the Capitol’s right down the street.”
“I don’t want him hurting you, Emma. You’re
like family to Elliot and I.”
I took her hand.
“He’s not gonna hurt me, Cam. I promise.” She sighed.
“If you get stressed, just go home, okay? And
there’s not much to do today; you’re done at two.” I nodded and grabbed a stack full of books. “Off to shelve.”
“Just be safe!” she hollered after me.
For Fyn, Capitol City Main Library was very empty. Usually it was packed and I was directing people to where books were nonstop as I shelved. Today, however, not even ten people came up to ask where a book was, and they hardly got their question out when I faced them. The rest of the people in the library just stared at me as I passed by. It was frustrating.
Forty minutes before two, I grabbed a small stack of books and headed out into the library again. I saved the ones that were higher up for last, as usual. This immensely thick, heavy book belonged eight shelves up. I could only reach to the sixth, as the spacing between the shelves was thick, and that was on my tip-toes. I preferred shelving books without my Magic, but I may have to resort to it today. I considered going to find the shelving ladder, but the last I had seen it was three floors up and on the complete opposite side of the library.
I was just about to give up and leave it for Elliot or Cam, but someone stopped right next to me, reached over, and took the book from my hand. I didn’t even need to feel the Magic or feel my racing heart to know it was Zach; I recognized how his hand felt against mine from last night. I lowered to be flat on my feet and looked up at him. The book was slid into its spot and then he looked at me.
“Hey,” he said, his voice quiet.
“Hi,” I whispered back.
“How are you?”
I shrugged.
“Fine, considering. What about you?”
“Bit confused.”
“Why?”
Cam interrupted him.
“Emma, you’re done for the day. Go—” She
looked up at Zach. “—home.” She looked back at me, giving me a look that he couldn’t see, which plainly said she knew something was up. “I’ll sign you out.”
“Okay. See you Bellam.”
Cam nodded, walking off.
“Have you found out what we felt?”
I stared at him, my whole conversation with the
Council playing over in my head. I gaped at him, struggling over the words, but I turned, walking out of the library. I all but ran down the steps of the library, but still Zach caught up with me.
“So you found out.” I bit my lip, merely nodding once. There were people around. “And?” I shook my head, but Zach took my arm and stopped me. I jumped at the sudden contact—I hadn’t been expecting him to touch me—but he turned me around to look at him. “Tell me.”
“I can’t.”
His brow creased.
“Why not?”
“It’s—complicated.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
“And there are too many people around.” “What’s that have to—”
“It’s not
“What d’you mean, it’s not safe?”
“It’s not. Zach, please, trust me when I tell you I can’t say anything about what I found out until I know we are safe.”
“What, like when Adler is locked away? Em, that’s near impossible and you know it.”
“I will tell you, I promise. I just can’t right now. This is complicated, Zach. It changes everything.”
“Is it that bad?”
I hesitated; ‘that bad’? People hate the Kahi, and I’m the Keeper.
“It could mean our deaths, Zach. Lucas Adler is vile and he is lethal. If he gets the chance, he’s not going to hesitate to kill either one of us, nor anyone else who gets in his way. He has always gotten what he wants, and he never gives up until he does. I am at the very top of his hit list, now, Zach.”
“We’re not going to die.”
I shook my head.
“You don’t know that.”
“I’m not going to him kill us.”
“Who says it’s up to you?”
“We make our own choices on what happens in our lives, Emma.”
I scoffed before I could stop. He gave me a look.
“What’s it change? Tell me.”
“Everything. It changes everything, and we can’t even tell anyone.”
“Tell anyone what? Em, you’re not even telling me what you found out! Who told you anyway? Are you even sure this is right?”
I bit my lip, my eyes flickering around me.
“Em?”
I took a breath, meeting his eyes again.
“The Council showed up in my room this morning and told me what we’re—” I swallowed. “— feeling. At least I think it’s causing it, they weren’t exactly straightforward with that answer. . .”
“The Council?”
I nodded and he looked away for a moment. “So it’s that serious.”
“Serious enough that it put an even bigger target on our backs.”
Zach watched me in silence, and then his eyes flickered behind me. I looked at him curiously, and his eyes met mine again.
“I don’t know how you’re holding it together. Especially after last night.”
I hesitated.
“There’s no other way I can react, Zach. I can’t let my parents or my sister know that I’m terrified he’s around every corner, waiting to kill me. But I am, because. . . because for all I know, he could be.”
I saw the hesitation clearly in Zach’s eyes, and his next movements were slow, as if he was letting me know I could step away. I remembered how much trust I felt for him last night, and so I didn’t stop him. Zach pulled me to him, hugging me, and resultantly filling me— filling us both—with the current.
“Is it getting stronger?” he whispered after a moment.
“Yes,” I murmured. “Isn’t it for you?”
He hesitated.
“Yes.”
But neither of us moved. I couldn’t help it—I breathed in his scent. He smells warm, like trees, almost. . . But then there’s also something else I just can’t place, something unique to him.
He started to pull away but I held him where he was.
“It makes me feel safe,” I said quietly.
His only response was to pull me closer.
Unsettled
Zach walked me home, but we kept our distance
from each other, me walking with my arms crossed, and him with his hands in his pockets. We didn’t talk much, but when we did it was relatively. . . normal. He didn’t walk me to the door, though; both of us wanted to avoid the questions that would ensue if we my parents or Clara saw us together.
When I got up to my room, however, Jessica was sitting on my bed.
“What’re you doing here?” I asked, plopping down next to her.
“I hadn’t heard from you today, and I wanted to see how you’re doing.”
“I’m fine.”
“The Devons made you work?”
I shook my head.
“I wanted to work, Jess.”
“Seems like you were doing more than working.”
I looked over at her.
“What’re you talking about?”
“I saw you walking home with Zach Stone! I was looking out the window to see if you were almost here, and there you were with him.”
I rolled my eyes, looking away.
“He came by the library when I’d finished working to talk. And we talked. I can’t believe you, Jess, jumping to the conclusion that I ‘wasn’t working’ with Zach Stone!”
“It’s not illegal to like someone, Em.”
“I do not like Zach Stone,” I denied immediately. Jess smiled almost knowingly at me.
“I don’t.”
“Fine, fine. So you’re okay?” I nodded. “What were you and Z
ach talking about?”
I shook my head.
“Just stuff. It was personal.”
“Personal conversations with someone you hardly even know?”
“We’ve known each other since we were six, Jess.”
“And?”
I sighed.
“Jessie, he saved my life. That does things to people.”
****
I didn’t see or hear from Zach for days after he
had walked me home; Jessica refused to ease up on seeing us for three whole days. She was persistent that something was going on between him and me, no matter how often I denied her belief. Of course, she was right. Zach and I are the Kahi, even if he doesn’t know it yet. I just can’t tell him until I know we are safe. And that. . . that current we feel is more than just that. It is much, much deeper and overwhelming than being the Kahi. It had to do with the trust I feel when I’m around him. I know he will do everything in his power to protect me, and I will do the same for him, but where does that leave us?
We were in danger. Lucas was sure to have spies keeping watch on us, and if he found out that we’re the Kahi. . . I doubt he would change his mind about killing us just because of that. Being the Keeper, however, meant that I was in more peril. He couldn’t take my soul, where the Galaxies were securely tucked away, but my Magic? He could drain me of all but a speck of my Magic, if he were careful. It would be just enough to keep me alive, and resultantly, so would the Galaxies. But I would be a shell, left at Lucas’s mercy for the rest of eternity. What sort of existence would that be? Zach would be dead, and Lucas is sure to take his time killing him. . .
Tears welled in my eyes at the thought. The notion that Lucas would kill Zach, that I would be left without him for all eternity, made me feel as if my heart would break. It was as if the Galaxies themselves hated the thought of us being apart. It was as if our souls were attached to each other. Of course that was ridiculous; Zach and I were not soul mates. But it felt as if we were.
****
I knew it was foolish, but I had to get out of the
house. My parents had kept me cooped up inside for six days, refusing to allow me to work or visit Jessica and Thalia out of the house, no matter how much I begged. I needed the fresh air, and it has been over a week since Lucas has made any contact. Jess suggested I sneak out, and with the guard I had on, I knew Lucas would never be able to steal my Magic. So, I snuck out after dinner one evening, meeting Jessie at the end of the driveway.
We wandered the streets until we came to Capitol City Park, e2’s largest. There are fountains, one large lake, streams with bridges, a multitude of gardens, and thousands upon thousands of trees. I led Jess towards the lake, feeling like it was where we should be. That we’d be safest there. As soon as that feeling came to me, I should have realized what was going on. We ran into Zach near the lake.
“What’re you doing here?” he asked, almost immediately upon seeing me.
“Escaping. I’ve been inside all week, and he hasn’t come. . .”
“It’s not safe, Emma.”
“I have a guard on.”
“Okay, he’s right, Em. We should—let’s get you home.”
“Seriously, Jessie? You’re the one that planned this! I just wanted to get some fresh air, and you were all for it.”
“I just don’t want you hurt! He wants you dead, Emma!”
I swallowed.
“Don’t you think I know that? I don’t want to die, but I can’t let him make me live in fear! He’d win if I did.”
“Come out in the daytime, then. There aren’t many people here right now, Emma,” Zach pressed.
“I—”
“Let me take you home or I’ll throw you over my shoulder and carry you there.”
I looked at Zach disbelievingly.
“You wouldn’t dare.”
He stepped closer to me, and I felt him. He swallowed thickly, his Adam’s apple moving accordingly, signaling to me that he had felt me.
“I care too much about you to let that bastard kill you, Emma.”
We stayed silent. My eyes flickered between his, trying to read whatever he was saying. And there it was: those silent words so clearly visible to me in his eyes. The current would destroy him just as it would destroy me if he died. The connection was too indomitable for either of us to survive without the other now.
So I nodded, and relief filled his features.
“Thank you.”
I nodded again, and we started heading back for the road. Zach walked on my right side, keeping just enough space between us that the current wasn’t overwhelming.
“Did you walk here?” Zach asked suddenly.
“Em hates driving,” Jessie answered, a bit of a laugh in her voice. “If she had her way, she’d walk everywhere.”
“Nothin’ wrong with that,” he all-but-mumbled.
“Well, when we’re going to school, then the market, then the beach. . . it gets tiring!”
“You’re welcome to drive yourself, Jessie.”
“Yeah, yeah, I—”
She went silent, halting. Zach and I stopped, too, turning to look at her.
“Jess, what’s—?”
But then she jumped at me, knocking me sideways and into Zach’s arms. I whipped around, my eyes going twice their size as a light slammed into her, knocking her several feet back.
“Jessie!” I shrieked, trying to get to her.
Zach, however, tightened his hold on me and spun us around so his back was towards where the light came from.
“Go,” he insisted. “Get out of here.”
“No,” I objected. “I’m not leaving Jessie—I’m not leaving you!”
“I’m not asking you, I’m telling you! Get out of here!”
“I can’t leave you!” I pressed.
His eyes fell upon mine.
“You have to before he—”
A black light hit Zach before I had time to react. My chest tightened, and he stumbled forward into me. I caught him, but couldn’t hold him up. We tumbled onto the grass and I wrapped my fingers through his.
“Zach—Zach, stay with me.” I squeezed his hand, trying to transfer something—anything to keep him awake.
“E-Em, g-go.”
I shook my head.
“I’m not going to leave you. Stay awake. Please stay awake. Don’t close your eyes, Zach.”
I was shaking, my eyes watering. He couldn’t die, right? Horatio said—he said he was immortal. That has to mean curses couldn’t kill him. . . doesn’t it?
The sudden appearance before me made me flinch. I stiffened when I saw Lucas there, his palm facing Zach.
“Come without a fight or I’ll finish him,” he said lowly.
I swallowed, my eyes flickering down to Zach. He was unconscious, his head flopped over to the side.
“I’m not a patient man, Emma Fitch. Take off your guard or I will kill him.”
“No!”
“No, you won’t take off your guard? Really, Emma, I thought you were more—”
But I dropped the guard, latching my arms more securely around Zach and keeping his head supported. Lucas smirked.
“You are attached to him, aren’t you?”
“Don’t you dare kill him.”
Lucas’s smirk deepened, and then I blacked out.
****
The current came sharply, and I gasped, my eyes taking in Zach as they opened. He sighed, his thumb brushing against my cheek.
“W-Where are we?” I breathed.
“I’m not sure,” he replied. “I just woke up myself.”
My eyes flitted around the room. There are only two doors, a window, and a vanity with a sink in the corner. Nothing that could tell me where we were. I flicked my eyes back to Zach’s.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m not sure.”
I clambered to my feet, but immediately regretted the decision; my vision went black and my head spun. I wobbled, almost falling bac
k, but Zach’s arms found their way around me, steadying me. The current rushed and the dizzy spell vanished immediately.
“Careful. . .” Zach said gently, leading me over to sit on a couch. He pushed the hair back from my face, and heat rose up under my cheeks. “He used something different on you. I wasn’t lightheaded at all.”
“I’m sure he’d love for me to be covered head-totoe in bruises.”
“I’ll snap his neck with my bare hands if he lays a single hand on you.”
I had to look at him. His voice was so angry, I wasn’t sure it was him. But his features softened upon looking at me.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
“Don’t mention it.”
I tore my eyes from him, looking around the room more.
“He locked Magic from here,” Zach said in a frustrated tone. “The only Magic I was able to use was— ”
“Waking me up, yeah,” I breathed. “That’s how I got you to wake up when Lucas brought you into my Dream-World.”
I looked back at him, and started.
“What? What’s wrong?”
I reached out and tentatively, hesitantly, touched a cut on his forehead. It was shallow and tinged with dry blood. Zach cringed.
“This needs to be cleaned. . .”
“It’s fine, Em.”
I shook my head, sighing at his consistent stubbornness. I slowly stood, my hands out to steady myself, and then walked to the vanity, wetting a cloth. When I turned around, Zach was giving me a strange look. I gave him one right back as I sat near him again.
“I’m fine,” he repeated.
“Humor me.”
He sighed and gestured me on. I gently started dabbing at the wound to clean it. His eyes were still watching me and I was glad to have the wound to hold my attention. At least, until Zach’s hand closed over mine and he pulled it from his head. My heart rate accelerated as my eyes fell on his.
“Stop stressing,” he said. “We’re going to make it out of here.”
I took a breath.
“You don’t know that.”
He frowned, his eyes flickering between mine, and then hugged me to him. The current raged, but so did the safety.
“Yeah, I do. I’m going to get you out of here.”
“Us out of here,” I corrected, looking at him. I crossed my legs beneath me.
“Us,” he agreed, pulling me closer to him, so that my head was resting on his shoulder. He was silent for a while, his fingers playing with my hair, and part of me questioned how we had gotten here. “I’m going to keep you safe.”
Starlight (The Lightning Strike Trilogy Book 1) Page 4