“Okay,” I agreed. “No more hiding, no more sugarcoating. Nothing but the truth from now on—but on one condition.”
“What condition?” he asked skeptically.
“The truth should be doled out in doses. I don’t want you freaking out again, so I don’t want to tell you more than you can handle at any given time.”
“Then you have to let me be the judge of how much I can handle at any given moment.”
“Only if you promise not to get drunk again if you’ve overestimated yourself.”
“Fine.”
“Fine,” I agreed. “And you’re ready to hear the truth now?”
Quinn swallowed hard and nodded his head.
I took a deep breath. “Okay, let’s go to the Falls.”
*
I teleported Quinn to the Falls with care, fully aware of the makeshift “security system” Dylan had developed until we could figure out a more permanent solution for keeping out unwanted visitors. He’d stacked two-dozen palm-sized river rocks in a specific cairn formation directly in front of the portal door so that an uninformed trespasser would topple them over upon arrival. Only Dylan knew the rock pattern (another request of mine). It wasn’t foolproof, but it was the best any of us could come up with for the time being. As long as the cairn was undisturbed, I felt safer—I think we all did.
Quinn and I and sat down in grass. I thought the daylight might make everything sound a bit less scary—like watching a horror movie with the lights on.
“So?” he asked, sitting across from me.
“So,” I said, taking another deep breath. “What Dylan blurted out yesterday was right. The Servants took your blood because they need it to perform a conversion ritual that will end your life and turn you into one of them, a Servant—forever.” There, I’d said it out loud. I told him. I bit my bottom lip and waited anxiously for his response.
“Why me?” he asked with a twisted expression.
“It has to do with our connection—our being true soul mates. Initially, I think the Servants were worried about us getting stronger—that together we’d be able to stop any chance they had of ruling all the Realms. And because of that, I think they wanted to break our connection before we were able to bond—first, by killing me, and then by targeting you. But they changed their minds about you along the way. From what I’ve been told, they now want to capitalize on the strength you’ve gained from our bond, as well as your inside knowledge of Shepherds, and use it as a vital part of their efforts to wage and win a war to take control of the Realms.”
“But you and I would both become stronger through our bond. So even if they succeeded in converting me, wouldn’t we just end up neutralizing each other?” Quinn asked.
“Apparently, they’ve thought of that too.” I sighed.
“That’s why they want to eliminate you.” He nodded with a new understanding of how I fit into the equation. “But,” he continued as a puzzled expression appeared on his face, “they tried that once already, and it didn’t work. Our connection was too strong. It still is.”
“That’s when I was a human. This is my last ride in this body. If they eliminate me now, my soul will still exist, but I won’t—at least, not this version of me that you fell in love with. Besides, conversion will break our bond permanently.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
“And the Servants need my blood to convert me?”
I nodded. “It’s part of the ritual.”
“And by getting my blood back, we can stop them from performing this ritual?”
“This time, yes. The Servants have to prepare your blood, but that takes time. And once it’s ready, they have only until the next full moon to perform the ceremony.”
“And the next full moon is on July eighteenth?” Quinn asked anxiously.
I nodded again with a frown. “Which gives us twenty-eight days, not counting today.”
“Whoa.” He sighed in disbelief and ran his hands through his hair. “That’s a lot to take in.” He took a deep breath. “So, that’s it? Get my blood back and I’m in the clear for a while?”
“Ideally. But to be on the safe side, I don’t want you to be anywhere near the Servants’ grasp come the full moon.”
“You want me to stay up here and hide,” Quinn stated. I had to give him credit; he caught on fast.
“Not here. Another portal—a new one.”
“Where is it?”
“I’m not sure, actually. Dylan is in charge of finding it. I told him to keep its location a secret from all of us until it’s time.”
“That’s very double-oh-seven.” Quinn flashed me a look, which suggested I might be taking this a bit too far.
“The fewer who know, the better. It’s for your protection.”
“So we get back my blood and stash me in some hole in the sky a few days before the next full moon.”
“That’s the idea.”
“And this ‘plan’ of yours—where does your safety fit into it?” Quinn asked.
“I haven’t figured that part out yet. My main concern right now is keeping you safe.”
“I’m not going to stand by and let you get hurt again.”
His reaction was so sweet and sincere, it made me smile.
“Don’t look at me like that.” Quinn grimaced.
“Like what?” I was confused.
“Like I’m a naïve kid who doesn’t know what you’re up against. Like I don’t know how real the danger we’re both in is. I was there in the field with you last April. I felt the electric shocks that ripped through your body. And you took one of those bastards out—they’ve got to be seriously pissed off about that.”
“Quinn, you’re the one the Servants want to convert. Let’s just get through the next full moon and then we’ll worry about me, okay?”
“No, not okay,” he harrumphed. “You are not a sacrificial lamb, Evie, so stop making yourself out to be one. There’s no prize for being a martyr.” He stood up, stripped off his boxers, and dove into the water before I could reply.
I knew he needed some time to digest everything he’d learned over the past twelve hours, so I teleported back to Quinn’s to get Dylan. Now that Quinn knew the basics of the game plan, I could explain it to Dylan, and we could hammer out the nuts and bolts of our strategy.
Not surprisingly, I found him with Minerva. The two were hanging out on lounge chairs on the patio. I took a deep breath, not exactly sure what I was going to say.
“Morning,” I said, trying to sound chipper but failing miserably.
“How’s College Boy feeling?” Dylan asked.
“Recovering. He’s taking a dip up in the Falls.”
“I’m surprised he was even able to crawl out of bed this morning.” He chuckled.
“Yeah, well, I may have helped him a little,” I confessed. “It was the least I could do.”
“I should probably go up and check on him.”
“Hey, uh, can you wait a sec?” I asked before Dylan could hightail it to the portal. “I have something to say—to the both of you.” I took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. “Look, Dylan, I’m sorry I hid the truth from you and Quinn. I just thought if I had some solid answers and a plan in place before he found out, then it wouldn’t sound so awful when I told him.”
“Evie,” Dylan began, “I know it’s difficult for you to let go of the reins—but I’m Quinn’s Shepherd now, so you’re just going to have to accept that you really can’t do this on your own. And I can’t do my job if you’re holding out on me. None of us can, which only puts Quinn at more risk. The only way we can make it out of this crap storm is as a team.”
“I realize that now.” I turned to Minerva “How did you know? How did you figure it all out?”
“When you’ve been at this for forty years, you hear things. But,” she continued, shaking her head, “that’s no excuse for what I did. I made a tough situation even worse, and I’m really sorry. It was foolish of me to open my mou
th to Dylan—especially right then and there. I should’ve just waited to let you tell him.”
I took another deep breath and swallowed my pride. “Well, I’d also like to apologize for what I said to you last night. I—I’d appreciate it if you would stay and help.” I still didn’t trust her completely, but I also didn’t think she was trying to sabotage Quinn’s safety, or my relationship with him, when she told Dylan what was up. In fact, I don’t think she was thinking about Quinn at all; she was just trying to answer Dylan’s questions. And I’d never said anything to her about not telling Dylan—only Quinn.
Besides, if she left now, I’d only worry that Dylan would be distracted by trying to steal any moment he could to be with her, which, in turn, would distract me. Not a good scenario for any of us.
“Thanks, I’d like that very much,” she replied.
“Good, then it’s settled,” I said with a nod of my head.
“So it’s all true?” Dylan asked.
“Let’s go to the Falls and talk,” I suggested.
*
“Those freaks are really messed up,” Dylan said, aghast when he learned what the Servants planned to do.
“When I first started as a Watcher,” Minerva chimed in, “I heard about another Watcher being ambushed without warning two days into his assignment, and his charge was kidnapped. No one could locate her until it was too late and she’d already been converted. She was destroyed several years after that—oddly enough by the very same Shepherd originally assigned to protect her.”
I looked at Minerva with horror-filled eyes, and I could see Quinn shudder off to my side.
“Nice,” Dylan remarked sarcastically. “Very inspirational, M.”
“No—I didn’t mean to suggest,” she stammered, wide-eyed. “Of course that won’t happen here. I mean, we know what to expect—we’ll stop the Servants before anything happens to Quinn.”
I fought off a sanctimonious grin. It felt oddly satisfying to watch Minerva try to backtrack her way out of her blunder—a little karmic payback for her involvement in last night’s fiasco.
“I have a plan that should protect Quinn on the eighteenth,” I offered, allowing her time to recover from the foot she’d just inserted into her mouth.
“Well, don’t just sit there like a cat with a canary in its mouth!” Dylan exclaimed. “What is it?”
“We have to get Quinn’s blood back. Without his contaminated blood, the Servants can’t perform the ritual. But we only have until the eighteenth of July, which is why I made a deal with the Moon Mercenaries—they think they can get it back within the next two weeks.
“In the meantime, however, Quinn and I have to work on this bond we supposedly have so we can grow stronger. But, Dylan, whenever I’m not with him, you have to be by his side. Quinn needs twenty-four-seven protection. From this point forward, he can never leave our sight—not even for a second because that’s all the time the Servants need to grab him.” I hoped Quinn grasped the seriousness of the situation and the need for his full cooperation.
“A week before the anticipated date of the ritual, we’re going to stash Quinn up in a portal until the full moon has come and gone.”
“And what about you?” Quinn interjected. “Who’s going to make sure you’re not kidnapped—or worse?”
I smiled, already knowing Quinn would like my idea. “I’ll stay with you in the portal the entire time.”
Quinn flashed me a little grin; I knew he was pleasantly surprised by my proposal.
“Okay, and who’s going to watch you before we head to the portal?” He just wasn’t going to let up.
“I will,” Minerva offered.
“Thanks, but I don’t really need—”
“Yes, you do,” Quinn interjected firmly. He turned to Minerva. “Don’t let Evie fool you—as much as she hates to admit it, she’s not invincible. The Servants did a real number on her the last time we were up against them.”
“Quinn—” I began.
“Just humor me,” he continued. “I’d feel a lot better if you had someone looking out for you until we get a better handle on things.”
I thought about Minerva’s offer. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea. The more time I spent with her, the better I’d get to know her.
“Fine,” I agreed. I turned to Minerva. “I guess we’ll be spending some quality time together.”
“I guess we will.” She smiled sincerely.
“And after all goes well on the eighteenth? What happens then?” Dylan asked.
“The Servants might try to get their hands on more of Quinn’s blood.”
“You think they’ll try again?” Dylan asked.
“I guess it depends on how badly they want him, which leads me to the next part of my plan. We have to keep our eyes and ears open and figure out a way to end this war before it begins. It’s either that or find a way to make sure converting Quinn no longer gives the Servants the strategic edge they want.”
“So, to sum it up,” Dylan began, “you and Quinn have to work on your bond while we have to keep him from becoming a Servant, find a way for you to remain safe, and figure out how to prevent a battle we basically know nothing about.”
“In sum, yes,” I replied.
“That’s a pretty big laundry list,” Minerva noted.
“Yup, it is,” I confirmed.
7. trying out “normal”
It was pouring rain when we returned from the Falls, so we decided to stay in and lie low for the day. Quinn flipped through the channels on the family room TV and settled on a Dan Aykroyd movie marathon.
“So you’re a Blues Brothers fan, huh?” I sunk down into the couch, snuggling up to him as he wrapped his arm around me.
He nodded. “I could use a good laugh right now.” He looked completely wiped out.
“Me too.” For the next couple of hours, we laughed so hard we were nearly delirious, and Quinn’s mood seemed to improve considerably.
“Want me to make you a sandwich or something?” I asked at a commercial break.
“Nah, I think I’ll order some pizza.” He pulled out his cell phone and called a local delivery place. We took a break from our movie fest when the food arrived. I followed Quinn into the kitchen and watched him eat the sausage and pepperoni pizza right out of the box, washing it down with a can of Coke. After he’d devoured half the pizza, he closed the box, stuffed it in the fridge, and grabbed a bottle of water.
We hadn’t talked about our fight the night before, but that was fine. One look into his eyes, and I knew we were okay. He knew I felt bad about hiding information from him, but that I’d meant well. And with everything I’d divulged to him today, I think he’d regained his faith in me that I wouldn’t hide anything from him again.
“Want to watch more TV?” I asked.
“Sure.”
When we walked back into the family room, however, we found Minerva and Dylan on the couch, completely engrossed in The Sound of Music. Quinn and I looked at each other like we’d entered another dimension and ended up on Mayberry Street on Christmas Day.
“Dylan, why are you watch—?”
“Shh,” Dylan cut me off, without taking his eyes off the movie. “This is a great scene—one of my favorites.”
“Ooh, mine too,” Minerva said with equal enthusiasm.
“I think I’m going to check my email,” Quinn announced and looked at me strangely, heading towards the stairs.
“I’ll go with you,” I said, following Quinn’s cue.
“You sure?” Dylan asked me.
“Um, yeah, you two are having such a great time. I don’t want to interrupt anything.”
“You don’t know what you’re missing,” Dylan stated, still gazing at the screen.
Yes, I do, I said to myself. I climbed the stairs and entered Quinn’s room. He was sitting on his bed, laptop open.
“You busy?” I asked.
Quinn looked at up at me. “If my only other option is to watch that movie, then yes, I
’m busy.” He flashed me another strange look. “The Sound of Music?”
“I know.” I giggled. “Both of them are into it. I think I’m starting to see the connection between them.”
“Yeah, well I’m just glad you’re a Blues Brothers fan.”
“It’s a true classic.” I winked.
“Ah, a girl after my own heart.” He grinned.
“I thought you’d already given it to me,” I cooed as I climbed onto the bed. I picked up his laptop and set it on his bedside table. “So,” I straddled his lap and gave him a peck on the lips. “Have any ideas as to how we should spend the next couple of hours?”
“Yup.” He kissed me back. “Let’s go find Ronald,” he suggested, lifting me off of him before getting up from the bed.
“What?” I asked, stunned. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
I checked my watch; it was only two in the afternoon. “Quinn, he’s probably not even out there this early—and it’s raining,” I replied. I made my way over to the edge of the bed, sat up on my knees and wrapped my arms around his neck. “We’ll probably have a better chance of finding him if we wait until it stops pouring and then go look for him.”
“You’re probably right, but I still want to check,” he replied. “C’mon, let’s go.” He dodged my kiss so that it landed on his cheek. “If you use your superpowers, we can be there and back before you know it.”
“Ugh, fine.” I knew this wasn’t a battle I was going to win. “Go grab an umbrella.”
*
After letting Dylan and Minerva know where we were headed, I teleported Quinn to the alley closest to the convenience store where Ronald always peddled the latest edition of the local homeless newspaper.
I quickly opened the umbrella, and we huddled underneath it as we made our way towards the mart. As I suspected, Ronald was nowhere to be seen.
“I told you he wouldn’t be out in the rain,” I said smugly.
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