Darkness in Green & Gold: A contemporary fantasy adventure (Green & Gold, book 3)

by Jo Holloway

  “We try.” Cara gave Liv a bright smile before focusing on Harrison again. “We also see when they’re in an animal. When they take over control of the mind, even for a moment, a green gleam passes across their eyes. You won’t see it. You’d only see the animal’s movement.”

  In response, Thomas’s eyes flashed and the cat nodded his head. Harrison gave a small snort while Jory glared at Thomas as if his cat had personally betrayed him by amusing the new guy.

  Cara continued quickly before Jory said something he’d regret later. “The ones who are taking over humans stay in control all the time, and the people’s eyes stay green to us. Like a creepy glow, though, not green like yours.”

  “I should hope not.”

  HARRISON STUCK WITH them all weekend. The days of keeping him on the fringes were well and truly over now. After all they’d told him, and their warnings about what had been going on lately, he was still there.

  “You believed us so easily. Why?” Cara walked beside him along the path around campus after dinner on Sunday.

  “Couldn’t see why you’d spew a load of rubbish. I am aware I can be a bit pushy, but from what I’ve seen, your group don’t seem the type for cruel jokes. It’s part of why I chose your lot to befriend.”

  “Thanks? I guess?”

  “It’s a bit too unbelievable not to believe, you know? I did see those animals at the range, after all. And Wes strikes me as being rather direct. I have trouble picturing him lying, particularly for laughs.”

  Wes had gone to the library after they’d finished eating, and Liv and Jory had climbed the spiral staircase to the Treehouse to hang out for a while. But Harrison had looked like he wanted to talk, so Cara had asked if he wanted to walk Jenner with her. At the far end of campus, away from most of the students out enjoying the warm spring evening, they were free to talk. Jenner crisscrossed the path ahead, sniffing for unfamiliar scents, and Jenyx would be on high alert for other Pyx nearby.

  Cara smiled down at the path in front of them. “No. If Wes says something, you can be sure it’s the truth, at least his version of it. It’s reading all the stuff he doesn’t say that’s trickier.”

  Harrison returned her smile when she looked up, and gratitude warmed her like the pleasant breeze ruffling her hair.

  “I was worried it wouldn’t be as easy to talk to you now that you know all this.”

  “Why? Shouldn’t it be easier?”

  She laughed. “You’d think. But I liked talking to you because you didn’t know any of the craziness. For years, all I wanted was to fit in. Now I don’t need to, because I have this amazing group, like you said. Meeting Wes and Jory changed my life more than learning about Pyx did.” She laughed again at his disbelieving look. “No, really. It’s a close race. Trust me. But they did. The thing is, I still just want to feel normal sometimes. I love hanging out with Delaney and Kaylee, or even Cassidy and those girls occasionally, but there’s always this invisible barrier I can’t quite get rid of. Like the veil of secrets between me and them is a physical wall and I’m on the wrong side.”

  “Not the wrong side, surely. Perhaps . . . well, perhaps just another side.”

  “Maybe. Anyway, for some reason, it didn’t feel like that with you. But I worried I’d lose that now because I don’t get to be normal-version Cara anymore.” Her feet ground a little harder against the gravel on the path. Clouds of dust swirled ahead of the toes of her shoes. They could use some rain, which was a weird thought for this time of year in Oregon.

  “True. You’re upgraded-version Cara with super-spidey senses.” He nudged her and winked, making her give a little scoff. “Regardless, I am perfectly happy to talk normal topics with either version of Cara anytime you like, love.”

  “Thanks. I’d like that.” She was finding she really did want to spend more time with Harrison.

  “I’m also fairly well-versed in secrets myself.”

  “Oh, really?” She used a joking tone, hoping he’d feel comfortable sharing more. “Maybe that’s why it felt natural with you. We’re on the same side of the secrets veil. So does that mean you’re going to tell me why you really got kicked out of your last school?”

  “I didn’t lie before.”

  “But you haven’t told the whole story.”

  “No.” He touched a finger to his nose, looking pensive for several steps. He dropped his hand with a shrug. “I don’t suppose it matters here.”

  “You’re still keeping that awful guy’s secret? Even after he got you kicked out?”

  “He wasn’t awful at all. Far from it, actually.” His gaze sank to his feet. “Sadly, he also wasn’t ready for people to know when the headmaster caught us snogging.”

  Cara’s mouth opened. She quickly covered her surprise at his openness when Harrison looked up. “But that’s—What decade is this? You can’t get kicked out of school for kissing another boy. That’s insane.”

  “Well, apparently you can when the boy in question is the headmaster’s son. Especially when he denies being gay. And definitely when you admit to kissing him against his will. Then, it turns out you can be expelled for harassment.”

  “Was it against his will?”

  “Oh no. He definitely wanted me to kiss him.” His mouth quirked into a lopsided grin at the memory. “But I could see he didn’t want to tell his father, so I told a teensy little lie.”

  “That lie wasn’t so little. And your dad? Does he know? Was his job transfer the real reason you moved here?”

  “Yes, my family all know what really happened. And we really did move for my father’s work. Only, we had to move up the timeline a bit when I found myself needing a new school. My mum and sisters are still back in England, finishing out the year.”

  “I’m glad. That’s probably selfish to say, because now you’re in danger because of me and my friends. But I’m happy you’re here. And I’m glad you’re one of us now.”

  “Do you know what? I’m rather pleased about it myself.” His emerald eyes sparkled with eagerness at the new adventures he seemed to think he’d found. She hoped neither of them would come to regret it.

  They rounded the corner of the science building and started across the open space toward the dorms. Jenner lifted his nose.

  “Jenyx.”

  The voice sounded in her mind as another Pyx called to Jenyx, and Cara glanced around for its source. A large shadow shifted at the tree line. Her sharp intake of breath caught Harrison’s attention, and he followed her gaze but kept scanning past the enormous shaggy form.

  “Please do not stray far, child. Let me check what Linnaeryx has to tell me, and stay here with your friend,” Jenyx said. Jenner bounded to the woods.

  “I don’t see anything this time. But it’s one of them, isn’t it?” Harrison asked.

  Cara could only nod, still staring open-mouthed at the guardian in the trees. The anxiety worming through her mind contributed to her racing pulse and her own shock. Jory would be so mad he’d missed it again.

  You were right, Jor. That’s no bear.

  She stared at the outline of what had to be the source of the Bigfoot legends of the Pacific Northwest. And if Sasquatch was real, what else was out there? Her mind reeled with sudden possibilities, and images burst one after another through her memory.

  Places and things she was sure she’d never seen in her life strung out like a high-speed slideshow. She couldn’t focus on any of the Pyx’s memories long enough to make sense of them, but there were definitely a few creatures she didn’t recognize among them. Species long dead and gone before the time of humans . . . or maybe not. The world around her blinked back into view, and she released Harrison’s arm. She must have reached out to him to steady herself without realizing.

  He rubbed his arm after she let go. “Why can I see Jenner and Thomas but not these others? At least, not usually?”

  Her mouth snapped closed, and she turned to Harrison with a start. Grabbing him had been a reflex, but she’d practically forgotten he
was there after the flurry of other lives she’d flown through in a second. The question made her realize Jory would be missing it, anyway, even if he were standing here next to her.

  “They can influence people’s perception so you don’t notice them. People tend to be unobservant and dismiss things that don’t fit their preconceptions. The Pyx take advantage of that and sort of enhance it. Unless you know what to look for, or they choose to let you see them, or something like fear overrides their influence, you’ll overlook them. The more of them that are together, the more power they have. Jenyx and Tomyx have no reason to hide their pyxides, but a bear in the middle of the path would cause a little more of an issue.”

  “But now I know there’s something there, so why do I still not see it?”

  “If I told you it was the bear you saw before, and pointed to where it was standing, you’d see it. But anything less than that, and you’re not going to see unless you already know what you would see if you did see it. Sorry. That came out super confusing.”

  “So it’s not a bear.”

  “It. Is. Not.”

  “Well . . . What is it?”

  “I’m sorry. I can’t tell you.” Her brows pinched together, but the guardians were one of the things they’d agreed not to share with Harrison yet. She hoped he’d understand.

  “Huh. Bit rude. I thought you trusted me.”

  “I do. But you said it yourself. Some secrets aren’t ours to tell.”

  Disappointment settled on his face, but he accepted her explanation and didn’t appear overly hurt by it. She grimaced. It sucked not being able to tell him everything, but he’d have to earn more trust from the Pyx before that happened. In the meantime, she’d have to live up to his trust in her.

  “Thanks for telling me what really happened back in England. I won’t say anything. Not if you don’t want me to.”

  “About me being gay? Oh, I don’t care. It’s not a secret. It’s only that . . . no one ever asks.”

  She chuckled. “Fair enough.”

  “Of course, my poor roommate may be better off left in the dark. For all his bravado and brute size, the fellow doesn’t seem to be made of particularly strong stuff. He’s barely over my foreignness and what he calls ‘nancy boy’ accent. Bit old fashioned. This might be more than he can handle. Although given his comments about Brits in general, he may already assume as much about our entire population.”

  “Ugh. Theo is such a caveman. You deserve a better roommate. Not that anyone else deserves to be stuck with Theo either.”

  “Agreed. Complete tosser, that one.” When she giggled, he threw in a few more for good measure. “Total prat. Gormless twit. Manky muppet.”

  “Okay, you’re teaching me some more of those.” She’d barely stopped laughing by the time Jenner rejoined them. “What did she want?”

  Jenyx’s mood brought her crashing back down from the momentary high of Harrison’s good humor.

  “To pass along a message,” Jenyx replied. “Can we go see Tomyx?”

  The door to the boys’ room stood open, and they walked right in. Liv sat in her usual spot on Jory’s bed, but he had taken a position at his desk chair instead of at her side. They were almost always within distance of a casual touch, or an easy reach to hold hands. The reason for Jory’s polite distance became apparent when Cara turned around to find Rhys straightening up from a spot against the wall. He held a drink from the Treehouse in one hand. Liv and Jory must have bumped into him there.

  She couldn’t stop the electric jolt to her heart at seeing him unexpectedly, but she shoved down the feelings that followed and managed to limit the heat blooming across her cheeks.

  You said you’d be his friend, Cara. That’s all.

  “I heard what happened on Friday. I can’t believe I didn’t know about it.” Rhys’s hands gripped the bottle a little too firmly, his forearms flexing.

  “Sorry. We should have told you. We had a bit of a situation.” She jerked a thumb in Harrison’s direction.

  “That would be me. I was the situation.”

  Rhys looked as displeased as Jory at the notion that they’d let Harrison in on their secret. “I heard about that too.”

  Aside from Wes, who wasn’t back from the library yet, everyone who knew what was going on was in this room. They could fill Wes in later, but she wanted to hear what Jenyx had to say. She eased the door closed with a soft click and looked up at Rhys. “Since you’re here now, you should know Linnaeryx just passed a message to Jenyx.” She moved to perch on the edge of Wes’s tidy bed and waited for Jenyx to take over.

  “The Pyx who turned herself in rather than join the attack yesterday has requested to speak with Cara. Alone.”

  “No way. Absolutely not.” Rhys didn’t wait to fill in anyone else in the room. Only he and Cara knew what Jenyx had said. “Way too dangerous.”

  “I agree with you,” Jenyx said. “Our terms are that the guardians will be there, along with myself, Grawllyx, and a few other Pyx who will stay around the perimeter.”

  “I’m going too, then,” Rhys added.

  “No other humans. She was resolute on that point. I am sorry, but you’ll have to trust us to keep Cara safe.”

  “Is someone going to tell us what the huge freak-out is about? Big bro?” Liv had shuffled forward on the bed and reached a hand out to her brother’s elbow.

  Cara broke her gaze away from the hard look in Rhys’s eyes to answer. “The Pyx who surrendered wants to talk to me, but she doesn’t want any other humans there. Only other Pyx.”

  Jory sat up straighter. “What? Well, then I’m with Rhys. That sounds way too dangerous, Cares. Please tell me you aren’t considering it.”

  Liv nodded her agreement. Leaning back with a sigh, Cara bit the inside of her lip. They might not understand, but she had to at least consider it. The outlaw Pyx had attacked her on school grounds with Harrison and Wes right there. Who knew what they’d do next? Someone else was going to get hurt if this kept up. If this Pyx knew what the outlaws wanted with her, didn’t she have to go find out? Besides, the Pyx had turned herself in. What if she’d switched sides? Maybe she only wanted to warn Cara and pass along information. It could be a good thing.

  After months of fighting off the hostile feelings, not to mention the physical attacks, she needed answers above all else. How could she keep her friends safe if she didn’t know what the rogue Pyx wanted with her? There were other students to consider too. How would she feel if anything happened to Delaney or Kaylee? They weren’t part of this. Then there was the whole rest of the school. This was all about her. It was her responsibility.

  Harrison sat down close beside her. He took her hand, looking worried.

  “I think I have to,” she finally answered. “The stuff in my head makes no sense. They’re coming to the school now. I need to know what she has to say. I have to go.”

  Rhys stalked out of the room without another word. Harrison fidgeted but stayed silent. Jory asked her to reconsider one more time, but stopped when Liv crossed the room to sit on Cara’s other side and pick up her other hand.

  “I know you need to go. But promise us you’ll be careful. If anything feels off, just leave, okay?” Liv stared at her. “Trust your instincts, or feelings, or whatever. Just trust yourself.”

  Cara nodded at her. She tried and failed not to let her eyes dart to the open door. Couldn’t Rhys have cared a tiny bit more? Some part of her had hoped he would insist on going with her or that he’d beg her not to go. He’d left like nothing mattered. She took some reassurance from Jenyx supporting the plan. He wouldn’t put her at risk if he weren’t feeling confident they could keep her safe. More importantly, a little danger was worth it if it meant finding answers.

  CHAPTER 20

  RELIEVED TO FIND HER room empty, aside from Delaney’s cat, Marcus, curled up on her pillow, Cara checked her phone. She’d missed a text from her mom.

  Before you see it on the news . . .

  I got it. Lead coun
sel on the Brookfire Dam lawsuit.

  Cara’s heart swelled with pride, and Mr. Jackson, her mom’s boss, earned a warm thought for placing his trust in her. Her mom completely deserved it.

  You’ll totally kick their butts.

  Go Mom!

  From everything her mom had been talking about at home, the project had been a complete environmental disaster. The news had covered the massive decline in fish populations since the dam’s construction, but apparently there were a ton of other issues too. It set her teeth on edge just thinking about it, and before she knew it, her sight began to blur.

  When wind began to whip at her face even though she was inside her dorm room, she reached behind her for her bed. She was tired of fighting back against the visions, and no one was around, anyway. She sank to her pillow and let the vision take her.

  Wind lashed the driving rain across the top of the ridge and whipped Lydia’s hair across her face. The clothes she wore offered no protection from the elements, but her body—Lydia’s body—felt nothing. Stretched out below her, a dam cut off the river.

  The water swirling away below the obstruction was a trickle compared to the flooded reservoir behind it. She stood and watched for hours, until dark fell on the valley, as the basin filled and overflowed in the torrential rain. The vile humans thought they could control nature itself, and now their monstrosity drowned habitats and killed the innocent creatures who called this valley home. The worst part was it would all dry out again soon, and there wouldn’t be enough water after the floods passed. Death and destruction would continue all because this plague on the earth had to try to control everything around them instead of existing with it. Icy resentment filled her already frozen chest.

  Around her, the valley dissipated. Flashes of a thousand images flew by—city streets, shopping malls, paved lots, and people—people everywhere. She raged through them, as many as she could. Flying backward through the memories, she flitted through mind after mind with no regard to what the people did while she was there. One fell from a bridge while she jumped to another, who crashed his toxin-spewing truck into a tree. She felt worse about the damage to the tree than the man’s broken limbs.