“Long, long ago, I had fallen for Ivan, blind to how dark and twisted he really was. Even though I had a wonderful husband of my own….a daughter…” she broke off here, twisting away so I couldn’t see her pained expression. “But the method he uses to take over his victims is cruel and inhuman. And there is no true way to kill him unless you kill the host. If I were to confront Ivan now, inside my beloved student’s body, I would have to kill him without hesitance.”
My back hit the counter roughly. “So that’s what you….that’s why…”
“Yes. I have to force myself, out of my own selfishness, and watch as Ivan struggles inside of Leon, until only one soul will prevail. And by then, the body will already start decaying, unused to holding two souls inside of it. If Leon wins, if he succeeds, there may be a very slim chance he will live—but in much pain. His body will be weak, he might even fall apart. But if Ivan win, his own powers, along with a useless body, will be his final tombstone. He will have no servants to help him, no strength to obtain another vessel. He will die inside of Leon’s body.”
If the time comes, promise me that you will kill me. Promise me, Emery!
“So there really is no way to save him…” I whispered, feeling bile rise up my throat. “Either way, Leon will die.”
The silence was thick and deafened, like the room was packed with cotton. A clock on the wall was ticking agonizing slow, loud, filling my ears. No, that was my heart beating; the blood pumping rapidly through my veins like a stampede.
“I had hoped,” Guinevere finally spoke up after a long period,
“That I would meet with Dove and Leon—whole—once more. I had believed that they would be able to work together, at the least. If not, I knew they were capable of surviving on their own, if the time came…”
“They did,” I finally choked out, feeling tears sliding down my face. I didn’t even bother to brush them off. “They did, work together, I mean. Even if it was just for me, they still pulled through. They were trying to get better. They really were.”
A sad smile graced Guinevere’s lips. “I am glad to hear that.”
Guinevere soon got up and directed me to her room so I could change. I realized I must be wearing her night clothes (or her borrowed ones?), and the hems dragged on the floor as I zombie-walked into her bedroom to see my jeans and jacket laid out on the bed, looking newly washed and dried after my scuffle with the rogue. With robotic motions, I undressed and took my time pulling my stiff jeans on and shirt and just… I couldn’t even think.
I had promised Dove that I would do whatever it took to save Leon. I was convinced that Guinevere would have the answers, but even
she had given up.
Would I have to keep my other promise to Leon? To kill him…if the time came? Could I really do what Guinevere couldn’t?
When I walked back into the dining room-slash-kitchen, Ru was still sitting stiffly in his chair, but holding a mug. Guinevere was at the counter, stirring something into a white ceramic cup and handed it to me. “Drink this.”
It was hot to the touch, but the warmth felt good, soaking into my palms and settling into my bones. It smelled sickeningly sweet, with something like honey and cinnamon, and I took a small sip, surprised at how good it was. I gulped it down, surprised to see how thirsty I was, and felt the luscious heat seep down to my very core.
I was surprised when I looked at the cat shaped clock on the wall: only an hour and a half had passed since Ru and I left Frankie Ann’s.
“What are you going to do?” I asked Guinevere, hesitant to hear her answer.
Guinevere fiddled with a couple of dishes, stacking them precariously in the cabinets before she answered. “Well, I imagine that White’s plans have been put on a temporary hiatus, thanks to you.” She smiled at me, and I couldn’t help but return a little grin. “Oh, it’s very easy to hear what’s going on in the outside world. I’m not a hermit! And I imagined that that’s where you got these little gems, isn’t it?”
She extracted my pouch and tossed it over to me. I grabbed it quickly before it fell in my mug and untied it. The four remaining pieces were still nestled inside, glittering faintly like dying stars. “You aren’t going to take these away?” I asked suspiciously.
She gave a laugh. “Goodness, no. You must have worked hard for them. They are yours to keep, though I pray you won’t do anything foolish with them?”
I shook my head fervently.
“Just make sure to keep them safe.”
“I will.” What I would use them for, I wasn’t so sure. But I would only use them for emergencies, only. Heck, I still needed one shard to myself to turn my heart back to normal…so that left only three pieces.
“And to continue answering your question…”
A thumping sound came from above and I jumped. I only had enough time to jump when Guinevere said. “Watch your head.” When a door on the ceiling that I hadn’t noticed before suddenly burst open and a ladder shot down. Even Ru, so startled by the sudden motion, almost dropped his cup, and a slice of electricity went through the air, temporarily flickering the lights. Guinevere chuckled, giving Ru an amused look. His face burned and he turned away with a pout, muttering something under his breath.
Suddenly, a small boy, probably looking eight or nine years old
(maybe older?) crawled down with a yawn. He had pretty tanned skin and dark black hair that looked as soft as rabbit’s fur, even though it stuck up all over the place. Judging by how rumpled his clothes looked, he must have woken up from a nap.
“Luca, good morning,” Guinevere smiled. “Be mindful; we have guests.”
“Yes’m.” The boy, Luca, murmured through a yawn. When looked at me with almond shaped eyes, I couldn’t help but think how adorable he was.
Still, I thought, what’s this boy doing with Guinevere?
“I’m here because Miss ‘Vere is my teacher,” Luca said unblinking with a smile. “Miss ‘Vere is a very nice teacher. Are you here to learn too, Miss Emery?”
I blinked, floored. “How did you know my name?” Who is this child? Was he eavesdropping?
“Because Miss ‘Vere thought it,” Luca replied with a tilt of his head. “And I was not eavesdropping. That’s wrong. Miss ‘Vere taught me so.”
I looked from Guinevere to Luca and back. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ru’s wide eyed expression. Luca turned to him with a smile, too, and said. “You’re name’s funny, like the reindeer!”
Before I could sputter out anything, Guinevere stepped
forwarded, placing a hand on Luca’s shoulder. “You could say that Luca is my…current student, at this time.”
Though a flash of anger sizzled through me, it wasn’t until I looked closer at Luca and saw something that evaporated the anger and made me completely speechless. Underneath his dark locks, there was faint shimmering glow of his skin. It was almost translucent, really. But I knew what they were. Pale white Runes.
As a test, I thought, Can you read mind, Luca?
He nodded.
A grim look flashed on Guinevere’s face. Her grip on Luca’s shoulder tightened. “Let me introduce you. Emery, Ru, this is Luca. One of White’s first…subjects. He’s an alchemist, just like you are, Emery. An Alchemist of Mind.”
CHAPTER 15
“This is one of the reasons I had to leave,” Guinevere explained. “When White boasted of his plans, I couldn’t just stay put. So I followed him.
He had a hiding home near Atlanta, and I discovered he was attempting to experiment of human orphans to obtain his goal. Unfortunately, I was much too late—I hadn’t even realized how far into his plan he had really succeeded. When I finally found his home, I discovered…horrible things.” She patted Luca’s head gently, who gave her a simple, quizzical look.
“Luca, why don’t you go take a bath, and then after words we’ll practice our mediation, alright?”
Luca bit his lip, glancing around the room, and, afraid he was going to read my questionable thoug
hts, I kept picturing cats. Just cats.
Butterball, for instance, and how fat he was trying to scurry under the tool shed. A small smile brushed his lips, but he agreed and disappeared down the hall.
Once we heard a door click, and the faint sound of water running, Guinevere turned to us. “There were only a few children there, but only
Luca really…survived. I had arrived just in time to save him—he was on his very last breath. And I thought, ‘if what White is saying is true, perhaps…’ So I tried it. Though it was against my beliefs, the fact that an innocent human child had been dragged into our world angered me. So I saved Luca’s life.
“And what White had claimed was true: you couldn’t revive someone with alchemy without the consequences.” Though she smiled sadly, her ancient eyes showed no doubt or regret of her decision. “I’ve lived a long time, Emery. Losing one small element is hardly that significant. And Luca is alive and well, though has a bit of a difficult time controlling is alchemy. Luckily, I’ve sort of adapted.”
“What about,” I gulped. “The other children?”
She shook her head. “They were all dead. It seems that maybe White had tried to kill them, and find a way to revive them, but it didn’t work. After I discovered his Atlanta home I burned it to the ground. And I haven’t seen him since.”
I told Guinevere as best as I could about my journey to Atlanta and discovering Oliver and White’s hideout, and how White had revealed his plans to us, planning to find a permanent way to create new alchemists.
“In his office, I found some files,” I said, digging through my mud splattered backpack. “I think he was trying to gather alchemist like me—
already made…and…I think he was preparing to study us.” I shuddered, remembering his vivid blue eye gazing down on my like a rat caught in a corner. “He offered to ‘go easy on me’ if I agreed to join him, but I shot his offer down.”
“Ah,” Guinevere said softly, “I see. But this other friend of yours, Oliver, is in save hands, correct?”
I nodded, glancing over at Ru to see if it was okay. He nodded, and I pressed on. “There’s another one of us. Her name is Chrys.” I motioned towards Ru with another nod. “Ru’s mother saved Chrys’s life. Just like how Oliver’s stepfather saved his. And Dove…saved mine.”
A beaming smile showed on Guinevere’s face, even though her eyes flashed a bit disapproving. After all, Dove had broken a taboo reviving me.
“Right now, Ru and Chrys are part of the Black Crown,” I continued. “And Oliver is studying there of his own will. They’re training me too. So…”
“Yes. The Black Crown,” Guinevere murmured. “An odd group, but they are very resourceful and diligent when it comes to matters like this. I believe you will be safest in their hands.”
Well, I could agree on that—no matter what, they tried to ensure the safety of their alchemist to the best they could.
“So…that’s it?” I finally asked. “Are you going to stay here with
Luca? In hiding?”
“I will for as long as needed,” Guinevere said. “Until I hear word of White’s movement again.”
“I think White is gone…” I explained. “We—I—I think I killed him.
I froze him, with my alchemy, and pushed him down the stairs. I saw him land at the bottom, his neck all…twisted and broken. I don’t think he survived. The house was burned down by one of his followers.”
Guinevere was silent for a moment, stirring a spoon in her drink.
“I see. Then let us hope that is the case, so there are no more Luca’s in this world.”
“And what about Dove?”
Her blue eyes flashed painfully. “Well, that will depend on you, won’t it?”
I blinked. “What do you mean?”
“Now that you know where I am, where the clues I left lead, are you going to tell her?”
“That depends.” I shot back, feeling irritation boil under my skin.
“Are you going to stick around and wait for her, or are you going to watch in the shadows and let her slip by?”
“I don’t appreciate your tone, Emery,” Guinevere stated coldly and I flinched. I knew I was acting like a brat but still. It seems like she hadn’t even bothered to find Dove or Leon.
“Why didn’t you trust them enough to help you?” I pressed. “I knew they had some…things to work out, but they would have been willing to help.”
“I’m aware of that.” Guinevere stated. “But it’s that entire reason why I left them on their own. So they wouldn’t help.”
“I don’t understand!”
“Though they are both my students, they each have their abundance of problems. Problems I can’t fix with the snap of my fingers.
Problems that could get in the way of a life or death mission.” The old alchemist sighed. “For Dove, she’s too willing to follow the rules to exact. She would never leave my side, or she would badger Leon on what to do. And Leon, of course, is a bit…how should I say…?”
“His fuse is too short.” Ru spoke up for the first time.
“Yes. That’s it. Leon would not hesitant to jump into danger if he thought it would be good. I couldn’t risk that, and I couldn’t risk searching for White and him using those two against me as shields.”
Her words finally dawned on me. “Because you wouldn’t have hesitated to kill them, would you?”
She didn’t have to say it. Just as she claimed she would have killed Leon if he approached her, if White had used Dove, for example, as a hostage…seeing the state of children like Luca and if the only way to prevent it was to take Dove out along with White…Guinevere would do
it. She would do it mercilessly and without an ounce of doubt.
Now I could really see—really, truly see—why she had done it. No, I didn’t agree with her methods, but knowing Dove and Leon—especially someone as brash as Leon—Guinevere had acted on their best interests.
The folded and ripped papers I had in my hands felt as heavy as lead. The dozen faces I had seen, all of strange, anonymous children who had probably suffered through the same things I had, stared back at me with wide, emotionless eyes.
If Guinevere had to sacrifice two of her students…how many more children would she save? Luca was proof of that.
So why did I feel so empty inside? Why did Guinevere’s actions make her seem so cold? Maybe I really was too immature to understand.
I put the pages on the table. If anyone could find those children, she could. “Here’s what I found, but I think if he had anymore they were destroyed in the fire.”
Guinevere nodded glumly, placing a hand over the slim stack. “I’ll see what I can do.”
The clock clicked over to two. The rain outside was starting to lighten up, and there were faint hints of the sun shining through. I looked at Ru and nodded, trying to communicate with our eyes, and he bobbed his head in response. I set the cup down and got up. I couldn’t even look Guinevere in the eye as I said, “We’d better get going.”
“Very well,” was Guinevere’s only response. When we got reached the door, I held back and turned around.
“You’re journal…” I explained. “It’s actually at the Black Crown’s headquarters. I’m sorry. I used it as…a means to help a friend. I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “Do not worry about it. I have no need for it, really. It’s just a…moment of memories. If you get it back, please give it to Dove for me. And Emery?”
I paused, glancing back once more.
“Whatever you chose to tell Dove, do not forget that everything I have done—and will do—was always in her and Leon’s best interest.
Make me out to be a villain, I do not care. But never forget that.”
I could only stare blankly, clutching my necklace pouch tight in my hand. Without a word, without any sign I had heard her, I shut the door behind me with a soft click, shutting away Leon’s only hope of survival.
It felt as if my heart had broken in h
alf.
As we sloshed through the rain, I glanced back once to see a small head peeking out from the windows. It was Luca.
He gave me a smile and a wave, and I wondered how much Luca really knew. Did he know he was the only survivor of a horrible experiment? Was he happy? Would he want to go home—if he had a
home?
But seeing his bright smile as I waved back, I couldn’t help but think that maybe he would be alright.
Maybe I would be, too.
On the bus ride back, I was silent. Ru was the best guy to really be around when you needed some time to yourself. He didn’t press at all, but his warm presence was comforting. In all honestly, I was glad he had come, even if I had protested the entire way. I even thanked him, but he just gave a grunt of response—his way of saying thank you.
But he did finally speak up and say, “What are you going to do now?”
Honestly, I didn’t know. The entire day had been draining. I’d almost gotten killed by a Rogue alchemist, almost killed the Rogue myself (and God, what a relief it was to know he was alive. It felt sacks of bricks had been unloaded off of me.), I watched Leon slip through my fingers and I finally found Guinevere de Blanc, only to realize she had completely given up on Leon’s fate and was leaving him to die. And there was really no way to save him.
Was there…?
And now I had another dilemma stacked on my plate: to tell, or not to tell?
If I told Dove, there was no doubt she would pack her bags and go. After all, she had no real reason to stick around. The Black Crown had helped her for my sake, but they weren’t holding her there. She was as free to go as Oliver was.
And I was scared.
I was already loosing Leon. Guinevere’s cold words bounced around in my head, making my heart clench so tightly I felt it was going to rip. And now….Dove might be gone, too. Could I handle that? Was I being too selfish in wanting her to stay with me, just a little longer?
Was it really so wrong that I wanted us all to be happy again?
Together?
CHAPTER 16
There was a heavy, ominous feeling in the air when Ru and I returned to Frankie Ann’s. Poor Frankie Ann, at her wits end when the kitchen
The Fake Mind (Time Alchemist) Page 8
