by K. J. McPike
Ugh. Kai had only been back in my life for a few hours, and already he was causing chaos. And Salaxia wondered why I wanted nothing to do with him. She could be mad at me all she wanted, but I refused to feel guilty about rushing Kai and Kala out of our house. We’d helped Kai get his sister back, and that was that. Maybe I was quick to jump to conclusions about Kala and her intentions, but wasn’t it better to err on the side of caution? I just wanted to keep my family safe.
I couldn’t protect my brothers and sisters from the pain of our parents’ arguing, but at least I could try and protect them from any other threat, whether it was perceived or real. I was the oldest, and it was my job to keep them safe. If that meant I had to be a jerk, so be it. I would rather have Salaxia angry with me than let something happen to her.
I forced away the thought. Nothing was going to happen to anyone. Kai and Kala were out of our house, and Solstice had no cards left to play. She didn’t know where my family lived, and she had no way to find any of us. Kai had mentioned something about tracing astral energy once, but if Solstice had that option, she wouldn’t have had to threaten Kala to try and get Kai to hand over my family.
We were safe. We had to be.
Right?
Chapter 5
Convincing
Someone knocked on my bedroom door, tearing me out of a fitful sleep. My eyes slid open but closed again to block out the strong greeting of sunlight that spilled through my sheer curtains. I groaned, throwing a hand over my eyes. I’d hardly gotten any sleep—I was too busy sneaking outside throughout the night to project to Kai and make sure he was still okay. Not that I could do anything if Kala attacked him, but it was comforting to know she hadn’t. At least I felt more confident that she wasn’t secretly plotting our deaths.
With each projection, I’d seen her remain firmly in denial about what Kai was telling her. While I was confident now that she wasn’t dangerous, I started to wonder if she might know something about Solstice. It was probably a long shot, but if Solstice had threatened Kala to try and get Kai to cooperate, wasn’t it possible that Kala and Solstice had met? Or better yet, that Kala had overheard something about what Solstice was planning?
I tried to convince myself that my family was safe from any threat, but that small nagging voice in the back of my mind told me Solstice wouldn’t give up that easily. If there was even a small chance Kala could help us anticipate anything Solstice might be planning, I had to explore it. I just didn’t know how I wanted to do that yet.
Another knock sounded against my door. “Lali,” Mom called out from the hallway. “Time to wake up, sweetie. I made pancakes.”
“Coming,” I called back, kicking off my blankets. I would try calling Kai again after we ate. He still hadn’t returned my call from last night or come by to see what I wanted. Given the circumstances, I wasn’t surprised, but I needed to talk to him about my newest theory.
Forcing myself out of bed, I opened my door and stepped into the hallway at the same moment as Salaxia. She froze, her face like a cornered kitten.
“Morning,” I said.
“Morning,” she squeaked, making no move to come away from her doorway.
Our brothers whizzed past us, racing each other to the kitchen. They thundered down the steps, sounding like a herd of elephants playing football on the staircase. Oxanna yawned as she passed, pausing to give Salaxia and me a questioning look before continuing downstairs.
Once everyone else had gone, Salaxia poked out her bottom lip. “Sorry I called you a butthead.”
I snorted. “It’s okay. I was kind of being a butthead.”
“Yeah. You were.”
“Hey.” I widened my eyes at her. “That’s not how you’re supposed to apologize.”
She shrugged one shoulder, its ruffled sleeve almost reaching the bottom of her sleep-tangled hair. “Mom says I’m not supposed to lie, either.”
Dang. Burned by a nine-year-old.
Salaxia gave me a smug smile, and I reached out to mess up her hair even more. “I just feel bad for Kai,” she said. “I know what it’s like to want someone back more than anything.” She gave me a meaningful look, and I knew she was referring to how much we all wanted Mom to come home after she disappeared. “And now that Kai has his sister back, she doesn’t believe anything he says. Can you imagine if that were you?”
I blinked twice. “When did you get all wise?”
She shrugged again. “I’m almost double digits. It was bound to happen.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. She was going to be ten in a little over a month, and she was counting the days until her age would have two digits like everyone else in the family.
“Let’s just go eat.” I gave her a gentle push toward the stairs. She bounced down the steps, and I followed her to the kitchen. The rest of our family was already sitting around the table with full plates of food.
Mom gestured to the stack of pancakes and eggs on the counter. “Help yourself.” She was still in her frilly pink apron, and her chin-length hair was pulled up into a stub that barely counted as a ponytail. “Apple juice is already on the table.”
Salaxia and I piled our food onto plates and settled in to eat with the rest of the family.
“So what are you kids up to today?” Dad asked.
My brothers and sisters all kept their focus on their plates, and I sighed. “I’m going to try to get some research done for a project,” I said, telling myself that was partially true. It was just that the project involved attempting to get some information on Solstice. I contemplated telling my parents about it, but that seemed like a good way to put even more strain on their relationship. There wasn’t much point in stressing them out until I had something concrete.
“Well, I’m headed to the office today,” Dad volunteered, as if that would be a surprise. He worked every Saturday to catch up on grading.
When no one said anything in response, Mom piped up. “I need to take Gottfried to get shots and pick up some stuff for a tester cake.” Since coming back from her three-month hiatus, she had slipped back into her work as a self-employed pastry chef seamlessly. She’d even picked up two new clients in the last few weeks. “Anyone want to help me bake later?”
Salaxia nearly dropped her glass of juice. “Oh, me!”
Mom and Salaxia started raving about cake decorating and took over the conversation. Not that I minded. My thoughts were still racing through possible ways to get Kala to tell us if she knew anything about Solstice. If she still thought Kai bringing her here was a test, I doubted she was going to share details about anyone in Alea, even if she did know something. Not to mention, I doubted Kai would be okay with me interrogating his newly-regained sister.
But maybe there was a way to get answers without asking the questions. If Kala came over to the house, I could recruit Salaxia to read her mind. Recalling what Ulyxses said about Dixon projecting Kala into her past, I bit my lip. Maybe we could get Kai to bring his sister to our house under the guise of showing her what really happened. Then while they were here, I could mention Solstice’s name and have Salaxia go to work. Yes, I would be keeping a small detail from Kai, but it wasn’t like he hadn’t done that to me.
I spent the rest of breakfast pretending to listen to the conversation while planning out how I was going to make this getting answers from Kala thing work. We were just finishing up our food when the front door burst open.
“Morning, Yavaris,” Nelson sang. “How goes it?”
Panic twitched in my stomach. My parents had long since given him an open door policy because he was over at our house so often, but in that moment, I wished that wasn’t the case. I still needed to figure out what I was going to say to him about last night, and I didn’t need him mentioning Kai’s name. Mom and Dad would flip.
“Hey, Nelson,” I said in a shaky voice. The rest of my family greeted him and, as usual, Mom offered him a plate.
“No thanks,” he replied. “Just wanted to borrow Lollipop for a bit, if th
at’s okay.” Ugh. I was sure that meant he wanted to interrogate me about yesterday. And that meant more lies.
Great.
Holding in a groan, I glanced at my parents for approval. They nodded, and I stood up to carry my dishes to the sink. I took my time rinsing my plate before dropping it in the dishwasher, all the while racing through possible explanations in my head. I could tell him it was a false alarm with the guy who’d kidnapped Mom. That was technically true, and probably my best bet.
When I couldn’t stall any longer, I followed Nelson outside without bothering to put shoes over my socks.
“Nice pajamas,” he teased, his deep brown eyes surveying the rows of cows on my pants with the phrase Pasture Bedtime printed in pink between them.
“They’re comfortable,” I mumbled.
He chuckled. “If you say so.”
“So what’s up?” I led him across the driveway for a little more privacy. I knew my brothers and sisters wouldn’t mention Kai to my parents, and I wasn’t about to let Nelson’s questions blow our secret.
He ran his palms over the front of his khaki shorts. “I just wanted to make sure everything’s okay after last night.”
Called it. “Everything’s fine,” I assured him. “It was a false alarm.”
“That’s all you’re gonna give me?”
“That’s all it was. They thought the guy who’d kidnapped my mom was planning to strike again, but they were wrong.”
Nelson’s brow bunched. “Is it typical protocol to stalk girls to other people’s houses and bang on the door shouting?”
“I guess when they think it’s serious.” I let my hands drop to my sides and stared up at the sky. Only a handful of clouds marred the soft blue.
“How come you always get all fidgety when Kai comes up?”
I bristled. “I do not.”
“You do. I haven’t seen you like this since the last time he came around, and I can’t help but feel like there’s something else going on.” He hesitated, studying my face. “Is there something going on with you two?”
“No! Please. I would be just as happy to never see him again.”
“Well, that makes two of us.”
I feigned shock. “Nelson Gunnar Matthews. I’m seeing a whole new side of you.”
“I’m just saying.” The tips of his ears turned pink. “He freaked me out last night. I’m still not convinced he’s stable.”
“I can handle him,” I said. Unfortunately, I don’t have much of a choice.
Nelson pulled me into a hug. “I’m just glad you’re okay. Maybe we can try that movie thing again tonight.”
Before I could answer, I noticed Kai walking up my driveway. My stomach dropped. I must have gasped or something because Nelson pulled away, and seeing my face, turned to follow my gaze. Tension pulled back his shoulders as he spotted Kai, too.
“Hey.” Kai offered a small wave as he approached. Admittedly, he looked much more put together than he had last night, even with his wet hair dripping onto the shoulders of his gray t-shirt. His emerald eyes had regained their spark, and his posture was back to his usual confident stance. If I didn’t know the truth about his dubious ways, I might have been beguiled by his chiseled face and brooding gaze.
“Sorry to interrupt,” he said, though it was obvious he didn’t mean it. “Got your message, Lali.”
Nelson’s eyes flicked to me, but he didn’t ask the question I knew was on his mind. Though I was the one who’d called Kai, I couldn’t help but be annoyed at his timing. It was like he did this on purpose.
“Mind giving us some privacy?” Kai gave Nelson a look I couldn’t read.
Nelson’s eyes narrowed. “Sure.” He gave me a one-armed hug. “Call me later, Lollipop.”
“Bye, Nelson.” I watched my friend walk down the driveway, his gait stiff. As soon as Nelson turned onto the road, Kai cleared his throat.
“So, are you and him an item now?” he asked.
Heat rushed to my cheeks. “None of your business.”
“You’re right.” He held up his hands. “Sorry. Um, congratulations. Or whatever.” He cleared his throat again and studied my driveway like gravel was the most fascinating thing he’d ever seen.
I sighed. I really was a butthead. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just on edge.”
“It’s cool. I tried to come by earlier, but you were eating with your family. Kinda worked out that you stepped outside with Nelson, so I just waited and—” He shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts. “What’s up? You sounded pretty panicked on the phone.”
“Yeah.” How did I want to swing this? How could I convince him to bring Kala here without giving away my real plan? “I just had a freak-out moment. I should’ve called you back to say everything was fine.”
“No worries. It’s not like it took a lot for me to get here.” He forced a laugh. “Honestly, I’m surprised you even wanted me to come back. Last night, I thought you were hinting for me to stay away.”
“That came out harsher than I meant it.”
“Oh.” His features lifted. “I figured you were trying to be subtle, so I didn’t say anything. Didn’t wanna make your little sister cry.” He gave me a half-hearted smile. “She seems to be the only one who likes me these days.”
“Yeah, well, my family knows how to hold a grudge.”
“Tell me about it.”
Our eyes met, and then it was my turn to study the gravel.
“Well, um, glad everything’s cool,” he said. “I should probably get back. Kala’s sleeping now, but I don’t want her to wake up alone.”
Crap. If I was going to get him to bring his sister here, I had to say something. “You know, if you need help convincing her that you’re being honest, we can get Dixon to project her to the past and show her the truth.”
Kai’s head jerked back in surprise. “Really?”
I nodded, giving him my best inviting smile. “My parents will be gone later. I can call you when the coast is clear so you can bring her over.”
One side of Kai’s mouth turned up. “That would be great. Thanks, Lali. I owe you.” With that, he disappeared.
I stared at the place he’d been standing. Somewhere in the corner of my mind, I felt bad for playing on his desire to build a relationship with Kala. I just had to remember that my ulterior motive was to keep all of us safe. There was no shame in that. Holding my head high, I turned back toward my house and braced myself for what would surely be an eventful afternoon.
Less than an hour later, my parents were gone and Kai stood with Kala in the entryway between our living room and the kitchen. I squeezed the arm of the sofa, hoping to keep my voice from betraying my nerves. The last thing I needed was to give away my plan. At most, I had a couple of hours to make this work, and I didn’t want to screw it up.
“We should get started,” I said, unable to stop myself from glancing over to the top of the stairs. Salaxia sat between Oxanna and Ulyxses on the top step. She had agreed to project into Kala’s mind throughout the time she was here, and I intended to bring up Solstice’s name the first chance I got.
I gestured for Kala to join Dixon on the couch, hoping I didn’t look suspicious. Kala’s striking features twisted into a tense expression that matched Kai’s perfectly. Looking at them, no one could deny they were related. Whether she admitted it or not, on some level, Kala had to know that Kai really was her brother.
“I told you there is nothing you can do to make me doubt Arlo,” she insisted. “But you may keep trying.”
“Arlo and Solstice lied to you.” It was the best I could do to throw out Solstice’s name in a way that seemed natural—at least somewhat. I studied Kala’s face for a reaction, but she only twitched a brow in response.
“You’ll see everything for yourself, Kala,” Kai promised, shooting me a frown as he gestured to the sofa. He was probably wondering why I’d tossed out a mention of the Astralis who’d threatened his sister, but I didn’t care.
Salaxia would tell me if any of Kala’s thoughts implied she was in on Solstice’s plan.
Kala walked across the living room with her head held high. For only being fourteen, she carried herself with the self-assuredness of someone much older. I wondered if that was Alea’s influence or just her personality. She took a seat next to Dixon, her expression smooth, like she didn’t have a care in the world. Something about her still rubbed me the wrong way, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it right now.
“Are you ready, Dix?” I sat on his other side and tried to look reassuring.
“Sure. Where to first?”
“I figured you could trace Kala’s past back to when she was an infant,” Kai said, moving over to sit on the arm of the sofa near his sister. “The day she was kidnapped—well, I’m sure it’ll stand out. The Eyes and Ears’ attack should be obvious.” He paused, taking a long pull of air. “I’m sorry if you have to see the gory details. If you can go to just before that, you’ll be able to show her that we were a family, right?”
“I can try.” Dixon reached his hand out toward Kala. She took it, and I saw her brow twitch—a crack in her stoic facade. I knew she had to be at least a little nervous, but this was the first time I’d seen it.
“Kala, it’s going to seem kind of crazy at first,” I warned her. There was no reason for this to freak her out more than it had to. “You’ll see a blur of images, but when they stop, you’ll watch everything happen exactly as it happened in your past.”
She nodded once, her long dark ponytail grazing the back of the yellow jumpsuit she still wore from the previous night. I made a mental note to offer her some of my clothes when we were finished.
“Can I come with you?” Kai asked, his voice sounding unsure.
I blinked at him, not convinced that was a good idea. I knew how hard it was on Kai not knowing his parents. Wouldn’t seeing them again make it worse? Though I knew from experience that traveling to the past with my brother meant a blur of indecipherable images, I couldn’t imagine the gut-wrenching pain of seeing his parents slaughtered, even if it was just for a second.
