Awaking (The Naturals, #1)

by Freeman, Madeline

  Lia took a sip of her drink. “Oh, this is really good.” Then she glanced up at Morgan. “How much do I owe you?”

  Morgan just shook her head. “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Thanks,” Lia said.

  Ris raised an eyebrow at Morgan, who raised an eyebrow back.

  Lia turned her attention back to Ris. “I didn’t realize you and Corbin were a couple.”

  Color rose to Ris’s cheeks. “Oh—we’re not. Not officially, or anything. We’ve just been hanging out lately.”

  Lia nodded appreciatively before turning her attention toward Morgan. “And you? Any special guy in your life, Morgan?”

  “What? No.”

  Lia looked like she was going to ask another question, but Dreamers Often Lie took that moment to thank the crowd gathered in the Daily Grind for coming out to see them. Lia turned her attention to the stage.

  The music was good and loud enough to hinder conversation. Morgan had to admit they did a decent job with their covers. The crowd seemed to agree and a few songs in, a group of people got up and started dancing near the entrance. Ris got up to dance, too, and even managed to persuade Lia to join her. Under the guise of saving their seats, Morgan stayed at the table.

  She allowed her gaze to drift between Corbin on stage and Ris and Lia dancing. As another song ended, a thought suddenly surfaced as if from a great depth: Kellen said he would be here.

  Immediately, Morgan began scanning the room for him, but it was impossible to see through the bodies of so many people.

  Then she realized something: She had something better than eyes for seeking people out. Hadn’t Kellen said she should never be surprised by a person’s presence? That she should always know who was around her?

  Knowing she’d look silly closing her eyes in this environment, Morgan kept her eyes open as she pushed out with her mind, trying to locate Kellen’s energy. Almost immediately, she felt Lucas and Corbin. Their energies were so familiar to her, they seemed to jump out above the rest. When she pushed a little further she felt Lia and, more faintly, Ris.

  Other energies ebbed and flowed around her—elation, irritation, sadness, affection. But she pushed all the unfamiliar energies away and tried to tune herself to the one she was searching for—the one that was Kellen.

  And then, suddenly, she Felt him. He was there, in the coffee house—in the back room they’d spoken in the first time she’d been here. Tesin and Wen were with him, along with a dozen or so other people—some common, some Veneret.

  Morgan smiled, impressed with herself. Maybe getting better with her abilities wouldn’t be so difficult after all.

  Up front, Corbin was speaking into his microphone. “Hope you all enjoyed the first set. We’re gonna take a short break, so don’t go anywhere. We’ve got another set coming up.” With high-fives to the band’s other guitarist and its bass player, Corbin hopped off the makeshift stage and was immediately swarmed by at least a dozen people.

  Morgan couldn’t help smiling. Corbin the rock star.

  Turning her attention back to the glass in front of her, Morgan pulled on the straw a few times, finishing off the beverage within. She noticed Lia making her way back to the table, so she took the opportunity to go to the counter for a refill.

  After waiting in line for a few minutes, Morgan set her glass on the counter triumphantly. “Get ready to make me another free drink, Kenrick.”

  Lucas raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really. You figured it out, then?”

  “It’s a chai. Only you did something sneaky to it.”

  “Interesting guess. Can you identify said sneakiness?”

  “That wasn’t part of the deal,” Morgan said, pointing at him. “You just said to guess what it was, not to guess what craziness you did to it.”

  “Fair enough.” Lucas smiled. “Another, then?”

  “I trust you.”

  Lucas took her glass and set to work on her next drink. As Morgan watched him, she allowed her mind to wander, to encounter the different energies buzzing around the room. She wondered if it would be possible to identify each one individually—to count them all.

  When Lucas set the drink in front of her, he looked at her quizzically.

  “What?”

  “You just seem… more focused than you were earlier.”

  “Less fuzzy?”

  Lucas grinned. “Definitely less fuzzy.”

  “Kellen’s here—did you know that?”

  Lucas glanced around the room. “No. I haven’t seen him. Where is he?”

  “The back room.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “I haven’t seen him either. But I can Feel him. And Tesin and Wen. They’re all back there.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Someone’s getting better at this.”

  Morgan nodded. “Got that right.” She glanced over her shoulder and noticed another person in line behind her. “I should let you get back to work.”

  “Probably,” Lucas agreed.

  When Morgan turned and headed back to her table, she noticed Lia wasn’t the only one occupying it. In her absence, Ris and Corbin had joined her. She smiled as she approached. “Hey, Corbin—good job.”

  Corbin looked up as Morgan sat down, appearing slightly surprised by the compliment. “Thanks, Morgan. It means a lot, coming from you.”

  Morgan inclined her head and took a sip of her drink. It was even better than the last one.

  “What’d Lucas make for you?” Corbin asked.

  “No clue.” She held the glass out to him. “Wanna try?”

  Corbin took the glass from her and took a few pulls out of the straw. As he did so, Morgan became aware of the surprise and unease felt by both Lia and Ris. Neither of them were sure how to react to this development. As Corbin handed the glass back to her, Morgan raised her eyebrow at him, wondering if he’d sensed what she had. Corbin’s confused gaze told her he hadn’t.

  “That’s good,” Corbin said. “Wow—I could really use some water. I think I’ll go—”

  “Oh, no, wait—I’ll get you some,” said Lia, springing to her feet.

  Ris eyed her warily but didn’t stop her. Her eyes watched Lia as she sauntered to the lineup at the counter. She seemed to deliberate for a moment before saying, “I’ll be right, back, too.” With an apologetic smile toward Corbin, she got up and wove her way toward the bathroom.

  Morgan took a few sips from her glass before speaking. “Kellen’s here, you know.”

  Like Lucas had, Corbin immediately began scanning the room. “Where?”

  “In the back.” She leaned forward, smiling. “I can Feel him.”

  Corbin nodded appreciatively. “Well done. Should we go say hi?”

  She shrugged. “If you wanna.”

  “Why not, right? I’ve got a few minutes.” He stood.

  Morgan stood too and cast a glance at their table. “You think it’ll be okay, us leaving the table empty? I think Lia’d be pretty mad if someone else claimed it.”

  “Leave your drink. And Lia’s jacket’s on that chair—it looks like someone’s coming back. And if anyone takes the table, we’ll just take it back.”

  Morgan laughed. “You’re right. If it comes down to it, Lia could always Push them.” Leaving her drink on the table, she followed Corbin through the crowd toward the back hallway. As they passed the counter, Morgan noticed Lia watching them, suspicion evident in the arch of her eyebrows. Morgan just grinned and kept walking.

  As she and Corbin passed through the hallway and into the back room, Morgan felt the atmosphere around them changing. Things felt more loose and casual, like they were in a friend’s basement, not a coffee house. Every seat was occupied and the air buzzed with conversation. As Morgan and Corbin pushed further into the room, some of the conversations halted as people watched them.

  Only the Veneret are paying attention to us, Morgan realized.

  Kellen, Tesin, and Wen stood from their locations—Kellen and Tesin each on a couch and Wen at a table—and crossed to Morgan a
nd Corbin.

  “Music’s sounding good,” Tesin said to Corbin by way of salutation.

  “Thanks,” Corbin said. “You can hear it back here?”

  Tesin nodded toward the wall and Morgan noticed a speaker hanging in the corner.

  They probably have a remote to control the volume, too, Morgan thought. Or—maybe Kellen just controls the volume with his mind.

  “I agree,” Kellen said. “Excellent job, Corbin. So good, in fact, I think you deserve a reward.”

  Corbin gave an uneasy chuckle. “That’s not really—”

  Kellen shook his head. “I insist.” He turned and beckoned for Corbin to follow.

  Corbin glanced at Morgan and shrugged. The two of them walked toward the couch—seemingly Kellen’s destination. Kellen motioned for them to sit and they did so, each perching on the edge of the cushion.

  Morgan noticed that the eyes of every person in the room were turned to them. Some were still speaking in low tones, but the majority of the noise in the room now came from the main room of the coffee house. Anticipation built, both in Morgan’s own stomach and in the emotion of the room. Morgan could sense it, and it was almost too much to bear.

  Kellen nodded at a girl who had been sitting at Wen’s table. Petite and brunette, she hopped down from the high stool and crossed to the couch. Kellen flicked his eyes to the empty seat beside Corbin and the girl sat.

  Corbin looked up at Kellen unsurely. Morgan could sense his discomfort. “Kellen, I—”

  Kellen cut him off with a shake of his head. “Don’t worry. Just… look at her.”

  Corbin looked at the girl. Morgan did, too, wondering what it was Kellen wanted Corbin to see. The girl was pretty, sure, but in a generic sort of way. She wore a little too much eye makeup and her top was, in Morgan’s opinion, a bit too tight.

  Then another impression came to Morgan. This girl wasn’t Veneret. She was common. At that moment, she had a vague impression of what was about to happen, but she wasn’t fast enough to prevent it.

  Kellen placed his hand on Corbin’s shoulder, and Morgan could feel immediately what Corbin was feeling. The common girl’s energy lay bare before him, and then her energy flowed into him, strengthening him. Morgan could feel the power radiating from him.

  And she knew she had to stop it.

  Morgan stood and pushed Kellen squarely in the chest, breaking his connection with Corbin. Corbin’s connection with the girl was also severed, and he looked up, slightly bemused, and searched for Morgan’s eyes.

  “That was—”

  “Completely wrong!” Morgan exclaimed.

  Corbin stood, shaking his head slightly. “Morgan—I can’t even describe it.” His green eyes looked brighter than usual. “I didn’t even feel this after the reading you gave me. It’s like… like I can… do anything.”

  “But you just stole energy from her!” Morgan motioned to the petite brunette, but she seemed unaware of her surroundings.

  Corbin looked at the girl. “She doesn’t seem to mind.”

  “I doubt she was asked to volunteer!” Morgan looked around the room. All eyes were still on her, some confused, some incredulous, some seemingly entertained. She turned back to Corbin. “Kellen did this to Ris,” she said. “He’s taken her energy at least twice—and she has no idea!”

  “Then it didn’t bother her,” Corbin said. “She didn’t even notice. It’s okay—”

  “It’s not okay!” Again, Morgan looked around the room. Wen was the only person who looked back with any sympathy. She rounded on Kellen, who had rebounded from her shove and made his way back toward the couch. “You can’t keep doing this! You have to stop!”

  Kellen chuckled. “And you’re gonna make me, Morgan? I don’t really see that happening.”

  Tesin moved forward, placing a hand on Morgan’s shoulder. “Don’t you think you’re kinda making a big deal out of this? You saw the restaurant. There are places like that all around the city—all around the world. The Veneret have been doing this for generations.”

  Morgan shook his hand off. “I don’t care if they’ve been doing it since the dawn of time. It needs to stop. And since I’m your precious One, or whatever, doesn’t that mean you should listen to me?”

  A gentle wave of laughter coursed throughout the room, and Morgan looked around to see amused looks on the faces of all the Veneret. Even Corbin chuckled.

  Fury bubbled up in Morgan, making her skin tingle. “Fine. You won’t listen to me. But I know someone you will listen to. Orrick Williams. I’ll tell Orrick this needs to stop—and he’ll make you listen.”

  Kellen grinned at her. “Orrick, huh?” Murmurs traveled through the little room. “Orrick… Okay, then. Why don’t you go tell him right now?”

  Whatever reaction Morgan had been expecting, this was not it. “I’ll tell him,” she said cautiously. “I really will.”

  “That’s fine,” Kellen said. “In fact—I’ll drive you.”

  Morgan opened her mouth to argue, but Kellen grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the door. Instinctively, Morgan grabbed Corbin’s hand and pulled him along as well.

  The three turned some heads as they walked that way through the main part of the coffee house. They were almost to the door when Corbin pulled himself free.

  “Wait—I’ve still got another set to do.”

  Morgan glared at him. “Seriously? You think your second set is the most important thing going on right now?”

  “Morgan, I really think you’re overreacting,” Corbin began.

  “Yeah? Well, I think you’re under-reacting.” She took a step closer to him, looking into his eyes intently. “Corbin, I need you to come with me on this.”

  “Are we going or what?” Kellen asked, his hand on the front door.

  Corbin glanced up at him. “Yeah—one sec.” He headed off toward the stage where the rest of his band mates were setting up. Morgan watched as the looks on his friends’ faces turned from mutinous to blank to understanding and she realized what was happening: Corbin was Pushing them. The power he’d absorbed from the girl must have given him access to abilities he didn’t normally possess.

  Morgan scanned the room. Tesin and Wen had followed them from the back room. Lia and Ris were at the table, watching Corbin and looking confused. Lucas stood behind the counter, an expression of concern clouding his features. She looked right at him and focused all her energy on conveying an impression to him: I’ve got this under control.

  Corbin was back at her side. “Taken care of,” he said to Morgan. Then, nodding at Kellen, he said, “Let’s go.”

  They walked out of the coffee house, and Kellen led the way to his car. Before Morgan got to the passenger door, she heard the distinct clip-clop of high heels on pavement and looked back to see Lia.

  “What’s going on?” she asked, her glance skimming over Corbin, Kellen, Tesin, and Wen before returning to Morgan.

  “We’ve gotta take care of something,” Morgan said.

  “Wait—something Naturals something?”

  Morgan sighed, exasperated. “Kinda.”

  Lia crossed her arms over her chest. “Then I think I should go. I mean, I am one of you, right?”

  “Yes, but Lia, this doesn’t concern you right now, okay?” Morgan took a step toward her. “Stay with Ris. Please.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “I drove her here and she doesn’t have a ride home… and I need her to be with someone I… with someone I trust. And I’m gonna trust you, Lia.”

  Lia looked mildly shocked, but also moderately pleased. “Okay,” she said quietly. “But you’ll tell me what happens, right?”

  “You’ll know everything you need to know,” Morgan assured her.

  With a nod, Lia turned and headed back to the coffee house.

  When Morgan turned, she noticed Kellen was watching her, a look of slight annoyance on his face.

  “Touching moment over?” he asked. “Good. Get in the car.”

  Morgan and Corbin did as they were
told. As Kellen put the car in gear, Morgan looked around.

  “Tesin and Wen are following us,” Kellen said.

  “And where exactly are we going?” Morgan asked, feeling, for the first time that this might not have been the best idea.

  Kellen glanced at her as he pulled out onto the road. “To see Orrick.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Morgan was surprised when Kellen pulled up to Desideration Tower.

  “It’s after ten—you really think Orrick’s still at the office?” she asked, getting out of Kellen’s car.

  Kellen ignored her and headed toward the front door.

  Things were different here at night, Morgan noticed. When they had been here before, a valet had been all too willing to relieve Kellen of his keys; now, Kellen just left his car in the large horseshoe driveway. The lights in the lobby were on, but they were dim.

  As they entered the building, Morgan noticed two employees standing behind the front desk. One glanced up and nodded at Kellen, who didn’t pause in his walk toward the elevators.

  Kellen pushed the elevator call button and Morgan turned to Corbin. A bit of the fervor was gone from his eyes, but he still looked different somehow—slightly manic. She put a hand on his arm. “How you feeling?”

  With some effort, he focused on her. “I feel great, Morgan. You’ve gotta try it.”

  She glared at him. “You know what Kellen did, right? He sucked energy out of the poor common girl—”

  “It didn’t hurt her though, right?” He glanced at Kellen as if for assurance. “I mean, Morgan said you did this to Clare too, and Clare’s fine.”

  Morgan couldn’t think of how to respond to this, but she was spared having to by the arrival of Tesin and Wen and the opening of the elevator doors.

  The five boarded the elevator and stood in silence as it made its ascent.

  Morgan stared at Corbin. She couldn’t believe how he was handling all of this. It was as if he’d be lobotomized.

  Perhaps she should have told him about Ris before.

  Morgan felt a twinge. Why hadn’t she told him about Ris before? She felt like there was a good reason for keeping the information to herself, but she couldn’t remember what that reason could be.