by Jo Holloway
To his credit, Wes said nothing about her promise to talk to Rhys within the next few weeks, but she could practically hear the gears spinning in his head as he mentally planned out their summer. Was he worrying about being a fifth wheel if things went well? And what if they didn’t? She hadn’t figured out what to say to Rhys yet, and had still been avoiding him, although she’d managed to give him a small smile when he’d joined them at breakfast one day. She tried not to dwell on the confused look he’d worn, and told herself she’d figure it out once they all made it home and she had time alone to think.
A bit of cool separation kept her from enjoying the moment as much as she’d have liked. She didn’t think it was lingering exam stress. Those had gone pretty well, aside from one math question she already knew she’d gotten wrong thanks to Harrison’s annoying habit of talking about exams after they were done. She tried not to curse Mr. Meyers for the tricky question.
If it wasn’t exams, then this feeling must be related to her reluctance to leave for the summer. She’d have to shake it off and try to enjoy the last day of her sophomore year.
“Want to come pick up Jenner with me? Liv might be down at the stables riding Charlie one more time before we leave tomorrow. Jory’s probably there too.”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
“Go where? Hey, Shorty. Hey, Wolfie.” Mak loped up from behind them and draped an arm across each of their shoulders.
“Hi, Mak.” It was the first time she’d spoken to Wes’s brother since yelling at him, and a little flash of the anger from that day wormed through her. She bit it back, embarrassed. “How were your finals?”
“No problem. Solid passes, for sure.” He grinned at her, and she hoped that meant all was forgiven. “Things are good all around. Someone gave me a little kick I might have needed.”
Wes shook his head. Cara would have been happy with being forgiven, but apparently Mak was actually grateful.
“Guess we all need a good kick sometimes. What’s this I hear about a girlfriend?”
Mak dropped his arms from them and turned to his brother. “And I guess some people can’t keep a secret.”
“Why is it a secret? Are you embarrassed?” Cara asked.
“About dating the greatest girl here? Definitely not. She’s just a private person and didn’t want to stoke the gossip fires for the last few months of school. But tomorrow . . . tomorrow we graduate and show our epic love to the world.” He held his arms above his head with a broad smile, making Cara laugh. Even Wes smiled for his brother’s over-the-top happiness.
Cara tapped Mak in the stomach, and he made a big show of dropping his arms as if she’d punched him in the gut, doubling over with a dramatic groan. He was clearly enjoying the fun mood of the school. She tried for a bit of it. “I can keep a secret for one day, then. Who is it?”
He glanced around theatrically, then leaned in and stage-whispered to her. “Emma. You know . . . Rhys’s friend. Oh, actually, you know her from cross country and track, don’t you?”
She was the one punched in the gut now. Emma . . . and Mak? “Emma?”
Mak was giving her a quizzical look like he didn’t understand the confusion and shock on her face. Obviously. It wouldn’t make sense to anyone else.
“Yep. Worked up the nerve to ask her at the Valentine’s dance. Been together ever since. Best four months of my life. It’s not even weird anymore that she hangs out with Rhys all the time. Actually, figuring out the relationship between the two of you”—he waved a hand between her and Wes—“is helping me move past the bit of jealousy I was dealing with. So thanks, kids.” He loped away down the nearby path to the grotto to find some other seniors to party with.
When Cara turned back, Wes was staring her down. “What?”
She blinked at him. Mak and Emma had started dating right after Valentine’s Day? If Rhys and Emma had broken up that day, then Emma had sure moved on quickly. Was it possible they’d broken up even before then? If so, then they had managed to stay good friends afterward. Maybe that meant it had been a mutual decision and nothing to do with her, or the photo from the gala, or him disappearing from the dance, or any of it. She shook her head. One thing it definitely meant was Rhys hadn’t been dating Emma when he’d kissed her. Part of her soared straight up to the bright sun above.
The other part stayed firmly on the ground where a trickle of unease ran down her spine. She wanted to run off to find Rhys and apologize for being so cold. She wanted to explain. But there was something else nagging at her and holding her to this spot.
She was missing something.
She hated missing things.
So what was it now? Her brain ticked through a checklist of the last few busy weeks, but nothing stood out.
As much as she hated them, she reviewed the visions she’d had from Messoryx over the last while. They were more of the same death and anger, but nothing new. This feeling, though, she knew it. It was cold. Calculated.
The pieces clicked in her mind half a second before the men stepped out from the trees.
She froze. Wes followed her gaze and stiffened beside her.
Three men walked out of the forest close to the grotto where Mak had headed and began to cross the lawn toward them. From a distance, the contempt and steely resolve of the Pyx controlling them coiled in Cara’s mind. Without drawing any attention, they passed students running joyfully between friends. With three of them, they could cast a strong influence on the minds of the people around them. No one would notice them. Until something happened.
All it would take was one slip of their control or one wrong move . . . There were too many people around. True, everyone was already distracted by the games, shouts, and parties all around them, but if anything happened . . . Add a little fear to this mix and people would see. Once one person did, there was no chance the fear wouldn’t spread.
The men coming toward her looked terrifying.
Glowing green eyes stared out from the impassive faces of the controlled hosts. But for non-Pyxsees who wouldn’t see that, there was still plenty to be afraid of. Starting with the weapons in their hands.
THE MAN AT THE FRONT wore filthy coveralls stretching across his broad shoulders. He held a huge, savage knife with an easy grip in his right hand. The blade had to be nearly a foot long, with one long sharp edge and a scooped point, making it look like it would be just as deadly pulling back as slashing forward.
To his left, a slimmer man held knives in each hand, with more strapped to a belt around his waist. She recognized their style. They were made for throwing, but had longer edges than the ones she’d been learning with. They would do damage no matter how they struck and could easily be deadly from a distance if thrown properly. She also recognized the man. He’d been at her race and gave her the same cold glare now.
On the other side, a man with messy hair walked in a bizarre outfit. He wore gym shorts, slip on shoes, and a bright-yellow Hawaiian shirt. In another circumstance, it would have been absurd. But when her eye slipped past the hospital ID band on his wrist to the gun in his hand, her gut twisted. She didn’t have to wonder what he might have been admitted for, knowing the outlaws had been targeting mental health facilities. This man must have been recently admitted, and from the looks of him, the Pyx had made him escape after grabbing whatever clothes he could find.
The disgust from the outlaws settled in one part of her mind, but the disgust she felt in return was separate. She felt sorry for the men in front of her who had been ripped from their lives and their own struggles to be thrust into this. They stopped directly in front of her and Wes. He shifted closer to her.
She could feel a forced calm overtop of the suppressed hatred radiating from the Pyx. Whether it was because they were trying to mask their feelings from her empathy, or because she’d finally managed to separate their emotions from hers, those feelings slotted easily to one side of the imaginary wall in her mind.
Theirs. Not yours.
Her own fear taste
d coppery and real on her tongue. It fell on the other side of the wall.
Yours. Now find a way to use it.
“Don’t try your mind tricks on us.” The voice grated her senses while it rang through her head and set her nerves on edge. The Pyx wouldn’t use the voices of the men they controlled and risk people noticing them—not yet, anyway. It was impossible to tell which one was speaking, but none of them felt familiar. She was certain none of them were Messoryx.
“What tricks?” she asked.
“You can’t fool us or use us. We’ve been warned.”
She couldn’t figure out what they meant. When she glanced at Wes for help, he stepped away from her side. His throat moved as he swallowed hard and took a step forward. The men tensed. Their hands gripped the knives more firmly. He kept his eyes on them until he turned slowly.
Locking eyes with Cara, he turned his back on the controlled men. He had left himself completely vulnerable to them.
“Wes,” she hissed. The blood drained from her face, and every fiber in her body itched to lunge forward and pull him away. The feelings on the “theirs” side of her mind made it clear that would be a bad idea.
“Talk to them, Cara. It’ll look like you’re talking to me this way so no one else freaks out. They’re worried you can change their minds. So do it.”
Her heart lodged in her throat. Her head shook with quick tiny motions, and her wild eyes pleaded with him to get away from them. That huge knife was right behind his back. All the man had to do was raise his arm. She couldn’t bear it. She was going to get Wes killed.
He mouthed the word “ask” to her.
Ask what? She didn’t even know what the outlaws were talking about. She gulped and looked past Wes to the green eyes of the controlled.
“I don’t know what Messoryx told you, but he’s the only one using you. He’s turned you into loyal soldiers for his own agenda.”
“His agenda belongs to all of us. It’s our agenda too. We chose this. We believe in him.”
“What is he planning?”
Anger flared in her mind.
Them. Not you.
The anger filed to one side. Wes gave a tiny headshake. She’d asked the wrong question.
“If you think we’d tell you that, you’re sadly mistaken. Maybe you’re less of a threat than we were led to believe.”
Think, Cara. What are they saying?
With the feelings inside her sorted into two sides, she focused.
Hatred, disgust, fervent loyalty, cold purpose—theirs—on one side. Fear and desperation, a little frustration—hers—on the other side. What did that leave? Why would she be a threat?
Pushing the feelings to each side in her mind, she found a path down the middle. Her thoughts cleared. She found the right question. It was the one she’d been asking all along.
“Why me?”
“Why you?” The grating voice sent a shiver up her arms with its mocking tone. “Messoryx wants you out of the way. You’re not the first golden Pyxsee he’s come across. Now that you’ve recognized what you can do, he can’t have you around.”
Her mind raced. She couldn’t let them know she had no idea what he meant. She had to keep them talking until she could figure out a way to get them away from here without anyone getting hurt.
You’re not the first.
That was what they’d said. Messoryx had said something similar to her in the garage at Whalton manor.
“My father.” The words came out in a sharp breath.
“Obviously.” The voice paused with a rush of contempt she shoved to the side. “You know what? I think she’s too stupid to have the kind of influence Messoryx thinks she does,” he said to his fellow Pyx.
Sparks ignited in the back of her mind, but before she could respond, Wes’s eyes widened. Gold flecks in the deep brown sparkled in the bright afternoon sun as he shook his head at someone beyond her shoulder. Her head whipped around. Another pair of green eyes met hers, but they lacked the glow of the controlled. Harrison sauntered down the hill, beaming at them.
He reached Cara’s side. “Hullo, love. What’s the plan for this . . . beautiful . . . What’s going on?” He stuttered as he picked up the vibe from her and Wes. Emerald irises flicked between them.
“Go away,” Wes growled.
Harrison didn’t move, but he turned his head to Cara. “Tell me.”
Wes shot her a warning look. She hesitated, but there wasn’t much she could do.
“Remember what I told you about seeing them? Look for three men standing right behind Wes. The one in the middle is a little taller than him.” She waited. Curiosity and anticipation rose on either side of the wall she’d established.
Harrison tensed when the scene became clear to him. She’d half expected a flowery British exclamation of surprise, but he was silent. His mouth thinned to a narrow line as his jaw muscles flexed. He appraised each one, including Wes in the center, and didn’t move when Hawaiian Shirt raised the gun until it pointed right at him.
CHAPTER 29
“WELL, WELL. BAD ENOUGH we have a bunch of interfering Pyxsees on our hands. Now you’re dragging miserable ordinary humans into things. Perfect. You’ll come with us, or he can be the first to die.”
“He’s not involved in this.” Cara’s voice rose, and a few passing students glanced over and turned to whisper to their friends. She didn’t care if it looked like she was fighting with Wes over another guy. They could think whatever they wanted. As long as they didn’t see what was really going on and she could keep them safe and get Wes and Harrison out of this alive.
“Lead people away from here as soon as you can,” she whispered to Harrison. Then she took a few steps away.
Wes had to turn to keep her in front of him. The controlled men behind him followed her movements. When she took a few more cautious steps, they moved as well. Hawaiian Shirt kept the gun trained on Harrison and let the other two move past him. For a second, a flicker of uncertainty flashed through her, but it was separate from all her own fears.
Theirs. One of theirs.
“If you try anything, he dies.” The voice was a little different this time. This wasn’t the same Pyx, and she thought she felt hesitation in spite of the words coming from Hawaiian Shirt.
She took two more steps, moving to the side closest to the forest. “I’m only doing what you asked.”
Wes’s brow furrowed to a deep crease. “Cara, no.”
“Oh, yes.” The first voice was back in their heads, and Wes flinched when the man in coveralls raised the huge knife until the point rested against his back. “And it’s not just these two. In case you have any second thoughts, I suggest you have a look around.”
Cara’s head swiveled.
A woman in jean shorts and a plaid shirt leaned against a tree beside the path to the grotto, tapping a pistol against her leg. An older man stood between two trees farther along the edge of the clearing, close to the back of the Cedars. Another woman stared with glowing green eyes from the corner of the Juniper dorm. She scratched her head with a wicked-looking dagger as a group of junior girls walked past her, oblivious to the danger. Altogether, Cara counted half a dozen strangers hidden in plain sight around the school.
She also spotted an unmistakable tall silhouette frozen outside the dining hall in the distance. Like a magnet, like always, her gaze was drawn to him. Her heart cracked and crumbled inside her chest knowing Rhys had seen what was going on. If Wes was right about his feelings, or if all the other times he’d protected her were any indication, he would rush down here. He’d probably come, anyway, no matter how he truly felt, because that was who he was.
She had to act quickly.
She wrenched her eyes away from Rhys’s distant form. Wes was glaring at her with his jaw set.
The pain of broken promises crashed down on her, drowning everything else. After everything she’d said to Wes at their movie night, and had meant with all her heart at the time, she couldn’t keep the promise. It
wasn’t just him, although that would have been enough. It wasn’t just Pyxsees. It was Harrison and all the other regular students playing games and enjoying themselves behind him.
Her eyes pleaded with Wes to understand. She’d do it, anyway, but she was desperate for him to accept what she had to do. He shook his head.
“No. Cara, you promised.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
His face pinched, turning scarlet. She glanced past him to see Rhys sprinting across the lawn through the middle of the ultimate frisbee game still in full swing. She tore her eyes away before they teared up. This wasn’t the end. She wasn’t giving up. But she had to go with the outlaws to draw them away from the school.
Wes’s darkened eyes burned through hers. “Cara, don’t do this.”
“I don’t have a choice. Wes . . .” Her voice cracked.
Before she could turn, a shout drew her attention. A junior in a blue shirt ran toward them, closer than Rhys. For a moment, she was confused, but then she spotted the frisbee sailing through the air. The boy launched himself to catch it with another jubilant shout, and crashed into the back of the man with all the throwing knives. The kid tumbled to the ground and sat up, shaken. His eyes widened to saucers when he saw what he’d run into. Fear kicked in, and he scanned across to the others, taking in the knives and the gun trained on Harrison.
He turned pale. She tried to shush him but was too late. “What the—?”
Rhys reached him before he could yell, and grabbed his shoulders. The guy looked so shocked that he closed his mouth and stared at Rhys, who turned to find Cara.
His nostrils flared at the scene around him. He started to drop his hands from his classmate’s shoulders, but Cara stopped him. “No, Rhys, get him out of here. Get everyone out of here. Make something up, but don’t let them see. If they see, they’ll panic.”
“What are you doing?” He choked out the words.
“You know what she’s doing,” Wes growled.