Micah's voice snapped me out of my daydream. I looked around the kitchen. There were no magazines and no plants. Just a stove with a burner on. Not even a teapot. I was not just losing it; it was long gone.
But Micah was there. Real and solid and strong.
Chapter 24
All that Matters
Bee cried out from the living room where I had left her. We both froze. His eyes went wide; mine narrowed.
"Don't you dare go near her," I warned.
A flicker of pain crossed his face. "I came for you, to help you."
"Back away."
He was blocking the exit to the kitchen; blocked my path to Bee.
He sidestepped, perhaps just as weary of me as I was of him. I moved forward only when we could maintain the distance between us. I ran out of the kitchen to Bee, needing to feel her in my arms.
As soon as I had her, I looked back at Micah. "Where’s Shawn?"
He shook his head. "I don't know. We couldn't find him."
"How hard did you look?"
"There was an explosion that sent us all flying. After I recovered, I came after you. I wasn't thinking about Shawn."
"I can't believe you...you joined him," the hurtful words croaked out of my mouth. I should be beating him senseless right now. I should be running away. I was too exhausted to do either.
Micah took a deep breath, then narrowed his eyes. "Why did you leave me?"
It came out of nowhere. I almost wanted to laugh. How could he not understand, even now?
I sat down on the couch, Bee still cradled in my arms. He stayed where he was.
"The ability to do what we do runs in our blood," I answered.
He crossed his arms, waiting for further explanation.
I continued, "The Seven kills Gaias."
He started to shake his head, denying it.
"Don't lie to me Micah. Don't lie to yourself. I might be able to accept my fate; I've done enough damage to understand the reasoning. But I will not accept the same fate for her. What if she is a Gaia? I don't care how much the world suffers – she is all that matters to me."
"And to me." Micah took a step toward us.
I jumped to me feet, clutching her to my chest and eyeing the doors and windows. I half expected Shawn to come crashing through any minute.
He continued, "I tried to tell you that, several times. You are my family. She is my family. I would never let anything happen to you. There will be no more murdering Gaias. We'll figure it out. The organization is gone. Cato is dead. Very little will be left from his days."
He took another step closer.
"Stop. Don't come any closer."
He lowered his arms.
"Why were you working with Shawn?" I asked.
"We needed him to find you. He had the Athame; we thought it could be of some help."
I shuddered that Arianna and the Shades inside who had worked so hard to train me, were now at his mercy.
"Susan has taken over," Micah continued, oblivious to my thoughts. "We can help her run the Seven. Together."
I clutched Bee even tighter when he took another step.
"We can protect her, together," he said.
"No. I can do it."
He shook his head. He was now close enough to put his hand on my shoulder. His other hand stroked my cheek as a tear ran down it. "No, Kaitlyn. You can't."
I crumbled. I knew he was right. I couldn't protect her from Shawn, from Micah, and worst of all I couldn't protect her from myself. The earth below us began to rumble.
I fell all the way to my knees in a desperate sob. "It's happening again. I can't control it."
The shaking began. Glass shattered out on the street.
"Here," I held Bee up to him. "Take her and run."
She was lifted away from me. I hugged my empty arms to my chest.
His boots hadn't moved. I looked up, yelling over the noise, "Get her away from here. Away from me!"
Micah shook his head, "No."
I stood and pushed him back, toward the door. "Go!"
"I won't!" he yelled back.
Car alarms on the street increased the noise. The building shook even harder as Micah and I faced off, forcing our wills against each other.
The door to the apartment slammed open and Alex rushed in with a black duffel bag. He stopped short at Micah's side.
"Alex." My eyes lifted to his in a plea. "Take them away. Get them out of here!"
Micah glanced at Alex. "I'm not going."
Small cracks became large gaping holes in the walls. Several small explosions could be heard outside.
I wouldn't back down. I had warned them, Bee was all that mattered. I would do all I could to keep her safe, even if it meant keeping her away from me.
I hardened my face, attempting to stare Micah down. He did the same to me. So far it was a draw.
He handed Bee to Alex. "Get under that table!"
A red haze descended over my eyes. My body trembled with all the energy I was absorbing from the land, and the land trembled in rage at its loss.
I looked over at Alex. He had Bee under the table with him, holding her with one arm while rooting through his black duffel bag with the other.
I turned back around. Micah was directly in front of me. I shook my head and whispered, "You should have left."
He must've read my lips. He replied, "Never."
Rage continued to dominate, and I raised my hand to slap him. If this earthquake wouldn't knock some sense into him, maybe I could. "You have her, now take what you came for and go!"
"I came for you!"
I lashed out. He caught my wrist, mid-strike. His eyes blazed, matching my temper, flare for flare.
The intensity of the earthquake grew, coming to its peak. Another glance over at Alex and Bee. He had Bee wrapped in a camouflage military flak jacket, and was holding a helmet over her head. Her neck wasn't nearly strong enough to support the weight.
For a moment, I felt she would be ok. Even if the fight between Micah and I came to a head, destroying us both. I turned back to Micah, his eyes still blazed. I lifted my chin, almost daring him to hit back.
Instead, his fingers intertwined with mine.
I held my breath as I felt the familiar sizzle from his touch. I began to breathe again.
The shaking simmered to a dull roar. Even then, small pieces of ceiling fell.
The corner of Micah's mouth turned up slightly. "See? Together we can do this."
He was right, of course. That damned man was always right.
I curled my hand into my chest, taking his with me and causing him to come up right against me. I ducked my head into his chest and his other arm curled around me.
The building stopped shaking, the last bits of ceiling and wall still falling around us.
Alex broke us out of our trance. "Come on, we need to get out of here before the thing collapses around us." He climbed out from under the table with Bee, motioning for us to follow.
Micah went back for Alex's duffel bag under the table, and my carryon bag on the couch. I looked around, scanning the apartment for anything I should salvage. It was unrecognizable to me. Bare of all personal belongings that made it mine, now littered with dry wall, insulation and other debris that was supposed to be holding it together.
I walked out, following Alex's footsteps, closely trailed by Micah. I moved forward but was completely numb. I had hit rock bottom.
As we crossed the street, Alex ushered us into his rental car. The door closed behind me and I stared at my apartment through the window. An explosion burst out of the bakery on the ground floor. It could have been a gas leak, or a machine rupture by the earthquake. The cause didn't really matter. What was left of my apartment after the blast was quickly being melted away by flames.
Panicked, I looked for Bee. She was safe in Micah's arms. He straightened from the crouch he had folded into, covering her body with his at the explosion. Alex put the car in gear, pulling away, dodging bits
of flaming debris in the road.
He looked in the rearview mirror. "Where to?"
Micah raised one eyebrow at me. "Home?"
Whether he meant the place he purchased for us at Reunion Island, or the Chakra, I couldn't be sure. I scooted closer to him, laid my head on his shoulder, and let Bee play with my hand.
"I am home," I said softly.
Chapter 25
Gambling
Shawn kicked his way out from under the debris. "God damn it!"
The sun had sunk well below the horizon by now. He didn't get up yet; his body wasn't cooperating. He strained his neck, turning left – then right. Micah and Alex were nowhere in sight.
"Probably already off this God-forsaken island," Shawn mumbled to himself.
He couldn't complain too much. Kaitlyn's blast would have killed him if he hadn't called for the Shades to form the shield around him.
Where did Micah learn to use energy like that anyway? Shawn thought as he lay still, willing his numb limbs to work. Probably from the Athame, when he was talking to Arianna.
Next time he took a trip there he'd have to address that.
No rush, he thought.
A trip there meant another possible encounter with Sarah. It was still hard to stomach rejection by the only part of Sarah that was left.
"You all right, brother?" A dark-skinned, long-haired island native popped into view, blocking out the starry sky.
"I don't know." Shawn held out his hand to be helped up, and the stranger obliged. "I was here with some friends, and then…"
"And then all hell broke loose," the islander finished for him.
"Yeah – something like that." Shawn laughed nervously, brushing debris off his clothes. Still stiff, he moved slowly. "Have you seen my friends? Two white guys, hard to miss."
The islander narrowed his eyes. "I saw you fighting with two white guys just before the storm."
Shawn hesitated, scratching the back of his neck, buying time. "That was me and who I thought were my friends. We came here together, looking for something. Problem is, I think they found it."
"Why is that a problem?" The islander crossed his arms over his chest.
Shawn took a gamble, hoping this man either had magical abilities or at least believed in them. From what he saw during the battle, many on the island did.
"It was my friends who created that…electrical storm. I was trying to stop them." Shawn ran a hand through his hair. His other hand clenched into a fist in an attempt to look desperate.
The islander didn't say anything. For the first time, Shawn noticed the destruction around him. Many buildings were completely leveled; the foundations marking where they stood like chalk outlines of murdered bodies. "Dude, I'm so sorry about your town."
The islander's eyes softened.
"I can help – it's the least I can do for bringing those…men, here." Shawn didn't have to force the grimace that came with the word 'men'. Micah and Alex were a huge disappointment, as far as 'men' went. Pussy-whipped, was the word that came to mind.
"Nah – I think you outsiders have helped enough." The islander's voice dripped with sarcasm, his friendly attitude nowhere to be seen.
"Trust me – you want my help. I have the money to rebuild."
Shawn watched the islander look around at Avenue Tekema, what was once their main hub. Their emergency buildings were wiped out, along with the only grocery store in town. A dead body lay in the street.
The islander sighed. "Okay, I'd better take you to see someone."
Jackpot.
"My name is Andrés," said the islander, sticking out his hand.
"I'm Shawn." The two shook.
Chapter 26
Change of Plans
Micah booked us flights to Reunion Island, chattering the whole way about how he had the nursery furnished and decorated. Alex was to go back to the Chakra. Awaiting our flights at an airport in France, we sat around a table in a café. I stared at a half-eaten sandwich, while Micah tried to cajole more food into me.
Alex had two straws in his mouth, hanging them off his canines like fangs before hiding behind a napkin and peeking out from one side or another. Bee shrieked with laughter. Apparently peek-a-boo was better with vampires.
A snatch of conversation from a couple at the table behind us caught my ear.
"…the earthquake in Turkey. Media thinks One Less is responsible," a woman said.
The man responded, "One Less thinks Earth is responsible."
I turned to look at them.
"Do you believe it?" she asked.
The man shrugged. "I don't know. It sort of makes sense."
The woman paused, her drink halfway up to her mouth. "You really think Earth is trying to rid itself of humans?"
"Well, not all of them. But maybe enough to cause us to change our ways."
She almost threw her hands up in frustration. "The Earth doesn't think. It is a rock – nothing more."
I interrupted, "Is it now?"
They both looked at me, stunned by the intrusion.
"I'm sorry – I didn't mean to eavesdrop. It's just – I haven't been following the news." I gestured to the newspaper the woman held in her hands. "May I take a look at that?"
"Sure…" She handed it over, hesitantly.
I turned back to the table, newspaper in hand. As I flipped back to the front page, where the article started, I looked at Micah. "What have I missed?" My time on Easter Island was spent in seclusion from the rest of the world. All sources of outside news cut off, on purpose.
"A lot," Micah responded, letting me find out for myself.
I looked down at the paper. The headline matched his ominous response:
20,000 Killed in Turkish Earthquake.
I scanned through the article. Shawn had been busy.
Behind us, the couple left. I waited until they were out of earshot then shot an accusatory glance at Micah and Alex, "Wasn't he with you the whole time?"
"Yes, but he was probably still able to communicate with his organization."
"20,000 dead!" I motioned with the paper. "How many other incidents have there been?"
"Enough," Micah responded, his voice growing cold.
"Then why didn't you stop him; why didn't you kill him?"
Micah leaned in. "We needed him to find you."
"At the expense of how many others?"
Micah shook his head. "It isn't a one man show. We know enough that taking him out wouldn't be the end of it."
I stood, folding the newspaper, and handed it to Micah. "Come on, get up. We need to change our flights."
"Why?" Alex asked, quickly wiping crumbs off of Bee.
I looked at Micah as I spoke. "We're going back to the Chakra."
Chapter 27
India
Ritesh made his way through the streets of Calcutta toward the second central business district. It was easier to walk than drive his car; traffic was at a standstill, as it usually was on Park Street. India had quickly become the newest consumption culture. Good for some, perhaps, but it brought in western-style affluences with which largely rural India couldn't cope. Car sales rose each year by a good twenty percent, but there weren’t enough roads for anyone to drive on. Not by a long shot. Combined with India’s nonexistent fuel economy standards, the skies were brown most months out of the year. Ritesh shook his head as he weaved through the idling line of cars.
Once in his office, he closed the window to the poisoned air and powered up his computer. He had only half an hour to finalize his presentation to his boss, who would then use it to brief his boss, who then had an appointment at the Ministry of Environment and Forests the next day.
With any luck, they’d be able to create a state action plan on climate change. Perhaps this time they would be able to prevent another devastating drought such as the one that had triggered the Bengali famine of 1943. Already, El Niño had stopped the seasonal monsoons. Water shortages resulted in below average crop yields.
&n
bsp; Ritesh clicked save on his PowerPoint and stood to look out the window. He tried to see past the brown skies, willing the clouds to gather and the rain to fall. It didn't work. He looked down at the masses of people in the streets. There was so much poverty out there…five million had perished in 1943. If nothing was done, he feared this would be worse.
Chapter 28
No Regrets
It had been at least four months since I had last seen the Chakra. With Cato gone, I expected the place to be in disarray. He had always wanted his staff limited, keeping the operation at bare bones. For secrecy, I’d always supposed. And in order to prevent treason.
Though, that hadn’t quite worked out for him – his own son betrayed him.
The entrance itself gave away signs of change. Large gates blocked the only road into the Chakra. As our truck approached, Alex had to type in a code, then wait for approval from the security office before the gates were buzzed open.
As we approached the building, I looked around at the grounds. Small groups of people were practicing with their elements. A man stood before a group of women, levitating a fireball above his palm. The atmosphere crackled with electricity.
"What happened here?" I asked, mouth open.
Micah smiled. "Susan is in charge now."
When we exited the vehicle, the closest groups stopped to look at us – or at me, rather. I paused outside of the truck, eyeing the newcomers right back. Though I suppose, to them, I was the newbie.
The Fire Elemental glanced up and immediately singed his fingertips. Shaking them out, he put his other hand on his hip and glared in my direction.
"Making friends already?" Micah asked, coming up next to me. He put his arm around me and planted a kiss square on my cheek. He nodded to Bee, "Take her inside – Susan would kill us both if you didn't bring the baby straight to her."
I nodded, still trying to observe the Elementals while unbuckling Bee from her car seat. They all had to be considered threats. Hugging Bee to my chest, I walked inside with Alex toting our luggage. Micah had approached the group, calling over medics to look at the singed hand and ordering the rest back to practice. Everyone in the yard didn't hesitate to follow orders. No doubt who the general of this army was.
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