Emma shrugged. “I’m not sure. I can’t tell exactly what it’s designed to block.”
“Maybe my strength . . . my speed?” Ava couldn’t ignore a rush of excitement at the idea.
“Could be. Or maybe more psychic gifts?” Emma bit her lip. “Or, it’s possible nothing will happen. No way to know for sure until it’s gone.”
A nervous thrill ran through Ava—half eager, half terrified.
“It’s up to you,” Emma said.
“I think . . .” Ava twisted the swing until she faced Emma head on. “I think I’d like you to try.”
Emma’s face lit up with a sunny smile. “Great! Okay, close your eyes—”
“Wait a second. You want to do it right now?”
Emma’s smile fell a little. “Well, yeah. Don’t you?”
“I figured you’d need to prepare or something.” Nerves fluttered in Ava’s stomach.
“I don’t. Do you?” Emma cocked a brow, a smile teasing at her lips.
“No,” Ava replied defensively. “I can do it. I’m . . . I’m ready.” Tiernan was going to kill her for doing this on her own. Not to mention Caleb. Still, she squared her shoulders and closed her eyes. “Now what?”
Emma turned to face her, reaching out to lay her hands gently on Ava’s head, fingers spread wide. “Try to relax,” she said, breathing deeply to demonstrate. “And when you feel me, don’t fight me. It’ll go against your instincts, but let me in. I’ll try to show you the block, and you can help me remove it.”
“But how—”
“Just breathe,” Emma said, her voice barely a whisper. “Stay calm. You’ll feel it.”
Ava concentrated on breathing deep and slow, willing her muscles to relax and her pulse to slow. After a moment, she felt Emma’s gift and gasped at the intrusion, her gift flaring up in defense.
“Shhhh . . .” Emma murmured. “Don’t fight it.”
Ava exhaled slowly, corralling her gift, almost reassuring it. She felt Emma prodding in her mind, a quiet pressure—not unpleasant, but a little unsettling.
“There,” Emma said. “Do you feel it?”
“No, I—I don’t know . . .”
“I’m going to try and lift it now. Help me if you can.”
Ava felt what she could only describe as a pull . . . then a push . . . deep within her mind. “I can feel it.”
“Use your gift,” Emma whispered, tension evident in her voice. “See if you can help me.”
Ava called on her power, feeling it well within her, almost eager to follow her directions. She focused on the point in her consciousness where she could feel the block and urged her gift to work with Emma’s.
“That’s it,” Emma said. “Keep going.”
Ava’s jaw clenched as she concentrated, the harsh breaths from both girls cutting through the air around them.
“Almost there,” Emma whispered.
With a rush, Ava felt it lift and disappear. Her gift swelled, consuming her wholly for the first time, and she fell forward off the swing and landed on her hands and knees in the gravel.
Emma dropped to her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “Are you all right?”
Ava nodded, breathing heavily, her gift sparking along her skin—along every nerve ending. She’d thought it remarkable before, but now . . . now it rushed through her, thickening her blood, filling her with sizzling energy.
“It’s just . . . so much.” She tried to catch her breath, overwhelmed.
Emma helped her up, got her situated back in the swing, and knelt before her. “Try and breathe through it,” she said. “It’s part of you, but it’s been held back for so long. You have to get used to it.”
Ava nodded again, closing her eyes and trying to get hold of her heaving breaths.
“Don’t hold it back,” Emma said. “Let it be. Just . . . let it be.”
“You’re quoting the Beatles now?” Ava gasped out.
“Who?”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” She opened her eyes and stopped fighting. Instead of pushing back, she let her gift swell and felt it reaching out, beyond her skin—beyond her body. She watched in awe as the gravel all around the swing set began to float, higher and higher. Her necklace warmed against her skin and started to hum with vibrations.
“That’s it.” Emma smiled encouragingly. “That’s it.”
Ava let it go . . . the gravel floating and swirling around them, forming intricate patterns—spirals and stars—smaller pebbles orbiting larger ones. She laughed, her gift reaching further, larger rocks lifting into the air, the swing set itself shaking, tugging against its moorings.
“Now, try and bring it down,” Emma said quietly. “You’re not fighting against it. It’s you. It’s like putting down a pencil when you’re done writing.”
Ava nodded, letting the gift wrap around her, withdrawing to within the boundaries of her skin once again. The swing set settled, and slowly the rocks . . . then the pebbles lowered to the earth, the last settling into place with a quiet plink as the necklace stilled, its warmth lingering comfortingly.
“Wow,” Ava said, voice cracking. She cleared her throat with a choked giggle. “Wow, that was amazing!”
Emma’s smile fell, her brow creasing in concern.
“What?” Ava asked. “What’s wrong?”
“Your nose.”
Ava reached up with a trembling hand to touch it, surprised when her fingers came away red and wet. “I’m bleeding.”
Emma fumbled in her coat pocket, pulled out a crumpled tissue, and pressed it to Ava’s nose. “Just an aftereffect of lifting the block,” she said in an attempt to reassure Ava. “You’ve been through a lot. It’s only natural.”
That made sense. Ava took the tissue and pressed it more firmly against her nose. She had a feeling Emma had released more than her gift. Her body felt stronger, vibrant with energy, although her mind felt tired, her head aching.
“You should rest,” Emma said, helping her to her feet.
Ava let herself be led back to the main building. She was more than ready to curl up next to Caleb and sleep. She sniffed slightly. Tomorrow, she’d see just what Emma had freed up.
Yeah, What’s a little nosebleed, anyway?
Chapter 13
“I don’t understand why we need to wait for Tiernan,” Caleb said grumpily, sipping coffee from a paper cup as Ava led him to the training area behind the Guardians’ common building. His head no longer hurt, but he was a bit irritated at being dragged out of bed shortly after dawn. He’d liked the feeling of Ava pressed along his side, her head pillowed on his chest as their gifts mingled, wrapping them in soothing warmth, and had hoped to indulge that feeling until at least noon.
Ava, however, had other ideas. She’d bounced out of bed, a bundle of nervous energy, words tumbling out as she told him Emma had lifted the rest of her psychic block and she felt strong and fast and powerful and . . .
“Come on, Caleb, I want to go try it out!”
Which was why he was huddled in his coat in the frosty morning air when there were other things he’d much rather be doing, thank you very much. He eyed Ava a little hungrily and let out a heavy sigh. It had been so long that they’d been apart. He craved some time alone with her now that the immediate danger had passed.
Is that so wrong?
“I have a bit of a score to settle with Tiernan,” she said, bending over to stretch her leg muscles and then straightening up to reach over her head. “That guy is more of a slave driver than you!” She grinned, leaning up to kiss the corner of Caleb’s mouth. “No offense.”
“None taken,” he said wryly, chasing her mouth when she pulled away.
She smiled, letting him pull her close into a deeper kiss, a victorious rush of endorphins kicking in when he felt her tremble, her fingers tightening on his jacket as her knees buckled a little. She didn’t move away when he released her, instead leaning her forehead against his shoulder with a shaky sigh.
“What are we going to do?”
>
There was something in the question, the whispered words accompanying her sigh, that made him realize the toll everything had taken on her. Not only the running and the fighting, but the understanding that she wasn’t who she thought she was—and all that that entailed.
“We’ll figure it out,” he said and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m not leaving you again. We’re in this together.” She leaned closer, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist, as he did the same, one hand stroking up her back to tangle in her hair.
A throat cleared and they pulled apart in time to see Tiernan approaching with Adam in tow.
Ava propped her fists on her hips, arching a brow at the presence of the dampener. “What? You don’t trust me?”
Tiernan smirked. “Not as far as I can throw you.” He considered that. “Although, now that I think of it, I could probably throw you pretty far, so I should say, not as far as you could throw you.”
“That doesn’t even make sense.”
Tiernan shrugged, making his way over to the largest weight block on the grass and looking at her expectantly. “Well? You dragged me out of bed at this ungodly hour, are you ready or not?”
Ava started toward him, but Caleb stopped her with a hand on her wrist.
“You sure about this?” he asked quietly. Tiernan was the strongest of the Protectors, and with Adam present to dampen her telekinesis, Ava would have no weapon against him if her strength failed her yet again. “Maybe you should try it with me first.”
“Yeah. If you don’t think you can handle it,” Tiernan called out, goading her.
She cast him an irritated glance before turning back to Caleb. “I’m sure. It’ll be fine. I promise.”
Caleb wasn’t convinced, but he watched her approach the block, reaching out to strengthen her power with his own. She smiled back at him, obviously feeling it, and he nodded in encouragement.
Adam didn’t interfere and seemed to be focused on dampening Ava’s telekinesis, nothing else. He stood off to the side with his hands in his pockets, watching the proceedings with mild interest.
“Ready?” Tiernan asked.
Ava pressed her hands flat against the block. It was almost as tall as her, and she took a deep breath to center herself before answering. “Ready.”
Tiernan seemed unworried, simply leaning forward against the block, but not putting any real strength behind it. Ava, however, closed her eyes, her muscles tightening as she shoved against it and her feet slipping on the damp grass. She dug in and gasped when the block moved. Only an inch or so, but it definitely moved. She straightened, gaping at the block—then at Caleb.
“Did you see that?” she asked, breathless. “Did you see that?” She jumped up and down, a laugh bursting from her lips.
“Try again.” Caleb moved closer with an encouraging smile.
Ava nodded excitedly, putting her shoulder to the block.
Tiernan braced himself on the other side. “Go ahead,” he said.
Ava gritted her teeth as she pushed, the toes of her shoes digging into the dirt. The block moved, and Tiernan tensed, pushing back just a little. Caleb watched in awe as the shoving battle continued for the next several minutes, amazed at the tight set of Tiernan’s shoulders, the bulging of his biceps and faint sheen on his skin.
Ava’s making Tiernan sweat.
He couldn’t keep down a rush of pride at the thought.
Tiernan grunted with exertion, casting a glance at Adam. “Is she?”
Caleb realized he suspected Ava was cheating and grinned when the dampener shrugged and shook his head, disproving that suspicion.
Emma had managed to unblock whatever had been keeping Ava from her Race strength. And when it came to that strength, apparently Ava had a lot of it. To Caleb’s surprise, the block started to move, and Tiernan’s feet slid backward as he tried to keep it from happening.
With a shout, Tiernan stumbled backward as Ava pushed the block toward him for several feet before he dodged out of the way.
She gave it one more mighty shove before raising two fists victoriously over her head. “Yes!”
“I can’t believe it.” Tiernan braced his hands on his knees as he breathed heavily. “I just can’t believe it. What happened?”
Caleb watched in amusement as Ava did a little victory lap around Tiernan before shoving at his shoulder.
“Emma lifted my block. I’m a hundred percent Race now. Want to wrestle?” she challenged.
“Shut up.” He glared at her. “I can’t believe you let her tamper with your brain. Not that there’s much to tamper with.”
“Oh, now, don’t be a poor sport,” she said.
“Then don’t gloat,” he snapped. “It’s not pretty.”
She fluttered her eyelashes at him. “Caleb thinks I’m pretty.” Ava ran over to Caleb and jumped into his arms with a whoop.
He swept her around in a circle, laughing against her mouth as she kissed him soundly.
“I’m strong,” she said breathlessly when he finally set her down. “Like, really strong.”
“I noticed.” Her excitement was infectious, and soon, even Tiernan was shaking his head and smiling.
“Come on,” Ava said, grabbing Caleb’s hand and dragging him to the edge of the grass.
“What are we doing?”
She stopped when they got to the track circling the field, taking his coffee cup and tossing it into the trash. “We’re going to race.” She stood, elbows bent and legs braced in a starting position. “I have a sneaking suspicion that I’m fast, too.”
“Oh, yeah?” Caleb shrugged off his coat and moved next to her on the track. “That sounds like a challenge.”
“Oh, it is,” she said with a grin. She tilted her head, studying him for a moment, then shouted across the grass. “Hey, Adam. Don’t let him shift, okay?”
Adam waved a hand in acknowledgment, never looking up from whatever had his attention on his cell phone.
“After all we’ve been through, you don’t trust me?” Caleb asked in mock outrage.
“Just taking precautions,” she said with a laugh. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
With a shouted Go! they took off around the track.
As it turned out, Ava was right. She was fast.
She was very fast.
Ava felt like she was flying. Running around the track with Caleb at her heels—falling farther and farther behind her, she might add—the wind whipping through her hair as her shoes slapped on the hard ground felt wonderful. She couldn’t hold in a thrilled giggle. It was exhilarating. Even more than shifting with Caleb because it was all her. Her muscles flexing. Her arms pumping. Her body moving at impossible speeds.
Not so impossible anymore, thanks to Emma.
As if summoned by her thoughts, Emma appeared at the gate, along with Audrey.
Ava slowed to a trot then stopped before the two of them, barely breathing heavily. “Did you see?” she asked Emma. “It worked. You freed up everything!”
Emma’s grin matched her own. “Well, we did,” she said.
With a joyous laugh, Ava pulled the girl into a tight hug, the two of them bouncing in excitement.
“Thank you,” Ava said.
“It was the least I could do, after . . . everything,” she said, glancing at Caleb as he joined them.
“I was going to offer to help,” Audrey said with a grin, “but it looks like you hardly need it.”
“You think there’s more?” Ava asked, tingling with excitement. “I feel like there’s more.”
“You won’t know until you try.”
There was more. Much more. She still couldn’t shift. Her compulsion skills, although slightly improved, were nowhere near as strong as Caleb’s, let alone Emma’s. But as they sat cross-legged in a circle on the grass, Ava uncovered yet another pleasant surprise. They were taking a break, and Tiernan and Adam were talking near the gate before the dampener left the area, no longer needed.
Ava was
hungry and tired, and she rubbed her temples as the beginnings of a headache throbbed through her skull. Her stomach rumbled, and she flopped back on the grass, closing her eyes to the warmth of the sunlight on her skin.
“My mom makes the best fried chicken,” she mumbled distractedly. “It’s so crispy and juicy and incredible. I’d smell it cooking and my mouth would just water. What I wouldn’t give for a piece of it right now.” She inhaled deeply. “I can almost smell it.”
“Umm, Ava?” Caleb’s voice cracked a bit.
“Hmmm?” She was still a little lost in the sense-memory of her favorite food—the scent of the chicken, the warmth of the kitchen—steamy-humid from the crackling-hot oil. The weight of . . . something . . . on her stomach.
Her eyes fluttered open. She stared up at the sky, the smell of chicken even stronger somehow. “What’s on my stomach?”
“You did it,” Emma whispered in awe.
“What did I do?” Ava still didn’t dare look at her stomach. She was beginning to think she knew what she’d find and wasn’t quite certain she could handle it.
“Ava, look,” Caleb said quietly.
She curled up on her elbows and peeked down, her eyes widening in surprise. A plate of fried chicken sat on her belly, steam wafting in the cool air. She steadied the plate—almost surprised to find it solid in her hand—before sitting up, still gaping at it as she held it gingerly before her.
“It’s . . . chicken.”
Emma giggled.
“But how?” She looked around the circle from Emma to Caleb to Audrey. “Where did it come from?”
“Did she shift it?” Emma asked Audrey.
“From Oregon?” Audrey laughed. “I don’t think so.”
“Then . . . you think?” Emma sat up a little bit, turning wide eyes on Ava.
“Yeah,” Audrey said.
“Yeah, what?” Ava was getting a little irritated that the three of them seemed to know something that she didn’t, not to mention were talking about her like she wasn’t sitting right there. Holding a plate of chicken. That she really wanted to eat, actually.
“I’ve never seen anyone manifest something so complex,” Caleb said, reaching out for a drumstick.
The Guardians (MORE Trilogy) Page 20
