by Allie Burton
“Oh no.” The top half of Olivia’s body swayed, and she ran toward the scuffed ball.
He huffed. He hadn’t spotted any danger. So much for her following him. “What’s wrong?”
“Tut wants to play.” She kicked the ball to the center of the field.
Tut must have quite a leg to kick that beat-up ball so far.
“We don’t have time to play.” Xander jogged toward her. “The Society will be searching for us.” And she still didn’t know all the rules. Neither did he. “We need to find a place to rest and regroup. To hide.”
“You tell Tut.” She charged the ball again. Her feet slipped on the wet grass and she started to tumble. Putting her hands out, she didn’t fall, just straightened and booted the ball farther.
Was she normally so coordinated? Her slim body showed a natural fitness. Xander appreciated how the black skinny jeans hugged her straight hips and narrow waist. His face heated. He should not be checking her out when they were running for their lives.
He gritted his teeth. “I love soccer as much as the next guy, but we don’t have time for games.”
“Don’t you get it? I don’t have a choice.” She waved her hands around. “If you play with me, I won’t have to run after my own ball, and I won’t be as tired after Tut is done using me.”
Xander grimaced. Having your body used didn’t sound pleasant. If he had inherited the soul, would Tut be fighting against him? Or, would the soul get along with Xander? He’d never find out.
“Fine.” He kicked the ball back. He’d play along for now.
“Thanks.” Her feet planted and she kicked the ball toward him.
The ball slammed into his feet with force and he almost fell. He tried to recover with grace. “Normally, I would love to play soccer with someone. I always watched soccer and baseball on TV.” He kicked the ball again. “The Society refused to let me play on a team. And all for nothing.”
She kicked the ball back. At least she wasn’t running anymore. “Why would playing soccer or baseball hurt the Society’s goals?”
“They didn’t want me making friends or getting close to anyone.” His all-alone tone made him sound pathetic. He’d wondered what a normal life would be like with parents, friends, participating on a sports team. He’d had no one but the male Society members. Now, he didn’t even have them. He punted the ball harder.
Olivia stopped it with a touch. Was she his friend? He could tell she didn’t completely trust him by her side glances and caustic words. And yet, something sizzled between them. He was sixteen and never been kissed. How many times had she been kissed? He’d been struggling with the strangest urges since meeting her. He wanted to protect and comfort and kiss. And he could do none of those things.
She kicked the ball to him with less strength than before. “You can come home with me. It’s not much—”
“Do you really think you can go home?” He trapped the ball and glared. She still didn’t understand the seriousness of the situation.
She blanched, physically taking a step back. “I’ll need to figure out how to stop the burnout.”
“The Society won’t stop looking for you.” They’d finally achieved their goal of a host for King Tut and his powers after centuries. They wouldn’t just let her run away.
“They don’t know who I am or where I live. They Society wasn’t expecting me tonight.”
Xander ground his fist into the palm of his other hand. “Someone was.”
She wrapped her arms around herself. “Fitch will protect me.”
That was Xander’s job. He was her warrior. And even though the Society didn’t care about him, he believed in their ultimate cause. He had to help Olivia see the light.
“Who is this Fitch?” And how much would he interfere?
“He’s the head of our gang. Except were not a street gang, more like a family.” Her rushed tone sounded defensive. “We look out for each other. He’d never desert me.”
“Like he did at the museum.” Xander nudged the reminder. He didn’t like how she depended on this gang leader. It was time to point out the man’s faults.
“Something must’ve spooked him.”
“I’m just saying,” Xander passed the ball back trying to sound casual. “What other stuff have you stolen?”
She touched the spot on her chest where the amulet lay under her T-shirt and passed the ball back. “Nothing. This was my first inside job.”
“Why?”
“Fitch believed in me.” Her words didn’t ring true.
“Think about it.” Xander stomped on the ball and air whistled out, flattening it. “Why this job? On this night?
“You think I was set up?” She crossed her arms and glowered, then started walking away. “No way.”
He didn’t understand why she couldn’t see it for herself. The man was using her, just like Tut was using her body now. Xander didn’t know how to make it more clear. She was the right age to receive the soul. The job had been scheduled for the appropriate night in a specific time period.
Kicking the deflated ball to the side, he followed her. “Is Tut done playing?”
“Yes.” She sniffed and headed off the soccer field. “I tried to convince Fitch to do the job on another night. He refused to listen. But he doesn’t know anything about the Society or its teachings and wouldn’t have understood the significance of the summer solstice. He isn’t a religious man.”
“Maybe not, but the coincidences keep adding up.” Xander wouldn’t push his point. He wanted her to think about it and they were both tired and needed to rest.
They walked in silence until he spotted a group of buildings in the distance. A small barn, office, and chicken coop. “What do you think of one of those to spend the rest of the night?”
“I thought pharaohs didn’t tire?” Irritation edged her voice. She must be mad at him for forcing her to face the facts about the man she relied on.
“I’m not a pharaoh.” And now he wasn’t sure if he ever wanted to be. “You’re not a pharaoh either. You only host one.” The entire concept must be difficult to understand for someone who hadn’t been raised with the Society’s teachings.
They approached the barn in silence, and he jiggled the door handle. “Do you think the locked door has alarms too?”
She wiped the grime off the window and peered inside. “I can handle the lock and the alarm.”
Like a Swiss army knife for thieves, the flat packet she took out of her pocket held a number of small items including a wrench, scissors, and tweezers. She quickly jimmied the lock and then flashed an I-told-you-so smile.
He didn’t know how to react. Applause for a criminal feat? At least she had a skill. He had no technical prowess, no regular schooling, no hope for a decent future. He hung his shoulders thinking about his bleak outlook. He’d figure out his future later. Right now, he was only worried about Olivia’s present.
“Give me a sec, while I cut the alarm.”
Positioning himself by the entrance, he watched her open the door and dash to a metal box on the wall. An alarm started clattering, but the noise didn’t deter her. She opened the box and tugged on a few wires. The noise stopped.
“All clear.” She was impressive.
Straw lay on the ground of the stable, and saddles and reins hung on the far wall. Horse stalls lined both sides of the building, a few of them occupied with the large beasts. He walked straight over to a brown horse covered by a blanket and rubbed it’s nose. Cuddling the animal, he made shushing noises. “Aren’t you a sweetheart.”
“You like horses?” Olivia’s voice went scratchy.
“The Society has a ranch and stable south of the city.” He patted the horse’s nose knowing he was more comfortable with animals than people.
She turned away and kicked a few straws of hay. “Tell me about growing up with the Society. Did Jeb raise you like a dad?”
Xander coughed surprised at the catch in his throat. “I never knew the word dad existed unti
l I started reading books. I’ve always called him Jeb.” Xander hoped his matter-of-fact voice covered the hurt.
Remembering picture books about parents and siblings and pets, his eyes burned. He’d wished for a real family, wanted to go to school, and play sports with friends. He’d asked and begged and gotten nothing. Not even a good explanation.
“So, Jeb’s not your dad?” Her voice went quiet as if she understood his feelings without speaking a word.
“I don’t think I had parents.”
“Everyone has parents. You know, man and woman fall in love, make a baby…” She smashed her lips together and her cheeks flagged red. Ducking behind an empty stall wall, she pretended to search for something.
Heat climbed his neck imagining what she said, but he’d given a lot of thought to his creation. Through Jeb’s cold actions and his non-explanations about Xander’s past, he believed he knew the reason no one claimed him for his own. “Maybe I was a test tube baby.”
“Did they say you were a test tube baby?” She peeked around the short wooden wall obviously curious.
“No. But I never felt like I belonged to any of the Society members. I didn’t really look like any of them and no one ever paid special attention to me. I was like an apprentice…or an experiment.” Even then I was completely alone. “What about you? How did you end up with Fitch?”
She dropped her gaze to the ground and took a tentative step toward Xander and the horse. “I ran away from the foster care system. I didn’t like how I was treated.”
Protectiveness surged inside his bloodstream. “Were they mean? Abusive?”
“I guess.” She wiggled her shoulders in an uncomfortable way and the trait endeared her to him. Her long, braid cast a shadow over her creamy skin and covered the color of her eyes. But he remembered them. Golden eyes with tiny black flecks.
“I’ll kill them.” He fisted his hand to control the urge. What was it about her that set off this need to defend?
“They don’t matter.” Her gaze lifted and her big, golden-brown eyes connected with his. He could fall into the depth of her pupils. “Fitch saved me from that life. He took me and others in. Now, I take care of the younger kids.”
“Is that what you want to do?” What were her dreams?
Xander’s goals had been crushed when she’d stolen the power from him, but his resentment was fading. Between learning about the lies he was told by the Society and these strange feelings toward her, he didn’t know how he felt, what his future held, or even if he’d have a future.
She snorted. “What I want doesn’t matter. I need to get back to take care of Tina and Doug. They’re too young to be on their own with Fitch.”
Olivia still didn’t realize she couldn’t go back. Xander wasn’t about to bring it up now, not when they were truly talking. “If you could do anything you want, what would it be?”
Her chest moved up and down with the deep breath she took. “I don’t like to think about those things because it won’t happen.”
Looking into her serious gaze, he longed to know her hopes and dreams. “Come on. It’s just the two of us.”
She pushed her lips into a flat line as if considering his request. Then, she lifted her chin and stared at the barn ceiling. “It’s stupid. I’d want to go to school. Make non-thief friends. Maybe even go to college someday.”
Not wild dreams like wanting to rule the world or change everyone’s beliefs. Simple dreams that most kids would expect as a right.
“I know. Impossible, right?”
He stroked the brown nose of the horse in a rhythm. She was smart. He could totally see her at a university studying something important.
“You said you’d never been touched.” Her soft voice shocked him out of his thoughts. “They never held your hand or tucked you into bed?”
“No.” He gave the horse a firm pat and dropped his arm to his side. He didn’t like to think about the parental comforts he’d missed. “I always pictured myself like a star fighter being trained for the greater good. Comfort would make me weak.”
“Your idea or theirs?” Her tone went cold as if she felt sorry for him. “The weak thing, I mean.”
He shrugged, trying to ignore the question. “Does it matter?”
Stepping over, she reached out to touch his shoulder and he pulled back. “Sorry, I forgot. No touching.”
“No touching.” He tried to keep the longing from his voice. To be touched, especially by her, would be his dream.
“Sooo, where do we sleep?”
“You find an open stall and I’ll fork clean hay.” A smile bloomed on his face and he couldn’t stop the happy-excited thoughts. This was a big adventure he’d never believed possible.
Away from the Society and its restrictions. Away from Jeb and his teachings. Just away.
He’d always loved spending time at the Society’s ranch. The smell of hay and manure reminded him of those times. The wood planked floor looked fairly clean and wouldn’t be crawling with bugs. The empty water trough signaled the stall at the end had been empty for awhile. He brought over forkfuls of hay and spread it on the ground. Then, he took two horse blankets from a storage area and handed her one. “Should keep us warm.”
She settled on one side of the wall, curling under the blanket and closed her eyes. Her long lashes created a shadow on her soft cheeks. With her expression relaxed, she appeared more approachable and less tough. Vulnerable. She’d probably hate that word used to describe her.
That’s how he thought of her. He wanted to protect her and guide her through this process. He wanted to take care of her. Mostly, he wanted to touch her in comfort and maybe even caress her, and yet he knew he couldn’t.
Laying down at the opposite end of the stall, the horse blanket warmed him, while his thoughts heated. Her even breathing made him remember her warm breath on his skin. The hay gave with her every move, signaling how close she lay. The sweet scent of her skin infiltrated his senses making a permanent impression.
Shifting around, he moved away from her facing the stall’s wall. He kept his back to her, trying to ignore her movement, her sounds, and her scents.
The distance helped. His body relaxed but his mind spun in a zillion directions.
He couldn’t touch Olivia.
She couldn’t touch anyone.
She hosted a pharaoh she knew nothing about and possessed powers that left her…powerless.
And he planned to stick by her side whether she liked it or not.
Chapter Nine
Olivia
I awoke screaming. Gigantic sobs rocked through me. Hugging myself, because no one else could, I swiped the wetness from my cheeks. The hard wooden floor of the stall bit into my back and the sharp points of hay poked my skin.
The dream had seemed so real. I’d lived through it. Had seen the darkness lining King Tut’s view and sensed his end. His soulmate, Queen Ankhesenamen had later died and moved on to the proper Afterlife, while King Tut had lived in this empty middle ground because he’d abused the sun’s powers.
I am Pharaoh. I had every right to use the sun’s powers.
My breath hitched and my body spasmed, slight twitches I couldn’t control. As if Tut still suffered even though he now lived inside of me. The dream awakened more questions than answers. I rubbed my eyes and scratched my butt. Then, I checked to make sure Xander was still sleeping. Like all teenage boys, of course, he’d slept through my screams of distress.
He lay on his side. Silky, black hair covering part of his face. A slight shadow grew on his chin. Early morning light filtering through the high window highlighted his long eyelashes.
I crawled over to him, the sharp straw needles poking through my pants. “Wake up.”
He turned away and burrowed deeper into the straw.
“Xander, wake up.” I held one finger an inch away from his shoulder. Would one tiny touch hurt?
“What?” he mumbled.
I didn’t want to tell him about the dream whi
le he was half asleep because I needed answers. “We need to get up.”
“Don’t tell me you want to catch a bus home.” His murmured snark caught me by surprise. “Can it wait until morning?”
The sun would rise soon. And with it, my powers. And Fitch’s anger. “Technically, it is morning.”
Xander’s eyes opened and their sleepy green tried to focus making me envision waking up with him every morning. His tousled hair stuck up in places. His mouth slumped in a frown. Guess he didn’t look perfect all the time. But he still looked good.
“What’s the hurry?”
“Hmm,” I poured sarcasm into my tone. “We’re in possession of a stolen museum artifact. The police, the Society and who-knows-who-else is looking for us. I’ve got the soul of an ancient Egyptian King inside me. And I could burnout and die at any time.” I took a deep breath. “You’re right. Maybe we should sleep in.”
“All right. All right.” He sat up and shook his head free of hay. The golden straws fell out of his kohl black hair.
Kohl?
Where did I come up with that word?
My mind searched for an answer. I’d never heard the word before yet I knew it meant black. Jet black—like Xander’s thick hair. Hair a girl wanted to run her fingers through.
I squeezed my hand together. Clearing my head, I focused. “I had a dream.”
“Martin Luther King Jr.” Xander shot me a know-it-all smile. “How many points do I get?”
“This isn’t a game.” I wanted to slap him on the leg, but held myself back because I wanted him to concentrate on what I was about to tell him, not the pain I could cause. “I had a dream of King Tut dying. Except he didn’t go to his Afterlife, but was stuck in this half-life because he abused the sun’s powers.”
“Like a ghost?”
“He didn’t haunt anyone.” Although technically he was haunting me right now. My lungs tightened and I found it difficult to breathe. “What if that happens to me? I’m abusing the sun’s powers. What if when I burn up and die I end up in the same place?”
“We’ll have to figure out how to end the burnout.” He shook the straw from his hair.
