by AR Colbert
I’d been under the impression that Sean’s plan was a sure thing. But whether this Gayla remembered him or not, she was our best shot at finding my mom.
Sean slowed his vehicle and turned down a quiet road near the bay. We pulled into a long drive that led to a comparably modest white estate, with an expansive lush green lawn spread out before a charming home with walls of windows.
“Here we are,” Sean said. He turned the engine off and hopped out.
The sunshine warmed my cheeks as I joined him. “This place is stunning.” I shielded my eyes with a hand to get a better view of the house and yard. “Millie must be one well-connected drug dealer.”
I was still snickering at my joke when I noticed an elderly woman with an oversized straw hat scowling at me from the opposite side of a thick green hedge. I waved, and she furrowed her brows.
“Hello, Hilde,” Sean called out.
The woman shook her head and continued clipping the bushes that marked the property lines between Millie’s house and hers. Boy, I was on a roll with saying the wrong thing at the wrong time today.
Sean grabbed our bags from the trunk of the car, and I followed him up the sidewalk to Millie’s gorgeous vacation home. “Are all Atlanteans rich, or just my aunt?”
“We live for a thousand years,” Sean said as he entered and flipped on the lights. “That’s a long time to amass wealth.”
“Compounding interest is a beautiful thing.” I ran across the living room to drool over the aqua colored water of the pool out back. And for the first time, I really wondered what could have been so bad to make my mother turn away from the luxuries of the Keepers’ lifestyle. Was she really a criminal?
I turned back to Sean, who was searching the fridge for something to drink. “Does your friend Gayla live near here?”
“Not exactly.”
“Do you have her number?”
“No.”
I groaned. “Come on now. Give me something.”
“Most of the younger Keepers hang out at a sports bar in East Hampton—when they’re not at the beach anyway.”
“Great. Let’s go!”
“Right now?” Sean looked disappointed.
“Yes, now. Were you wanting to take a swim first? Kick up your feet for a bit?”
He looked longingly at the pool.
“Sean!” I smacked his arm. “We’re not here for fun. We’re here for business.”
“Alright.” He picked up his keys and downed the rest of his water bottle in three gulps. “But remember—I make no promises that she’ll be there. And there’s no telling who else we might find.”
“You mean Tate?” Chill bumps shot up my arm just at the mention of his name.
“No, Thaddeus doesn’t ever venture out this far from the city. But he’s not the only Agarthian hunter.”
“That’s okay. He’s the only one assigned to me, right? The others would have no reason to believe I’m anything but a mortal. I’m harmless.”
Sean shrugged. “If you say so. Let’s go.”
CHAPTER 3
The streets of East Hampton looked like they were taken directly from the pages of a magazine. Quaint shops filled with cheerful patrons lined the road, which was dotted with simple parks and outdoor seating areas begging me to join in on the fun.
“I love this place.” I sighed. “I wish my mom could see it.”
“I’m sure she’s seen it. This is where the Annual Convention is held each year. Just because she ditched this world when you were born doesn’t mean she never took part in it before. In fact, mom said she was very involved. She was one of Maxwell’s favorite messengers.”
“Who’s Maxwell?” And why was he so enamored with my mother?
“He’s the current leader of the Atlanteans.”
“Like your king?”
“We don’t call him our king—we’re not Olympians for goodness sakes. But yeah, he’s a monarch of sorts.”
Hmm… a powerful Atlantean who was quite taken by my mother. Could he be a candidate for my father?
“So my mom was one of the king’s favorites, huh? Do you know exactly how close they were?”
“No, I wasn’t alive then. But don’t get any bright ideas. He’s bonded with Gloriana and they have two pure Atlantean children.” He glanced over in time to catch my frown.
Okay, so I wasn’t a princess. But I wasn’t sad that I asked. One of these days I might just come across someone who fit the description. My dad had to be out there somewhere.
“Here we are.” Sean parallel parked on a side road off the main street. Most of the businesses were back behind us, and all I saw ahead was a dusty line of windows across a strip of abandoned commercial spaces. A brown owl sat perched on the corner of the roof, peering at us through inquisitive yellow eyes.
“This is the sports bar?”
“Yep.” Sean climbed out of the vehicle and the sound of the horn as he locked the doors made me jump. “It’s called The Keep.”
I chuckled. “That’s a bit on the nose, isn’t it?”
He shrugged. “I guess it’s kind of an inside joke. No one out here knows what it means except the people who matter.”
“Are you saying humans don’t matter?”
“Maybe for a short time. But their lives are over so fast, they don’t get the chance to matter for long.”
I followed him to the glass doors of the abandoned space. I could see through the window that the place was empty, but Sean pulled open the door and stepped inside anyway. He strode to the back wall, where a painted door blended in perfectly with the neutral beige walls. “This way.”
He tugged on the knob and I gasped as the scene on the other side unfolded. The lights were down low, the room illuminated instead by neon signs along the walls advertising various brands of beer and liquor that I'd never heard of. Two pool tables sat in the middle of the room, with low hanging stained glass light fixtures hovering over the green felt surfaces. A shiny lacquered high top bar stretched across one wall, and beside it double doors sat propped open to an outdoor courtyard, hidden entirely from the streets by the brick walls of the building.
A few guys sat propped up at the bar and a couple of tables held small groups of people, but it looked as though most of the crowd was outside. I followed Sean across the floor toward the courtyard, never drawing so much as a curious glance from anyone inside.
Outside was a courtyard half the size of the room we’d left. A green awning covered the space from above, casting an emerald glow across the patio. A hot tub sat in the middle of it all, and it was here where the crowd was centered. Four or five girls sat perched along the edges of the tub, laughing and talking with animated expressions. They could have all been supermodels—with long, lean bodies scantily clad in bikinis and sarongs, lush locks of hair flowing past their shoulders, and million-watt smiles. A group of guys played Cornhole near an exposed brick wall, and other young adults stood coupled or paired up at tables and small seating areas throughout the rest of the space.
“There she is.” Sean pointed to the hot tub.
“Of course she’s one of the models. Which one?”
“She’s the one in purple.”
I followed his gaze to a gorgeous girl with long, thick, platinum colored hair and warm, striking dark eyes. She seemed to be at the center of attention in the hot tub, telling some story that had the other girls enthralled. I glanced down at my denim shorts, suddenly feeling very self conscious among these beautiful people.
“Go ahead,” Sean said.
“You’re not coming with me? I need you to introduce us.”
“Nah, I’m good.” He shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts, looking like he would be just fine waiting for hours.
“Sean?” A chipper, slightly raspy voice called out from behind me. “Is that you?”
I turned over my shoulder and saw the stunning blond grinning big enough to show off every single straight white tooth in her mouth.
“Oh my
goodness, I can’t believe it!” She slid up onto the side of the tub and swung two unfairly long legs over the edge. With a bounce to her step, she hurried over to where we stood and threw both arms around Sean’s neck, leaving him with two wet spots on his shirt when she pulled away. His cheeks flushed and I had to stifle my laugh.
“I haven’t seen you in ages! How have you been?”
“I’ve been good, Gayla. How about you?”
“Just dandy.” She turned to me. “Who is your friend?”
“Everly Gordon,” I said, extending a hand. She brushed past it and hugged me. This time Sean got to laugh as my eyes widened in surprise.
“I’m Gayla. It’s so nice to meet you!” She turned back to Sean and whispered something in his ear.
“No, she’s not human. She’s Atlantean—Millie’s niece. She just hasn’t gotten her powers yet.” He shot me a look that said to play along. Sweet Sean, even if he believed I was fractured, I appreciated him pretending as though I was one of them. It was much easier that way, though I’d have to explain everything to Gayla at some point if she was going to help me find my mom.
I looked around the patio. We’d drawn the attention of a few others now, and they made their way slowly over to where we were standing. Gayla introduced me to a couple of the guys who had been playing Cornhole and a friend from the hot tub—another pale-haired girl named Dominique, or Dom for short.
The fair-haired friend studied me through narrowed eyes, suspicion twisting her mouth. I felt very exposed under the scrutiny of her stare—as though she somehow knew more than she was letting on.
“Sit down,” Gayla said, motioning toward a table on the side. “It’s been too long. Let’s get some drinks and catch up.”
Gayla sat beside Sean, which put me and suspicious Dom together opposite them as the guys got back to their game.
“So I hear you got the finesse genes,” Gayla said with a grin.
“Yep,” Sean ducked his chin just a smidge, embarrassed but trying to hide it. “Faster, stronger, and better reflexes.”
“Just like your dad,” she said.
Sean nodded.
“Have you been assigned a role yet? Guardian? Warrior?”
“Not yet.” He cut his eyes over to me briefly, but I knew his role of bodyguard for me wasn’t an official role for The Keepers. “I’d love either one, though. As long as they don’t put me in leadership like my dad.”
“I hear you.” Gayla sighed.
“Oh—sorry. I forgot. You’re a seer, right?”
“Apparently.” She shrugged. “Though I don’t seem to be a very good one. Even so, the only role for me will be in leadership.” She scrunched her nose, trying to show distaste for her future, but honestly just looking adorable. She was too pretty for any expression to actually look ugly. And I loved how uncomfortable it made Sean to look at her. He totally had a crush on her and I couldn’t wait to rub it in later.
“What’s your power?” Dom cut in suddenly. Her dark brown eyes were focused hard on me.
“She hasn’t gotten it yet,” Gayla answered for me. She seemed to believe Sean that I would eventually get one. That was good, because I absolutely did not want to lay out the messy backstory of my mother’s potential mortal love interest there in the courtyard. And I had no idea if any of the Keepers standing around may have been hunters like Tate. No, I couldn’t reveal the truth about myself here. I couldn’t reveal it at all until I was certain I could trust Gayla to keep my secret.
“Hmm,” Dom said. “Well I’m a telepath. Know what that means?”
I pinched my lips together unable to respond. I knew what I thought that meant, and it wasn’t good in this situation.
“It means I can read your thoughts.”
I bit my tongue, knowing full well it wouldn’t hide the colorful word that just flashed through my mind. Dom smirked. She knew everything.
CHAPTER 4
I kicked Sean under the table, hoping he’d wipe the obvious look of shock from his face. He was totally going to give us away.
“Oh, hey,” he said, glancing at his watch. “I didn’t realize how late it was. We’ve got to get going.”
I nodded gently, trying to play it cool. Dom hadn’t peeled her eyes away from me yet, but I didn’t have any intentions of explaining myself here.
“Oh no,” Gayla frowned. “Already? Well, what are you guys doing later tonight?”
Sean looked at me, asking permission with his eyes. I shrugged. I wasn’t opposed to hanging out tonight, we just needed to regroup first. We hadn’t anticipated running into a mind-reader, so I wanted to get control of my thoughts and be sure I understood the Keeper laws enough to not get my mom into trouble. And I needed to know that Dom wouldn’t rat me out to Tate or anyone else who might want my fractured soul.
“We don’t have anything planned yet. What’s up?”
“Daddy’s throwing a little end of summer party on the boat. You guys should totally come out. You can meet all the other weirdos like us.” Gayla winked at me.
I wished I were a weirdo like them. Being mortal sounded completely lame now that I knew there were alternatives. I glanced sideways at Dom, who remained staring at me without any discernible expression on her face. “Sounds fun.”
Gayla clapped. “Yay! It’s been way too long since the last time we got into trouble.” She leaned into Sean, whose cheeks reddened at her touch.
“We’ll catch up later then.” Sean stood, signaling it was time for us to leave. Dom watched me join his side, and I mentally repeated clear mind, clear mind, clear mind so quickly she probably thought I was insane. But at least she wasn’t going to get any more information out of me. Not right then, anyway.
With the patio behind us, I searched the dark bar for the door. We were merely steps away from the freedom of setting my mind loose again. I quickened my pace toward the exit, but Sean paused behind me at the sound of someone calling out his name.
“Dude, you too good to say hi?”
I turned to find a handsome guy with dark skin and alluring, ocean colored eyes grinning at Sean. He held his hands out to the side, ready to greet his friend.
Sean didn’t disappoint. “Devon!” He laughed as they exchanged some kind of dude hand-shake-back-clap thing. Over their shoulders I saw Dom’s thin silhouette in the shadows of the courtyard, silently watching us.
“Uh, Sean…” I approached the guys and tapped him on the shoulder.
“Right,” he said. “Sorry. Devon, this is Everly. She just moved here for school. Everly this is Devon—he’s one of my good friends from my childhood.”
“That’s great. Nice to meet you.” I tried to stay pleasant but I was starting to panic. I didn’t need an introduction to Sean’s friend; I just wanted to get out of there. Why couldn’t Dom mind her own business? What did she want with me? I glanced back at her cold stare. She was almost smirking now. “I’m gonna go wait outside.” I cut Sean a sharp look, urging him to join me, but he seemed oblivious to my rising anxiety.
“Yeah, okay. I’ll catch up here in a sec.”
Frustrated, I turned and left Sean with Devon. I needed to get out of there. I burst through both sets of doors, dashing through the empty storefront and back out onto the sunny sidewalk. It was only then that I could breathe again. With one last look over my shoulder to be sure I wasn’t followed, I turned back to the car.
It was locked. I propped myself up against it for just a minute, watching the horned owl on the roof swivel its ancient looking head back and forth. Its yellow eyes landed on me, and I swore I saw some intelligence there—enough that I had to pull my eyes away. It was making me uncomfortable.
Come on, Sean. Hurry up.
My patience was nearing rock bottom, and the empty street wasn’t doing anything for my nerves. With a nod goodbye to the owl, I decided to make my way back to the main road and see what the shops of East Hampton had to offer. Maybe I’d find a cute dress to wear to Gayla’s party while Sean was busy gabbing
with his buddy.
Small crowds moved up and down the street with carefree ease, blissfully unaware of the beings that lurked just around the corner. Part of me wished I were still ignorant as well—my biggest worry would still be picking a major as I laughed with my mother. Life was grand before we were thrown into the world of the Keepers.
But there was no going back now. Only forward. And with any luck, my situation would improve. I had to hold out hope that mom had a good reason for hiding my lineage. I had to pray that it had nothing to do with broken laws and fractured souls. I had to believe that she was not a criminal, and that I would not be hunted to the death.
Whew. No biggie.
I stepped into line behind a couple of young mothers. One pushed a stroller with two grinning toddlers—twins by the looks of it. The other had a baby strapped to her chest. They strolled slowly enough that I was able to look around and take in the sights of the street. Adorable storefronts lined both sides—quaint cottage-like boutiques interspersed with high-dollar major brands.
I paused to get a closer look at a little shop across the street. A cute purple dress in the window caught my eye. It was a little more adventurous than anything I might’ve worn back home, but when in New York…
I hurried over to the crosswalk, patiently waiting for my signal to go. A shiny black BMW pulled up to the intersection, and as soon as it passed I’d be clear to cross to the other side. But the vehicle slowed.
Squeak. A small rubber giraffe hit me in the back of the calf with a squeal. I turned to pick it up and return it to the chubby hand of a twin in the stroller.
“I’m so sorry,” his mother said. “I’ll take it. If you give it back he’ll just throw it again.” The child whimpered as I changed course and handed his toy to his mother instead. Then I turned back to the street and noticed the BMW was still sitting there in the intersection.