The Marked Girl

by Lindsey Klingele

  “It’s too valuable to leave in the car,” Liv said. “Cedric insists on carrying it.”

  Cedric grinned at Daisy, and her glittery lashes fluttered. He tapped the edge of the bag and lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper.

  “If it’s with me, I know it’s safe.”

  Liv took one look at the expression on Daisy’s face and knew her sister couldn’t care less what was in that bag. As Cedric moved past her, Daisy ran a hand through her hair and pulled down on her already too-tight tank top. Oblivious, Cedric wandered farther into the room, his eyes raking over stainless steel appliances and Pottery Barn-perfect cabinets.

  “You can sit here,” Daisy said, pointing to a low couch and chairs grouped at the far end of the room around an enormous stone fireplace. She flopped down on a comfy-looking orange chair that faced a group of monitors set up high in the opposite wall. The monitors showed every side of the yard, and Liv realized Daisy must have been watching from the kitchen as they dropped over the hedge.

  “If you want drinks or something, you can help yourselves,” Daisy said, motioning lazily toward the giant refrigerator.

  “That’s okay.” Liv sat carefully on the couch, which was angled perpendicular to Daisy’s chair. Cedric sat down next to her, careful to tuck his garbage bag out of sight. Only Merek wandered over to the refrigerator and opened it, giving a long whistle. He reached inside.

  “All of this food is so . . . cold,” he said.

  Cedric turned to face him. “Merek.”

  Daisy shrugged. “He can take whatever he wants. It’s not like anyone will miss it.” She smoothed down her hair again. “Are you sure you don’t want anything?”

  Cedric gave her a smile and shook his head. “No, thank you. I am fine.”

  “Yes, you are,” Daisy said with a little grin.

  “Daisy,” Liv hissed, then sat back abruptly. She was surprised by how easily her tone had slipped into a sort of annoyed familiarity, the kind she usually only reserved for Shannon when she was being particularly Shannon-ish.

  Daisy’s sharp eyes shot from Cedric to Liv. “So you say you’re my sister, huh? They told me I had one, but I don’t really remember,” she said, matter-of-factly.

  Liv swallowed down her disappointment. “That makes sense. You were pretty young when . . . well, you know, with the fire.”

  Daisy’s eyes lowered, and her fingers picked absently at the orange cloth of her chair. “When my parents died,” she finally murmured.

  “Our parents,” Liv said gently.

  “So you don’t consider the Ratners to be your parents?” Shannon asked. Liv shot her a warning glare. But Daisy only shrugged.

  “They are when they’re here, I guess.” She flipped her hair then, as if she’d just made the most casual statement in the world. As if she’d spent years practicing the exact motions needed to come across as a jaded child of movie stars.

  At that moment, Merek pulled what looked like a block of tofu out of the refrigerator. “Should I even ask what this is? Honestly, how many types of food do you have in this realm?”

  “Realm?” Daisy asked, looking between them. She looked over at Liv. “Are you, like, part of some weird cult? Because Mike and Shana are already raising me as a vegan atheist . . .”

  Liv shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “We’re not a cult. We actually came here because I have to tell you something important.” Liv looked around the room, her nerve slipping by the second. “Basically, we think you might be in danger.”

  “Sounds like something a cult member would say.” Daisy raised an eyebrow at Liv.

  “No, Daisy. Liv is telling the truth,” Cedric added.

  Daisy’s round cheeks reddened briefly when Cedric spoke her name, but she covered with another hasty hair flip.

  Liv took in a deep breath, unsure, once again, of where to start. “It’s about our . . . tattoos,” she said. “They make us special, sort of. We were born with them.”

  “Born with them?” Daisy asked, eyebrows furrowing. “That doesn’t make any sense. My parents told me an old nanny gave me the tattoo. She was deported immediately, of course. We’ve tried to have it removed, but . . .”

  “But you couldn’t. Your parents lied to you,” Liv said. “Or maybe they just saw the marking and assumed your nanny gave it to you. But she didn’t. You were born with it.”

  “You can’t be born with a tattoo.”

  “We were. And it’s not really a tattoo.”

  Daisy just shook her head. “That’s crazy.”

  “Yes, but it’s also true. And it’s not just us. Cedric here is special, too. In a different way.” Liv turned to Cedric. “Maybe you can show her?”

  He smiled. “Are you sure?”

  “Seeing is believing.”

  Cedric stood up from the couch and extended his hand to Daisy. She grinned and took it, then hopped up from her chair. Cedric led her over to a large, sliding glass door at the back of the kitchen, one that looked out over the tennis courts.

  “Do you see that ball there?” Cedric asked, pointing through the window into the backyard.

  Daisy squinted in the direction he was pointing, finally spotting a yellow tennis ball a few hundred feet away. “Yeah?”

  “Keep an eye on it.”

  Without waiting for a response, Cedric opened the door, braced himself, and then raced across the yard. Like when he was fighting, he moved with a speed that was faster than human. Just outside the realm of belief.

  In the space of a breath, Cedric was back in the doorway. He held the bright yellow tennis ball up to Daisy.

  Her eyes widened, but she stood her ground. “So you’re really fast? That’s the big thing you had to show me?”

  “He’s more than really fast,” Liv said. She bit her lip—this wasn’t working. It had taken her not one, but two near-death experiences before she’d believed Cedric’s story. How could she expect any different from Daisy?

  “Cedric isn’t like regular people,” she said. “I’m going to tell you some things. More things that are crazy, but also true.”

  Before Daisy could interject, Liv took a deep breath and started talking. She wanted to be as open with her sister as possible, and started her story the way it had begun for her—at the side of the LA River. She explained meeting Cedric, learning about who he was and where he was from, and then discovering the truth about the scrolls. When she reached the story of the night of the Knights—with some light editing, of course—she tried to stress the extent of danger they were all in.

  When Liv was finished talking, Daisy just stared at her, fingers once again twitching, this time at a loose strand of thread at the bottom of her tank top. Nervous, Liv waited and watched for her sister’s reaction.

  But instead of responding to Liv, Daisy’s eyes slid to Cedric. “So you have actual superpowers?”

  “Daisy—” Liv started, leaning forward.

  Daisy ignored her, still intent on Cedric. “You do, you have superpowers. You’re, like, an Avenger or something. That’s so hot.”

  “Uh . . .” Cedric looked to Liv for help.

  “Did you hear that last part? About how people are searching for us? Dangerous people. And other . . . things. And you might not be safe staying here, especially not if you’re by yourself.”

  Daisy gave a dismissive wave of her hand. “This is the safest place in the world. You saw the guards out front. I could call for more whenever I want.”

  Liv tried not to sound exasperated. “But the creatures and the people who are after you, they’ll be stronger than those guards. And faster, too.”

  “Faster than him?” Daisy asked, nodding in Cedric’s direction.

  “Well . . . no,” Liv responded.

  “Then it sounds like as long as he stays here, I’ll be safe.” Daisy grinned.

  Shannon smothered a laugh. Liv looked to Cedric for help. Before he could respond, though, Liv’s phone rang.

  “Joe.” Liv sighed, looking at the screen.
She couldn’t leave Joe hanging, not at a time like this. “I have to take it.”

  “Joe who?” Daisy asked.

  “My . . . I guess, our caseworker.”

  Daisy’s eyes widened. “I remember Joe!”

  “How do you remember Joe and not—never mind.” Liv shook her head and answered the phone.

  “Liv, are you okay?” Joe’s voice sounded far away.

  “Yeah, I’m okay. We all are.”

  “Good. I’m almost to Fresno. Just wanted to check in—”

  “Can I talk to him?” Daisy popped up by Liv’s elbow and reached for her phone. Liv dodged away.

  “Who’s that?” Joe asked.

  “I haven’t seen him since I was little, I want to talk to him,” Daisy said, her voice bordering on a whine.

  “Liv,” Joe said, his tone serious. “What did you do?”

  “Um . . .”

  “Is that Daisy?”

  Daisy reached for the phone again, and Liv tried to spin away. This time, Daisy was faster. She plucked the phone from Liv’s hand and pranced across the kitchen.

  “Joe! Do you remember me?”

  Liv couldn’t hear what Joe was saying, only Daisy’s side of the conversation.

  “What? . . . Oh, pretty good. . . . No, they’re out of town right now. . . . Yeah, that’s what she said. . . . She’s really my sister? . . . I guess, but I think she might have some real mental probs . . .”

  Daisy went quiet for a while, listening. Then she held the phone back to Liv. “He wants to talk to you. He sounds kind of mad.”

  Liv took her phone back. “Joe, give me a chance to explain—”

  “Oh, you better.”

  Liv took a few steps away from the group and lowered her voice.

  “When I found out she was still in town, I had to see her. She deserves to know she might be in danger.”

  “She’s a thirteen-year-old girl, Liv.”

  “She’s . . . mature for her age. Plus, if I had known the truth at thirteen, maybe I would’ve been a little more prepared for all this.”

  Joe sighed.

  “She’s all alone here. I mean, she has security, but . . . she’s alone.”

  There was a pause. “And you’re going to stay with her until I get back?” Joe asked.

  Liv cast a look to Cedric, knowing he wouldn’t be pleased with that idea. “Yes.”

  Another pause. “Good. I’m almost to Fresno now. I’ll try to talk Peter into coming with me, and we’ll hopefully be back in LA first thing in the morning. Just . . . stay there. Stay together.”

  “I will.”

  After Liv hung up with Joe, she turned around to face the others.

  “Looks like we might need to stay here tonight.”

  Daisy looked to Cedric and grinned. “Sounds good to me.”

  “Your parents won’t mind?” Liv asked.

  “Don’t see how they’d even find out. Most of the family’s in Nicaragua. Or maybe Nepal . . . except for my older sisters—they’re at boarding school, and the baby’s with the nanny in Texas. No one’ll know you’re here, except for Andre and Tim, and they do what I say.”

  Daisy’s attitude made Liv uneasy, but at least she was okay with them sticking around. For now. “So we stay.”

  Merek, still standing by the refrigerator, bit into a celery stick and shrugged. Cedric, however, looked less thrilled.

  “I know it wasn’t the original plan,” Liv said to him. “But we can call Kat and let her know to meet us here when she’s done. It’s just one more night.”

  “One night,” Cedric repeated, though his eyes were still blazing. Liv gave him a weak smile.

  “One night in a Beverly Hills mansion. I mean, think of what we can do!” Shannon said. There was a long pause as everyone stared at her. She turned to Daisy. “I mean . . . what can we do?”

  Daisy shrugged. “We can order Thai food.”

  “Now that sounds like a fine plan,” Merek said, his mouth full.

  Cedric scoffed. “Food is not a plan. But of course you are only capable of thinking about your stomach at a time like this.”

  Merek’s eyes narrowed, and Liv felt a twinge of guilt that Cedric was taking his frustrations with her out on Merek instead. Especially because Merek didn’t seem to realize that’s what was happening.

  “You,” Merek said, his voice dropping low, “have no idea what I am capable of.”

  “Okay,” Liv said loudly, before Merek and Cedric continued to snipe at each other. “Maybe we’ll get food later.” She turned to Cedric. “For now, the new plan is to wait here until we hear from Kat and Joe. And it wouldn’t hurt to stay busy while we wait.”

  Daisy yawned. “I’ve got the new PlayStation.”

  “Sweet,” Shannon said, standing up.

  “What is a PlayStation?” Merek asked, putting another hunk of food in his mouth.

  Shannon grinned. “Oh, man. We are about to change your whole life.”

  THE COMPLICATION

  While Shannon and Daisy showed Merek how to shoot two-dimensional zombies, Liv sat anxiously in the living room. Cedric had been out “scouting the perimeter” of the backyard ever since he’d called Kat to explain they were staying the night. Apparently Kat hadn’t taken the change of plans all that well. But she hadn’t yet found a single wrath, so she agreed to join them in Beverly Hills for the night and try again the next day.

  Liv then spent two minutes getting an Uber for Kat, plus another ten minutes explaining to Kat—mostly unsuccessfully—how Uber worked. If Kat showed up at the mansion at all, it would be a miracle.

  Liv got up from Daisy’s game room, looking for a few minutes of peace to clear her mind. But as she walked out of the kitchen door and onto Daisy’s expansive back porch, the frantic thoughts tumbling through her brain refused to go away.

  She wondered whether or not they would be safe for the night. And if they were, what about tomorrow? Would they be safe for the week, the year, ever? Even if Cedric was able to take care of Malquin, the Knights would still be after her. Would she be on the run, always, because of some stupid symbols on her skin?

  Being outside didn’t help Liv answer any of these questions, but she did find she could breathe a bit easier in the night air. A strong breeze lifted her hair off her neck—the first of the Santa Ana winds kicking off the end of a sticky hot summer. Liv made her way over to a stone bench that was propped against the wall of the house and sat down.

  “Sorry to disturb.”

  Liv glanced up to the edge of the brick patio, where Cedric was standing in the doorway, looking at her.

  “If you want to be alone . . .”

  “It’s okay,” Liv said, and scooted over on her bench. Cedric crossed the distance between them in three quick strides and sat down. Liv noticed that he kept a decent amount of space between them. Still, they were alone together for the first time in hours.

  Liv’s insides tightened. She hated how when she was around Cedric, her body felt completely outside of her control. Being near him made her feel like she was spinning around in circles, arms outstretched, but she couldn’t find anything to hold on to to make it all stop.

  “Seems like Merek is getting the hang of things here . . . getting used to things, I mean,” Liv said, trying to keep her voice light.

  “Three months of moaning and he has finally found something in this world he can appreciate,” Cedric said with a wry smile.

  “Violent video games. Who would have thought?” She took a deep breath and looked sideways. “Speaking of which . . . on a level from zero to fake zombie maiming, exactly how angry with me are you right now?”

  Cedric was quiet for a moment. Then he said, “I wish I was angry with you.”

  When Liv didn’t answer, Cedric continued in a softer voice. “It would be easier if I hated you. Or even if I felt nothing for you at all. Then all I would have to think about is the fastest way to get home, even if . . .”

  “Even if it meant tying me up in one pl
ace until it was time to use me to open a portal?”

  Cedric shook his head quickly. “I would never do that.” He turned to her then, and his hands were balled up into fists resting on his knees, like he was forcing them to stay still. “But I also would not be here, jeopardizing what is best for my own people if . . . if I did not care so much about what happened to you.”

  Part of Liv wanted to avert her eyes, to hide whatever emotions were visible there. With real effort, she turned to look at Cedric instead. There was little light on the porch, but his eyes shone from beneath the purplish shadow of his dark hair.

  “You do?”

  “I cannot stop myself from thinking about you. About whether you are in danger, or in pain, or upset. About whether you think of me . . .”

  As Cedric spoke, Liv could feel herself tensing up with excitement—and with fear. What he said now couldn’t be taken back, and if he kept talking, he’d be pulling her across an invisible barrier they’d only barely walked up to before. They’d almost crossed it in the motel, but he hadn’t spoken to her like this since that night.

  There was good reason to pull back—so many good reasons—but Liv didn’t want to. She wanted Cedric to keep talking them both all the way through the barrier until they fell through the other side, together.

  She was suddenly very conscious of her breathing, and her breath, and of the stale cookies she’d just eaten from Daisy’s cupboard.

  Very slowly, as if afraid he might scare her away with any sudden movements, Cedric reached out his hand and carefully brushed his fingers against Liv’s temple, then ran them down the side of her face until they ended at her jaw.

  “You are like nothing I have ever known,” he whispered. His eyes traveled over her face, from the bridge of her nose to her cheeks to her eyes and back again.

  Liv’s first instinct was to crack a joke to ease the unbearable tension growing between them. But she was tired of jokes. She was tired of talking at all.

  Cedric’s eyes focused on hers again, and then he was moving closer, closer, his hand resting on her neck now. She could see his eyelids dropping, and his lips as his mouth drew nearer and nearer to hers.

  Then he was kissing her, first slowly, and then completely, with one hand still on the back of her neck and the other reaching to her waist.