Into the Dark
Page 20
Stealing a quick glance at Nathaniel, I know he’s thinking the same thing, that it’s impossible. Breaching The Assembled is not the way to end Isadora’s reign of terror. There has to be some other way to take her down.
“Mercy,” I say, “you can’t breach an immortal. It can’t be done.” I look to Nathaniel for support. “Right?”
“Gage is right. If breaching an immortal were possible, it would’ve been done already, or at the very least, someone would’ve tried.” Nathaniel clears his throat and adds, “I would’ve tried.”
“Do you trust me?” Mercy poses the question to the room.
“It’s not a matter of trust, Mercy,” I’m trying my best to sound comforting. “It’s just that it can’t be done.”
“You don’t know that,” she replies.
“We do know. Believe me, it’s not possible.” Nathaniel sits next to Mercy on the couch. He takes her hand and kisses her knuckles and I cannot help but look away. “We’ll find a way to fight Isadora, I promise.”
Mercy withdraws her hand and her denial of Nathaniel’s affection pleases me more than I am willing to let myself admit.
Pushing off the couch, Mercy stands and Nathaniel immediately mirrors her movements. Though I hate it, it’s a good thing he does because Mercy is still unable to stand on her own. With his hand on her elbow, Nathaniel holds her steady.
“Mercy, you need to take it easy,” he says to her. She gives him a look. “Please,” he adds.
“Fine.” Mercy relents and sits back down on the couch.
Ariana returns with the tea and she immediately senses the tension in the room. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Mercy quickly answers.
Mercy takes the mug from Ariana and blows on it until it’s cool enough for her to take a sip. We sit together, saying nothing, while Mercy sips her tea. Neither Nathaniel nor I clue Ariana into our conversation. I’m certain if we had, she’d have told Mercy the exact same thing Nathaniel and I had, that breaching an immortal is impossible.
As we sip the tea, the front door opens and Mercy’s father walks in. He stares with disbelief at the sight of us all. For a moment I think he might faint.
“Eric.” Ariana slowly moves to him. Her level of control impresses me. She puts her hand on his face and his eyes close at her touch.
He covers her hand with his and then they are embracing. Mercy’s eyes well until the tears spill over.
When they finally pull apart Eric focuses his attention on Mercy. He rushes to her and folds her into his arms. More tears run down her cheeks as she holds him tight.
I motion to the door and Nathaniel and I duck outside. We’ve intruded enough on their private moment. It’s time to give them some peace.
Once we’re outside, we begin to walk. We pass a few houses before I ask the inevitable question, the one I know I’m not going to like the answer to.
“Do you think she can do it? Breach The Assembled?”
Nathaniel keeps walking, eyes forward. “Yes.”
“You said yourself it’s not possible,” I remind him.
“If it is possible, Mercy is the one to do it. Think about it, Gage, everything we thought we knew about Breachers has been blown to shit since we met Mercy. She can do things we thought were impossible. Why shouldn’t she be able to do this?”
I stop walking and turn to face him. “Are you going to tell her?”
“I don’t know.”
The only thing I know for certain is that we have to stop Isadora. Nathaniel and I will return to Mercy’s house eventually. We’ll formulate a plan and we’ll carry that plan to fruition. Maybe we’ll live, maybe we’ll die; there’s no way of knowing for sure. What I do know is that wherever Mercy goes, I will follow.
Chapter Forty-Four
Mercy
My family is whole again. The embraces last for a long time. When Lyla, Jay, and Kate arrive we start up again. Hugs, kisses, lots of tears, it’s everything I could want and more. Though I know this moment of bliss is fleeting, I bask in it, reveling in the realization that I’ve gotten everything I’ve ever wanted.
Isadora will come for me eventually. It’s the bargain I struck with her—I do her bidding and she lets my family alone. Will I be able to stomach the jobs I’m tasked with? Probably not, but if it means I get to keep my family, I’m willing to try.
There is also option B. Though both Gage and Nathaniel are convinced that breaching The Assembled is impossible, I know in my heart that they are wrong. I also know in my heart that I am not strong enough to do it yet. Working for Isadora will give me access to The Assembled and it’ll give me the information I need. I may not be able to breach The Assembled now, but someday I will. And when I do I know that I’ll have Gage and Nathaniel by my side.
Someday, when the time is right, I will tell them how I saved my mother, how I reached into her chest and started her heart. It will be the definitive proof they need. Once they understand my abilities, they’ll know that I’m capable of anything, including breaching an Assembled.
What I’m still unsure of is whether or not, once I breach them, they’ll be able to fight me off from the inside. Breaching Kate and Lyla’s bodies taught me that I am able to connect with the soul that belongs in the body. I saw Lyla’s memories. I heard Kate’s voice telling me how to drive a car. They were there with me. Will it be the same with an Assembled? And if it is, what will that be like? I seriously doubt they’ll be as welcoming and forthcoming. It isn’t the breaching part that gives me pause; it’s everything that comes after.
Later that night my dad cooks dinner and my mom and I do the dishes. It’s like nothing has ever changed and she and I aren’t Breachers. We aren’t beings that don’t belong in this world; we’re just ourselves and it’s wonderful.
After dinner, my mom and dad retreat to their bedroom. Not wanting to be grossed out forever, I decide to go for a walk and give them time alone. It’s on the sidewalk, not too far away from my house that I meet up with Nathaniel and Gage.
“You’re smiling,” Gage notes.
Laughter escapes me, real, honest laughter. “I can’t seem to stop.”
Nathaniel smiles at me. “It suits you,” he says.
“I feel like a kid. My parents are back together and that makes everything better, safer somehow.” I slip my hands into the pocket of my jeans. “I know that sounds stupid considering everything we’ve been through and everything we’re facing, but … ” I don’t quite know how to finish my thought.
“That’s not stupid,” Gage says with deep affection in his tone.
Kicking at the sidewalk with the toe of my shoe, I muster up the courage to say what I need to say.
“Um.” I clear my throat. “I want to say thank you to both of you, for everything. You saved my life, more than once. And you brought my mother back to me.” My voice catches in my throat.
“You don’t have to thank us,” Nathaniel tells me. “We’d do anything for you.”
“Anything,” Gage adds.
An awkward silence follows. Not knowing what else to say, I blurt out, “I think we should celebrate.”
They’re both taken aback by my suggestion.
“Celebrate?” Gage questions me.
“Why not? We’ve been through hell and we survived.”
“Shouldn’t we talk about what we’re going to do about Isadora?” Gage, ever the soldier, is ready to get down to business.
Nathaniel claps him on the back. “Tomorrow, brother. Tonight, we celebrate.”
It’s decided. We head to Wally’s and meet up with Kate, Lyla, and Jay. The future still looms before us and there’s plenty of danger ahead, but in this moment we’re friends, hanging out and laughing the night away.
The End
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
There was a time when I’d given up on this book, when I’d decided to tuck it in a file and forget it even existed. Luckily, a wonderful mentor and
friend prodded me along until the story finally morphed into something publishable. I am eternally grateful to Georgia McBride for the loving push forward into publishing. There are not enough ways to express my gratitude.
Thank you to everyone at Month9Books for your love and support. I couldn’t have asked for my book to have a better home. I am honored to be part of the Month9 family.
To my family, my husband John, my daughters Izzy and Maddy, thank you for letting me ignore you so that I can write. Thank you for being there for me, for holding my hand, and for supplying me with fuzzy socks to go with my yoga pants. You really do get me.
Thanks Mom and Dad for buying all of my books. Sorry there’s so much swearing in this one. Love you!
Of course I can’t write this section without thanking my friends. Jennifer Toy, Jill Rice, I could not do this without you. Thank you for loving me and the voices in my head. Thank you for letting me ramble on about my characters and for keeping me from taking a baseball bat to my computer when things weren’t going well. I am so lucky to call you both friend. I can still do that, right?
CAROLINE T. PATTI
Caroline T. Patti is the author of The World Spins Madly On and Too Late To Apologize. When she’s not writing, she’s a school librarian, mother of two, wife, avid reader and Green Bay Packer fan. You can chat with her on Twitter as @carepatti or find her on Facebook.
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Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Acknowledgements
About the Author
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