Arcadia's Gift (Arcadia Trilogy)

by Jesi Lea Ryan

  “Stop!” I cried, twisting my body to get out from the jail of his arms.

  Cane snapped his head back in surprise as if just realizing what he did. The drunken glaze was completely gone from his eyes. He let go of me and stumbled back.

  “Oh, Jesus, Cady. I’m sorry!”

  Both of us had tears in our eyes. I felt a new remorse flood in alongside his original guilt. Without the heat of his body, the sharp coldness returned making my insides shiver.

  “It’s alright, Cane.” I reached for his arm to comfort him, but he flinched away. Suddenly, an emotion hit me in the chest, causing me to stumble back against the truck. The freeze was so intense that when I gasped, a plume of fog came out of my mouth. Even if I had not been able to feel it, one look at Cane’s face told me what it was…self-hatred.

  He shoved me out of the way and climbed into his pick-up.

  “Cane, I don’t think you’re in any condition to drive.” I tried to reach for his keys, but he slammed the door in my face.

  “Cane!” I yelled, beating on the window with my fists. “Don’t go! At least let me drive you!”

  He lowered the window and fixed a hostile glare on me. “What? Are you afraid I’ll get into an accident? Maybe kill myself? It’s no less than I deserve.”

  “Don’t talk like that! If you want to go home, I’ll take you. Let me in.”

  “No, Cady. Home’s the last place I want to go.” With that he closed the window and threw the truck in gear. He tore out of the parking lot, his wheels spinning a black mark on the pavement.

  I stood there immobile, my body rapidly warming with him out of my presence. But I couldn’t let Cane go off like that. What if he hurt himself? I tried to concentrate on whether any of his emotions indicated he was suicidal, but I couldn’t tell. Once again, I cursed the fact that my abilities didn’t allow me to read minds like Jinx. Jinx! I turned and ran to the building. The high school was on the edge of her range, but Cane must have been broadcasting loud enough for her to pick up on his thoughts in the parking lot.

  Back inside the dance, the flashing lights and hard thumping bass attacked my aching head. Across the room, Bryan looked surprised when he saw me rush in, but I ignored him and ran straight to the coat racks to fish my cell phone out of my pocket.

  “Cady, what wrong?” Bryan asked, coming up alongside me.

  Ignoring his concern, I dialed Jinx’s number. “Crap! I can’t hear in here!”

  I rushed back to the doors with Bryan on my heels.

  “Jinx! Can you hear me?” I asked, tears springing to my eyes. I blinked them away before they could spill.

  “Not sure if he’s suicidal or not,” she answered without me having to ask the question, “but he’s headed out to the Mines of Spain.”

  “Oh, no!” I said, “He’s been drinking. He could get hurt out there.”

  “Do you want me to take you out to get him?”

  I looked over at Bryan. “No, I’ll have Bryan take me. Thanks.” I hung up. Turning to Bryan, “Cane’s in trouble, and someone needs to go get him.”

  Bryan nodded. “Let me go get Aaron and Monica.”

  Chapter 24

  Bryan disappeared back inside the dance. Sobs clawed at the back of my throat, but I refused to give in to them. My body shook from the wild physical changes it had experienced with Cane. I rolled my neck to loosen up my shoulders, but the knots were in there solid.

  I couldn’t believe Cane kissed me. Even worse? I couldn’t believe I kissed him back! What came over me? It was almost like I’d had no control over myself, but at the same time, it was all me. For that one moment, I wanted him. I couldn’t dwell on it though because just then Bryan returned carrying both of our jackets, Aaron and Monica right behind him.

  Aaron’s face clouded with concern when he saw me trembling. “You okay? What’s going on?”

  “I’ll tell you in the car.” I promised as we jogged off to the vehicle.

  Once in the passenger seat, I turned the heat up full blast and pulled on my jacket. My teeth chattered uncontrollably. The fact that everyone else in the car was all keyed up and confused wasn’t helping me calm down.

  “Head toward the Mines of Spain,” I instructed. Bryan nodded and turned south.

  “Why?” Aaron demanded. “I don’t think that’s a very good idea. It’s too dark and you don’t look steady enough to go tromping through the woods.”

  I quickly told them about Cane’s state of mind and that he’d been drinking. Aaron still didn’t like the idea of me going after him, but he shut his mouth and didn’t try to talk me out of it.

  “Are you okay?” Bryan asked, real concern showing in his eyes, brushing my skin with a loving coolness. I nodded, but the concern in his eyes fueled my guilt. I really liked this boy, but I kissed someone else not fifteen minutes earlier. Not just anyone, but my dead sister’s boyfriend. The cramping in my belly had nothing to do with the emotions of the other passengers in the vehicle.

  At a stop light, Bryan reached over and grasped my hand. “Jesus, your hands are freezing!” He raised his hand to touch my burning cheek. “I think you have a fever.”

  “I’ll be okay in a few minutes,” I replied. My trembling had nearly stopped, but I felt light headed. I guess when emotions were strong enough, they could affect my physical body, not just my emotional barometer. I made a mental note to ask Jinx about it.

  When we got to the parking lot on the edge of the woods, Cane’s truck was parked at an odd angle and he was nowhere in sight.

  “What an idiot,” Aaron muttered, running his hand through his hair. “You said he was drinking?”

  I nodded.

  “Okay, you girls stay here. Bryan and I will go look for him.”

  Before I had a chance to protest, Monica piped up. “Who are you, Fred Flintstone? Cady and I are not waiting here like helpless little girls.”

  “That’s right,” I added. “We can cover more ground if we split up into groups.”

  Bryan didn’t look happy about it, but he reluctantly nodded. “There should be a flashlight in my glove box. I’ve never been here before, but I assume you and Aaron are both familiar enough, right?”

  “Sure,” I nodded. “Give Aaron and Monica the flashlight. They can go deeper into the trees. If we stick to the trail that goes along the cliff base, we should be able to get along alright. When it gets closer to the Mississippi, the trees thin out, so that’ll give us some moonlight.”

  The four of us climbed out of the car and set off down separate paths. My body was mostly recovered from Cane’s emotional freeze. I clung to Bryan’s arm as we walked as fast as I could in my dress shoes. Thankfully, it hadn’t rained in a while, so the ground was hard and dry. Still, I stumbled along in the dark.

  “Cane!” I called out. “Where are you?”

  In the distance I could hear echoes of Aaron and Monica calling out also. If Cane could hear us, he wasn’t inclined to answer.

  A break in the trees ahead illuminated a fork in the path. To the left was a steep incline leading up to the trails along the rocky bluffs. The right path wound around the base toward the river. It was the same trail I’d walked the night of my sister’s death. I felt a little sick to my stomach at the memory and quickly stuffed it down into a back compartment in my mind.

  “You don’t think he would have gone up there, do you?” Bryan asked.

  I shook my head. “He’s not that stupid. The trails get rocky and it’s too easy to slide around. It’s not all that safe during the daylight, but at night, it’s treacherous.”

  We continued on, calling out to Cane as we walked. I could still hear Aaron and Monica, but their calls were getting more distant. When we reached the clearing before the river, I stopped short.

  “What is it?” Bryan asked.

  I cleared my throat. “I-I just haven’t been back here, you know?”

  “Is this…?”

  I nodded, pointing a shaky finger toward the train tracks. “Those are the
tracks. I was with some people sitting by those boulders over there. We were waiting for Lony and Cane to catch up. She was hit right about there.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, wrapping a comforting arm around my shoulders. “Maybe we should turn around and go another direction. Cane isn’t down this far.”

  I stood silent looking ahead at the tracks. I don’t know why it never occurred to me to visit this place before now. I never believed in things like ghosts and spirits before, but meeting Jinx and discovering that I’m an empath suddenly had me questioning everything. Maybe there was something of Lony still lingering here. I sure as heck never felt her presence at home.

  “Can you give me a minute?”

  Bryan kissed me on my forehead and let go of my shoulders.

  I could walk a little easier now that there was more moonlight visible. I drew my jacket tight across my chest, more for comfort than cold. The long, weedy grass gradually gave way to gravel which rose up a short bank to the gleaming steel tracks. To my left, I spotted an area where the grass was more matted down. I walked over and found a patch of gravel a shade brighter than the rest. This must be the place, I thought. New gravel to replace the stuff covered in blood.

  I knelt down on the rocks, not caring about the sharp pains in my knees. I placed my hand on the cold rail.

  “Lony,” I whispered. “I feel like I never got a real chance to say good bye to you. In some ways, I still can’t believe you’re gone. Nothing’s the same anymore.” I swiped a lone tear off of my cheek.

  “Cane told me about what happened, about the break up. I’m so sorry. I know how much you cared about him —how much you probably still do care about him wherever you are. He isn’t doing so well, Lon. The guilt is eating him up inside. That’s why I’m here tonight. I want to help him. Somehow, I know that’s what you’d want me to do. And don’t worry, I’ll take better care of Mom and Dad, too. I promise. I love you.”

  I closed my eyes and reached out with my senses, but there was nothing in my range to connect with. Part of me had been hoping that if Lony’s spirit was still here, I would be able to feel her with my mind. Nothing.

  “Cady!” Bryan cried. “I think I see him!”

  Rising to my feet, I wiped the dirt from my knees. I looked back to see Bryan pointing up to the bluff. A figure was stumbling around, well off of the trail, on the side of the rocky face.

  “Cane!” I yelled.

  The person on the bluff looked in my direction. “Cady? I can’t get down!”

  I ran back to Bryan. “He’s gonna fall!” I exclaimed.

  Bryan shrugged off his jacket and handed it to me. Next, he stripped off the tie.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m going up there after him,” Bryan answered, rolling up his sleeves. “Stay here.”

  “No!” I protested, but Bryan ignored me and began picking his way up the steep incline.

  As much as I wanted to go after him, I knew I’d never make it in my shoes.

  “Cane, don’t move!” I yelled up to him. “Bryan’s coming.” I wasn’t even sure if Cane knew who Bryan was, but now wasn’t the time for introductions.

  I withdrew my phone from my pocket and called Aaron. “We found him, but the idiot is stuck up on the bluff. Bryan is going to help him down.”

  Aaron muttered a curse. “Tell me where you are.”

  “It’s the bluff bordering the river and the tracks. Eastside.”

  Aaron hung up with a promise to be there soon.

  “Aaron’s on his way,” I called up.

  Cane leaned against the limestone rock, his fingers clutching the crevices. I hoped the river view from fifty-feet-high would help to sober him up. Bryan reached the trail along the side of the bluff and was using it to get as close to Cane as possible. At the closest point, he began picking his way in Cane’s direction.

  “I’m almost there,” Bryan called out, his voice echoing between the bluffs. Only a few feet separated them now, but each step closer ran the risk of their rocky footholds giving way. Bryan found a tiny tree growing out from the cracks of the rocks and yanked on it. Seeing that it was secure, he used it as an anchor as he stretched out toward Cane.

  “Almost there. Give me your hand.”

  Cane shifted to his left and grasped Bryan’s hand.

  “I gotcha,” Bryan grunted, holding Cane steady and directing him back toward the trail. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until they made it to the relative safety of the trail, and I let it out with a gush. They’re safe.

  “Just follow the path,” I called up. “I’ll meet you back at the fork.”

  I entered the darkness of the woods again. Without Bryan there to steady me on me, I tripped on rocks and had to cling to passing branches to keep from falling. Under the loud chirping of frogs and crickets, I could hear the guys off to my right, still quite a ways up, but I couldn’t make out their words. Briefly, I let myself think about that kiss with Cane in the parking lot. Shame filled my lungs as I remembered pressing myself to his warmth and kissing him back. What was I thinking? I chastised myself. How could I do that to Bryan? Especially after the way I reacted over Monica!

  I was going to have to tell him, but how would I ever explain? Oh, Bryan. I am some sort of weird psychic who can read emotions, and sometimes I get tangled up in what other people are feeling. Yeah, that’d go over well.

  Why did Cane have to go and kiss me anyway? I get that he was distraught, but what made him go there? Maybe it was because I reminded him so much of my sister. I guess he just got caught up in the heat of the moment and wasn’t thinking clearly, but at the time, it hadn’t felt that way. There was something real in that kiss, at least from his side. I found myself hoping that Cane would forget about it once he sobered and never mention it to me again.

  I stopped to pick a rock from my shoe when I heard surprised yells and the racket of rocks crashing to the ground.

  “Bryan! Cane! Are you okay?” I shouted.

  “No!” Cane called out, pain evident in his voice. “Help, Cady, quick!”

  I left the path and rushed through the brush in the direction of the voices. Brambles and branches scratched at my legs, snagging my dress, but I pressed on as fast as I could. I reached the base of the cliff and saw Bryan and Cane lying on the ground. Cane’s leg was bent at an unnatural angle below the knee, and Bryan was bleeding from a huge gash on his side. Bleeding heavily.

  All of the blood drained from my head. Huge waves of icy pain vibrated off of the guys, stabbing me in the gut. Between the crazy emotions emanating from them and the tinny scent of blood in the air, my stomach roiled with nausea.

  “Bryan!” I cried, rushing to him and dropping to my knees by his side.

  “I slipped,” Cane explained through clenched teeth, “and he tried to grab me, but then we both came down.”

  Bryan’s expression was one of sheer horror as he tore open his shirt to inspect the damage. The rip in his skin started just below his back shoulder, cut across his ribs and reached nearly down to his waistband. Even in the darkness, I knew it was deep enough to expose his ribs bones.

  “What do I do?” I cried, pressing his coat to his side to hold in the freely flowing blood.

  Bryan looked at me. We both had tears in our eyes. “I don’t think there’s time to do anything,” he whispered with finality.

  An agonizing noise tore out of me as I realized there was no way he could ever survive an injury this huge. The terror between us was so strong that I couldn’t tell where mine ended and Bryan’s began.

  “You can’t die! I won’t let you!”

  Bryan’s face was already pale and the blood was leaking through the jacket onto the ground.

  “He’s dying?” Cane asked confused.

  “I have…hemophilia.” he tried to explain, breathing in sharp heaves. He leaned back on his elbow, getting weaker.

  “Oh my god!” came a shriek from behind me.

  Aaron and Monica stood a few feet b
ehind us, having followed our voices to our location. Monica’s eyes were as large as moons at the sight of the blood. She understood the seriousness of the situation. She dropped to her knees and began sobbing into her hands.

  Aaron took off his coat and handed it to me. I dropped Bryan’s soaked jacket and replaced it with fresh, soft cotton, still warm from my brother’s body heat.

  “I’m calling 911,” Aaron said taking out his phone.

  “There’s no time!” Over the wound, my hands vibrated wildly with icy stabs of pain. I recognized the feeling from when I had detected the tumor on Lucy, only this time it was a hundred times more intense.

  “Cady…n-nothing you can do,” Bryan choked out, dropping to lie on his back. “Just h-happy you’re...with me.”

  “Don’t do that! Don’t you say good bye to me!”

  My hands burned from the freezing pain. Instinctively, I threw up my mental shields and began to press back. That’s when I noticed warmth flooding down my arms into my hands and radiating out from my fingertips. I let my heated hands hover directly over the wound, focusing all my energy on willing it away. The trickle of blood began to slow to a stop, and I feared it meant the end, but Bryan was still conscious and breathing thick wheezy breaths. Determination and love swelled in my chest, as I concentrated on that open wound. Bryan sucked in a sharp gasp.

  “W-what are you doing?” he asked. “It tingles...warm.”

  I flexed my mind and concentrated harder. Heat vibrated out from my hands and the flesh began to knit itself back together before my eyes.

  “Holy shit!” Cane exclaimed, watching as the wound closed into a jagged raised scar.