Chapter 1
A Dangerous Idea
(Mason)
Being invisible once seemed like a curse. After the last few days of constant, invading supervision, I wish I could go back to being the guy nobody even knew existed. I never realized how much I valued my privacy until it was gone. Losing it to complete strangers makes it even worse. Losing it because there is a whole society of killers out to murder me makes it unbearable.
“Mason, please,” Molly, my seven year old instructor, begs.
Small, fingers wrap around my larger hand. Molly squeezes, but I can feel a slight tremble in her hand. It surprises me and causes me to look at her. The pleading look in her eyes captures my attention.
“Mason, you have to focus. You have to learn to access your power and control it. You have to try harder,” she pleads. “There can’t be any mistakes. They have to do it right this time.”
“What do you mean this time?”
“Failing is… it’s just not an option,” Molly says before dropping her eyes.
“What happens if I fail?” I ask.
Molly shakes her head, brunette ringlets bouncing into her eyes. “I …,” she says. “I’m not supposed to talk about it. Mrs. Britton will be angry with me if I do.”
Feeling the trembling in her hands increase, a surge of protectiveness bunches my shoulder. I’ve only known Molly for three days, but the instant kinship I felt toward her refuses to let me stand by and watch the Brittons mistreat her. The Brittons are not Molly’s biological family, of course. She’s an Aerling like I am. They are the only family she has ever known, though, and she can’t hide how much they scare her.
I don’t want to put Molly in danger of being punished, but I have to know the consequences of failing, so I ask, “What happened the last time there was a ruling Aerling, like me?”
Still visibly upset, Molly relaxes somewhat and answers the question. “Usually, ruling Aerlings are identified at a young age. They show special talents right away. As soon as they’re identified, they start intensive training. The Caretakers are afraid of failing.”
Turning so I can put one arm around her small shoulders, I hug her against my side. “Why are they afraid?”
“The last time the Caretakers found someone like you, their training didn’t work. They blamed the Aerling, I guess. They said he wasn’t quite right and couldn’t learn to control his power. Every time he tried to use his talents, things got scary. When he turned eighteen, they were more than happy to send him on his way, but the bad things didn’t stop when he left.”
“What happened?”
Molly doesn’t answer right away. Her lips press together, probably to stop them from trembling. She tucks her body more tightly against mine. “The first time it happened was the day he went home, not an hour after the Aerling boy and his escort vanished. It was one of the Caretaker children, the one closest to his age that was first. Nobody could explain why she just stopped breathing. Nobody connected the dots at first. It took two more of the family members dying for them to realize what was happening. And it didn’t stop with the family. Everyone who tried to teach the Aerling was dead within weeks of him leaving.”
Finding a response to that is impossible. If I don’t learn to control my power before my eighteenth birthday, it could kill everyone who has tried to train me.
I am supposed to be moved every week until my birthday. That’s barely more than a month away, but that is still too many people put in danger because of me. “Molly, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”
She shakes her head, almost angrily. “I’m not trying to blame you,” she says. “It won’t hurt me. I’m an Aerling. And even if it hurts the Brittons …”
Molly doesn’t finish her thought, but she really doesn’t need to. I felt the coldness of this house the moment I stepped through the door.
“You’re scared, though,” I say quietly.
She nods.
“Why?”
It takes a moment before Molly pulls away from me enough to meet my gaze. Her tiny frame looks so small sitting in front of me, vulnerable and fragile. I stay silent as she gathers her courage.
“What will happen to me if there isn’t enough time to train you?”
Before Robin’s parents handed me over to the Brittons, they gave me strict instructions not to discuss any of the details that brought me to that moment. I was forbidden to tell anyone that my original Caretakers were murdered in front of me when I was five years old. I was definitely not allowed to tell anyone that Olivia found me a few days later, wandering lost and alone, and I have been living with her family for the last twelve years.
The only information exchanged between Robin’s family and the Brittons was that the Sentinels had found me and I had to be kept on the move until my birthday.
To myself, I added that I should never tell anyone that Olivia is my Escort. I also didn’t need to be told that I should keep to myself the fact that I can choose to reveal myself to people, both visually an audibly. That is not something Aerlings are supposed to be able to do. Robin’s parents don’t know about that certain ability, and I intend to keep it that way.
I pull Molly into my lap. She is so light, it takes hardly any effort. She snuggles against me immediately, and I can guess that she rarely gets this much affection. It saddens me and makes me wonder if my memories of my Caretakers those first five years of life are tinted as if being seen through rose colored glasses. I remember being happy with them, but the only other Caretakers I have met have not been like that at all.
“Molly,” I say, “how good are you at memorizing?”
Not prepared for this seemingly random question, Molly looks up at me oddly for a moment before answering. “Good. It’s one of the things I’m best at.”
I nod, pleased. “I want you to remember what I’m about to tell you. If you’re ever in trouble, I know someone who will help you and take care of you.”
Molly’s eyes widen. “Other Caretakers?”
When I shake my head, her eyes widen even more. “No, they aren’t Caretakers, Molly. This is the first time I’ve lived with Caretakers since I was five years old.”
The way Molly’s eyes dart around fearfully puts me on edge as well. I scan the living room carefully. When we are both convinced that we’re truly alone, I lower my voice and tell Molly what I was told to never tell anyone. I repeat Olivia’s address and her home phone number until Molly has it memorized. She proves her superior memorization abilities when she has the information stowed away in only a few minutes.
I can see the hope filling her eyes, but she isn’t convinced yet. “But, how will they know I’m there? They won’t be able to see or hear me.”
“Don’t worry, they’ll find a way to make it work.” I hesitate, not sure how much I can tell her. No doubt it is a risk, but I feel connected to Molly and I refuse to leave her alone and scared. “Maybe… maybe I can teach you a few things before I leave, too.”
Molly looks at me sideways, not sure if I’m playing with her. Her eyes glint with the desire to believe me. The corner of my mouth turns up, and suddenly I want to teach her. I don’t even know if I can, but I am determined to try.
Mrs. Britton walks in from the front yard where she was preparing flower beds for the quickly approaching winter months. Her eyes narrow at the sight of me holding Molly on my lap. She stops in the hallway. “Are you two working?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Molly says quickly as she scoots away from me and crosses her legs.
“I should hope so,” Mrs. Britton says. “You have very little time, Molly. Don’t waste it.”
“I won’t,” Molly says quietly.
Mrs. Britton nods and continues on her way.
Disturbed by Mrs. Britton’s words, I turn to Molly and say, “Olivia’s family will take you in, no matter why you show up on their doorstep.”
Molly blinks quickly, but a tear escapes and rolls down he
r cheek. “Is it scary,” she asks, “knowing you have to leave Olivia when you go home?”
I begin to nod, but stop. “Do you know what happens to Escorts when we go home?”
Shaking her head, Molly’s eyes drop. “No one knows for sure, but they don’t come back. Mrs. Britton says it’s their duty to sacrifice for us.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re more important, for some reason, like something bad might happen if the Aerlings disappeared. She says sacrificing the people we love most is the only way to make sure we survive.”
Her words punch through me, leaving me hollow. “Sacrifice Olivia?” I shake my head in defiance. “I won’t do it, Molly.”
Frightened eyes snap up to mine. “You have to, Mason. You’re the most important Aerling the Caretakers have seen in… maybe ever. You’re more powerful than they even realize.”
“What does that matter?” I demand. I won’t sacrifice Olivia just to save myself.
For once, Molly doesn’t shy away from my question. She looks up at me squarely, and says, “If you have power, you have a responsibility to use it. Mrs. Britton tells me that all the time, but for you… I think it’s even more important. I think the Aerlings are in trouble, and you’re the only one who can help them. You may not have a choice about Olivia.”
“I still have a choice, no matter what.”
Molly’s nose crinkles in thought, the deep kind of pondering you wouldn’t expect to see on someone so young. She looks up at me, serious and scared. “Would you choose Olivia over the lives of every other Aerling?”
My shoulders fall as I contemplate her question. Could I really be some kind of answer to saving the Aerlings? Is saving them worth losing Olivia? I sit back, not sure I can make that kind of choice.
Acknowledgements
I owe a big thank you to Apryl Baker for encouraging me to explore Wattpad and share my work with the amazing readers there. Apryl is always willing to share ideas and help other authors and I count myself lucky to have her as a friend.
I would also like to thank the fabulous Wattpad readers for embracing Mason and Olivia and falling in love with their story. If not for their enthusiasm, I would have likely let Invisible languish on my hard drive for a long time, not sure if anyone would be interested in a story about an invisible boy. Their encouragement and enthusiasm has pushed me to share Invisible with a wider audience.
As always, I need to thank my ever supportive writers group for their help and guidance. Thank you Linda, Angela, Apryl, Ann, Rachel, and Susan. You ladies are the best!
I also need to thank a wonderful reader named Hannah Jennifer. Her love for Invisible inspired her to design a fan cover for this book. I loved the design so much I asked her permission to build on her idea as I created the final cover. She was so gracious and allowed me to work with her design and come up with the cover you see now.
Finally, thank you to my husband, Ryan, for always being there for me no matter what.
Also by DelSheree Gladden
The Handbook Series
The Crazy Girl’s Handbook
The Oblivious Girl’s Handbook
Eliza Carlisle Mystery Series
Trouble Magnet
The Catalyst
The Arcane Wielder Series
Life & Being
The Ghost Host Series
The Ghost Host: Episode 1
The Ghost Host: Episode 2
Escaping Fate Series
Escaping Fate
Soul Stone
Oracle Lost
(Coming Soon)
Twin Souls Saga
Twin Souls
Shaxoa’s Gift
Qaletaqa
The Destroyer Trilogy
Inquest
Secret of Betrayal
Darkening Chaos
Someone Wicked This Way Comes Series
Wicked Hunger
Wicked Power
Wicked Glory
Wicked Revenge
The Aerling Series
Invisible
Intangible
Invincible
The Date Shark Series
Date Shark
Shark Out Of Water
The Only Shark In The Sea
Shark In Troubled Waters
About the Author
DelSheree Gladden was one of those shy, quiet kids who spent more time reading than talking. Literally. She didn't speak a single word for the first three months of preschool, but she had already taught herself to read. Her fascination with reading led to many hours spent in the library and bookstores, and eventually to writing. She wrote her first novel when she was sixteen years old, but spent ten years rewriting and perfecting it before having it published.
Native to New Mexico, DelSheree and her husband spent several years in Colorado for college and work before moving back home to be near family again. Their two children love having their cousins close by. When not writing, you can find DelSheree reading, painting, sewing and trying not to get bitten by small children in her work as a dental hygienist. DelSheree has several bestselling young adult series, including "Invisible" which was part of the USA Today Bestselling box set, "Pandora." The “Date Shark Series” is her first contemporary romance series, now joined by her first romantic comedy, “The Crazy Girl’s Handbook,” and the comedic “Eliza Carlisle Mystery Series.”
Connect with DelSheree Gladden Online
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