Enigma

by Aimee Ash

  “The only way the curse will be destroyed is for it to prevail. Then it will destroy itself. As far as I know, there is no way to stop it. You have to know that I’m truly sorry, Kate. I never intended to curse Jack, but something inside of me lost control; I don’t even remember what happened.”

  Seb’s eyes were full of remorse. I believed that he was sorry, and I knew that Jack was sorry for hurting him, too. I wasn’t sure if I preferred some kind of timeframe, or maybe it would be less painful not to know when our lives would change forever. I had to resign myself to the fact that I had no control over the curse. Fate would decide when all of our lives would be destroyed.

  “Seb, Jack thinks that you might be attracted to me; he’s worried that I’ll fall for you. He said that if I fell for a stranger, then he might pull through; but if I fell for you, he’d never survive.”

  “I wouldn’t betray him like that.”

  “Perhaps you should reassure him that you aren’t attracted to me. I’m sure you’ll be busy enough soon with all the girls practically falling at your feet at the beach party,” I said.

  “I’m not really a one-night stand type of guy.” Seb looked at his watch. “I’d better go.”

  “Thanks for coming over. It’s been nice getting to know you.”

  “Anytime,” he said and jumped off my balcony.

  CHAPTER 21

  A couple of weeks passed, and the annual family skiing vacation was nearing. I had spoken to Brett on the phone the previous evening and he told me that he couldn’t come with us, which was devastating. I was missing him so much, and his weekly phone calls weren’t enough anymore. He was doing well in rehab and I couldn’t wait for him to come home.

  The thought of going skiing with my parents and Heather for an entire week made me cringe, and it wouldn’t be a family holiday without Brett anyway, so I told my parents that I couldn’t go because I had important lectures. I had expected them to be more disappointed, but they agreed.

  Jack had persuaded Lindsey to call my mother and suggest that I stay at her house while they were away. My mother agreed because Flo and Tobias were off for vacation and no one would be home. It was a kind offer, but I was worried about spending so much time around Seb. There was a connection developing between us and I felt guilty for having feelings for him. Seb hadn’t denied that he was attracted to me, but he hadn’t confirmed it either. Spending so much time around him would only enhance my feelings for him and hurt Jack, and I couldn’t do that.

  I stayed with the Joneses while my parents were away, and everyone made me feel welcome. I slept in the guest bedroom because Lindsey didn’t approve of my sharing a bed with Jack.

  Despite my growing feelings for Seb, I still wanted to explore my feelings for Jack. I needed to know exactly how I felt about him, and I had a plan.

  On the evening of my first full day with the Joneses, I took Jack down to the dock and led him aboard a boat, which I had hired for the evening so that we could spend some time alone.

  “Have you ever thought about trying to find your biological father?” I asked. “Maybe he’d be able to help us break the curse.”

  “There’s no way of finding him, Kate; my dad reassures me of that. We don’t have so much as a last name to go on. It would be like finding a needle in a haystack.”

  “Lindsey and Jonathan seem like great people,” I said.

  Jack smiled. “My mom is great, wonderful in every way. She took us in not knowing who we were, and loved us like we were her own flesh and blood; like we were normal kids.”

  He always had plenty to say about his mom, but not his dad.

  “Jack you are normal, just kind of extra-special.”

  Jack laughed. It was good to hear him laugh again.

  “I’m not normal in any sense of the word, but I appreciate you pretending I am.”

  “When did your mom realize you were different?”

  “My mom told me that when we were six months old, Seb was refusing his milk. He got hold of the bottle and threw it so fast and so hard that it hit the glass light fixture, which fell from the ceiling. I was sitting directly underneath the falling light and as my mom rushed to move me out of the way, I had already moved to the other side of the room.”

  I was shocked. “That’s fascinating. Even as babies you were . . . special,” I said, and Jack laughed again.

  “We were very advanced. We walked at seven months and spoke at one year. Mom was fascinated.”

  His story was enthralling. “What did your mom do? Did she completely freak out?” I asked excitedly.

  “All I know is that after the incident with the light, my dad moved us to Amada, a small town in Arizona. We loved it there; I have good memories of that place,” he said, smiling. “The house was near a secluded beach. Seb and I spent almost every day there.”

  “So, your mom spent every day with you both? No friends for you or her? That sounds lonely, Jack. Where was your dad? Where did he work?” I continued, hoping that I wasn’t being too intrusive.

  “It was probably lonely for my mom, but not for us. Seb and I were best friends. We did everything together. I suppose the difference between us and our mom was that we didn’t know any different.”

  “What about your dad?”

  “He’s a retired doctor and a scientist. He now works in labs, experimenting. When we were young, he worked at the local hospital, and when he wasn’t there, he was in his lab in the basement of our house experimenting.” Jack folded his arms.

  “What was your dad experimenting on?”

  Jack was silent for a moment. “I’m not sure. We were never allowed in his lab, and we didn’t question him. My dad’s a good guy, but he . . . I don’t know . . . he’s kind of an introvert.”

  We lay on the boat and Jack wrapped me in his arms before he suddenly jumped up.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “I swear I just saw someone staring down at us from the cliffs.”

  “What are you talking about? How can you see what could be at the top of the cliffs?”

  “I can see things a lot clearer and farther than humans can, Kate.”

  I sighed. “I should have known.”

  “Sorry, I should have mentioned my unconventional eye-sight.” Jack scanned the top of the cliffs. “Looks like whoever it was is gone.”

  I pulled Jack down next to me and nestled into his shoulder again. “Just relax.”

  I barely rested against him for five seconds before Jack leapt off the boat and swam over to the cliff. Grabbing hold of the jutting cliff edge, he climbed to the top of the cliff quickly and with ease. I called out for him to come back down, because we didn’t know who this stranger was or what he wanted, but Jack would pose more of a threat to him than he could ever be to Jack.

  Sitting on the boat alone, I listened to the waves rippling under the setting sun, anxious for Jack to return. Although he was only gone for a few minutes, I was comforted knowing that he could see me clearly, even though he looked like a tiny speck to me.

  I watched Jack dive off the cliff, and my heart pounding as he hit the water. Then the boat rocked. Stumbling, I turned around to see Jack standing behind me, shaking his head and spraying me with water. He removed his T-shirt and wrung it out over the side of the boat.

  “I couldn’t see anyone up there. No human could’ve escaped that quickly. It must’ve been Seb spying on us,” Jack said flippantly.

  “Why would he be spying on us?”

  “I don’t know. But it couldn’t have been anyone else.”

  “Jack, are you sure you saw someone?”

  “I’m positive.”

  Jack paced around on the boat before he spun around and looked up.

  “There he is!” he yelled.

  “Who—”

  “Shh, he’s trying to tell me something.”

  “What did he say?” I asked impatiently.

  “He . . . it doesn’t make sense.”

  I tugged on his arm again. “
Jack, what did he say to you?”

  “He told me a man named Jonathan might have the answers Seb and I need.”

  We stood there quietly. Who was this stranger? I thought.

  “Kate, I’ve never seen this guy before and have no idea what he means. My dad would have told us if there was a way to break the curse, if that’s what this guy is referring to. He sees how we’re all suffering.” He paused. “Kate, we have to go home. This guy knows about me and Seb. If he tells anyone, we could be in serious danger.”

  “We should tell your dad.”

  “No, let’s keep him out of this. But we need to tell Seb.”

  “But he said your dad might—”

  “No. We’ll only tell Seb.”

  I was surprised; I thought that Jack would want to tell Jonathan everything first, but it also proved that he trusted his brother. He just didn’t trust Seb with me.

  We arrived back and headed straight for Seb’s bedroom, knocking on the newly repaired door, which opened by itself. Seb was sitting on the floor surrounded by sketches and scrapbooks. The sketches were amazing, but this time, there were only pictures of objects.

  “What’s going on, Jack?” Seb asked.

  Jack looked over at the door and it closed. “Someone knows about us—about who we really are.”

  Seb stood up looking gravely concerned. “What! How is that even possible?”

  I stood next to Jack who had a firm grip on my hand.

  “Keep your voice down, Seb. Did you tell anyone about us?” Jack asked him quietly.

  “Of course not. Have you told anyone?” Seb asked.

  “No! Only Kate.”

  Seb looked over at me. “Kate, have you told anyone about us? It would be understandable given the pressure you’re under,” Seb asked.

  “No! I’d never tell,” I insisted.

  We all looked at each other in silence. If none of us had told anyone, then how did this stranger know us? I thought.

  “Well, it must be Mom or Dad. They must’ve told someone about us,” Jack said.

  Seb shook his head. “No, they wouldn’t,” Seb said. We all sat on the floor amid the sketches and Jack and I told Seb everything about the guy on the cliff. When we’d revealed everything, Seb was as baffled as we were.

  “We have to go back and wait for him to return,” Seb said. “You two have to do whatever you were doing when he saw you. I’ll follow behind, wait for him to appear, and then we’ll pin him down until he tells us exactly who he is and what he wants.”

  “I doubt he’ll return. What are the chances?” I asked.

  “We have to try. If he really didn’t want to be seen, he wouldn’t have spoken to you. I think he’ll return.”

  “Are you sure we shouldn’t tell your dad what’s going on first?” I suggested.

  Jack and Seb looked at each other.

  “No; we don’t say anything until we know who this guy is. Dad would’ve told us if there was a way to break the curse,” Jack said.

  “Would he?” Seb asked, raising his eyebrows.

  “Don’t doubt Dad,” Jack said.

  “Well, we don’t have anything to lose, so let’s go back to the cliff like Seb suggested,” I said, breaking the tension.

  “We have to at least try to find this guy,” Seb said.

  We all agreed and decided to return to the cliff in a couple of days.

  CHAPTER 22

  With everything that was going on, I’d fallen behind on my studying. I had an exam that I really needed to study for and decided that the only way I could concentrate was to find somewhere quiet where I could be alone. So I put my books in my bag and headed to the library.

  The library was quiet and nearly empty. A guy, the only other person there, was studying in the corner. I walked over to the shelves for a book I needed, and heard footsteps behind me. I was about to turn around to see who it was when the lights went out. I could barely see my hand in front of my face. My back touched something and I spun around, but before I could let out a scream, a hand covered my mouth. It was Seb.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you. What’s going on with the lights?” he asked, releasing his hand from over my mouth.

  “What are you doing here?” I whispered, my heart racing.

  “I’ve been spending most of my time here lately. I’ve been trying to keep out of the way, like Jack asked me to.”

  “You don’t need to keep out of the way.”

  Feeling my way along the bookshelves, I tried to find the light switch and brushed past Seb. Unable to find the switch, I felt my way around the library, trying to find the table where I’d placed my bag so that I could get my cell, when I heard Seb laughing.

  “Why are you laughing? I can’t see anything,” I said huffily.

  Seb laughed louder as I walked into another table and banged my knee.

  “Take my hand. Let’s check the doors and then I’ll take you to your bag.”

  “It’s pitch-black in here. How are you going to do that?” I stumbled again.

  “It may be pitch-black for your human eyes, but I can see everything, so stop where you are and let me lead you before you have an accident and really hurt yourself.”

  “You can see in the dark?” I asked in a very childlike manner, which embarrassed me.

  “I can see perfectly.”

  Yet again, there was another revelation of the supernatural; Seb could see everything perfectly, including me, and that made me feel self-conscious. Reluctantly, I placed my hand in his and thought of how Jack would seize up at the thought of me being so close to his brother.

  When we reached the library doors, they were locked. Something strange was going on.

  “Seb, why don’t you just break down the door?”

  “Unlike Jack, I’m not going to do that. Don’t worry; you’re safe with me. Let’s find your cell and call Jack.”

  His suggestion was much more sensible than mine. Embarrassment flooded through me again.

  “Wait! Look at that,” Seb said.

  I huffed. “You may have the use of your eyes, but don’t forget that I’m virtually blind at the moment. What am I supposed to be looking at?”

  Seb laughed again. “Sorry! It’s easy to forget that I’m different. There’s a sign at the librarian’s desk; it says that the entire building will be closed early because they’re rewiring tomorrow. That explains the blackout. But don’t worry; Jack will get us out.”

  Seb led me to my bag. I needed to call Jack and hoped that he could get us out of here without causing too much damage. I rummaged through my bag, feeling around for my cell, but it wasn’t in its usual pocket. I looked up at Seb.

  “I can’t find it.”

  “Let me look. After all, I’m the one with night vision.”

  I refused to allow Seb to look through my bag and continued rifling through it myself, but to no avail. Then I stopped, remembering that I’d left my cell in the glove compartment in my car. I confessed my stupidity, but quickly turned the attention on him.

  “Where’s your cell?” I asked him.

  “I don’t have one.”

  “I can’t believe you don’t have a cell. I’m taking you shopping as soon as we’re out of here.”

  Seb laughed. “I don’t need one, but if I had one, I wouldn’t leave it in my car,” he said sarcastically.

  “Well, what do we do now?” I asked, panicking. I hadn’t told anyone that I was coming to library, and Jack would be wondering where I was.

  “We’ll have to wait until someone comes. Let’s find somewhere to sit. We might as well get comfy; we could be here all night.”

  Seb took my hand again and I could see the outline of his face close to mine. He continued to look at me and then tripped. I clung to him and when we fell, I landed on top of him. We were so close that I could feel his breath on my face. I rolled onto the floor, and it almost felt as if Seb had disappeared.

  “Seb, where are you?” I asked. Then I heard him clear his thr
oat.

  “I’m right here next to you. Is that okay?” he whispered in my ear.

  “Yes. Why wouldn’t it be okay?”

  “If you could see your face, you’d know why I asked.”

  “Sorry, it’s just Jack,” I said.

  “What about Jack? It’s not like we planned this. I thought we were friends?”

  As I lay next to Seb, I realized that I was attracted to him. I thought back to how I’d been wrapped in Jack’s arms on the boat and I had felt more distant from him than ever. I had to get away and stood up quickly. Forgetting that I couldn’t see, I hit my head on the edge of a table.

  “Kate, are you okay? Your head is bleeding,” Seb told me. He put his hand on my shoulder and I grabbed it, feeling dizzy. As he moved in closer, I couldn’t help feeling comfortable in his arms.

  Seb leaned into my neck and whispered, “Kate, are you okay? Speak to me.” His breath skimmed across my skin.

  “I’m fine. I just feel a little dizzy.”

  Seb picked me up and carried me over to a corner of the library. He placed me in a beanbag chair and passed me a napkin. I held it against my head, loving the feel of Seb’s breath on my face. It would’ve been just as easy to push him away as to pull him closer, but I remained still. Our breathing was intense.

  “Kate, I have to ask you something.” There was awkwardness in his voice. “What’s going on between us? You seem uncomfortable when you’re around me. Have I done something to upset you, to offend you?”

  I knew that I had to either confess my feelings for him or lie, and I was the worst liar.

  “I think you already know what’s going on,” I said.

  “I need to hear you say it,” he whispered in my ear.

  In that moment, it felt like time had frozen. The silence went on for such a long time that I thought the next day would arrive soon. When I stood up, I felt Seb stand up in front of me.

  “Do you have feelings for me?” he asked.

  It would be a great relief to tell him, but I didn’t want to burden him any further. If I did, he’d have to lie to Jack, too. But I had to go with the first thing that came to my mind.