by Trisha Wolfe
Jace forced me through the door. “Are you crazy?” he said angrily as he ushered me away from Cogs. Lana and Nick came up beside us, matching our brisk pace.
As we raced through the cobbled street, I glanced back to see the three Narcos pushing through the door of Cogs. “Jace, what are we going to—” My words caught in my throat as I halted mid-stride.
We stared out over the bay. Airships hung over the harbor, their Daimler engines choking out black smoke, a dark haze conflicting with the purple-orange night sky. Giant, round swells above the ships reflected the lights of the pier against their shiny silver. And their canvas sails reached out over the inky water, beating in the breeze.
“They’re here.” I turned toward Jace. “And more than just their Council.” I glanced at the three huge airships in our harbor. “That Narco at the club had a neck tatt, and I felt the heat rolling off his hands. What are we…” My words died again as I saw the three Narcos making their way toward us. Crap. Why would our Council agree to a Treaty Act? And why the hell would they ever allow the Narcolym into Haven Falls?
Jace pushed me behind him. “Let me handle it.”
I attempted to get around him, wanting to hit the stupid Narco one last time. “I don’t need you protecting me, Jace. What the hell is all that training for, then?”
He shot me an impatient look. “Please, Dez. Just…look after Lana.”
I studied my best friend’s panic-stricken face, and gave her a weak smile.
The Narco that had pinned me to the wall, Reese, and his two thugs marched toward us.
“Great,” Nick breathed. “Guess it’s on now.”
Jace and Nick stepped in front of Lana and me.
Reese stopped right in front of them. “I guess you didn’t come out to play alone, after all.” He grinned at me, then looked at Jace and cocked his head. “Do you really want to do this?” he asked.
Jace cracked his knuckles. “Don’t see why not.”
Reese rubbed his hands together and they flamed red as heat built in their center. A red glow snaked around and up his forearm. “You’re not ready.” His eyes flared. “I thought you might have some tatts, but you’re powerless. And besides”—he nodded toward his two buddies—“we’d get in trouble for disturbing the peace. Though it might’ve been worth it if you were full shifters.”
The Narcos beside Reese waved their hands at us as if we’d wasted their time. I released a breath that I didn’t know I’d been holding. As much as I wanted to take the guy’s head off, I was more worried about my friends getting hurt.
I turned to Lana. “Let’s get out of here.” Then to Jace, I added, “Come on, let it go.”
Jace balled his hands by his thighs, white knuckled. “He can’t get away with treating you like that.”
I laid my hand on his shoulder. “Jace…” And with just his name, he relaxed his hands and turned to go.
As we neared the bike ramp, I glanced over my shoulder. Reese’s glowing red arms faded as he passed under dimly lit gas lamps. We were almost to Jace and Nick’s levibikes when I looked back one last time. Reese waved—a smile spreading across his face. Then he winked at me.
My birthday was right around the corner. I’d be seventeen and have my full power, and then I’d see that Narco hothead again. Treaty Act my ass.
Chapter Two
“DUDE, DID YOU SEE that Narco’s arms?” Nick asked Jace over the low hum of the levibikes. He pushed his goggles onto the top of his head and stared wide-eyed at Jace. “I think I shat myself a bit.”
Jace kicked his levibike into a higher gear. He shook with laughter in my arms, and I sighed with relief as his tense form melted. Pressing myself closer to him, I rested my cheek against his back. Then I thought better and scooted farther down on the leather seat, making some room between us. The steam engine warmed my calves, and I gripped the brass handles, balancing myself as Jace took a sharp curve.
We bobbed as the levibike hovered over the cobbled roadway. Haven Falls, our protected sanctuary, was built on top of earth magnet. Steam-powered machines floated along the city streets, propelled by an equal amount of opposite magnetic energy built into their frames. I studied the two-story buildings—their windows lit up like twinkling stars—trying to envision what might change as the Narcolym invaded, and also wondering if it would affect my change.
Lana gave an exasperated huff. “Sit farther up.” She slapped Nick’s shoulder before adjusting her seating on the back of his levibike. Nick always drove, leaving Lana stewing from behind. “Not that his arms weren’t something to gawk at, but I’m more concerned about why they were at Cogs.” She looked between the two hover-bikes. “Haven has protection spells keeping Narcos out, not just along the city border, but around buildings, shops…everywhere. Council members are the only ones who can lower them. Why would they take them down all over the city and not just the Council Building?” She slapped Nick again. “You know, where they’re supposed to be meeting?”
“Stop hitting me!” Nick shouted. “I get your point, sheesh.”
My stomach knotted. I didn’t want to think about having to avoid them everywhere. “You have to ask your dad,” I shouted over to her.
Lana nodded. Their father was a member of the Shythe Council. He could give us some answers—that is, if he actually would. The Council was secretive about the details of the Treaty Act, especially when it came to the younger generation. And Mr. Tuner didn’t like to involve his kids in Council business.
I frowned and chewed the inside of my lip. That had been the first time I’d ever come face-to-face with a Narcolym, and I didn’t know what to make of the encounter yet. My mother had done everything in her power, literally, to keep me away from them—moving us to Haven, changing our names. She wouldn’t even tell me what my last name used to be. She’d freak if she found out about tonight.
Nick interrupted my brooding. “I don’t care what the Council’s plans are. It’s our club. We were there first.” He led us around another bend in the street.
Jace’s head shot in Nick’s direction. “What? Are you five?” He returned his gaze to the roadway. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll have our ink soon—then just let them try something.”
Nick laughed. “Hell yeah, that’s what I’m talking about. Full-on turf war.”
Flinging herself back farther on the seat, Lana smacked Nick again. “No. I don’t want you two getting us kicked out of Cogs. I like it there.”
I smiled to myself, thinking what she liked most wasn’t the atmosphere and music, but Devon.
She nodded over to me. “Hey, what’s up?”
I dropped the smirk. “Nothing,” I said. Then my thoughts trailed to what I’d been thinking before. “Just…” I rubbed my palms over my breeches, wiping away the sweat. “Just don’t say anything to my mom. She’d wig.”
Lana understood completely about my mom’s overprotectiveness. She waggled her finger, pointing between Jace and Nick. “Not a word to Sylvia, got it? I don’t want my best friend grounded for the rest of her life because you two idiots can’t keep quiet.”
I noticed Jace eyeing me in the side mirror of the steering bar. I met and held his gaze. “Dez, it’s cool. She won’t find out,” he shouted over the engine’s drone.
As we hovered up to their townhouse, I smacked my forehead. “Crap.”
Jace craned his neck. “What? Did you forget something?”
“No—yes.” I shook my head. “I forgot to tell you that I wasn’t staying the night. My mom wants me home for some reason.”
Lana pursed her lips and swung a leg over the seat, bouncing off the bike. “Want me to stay at your house?”
“No. Whatever it is this time, I better face her wrath on my own.” I pulled my lips into a half-smile. “Thanks, though.”
Jace peddled his feet backward, inching us down the drive. “I don’t mind another ride.”
I waved to Lana. “I’ll catch you tomorrow, okay?”
She rubbed the back of her
neck, then batted the hanging gas lantern on her porch. “Yup. Tomorrow.”
Jace and I rode in silence, my thoughts louder than the vibrating of the engine. My mind reeled over the confrontation with the Narcos at the club. So when he spoke, I jerked.
“Hey,” he said. “Sorry about…well, you know.”
In the midst of being felt up by Reese and the potential fight, I’d forgotten about Jace marking my neck. “Oh, yeah? You actually feel bad about that?” I laughed.
I couldn’t see his expression, but he sounded embarrassed. Jace wasn’t bashful. Rude, quiet, and broody sometimes, but never bashful. I urged my smile away. “Don’t worry, I’ll get even. I’ll plant a mark on your neck so big, Nick will never let you live it down.” My face heated and I bit my lip, wishing I could take it back.
The silence was deafening. I wanted him to say something, anything to clear the awkwardness.
Jace stayed quiet as he parked next to my cobbled walkway. My mom had left the gas lanterns on, expecting me. Our house was a two-story stand-alone unit in the heart of Haven Falls. Every unit along Perry Street looked the same, with dark mahogany shutters and doors, and a single White Oak centered in each manicured yard—a string of chemical tea lights draping the trees’ branches.
Kicking out the stand, Jace lowered the levibike and cut the engine. He turned, bringing his knee across the seat, and faced me. His eyebrows furrowed into a confused, almost painful expression. I tried to think of something to say to break the uncomfortable silence, but I could only stare into his bright blue eyes. Say something.
“You might want to cover that up before your mom sees it.” He pointed to my neck. “It’ll probably be gone by tomorrow, but for now…”
That was the Jace I was used to—the non-bashful one. And shoot, he was right. I leaned forward, angling myself around him to inspect my neck in the tiny mirror. The mark was pinkish-red but not dark, and thankfully not big. Although, my mom would definitely notice if I didn’t hide it. I cursed under my breath, remembering Lana had my makeup in her bag.
Jace released a heavy breath. “Here,” he said, shrugging off his jerkin. “Flip the collar up.”
“Thanks.” I reached for the jacket, but he wrapped it around my shoulders instead.
Slipping my arms into the sleeves, I pulled it tight to my chest. As he flipped the collar, his fingers grazed the tender spot on my neck. I shivered as they lingered there a moment longer, tracing my skin. Then he quickly yanked back, pushing himself hard against the brass steering bar.
I finished adjusting the collar and glanced into the mirror to make sure it covered the mark completely. Check. One pissed off mom averted.
“Are you scared?” Jace asked, catching me off guard. I followed his gaze toward my unit.
“What?” I looked back at him. “Of my mom?”
“No.” He drove his hand through his hair. “Are you scared about the change? You know, your birthday?”
I was terrified, for reasons I couldn’t admit to him, but I shook my head. “No. I mean, kind of. But I think we look forward to it for so long…I sort of just want to get it over with.”
Every Kythan—no matter the race—gained full power at seventeen. Each individual change was different. Some experience a lot of pain. For others, the first shift took longer. But we all went through it. We didn’t have a choice. And I’d begun fearing the change more than most the day my mother told me the truth about my father. I shuddered, then attempted to brush off my worry.
“I’m dying to see how strong you’ll be.” Jace’s lips curled into a side-grin. “I bet afterward, you’ll beat me no problem.”
“You want to fight me without matching powers?” I asked. Jace, Lana, and Nick—triplets, but not identical—turned seventeen a week later than me. “That doesn’t seem fair.”
He shrugged, and his smile spread, pinching his eyes. “I can’t wait to see what you can do.”
My heart beat painfully into my throat, and I gulped it down, hard. “Yeah, me either.” I glanced at the cobbled street. I hated the not knowing and the lying to my friends. I dropped my leg over the seat, about to jump off the levibike, when Jace’s hand grasped my arm and I froze.
“Hey,” he said, his eyes catching mine. “It’s okay. We’re all scared about the change, and about what’s happening with this stupid Treaty Act.” He paused, rubbing his hand along my arm. “And now that the Narcos are here, we have to keep up with our training. Even if my dad is one of the high and mighty, we need to protect ourselves.”
I could feel the warmth of his hand through his jacket. Heat rushed my cheeks. “Once we’re at the Academy, it’ll be hard to keep training. You know they’ve outlawed it, especially sparring with powers. How are we going to get away with this?” He opened his mouth, but I continued. “And your dad, Jace, he’s a Council member. He’ll be livid if he finds out what we’re up to.”
“I don’t care.” His eyes burned blue. “They have no right to choose for us. Even if they made an agreement to end the war with the Narcos, I don’t trust them.” He took a deep breath. “How can they suddenly bury centuries of war, death, our almost extinction, with one piece of paper?” He gritted his teeth. “Stating we’re all family now? It’s all good? Bullshit!”
My heart sank. “Jace…” I began, but my thoughts failed. What could I say? He had a valid point. The Narcolym had wiped out a whole race of Kythan already. And nearly killed off the Shythe. But this was more difficult for me than he could ever imagine. I hesitantly took his hand. “I get it, but I don’t want you, Lana, or Nick to get into trouble. We’ll be all right. There’s no way your dad would allow them here if he thought we’d be in danger.”
Jace nodded once. Then he gave me a smoldering smile. I hated that my best friend—the boy I’d known my whole life—was suddenly becoming gorgeous. He’d always been cute, but lately, I’d been getting tongue tied and nervous whenever he flashed me his amazing smile.
“You’re right. They wouldn’t do anything to endanger us knowingly. But that’s why we need to train.” He squeezed my hand. “Just in case something goes wrong. They’re in our haven now, and I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to Lane, Nick or…” He bowed his head. “You.”
Jace rocked back and dropped my hand. He swung his leg over the bike. After scooting off the seat I turned toward him as he powered up the engine. The brass-rimmed bike hovered up, and steam vented in a spiral from the copper tailpipe.
“Night, Dez.” His eyes met mine, and a warm smile spread across his face. “Sweet dreams.” Then he took off.
“Night,” I whispered, watching his levibike hover down the roadway.
Rubbing my still-warm hand from where Jace had held it, I climbed my walkway. I glanced over my shoulder once, but he’d already disappeared.
Inside, my mom was asleep on the couch. I frowned down at her. She’d attempted to stay awake, but working long hours at the factory always did her in. And it wasn’t just her. All Kythan with their full power were becoming weaker. I buried my unease and grabbed a blanket from the hall closet. Lightly draping it over her, I tucked the edge close to her cheek. Whatever she wanted to talk about could wait until the morning.
I crept up the stairs to my room and turned the brass dial on my wall, illuminating my star-shaped gas lamps. Walking to my dressing mirror, I tugged Jace’s jerkin around myself tighter, inhaling his cologne and something else indefinably his scent, before my stomach dropped free-fall.
Staring back at me from the mirror was one glowing, violet eye—the color I tried so desperately to conceal.
Chapter Three
I SEARCHED MY HARDWOOD FLOOR. Nothing. I eased Jace’s jacket off, then ran my hand along the collar. Where is it? Panic filled my stomach, constricting my chest. I took in a deep breath and squeezed my eyes shut.
At least I lost it after I came in. I had to have. Jace would’ve said something. More than something, he’d have freaked out seeing a glowing purple eye staring at hi
m.
I flung the jacket across my bed. Retracing my steps, I worked my way through my room and down the stairs. I had leaned over Mom when I came in, I thought, and quietly slunk toward her. I studied the floor, then her. My eye lens gleamed up at me from her blanket. I breathed a sigh of relief. Too close.
I lightly picked the blue lens from the blanket, and rolled it around my palm with the tip of my finger. It was split on one side. Great. I only had one pair left. Eye lenses were a popular alternative to glasses, but colored lenses weren’t easy to find. Only one store carried them, and blue was almost always sold out. The material used to make them wasn’t a big commodity in Haven, and being closed off from the rest of the world strained our imports.
Turning to go, I heard my mom stir. “Destiny?”
I blew my bangs off my forehead with a deep huff. “Yup, it’s me.” I spun around. She squinted against the dim lighting. “I didn’t mean to wake you. I lost my len—” I snapped my mouth shut. She was bent on keeping my identity secret. And pissed was too kind a word for how she’d react to my losing an eye lens.
She bolted up and stared into my eyes. “You lost a lens?” She tossed the covers off. Gripping my chin, she brought my face center with hers. “How many times—”
I jerked back. “I know. I know!” I flung myself down hard on the sofa, sinking deeply into the rough leather. “I’m sorry. But at least it fell out here.”
She turned toward me. “And what if it’d fallen out while you were out? Around Lana, or worse, her father?” She shook her head. “I’ve told you so many times, you have to be extra careful around those Tuner kids. The Council can never know. Do you even know what would happen if they found out who your father was?”
“I don’t even know who my father was.” I crossed my legs angrily.
Her face softened. “I’ve told you, he was a good man. Even though we didn’t know each other very long…we did care for each other, Destiny.” She rubbed my knee.
I bowed my head, swallowing the aching lump forming in my throat. It wasn’t her fault I didn’t know him. She even tried to make me feel closer to him by calling me Destiny—when no one else was around. She’d told me once that my father had named me.
