Divided

by Alycia Linwood

  "My father has some serious health issues that prevent him from performing his duty. I'm sure he'd love to explain it all to you in person, but he's going through medical examinations so we can all know more," I repeated for God knows what time.

  "He certainly had time to ask for pension," someone mumbled, starting an avalanche of voices. Why didn't I have a judge's bat so I could silence all these people?

  "How can he resign if he doesn't know what's wrong? He can still get better."

  "Those carriers got him. I'm telling you, Anne."

  "We're doomed. He gave up on us and left us with his daughter! Something bad has happened."

  "Is our project endangered?"

  I blinked, trying to sort out who was saying what, but it was impossible to tell since almost everyone's lips were moving. Their elements were dancing in my head, making me thirsty, cold, breathless and lightheaded. This meeting had to end.

  "Stop. Please," I said, but they completely ignored me. I stood up, repeated my pleas, and still got nowhere. Ok, they asked for it. "Everyone shut the fuck up!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, and this time I had their full attention. Perfect.

  "Have you forgotten where you are, young lady?" an elderly man said. "We're not in a bar." A few people snickered, others watched me with contempt, disapproval and disgust.

  "Really?" I cocked an eyebrow at him. "Because I see drinks on the table and a bunch of people cackling like chickens. Oh, wait, you're right. I don't hear any music, but I wasn't sure before."

  "This is a respectable organization."

  "Yes, it is. And that's why you're going to listen to me and then we're going home." I met everyone's eyes, refusing to back down. "If I hear one more accusation against my father, you'll be stuck with me for the next three years. How does that sound?"

  "I suppose everyone wants to finish their preparations for Elemenitas, so I suggest you be quick," a man said, his face grim. Oh, right. Now they wanted to get rid of me. How cute.

  "I will tell you my decision after the holidays," I said, supporting myself on the table and hoping no one noticed my white knuckles. "I will also update you on my father's condition." But only if my father doesn't come up with another plan and reveals the truth. "But there is one thing we need to do before the holidays. I want," I looked down at the paper in front of me to see the names, "Katie Ellis and Fred Willsen to oversee the team of investigators in Italy so we can find out what happened to Owen Azzurro. If magic disease carriers are responsible for his death, we need to find them. Someone should check if anything is missing from the Pandora's Box when the new keeper comes."

  "Do you think Azzurro was killed here on our soil?" A brunette frowned.

  "The location of keepers is a secret. We don't know where he was when he was murdered."

  "We'll investigate it." A bald man, presumably Fred, nodded.

  "Good. That would be all from me. Any questions?" I gave everyone an expectant look, tapping the heel of my black pumps against the floor. No one made a sound. "Alright. Happy Elemenitas." I picked up my purse and strode toward the exit, ignoring the stares. I'd survived another meeting, but I wasn't sure I could survive the next.

  "Everything is under control," Lily said, dropping into the nearest chair, exhaustion evident on her beautiful face. Most of the group had left already to various destinations across the country, so the lunch room was strangely abandoned and empty. I hadn't spent much time in the lunch room since Adrian and I preferred to eat in the privacy of our own room, but now we were seated at one of the large tables, Michael and Paula on the opposite side to us. Lily had chosen to sit at the head of the table, but that was probably because she couldn't take another step.

  "Where is Oliver?" I asked, twirling the plastic cup of coffee in my hands.

  "Oli is making sure everyone leaves," Lily said, her green eyes softening as she mentioned my brother's name. "We'll go soon too."

  "Did you find the mole?" Michael asked, his voice full of curiosity.

  "We did." Lily nodded wearily, averting her eyes. "And we dealt with him."

  "Will you contact us when you find a new place for the scientists?" Paula said, her shoulders hunched. She clearly wasn't thrilled that all the experiments had to be halted because it wasn't easy to set up a new, secure place for the group.

  "Of course. We'll stay in contact all the time. Oli and I will stay close so we can see what happens with the Element Preservers. We need to get in somehow." Lily drew one leg up, resting her chin on her knee. "Do you have enough money?"

  "Yeah," I said, the corners of my lips going up. "If you don't decide to cancel our credit cards, that is."

  "Don't worry about it. We have money," Lily said, yawning. "We've been collecting donations for years, but money can't buy us acceptance."

  "It can buy the equipment necessary to find a cure for the disease," Paula said. "We shouldn't spend it on silly things."

  "Unfortunately, you're right, Paula." I pouted. "Does anyone have some money saved somewhere no one knows about?"

  Adrian made a scene of digging his hand into the empty pocket of his jeans, turning it inside out. "Nope. Nothing here."

  I rolled my eyes, smacking him in the shoulder. Adrian's parents had left him tons of money but he couldn't use any of it without Alan knowing about it. My cards were probably all canceled, and if they weren't, I couldn't use them because someone could track me down. Michael and Paula were with us, so if they used their accounts, someone could track that too. I didn't know if they had any hidden accounts, though.

  Michael simply shook his head, but Paula was chewing on her lip. "Paula?"

  "I might have something... for Elemenitas." Her blue-green eyes shined with delight.

  "You do?" A slow smile spread across my lips. "Does that mean we can go..." I lowered my voice. "...shopping?"

  "Duh!" Paula laughed.

  "Just don't buy expensive custom-made dresses." Adrian put his arm around me to stop me from jumping up and down.

  "I won't. I already have a dress."

  "But you need shoes," Adrian said, barely containing himself from bursting out laughing.

  "Ok, I won't buy shoes I usually buy. But just so you know, Alan would have found me even if I hadn't bought the dress. The mole must have tipped him off before, and he invented the whole dress thing to cover it up. Someone must have heard us or simply connected the dots when you guys arrived here. That person could have looked into our video link because he wasn't an intruder. It wouldn't be hard to find the house or wait for me to appear in the town so it wouldn't look suspicious. Alan does have those element-blocking bracelets. He could have been watching me the whole time." I shuddered at the last thought, so Adrian pulled me into a hug.

  "And we were in so much hurry that we didn't ask." Lily looked as if she wanted to bang her head against the table. "I shouldn't have let Oliver... dispose of the mole so fast."

  Awesome. My brother had killed the mole. Of course, the mole had endangered all of us, but my brother didn't even take time to do the interrogation properly. "Are you sure you found the right person?"

  "Yes," Lily said, unwilling to share any details with us. I supposed we were still strangers in her eyes, or maybe she blamed us for the whole thing. She most likely couldn't blame Oliver because she loved him, even though he was the one who had brought us here.

  "I guess we're ready to go." I got up, and others followed my suit. "Does anyone know any great Elemenitas parties in the city?"

  "We'll find one." Adrian winked at me, and I hoped he was right. This year's Elemenitas party might be the last one I'd ever be able to go to. My elements were already unstable and I wasn't sure how long I had until I completely lost control of myself. It was better to enjoy life while I still could.

  Chapter 16

  "Do you know what I want for Elemenitas?" Paula said, taking one of her shirts out of the suitcase and putting it in the closet. Lily's friend, Arthur, had given the four of us the key of his apartment in the city
, even though Lily didn't want him to do it because she was afraid he'd be in trouble if someone discovered us. But we had to stay in the city so I could be close to my... workplace, and we couldn't check into a hotel under fake names because I was all over the news. People were still obsessing over my relationship with Michael.

  "No, what?" Michael and Adrian were out, shopping for groceries. Arthur hadn't used the apartment since he joined Lily, so there was absolutely no food anywhere. But it was a nice, modern apartment on the sixth floor, and it had two comfy rooms, kitchen, living room and a small bathroom. Although the bathroom was going to be a huge problem because getting ready for the party would take ages.

  "I want things to be like they used to. You know, without us having to hide all the time, without politics and all the Element Preservers drama." She sat down on the bed, twirling one blond curl around her finger. "Can we have Elemenitas without all of that?"

  "I don't know." I sighed, folding a pair of pants. "Hopefully, we can forget about all of it for a day, but we need to avoid any fancy parties."

  "Adrian said he'd find us a party. We need a dark place where no one will be able to recognize us."

  "Don't worry about it. He and Michael should be back soon anyway." No one had mentioned Adrian in the press for a while, but that didn't mean people had forgotten him completely. Still, I was sure no one would recognize him or me in the crowd, especially if we went to a club that wasn't famous.

  "I told Michael I wouldn't mind sharing the room with him, but he refused." Paula stared at the floor as if there was something extra interesting on it. "Apparently, he likes the couch in the living room much better."

  "Well, it would be sort of awkward since it's a double bed," I pointed out.

  "I know, but we're friends and the bed is huge."

  "You might find someone at the party," I teased, innocently batting my eyelashes.

  "Yeah, and tell him what? That I'm helping magic disease carriers, but he mustn't say anything to anyone? And yeah, I might leave anytime because I'm on the run." She rolled her eyes, pressing her lips together into a straight line.

  I sat down next to her, patting her hand. "I'm sorry that you got involved in all of this, but did you ever think that if you actually find someone, you can leave us and not him? No one knows you're involved with the carriers."

  "I know, but..." She shook her head, then put on the biggest smile she could muster. "I don't want to talk about depressing things. Why don't you help me pick an outfit for the party?"

  I glanced quickly at her closet, a frown line appearing between my brows. "I think we need to go shopping!"

  "Shopping?" She laughed. "That sounds almost normal. Yeah, let's do it!"

  "Michael is here," I said a moment before we heard the door open. His element wasn't stronger than usual, so I assumed everything was fine. It was Adrian who knocked on the door of Paula's room and came in. Of course, I couldn't have felt him coming.

  "What are you up to, ladies?" Adrian smirked. Michael appeared behind his back, his face serious.

  "We're going shopping," I said, beaming. "Without the two of you."

  "What? You can't do that. I was really looking forward to hours of boredom!" Adrian pouted, his gray-blue eyes shining with amusement.

  "Maybe we'll take you with us to carry our shopping bags," Paula said jokingly.

  "No way," Adrian said, crossing his arms in front of him. "You buy tons of useless crap, you carry it."

  "Did you find the party or not?" I asked, and a big grin appeared on his lips. He handed me a piece of shiny paper and I realized it was an ad for a club.

  Paula leaned closer to see the ad. "Looks good. Dark and crowded enough."

  "I guess the music is fine too," I said, looking at the list of DJ's.

  "What do you think, Michael?" Paula looked up at him and he seemed startled for a second.

  "It's fine," he said as if he didn't care.

  "I know you'd rather be somewhere else," I said, a lump in my throat.

  "Don't, Ria. We've talked about this and you know why I'm here. If I went away, you wouldn't call me when something happened even if you promised you would." He blew a stray strand of his brown hair out of his face, his green eyes unrelenting.

  I wanted to deny everything, but I couldn't. Of course I wouldn't call him if I knew he could end up getting killed. And at this point, I owed him my honesty. "I want you to be happy. That's all."

  "You don't have the right to want anything, Ria." With those words, he walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him, his element all over the place.

  "Ignore him. He's just nervous because we saw someone on the street. Luckily, she didn't see us," Adrian said, reaching out for me. I took his hand, and the building pressure inside of me ceased.

  "Who was it?" Paula arched one eyebrow, as clueless as I was.

  "Amaya."

  "What?" I nearly jumped off the bed, staring at Adrian in disbelief. "Your ex who tracked you down for my father? What is that bitch doing here?"

  "Hopefully not looking for me," Adrian said.

  "Maybe she's looking for Ria," Paula said, her voice full of panic as she turned to me. "People have seen you in the city and your appearance at your father's conference has been all over the news. She could be looking for you to get revenge because you saved Adrian from the lab."

  "But she can't know I saved him. My father made sure no one knows what happened that day. I doubt it she saw us. Besides, everyone thinks I'm still dating Michael." If Amaya was looking for Adrian again, we had another huge problem. "Do you think my father knows she doesn't have the disease? Maybe he fired her."

  "Fired her?" Adrian gave me a blank look. "She wouldn't be walking and talking if he fired her. She knows too much."

  "Then what is she doing here?" It couldn't be a coincidence that she was in the same city as we were, but maybe my father called her. "My father has a plan to fight against us. She could be undercover and reporting our activity to him. He can't be happy about his early retirement."

  "Yeah, but if he does something, he might lose the pension," Paula said. "Unless he's so bent on getting revenge that he doesn't care."

  "He has enough of money, but if Oliver or I get exposed, he's going down with us." My father was probably full of rage, but he wasn't stupid to risk losing everything, including money and reputation, simply to get back at us.

  "We should catch her and ask her a couple of questions," Adrian said, looking pensive.

  "You can't do that." Paula narrowed her eyes at him. "She can't know we're all here."

  Adrian gave her a chilling stare. "Who said she'd know she was talking to one of us?"

  "Even if we successfully kidnap her from a street full of people, we don't have where to take her." I doubted someone would rent us a dungeon or a basement.

  "Are you both insane?" Paula's eyes were wide, her mouth open in shock.

  "We wouldn't kill her," Adrian said as if that made it sound better.

  "We're not doing anything, ok?" I let go of Adrian's hand and got up, pacing up and down the room. "The city is huge. What are the chances that we see her again? We only have to be careful."

  "Fine." Adrian raised his hands up. "We'll try to avoid her, but Michael might be the problem."

  "What?" Paula and I both turned to look at Adrian.

  "The way he looked at her... It was weird. His element's energy spiked up."

  "He still thinks he can help her or something." I didn't know what Amaya was like before her breakup with Adrian, but Michael clearly missed that person, so she must have been a sweet girl.

  "Let's hope we don't run into her, then." Paula's face was full of worry.

  "We won't! Now let's find a dress for you." I took hold of Paula's arm, dragging her toward the door. We grabbed our purses and coats off the hanger, followed by Adrian's amused look.

  "We'll be back in an hour," Paula said.

  "Make that two." I smiled at Adrian before closing the door.


  "See you in four hours then," Adrian yelled as we went down the hall.

  "He's probably right." Paula chuckled, fumbling with the lock. We practically ran down the stairs like we used to do when we were younger. There was an elevator, but we couldn't avoid people in there, so it was safer to take the stairs. As the cold air on the street hit us, I couldn't help but think that this might be my last Elemenitas ever.

  "You look gorgeous," I said as Paula checked herself out in the mirror. Her black cocktail dress was ornamented with silver flowers that glittered in the light. With the right make-up and her hair lifted up, she'd look like a queen of the dance floor.

  "I need a push-up bra." She cocked her head, sliding her hands down her waist.

  "Oh, come on!" I said, frustrated. "You look perfect."

  Paula eyed her silhouette in the mirror with distaste. "I've been sitting too much and it's showing."

  "Well, it's not easy to be a scientist, but trust me, you'll be the most beautiful girl at the party."

  She turned around to face me, biting her lip and fighting a smile. "I'm going to trust you on this one, but watch out for me if there's a prettier girl." She threateningly waved her finger at me.

  "Deal!"

  "I missed this," she finally said, an unidentifiable emotion flashing through her eyes. "Now let's find the shoes."

  Twenty-something shops and two hours later, I found the shoes I wanted, the perfect black platforms. The heel was ornamented with thousands of shiny crystals and the shoes were surprisingly comfortable, although I wasn't sure how long that feeling would last. But even if they had daggers inside of them, I'd still buy them.

  "Ria, you're drooling all over those shoes." Paula nudged me in the ribs with her elbow.

  "But they're so fucking perfect." I closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of new shoes.

  "Great! Get them so we can go. I need to find a new perfume."

  "Right." I was sad when I had to take off the shoes. My sneakers just weren't comfortable enough, and I definitely didn't feel sexy in them.