hugs.

  Three weeks after Cliffsides, the kidnappers contacted Alayne.

  Alayne had gone to bed late after wrestling fruitlessly with studies that seemed unimportant in light of Marysa’s absence. She’d at last plopped her head on her pillow and closed her eyes in despair.

  The box of mirror shards rested on her nightstand. Behind Alayne’s closed lids, she saw a purple glow. Her lids shot open. She sat up with a gasp.

  Macy Foy’s shadowed face appeared in all the shards. “Alayne.”

  Alayne snatched the nearest shard, blinking as she stared at it. “Macy Foy?” In her confusion, she blurted out the first random thought that presented itself. “How—did you know about the mirror?”

  “Your friend told us. She’s quite talkative under pressure.” The dead eyes didn’t change expression.

  Alayne gripped the shard tighter. “Where’s Marysa?”

  Macy shook her head. “By now, you should know she’s not coming back until we get what we want.”

  “Marysa’s parents are working on it,” Alayne snapped. “They’ve been at the Capital, doing what they can, but do you honestly expect the entire government system to—”

  “That’s not the issue.”

  “It—It’s not?”

  “We want you to find the Vale.”

  Alayne stared at the small jagged piece of mirror and struggled to understand. “This has nothing to do with the Natural Equality Act?”

  Macy shook her head slowly, her dark eyes twitching. “It’s a bonus if the Blakelys can get it reversed. But what the Casters really want is the Vale. Simeon Malachi will stop at nothing to find the Vale, and we believe you have a fairly good idea of where it is.”

  Alayne was speechless. “What?”

  Macy didn’t elaborate. She continued to stare through the mirror at Alayne.

  “Why on CommonEarth would anyone think I know where the Vale is?”

  “All evidence points to it.”

  Alayne could hardly formulate words. “I don’t know anything about the Vale. Why me?” Alayne pleaded. “Why Marysa?”

  “Because we know how important your friend’s life is to you, and if you value it, you will do as we say.”

  Alayne shook her head. “Why is the Vale so important to you?”

  “The Vale is legendary, as I’m sure you know,” Macy recited woodenly. “It’s a tiny organism that holds such powerful properties that the elements have no control over it. It’s said that whoever possesses the Vale can’t be Shadow-Casted, though no one knows for sure, and on the opposite end, the person who possesses the Vale has far greater control over the elements than even the most powerful Elementals in CommonEarth.”

  “But I don’t know where it is!” Alayne insisted. Panic slid through her.

  “Find it. We believe it’s somewhere around Clayborne. We’ve allowed you to return to the school in the hopes that you will find the Vale and bring it to us. When the Vale is safely in Simeon Malachi’s hands, then you will have your friend back.”

  Alayne’s mouth fell open in disbelief. “What makes you think the Vale is at Clayborne, and why in CommonEarth would I bring something that valuable to you?”

  “If you want to see your friend alive again,” Macy said, “I’d suggest you do exactly what we tell you.”

  Disbelief numbed Alayne’s mind. She couldn’t take in Macy’s ultimatum. “Y—you’ll kill Marysa if I don’t find the Vale?”

  Macy didn’t answer the question. She went on, reciting her lines in a monotone voice. “Once you find the Vale, bring it to the Capital. Take it to the High Court, specifically the education wing. You can leave it with the janitor. It will do no good to question him. He, like me, is being Shadow-Casted.”

  Alayne’s voice rasped as she forced out the words. “How much time do I have?”

  Macy’s dead voice answered. “We want it as soon as possible. We’ll check back periodically for a progress report. If you haven’t found it by the time we check in, your friend will suffer. If you complete exams and summer arrives with no success, you’d better start praying for your friend. Understand?”

  Alayne unscrewed her jaw enough to scrape out the word. “Understood.”

  “One last thing.”

  “What?” Alayne glared at Macy, wishing she could shake the empty-shell from which the woman’s mind had fled.

  “Not a word of this to anyone. No one at Clayborne should hinder your search. Keep your silence, Alayne, or your friend dies.”

  Chapter 20

  Alayne caught Professor Sprynge in the hallway on the way to Points of Motion-Stop the next morning. She laid a hand on his arm as he tried to hurry by. “Please, sir, is there any news of Marysa?” She didn’t dare tell him about Macy Foy’s ultimatum; Marysa’s life teetered on the edge, dependent on Alayne’s secrecy and her effectiveness in finding the Vale.

  The professor shifted his books from one arm to the other, his gaze not quite meeting Alayne’s. “Nothing yet, Miss Worth. But we’re working on it. Hopefully we’ll learn something soon.” He nodded awkwardly and turned for the classroom, leaving her behind.

  Alayne cursed him internally. His words, though kind, lacked teeth.

  Manders had told her that several search teams had been sent to Cliffsides since their return, but none had come back with any information. The system of caverns and tunnels was so varied and huge that it could take years to reach the end of them.

  Alayne settled into her search in the days that followed. She needed a clear mind. Marysa’s survival depended on Alayne’s success in finding the Vale. She spent hours in the library, looking through the thousands of books that lined the shelves.

  As time passed, dread seeped through Alayne’s inner regions. She imagined what Marysa’s captors would do if she couldn’t find the Vale. Search the school, they had said. As she returned from her jog every morning, she surveyed the massive spire with a critical eye. Where else to
look?

  She’d pored over book after book, hoping for something with a little more information on the Vale. All she had ever found was what had been in the book she’d hidden in her room—the book that had been stolen when her room had been ransacked.

  Surely she should have found even a hint of the Vale. But so far, nothing.

  Dorner’s death was under wraps for the time being. Manders had called Kyle and Alayne into his office and sworn them to secrecy. The situation was complicated; parents’ panic was barely contained. Sprynge didn’t want to deal with the fallout from a Continental Media report of the death of Clayborne’s Chairman. Manders, in accordance with Sprynge’s wishes, announced publicly that Dorner had taken an extended leave-of-absence, and that Sprynge would fill in until Dorner was able to come back. It was a bandage on a seeping wound. Soon the news would break, but for now, at least, Alayne could continue her search for the Vale without a full-blown parental panic impeding her progress.

  * * *

  At last, Felycia Hargrave opened the special care ward to visitors. Kyle, who had returned to the common care ward occasionally to help, mentioned the news to Alayne one afternoon.

  In the ward, Felycia glanced up from some paperwork as Alayne walked past. “Mr. Cross woke up, Alayne. He’s been asking for you all day.”

  Alayne’s heart thudded to a stop and then restarted. “Thank you, Felycia.” She hurried into the back room.

  Jayme’s eyes were shut as she walked in, but as soon as she tiptoed close to his bed his lids flew open.

  “Jayme.” Alayne tentatively reached for his hand—the first time she’d touched him since he’d left at Christmas. She grasped it in both of hers and held it against her cheek.

  His eyes, cloudy from sleep and sedation, brightened. “I missed you, Al.” His voice slurred, but his eyes sparkled with recognition, and the corner of his mouth turned up in a lopsided grin.