Path of the Heretic (The Beholder Book 2)

by Ivan Amberlake

  By the time he finished college he’d lost all his friends and decided to stay aloof ever since. That was when Pariah found him. He said he could cure Damien’s disease. Make him invincible to the curse implanted into his aura. Those were the exact words he’d used.

  At first Damien didn’t believe, but about a year later he got mugged and beaten by a gang of drunken thugs. He lay bleeding, dying right on the street, when a shadow swept over him, and a faintly familiar voice said, “Here we meet again, Damien. Now look what they did to you. Wouldn’t you like that to stop? Wouldn’t you rather weed out the injustice that makes your life a misery?”

  Bitter and broken, he caved and fell for Pariah’s beautiful words. It wasn’t just Pariah’s words. It was the world of Sighted that changed him, so fabulous when compared to the ordinary world, and hidden from everyone else’s eyes.

  Damien sat down in the chair at his desk and opened the top drawer. He rummaged through the papers before retrieving an old, yellowed picture. With the tip of his finger he brushed a few motes of dust off his mother’s face. It’d been a while since he looked at her. He laid the picture aside, then found another one buried in the bottom of the drawer. This one wasn’t as old, and showed a young blonde woman with a girl in her arms, both smiling and waving.

  Damien turned the picture around. Four words scrawled across the white stung him.

  Always in your heart.

  He remembered the days when he wanted to tear this picture to pieces. Like the people in them had never existed. Part of him was relieved that his mother had passed away. At least she was able to rest in peace. But he was worried about his lover Laura and their daughter Jessica, their little angel as he called her. Now they are in danger because of me. Because I’m a Transcendent, he thought. He couldn’t get himself to destroy the pictures as a husband and father.

  “You’re always in my heart,” he whispered.

  A heart with a weakness that might cost them their lives.

  No matter where he tried to hide Laura and Jess from Pariah, the Dark One always found them. Damien even wiped their memories of him from their minds, and tried to eliminate their traces, but it was his own thread that always gave away their whereabouts.

  He got up from the chair, and paced across the room towards the window. The neighborhood was cloaked in the quiet of the night. Only the lamplights glowed with their halos.

  The stronger the desire to be with Laura and Jess, the more mistakes he tended to make. First, he’d agreed to have an ally in Emily Ethan. Then Tyler Woods found out about this small apartment on the outskirts of London. Another mistake might be the last for him.

  After Pariah’s weird request today—to exit the Sight before entering his office—Damien knew the Dark One didn’t trust him anymore. There was something special about the vial he’d spotted on Pariah’s desk, and he couldn’t put it out of his mind. He had to find out what was inside it.

  If you don’t want to tell me, I’m going to steal it from you. Damien returned to his desk and took a final look at the two pictures before placing them back in the drawer.

  Chapter 10

  Jason walked through a forest shadowed by an elaborate pattern of heavy branches. The place looked familiar, and he had a feeling he had already been there. When he heard someone’s light footsteps, he stopped, waiting.

  His peripheral vision caught movement to his left, and then he spotted a blurry silhouette in the distance, running away and giggling. Even from afar he could see the girl’s long, dark-brown curls flare with golden hues.

  “Catch me if you can,” the girl teased while running, her voice echoing among the trees. Her silhouette blurred every time the sunlight grazed it, breaking through the grid of branches.

  Did she see me? Jason took a few tentative steps in her direction, his feet heavy.

  The beautiful dark hair scintillated again as she ran past another sunlit area.

  He pushed himself forward when he heard more steps and another silhouette emerged behind Emily’s. He could swear it was him there.

  Fascinated by his blurry silhouette chasing Emily, Jason realized that it was a dream. It was the dream he’d had when he was at Emily’s estate.

  He ran after them, and saw Emily trip and fall into a pile of leaves under a massive beech tree. His replica tripped, too, and rolled into the foliage beside her. While not moving, they took clearer shapes.

  Jason ran over to them and fell to his knees beside Emily, looking into her amber eyes, his heart hammering in his chest.

  His double’s fingers drew invisible lines, sliding from her forehead to her nose, lower and lower. Jealous of his blurry self, Jason reached with his fingers to Emily’s hair. His double leaned in to kiss her, and both silhouettes vanished.

  He stared at the empty spot in front of him, a lump of disappointment in his throat. That was another trick of his subconscious. He got to his feet, wishing to be as far away from the place as possible, when a crack of light ahead, among the trees, attracted his attention. The clearing. It was there. Behind the trees there was Emily’s estate. That was where he had to go. That was where he could find answers to the questions that gave him no peace for the last few months.

  He took a step towards the light, but then his head filled with static. Voices rushed through his thoughts, hundreds of them, and he plugged his ears to try and make them stop. With each step they grew louder, and his ears hurt. He’d hoped to get to Emily’s estate, but the voices wouldn’t let him go farther.

  “Why don’t you let me in?” he asked them, but all he had for an answer was more static. He squeezed his eyes and woke. He drew a deep breath, scratching the nape of his neck.

  Didn’t see that coming, he thought.

  It had been five months since he last had dreams. And here he got it, a dream so weird it made him shake.

  Emily Ethan. Half a year ago he hadn’t even known this name, and now it made his mouth parched.

  Half a year already, Jason thought bitterly. I need to find a cure for this disease.

  He untangled himself from the sheets and sat still for a few moments, gazing out of the window. The sky was still black. A thin line of gray touched the horizon as light rain pattered against the window. There was no way he’d be able to fall asleep with Emily in his thoughts. He’d proven that during the long sleepless hours that dragged and seemed to never end. He got up, dressed, and trudged out of the room. The house was half-buried in darkness, lonely lanterns casting feeble light along the corridor.

  As he walked past Violet’s room, then farther through the halls Tyler had told them about, Jason realized his feet carried him towards the room where he’d last seen Emily. It was the same room where he’d found out that she was Pariah’s spy.

  You keep lying to yourself, Jason, he thought. There’s no Emily that you believed in. No more Emily at all. Why keep torturing yourself then?

  He entered a room with enormous arched windows. The silver moonlight seeped through the windows, painting the elaborate patterns of their frames along the parquet floor.

  He stepped into the moonlit area where the silver radiance rippled across his face. It almost seemed as if he was in the Sight.

  You showed me your world, and then you fled, stealing its beauty from me.

  Thoughts whirled, incoherent and painful. He’d almost reassured himself that Emily was a traitor, but then how could she have done what she did if she didn’t care about him? And her last words to Pariah. They kept ringing in his ears. “You killed my parents. You killed my grandfather. You dragged me through your dark world.”

  Dragged. Could she have faked it?

  Leaving the room, he heard a crash and then curses. They were coming from behind the door to his right. He opened it to see stairs going down. The crashing had stopped, but whoever was in there went on grumbling.

  Jason went down the stairs and entered a well-lit kitchen. A strong whiff of whiskey hit him like a wall, and he grimaced.

  “Matt, that you
?”

  Matt sat hunched at the table, with his back to Jason. He tilted his head then grouched, “Busted. You can’t sleep either?”

  “Kind of,” Jason said. Giving the kitchen a cursory glance, he spotted a bar with an assortment of beverages in the far right corner, and a brown stain on the floor next to it.

  Jason pulled open the fridge, grabbed a bottle of water, and poured himself a glass, then took a seat opposite his friend. Matt uncorked a bottle and poured some into a glass.

  “I can see you’re enjoying yourself,” Jason said.

  “Yeah. Accidentally dropped one. Hope Tyler’s not gonna be mad.”

  “Maybe it’s time for you to stop?”

  “I know when to stop.” He sighed and took a gulp.

  “Yeah, right.”

  Matt rolled the glass with his fingers. “It’s a nice place here, isn’t it?” he said.

  Jason smiled.

  “Jay, you have special powers. You’re the Beholder. I’m sure you know the answer to the question that’s been bothering me for a while.”

  Jason didn’t argue with Matt’s statement, though he felt a bit uncomfortable. “What question?”

  “Why did things have to change like this?”

  “You mean what happened at McAlester’s today?”

  “That as well. But I mean us,” Matt said, his lips curved down. “Something got broken. We’re different people now. Debbie, you, and I. We’re like strangers. Everything’s not the way it used to be.”

  Jason turned away from Matt for a moment, then swiveled his head back and looked straight into his friend’s eyes. “I know you want things to be the same, but it never happens like that.”

  Matt squeezed the glass in his hands, as if wishing to find out if it was hard enough to withstand his fingers’ pressure. Then he let go of it.

  “It’s the first time in my life that I don’t know what to do next. McAlester’s ruined. Evelyn’s not gonna take me back. And I don’t think I’ll be able to spend so much time around Debbie again.”

  Jason folded his arms. “You know, Matt, Tyler is a great guy, and both of you deserve to be with Debbie. You’ll figure it out, man.”

  Matt leaned against the back of his chair, scratching his forehead. “I’m so tired of it, you know.”

  “I think you should take it easy for a while.”

  Matt raised his glass. “Cheers.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Jason jumped up, grasping and pulling it out of Matt’s fingers. “You’ve had enough.”

  “Okay. You win,” Matt said, smiling humorlessly. “Sorry you had to see me this way and listen to this crap.”

  “What are friends for, huh?” Jason clapped Matt on the shoulder. “Come on, you need some sleep.” He helped Matt stand up. “You definitely had enough for today.”

  “Guilty as charged.” Matt grimaced in the dark as they climbed up the stairs and shuffled down the corridor. “Too much to bear with, you know. I have no idea how you manage it.”

  Jason lowered his eyes. “Manage what?”

  “What Emily did to you. She got what she deserved after all, right?”

  Chapter 11

  The next day the weather changed for the worse. Gray clouds hung low, blotting out the sun, and the wind beat against the windows, producing a bone-chilling howl and making the panes rattle. They decided to have breakfast indoors.

  Tyler had found a thick cotton-wool pullover for Debbie who sat at the table with her shoulders hunched as Tyler announced their to-do list to Jason, Matt, Debbie, Alexei, and Violet. “It’s an approximate list, so any suggestions are welcome. First, we go back to the chamber that you passed on the way here.”

  “The one with the boxes?” Alexei asked, chewing a sandwich.

  “That’s right. It’ll be much quicker to travel this way. When we’re in London, we should stick together. We get to that meeting and as soon as it’s over, we’re out of there. Matt, Debbie, and Violet, you are the easiest targets for the Darksighted, so we’ll make sure you’re under our constant surveillance.”

  Debbie nodded, yawning and still shaking, while Matt kept rubbing his temples. Violet sat leaning back in her chair, not saying anything, pale and biting her lower lip.

  The windowpanes rattled another time, the wind persisting, as if eager to break in. It started drizzling, and the fields soon turned to a blurry gray.

  “Jason and Alexei will stay at the front of our group,” Tyler went on. “I’ll be at the back.”

  “If there’s a trap—” Matt grumbled.

  “In that case the only option for us is to run.” Tyler’s gray eyes fixed on Matt. “Getting into a fight against them will be suicide.”

  “We also need to get to King’s Cross at 3 p.m., remember?” Jason said.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Debbie said, rubbing her shoulders.

  Tyler wrapped his arms around Debbie’s waist. “If you’re so scared, I’ll call a few friends and ask them to accompany us. It’s time for you to get to know one another.” He took her hands and kissed them lightly. Debbie relaxed a bit, her cheeks turning pink.

  “Okay, let’s go then,” Tyler said.

  Everyone stood to leave; only Violet remained seated, pale, staring in front of her without blinking.

  “Violet, are you all right?” Jason asked.

  She raised her hand. Everyone looked at her. She cupped her face with her palm, the other hand still raised.

  “What is it?” Jason knelt down beside her.

  “I don’t know. Something bad’s going to happen.” She looked up at Matt and Debbie. Both tensed, waiting.

  Jason turned around, then looked back at Violet. “Matt and Debbie? What about them?” he persisted.

  Violet didn’t say anything at first. “I can’t make it out. There are voices in my head. They’re saying something about the Transcend— the Transcendent are coming.” She plugged her ears all of a sudden, her mouth stretched in a painful grin. “Tyler, no! Matt. Debb—.” She took frantic gasps, as if not having enough air to breathe. Jason grabbed her wrists, but she started kicking. “No, it hurts. Let me go. It hurts.” She pushed Jason with a force that sent him stumbling, then sprung up from her chair, grasped it with one hand, and threw it with enormous strength at the window. The glass cracked at the impact, but the chair stuck in the frames, and the web sprawled all over the windowpanes.

  “Hold her, Jay!” Tyler shouted.

  Violet stood rooted to one spot, her hand aimed at Jason’s heart. She took fast, deep breaths, eyeing him from under her eyebrows, like a predator about to pounce. Jason took a cautious step towards her, and Violet collapsed to the floor, convulsing and spitting blood.

  Jason landed next to her, scooped her face in his hands, and looked into her eyes. “It’s over. It’s okay. Everything’s going to be all right.”

  He embraced her, supporting her head with one hand, and her body went slack.

  “Matt and Debbie shouldn’t go,” Violet whispered softly.

  “Okay, they won’t. Don’t worry.” Jason stroked her hair. Her breathing was hot against his face; he couldn’t ignore her closeness. Violet’s breathing slowed, and Jason and Tyler helped her up and onto another chair.

  “What the hell just happened?” Matt asked, fully awake now.

  No one seemed bothered by the cold that seeped through the broken window.

  Debbie helped Violet wipe blood off her chin and then rubbed a few stains off her dress.

  “What do we do now?” Debbie said. “I can’t miss the meeting. Evelyn’s going to fire me.”

  “I was afraid you’d say that,” Tyler said. “You’re so Debbie, you know?”

  “Who are the Transcendent?” Jason asked.

  Tyler took a deep breath, the lines on his forehead accentuating his dismay. He went towards the window and pulled the chair out of the window frames, littering the floor with more pieces of glass. He set the chair aside, then stretched his hand to the glass sprinkled at h
is feet. The pieces jingled and soared up to the window, filling in the missing parts until each tiny piece was in its place. The window was still cracked, but when Tyler ran his hand over the glass, the surface glowed with faint silver light. The silver flowed through the other cracks, like blood through tiny veins, and then disappeared without a trace.

  “Before this time you probably thought there were two kinds of Sighted, Lightsighted and Darksighted,” he said. “Well, that’s not exactly true. Every Sighted person is a complex being whose existence is based on the life they have before they become Sighted. A pure Lightsighted or Darksighted is a rarity.”

  “You mean when a Sighted belongs to the Light, it doesn’t mean they don’t have Dark inside of them?” Debbie asked.

  “Yes,” Tyler said.

  “And what do the Transcendent have to do with it?” she pressed on.

  “The Transcendent are Sighted who can control whose side they choose to follow. Their auras are intense, but much more flexible than those of the other Sighted.”

  Jason felt beads of perspiration forming on his forehead. Thoughts whirled in his head, thoughts that there was still an explanation to the chaos his life had become. “Emily was a Transcendent!” A faint hope swelled in Jason’s chest.

  “I think yes.” Tyler nodded, but his expression was grim. “She was able to convince both Lightsighted and Darksighted that she was on their side.”

  “Does it mean Emily’s coming back?” Matt said.

  Tyler straightened the collar of his coat, hiding the scars that marred his neck.

  “I don’t think so,” Jason said. “There have to be other Transcendent around here, right?” Jason thought frantically. Emily had never mentioned the Transcendent to him. After what just happened, he realized there was part of Emily in Violet, and that part was getting stronger. Emily had given away her ability to tell prophecies to Violet.

  “We have to go and find out,” Debbie said.

  “You heard what Violet said, didn’t you?” Jason asked.

  “Yes, and I’m still coming,” Debbie said. “Whether you like it or not.” Then she turned to Violet. “How are you feeling?”