by Lysa Daley
Calliope looks disappointed as she reaches up to take Jax’s hand. “I don’t know what happened. I guess I used up all of my energy and couldn’t make it over that wall.”
Why would she intentionally throw the race and a new course record?
“Let me get you some water,” Jax says, practically falling over himself to assist her.
As he walks away, Calliope slides over to my side. A sly smile turns the corner of her heart-shaped lips up, and she whispers, “Bet you thought I was going to make it to the end. But I didn’t want to ruin our chance to go for a run later.”
“What?” I can’t believe my ears. “Jax thinks you actually missed the wall and fell.”
“I know.” She’s so proud of herself. “You don’t have to thank me. I’m sure you would have done the same for me, sister.”
An hour passes as Jax puts us through our paces. We run the obstacle course a few more times, then do a little bow staff work.
Jax finally says, “Well, the time has come, ladies. We’re nearly done. Except, of course, for the five-mile run.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” I ask. “Leaving the compound, I mean? Is it safe?”
“Fitz and his team have this area locked down tighter than the belt around fat Brother Frank’s wool pants.”
An image of Brother Frank, who weighs north of 300 pounds, fills my brain. “That’s mean. But I get your point.”
We head out the back of the gym to the trail that edges along the forest.
“Okay, as far as paths go, it’s ladies choice.” He claps his hands happily and points at two diverging paths, each heading in a different direction. “The left path makes a big loop around the area - just over five miles. The right path heads down the hill then over a creek. It’s not as long, but you have the hill to deal with.”
Before I can answer, Calliope says, “Let’s do the hill trail. I like hills.”
Of course she does.
Jax turns to me. “Okay by you, Astrid?”
I don’t want to look like the slacker I actually am, so instead I nod, “Oh sure. The hilly path sounds divine. How far should we go past the creek?”
Jax shrugs, “If you get to Canada, you’ve gone too far.”
Calliope and I start down the trail at a reasonable pace. Like a rhythmic meditation, we run silently for the first half mile.
Surrounded by lush, verdant forest, Calliope eventually breaks the reverie. “I always wanted a sister. And I know we’re not blood sisters, but I’m still glad I found you.”
“I always wanted a sister, too. Or a brother. Any family.”
“Can I ask you something?” I hear the hesitation in her voice.
“Um… sure,” I reply.
“Is there something going on between you and Jax?”
I look at her sideways. “What do you mean?”
“It’s just, I sort of thought there’s an energy between you guys. Maybe you were a couple.”
“Nope,” I reply more curtly than I meant. Bella thought the same thing. Now I’m wondering if other people suspect the same thing. “Nothing at all.”
“I dunno. He’s kind of cute.”
“He’s all your’s then,” I say, then explain. “I sort of have a thing for this other guy. The one we brought back from the trip to the lake.”
“The Horlock?” Calliope replies.
“He wasn’t a Horlock until very recently,” I say, defensively. “And that’s my fault. He was captured trying to protect me.”
“I was betrothed back on Fluxrun,” she tells me, her voice low with regret. “He was a prince, next in line for the crown. But I was forced to leave before…”
Her words trail away, but I hear the sadness underneath. I knew that she lost her guardian, but it hadn’t occurred to me that she probably left others behind as well. Like I always have to leave people behind.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Is he still…”
“Alive?” she finishes my sentence. “Last I heard, he was able to escape the destruction of the star system. But I don’t know where he’s gone.”
As we slope downhill, I notice that she is no longer half a pace behind me, she is now half a pace in front of me.
“I do so love to run,” she adds. “Especially after being cooped up on that stupid spaceship for so long.”
I pick up my speed. “You’re fast.”
She does the same. “So are you. Race you to the creek?”
“You’re on.”
Back and forth we go, running faster and faster. First, I’m in the lead, then she passes me.
Soon, we’re in a full-on sprint. As she passes me, I catch a quick glimpse of her face. Her ever-present smile has been replaced by a hard look of determination. She wants to win. She wants to beat me.
My competitive juices kick in too. There is no way I’m going to let her win.
As a Lyrian, there are a couple of things about me that are different from your average human teenage girl. One of the best things is that I'm super fast. The fastest human can reach top speeds of about 25 miles per hour. Meanwhile, the cheetah tops out at about 60 m.p.h. I'm somewhere in between those two.
Apparently, Pledians can run super fast as well.
Soon, we're speeding down the trail at a dangerous pace.
Coming around a turn at the bottom of another little hill, we see water has pooled at the base of the hill causing a slick mud puddle to form.
At the turn, we both slip, losing our footing.
I feel her hands, reaching out to me, grabbing on me. We’re careening off the path, tumbling. The prickly branches stab and poke.
Flying through the air, we're headed toward the stream. Face first I hit the shallow water. Calliope is right behind me, practically on my back. Her full weight lands on me as I sink to the bottom of the silty creek like a rock.
I’m descending into the cold slimy mud, but Calliope is not getting off my back.
We’re in the middle of the woods, the middle of nowhere. If she wanted to, she could drown me.
I'm so stupid. I actually believe that she was being nice. And, by the way, how stupid is everyone else? Jack's let me run out here with her all by myself. He’ll feel pretty dumb when I'm dead. Serves him right. Making us run five miles.
I don’t want these to be my last thoughts.
I push down, trying to get to the surface. But I can’t rise high enough to get any air.
Just as the last of the oxygen seeps from my burning lungs, the weight on my back is released.
A hand pulls me towards the surface.
In a flash, I'm out of the water, gasping for air. Calliope pulls me to the muddy bank.
Lying on the wet ground, she collapses next to me laughing her head off, like this is the most fun she’s ever had.
Still catching my breath, I turn to look at her like she's a lunatic.
“Are you okay?” she asks, still giggling.
I force a smile. “C’mon, let’s head back.”
As we return to the compound, uphill this time, Calliope quietly says. “Hey Astrid, sorry about your Horlock boyfriend.”
“Sorry about your prince,” I reply.
She nods graciously.
Then I can't help but say, “By the way, I won. I got to the creek first.”
Chapter 38
“Good morning, handsome,” I say, quietly stroking Tom’s head.
His eyes flutter open, and he makes that little fluttering sound from the back of his throat like the world’s biggest cat purring. Still sleeping in the stables, his breathing sounds more regular.
“He’s doing a whole lot better today,” Jax says, poking his head around the corner while scribbling something onto his tablet.
“I’m so relieved to hear that,” I say, leaning in and stroking Tom’s neck.
“We’ll check his blood again later, but the infection were way down last night,” Jax continues giving the medical report.
As he talks, I can’t help but think
how much more intelligent and sophisticated he seems as a vet than he did as a house painter. It’s funny how we make snap judgments about people based on something like what they do for a living.
“That’s all good news.”
“We’ll know he’s really recovered when he can shapeshift again. He’s not safe on this planet in his current form. It’s vital that a creature this large can cloak himself to stay hidden. Until then, he has to stay in the stables.”
My spirits lifted by this news, I spend a busy morning walking and feeding the rest of the menagerie. Physical work always calms my restless body and mind.
Wandering up to the front of the stables an hour later, I’m surprised to find Bella wearing baggy gray coveralls and driving a tiny little forklift around.
“Hey, just the girl I wanted to see!” she downshifts, slowing the vehicle to a stop.
“I like your ride,” I say, looking at the empty forks of the forklift. However, by the number of rectangular bales of hay laying around, I can tell that she’s making a wall of hay.
“I want to teach you how to operate Dolores here,” she says.
“Is she an alien life form too?” I ask.
“Nah. Standard issue American made.” She hops out of the driver’s seat, “It’s not that hard. And it’s actually pretty fun.”
“How come everyone is suddenly desperate for me to drive?” I ask.
“Have you ever driven a stick-shift before?” she asks holding onto a long metal rod with a ball on the end of it that I figure must be the “stick” part of the shift.
“Didn’t stick-shifts go out like a century ago?“ I reply.
“Not on mini-pronged-five-speed-forklifts like Dolores here.” She motions for me to sit in the driver’s seat.
“Her name is Dolores?” I ask.
“She’s the big sister to our first forklift Gladys, who’s parked out back.”
Bella gives me a lesson on how to use the little forklift. Surprisingly, it doesn’t take me that long to figure the whole clutch/stick thing out. After about ten minutes, I’m up-shifting and down-shifting like a pro and zooming around the stables like the badass I am.
After twenty minutes of using Dolores to pick up hay bales and getting them stacked up, Calliope wanders in. I slow the forklift and shift into neutral.
“Hi,” she says, smiling shyly as everyone in the stables - including the animals - all turn to her and stare.
“Well hello,” I reply as I notice for the first time that Calliope’s smile seems to light up the room.
No wonder everyone is staring at her.
“I came to see your Tom.” She raises a paper bag. “I brought him a little gift. Whenever my Raki’s not feeling well, this always helps.”
I throw Dolores into park and hop out. “That’s very kind of you.”
“If you love your guardian half as much as I love mine, then I’m sure you’re worried sick,” Calliope smiles kindly.
“Raki loves to eat three-legged Alcyone grazers, so I asked Mr. Fitzgerald if there was something similar on this planet. He called the kitchen staff, and they were able to get this for Tom.” She hands me the sack.
“Oh gosh…” I nearly drop it, because the bag weighs more than I was expecting.
Inside is something the size of a paperback novel wrapped in butcher paper. I pull it out, unraveling a corner far enough to see a partial leg bone.
I force a smile despite the wave of disgust rippling through me. “Is this… from a cow?”
“Yes!” she beams. “I asked them to leave some meat on for him.”
Together, we walk over to Tom’s stall in the outdoor paddock. He must smell the meat because his head eagerly pops up as we approach.
He also starts to make a low guttural growling that I’ve never heard before. I’m not sure, but it sounds like he’s angry.
“What a cute little thing!” Calliope says, gazing at him, totally ignoring the growling. “I’ve never seen such a petite drolgon before.”
Petite? Okay fine, her drolgon is bigger than mine, but that doesn’t make Tom small.
The growling gets louder. Tom doesn’t seem to like Calliope.
To distract him, I remove the bone from the bag. I try not to wince at the meat and dripping red liquid. “Hey you! Look what Calliope brought you.”
I pretty much just feed Tom dried cat food out of a bag, so I’m not sure if he’ll like this.
But as soon as I set it down, Tom grabs the end with his teeth, flips the bone up in the air, and catches it in his opens mouth as it sails back down. We hear loud crunching as he demolishes the whole thing in ten seconds flat.
“Oh good! He likes it,” Calliope smiles and Tom swallows. “Perhaps the nice people in the kitchen can get you more.”
“Thank you for introducing me to something that makes him so happy.”
Calliope seems overjoyed. She loops her arm through mine. “That’s what sisters are for!”
“Would you like to see the rest of the stables?” I ask.
“That would be great,” she says, and I realize that she has the enthusiasm of a kid on a big adventure. Everything must seem new and incredible to her.
“Oh, I love Gruminian Short Noses! They’re so sweet,” she says as we pass an enclosure filled with foot long scaly worm-like lumps. Sweet is not a word that seems applicable— in this world or any other.
She recognizes several of our creatures.
When we stroll past the stall of a docile Kleebian Yak, she backs away in fear. “Oh gosh! Aren’t you afraid to keep that creature in here with the others?”
“Um, I don’t know,” I say. The slow moving yak seems pretty docile.
“That monster will kill everything in here,” Calliope says.
Chapter 39
“The yak?” The animal swivels his big lazy head toward us, but I’m having trouble imagining him viciously attacking us in any way, shape or form.
Bella overhears our conversation and pokes her head over the stall. “Hey, no need to worry about George there.” She gestures to the yak. “We had the front three rows of his teeth removed.”
This immediately puts Calliope at ease. “Oh, good.”
“Kleeibian Yaks have teeth fiercer than a great white shark,” Bella explains to me as the three of us walk back to the entrance. “Which, I realize sounds bananas, but it’s true. I can show you some pictures from when he first arrived.”
“So what brings you to the stables, Calliope?” Bella asks as we stop near the towering wall of hay bales.
“I came to see if Astrid wanted to go have lunch with me,” she replies, moving closer to the door. I’m so touched by how nice Calliope has turned out to be. Like the sister I never had.
But before I can answer, I see panic on Bella’s face. “Astrid, get out of the way!”
I look up to see a pair of hay bales plunging down from the top of the wall toward my head.
The only way to avoid being hit with 300 pounds of hay is to drop and roll.
As they crash to the ground, I narrowly avoid getting hit by them.
But behind me, I hear an engine rev up. I turn my head to see Dolores speeding directly at me. No one is driving her. It’s like she’s somehow possessed.
A split second before Dolores crushes me under the weight of her two tons, I quickly roll out of the way.
From the side, I see the forklift slam into the wall of hay bales. Half a dozen come tumbling down to the ground.
Stopped by the wall, Dolores’ engine just keeps trying to propel the forklift forward. Bella seizes the chance to hop in and turn Dolores off.
Calliope rushes to my side. “Oh my gosh, Astrid! Are you okay?”
She helps me to my feet as I say, “I think I'm fine. That was so strange.”
Bella moves towards us with concern etched across her face. “I don’t even know how that was possible. It's like Dolores was possessed.”
“I think the falling hay bales must have somehow made the little
vehicle go forward,” Calliope suggests.
Hearing the commotion, everyone else in the stables has come running to the front to see what happened. I hear the low murmur of people whispering, speculating what really happened. Everyone looks stunned and freaked out.
Except Calliope.
Her face looks oddly calm. If I didn't know better, I might think I see a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
Is it somehow possible that she was responsible for trying to run me over?
That’s crazy. I shake that thought away. She wasn't even near Dolores when it lurched at me. Perhaps it’s possible that she has some sort of crazy alien power that can control machinery?
Jax can time shift. The Grail can shape shift.
Then again, there's me, who doesn't seem to have super anything.
Why would she want to hurt me?
Suddenly another question pops into my head. If she's trying to hurt me, then maybe she wants to hurt Tom too. Maybe she sent her Raki to attack my Tom.
Back on my feet, I dust myself off then turn towards the stalls.
“Astrid, what's wrong? Where are you going?” Bella seems surprised by my sudden actions.
“I just want to go check on Tom real quick.”
A few steps towards the stalls and I realize that Calliope is not coming with us. I turn to look at her.
“As long as you're okay, Astrid, I’m going to go. Dr. Maggie wants to see me,” she says.
“I thought you wanted to have lunch?” I ask.
“I’m sorry,” she replies. “I forgot about my appointment. I’m already late.”
This makes me all the more suspicious.
“No, I'm totally fine,” I say, playing it cool. ”Head on over to Dr. Maggie.”
Walking down the line of stalls, a panicky feeling begins to overwhelm me. My breathing gets shallow and shaky.
Bella notices my rising panic. “Oh my gosh, Astrid. What the heck is wrong with you? You look like you're going to pass out.”
“What if she poisoned him?” I suggest out loud.
“Who poisoned who?”
“Calliope,” I reply, with more certainty in my voice. “What if Calliope tried to poison Tom?”
