That sick feeling in the pit of my stomach returns. “No, the big question is, why did she need to lock the rest of the Aerlings in?”
Chapter 12
Waiting
(Mason)
I wish I could trust that Tū isn’t trying to kill me. The more we learn about the Aerlings’ true history, the more I’m starting to believe there might be something to what he said at the compound. That doesn’t mean I trust him. He could tell me the exact, hole-proof truth and I still would never completely believe him.
Olivia shifts in her sleep in the seat next to me. I glance over at her to make sure she’s all right, but she’s sleeping soundly. She claimed she was feeling much better when we left the hotel this morning, but she crashed ten minutes after getting in the car. Hayden didn’t last much longer. It’s only Sloane and I who are still awake, watching the scenery fly by as we roam aimlessly, waiting for Olivia’s dad to call with the address to a safe house.
“Hey, Sloane.”
“Hmm?” She doesn’t look up from the new burner phone I picked up after rescuing Hayden. Internet out here is inconsistent as we drive, but whenever we have data she’s been diligently searching the web for information we might be able to do something with. So far the pickings have been slim.
“Why can Olivia see you?” I ask. It’s something I hadn’t bothered to really consider until recently. Olivia saw everyone in the Aerling world, and when she kept seeing Sloane here, I guess it just seemed normal. Only when Hayden also saw her did I start to wonder. It doesn’t seem to be an ability, like what Molly and I can do, but there’s something going on.
Sloane cocks her head to one side and looks at me with a funny expression. “It’s because she’s been to the Aerling world, of course. How else would she be able to deliver Aerling babies to Caretakers if she couldn’t see them all?”
“I thought that was because Aerling infants aren’t attached to an Escort yet,” I say, confused.
“No, that’s why they’re able to take any Aerling infant across the barrier. Once they’re assigned an Escort, only their Escort can bring them back,” she says as she drops the phone into her lap. “When an Escort comes to the Aerling world, the barrier changes them just enough that they can see the other Aerlings.”
“What do you mean it changes them?”
Sloane scrunches her face as she thinks. “You know how we’re different than humans, right? Our molecular bonds are unique. Well, the barrier changes the Escorts’ bonds when they cross it. They don’t become Aerlings, obviously, but they become less human, in a way. More Aerling. They’re something in between, I guess you could say. It’s the same thing that happens when an Escort is bound to an Aerling, just with a wider scope.”
I take in a long breath as I think about that. Olivia is less human than she was before? But more Aerling? Can she become even more Aerling than she is now? Could that somehow have an effect on the whole no sex issue? I feel like shaking my head. This is all so bizarre. Why couldn’t I find out I was just an X-men or something simple like that? Why did I have to turn out to be some kind of otherworld being chosen to save the world? Not really the kind of secret identity I was hoping for.
By the time I pull out of my musings, Sloane has already gone back to prowling the internet for answers. She only looks up when Hayden shifts in his sleep. The smile she gives him seems a little out of place, but I don’t even want to get into that whole mess again. I’m spared from having to consider it further when my phone starts buzzing in Sloane’s hands and she passes it up to me.
“This is Mason,” I say.
“Mason, we found a place,” Olivia’s dad says. “The Parkers called earlier. I gave them yours and Olivia’s new cell numbers so they can call you if they’re able to. They gave us the address of a cabin up in Wyoming that is completely clean and won’t be found by Sentinels or other Caretakers. You’ll all be safe there until you can figure out where the Mother is.”
“Thank you for doing all of this,” I say.
“I’m not losing either of you again,” he says quietly. “I’m just so glad you’re both okay. I’m having a little bit of a hard time with the idea that I’m sending four teenagers off to a cabin in the middle of the mountains with no adult supervision, but I guess I’m just going to have to trust you all to…be careful.”
If the situation were different, I’d laugh. Unfortunately, his reminder of what won’t be happening at the cabin only brings me down. “You don’t have to worry about that,” I say seriously. “When we were in the Aerling world, my parents told us that physical relationships aren’t allowed between Aerlings and humans. All of my power and abilities will be stripped away and I’ll be trapped here if I don’t listen to them.”
“Trapped here,” he says slowly, “does that mean you’re going back after all of this is over?”
Sighing, I rub my forehead. “I don’t know. I can’t leave Molly, but I don’t want to hold Olivia back, either.” I want to tell him that I’ll stay, that I’ll never leave Olivia’s side, that I’ll marry his daughter and give them grandkids and have the life I’ve always wanted. I don’t say any of that. “There’s no point in even thinking too much about it until all of this is over, anyway. I need my powers to find the Mother and do whatever needs to be done, so nothing’s going to happen before then.”
Olivia’s dad doesn’t respond right away. When he does, I’m surprised by what he has to say. “Why would the Aerlings fear one of their own mixing with humans so much that they would create a rule like that?”
“I don’t know,” I say slowly.
“Well, it’s something else to think about, I guess,” he says with a sigh. “Like you said, though, nothing has to be decided right now. For the time being, just hold onto her and keep her safe, Mason.”
“I will.”
After getting the address and GPS coordinates to the cabin and storing it in my phone, I say goodbye and pass the phone back to Sloane so she can keep researching. The rest of the drive is quiet as I change directions and head for Wyoming. It’s well into the early morning hours before I finally pull up to a small cabin tucked away discretely in the absolute middle of nowhere. The trees surrounding it very nearly swallows up the cabin. I would have missed it if not for the GPS.
Shifting into park rouses Hayden in the backseat, who nudges Sloane awake. Sloane drags herself out of the car while Hayden wrestles a half conscious Robin out of the trunk. I go around to get Olivia. After sleeping the majority of the day, I’m hoping she’ll have more energy tomorrow. There are a few things we need to start working on together. Namely, figuring out what in the world we’re supposed to do with Tāwhiri’s power.
“Hey, Sleeping Beauty, we’re here.”
“Hmm?” Olivia mumbles as I gently shake her. Her eyes blink open slowly, then squint as she stares at the dark cabin. “I feel like I’m about to walk onto a horror movie set.”
Laughing, I help her out of the car and immediately scoop her into my arms. She doesn’t protest and lays her head against my shoulder. “I don’t think we have to worry about chainsaw wielding psychos or demons out here. The Parkers swore even the Sentinels and Caretakers will have a tough time finding this place.”
Olivia just shakes her head. That’s pretty much how I’m feeling about their claim as well. I’m sure it’s as find-proof as it can be, but we’re talking about masters of finding—and in the Sentinels’ case, destroying. I don’t think any of us are going to sit back and relax. When we make it into the cabin, Hayden has already gotten a few things figured out.
“The Parkers left instructions for getting the generator going, where to find the food, and basically how to survive out here on our own,” Hayden says. “There’s one bedroom off the main room we’re standing in, and a small loft up those stairs.” He points to a thin staircase disappearing off to our left. “Not sure how we wanted to split up…”
Olivia takes one glance at Sloane and says, “I’m with Mason. You two can do whatever you want.”
<
br /> I feel bad for Hayden as his eyes dart over to a couch that has no hope of accommodating his six foot frame. Sloane is considerably shorter, but I seriously doubt Hayden would ask her to take the couch. Poor guy looks completely stalled.
Finally, Sloane rolls her eyes and says, “I won’t bite. Promise. Can we just go to bed now? I’m exhausted.” She stalks off to the bedroom and we all hear the old springs squeak as she drops onto the mattress and doesn’t move again. Olivia huffs, drops my hand, and makes for the stairs.
I clap Hayden on the back and say, “Good luck, man.”
Hayden shakes his head. “Yeah, you too.”
We’re both shaking our heads as we go our separate ways. I’m pretty sure everyone else is out within minutes of their heads hitting the pillows. The cabin is eerily silent as I close my eyes and wait for sleep to claim me. It doesn’t come as easily as I would like. Question after question rumbles through my mind until they become an avalanche, drowning me under an oppressing need for answers.
***
It feels good to be outside after being cooped up in hotels and cars for the last few days. Despite my doubts that our hopes of staying undiscovered forever are fairly slim, we all needed to get outdoors for a while. Hayden and Sloane are on the other side of the cabin working on getting Hayden in touch with his Escort abilities. Robin is locked up in the cabin while Olivia and I sit across from each other with no idea where to start.
“The only thing I can think of is to try something I did with Hayden once,” Olivia says. She still looks like she could use a nap, but she’s miles better than yesterday.
Remembering the time she tried to feel Hayden’s power and makeup in order to compare it to mine isn’t hard. That was the day I went in to find her and saw Hayden kiss her. A strange mixture of emotions surge as I remember that moment. If I can’t stay here, if I can’t be with Olivia, I know Hayden will love her and care for her for the rest of her life. It kills me to picture them together, but if the other option is tying Olivia down to a life of being my shadow in the Aerling world and never having a real relationship, I can walk away knowing she’ll be happy.
“What do you need me to do?” I ask as I shake off thoughts of the future.
Olivia holds her hands out with a grin, making me laugh. There was more than one session before we left for the Aerling world where our efforts to figure out Olivia’s power led to us ending up on her bed making out rather enthusiastically. The dead pine needles and crunchy grass wouldn’t be nearly as comfortable to roll around in, but it would totally be worth it.
I place my hands in hers and squeeze. Despite her teasing, she puts on a serious expression immediately. Her eyes close as she concentrates. It startles me as her power begins flowing through me. She’s already so much faster at this than she was only a few days ago. It starts in my hands and runs slowly up my arms, her power reminding me of warm honey, sweet and enticing. Just the feel of it makes me relax. My eyes close automatically and I lose myself in the feel of it. I don’t know what it feels like for Olivia when she sends her power into my body, but for me it is pure pleasure.
Her warmth runs up my neck, through my hair, and back down. I could only feel more alive if it was her fingers running over my skin, though it would be a close call as to which was more tantalizing. When she moves down my chest, my heart rate skyrockets. My hands tighten around hers and she moves lower, down through my legs and back up to my chest where her power seems to hover.
“Your heart’s beating like a runaway train,” she says.
“Can’t imagine why.”
Olivia’s power starts to pull back. “Sorry,” she whispers.
Panicked by the thought of losing this, I pull her in closer. “Don’t you dare,” I murmur. “I’m not ready to let go of you just yet.”
Expecting her to echo my sentiments, I’m caught off guard when she pulls away both her hands and her power. My eyes pop open to find her frowning at me. “You can’t keep doing this to me,” Olivia says seriously.
“Doing what?”
“Changing your mind,” she says with an edge to her voice. “One minute you’re acting like this and talking about how you’ll never let go of me. The next, you’re practically trying to throw me at Hayden.”
“I’m not…”
Olivia huffs. Her irritation bunches her shoulders, but she shakes her head. “Either you’re going to fight for me, or you’re going to hand me off to Hayden like it’s your choice who I end up with if you bail on me. It doesn’t work that way. Either you’re going to stay by my side no matter what that means, or you’re going to run away. Until you decide, we’re staying purely focused on work and nothing else. Got it?”
Forming an answer is practically impossible. Is she serious? One look at her expression makes it pretty clear that she is. I want to argue that she’s being ridiculous, but how can I when she’s making perfect sense? “Fine,” I say slowly.
Her nod is curt as she grabs my hands again and sends her power crashing back through me. I nearly groan at the sensation, but bite it back before I really piss her off. My hands are strangling hers as she pushes her power around trying to find whatever she’s looking for. Finally, Olivia blows out a frustrated breath. “You can’t just sit there doing nothing,” she complains.
“What?”
“You’ve got to help me out, Mason. I can’t feel the difference between your inborn power and Tāwhiri’s if you’re not using either one. It’s all muddled together right now.”
My head shakes slowly. “I have no idea how to use Tāwhiri’s power.”
“You’ve got to be able to,” Olivia complains. “You’ve had some part of his power your whole life. It’s in there somewhere. You have to find it and use it.”
“You have his power, too. Can you use it?”
More frustrated than ever, Olivia says, “I can’t feel that there’s something there now that wasn’t before, but I don’t know how to access it.”
“You can feel Tāwhiri’s power?” I ask. “What does it feel like?”
Olivia’s expression changes from annoyed to contemplative in a millisecond. “It feels like I’m carrying something around inside of me that doesn’t quite belong there. It’s just sitting there, waiting to be opened or something.”
“But what does it feel like?” I demand. If she can describe it to me, maybe that will help me recognize it in myself.
The confusion in Olivia’s eyes halts my eagerness. “I just told you what it felt like.”
“Yeah, but you just described what it feels like to have his power inside of you. I need to know what his power feels like.”
“I’m not sure what you mean,” Olivia says.
Surprised she doesn’t understand this, I say, “Everyone’s power feels different. Molly’s is like a happy bumblebee buzzing around you. Shane’s is jumpy and energetic while Conner’s is deep and mellow, like a good bass beat. Sloane’s is oddly soothing, like chamomile tea. Yours feels like warm honey being poured over my skin.”
“Warm honey?” Olivia asks. Her eyes seem to lose focus for a second. “That’s what it feels like when I use my power on you?”
“It’s the second best feeling I’ve ever experienced,” I admit.
Olivia swallows hard. “What’s the first?”
“Your lips on mine.”
It’s hard not to notice how her fingers tighten where they’re resting on her knees. “I didn’t realize. I guess that’s why our practice sessions ended so…”
“Abruptly?” I say with a laugh.
The corner of Olivia’s mouth crooks up despite her speech from a few minutes ago. She takes in several long, deep breaths before forcing herself to refocus. “Maybe if you use your power while I’m, uh, exploring, I’ll feel what you’re talking about, or maybe at least feel what part isn’t doing anything.”
Olivia reaches for my hands again, but hesitates, biting her bottom lip. I hate that she feels like she has to hold back around me now, but I can’t
give her the answer she wants to hear right now. My buzz from her power sufficiently dimmed, I reach forward and take her hands as seriously as I can manage. When she pushes her power into me again, I put all my focus into ignoring the way it makes me feel and doing something useful.
Calling up my power takes little thought. Warming the air to take away the pink flush from Olivia’s cheeks due to the cold temperature take only slightly more focus. It’s easy to maintain, though, and will hopefully give Olivia what she needs. I feel her power sweep through me several times before she stops abruptly.
“It’s right there,” she says excitedly.
Focusing on where her power stopped, I’m confused. “It’s in my head?”
Olivia shrugs. “It’s there, I swear. The power you’re using right now is coming from all over your body like it usually does, but I can feel this dense core of energy hovering around your mind. It feels the same way mine does, like it’s sitting there waiting for something to open it.”
“How are we supposed to unlock it?” I ask.
Shaking her head, Olivia says, “I have no idea, but if we don’t figure it out, finding the Mother won’t matter because we won’t have enough power to stop her or help her.”
Chapter 13
Lifeline
(Hayden)
Knowing the cost of having Sloane coach me in understanding my power makes me hesitant to accept her help. Sitting down on a fallen log, I cross my arms and watch her. She moves confidently as she walks over to me and takes a seat on the pine needle-strewn ground. Her confidence only lasts until she looks up at me and sees my wary stance.
“I just want to help,” she says quietly.
“But you’ll poke around in my memories while you do, right?”
Sighing Sloane says, “It doesn’t work like that. I only see what you’re actively thinking about. With Olivia, she was searching for you, so of course she was thinking about you. If she had been searching for her sister, that’s what I would have seen.”
Invincible (The Aerling Series Book 3) Page 10
