by Dee J. Stone
“Well,” Kale says after a few minutes. “It’s awesome you’re back, man. We really missed you.”
I nod.
Kale tilts his head toward me. “He went nuts attacking random villains trying to find the Blades and avenge your death.”
I look at him and raise my eyebrow. “And you begged to join me.”
“Yeah, I did.”
Stretch smiles. “Thanks. But don’t get yourselves killed.”
Kale turns to me. “He’s kinda right. I mean, with everything that happened, we didn’t find the Blades’ headquarters.”
Yeah, all because of Stealth.
“She totally screwed us over,” Kale says.
“Who?” Stretch asks.
Kale’s gaze moves to me like he’s not sure if he should tell Stretch about her.
“We’ll talk about it another time,” I say. “I don’t want to go after the Blades anymore. Yes, Vlayne killed Glen and my parents, but I think we should leave this to the Elites. We’ve caused enough trouble.” Plus, I’m drained. For four months, I was obsessed with revenge and now…nothing. Stretch is back, so all the guilt that pushed me forward is gone. Sure I want her dead, for my parents and Glen, but I’m not burning for it like I did with Stretch. Her time will come. I know it. I just don’t have to drive myself crazy like I did.
“Wait, huh? What? Your parents?” Stretch asks. “And Premonition died?! What?” His eyes fill with grief. “How?”
“Vlayne had him captured like we thought,” Kale says. “She screwed up his brain.”
“Wow.” Stretch turns to me. “And your parents?” His eyebrows scrunch.
“We’ll tell you about that later,” Kale says.
“Man, I did miss a lot.” He frowns. “So…what else?”
Cindy returns to the room. “Andrew, please come with me to the hospital.”
“Okay.” He gets to his feet. “See you guys later.”
Once he’s gone, Kale and I exchange a glance. “My parents aren’t sure he’s the real Stretch,” he says.
“What do you think?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been in his mind before, but from what I read he seems to be the real guy.”
I watch Stretch and Cindy enter the hospital. Samson is already there, with Healer and Brain. Stretch lies down on a bed and Healer injects something into him, which causes him to fall asleep. After that, the scientists perform different tests on him.
I pull my eyes away.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The tests are complete. Brain and the other scientists have confirmed that Stretch is not an imposter. Some members have checked his grave. It was dug up. Somehow he has risen from the dead. He’s not a zombie or a ghost. He’s as alive as he was before.
He, Kale, and I are sitting in my room, like we’ve done many times before. Except now, we don’t have much to talk about. Things are still a bit awkward between us.
“Everything turned out okay in the end,” Stretch says. “Kale saved the world and Samson wasn’t assassinated.”
“And now that you’re back, yeah,” Kale says. “Everything turned out great.”
He’s right. Everything did turn out great. Except for Glen, but like I said, Vlayne will get what she deserves. But where do I go from here? The feeling of emptiness is growing, since I have no purpose anymore. No goals, no girlfriend. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now.
Stretch frowns, his hand buried in a bowl of nachos. “Everyone’s acting weird around me.”
Most of the members here don’t know what to make of his resurrection. Some embrace him like nothing happened while others avoid him like he’ll contaminate them. Or put a curse on them or eat their brains out.
“It sucks,” Stretch continues, mouth full. “But the worst part is Furball. She doesn’t, like, even look at me.” He sighs, his shoulders hunched.
“She’ll come around,” Kale says. “She’s just shocked and weirded out. We all are.”
“Hope so.”
Quiet.
“So…” Stretch wiggles his eyebrows and pokes Kale in the chest with his long finger. “Tell me stuff. X’s parents, how you saved Lindsay.”
As Kale begins to tell him everything, I walk over to the window and peer out. So much has changed for me these past four months. Hunting Vlayne, having Stealth join the Nightmares, falling in love with her, discovering she’s Vlayne’s daughter, learning a past I never knew about, Kale’s brain deteriorating, entering my mind to search for the antidote, and Stretch’s resurrection. It’s too much and makes my head spin. Not to mention the sleepless nights I’ve been having. Most of it has to do with Stealth, but a large part revolves around my parents.
And Vlayne. Why hadn’t she killed me as a baby?
“X,” Kale says. “You okay?”
I turn to him and nod. He’s telling Stretch about my time in the sewers. I’m thankful he’s keeping Stealth a secret. Falling for her is not something I’m proud of.
I’ll tell him about her and the Nightmares at some point.
“Wait a sec.” Stretch holds up his stringy finger. “Scar was friends with your mom? Wow. There’s, like, this whole past we don’t know about.”
“I know, man,” Kale says. “I thought the same thing.”
“Weird,” Stretch says. “So your telepathy is gone?”
Kale smiles. “Nope. I’ve got full access to your thoughts.”
Stretch’s shoulders droop. “Well, that sucks.”
“Not for me.”
Stretch takes my Rubik’s cube and hurls it at Kale. It slams him in the forehead and bounces on the floor.
“Geez, Stretch,” Kale yells, rubbing the sore spot that’s starting to swell and redden. “I don’t want to fall into a coma again.”
“Sorry,” Stretch says, stifling a laugh. He dumps his hand into the snack bowl and hurls nacho pieces at Kale. Kale retaliates with grabbing my clothes that are strewn over the floor and throwing them at Stretch.
A shirt slaps Stretch in the face. He sits up sharply, dragging the shirt off. “Hey, where’s Speed? He’s not your roommate anymore?”
I turn to the window. “No.”
“Why?”
I slowly face him. “Because I was a complete mess after you died. I blamed myself for pushing you to get that keycard. Kale was right, but I chose not to listen to him. And because of that, you died.”
Stretch doesn’t say anything as he gazes at my carpeted floor. It’s covered in dust, dirt, and snack crumbs. It still hasn’t been cleaned.
“X, dude,” Stretch says. “It wasn’t your fault. I pushed myself.”
I wave my hand. “Doesn’t matter anymore. You’re back now.”
Stretch nods. “Yeah.”
Quiet.
“Who’s up for some game?” Kale asks. “Stretch, you have no idea what you’ve missed. Come, man,” he says to me. “Let’s show him that racing game.”
I nod, and all three of us walk into an elevator and take it to the Game Room. Once we enter, all heads turn to us. The triplets and Furball are playing foosball in the corner. When H2O sees us, she whispers to Furball, who shakes her head.
Stretch raises his hand to wave, but when he realizes that Furball won’t acknowledge him, he lowers his hand.
Kale thumps his back. “Don’t worry about it, man.”
Stretch nods, but his eyes are sad and he twists his mouth like he doesn’t believe she ever will accept him.
As we sit down and start to play, Furball turns her head to us for half a second. She says something to the triplets and they exit the room. Stretch has his gaze glued to them, which causes his car to crash.
“Man,” he mumbles. “You sure she likes me?”
Kale nods. “Said so at your funeral.”
He slinks down. “Maybe I gotta die again…”
Kale laughs, his eyes roaming the room. “Anybody seen Linds?”
We shake our heads.
Kale scratches the back of his head. “Wei
rd. I sent her a message that we’re here. Wonder why she doesn’t want to hang out.”
“She probably wants to give you some time to reconnect with Stretch,” I say.
“I guess.”
“Read her mind,” Stretch says, elbowing him.
Kale laughs a little. “Nah. It wouldn’t be right.”
Stretch scoffs. “Right. Kale’s moral now.”
Kale shoves him. “I’ll just tell her to come…wait, what?” His eyes widen and he sits up. “Seriously?”
“What?” both Stretch and I say.
Kale has an incredulous expression on his face. “I was just telling her to join us, but her thoughts flew into my mind. She—she wants to break up with me.”
“What?” I say. Those two were in love. Their relationship was real and pure. “Why?”
His eyes are still wide. “She…she thinks she’ll get me sick again. That’s crazy!” He jumps to his feet. “I gotta talk to her.” He rushes out of the room.
Stretch and I exchange a glance. “You think she’s right?” he asks. “Could she get him sick again?”
“I don’t know.”
He leans back. “Man, this sucks.”
It does. I hope he doesn’t get his heart broken like me. No one should go through that, especially Kale. He’s been through a lot this year.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Sunlight beats down on my face. When I open my eyes, I see the sky. I’m lying on my back. Outdoors. Glancing around, I take in the greenery, the smell of fresh summer air.
I’m on a mountain. There is no snow.
A shadow passes above me. I squint up and see Stealth standing there. She’s not in a Blade uniform, but a T-shirt and jeans. Her hair is white now—identical to Vlayne’s. She must have had it dyed as a disguise. Biting her lip and furrowing her eyebrows, she gives me an unsure smile.
I know this isn’t a dream. I would never dream of her as a villain.
Backing away, I scout the area for Vlayne and the ShadowBlades. No one else seems to be here, but I know Vlayne may be playing tricks on my mind.
Stealth reaches to touch my shoulder, but I shove her hand off. “Don’t.” I give her a hard glare.
“No one else is here. I misted us to this mountain so we can be alone and talk.”
I turn away from her. “I don’t have anything to say to you.”
She drops to her knees beside me. “Then hear me out. Trust me. I didn’t bring you here to capture or kill you.”
Turning around, I give her another glare. “Take me back.”
She doesn’t say anything as she stares at me. I face my back to her once more.
“Did he make it back okay?” she asks. “Stretch?”
What was that?
I spin around and our eyes meet. “You’re responsible for his resurrection?”
Nodding, she scoots closer to me and lifts her hand to my cheek. I slap it away. “I told you not to touch me.”
“Jericho—”
“Don’t call me that! You of all people…damn.” I shove my hands in my hair and tug. “It was all a game to you.”
“No, Jericho.”
I clench my teeth.
“It wasn’t,” she continues, her voice desperate. “At first it was. My mother ordered me to get close to you so you’d develop feelings—”
“I don’t want to hear this.”
She grabs my shirt. “Please. I love you.”
I scoff and push her hands off.
“I didn’t know why I had to get close to you. She didn’t tell me details. All I needed to do was get you to fall in love with me. That’s why I agreed to go undercover and join the Nightmares. My mom created a whole past to me. Being locked up and forced to steal. Running away from home. All of it was fake. Except for my feelings for you. Those were—still are—real.”
I look at her. “It’s no longer in my brain.” Samson and Cindy hid the formula somewhere Vlayne can’t get her hands on. I don’t know where. “Not in the League, either,” I continue, narrowing my eyes. “If your mom wants to start up with us, give her a message: I’m ready.”
She doesn’t say anything for a few seconds. “I don’t know what my mom has planned. I don’t know if she’s coming after the Keepers.”
I’m quiet for a bit before I say, “You could have killed Samson or Cindy any time. Why didn’t you?”
“For years my mother kept me a secret. She didn’t want anyone to know about me. I was her secret weapon. But she was so desperate for the cure she was willing to risk exposing me to the League. She didn’t tell me to kill anyone because that wasn’t her goal.”
That might be her new goal, now that the formula is hidden.
“I came here to explain everything to you,” she says. “I want you to know the truth of how I’ve felt. Of how I still feel.” She pushes her hair behind her ear. “The more time I spent with you, the closer I felt to you. I felt these things I shouldn’t have. I dreamed about you, thought about you all the time.” She laughs a little. “Really awkward when you have your mother constantly in your head. She hid my thoughts so the telepaths in the League wouldn’t discover who I really was.”
Vlayne had been spying on us the entire time. Spying on me. The League.
“She didn’t care about any of that,” Stealth says, as if she’s reading my mind. “I didn’t know it then, but all she wanted was the formula. Her plan was to get us very close, have her people kidnap me, and you rescue me. I didn’t know why. I didn’t know you had something in your head that she wanted. I was just following orders.”
I don’t say anything. Don’t want to listen to this anymore.
She rests her hand on my arm and squeezes. “My mother realized my feelings for you were real. But she didn’t care. All she wanted was that cure.” She slowly looks up at me. “It’s for my dad.”
I stare at her. Vlayne’s boyfriend is Stealth’s father? Something shifts inside me, but I shake it off. Why should I care about her father?
“I never met him,” Stealth says. “I’m not sure he knows about me.”
Again, I don’t say anything. If she’s after pity, she’s not getting it from me.
“I’m in love with you. That’s why I freed you from my mom and told you to go somewhere safe. My mother wasn’t exactly happy about that.”
She’s gazing at me, waiting for my reaction. I focus on the grass.
“Jericho, please.”
My eyes snap to hers. “Why should I believe you, Ella? If that’s even your name.”
“It is.” She bends closer and rests her hands on either side of my face. “I know you believe me. I can see it in your eyes.”
No. I pull my head back. How could I believe her? She’s Vlayne’s daughter. Yet as I fixate my gaze on her, I can’t help but know in my heart that she’s telling the truth. Why else would she risk Vlayne’s wrath by saving my life?
“I resurrected him for you,” she whispers. “For Kale, too, but mostly for you.” She looks at me. “Is Kale okay?”
“What are you talking about that you resurrected him for me?”
“You were so sad and full of hatred and rage. You missed him so much. I asked my mother to bring him back.”
“How?”
She swallows hard. “I can’t tell you.”
I get to my feet, turn my back to her, and shove my hands into my pockets. “I don’t need favors from Vlayne.”
I hear her step closer to me. Soon her hand is on my back. “It was a favor from me. Because I care about you. I knew how much you wanted him back. I—I want you to be happy.”
I clench my fists. Too many emotions run through my body. I want to yell, punch something, take Stealth in my arms and kiss her. I want things to go back to the way they were, but that’s impossible.
“How,” I repeat.
“Jericho—”
I turn around. “I want to know.”
She bites her lip. “We know someone who can bring people back from the dead.”
<
br /> “A Blade.”
She tilts her head to the left. “This person can’t use his powers often. My mother owns him and decides who to resurrect.”
“Why doesn’t she use him to resurrect your father, once he dies? Why go through all this for the antidote?”
She shakes her head. “This guy resurrects people in the state they were when they died. My father would come back to life with the virus.” Her eyes meet mine. “He needs the antidote.”
I look away from her. I don’t want to talk about this. Don’t want it to remind me that we’re supposed to be enemies. But there’s one question swirling around in my head. “Why didn’t Vlayne kill me as a baby?”
“I don’t know, but she had a reason. She always does.”
“Does she want something else from me?”
“I don’t think so. All she wanted was the formula.”
I’m relieved Vlayne’s not after me anymore, but am I supposed to be thankful that she spared my life? Hell no.
Stealth takes my hand. “Jericho. When I asked my mom to bring Stretch back, she refused. I begged and begged and begged. She allowed it on one condition.”
Tears enter her eyes. Watching them drip down her face breaks my heart. I move closer and pull her into my arms.
“What’s the condition?” I say softly.
She pushes off and looks into my eyes. “I grew up with villains and I didn’t think much about it. Because that’s the life I was used to. But when I joined the Keepers, I saw a whole different way of life. No one was evil or wanted to hurt anyone. I had friends…something I never had before.” She stops talking for a bit, then continues. “I loved living with the Keepers and wanted to become one of you. I didn’t want to be a Blade anymore. I wanted to be with you, Jericho.”
This is news to me. Stealth was willing to give up villainy to be with the League? With me?
“My mother knew how I felt,” she continues. “That’s why she made a deal with me.”
I’m still staring at her. She takes a deep breath. “The only way she allowed Stretch to be resurrected was if I agreed to stay with the ShadowBlades and take over as leader one day.”
I slide to the ground. Then I slowly look up at her. “You traded a life of honesty and integrity to resurrect my best friend?”
