Fates Unsparing

by K. J. McPike

  “Okay.” Nelson’s voice told me it wasn’t. “Guess I’ll see you at school on Monday.”

  “Yeah. If not Monday, definitely soon.”

  He nodded once and stood up. I got to my feet beside him, and all the words I wanted to say disappeared from my mind.

  “Give your family hugs for me,” he said. “And answer a question from the Salaxia Quiz on my behalf.” He gave me a half-hearted wink. “See you in school.”

  He turned to walk away, moving through the food court crowd with a stiffness in his gait, and though I’d told him we weren’t saying good-bye, it felt like we were. I didn’t want to admit it, but I was sure our friendship would only become more strained from here.

  Just another thing to add to the growing list of losses.

  Biting down on my tongue, I glanced over to the shoe store where Kai was lingering somewhere among the aisles, waiting for me. I heaved a sigh and made my way over to the shop. It didn’t take long to find him near the sneaker display at the back of the store.

  “Ready to go?” he asked, his uninjured eye spotting me as I approached.

  I moved my head up and down wordlessly. Kai’s face fell, but I turned to lead the way out of the store before he asked me any questions. I didn’t want to talk about it.

  He followed me to the mall’s restrooms—public bathrooms were the easiest places for Kai to project without being noticed. Just to keep up appearances, he turned into the men’s and I turned into the women’s.

  Two girls stood at the sinks washing their hands as I entered. Kai would have to wait until they were gone to project in here and get me.

  I pretended to fix my hair in the mirror, studying my crystal-gray eyes and the nose I always thought was slightly too big for my face. I looked the same, but I didn’t feel like the same person I used to be. I wasn’t sure if I ever would again.

  The other girls left the bathroom, and Kai showed up a moment later. “Do you wanna go somewhere for a mental break before I take you to Delta’s?” he asked.

  It was a tempting offer, but I shook my head. “No, thank you. I need to be with my family right now. We have a lot to sort out.”

  That was putting it mildly. We still had to figure out where we were going to live long-term and if we were going to move permanently once the school year was out. Not to mention, we still had to bury Salaxia’s body. Just thinking about it knocked the wind out of me.

  “Well, let me know what I can do to help,” Kai said, and it took me an extra moment to register that he was responding to my earlier statement, not my thoughts.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course. It’s my fault that your family is in this mess. The least I can do is—”

  “It’s not your fault.” I looked up at his strained expression, and I could see that he didn’t believe me. “I mean it. You didn’t know this was going to happen, and you have to stop punishing yourself for it.” Speaking the words, I almost didn’t recognize myself. It wasn’t long ago that I was the one punishing him, and here I was preaching forgiveness.

  But this time had been different. He hadn’t lied to me or anyone else. He’d asked for our help, and we agreed. What happened next was out of his control. If I could see that, I would make sure he could, too.

  Kai ran a hand through his dark mess of hair. “It means a lot to me that you see it that way. Really, it does. But I don’t know if I’ll ever stop feeling bad about what happened.”

  That makes two of us.

  “We’ll work on that.” I linked my fingers through his. “We’ll work on a lot of things.”

  We shared a charged moment, and I moved up to my tip toes to kiss him on the cheek. He blinked at me, his stunned expression morphing into the ghost of a smile. Things between us were still confusing, to say the least, but I was done pretending that I didn’t feel something for him. Frustrating as it was, it was there, and it wasn’t going anywhere.

  “I’m good with that,” Kai said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I leaned into his touch, telling myself we would take things slow. I didn’t want to rush into something when it seemed like everything in my life was on shaky ground. For now, I was just happy we’d made peace. Whatever came next for us, I looked forward to finding out.

  My family sat around Delta’s floral-print living room, each of us eating takeout from a styrofoam container while Gottfried made his rounds to beg. I’d claimed a spot on the sofa next to Salaxia, and Oxanna sat on her other side.

  Our brothers had picked spots on the floor with their backs pressed against the mountain of clothes, shoes, blankets, pillows, and various other belongings took over the corner of the room. Despite the fact that we had asked Kai to stay away from our house in Virginia for safety reasons, he had gone back to pick up just about every item of ours that he could project over here. His way of helping, he’d said.

  He and Kala planned to stay at Delta’s for the time being, too, but Kai had agreed to give us some space to talk as a family—per my parents’ request. Though we had countless subjects to discuss, I dreaded each and every one. I’d longed to come back to our timeline, but now that we were here, I barely recognized my life anymore. Any discussions we had tonight were only going to drive that fact home. That, and the unfortunate truth that the more I wished for things to go back to normal, the more normalcy seemed to evade me.

  Dad cleared his throat, shifting beside Mom on the love seat. It was the closest I’d seen them to each other since we first told Dad the truth about our abilities. The tension between them seemed to have let up, and I was almost thankful that the dining table only sat four.

  “Now that we’re all settled,” Dad began, “it’s time to get some things figured out.” He pushed his glasses up on his nose and made a point to look at my siblings and me one by one. I caught the tightness in his eyes when he got to Salaxia, and I wondered if seeing her made him feel the same mix of guilt and relief I did.

  “We need to make sure we have open and honest conversations with each other, now more than ever,” Mom said.

  Oxanna set her fried rice in her lap and leaned back against the sofa. “Conversations about what?”

  “Anything,” Mom replied, the fine lines across her forehead deepening. “You need to know that you can come to us. The fact that you didn’t think you could tell us when Kai asked for your help getting Kala back is more than concerning. We’re your parents, and you need to know that we’re here for you no matter what.”

  “We know that,” I said. “What happened with Kai was just unexpected, and it was bad timing. You guys had…a lot going on.”

  “Kids.” Dad rubbed a hand over his thinning hair. “I’m sorry things between your mother and me have been tough on you. I admit, it’s been hard for me to handle learning that all of you have abilities that can put you in harm’s way. But that’s only because I want to be able to protect you. I’m your father, and it kills me that I can’t keep you safe.” His voice broke, and his eyes flickered toward Salaxia. “But life is too short to waste time being angry, especially with the people you love the most.”

  He and Mom exchanged a long look, and he put his hand on hers. “We have some healing to do, but we’re going to work on it.”

  “And no matter what goes on between your father and me,” Mom added, “nothing will ever be more important to us than you kids.” She paused, letting her words sink in. “Do you understand?”

  My siblings and I nodded.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “I should have come to you guys right away.” The reality of that statement hit me like a bus. If I’d just gone to my parents, we might have been able to avoid everything—the attack at the house, Salaxia’s death, getting stuck in the past. Ever since it happened, I’d been able to see all the ways we could have avoided it; this was just one more.

  “I need you to promise me that you’ll come to us whenever you’re in trouble,” Mom insisted. “You can come to us about anything, but especially things linked to your abilities. You�
�ve got to be careful with your projecting. I don’t want to have to trap your astral energy, but I will if it’s the only way to keep you safe.”

  My hand instinctively moved to the clear quartz tucked into the pocket of my jeans. As much as I appreciated that Delta had programmed stones for all of us, I hated that we would have to depend on them to keep us safe from Sariah. As if knowing Arlo and Solstice were still out there wasn’t enough.

  As if what their army had done to my baby sister wasn’t enough.

  “Well, I’m retiring my past projections,” Dixon said. “So you don’t have to worry about me.”

  “And I’m not going anywhere near a transposer for the rest of my life,” Ulyxses added.

  Salaxia’s face fell. “Are we not allowed to project anymore?”

  “I’m not saying you have to stop projecting,” Mom replied. “I’m saying that you need to consider the consequences of it. You can’t go running off trying to save everyone without thinking it through.”

  I winced. I wouldn’t make that mistake again.

  “We’re a family,” Dad said. “We need to start acting like it. We’re going to face some changes that might be rough, so we’re going to need to lean on each other more than ever. But family is what makes the hard times bearable.”

  I knew he was right. My life might never be normal, but looking around at my parents and my brothers and sisters, I took comfort in knowing that we would have each other. The coming weeks wouldn’t be easy; that much I knew. But no matter what happened, we could get through it. No matter what happened moving forward, we would face it together.

  Epilogue

  LATER THAT DAY

  The roses stood out like drops of crimson ink against the cotton shroud covering Salaxia’s body. Her little form lay in the center of the wooden planks that masked the hole where she would be laid to rest, and all I could think about was how she would be scared when we lowered her down there. She was afraid of the dark.

  I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, forcing myself to look up at the cloudless sky as if it might make this whole scene go away. This was wrong. Everything about it was wrong.

  Salaxia deserved a proper funeral, with a full service and people singing and everyone who’d known and loved her there to talk about what a special girl she was. She deserved so much more than this secret burial in the woods, miles and miles away from the only home she’d ever known. It wasn’t fair.

  None of this was fair.

  All we’d been able to offer her was our family’s shared memories spoken around her and a few minutes to say our individual good-byes. My family waited behind me now, giving me space to get some closure. But now that it was my turn I didn’t know what to say. What could I say?

  She had to have known how much I loved her, but how could I tell her that another version of her would go on living with our family?

  With her family.

  As if she could be replaced. Would she resent us for that? Could I blame her if she did?

  “I’m so sorry, Sal.” I leaned down to put another flower near her head. “I never wanted to replace you. I wanted to save you—to stop this from happening—but I couldn’t.”

  The setting sun shone against the back of my black dress, but every part of me felt cold. No matter how thankful I was to have a version of my baby sister in our lives, I knew I would never get rid of the guilt about the horrible way my timeline’s Salaxia had died. She was the one I’d grown up with. The one I’d failed.

  I took in a shaky breath and ran my fingers over the clear quartz dangling at the base of my throat—the stone I was depending on to keep me safe from Sariah. It was just another reminder of everything Arlo and his cronies had taken from me. My baby sister. My home. My sense of security.

  But I didn’t want to be afraid anymore. I didn’t want to be the victim anymore. I was sick of it. All of it.

  “I won’t let them get away with this,” I whispered, looking down at the place where Salaxia’s face was hidden beneath the shroud. “What they did to you—I’ll make them pay for it. I don’t care what it takes. Somehow, I’m going to find a way to take them all down.”

  END OF BOOK 2

  Thank you for reading Fates Unsparing! If you enjoyed this book, please remember to leave a review on Amazon. Positive reviews are the best way to thank an author for writing a book you loved because having lots of reviews will make Amazon show the book to more potential readers.

  I publish my books independently, so without a major publishing company promoting me, your review is very important to help spread the word of the series. It doesn’t have to be long—just a sentence or two is fine! I read all my reviews, and I appreciate every one.

  Want to know what happens next in The Souls Untethered Saga? Sign up for my newsletter for updates on the next book! I hope to publish it in Spring 2018, so the wait won’t be long. Just go to www.kjmcpike.com/newsletter to stay updated with sneak peeks, cover reveals, and more!

  Books by K.J. McPike

  THE SOULS UNTETHERED SAGA

  Souls Untethered (Book 1)

  Truths Unspoken (Book 1.5)

  Fates Unsparing (Book 2)

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  If you are reading this, it means I survived publishing my third book! And if I survived, it is in huge part due to the love and endless support of an amazing collection of people I am blessed to call my family and friends.

  To Nefer, my soul mate and life partner, I will never be able to thank you enough for all the ways you love and support me (and all the things you put up with because my writing is ALWAYS running behind schedule). I would not have made it this far without you. I love you with everything.

  To my family who somehow still gets excited about my books and accepts that I will inevitably go MIA for the last month before publication. It means everything to me to have you guys cheering me on.

  To Linh Nguyen, we both know this book would not have made it to publication (and let’s be honest, I would not have made it to publication) if it weren’t for you. Once again, your phone call helped turn things around with this book, and I am forever grateful to you for making it a priority to read my crappy first drafts and all the slightly-less-crappy versions after that. And all while in law school!

  To BJ Neblett, thank you for your unwavering support of my writing endeavors and for always being completely honest with your feedback. It’s such a comfort knowing that I can bounce ideas off you (even the crazy ones) and know you’ll always have my back.

  To Alissa Berger, thank you for always being excited to read my work and somehow managing to do so in record time. This book especially thanks you for saving it from my second-guessed versions of the opening chapters. It is so much stronger thanks to your fearless feedback!

  To my fabulous Beta Readers, Nan Hickman, Patrick Hodges, Tiea McDonald, Jennifer Meadows, Eva Merrick, Elijah Shoemaker, and Ashley Tapper, thank you for jumping in to read this book and sharing your thoughts with me so I could shine it up. And an even bigger thank you for allowing me to send it in chunks because I am forever changing things up until the very last minute!

  To my Bainbridge Betas, Grace and Libby, thank you for your eagerness to read another book of mine and helping me stay motivated to write the best book I can for fans of the series like you!

  To Lindsay Tweedle, you are a saint for putting up with my insanity while editing this book. As always, your work is amazing, and I rest easy knowing your eyes have been over this story.

  This book was the hardest one to write yet, but it’s out here and it’s all thanks to you wonderful people! From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

  About the Author

  USA Today bestselling and award-winning author K.J. McPike lives out of a carry-on size suitcase and a backpack. (Okay, mostly the backpack.) After growing up in rural Virginia, she embraced the nomad life and has since resided in Spain, Thailand, Mexico, Indonesia, and Vietnam, as well as all over the United States. Somehow, she still hasn’t de
cided where she wants to settle down.

  No matter where she is around the globe, she is likely consuming too much caffeine and spending more time in coffee shops than her own apartment. Keep up with K.J.'s books and her nomadic ways online at www.kjmcpike.com or through Instagram and Twitter at @kj_mcpike.

  www.kjmcpike.com

  Copyright © K.J. McPike 2017

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  First Published as Tenuous May 2017

  by

  Terracotta Rose Publishing

  Seattle, Washington USA

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  Second eBook Edition: January 2018

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  This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to real events or people, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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  All rights reserved.