The Truth about Broken Trees (Light Keeper Series Book 3)

by Kelly Hall

  After I changed into my sleep pants and tank, Talon helped me to the bathroom where we both brushed our teeth. I remembered the first night we’d met and had brushed our teeth together with bottled water. So much had happened since. My heart had broken and I wondered if he would mend it.

  We went back to the room with the futon and Talon waited till I was in the bed before he turned out the light. “You’re not going to be scared, are you?” he asked, referring to the dark.

  “Not with you here.” I smiled as he slid under the sheet with me.

  “You realize we’re going to freeze to death in here with this thin sheet,” he said. “You better stay close.” He pressed himself against me and kissed my minty mouth. Then he pulled back and sighed. “You know it’s going to drive me nuts until I have details. Please tell me he didn’t see you naked.”

  “I don’t think he did,” I said, honestly not knowing. “I mean, I passed out and fell down in the hall. I don’t know what I exposed or who saw it. But hey, better him than some stranger, right?”

  “Ugh.” He lowered his voice. “Well, let me tell you, I don’t think my absence was an accident.” He sounded serious and suspicious.

  “What are you talking about?” I hugged closer.

  “Well, I wanted to ride the big dirt bike, you know, because that’s my thing.” Ray had a few dirt bikes as well as two huge four-wheelers. “Ray insisted I take that out instead. He assured us that they both ran great and that he and his friends took them out all the time. Then after I got good and lost, and hauling ass, might I add, I realized... I had no brakes.”

  “What? Couldn’t it be a coincidence?” I wasn’t certain about Ray’s intentions either, but we couldn’t just make any wild or serious accusations. I waited for his response but he remained silent. “You really think Ray sent you off with no brakes on purpose? Why would he do that?” I clenched the thin blanket tight. I couldn’t imagine anyone doing that, much less having a reason to do that to Talon of all people. What would be his motive?

  “Yeah, and what are French and his gang doing out here? Our worst enemies. Besides, I know he’s not fond of me. He looks at me like I’m in the way.”

  “That’s silly. What would you be in the way of? I admit the French thing is a little weird, but they’re known party crashers.” I brushed my fingertips across his cheek. Deep inside that feeling I’d had of him before nagged at me. If Ray did come for me, he could think Talon needed to be out of the way to get to me. Who would be next? Maybe Talon is onto something. Or maybe we’d all been through so much that we’d never trust anyone again. I took a deep breath and tried to push the thoughts out of my mind. “I’m not sure of anything.”

  “There’s more, Lily. We passed a house just off the pipeline not too far from here. It had a light on inside. I looped around to get a better look and that’s how Hunter and I got separated.”

  “Hunter saw the house, too. He mentioned it to Owen; said they’d seen it before and thought he’d seen someone in there once.”

  He shook his head. “I didn’t see a person, just a strange light like from a lantern snuffing out or someone turning off a flashlight.”

  “Maybe someone lives there? Maybe it’s a hunting camp?” I pulled the sheet up higher.

  He rubbed my shoulder and shook his head slightly as he glared at the ceiling. “Did Ray say anything about it? He has to know it’s there and would definitely know if he had a neighbor that close.”

  “He acknowledged it being there, but didn’t really say anything other than it was dangerous and Hunter should stay away. He did look a bit strange, though.”

  “Well, I’m going to check it out first chance I get. Something’s off about this guy. I can feel it.”

  I brushed his curls from his forehead. “Are you sure it’s not because of what he said about me and Owen?”

  He huffed and rolled away from me. “So what if it is? You have to know how crazy that sounds. You and Owen soul mates;destined?” He held up one arm and gestured with his hand as he spoke. “And to think of Owen having some power, it’s ludicrous. The only thing he’s got is charm. Just like the old man, and I think that’s what he’s trying to do, Lily, charm you both. Why? I don’t know. There has got to be something in it for him.”

  I placed my finger over Talon’s mouth and then leaned down over him and kissed his lips. After a minute he rolled us over and hovered above me, resting his weight on his palms as he kissed me. “Slow, Lily,” he whispered. Then we lay face to face and he drew circles on my back.

  I wanted to bring up the girl. To ask Talon about her so we could finish our conversation about our relationship, but it had already been a bad night for him. I lay still in his arms and wondered if he would ever tell me. Maybe he would wait until we got back together? Surely then he’d know he’d have to? Or maybe it scared him to think something that didn’t matter anymore might ruin what we could have.

  After a while, I decided I should forget about it for the night and just enjoy the moment as best I could. My eyelids grew heavy and I’d started to sober up enough to feel like crap again. I buried my face in Talon’s neck and fell asleep.

  ***

  Come morning, we found the rest of our party gathered in the kitchen.

  “Hope you’re hungry,” Tia said. “I made biscuits and gravy.” Not wanting to hurt her feelings, I took a biscuit and started to pick apart its steaming hot flaky layers that melted in my mouth.

  “Sleep well, you two?” Ray asked. “That futon is pretty good for your back.”

  “It was fine, thanks. Sorry about your four-wheeler, man.” Talon seemed genuinely sorry, but I knew the suspicion in his mind.

  “Hey, don’t worry about it. These things happen. I’m just glad you’re all right.” He seemed sincere, but was he really sorry? I looked for a trace of uncertainty in his tone, but detected nothing.

  “How do you know French anyway?” Hunter asked.

  “I’m his boss and his main supplier for booze when it’s party time.” Ray chuckled.

  I gave Talon a glance. That answered one question.

  “Maybe you can hook us up sometime?” Owen raised his brows.

  “We’ll see. But I prefer, in your case, if you want to drink you’ll just crash here.”

  “Well, I’m not drinking ever again.” I moaned moan as the biscuit hit my soured stomach.

  “You think you can come by tomorrow and meet Granny?” Hunter asked. He hated keeping things from her, though she had no trouble keeping things from him.

  “Meet her?” He gave a chuckle. “I’ve known your grandmother for years. Seeing you boys grow up, she’s got to know it’s me, especially knowing I was with LeAnn all those years.” Tia shot him a look. I wondered if she knew LeAnn.

  “Then I wonder why she didn’t tell us who you were?” Owen looked confused.

  “Probably because of your mother, I’d guess. She’s trouble. Mrs. Ida never liked her and when W.O. and I fought over her, it made it worse. Then after what she did to him and to you boys, if she thinks I’m still associated with her, she wouldn’t dare let you know me. And honestly I don’t blame her. Look at you, I’m a terrible influence.” He chuckled, clearly amused with himself.

  “Will you come?” Owen looked hopeful.

  “Sure. If you don’t think she’ll mind, give me a call. But give her some warning. I don’t want to feel her wrath; I’ve seen it before.” He made a face and I believed him. I wondered what kind of stories he could tell about him and W.O. back in the day.

  “Well, we better get back,” Hunter said.

  “Okay, but Lily, Owen, I really need you two to come by a few days this week. We’ve got work to do.”

  Talon tensed next to me and I looked up in time to catch his reaction. He didn’t say anything about it or the fact that his car having no brakes caused the wreck. He probably didn’t know how to tell Hunter, who he usually confided in about everything, because he didn’t want to ruin his best friend’s relationship
with the father he’d just met.

  Chapter Twelve

  At school the next day, French shocked us all when he came over to apologize. My jaw fell open and like the others I didn’t know what to say other than nod and accept his apology. I realized that whatever Ray had threatened or done had been totally effective. I imagined since Ray was his boss, he’d threatened to fire him or something. French’s apology not only shocked us, but Coy and Dodie too. Like usual, they went along with him. I figured Meagan would be crushed and wondered if she’d be as obedient to French as the others.

  After school, Talon and I raided the fridge for snacks. This had become a routine when we were together, and I was glad we could do it again even though I hadn’t given Talon an answer.

  “I’ll get the toaster and you get the Pop Tarts,” he said, grabbing the milk before pulling out the toaster to plug it in. We patiently waited as the hot coils worked their magic.

  “You got homework?” he asked.

  “Nope, I finished mine in study hall. What a boring day. I need a nice long nap.” I stretched my arms up over my head and yawned.

  “Well, we can do that once we get done here.” He waggled his brows. I blushed at the thought. I would have loved to take a nice long nap in his arms, or maybe even catch up on some kissing time, but before I could answer him, Owen showed up at our back door. Talon frowned as he gathered our pastries and brought them to the table.

  “Look at me, just in time.” Owen eyed my pastry.

  I slapped his hand. “Nice try.” I pulled it out of his reach and took a bite. I flinched as the gooey filling burned my tongue. “What’s up?” I asked. Talon glared at me as if I shouldn’t have asked.

  “Ray called me. He still wants us to come by. He said he wants to check out our skills.”

  “Is Hunter coming?” I asked.

  “Nope, he’s going to help Holly’s cousin, Naomi, and her husband, build some sort of display shelf for the flower shop. It’s just you and me.”

  Talon coughed, and the two exchanged a glance.

  Owen sighed and squished his face at Talon. “And you, of course, if you want to come?”

  “How nice of you to invite me,” Talon said, in a clipped tone.

  I widened my eyes at him, pleading for him to knock it off.

  “Well, it’s just, you might get bored,” Owen explained as the two exchanged a glance. “Suit yourself, but the bus leaves in ten minutes.”

  Talon sighed. “Why wait? We’re ready now.” He finished off his last bite and took a huge swig of milk to wash it down.

  ***

  Ray waited for us on the back porch when we arrived. He seemed disappointed to see Talon, but didn’t say anything. He’d better get used to it. Talon wasn’t going anywhere. Then I realized, eventually, he would be. A pang hit my stomach. I pushed the thought aside to deal with later. I had other things to be nervous about. I wiped the sweat from my palms as Ray led us inside.

  We gathered in Ray’s living room, where he’d made a clearing in front of his big screen. He offered Talon a seat and stood with us in the center of the area. I glanced at Talon. My heart raced and I breathed deep to steady it. I didn’t know what to expect.

  “Okay, first thing I need to do is try and see what Owen’s capabilities are. I’ve seen yours, Sunshine, and you’re pretty strong. I need to make you work as a unit.” He looked at each of us, joining his hands as an example. Talon shifted in his seat. The thought of me joining with Owen in any way probably made him want to puke.

  Owen raised his hand like he did in class. “Will Hunter be able to do these things, too?” he asked. I’d wondered that myself.

  “Maybe, but I’m more worried about concentrating on you. You seem to have the link to Lily. We’ll work on Hunter when he’s got more time.”

  “One question,” Talon spoke up. Ray pursed his lips and exhaled loudly, giving Talon a harsh glare. “I’m just curious. How are you so sure that Owen is the Guardian and not Hunter? The Water has the same effect on all of us.” I’d considered the same thing.

  Ray smiled and then looked down to Talon as if speaking to a child. “I get that it bugs you. Really, I do, but you have to understand that there is a connection between these two—an obvious affinity with each other. Surely you’ve seen it already? If Hunter was the Guardian, he wouldn’t be so serious with Holly. He would be like Owen, distracted.” With that, Owen held back a smile and Talon groaned, sitting back to watch.

  Ray circled us, his heavy steps making me nervous as the floor creaked around me. “Now, I need you two to face each other and put up your hands, palms out toward each other, fingertips touching.”

  “Like this?” I asked with my hands outstretched.

  Ray clapped his hands together and then pointed to me. “Yeah, very good.”

  Owen put up his hands up too. “Now what?” he asked with a sigh of boredom.

  “Now is when you need to focus. This is all about you.” Ray pointed both forefingers at him.

  “Just how you like it,” Talon mumbled.

  Owen flipped him off.

  “Be serious now,” Ray snapped. “I need you to focus your energy on Lily. Imagine yourself sending it her way. Push it out, through your touch.” Owen closed his eyes to concentrate and he seemed to strain, squinting hard.

  Ray knelt down beside us. “No! No! Relax. Open your eyes. See her.” It reminded me of how I’d seen the visions. I’d had to relax and not think too hard.

  Owen opened his eyes and focused intently on me. I gazed back, staring into his deep pools of sparkling green, but then suddenly he blinked and looked away, dropping his hand to his side. Ray sighed, but didn’t speak.

  Owen shook out his hands. “Give me a minute.” He wiped the sweat off his forehead. He took a deep breath and blew it out. Then, after shaking his hands out once more, he held them up to try again.

  I laced my fingers with his and met his eyes with a warm smile. “Relax.”

  I set my fingertips in position with his and steadied my breathing to follow my own instruction. It felt awkward enough with Talon there, but with Owen’s dad watching and coaching, there had to be added pressure for him.

  Ray stood and stepped back. “Again, relax, breathe, and focus on Lily. Send your energy.”

  Owen dropped his hands. “I don’t know what the hell I’m doing,” he snapped at Ray.

  Ray raked his hands through his hair. “If you can’t do this when touching, you surely won’t be able to do it from a distance,” he yelled, causing me to wince. The tension in the room exhausted me.

  He took a deep breath then exhaled loudly. “Have you dosed today?” He reached for his canteen, waiting on an answer.

  “Yes, this morning, just like you said,” Owen defended. Ray had encouraged us both to start a daily regimen of the Water.

  He passed the canteen to Owen. “Well, let’s get a little boost.” Owen took a long pull. “Okay, now try again. This time, focus on nothing but Lily. Try to block out everything but her breathing.”

  We gazed into each other’s eyes and as soon as I exhaled a breath to relax, a spark of bright blue popped from his fingers to mine. We both jumped back. Talon stood to his feet and Ray cheered.

  “Woo,” he said. “That’s it! You’ve got it! That’s the old Chandler spark!” He smiled and threw up a fist to cheer. “Do it again!”

  Owen looked into my eyes with a new-found confidence and in seconds another spark popped at our fingertips.

  Talon came closer. “Does it hurt?” he asked.

  “No, it’s fine—tingly.” I looked to Ray. “So what else are we going to learn?” I bounced. “Do I get to use my powers? Will you share some of our history?” Grinning ear to ear about Owen’s abilities, I hoped we hadn’t finished. While part of me wanted to rush home and show Holly and Hunter, another part of me wanted to stay right there forever, learning all I could.

  “Let’s see,” Ray said, putting his hand to chin. “Okay, I’ll let you do something,
too. I would ask if you could summon, but I know you can. So do it.” He motioned to the canteen. “You might want to take some of that first.” Owen handed me the canteen. The cool Water stank as I took in a fast, hearty gulp.

  “Well, you certainly have gotten used to that,” he said, and then he waved his hands to hurry me up. Owen shrugged. I held out my hand and summoned the Light.

  “Don’t lose it,” Ray warned. “I need you alert.” He turned to Owen. “Stand here, facing Lily.”

  My hair snaked in long tendrils and my skin glowed, making me feel like a science project waiting for a grade. Ray stared at me and walked around us. He reached out and grabbed a strand of my hair and smiled. “Now, Lily, I want you to let the Light hover. To do that, you’ll need to concentrate and—“ His eyes widened and he gave me a nod as I dropped my hand and the Light took its place above my head. “Okay, impressive,” he whispered. “You’ve picked up on a lot. That’s going to make things easier.”

  Owen smiled proudly at me and reached out and touched my arm, making it spark. Tiny crackles of energy buzzed between us.

  Talon cleared his throat.

  Owen gave him a glare, this time without hand gestures.

  Ray crossed his arms. “Okay, then, we’ll try this with contact, same as before. I’ll need you to put your arms out and join hands. Eventually, if you get the feel for it, we’ll try it without touching. You’ll get there soon, though.”

  Owen and I put our hands up and gave each other a confused shrug. “What exactly are we trying to do—the same thing?” I asked, sort of disappointed.

  Ray slumped his shoulders. “You’re going to transfer some of your power to Owen this time.”

  Owen dropped his hand. “Wait, what?” Worry set in his brow and I pulled in a sharp breath.

  Ray gestured to calm us. “You’re going to try and draw Lily’s power while she tries to feed it to you.”

  “Will I glow?” His creeped-out expression made me feel insecure.