“I have no idea how he got the greyskins to attack Salem,” I say. “But it had to be planned. The colony gates exploded after the Screven guards were killed. They were rigged to detonate so the herd could get through. That’s how we know it was planned.”
“But why would he want to frame you for these crimes?” Austin asks.
“Because we wouldn’t collaborate with him,” Aaron answers. “He wanted us to recruit more Starborns to feed his power-hungry regime. He’s looking to take over the world, village-by-village. With the power of the Starborns, he could do it too.”
“Yeah, about that,” Bill says in his usual crass tone, “what are you anyway? Sorry, Mora, but you didn’t have these abilities when you left Springhill. Did you?”
“No.”
“Then how is it you’re able to throw me to the ground without even touching me?”
“The vehicle I took ran out of gas. I was attacked by greyskins and somehow I was just able to move things with my mind. It saved my life.”
“That’s how it works,” Evelyn says. “Starborns usually don’t discover their supernatural gifts until they are in need of them.”
“And what is it you can do?” Bill asks.
“I’m not here to answer to you,” she says coldly. “One of your own is here telling you the truth. You can accept it or not. Either way, you’ve got a madman coming after you.”
“Who? Jeremiah?” Austin asks.
Evelyn nods. “He’ll be back. Your job is to raise your defenses. He’s unwittingly left you the materials for a wall around your village. I suggest you start building.”
The room is silent for a long, awkward moment. I’m glad Evelyn spoke up. There’s no reason or way to explain my abilities to the elders. There is nothing I can do to make them understand.
Looking to my right, my eyes catch Connor’s. A slight grin forms at the corner of his mouth and he gives me a nod. I try to smile back, but I’m not sure that it shows. I’m so thankful for him. He has saved my life more than once. More than twice. And last night he had saved me from killing the commander in front of Jake. It seems that every step along the way, Connor is looking out for me somehow. What’s crazy is that he has no special abilities like the rest of us Starborns. He’s not a Starborn at all. He is normal like all of us used to be. Like the elders that sit in front of us. Like all the people in the village of Springhill. Butpris Starborn to me, he’s not normal at all. There’s something about him that I just can’t get out of my head.
Then there’s his brother, Aaron. He has so much to show me. Because we are both Starborns, Aaron and I share a connection unlike any other. More than once, I have allowed my attraction for him to take over. I’ve kissed him; I’ve let down my guard and shown him that I wanted him. Maybe even needed him. But Connor saw it. And it hurts to know that I may have hurt him.
The thought of losing either of them right now seems unbearable. We’ve all been through so much together already. That’s why I can’t think of either of them. I’ve got to try and focus my attention on here and now. Springhill is in trouble because of me. Now I’ve got to fix it. Jeremiah will be coming.
Austin breaks the silence by clearing his throat. “I don’t know if you’ve heard any of the broadcasts over the radio lately, but ever since we got news of you being fugitives, we’ve started recording some of what Jeremiah has been announcing.”
He nods at Linda who pulls out a device and presses play. The sound of the broadcast is heavy with static and fades in and out, but the voice is clear enough. Jeremiah speaks with a vengeful tone.
“…mayhem through the streets. There is no telling how many may have survived, but reports have come that most are dead in Salem.”
“Lies,” I say through clenched teeth.
“That’s why I’ve made a call to any of you that may possess these same powers as the Starborns. If you are willing to fight, you must fight with me to take down these lawbreakers that threaten our peace. Our enemies are the greyskins. Not each other.”
“Sly dog,” Aaron says. Austin stops the recording. “He’s trying to use Salem as a way to recruit Starborns for his cause.”
“I beg your pardon?” Austin says.
“Yeah,” Aaron continues. “Mora and I refused to be his puppets, so he constructed a way to try and recruit them anyway.”
“The people of Salem survived?” Linda asks.
“Most of them,” Aaron says. “Enough to start shooting at us whenever they got word that it was our fault. I seriously didn’t think they would be swayed so easily.”
“Hold on, there’s more,” Austin says, pressing play again.
“I have my own agents. They are men with great power. Starborns. My hunters. They will hunt down these rebels, but I need more of you. I know you exist. I know you are out there. Only when we are united can we keep order in the colonies and the rest of the world.”
Austin stops the recording and the room is silent again.
“Hunters,” Evelyn whispers to herself.
“Doesn’t sound like he’s messing around,” Bill says.
“No,” I say. “No, it doesn’t.”
“Could be a bluff,” Danny says. “A way to try and scare us.”
I nod at this. It’s possible. I’ve never really thought about fighting against other Starborns. If what Jeremiah is saying is true, then he is a powerful enemy indeed. Gone will be the days of just fighting off greyskins and Screven guards. We will be fighting people with potentially more dangerous powers than our own.
“We elders believe what you have to say,” Austin says. “But we also feel that you can’t be here. You are a danger to us.”
I can feel the blood rushing to my ears, knowing he’s about to ask us to leave.
“We just saved your lives out there last night,” I say, feeling hot.
“That or stirred up a hornets’ nest,” Bill comes back. “We’ve made our decisiadest on. You can’t stay here. Jeremiah is hunting you and he probably knows you’re here. We can’t take the risk of harboring fugitives.”
“But I came here to protect my family,” I say.
“You shouldn’t have left in the first place, Mora,” Austin replies. “All of you can spend the night tonight and get some much needed rest, but you must be out by sunrise. We will provide you with the fuel you need.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Danny says, nearly erupting.
“Idiots,” Heather spits.
I can’t help but remain completely silent, betrayed by my own people. How could they decide this? We are the only protection they have. If we leave, Jeremiah will just take them over again. They will have no freedom to live. I came here to keep them safe!
“I’m sorry,” Austin says. “That’s how it must be.”
Then a voice sounds from the other side of the table, one I’m not expecting at all.
Connor.
“You’re not going to kick us out,” he says. All eyes fall on him. He sits confidently slouched, his brown hair pushed to the side. Several days of stubble darken his jaw.
“Excuse me?” Austin says.
Connor shakes his head confidently. “You would be fools to remove us.”
“I don’t see how you figure,” Bill says. He has an ugly scowl on his face.
“I figure because Jeremiah cares nothing about you. He cares nothing about keeping people safe. All he cares about is power. Mora is still connected to this place. It’s the only thing she talks about. It’s her home. These are the people she loves. You don’t think Jeremiah will try to exploit that?”
The elders are silent as the rest of us stare at them waiting for a reply. Evelyn finally breaks the silence.
“We can help you build your wall. We can protect you from greyskins. We can stop Jeremiah from harming you. You have more protection sitting in this room than anything Jeremiah could possibly give you.”
Austin looks at the other elders. None of them speak, knowing what we say is the truth.
&
nbsp; “Then what happens next?” Austin finally says.
“We build the wall,” Evelyn says. “That will get rid of any immediate threat you may face with the greyskins. Jeremiah knows how to send them our way, so this wall will be the first order of business.”
I barely hear what she’s saying. Others start talking too, but my thoughts are focused on the notion of other Starborns. Evil ones who would kill or capture me and the others because we are a threat to Jeremiah. But there are others who aren’t against us. Christopher, the healer I met only minutes before our hasty escape from Salem. What an asset he would be around here. Especially when the fighting begins. But he is in hiding with no desire to be found out — except for the fact that he showed himself to me. There has to be something that makes him want to be known.
“What do you think about that, Mora?”
I look up at Aaron who is staring at me, waiting for a reply to his question.
“I’m sorry, what did you say?” I ask feeling stupid.
“About setting up a base here,” he says. “It can be a great place to figure out what our next move will be. Especially if we can get that old satellite receiver I had been trying to find just over a week ago.”
“Satellite?” Bill asks.
Aaron nods. “For surveillance. There’s an old military compound near Garden’s Peak that I’m sure has a satellite receiver that I can get working with the proper equipm prn nent. Most of the equipment is back at Salem, but there shouldn’t be too much trouble getting that either. We still have Heinrich on the inside. He will help us.”
“You mean the satellite you were trying to get when we first met?” I ask.
“Yes,” he answers. His face turns red for a moment, perhaps out of embarrassment. He had been unable to get to the satellite because of an overwhelming greyskin herd. Connor and I were there to bail him out, which I’m sure was a blow to his pride. But Aaron’s ability is limited to the amount of electricity around him, and there was none.
“With the satellite,” he continues, “we’ll be able to see herds coming from miles away. We would be able to take care of any threat before it even got here.”
The elders all raise their eyebrows to this. I’m sure they are blown away by the fact that only seconds ago they were banishing us from the village and now they are collaborating on how to keep us around for good.
“Problem is,” Aaron says, “the compound is completely overrun with greyskins and not easy to get to. I’m not sure even all of us could make it through without detection.”
Bill holds up a finger. “You get us that satellite hookup, and you all can stay here as long as you like.”
“That’s a bit of a turnaround, don’t you think?” Linda says, looking from Bill to Austin.
Bill points at Aaron. “That’s the kind of thing we need if we’re going to survive.”
“You were the first to say they shouldn’t be here,” Linda snaps.
“Enough,” Austin says. “Obviously there’s a lot to consider here.” He nods at Evelyn. “She’s right in that we need to start on the wall. And if what Connor and Aaron say is true, then honestly, I don’t see how we could turn them down.”
“Then you are declaring yourself an enemy of Jeremiah,” Linda says.
“Jeremiah is already your enemy,” Evelyn answers. “He just hasn’t told you yet.”
“It is settled then,” Austin says. “The village will begin work on the wall immediately. All of you need to figure out what you’ve got to do next to get us that satellite hookup.” He takes a deep breath. “As far as these hunters that Jeremiah has set on you…just be careful.”
Outside the Tower, the sun sends its hot rays down on our heads. The elders have decided to stay back at the request of Linda, most likely to talk about their lack of commitment to the decision to banish us. She’s only ever cared about what she thinks is best.
As we walk out following Evelyn, she turns on us and we stop abruptly.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” she says. “The plan should be simple. The execution, however, is the hard part.” She looks at Aaron. “ I think you should go back to Salem and get Heinrich on board. Besides, you know what equipment is needed to get the satellite receiver up and running.”
“Yeah, I’ll need Heinrich’s help with it,” he says.
She looks at Danny and Heather. “The two of you need to go to Garden’s Peak and get the receiver.”
“We have no idea what we are even looking for,” Heather says.
“I know all about it,” Connor says.
The others give Connor a surprised look.
“Yeah,” he says. “I should have known you weren’t going for a tractor part near Garden’s Peak.” He looks at the others, then me. “Aaron and I had been there before. Garden’s Peak has always been a pit of greyskins. It’s an old base. But there are weapons, supplies, anything you could need. Most importantly it’s rumoreditbef there is a mobile satellite receiver there that can still function just about anywhere with the right equipment.”
“How come no one has ever taken shelter there?” I ask. “Couldn’t you just kill the greyskins?”
“There are so many,” Connor says. “No one goes in there. Except us.”
“You mean us,” Danny says, gesturing to the Starborns. “Not you.”
“I imagine Aaron needs to go to Salem,” Connor answers. “I can get you to Garden’s Peak. I can even tell you where the satellite receiver is.”
“I would hesitate to let you go in there,” Evelyn says.
“Well, Evelyn, I don’t answer to you,” he snaps. “If you want your satellite to work, you need me to go.”
My heart beats faster at the thought of Connor going there. I don’t want him to. He isn’t like us. He doesn’t have the power to stop an entire herd of greyskins like we can. But I can’t help but think about how he really is in a fight. I’ve never seen him back down. I’ve never even seen him get injured. He knows how to shoot. He’s smart. He knows what he’s doing.
And if Aaron is going back to Salem, this will be my chance to find Christopher again. Surely if I’m there, I can spot him somewhere. If I have more time to talk to him, maybe I can persuade him to come to Springhill with us.
“Aaron might need me at Salem,” I blurt out.
All heads jerk toward me at the announcement. I can’t help but notice the painful look in Connor’s eyes and a slight grin on Aaron’s face. How can I tell either of them that it has nothing to do with them? It has everything to do with Christopher. I could tell them, but I also don’t want to give up Christopher’s secret. He asked me not to tell anyone. I know how it feels to want to remain anonymous. I know the fear he holds. All I want to do is talk to him again; to try and persuade him to come to Springhill.
“I thought you would stay here,” Evelyn says. “With me. With your family.”
“I’m not going there to try and convince the people that we’re innocent,” Aaron says. “I’d be happy for you to tag along, but it will be covert.”
“My family has you, Evelyn. You just need to make sure that the wall is started while we are away.”
“And what if while you’re gone, Jeremiah shows up?” Heather asks.
The others wait for my answer, but I don’t have one. With Christopher here, if my little brother were shot, he could be healed. If Grandma was injured, he could take away her pain. These are things I can’t provide them. These are things from which only a healer can protect them from.
“We won’t be gone long, right Aaron?”
Aaron shakes his head. “Just a day or two, I guess.” He looks at Evelyn. “Jeremiah won’t attack so soon, I don’t think. He’s still strategizing. Besides, if things get bad at Salem, my gifts are limited. Having Mora there would be added protection.”
Evelyn stands silently for a moment. Connor is looking away, trying to mask his frustration. I know he doesn’t want me to go with Aaron. I know it’s because he has feelings for me, and that it seems
like I’m choosing Aaron over him somehow. But it isn’t like that. Not at all.
“Fine,” Evelyn says. “I don’t like it, but you do what you want. It’s your brother and grandmother that you’ll have to convince.”
I hear Heather say something, but I’m not sure what. My attention is focused on Connor who is now walking away from the group. I step away from the others to go after him. I make sure I’m out of earshot when I call out to him.
“What are you doing?” I ask. I rom the
“Going to make sure I’ve got a car to use,” he says, refusing to look at me.
“Connor stop.”
He doesn’t.
“Stop!” I say more loudly. “Listen to me.”
He stops, but doesn’t turn to look at me.
“I have my reasons for going with Aaron.”
“I’m sure you do.”
“It’s not like that,” I say.
He smiles at this in frustration and looks me in the eyes. “You and I both know it is like that. Remember? I saw you two in the woods. I swear if the two of you had been kissing any longer, you would have both been greyskin meat.”
“That’s not…” What? What am I trying to say? Am I about to tell him that it’s not what it looked like? How would that sound? Of course it was what it looked like. How can I tell him that I don’t want him to count me out? To abandon any thought of me? Truth be told, I want both of them in my life. I’ve just happened to be in a couple of situations where it was easy to kiss Aaron. My attraction to Connor is different. Maybe even deeper. But I can’t just explain this to him.
“I need to finish something in Salem,” I say. “I think there is another Starborn there.”
The Starborn Saga (Books 1, 2, & 3) Page 25
