Seer

by Ashley Maker

  The only thing I can do is grip his arms with both hands, keeping the most pathetic of barriers between his muscles and my windpipe. An impulse to claw at his grip is almost overpowering, and I have to remind myself this is Kade. He won’t actually hurt me, although there’s no doubt in my mind now that he could.

  He lets go as fast as he grabbed me, and I dizzy-step back into a sparring stance. “Come on, Clare. I know you’ve got more than that.”

  I mentally shake myself and refocus as Kade shifts closer. But, man is he fast. Barely able to avoid his attacks, there’s no way I can make one of my own. And he’s going easy on me, I can tell.

  When I strike at his chest, he swats away the clumsy attempt. “Keep your eyes on mine and don’t give yourself away.”

  Spinning slightly to keep him in front of me, I dodge his next strike and immediately throw out a side kick, making sure to keep my eyes level with his.

  He twists out of the way, catches my ankle in the crook of his left arm, and applies pressure to my knee with his right hand, locking the position so I can’t pull away. Voice tight, he says, “You don’t ever want to be in this position in a real fight. You have no center of balance. I could take you down in a second, just like Blaydell did.”

  Is that what he thinks? That Tarry took me to the ground on purpose?

  The fact he’s making assumptions about what happened instead of just asking me sends a surge of angry heat from the roots of my hair all the way down to my toes.

  “For the record, I took him down.” My eyes narrow. “And also, since you’re talking about ‘real fights’—since when would an opponent take a time out for an explan—”

  He hooks an ankle around the leg I’m standing on and yanks.

  A split second of falling ends with my back against the mat. Kade’s hand is clasped around my own, the only reason I didn’t hit hard enough to knock the air out of me.

  Getting back on my feet, I pull out of his grip and glare. It’s not like I did anything wrong. Nothing happened with Tarry. I can see how Kade could get the wrong idea, but it’s not like he walked in on us making out or worse. Besides, it’s not like he and I are together, so where does he get off acting like this?

  His eyes don’t leave mine. “Is that what you wanted?”

  “Am I even supposed to know what that means?” I snap, my shoulders so tight they hurt. “Why are you—”

  A crack followed by a pained cry cuts me off.

  I glance over my shoulder and oh no, this can’t be good.

  Tarry and Aaron are facing each other on the mats, but Aaron’s clutching at his chest—or is it his shoulder?—face scrunched with pain. He starts to step back, but Tarry plows into him and they both go down.

  Aaron—big, crazy strong Aaron—only blocks once before Tarry knocks his arm aside and starts pummeling his face.

  And doesn’t stop.

  Then a bunch of things seem to happen at once. Kade curses and takes off toward the fighting pair. Mara jumps in and pulls on Tarry’s arm, yanking him back. Someone screams at Tarry to stop. Students swarm in front of me, and I can’t see what’s going on anymore.

  My feet finally start moving. Heart in my throat, I push through the students, squeezing into a spot at the front in time to see Mara dragging Aaron off the mats. His body is limp and his face is a bloody mess. My stomach practically turns over when I realize he’s not conscious. Mara’s voice is way too calm when she says, “Class dismissed. Everyone head to your next class.”

  Nobody moves. We’re all too dazed.

  She readjusts her hold on Aaron and looks at Kade, who has Tarry in a complicated-looking chokehold on the ground. “We need to get him to the infirmary now.”

  Whatever was going on with Tarry must be over, because Kade releases him, but not without giving a little push that grinds his face into the mats. “Keep yourself under control or I’ll do it for you.”

  Tarry narrows his eyes at Kade before sitting back up, but he doesn’t say anything. He looks stunned, eyes sort of glazed over, as Aaron is lifted and carried out the door by Mara and Kade. The second they’re gone, Piper scrambles across the mats to Tarry, jabbing a finger into his chest.

  “Dude, what is wrong with you?” Her voice is so tight it’s verging on tearful. “You’re supposed to stop fighting if you phase. You could have killed him, you jerk!”

  When she jabs at his chest again, he finally reacts, grabbing her hand. “I didn’t mean to. You know how he pushes. One second everything was fine, and then—”

  She yanks her hand away. “I don’t care. Everyone knows he hasn’t phased yet. You’re supposed to take it easy on him.”

  Take it easy on Aaron?

  “I know. I’m sorry, okay?” Tarry runs a hand down his face. He leaves it across his mouth, a heavy sigh escaping through his fingers.

  He looks up—right at me—then focuses on Piper again. There’s a shift toward desperation in his voice. “I need to get out of here. Get some air.”

  She sighs. “Okay, but I’m still royally ticked at you, Tare.” Neither of them look back on their way to the door. “You can get some air while we walk to the infirmary to see how Aaron’s doing. If I get in trouble for cutting my next class, you’re going to tell your dad I was helping you, got it?”

  Tarry’s mumbled consent can barely be heard before they slip into the hallway.

  Why did he look away like that? Why didn’t they ask me to go with them? A part of me feels like I’ve just been smacked, and another part of me—the cowardly side—is practically shaking with relief. I keep replaying Tarry’s fist hitting Aaron’s face, and the sound that it made, and…was it just because he phased? What if he had phased during our sparring?

  Is that the reason Kade was so angry? Because Tarry really could have hurt me?

  A shiver ripples down my spine.

  No. Tarry would never hurt me like that. We’re friends.

  But he’s friends with Aaron, too, and he beat him up without even hesitating to think about it.

  My head is such a flurry of thoughts and emotions that I’m still standing there a few minutes later, staring at the exact spot where Tarry took Aaron down and trying to figure out what I’m supposed to think about all of this, when Laila comes rushing into the room.

  “Where is he? Is he okay?” She must be talking to me, since everyone else has already left the gym.

  “Who? Aaron?”

  Laila head whips side-to-side, eyes darting this way and that. “Tarry. I heard he was fighting and someone got hurt.”

  “Yeah, Aaron did. I think Tarry’s fine, although he looked pretty shaken. He left with Piper.”

  “Wait” —a look of disbelief crosses her face— “are you saying Tarry hurt Aaron, and not the other way around?” I nod and she frowns. “What’d he do? Phase?”

  “I didn’t see the fight until the end, but that’s what Piper said.”

  A derisive snort comes out of Laila’s mouth, and she rolls her eyes. “You’ve got to be kidding me. And my parents say I’m the one with self-control issues.” She looks at me like I’m supposed to say something.

  Hah. Not touching that one.

  The bell rings, signaling what should have been the end of Offensive Fighting, and Laila sighs. “Might as well walk back together.” She gives a little smirk. “I hope you studied last night, because I’m thinking today’s a perfect day for a pop quiz.”

  Her lips smack on the word ‘pop’ and I groan as we exit the gym. Why would anyone give her this much power over another living being? “You know, it’s not really a pop quiz if you tell me about it beforehand.”

  Laila waves a hand dismissively. “Details, details.”

  She proceeds to mess with me for most of the walk, throwing out possible quiz questions over concepts I know we haven’t covered yet. I’m rolling my eyes and trying not to flip out over the unfamiliar terms when the girl’s dorm comes into view.

  Kade stands by the front door, arms crossed and eyes searc
hing. The second his gaze finds mine, he uncrosses his arms and strides down the path to meet us.

  “What are you doing here?” Laila asks with narrowed eyes.

  Kade ignores her and stops right in front of me. “I need to talk to you.”

  “Yeah, well you’re going to have to wait until your mentorship time with her,” Laila says, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the door. “She has a pop quiz.”

  He steps around Laila, blocking the path. “You weren’t there today. I’m asking for ten minutes. Can you back off for once?”

  Her gaze flickers between the two of us, a pinched expression on her face. “This better be important,” she growls before stomping to the house and slamming the door.

  I scrunch my toes in my boots and flex my fingers. He’s barely two feet away, and yet it feels much farther. The ease I’ve grown accustomed to with him is gone. Awkward tension multiplies between us until I can no longer stand it and blurt out, “Is Aaron okay? How bad was he hurt?”

  Eyes darkening, Kade presses his lips together and slowly shakes his head. “I don’t think he’ll be coming back until next fall.”

  I gasp. “What’s wrong with him?”

  “I didn’t stick around the infirmary, so I don’t know the extent of his injuries, but I’d guess some fractures to his nose and cheek bone, and probably some broken ribs.”

  My hand hovers near my mouth as I stare at him. “Is that why you were so upset I sparred with Tarry? ‘Cause that could have been me?”

  “That’s one reason.” His pulse is visible in his neck. “But it’s not why I needed to talk to you.”

  “Okay?” My mouth is so dry I have trouble getting the word out.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “You’re sorry?”

  He nods and rubs a hand across the back of his neck. “For how I treated you in the gym. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions without asking you what happened.”

  “Oh.” I swallow hard. Wishing for something to do with my hands, I end up touching the hollow of my throat before placing them awkwardly at my sides. The words suddenly rush out, like I can’t say them fast enough. “Well, nothing happened between Tarry and me. What you walked in on, it was just an accident. We really were just sparring. I started to fall and accidentally took him down with me. Things got a little weird after that, but I wasn’t about to…” I lick my lips and can’t say it. “I just wasn’t, okay?”

  His eyes focus somewhere over my shoulder, and he’s standing so still I can’t even be sure he’s breathing. “Did you want to?”

  “No. If I’d wanted him to kiss me, I wouldn’t have told him not to.”

  Our eyes meet, the frown lines relaxing around his. He leans closer, voice lowering to a gravelly murmur. “Are we still on for Sunday?”

  I nod, my thoughts too fuzzy for words.

  The unhurried way his lips curve up makes me feel like I’d just finished running for miles, wobbly knees and all. He reaches out like he wants to touch me, but his hand stills above mine. His brow furrows as he looks down at my scratched arms. “How do they feel?”

  I flip one arm up and run fingers over the inside of my wrist. “A little tender, but a lot better than I thought they would.”

  “Good. Everything else okay?” He says it carefully, obviously not asking about my physical well-being. The words seem to have a hold on him, as if he desperately needs to know the answer.

  Is everything okay?

  What a loaded question. Where am I supposed to start? After everything that’s happened, even I can’t deny I’m a Seer, and look what it’s led to. My arms are messed up. People think I’m crazy. Tarry…I don’t know what’s going on with Tarry.

  But Kade is still here.

  He’s standing right in front of me, and he cared enough to come find me, and all I want is to touch him and smooth the frown lines above his eyes. When I can’t bring myself to do it, I flash him a hesitant smile and say, “I think it will be.”

  * * *

  Tarry doesn’t come back for the rest of the week. Apparently, even the headmaster’s son can get suspended for beating someone up. Laila oh-so-gleefully informed me he got grounded for much longer than the suspension itself and was also put under house arrest with their mom watching over him. And Kade was right about Aaron; he’s not coming back, and he does have fractured bones. The one under his eye was shattered so badly the infirmary doctors weren’t equipped to repair it, so Aaron was discharged early and sent to a cosmetic surgeon out of state. Piper has been pouting ever since.

  “What if something goes wrong?” She sits up straighter on my bed, her face twisting in horror. “What if he comes back disfigured?”

  “He’ll be fine,” I tell her for the millionth time.

  “But what if he’s not?”

  I toss my pillow at her, and she barely catches it. “You really like him, don’t you?”

  “Ungghhh,” Laila says from her side of the room, where she’s sprawled out on her bed with a book. Something about World War II. “Of course she likes him. Everybody knows Martinez has got it bad for Swift.”

  Piper blushes and buries her face in the pillow. She mumbles something I can’t quite make out but sounds suspiciously like “Shut up.”

  I laugh and push Piper’s shoulder. The plus side of the guys being gone is that I’ve finally gotten to know her better. Before this week, I had no idea her family is from New Mexico, or that she has an older brother who never phased, or that she’s one-quarter Latina but doesn’t speak any more Spanish than I do.

  Laila turns the book page-down on her lap. “Why are you two even here right now? It’s Saturday night. Go mingle in the commons. You only have like two weeks before most of the other students go home for the summer.”

  Exactly. Two weeks until the worst of the she-devils are no longer spreading rumors about my background, or my arms, or Tarry and Aaron.

  Piper’s brown eyes peek over the pillow. She and I share a look.

  “Nah,” I say. “We’d rather bask in the glow of your presence, O Wise Sensei.”

  Laila raises an eyebrow. “Uh huh. What’s really going on?”

  “What?” Piper grins. “You knew I liked Aaron, but you haven’t heard the cackling?”

  I clamp my lips together but end up bursting out laughing anyway. Piper giggles, and before long we’re both clutching at our sides and wiping tears from our eyes while Laila stares at us like we’ve gone off the deep end.

  “Okay, weirdos. You win.” Laila plops the book down on the nightstand. “I’m going to go raid the snack cabinet.” She shakes her head at us again and grumbles, “No wonder you’re friends with Tarry. You nerds are perfect for each other.”

  Piper tosses the pillow at her back but misses.

  “What?” Laila snaps, glaring from the opened bedroom door.

  “Bring back chocolate?” Piper asks with a grin.

  “The two of you will be lucky if I come back at all. I might go sleep at the big house and avoid all of” —she waves a hand at us— “this nonsense.”

  I put a dramatic hand over my chest but can’t keep the smile off my face. “That hurts. You’ve really offended me.”

  “Sneak Tarry your phone!” Piper squeals. “Tell him to text us!”

  Laila rolls her eyes and leaves without answering. The automatic lock whirrs after the door shuts.

  Thirty minutes later, Piper’s phone buzzes. She pulls it out and bounces before showing me the screen. I don’t recognize the number, but of course I don’t know anyone’s number since they won’t let me have my own cell phone. Stupid Mathias and his even stupider trust issues.

  What voodoo have you worked on my sister, and why is she being nice to me?

  We both laugh at Tarry’s text, and Piper swipes at the screen. We scared her off by talking about boys.

  What about me? How irresistible I am?

  I snort and grab the phone. Piper laughs as I slowly peck out a response with my thumbs: Arrogance is not a v
irtue, Tarry.

  No, but confidence is ;) Hi, Clare.

  Hi.

  See, I am irresistible to you. You miss me so much you convinced Laila to sneak contraband into this dungeon.

  I snort. A cell phone hardly counts as contraband.

  In this house it does.

  When will you be back?

  Monday, but I’m grounded until school’s out.

  Piper holds a hand out for the phone. Spill what you know, Tare. How’s Aaron?

  He won’t talk to me. Surgery Monday.

  The expression on her face falls. Her thumbs have just started moving over the touchscreen when another text comes in.

  Okay, nerds. You got to talk to him. Tomorrow the room is mine.

  Done. Thank you!!! Piper pockets the phone.

  I stare at her openmouthed. “Hey, you just agreed for me to get kicked out of my room all day tomorrow.”

  She shrugs and leans back against the wall. “You’re always gone for part of Sunday anyway.” Her eyes suddenly take on a gleam. “It drives Tarry crazy.”

  “I know,” I say, nearly cringing. “He’s talked to me about it.”

  “You say that like it’s a bad thing.” She tilts her head. “Don’t you like him? The way you guys flirt, I thought…”

  “But he’s Tarry.” I hold my hands up helplessly. “He flirts with everybody.”

  “Not like he does with you.”

  I groan and both hands fall to my lap. She’s right, but I don’t want to admit it.

  Piper shakes her head. “Whoa, you really don’t like him like that, do you?”

  With a sigh, I stare at Laila’s side of the room. “He’s cute and funny and a good friend, but I don’t want the same thing he does right now.”

  “Dude, this is gonna crush him.” The look in her eyes is somehow sad and angry at the same time. “You can’t keep flirting with him like that if that’s how you feel.”