“I’ll try to find the motivation,” she said dryly. “Bye.”
“Bye.”
I hung up and put my Zevin on the couch, standing up to shove my arms through my coat sleeves. I put Lucas’s letter in one of the inside pockets and headed downstairs.
“You going somewhere?” Dad asked as I got to the bottom of the stairs.
“Yeah—I promised Zach I’d go over.”
“You haven’t even been home two hours yet, Em. He just left.”
“Well. . . Usually he stays but his mom needed help with something, and I’m having dinner with them tonight. Mom already said it was okay. . .”
“I’m not saying you can’t go, Em. Be home by nine.” I nodded. “Want the car?”
I shook my head.
“Nah, I like walking. Love you.”
“Love you, too, Em.”
I smiled at him and went outside.
Risk
By the time I got to Zach’s house, Lucas’s letter
had made me resentful. Zach came out of the house just as I reached the middle of the driveway, frowning at the expression on my face.
“Em? Are you okay?” he asked as he came to me. I shook my head.
“No, I’m not.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Everything,” I answered.
He frowned and then took my hand, leading me
into his now-empty house. We went out the back and sat on the porch swing.
“Please talk to me. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Lucas Adler is what’s wrong.”
“He’s in prison, Em.”
“And he’s still bothering me!”
“What’re you talking about? He can’t Path you from Bolenvare.”
“But he can send letters,” I responded bitterly.
“He sent you a letter?”
“Yes, he did.”
I pulled the folded letter out of my pocket and handed it to him. Zach read it before letting it fall to the bench.
“He’s not going to escape from Bolenvare, Emma.”
“I know he’s not but part of me is worried about what could happen if he does. I can’t let him kill you, Zach.”
“He’s not going to kill me, Emma.”
“You’re damned right he’s not going to kill you because I won’t let him! I can make you disappear so not even Lucas Adler can find you.”
No one would find him.
“Wha—hide me—Emma, I am not going to leave you!” he said angrily, as he realized what I was saying. “I’m not leaving you here at his mercy, Emma!”
“You wouldn’t have a choice.”
“The hell I wouldn’t! I won’t let Adler hurt you, Emma! I love you, and if he escapes and you won’t go into hiding with me, then I’m not going at all.”
“You have to!”
“I won’t lose you to him, Emma. I have Magic, too, remember? I will not leave you.”
“You’re not going to lose me, Zach! Especially not to him.”
“I’m not backing down on this, Em. You will come with me if Adler escapes, I don’t care what I have to do to make you come. I’ll knock you out and carry you if I have to.”
“Zach, you don’t understand—”
“I understand, Emma! I understand that you don’t want to run—that you don’t want to seem weak—but I don’t care. Adler is not our problem, Emma. Someone else can handle him, but not you.”
“He is my problem!”
“No, he’s not!”
I stared at Zach, and then got up, walking across the yard.
He’s being stubborn! I can’t lose him, not Zach.
He turned me around to face.
“Emma—”
“You don’t understand what’s at risk!”
He wasn’t expecting that, and he stared at me. Finally, he muttered: “The hell I don’t.”
And then he kissed me. I kissed him back, and suddenly Zach starting kissing me more, moving his lips over mine fervently. He held me closer, and my feet were off the ground. His hand braided itself into my hair.
He’s what’s at risk! I love him, how could I ever live with myself if Lucas killed him? The only reason Lucas wants him dead is because Zach saved me! It would be my fault if Zach died.
I eventually pulled my head away and we looked at each other. Our chests were rising and falling rapidly, seeking our lost breaths. Zach looked into my eyes.
“I know what’s at risk.”
History Teachers Know too Much
The next Delos, Zach, Jessie, Thalia, and I
walked into our history class. We sat down (separated from the boys, again) and waited for Professor Kantiu to start today’s lesson.
“All right, you guys, today I’m gonna veer away from what I originally had planned, which was the Interactive History Game.”
Everyone groaned.
“Come on! We’ll do that tomorrow, I promise. I just wanted to do something. . . different. It’s off-topic from where we are but I came across the term in reading and I know I’ve never mentioned it before.” He paused. “Can anyone tell me what the word ‘Kahi’ means?”
I froze, my eyes meeting Zach’s across the room.
“Come on, somebody has to know. Is all you bum off your parents money?”
“And food!” someone shouted out.
Some laughed.
“Knowledge, people. You’re all the age that your parents would have dealt a lot with this word when you were being born.”
I hope I wasn’t green; I felt like I was going to be sick.
“No one knows?”
Biting my lip, I saw Zach scratch his head in frustration. He shrugged and I slowly raised my hand.
“Ahh! Emma, please tell us.”
“The word Kahi means the superlative rulers of the Galaxies. They are above rank than anyone else. The Council—even Queen Allu, the Kahi are above them.” “Anything else?” he prompted hopefully.
“The Kahi are the King and Queen of the Galaxies; the King and Queen of Kings and Queens. In the physical sense, of course.”
“Good! Yes, as Emma clearly stated, the Kahi are the utmost rulers of the Galaxies. The King and Queen of Kings and Queens!”
“Excuse me, Professor,” said a red-headed girl down in the front row, raising her hand.
“Yes, Julia?”
“Are the Kahi here yet? I mean. . . like. . .”
“Crowned,” I said.
“Yeah, that. Have they?”
“Not that I know of, no. But, soon, I suppose. Within the next five years.”
Zach gave me a look only I would be able to read from across the room. How does he know this?
“If that’s what the Kahi is,” said a boy three rows down from Zach, “then my parents have talked about them. They said that Kahi are a bunch of morons. That they’re totally worthless.”
I glared at him, even though he didn’t see. Worthless morons?!
I looked back at up at Zach, who moved his eyes from one side of the room to the other. He was shaking his head at me.
“They do, do they, Nicolas?” asked Kantiu, crossing his arms and looking at him.
“Yeah. I agree with them, too. I mean, come on. A bunch of kids ruling over us? That’s so lame!”
“First off, Nicolas, they are not a bunch of kids. Only two: A woman and a man. They won’t even be kids; they will be in their early twenties. Furthermore, the Kahi are not ‘lame’. They’re highly intelligent. More so than anyone in this class, maybe even of the whole school.”
There goes my ego.
“Whatever; I still say they’re a bunch of morons.”
“How do you know? Have you ever met them?” I asked angrily, snapping.
“No. Don’t want to either. Have you, Fitch?”
“How am I supposed to know?”
“Then how d’you know they aren’t morons?”
“Emma’s right,” Zach said, finally speaking. “The Council wouldn’t pick a couple of id
iots; they’d pick people they knew would be good rulers.”
“You’re just saying that because you two are together.”
“Nicolas, not here,” Kantiu warned.
“I do agree with her, and not just because of that,” Zach said bitterly. “The people the Council picks to be the Kahi are going to be intelligent. They have to be so they can do a good job.”
“You sound like Fitch,” Nicolas said. “Bet you haven’t met them either, have you?”
“The Council probably told them not to tell anyone,” I said before Zach could reply. “They’d want them to be safe from people who hate them.”
Nicolas Ermines opened his mouth but Kantiu raised his hand.
“All right, that’s good for today.” He lowered his hand. “No homework, just work on your other professor’s work.”
When the class ended, Zach and I didn’t discuss it, but waited until break when we were safely outside the school and away from eavesdroppers.
“I thought you were going to slip up for a while,”
Zach said as we sat against the tree.
“So did I,” I sighed. “But I just couldn’t sit there
and take that crap from Ermines.”
“I could tell.” He scratched his chin. “How d’you
think Kantiu found out all that?”
I shrugged.
“It has to be mentioned in places other than the
book I have, and it was a huge topic when we were being
born. Obviously. . . Rumors swirled that the Kahi were
coming.”
I gave him a look and he sighed.
“Well, at least we don’t have to put up with this
much longer.”
I rested my head against his shoulder and he put
his arm around me.
“I think I’d rather deal with this over what we’re
going to have to deal with after we’re Crowned,” I
whispered.
I Just Signed Their Death Certificate
It’s been a week since I got Lucas’s letter and I
haven’t heard anything else about or from Bolenvare, which made me have a very calm week. I haven’t told anyone else about the letter except Zach, and I don’t plan to. Dad would just keep me home if I told him. School and work would definitely be out of the question, and seeing Zach as often as I do might be, as well. However. . . I couldn’t worry my parents that way. They know how Lucas is, and that he would do anything to get what he wants. . .
****
It was the weekend, the one time I was able to
breathe this week. That was most likely because I stayed home for its entirety. I was starting to feel like someone was following me, but I couldn’t find whoever it was. To ease the paranoia, I stayed home. I was going to start attacking people for coming up behind me if I didn’t relax. I hadn’t told Zach, either; I didn’t want him to worry.
But today. . . today was Delos. I didn’t want to ask Mom to call me in, for I knew I would have to tell her that I was being followed, or that I just thought I was because I was paranoid that Lucas was going to escape. So I held it together and asked Dad to drive me to school, for Zach was going to be late. Late. He assured me a dozen times he just woke up late, that everything was fine. When he walked into class just as the bell rung, I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
I hugged him tightly after class, breathing in his scent.
“You okay?” he asked quietly, taking my hand as we headed towards levitation.
“Yeah. I’m fine.”
Our professor in levitation, Woodkins, started off today by reminding us of the dangers of levitating without knowing first how to do it perfectly. Before he could continue, however, our headmistress’ voice was echoing across the campus.
“Channel twelve. Now.”
Professor Woodkins’ brow furrowed, staring off into space. He must be Pathing, I realized, but the next moment, his face fell. An image of a news station fizzed into view on the wall, and I was sure Woodkins had looked at me.
Everyone in the classroom turned to face the lady who has just appeared on the screen. Her hair looked a bit frazzled, as if she had been running her hands through it anxiously. My scars itched. Something’s wrong.
“I’m Monique Frances with Channel 12 FastAction News, here to alert you all to breaking news just into our station. Let’s go to Nash Deagan outside Bolenvare Galaxy Prison.”
I stopped breathing, my eyes flying across the room to meet Zach’s. He was watching me, his expression tense, but then his eyes moved to the screen.
No . He couldn’t— Lucas couldn’t have escaped. He couldn’t have. If he had. . . he was going to come after me. He was going to try and take my Galaxies from me. My heart started pounding in my ears. I felt Jess press her hand against mine and I squeezed it.
Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to look back at the screen. A man in a rain coat that was whipping around him was now in view.
“I’m Nash Deagan here at Bolenvare Galaxy Prison. It’s quite stormy here so sorry if I have to shout! I have breaking news from the prison that must be broadcasted to everyone! There’s been an escape.” A murmur ran through my class. I swayed in my seat. He’d actually done it. . . “Lucas Adler, recently sentenced to life by Judge Christopher P. Wingrove, has escaped. Everyone here is searching the premises for him. There is no way he could have escaped this planet.”
We’re leaving, Zach’s voice said in my head. I looked over at him, suddenly realizing I had tears in my eyes. Zach was putting his things into his bag. He looked at me.
Now.
I nodded and quickly put my stuff into my bag.
“What’re you doing?” Jessie whispered, panicked.
“Zach and I have to get out of here. Please, Jessie, you and Thalia get Clara and go to Ecerbion. And stay there.”
“You can’t—”
“I have to. I love you. Please protect Clara.”
She nodded, and Zach and I moved down the stairs simultaneously.
“Professor Woodkins,” I said as we reached him, “we have to—”
“Just be careful,” he interrupted. “Go with your first instinct and whatever you do, don’t let him get your Magic, Emma.”
I swallowed, nodding.
“Just stay on guard. Follow your instincts!”
We nodded and left the classroom, making our bags disappear and then taking each other’s hands. We ran down the stairs.
“You’re staying with me,” Zach declared. I slowed, looking at him.
“I know I am,” I admitted. “We’re going far away from here. As far away as we can get.”
He nodded and we ran off to the front of the school.
“They’ll protect you if we get separated. I know they will.”
I swallowed. I couldn’t lose them. If. . . No, Emma, don’t think that.
We got near to Rue de Royale, the street running parallel to the campus, but I stopped, my hands getting hot. Zach’s hand had released mine in the process, but then he was by my side again.
“Emma?” he pressed, taking my upper arms in his hands. “What’s wrong?”
“He’s here,” I whispered. My scars tingled in response, like a warning. Run.
“How do you—?”
“I can feel him.” Zach looked around us, and my eyes darted around. “He’s too close. . .”
As if on cue, he appeared before us, just a dozen feet or so away. My hand grabbed Zach’s, but the scars were still burning. Only the moon-shaped scar was in contact with Zach, which made the star burn even more.
Zach stepped partly in front of me, only to have me step up beside him. My Galaxies would be able to protect us both.
Lucas smirked.
“A liar, am I, Emma?” He moved towards us. “This will be easier than I thought.”
“We are not afraid of you,” I snapped.
My anger was bristling, and in the distance, I heard a thunder clap. We
weren’t expecting storms this week.
“You should be. You should be begging me to spare your lives.”
I held Zach’s hand tighter and he did the same with mine.
“Whatever that force is, I’m going to find out what it is before I kill you.”
“No, you won’t,” I said. He can’t know.
“You’re not going to beat us, Adler,” Zach said.
“Don’t be so sure.”
He muttered something and a cloud of silver light came at us from his hand. I squeezed Zach’s hand tighter and teleported us. When we reappeared, we were in the same place we had been, only a few feet to the right. Dammit!
“We haven’t done long-distance yet! Don’t hurt yourself trying,” Zach muttered quickly. “We’re going to have to fight him.”
Lucas smirked again, and then disappeared. We stiffened when he appeared before us. Zach shoved me backwards, punching Lucas in the face simultaneously. Lucas retaliated quickly, cuffing Zach in the jaw. I prepared a spell, but then Lucas was gone.
I spun around the second he appeared behind me, striking him.
“Foolish girl,” he seethed. He attempted to grab me, only to realize I was quick on my feet. Quicker than I’d known.
Zach was next to me, attempting to strike Lucas with a curse. Lucas evaded it, and in the scuffle that followed, he got a hold on me.
Zach froze, still in a fighting stance. I knew his eyes had flickered down to the scars; they felt as if they were on fire.
“Let her go.”
“I don’t think so.”
A curse, a quick curse, burst from Lucas and hit Zach in the chest. I screamed, fighting against Lucas’s hold.
“He’s not dead yet, Emma.”
I managed to turn around and smacked Lucas across the face.
“You bastard! Just leave us alone!”
Fear kindled in me when I realized Lucas wasn’t angry with me for hitting him. Instead, he looked. . . he looked like he was shocked.
His hands quickly found my wrists, wrenching them around painfully. My fingers immediately closed over the scars. Hide them, was my only thought. But he was stronger, at least physically. He quickly pried my fingers open on both hands, using his thumbs.
Lucas looked at me, but I refused to meet his gaze.
His thumb slowly touched the moon, and I felt as if my entire being were on fire. My vision blacked out and I almost collapsed, only to have him keep me on my feet.
Starlight (The Lightning Strike Trilogy Book 1) Page 12
