22. LONG WEEKEND
For the next two days, I was not allowed to step foot outside my house. I wasn’t allowed to go to school. I wasn’t allowed to accept Heather’s invitation when she called to go to a movie Friday night, or when she begged to bring me lunch Saturday afternoon. Orion and my father wouldn’t even allow me to talk to her on the phone for more than a few minutes at a time. Instead, all I could do was sit inside the house, preferably as far away from windows as possible, and try to keep myself entertained with TV, music, reading, and picking out the next place we would send Agent Duke’s partner to get us take-out.
The whole stuck-at-home thing might not have been so bad if I wasn’t also being forced to watch every moment of my parents’ long awaited reunion, from the giddy glances to the blatant public displays of affection, and all the lovey-dovey flirting in between.
After my window was fixed Friday morning, I talked them into letting me sleep in my own bed, thinking I would save myself from any embarrassing moments in the middle of the night. Little did I know, catching my father sneaking out of my mother’s room the next morning, looking particularly cheerful and guilty, was much, much worse. It was like they had no self-control or boundaries whatsoever.
I wanted to be happy for them. I wanted to be happy for me too. My father was here. My father still appeared to love my mom after all these years. No one had been abducted or shot by Voss in over twenty-four hours. When I really thought about it, it should have been a good couple of days. But I was struggling. In a way, the whole thing seemed too good to be true.
There were a few quiet moments Saturday afternoon when my father was outside talking to Orion.
“Mom,” I said, turning off the TV and placing the remote on the couch. “Are you sure you know what you’re getting into with…with Lin?”
She set down her book. “What do you mean, sweetie?”
“I mean, you realize he’s planning to leave, right? And that he might not be able to come back again soon. Or maybe ever.”
“I know it’s a possibility,” she replied. “We’ve talked about it. There’s also a chance that when he does come back he’ll be able to stay for a long time. Either way, don’t you think we should enjoy the moments we have together while we can?”
I stared at my hands. “Sure, but I just…I don’t know. I just feel scared that you’ll get your heart broken all over again.”
She looked at me thoughtfully. “Are you sure it’s my heart that you’re worried about, or is it your own?”
I shook my head and glanced away. The frustration boiled up inside me. “I just don’t understand how you can forgive him so easily. How do you even know that you can trust him after all this time?”
Mom scooted closer and reached for my hand. “I just know,” she said simply. “When he was gone it was like a part of me was missing, and it hurt deeply. When I’m near him now, I just feel right again. I feel a connection to him that I’ve never experienced with anyone else. No amount of time or space can erase that. It might be difficult for you to understand, but he makes me feel whole again.”
Everything she was saying reminded me of Rayne. I had a connection with him that could never be broken, not by separation or imprisonment or anything I could imagine in the universe. Our love was not only real, but it was intensified by the bonding effect of the Healing Water. The bond made everything we felt for each other a hundred times stronger. I remembered how Rayne told me that my mother had cancer the year before I was born, how he believed the reason I was born with a Watermark outside the Threshold was due to large amounts of Healing Water in my mother’s system at the time of conception, and how I knew from that moment forward that my father was the Water Keeper who had given it to her. They had a bond from the Healing Water too.
My mother’s feelings for my father made perfect sense to me because I felt the same thing about Rayne. But my father, on the other hand, I didn’t feel bonded to at all, at least not in the way that I wanted.
“I guess I understand,” I told her. “It’s just hard because I don’t feel that closeness to him like you do.”
“Give it some time, sweetheart. He’s only been back a few days. Maybe you should try allowing yourself a chance to get to know him so you can build up that trust.”
I nodded quietly. “Yeah…maybe.”
Mom wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “This might sound strange, but ever since you got home, I’ve had this strange feeling like everything is going to be okay. It’s weird, like I just feel at ease about everything. I can’t explain it.”
Before I could respond, my father appeared through the front door. My mom’s face grew even brighter.
“Is it okay if I hang out in my room for a bit?” I asked her. I wasn’t ready to tackle the trust-building issue with my father just yet.
The rest of the day was more of the same—I was missing Rayne, completely bored, surrounded by suits, and stuck watching my parents fawn over each other. By the end of the day, I was so restless I was ready to punch an agent in the nose just for a chance to feel sunlight on my face or have two minutes of alone time.
Before I fell asleep that night, I lay in bed near the faint glow of the table lamp and held Rayne’s photo up in front of my face, wishing he were here. My thoughts wandered back through all of our memories together, one by one, trying to relive them in my mind. There were his sparkling green eyes shining over me at Crystal Cove the first time we spoke, when he saved me from drowning, the longing I felt for a fascinating stranger when I woke in the hospital after my car accident, and the giddy excitement and relief when Rayne finally revealed to me who he was, why he was a part of me…how he would do anything to save me from pain and despair.
And then, after months of fighting the overwhelming feelings…we kissed. It was confusing and hard at first, but then it became wonderful, beautiful. He shared with me the answers I’d been longing for. He filled my life with warmth and gave me reason to believe in something, to believe in myself.
I rolled over in the blanket and imagined his eyes looking back at me, right by my side where he was meant to be. I drifted back to the last day we were together at Lizzy Grove, our romantic ride through the orchard, our picnic along the shore near the purple Ambrosian sea. In that moment, we were free. We were together without boundaries, in our own little world of rightness and belonging. He told me he loved me, and I knew it was true.
As my eyes drifted to sleep, my heart ached to feel that again, to create new memories, with Rayne’s hand of strength intertwined with mine.
***
Like an answer to prayer, his face appeared next to mine. I moved lazily to my side beneath the sheets to gaze at the soft morning glow of his eyes.
“Morning, sunshine,” he whispered. “Did you miss me?” His fingers combed gently through my hair, sending a shiver up my neck.
“More than anything in the world,” I said. My expression fell. “Do you think we’ll ever be together without everything going wrong or trying to pull us apart?”
“Well, I’m here now. I can’t think of anything to worry about, can you?”
My eyes squinted briefly, thinking, then my mouth lifted at the corners. “No, for some reason, I can’t think of anything. All I care about right now is that you’re here.”
Rayne leaned forward, shifting his body closer. “I’m with you always, Sadie, no matter what happens. You know that right?”
I nodded softly in response. I knew he would always be with me.
His hand slid across my shoulder, glided down my arm. Our hearts called out to each other, pulling us, mending the absence, until our lips pressed together. The touch of his kiss reached through me, raised me up like the wings of a butterfly, or a bluebird taking flight.
I paused to take a quiet breath as a grin took over my face. “We should go somewhere,” I said, “just the two of us.”
His face brightened. “Where do you want to go?”
“Anywhere…” I said, “as long a
s you come with me.”
He sat up and offered his hand. “I know the perfect place.”
Rayne led me forward across my bedroom and opened the door, but as he pulled back on the handle, it wasn’t the hallway or even my house in front of our eyes. My bare feet left the carpet from my bedroom and stepped down into soothing warm sand. I saw the violet sky and the deep purple ocean before us, and I knew we were back on the beach at Lizzy Grove.
I stepped forward with delight. “I always wanted a chance to come back here,” I said, “especially with you.”
“Me too,” Rayne said. He looked out at the shore then glanced back at me with eyebrows raised. “Wanna go for a swim?”
I grinned. “Race you to the water…” and we took off, running and laughing until we dove beneath the waves.
An entire afternoon seemed to flash by in the blink of an eye. After we lay next to each other, soaking up the sun to get dry, Rayne sat up, as if our adventure had just begun, and said, “So, where should we go next?”
“How about somewhere new,” I said, “somewhere we’ve never been before.”
“Sounds good to me.” He jumped up from the sand and pulled me to my feet. “Lead the way…” he told me. “This time it’s your turn.”
I grinned and strode forward. “I bet I know a place we’ve both never been.” Then, I found two flowery lizzy trees at the end of the sand. The space was dark between them, sort of like a tunnel. We stepped forward through the darkness and, a split second later, walked forward to a platform towering high in the air.
“Whoa,” Rayne said, “where are we?”
I hurried to the metal gate that surrounded us, marveling at the view. “We’re at the top of the Eiffel Tower…in Paris.”
We had the whole place to ourselves; there wasn’t another person in sight. I started circling around the platform, taking in every inch of the stunning city below, but when I stopped halfway to the other side, Rayne’s hands slid around me from behind.
I melted back into his chest. “Isn’t this amazing?” I said. “I’ve always wanted to come here.”
Rayne leaned his chin down by my cheek. “It’s pretty incredible,” he agreed. Then he whispered in my ear, “But it’s nothing compared to you…”
I turned inside his arms to meet his eyes, his lips more irresistible than ever before. My hands clasped around his neck, reaching, wanting, drawing him to me. His fingers grasped at my waist as he pressed his mouth onto mine.
Then we floated, and the city disappeared. The grand tower faded from below us. The stars in the night sky blurred together, until we were surrounded by a vast universe of incandescent shapes and lines with no definite form. It didn’t matter. All that needed to exist…was us.
***
The next morning was Sunday. I woke with a content glow on my face, somehow feeling stronger. I’d had just about enough of sitting at home, moping and scared. I felt invigorated. I was ready to move forward with my life.
“I want to go back to school,” I said bluntly as I sat with my parents at breakfast.
“Sadie, honey,” my mom protested, “we already agreed—”
“Please?” I went on. “I’m bored. I haven’t been outside for days, and there haven’t been any security problems since the other night.”
“Well, maybe we could have lunch out in the backyard today,” she suggested, glancing at my father in search of back-up.
He shrugged his shoulders as he considered the idea. “I suppose at this point a meal on the porch in broad daylight shouldn’t be a problem…”
“No,” I objected, “I want to go to school.” I turned to my mom with pleading eyes. “I probably have a week’s worth of homework to make up as it is. And it’s the last month of my senior year…I’m going to miss everything. Don’t you want me to graduate with the rest of my friends?”
My mom’s expression flooded with sympathy. She looked at my father with worried eyes.
When I saw the crack in his resolve from her quiet plea, I jumped in, “You could send as many guards with me as you want, and I promise to come home straight after class.”
Secretly, I was hoping they would let me go out with my friends soon as well, but at this point, I was willing to take whatever I could get.
Suddenly, Orion’s voice chimed in from the corner of the room. “She has a point, Lin,” he said. “High school graduation is an important step in a young person’s future. It wouldn’t be prudent for us to hinder her progress. Voss is busy evading the team we called to track him. I can assure you that we are well equipped here to protect her. If it will make you feel better, I’ll even bring in a few reinforcements to secure the perimeter of the school.”
Everyone’s eyes centered expectantly on my father. He threw up his hands in defeat. “Okay,” he said. “I suppose it makes sense. If you feel secure enough to leave the house and go to school, then I’m not going to hold you back.”
23. VOSS TAKES ORDERS
Voss waited at the center of the empty warehouse, reveling in his triumph. He pictured her face, blank and cold as the impact of his hatred manifested through the flesh of her skull. Hamlin’s beloved daughter, his dirty little secret, his smeared legacy…gone with the simple twitch of a finger. If only he could have had the pleasure to witness Hamlin’s face when he discovered her; Voss could almost taste the agony.
His victory was interrupted by heavy footsteps pounding across the concrete. “That was a reckless move,” the familiar voice bellowed in accusation.
Voss’s eyes narrowed as he replied. “It was too satisfying to resist.”
Orion strode to the rickety table, leaned his body across the surface, and centered on Voss’s gaze. “Do you realize what kind of inconvenience you have caused me? First you don’t even tell me that Hamlin has a daughter, and now this?”
Voss returned Orion’s glare without a blink. “You should be thanking me. Now you’re free to do as you please while Hamlin’s busy sniveling in a corner, recovering his losses.”
Orion clenched the table’s edge with his fist. “I’ve spent the entire weekend licking Hamlin’s wounds instead of moving forward with the plan.”
“Learn to adapt,” Voss replied dryly. “Hamlin’s defenses are down. Use his distraction to your advantage.”
“I was under the impression that I was working with a skilled professional—the notorious, meticulous Voss Hastings—not an impulsive lunatic. Perhaps…our partnership has outlived itself.”
Voss stood abruptly, moving his position above Orion’s head. “Do not threaten me with insults. You know full well that I have the power to sabotage your entire operation. And you continue to forget that I have my own objectives in this plan.”
“I’m perfectly aware of your objectives,” Orion shot back. “That doesn’t change the fact that you agreed to a certain course of action then blatantly went against that agreement without consulting me. The stunt you pulled with the girl tells me that you’ve lost focus. I can’t work with someone who doesn’t understand how to follow directions.”
Voss had to pause, to control the urge to snap Orion’s neck. “Your plan is too slow,” Voss said with discipline. “I’m losing patience.”
“I assure you; we’re close,” Orion said. “Don’t lose sight of what I have offered you in the end. Your reward will far outweigh the fleeting gratification of revenge. Imagine yourself no longer a villain, but instead like the prodigal son welcomed back with open arms into the hearts of the people of Banya, forgiven of all trespasses, with a second chance at respect and power.”
Voss was never convinced that Orion could pull off his plan to begin with, but for the time being, it was playing in his favor to have someone on the inside. If Orion could pull it off in the end, all the better.
Voss found restraint and repressed his desires. “Fine,” he said. “From here forward I submit to follow our agreement without deviation.”
“Good,” Orion said smugly. “Now you’re going to disappear. Haml
in’s dream-team may be occupied with the wild goose chase I sent them on, but it would be best if you didn’t give them a reason to veer off track. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go plant some gossip where the good people of Banya will be sure to find it.” Orion paused, straightened his tie. Lines creased through his annoyingly pretty face. “I don’t want you anywhere near that girl or her mother unless I personally instruct you otherwise. They are not to be harmed unless I give the green light.” Orion turned on his heel, walking away as he said, “We’ll meet again next week.”
Voss watched Orion’s back, fingering the gun he kept holstered beneath his jacket. It would be so easy to send a bullet through the man’s arrogant head. Voss toyed with the indulgent picture in his mind, let the wicked story unfold before his eyes.
But Orion’s figure disappeared around a corner. Voss slid his hand away from the trigger. For now, it was more gratifying to watch Orion manipulate Hamlin and everyone he loved, while they all clung to Orion’s false protection like an answer to their prayers.
That didn’t mean Voss planned to follow all of Orion’s commands. Through their entire banal conversation, Voss was under the assumption that when Orion referred to the incident with the girl he was talking about a dead person, right up until the moment Orion ordered him to leave the girl unharmed. If she were dead as Voss had so cheerfully assumed, this order would have never been made. That meant the girl had survived.
He knew something was awry when he noticed the missing cut on her cheek. He should have paid it more attention. Perhaps his focus had become a bit sloppy after all, blinded by his thirst for blood. Now he was certain that the glass from the broken window had left a gash across her face in the house, yet it was clearly mended by the time he had her at his mercy atop the roof.
There could only be a few explanations for someone to heal rapidly from a gunshot wound. If the person had a Watermark, a generous dose of Healing Water administered within a short period of time could easily do the trick. But, from the moment the girl was kicking and screaming in her bedroom to the instant his bullet penetrated her skull, Voss was the only person to grace her with his presence. There wasn’t a soul in sight to drop a single molecule of Healing Water on her skin. And yet, the gash on her cheek had become smooth and scar-free.
Ambrosia Shore (The Water Keepers, Book 3) Page 19