Half-Blood

CHAPTER 21

IT WAS POSSIBLY THE FIRST TIME I’D EVER SEEN

HIM show any extreme emotion. I settled in for what I assumed would be a giant bitch-fest.

“First and foremost, I’m glad to see that you’re alive and in one piece.” Then his gaze dropped to my neck and final y, my arms. “Barely in one piece.”

I bristled, but I managed to keep my mouth shut.

“What you did showed you have absolutely no regard for your life or the lives of others—”

“I have a regard for other people’s lives!”

Aiden shot me a warning glare that said shut up.

“Going after a daimon—any daimon—untrained and unprepared is the height of reckless and idiotic behavior.

Of al people, you should know the consequences. With what you are, what you wil become, I cannot stress how irresponsible your actions were… ” Marcus continued, but I tuned out at that point.

Instead, I wondered how long Leon had known what I was. Lucian had said only he and Marcus had been aware of what Piperi had told my mom, but a thought struck me.

Leon had been the first to come to my defense when they’d brought me back to the Covenant. Had he always known? I looked up at my uncle, not real y paying attention to what he was saying. There was always the chance they hadn’t been honest with me about who knew. Hel , Lucian and Marcus hadn’t been honest about a lot of things.

“If it hadn’t been for Seth, you’d be dead or worse. And your friend Mr. Nicolo would have met the same fate.”

My attention perked a bit. Where in the hel was Seth at, anyway? I’d half expected him to’ve weaseled his way into this meeting.

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“Um… ” I stole a quick glance at Aiden before answering.

“It was real y stupid of me.”

Marcus arched a perfectly groomed brow at me. “Is that al ?”

“No.” I shook my head. “I shouldn’t have done it, but I don’t regret it.” I could feel Aiden’s eyes boring through me.

Swal owing, I leaned forward and placed my hands on Marcus’s desk. “I regret that Caleb got hurt and the other daimon got away, but she was my mother—my responsibility. You don’t understand, but I had to do it.”

He leaned back in his chair as he studied me. “Believe it or not, I do understand. It doesn’t make your actions justified or intel igent, but I do understand your motivation.”

Surprised, I fel back in the chair in silence.

“Alexandria, a lot of things have changed. With the daimons able to turn half-bloods, it’s altered the way we must face every situation.” He paused, the tips of his fingers resting under his chin. “The Council is cal ing a special meeting during the November sessions in New York to discuss the ramifications. Since you were an eyewitness to their plans, you wil be attending. Your testimony wil help decide how the Council wil act against this new threat.”

“My testimony?”

Marcus nodded. “You were privy to the daimons’ plans.

The Council needs to hear exactly what you were told.”

“But that was just Mom… ” I trailed off, unsure of how much Leon knew.

My uncle seemed to understand. “It is highly doubtful Rachel e discovered that half-bloods could be turned. It’s more likely that she witnessed another daimon doing it.

She wanted you… for her own reasons.”

He had a good point. Based on what she’d said, it did seem like there was some big master plan—more than just her merry band of psychos. And then there was Eric; he was stil out there, hyped up on Apol yon aether. The gods only knew what he was getting himself into.

“There is something else we need to discuss.” He had my attention again. “I’ve met with Aiden and have reviewed your progress.”

He real y had my attention. I tried to sound brave and confident. “Lay it on me.”

Marcus looked amused, if only for a second. “Aiden has advised me that you have progressed enough to continue at the Covenant.” He picked up the dreaded file and opened it. I sank in my seat, remembering the last time he’d taken a gander at it. “You have a strong handle on the techniques of defense and offensive combat, but I see here you haven’t started Silat training or defense against the elements, and you’re extremely behind on your studies. You haven’t even taken a class on recon or basic guarding technique—”

“I don’t want to be a Guard,” I pointed out. “And I can catch up on the class stuff. I know I can.”

“Whether or not you want to be a Guard or a Sentinel is not even a concern at this point, Alexandria.”

“But—”

“Aiden has agreed to continue your training,” Marcus closed the file, “throughout the school year. He believes with his help and with the time you spend with the Instructors, you wil be able to ful y catch up.”

I tried my hardest not to look at Aiden, but I almost came out of my seat. Once school began, Aiden didn’t have to continue training me. He was a Sentinel ful -time. Giving up his free time for me had to mean something.

“I have to be honest, Alexandria. I’m not sure it wil be enough, but I do have to take into consideration al you have recently accomplished. Even without al the training and classroom experience, you have proven that your ability is… beyond some of our seasoned Sentinels.”

“But— wait. What?”

Marcus smiled, and it wasn’t fake or cold. In that one moment, he reminded me so much of Mom I couldn’t fight the way the proverbial wal between us cracked. However, his next words blew that barrier to pieces. “If you can graduate in the spring, I am confident you wil make an outstanding Sentinel.”

Stunned, I stared at him. I’d expected him to try to send me back to Lucian so I’d be under the Council’s thumb wel before I turned eighteen, but it was the fact Marcus had actual y complimented me that knocked me over.

Final y, I found my voice. “So… I can stay?”

“Yes. Once classes start up, you wil need to spend extra time getting caught up.”

A tiny part of me wanted to jump up and hug the man, but that reaction would be so uncool. So I managed a total y calm, “Thank you.”

Marcus nodded. “I’ve worked out an agreement with Aiden to split training with Seth. We both agreed that would be for the best. There are things that Seth wil be… better suited for as time progresses.”

I was too happy about being al owed to stay to care about spending mandatory time with Seth. After three years of being in limbo when it came to my future, I could barely contain the relief and excitement rushing through me. I nodded eagerly as Marcus outlined a plan for me to get caught up on my studies and how I would alternate days between Aiden and Seth.

When my meeting with Marcus was over, I stil wanted to hug him. “Is that al ?”

His emerald gaze settled on me. “Yes… for now.”

A wide grin broke out across my face. “Thank you, Marcus.”

Marcus nodded, and stil grinning, I shot to my feet. On the way out, Aiden and I exchanged relieved looks before I shut the door behind me. I bounced out of the main building and al the way to my dorm. I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face. Such terrible things had happened, but out of al the misery, things were starting to look up.

Once inside my dorm room, I kicked off my shoes and stripped off my shirt. My tank got stuck in the shirt during the process. Turning and tugging on my shirt, I—

“Please don’t stop with just the shirt.”

“Holy crap!” I clutched my chest in surprise.

Seth sat on my bed, hands folded in his lap. His hair hung loose around his face. There was a devious smirk on his face that said he’d total y gotten a glimpse of my lacy bra.

“What are you doing in here?” Almost as an afterthought I added, “And on my bed?”

“Waiting for you.”

I stared at him. Part of me wanted Seth to leave, but I was also curious. I sat down beside him, running my hands over the tops of my thighs. I wasn’t exactly nervous, but I kind of felt like I wanted to crawl out of my skin. Seth was the first to break the strange silence that spread between us.

“You look terrible.”

“Thanks.” I groaned and held up my arms. The purplish-red splotches covered every portion of my arms, but I knew my neck… wel , it was bad. For a few minutes I’d forgotten about it. “I real y appreciate you pointing it out.”

Seth tipped his head at me and shrugged. “I’ve seen worse. There was a Sentinel who got cornered once in New York City. Real y was a pretty girl—a little older than you—

and just had to be a Sentinel instead of a Guard. A daimon took a bite out of her face just to prove a—”

“Ugh. Okay. I get what you’re saying: it could be worse.

Try tel ing me when I don’t look like I went to third base with a vampire. So why are you here?”

“I wanted to talk to you.”

“About?” I stared at my feet and wiggled my toes.

“Us.”

Wearily, I lifted my head and looked at him. “There’s no

—”

He reached out and placed one finger over my lips. “I have something real y important to say about that matter, and after you give me a chance to say it, I’m not going to push or ever bring it up again. Okay?”

I should’ve knocked his hand down, demanded he leave, or at least, leaned back. Instead, I gently brushed his fingers away. “Before you go any further, I want to say something.”

Seth’s brows rose curiously. “Okay.”

I took a deep breath and stared down at my toes again.

“Thank you for doing whatever… it was you did to find us. If it wasn’t for you then I’d probably be dead—or slicing and dicing someone right now. So… thank you.”

He was silent for so long I checked out what he was doing. Seth just stared at me with this dumb look on his face. To keep from smiling, I looked away. “What?”

“I think that’s possibly the nicest thing you have said to me. Ever.”

I laughed. “No it’s not. I’ve said nice things to you before.”

“Like what?”

There had to be another situation when I’d said something nice. “Like… when… ” I couldn’t think of anything. Jeez, I was a bitch. “Okay. That is the first nice thing I’ve said to you.”

“I think I need a moment to recognize and cherish this.”

I rol ed my eyes. “Moving on, what did you want to talk about?”

Seth turned serious. “I wanted to be up front on a few things with you.”

“Like what?” I scooted back against the pil ows lining the top of the bed, moving my legs so they weren’t touching him.

His brows furrowed. “Like what the future has in store for us.”

I sighed. “Seth, nothing is going to happen between—”

“Aren’t you even a little bit curious as to how I found you?

Don’t you want to know how I did that?”

“Yeah, come to think of it, I would like to know.”

Seth leaned back on one arm, twisting onto his side. The movement sent locks of golden hair forward, sliding over his jaw. His hip was far too close to my curled toes. Not that he seemed to care. “I was having a real y good dream about this chick I met in Houston and we were—”

I groaned. “Seth.”

“Al of a sudden, I was hurled out of the dream. I woke up, and my heart was racing, sweat pouring. I had no idea why.

I felt sick—sick to my soul.”

I pul ed my knees to my chest. “Why?”

“Getting there, Alex. It took me a while to realize nothing was wrong with me, but the feeling wouldn’t go away. Then I felt it—the first tag. It was like I was on fire and the pain—it was something real. For a second, I actual y thought I had been tagged. It struck me then. It was you I was feeling. I went to Aiden—”

“Why did you go to him?”

“Because I figured if anyone knew where you were, it would be him. Lot of help he proved to be, though. He had no clue.”

How did he come to that conclusion? That was something better left untouched for now. “So you felt what I was feeling?”

Seth nodded. “Every. Single. Tag. Like it was my skin being ripped into and my aether being drained. I never felt anything like it.” He looked away. A few moments passed before he spoke again. “I don’t know how you… dealt with it. It felt like my soul was being torn apart, but it was your soul.”

Sort of struck dumb by what he was explaining, I listened quietly.

“Once we realized you weren’t in your room, Aiden figured out what you had done. We left immediately, and I can barely explain how I knew where to go. It was like something was leading me. Instinct maybe?” He shrugged, staring down at his hand. “I don’t know. I just knew to head west, and when we got close to the Tennessee line, Aiden said you once mentioned Gatlinburg. As soon as he said that, I knew where you were.”

“But how? Did any of this happen before? When I was fighting Kain?”

He looked up and shook his head. “I don’t think so.

Whatever changed did so after then. The only thing I can come up with is that the longer I’m around you, the more…

connected we are, and since I’ve already gone through the change, I can tune into those kind of things better.”

I frowned. “It makes no sense.”

“It wil .” He sighed. “When Lucian said we were two halfs made to be a whole, he wasn’t kidding. If you had hung around that night at his house, you would’ve learned some interesting things. It would make things… so much easier.”

Ah, damn. That night only made me think of one thing: Aiden. It was a struggle, but I managed to push him into the furthest corner of my mind. “What kind of things?”

Seth sat up and faced me in one fluid motion. “The gods know you are going to hate this, but oh, what the hel . The longer we are around each other, the more connected we wil become—to the point neither of us wil real y know where one begins and the other ends.”

I sat up a bit straighter. “I don’t like the sound of that.”

“Yeah… wel , me neither. But this is what’s going to go down. I know how you are with control. You’re kind of like me in that sense. I don’t like not being able to control what I’m feeling. Just like you, but it’s not going to matter. Even now, it’s already affecting me.”

“What’s affecting you?”

He seemed to struggle for the right words. “Being around you is already affecting me. I can tap into akasha easily, sensing you when you’re hurt, and even now, I can feel it.”

He paused, taking a deep breath. “It’s the power in you—

the aether. It cal s to me, and you haven’t even changed yet.

What do you think it’s going to be like when you do? When you turn eighteen?”

I didn’t know and I real y didn’t like where any of this was heading. “You know what wil happen, don’t you?”

Seth nodded again and looked away. “Once it happens, it wil be a thousand times—no, a mil ion times stronger.

What I want, you wil want. We wil share the same thoughts, needs, and desires. Supposedly, it works both ways, but I’l be stronger than you. Whatever you want may end up being skewed by what I want. I am the First, Alex. Al it takes is one touch and that power shifts to me.”

Panic reared and I failed at pushing it down. I started to rise, but Seth placed his hands on my knees. Thank the gods I was wearing jeans because if his skin touched mine and that goofy swirly crap started happening right now, I’d probably lose it.

“Alex, hear me out.”

“Hear you out? You’re saying I’l have no control over anything.” I shook my head frantical y. The wild movement stretched the tender skin on my throat, but I ignored the sting. “That can’t happen. I can’t deal with that. I don’t believe in being fated to someone—or even fate.”

“Alex, calm down. Look. I know this is probably up there with the worst things that can happen to you, but you have time.”

“What do you mean I have time?”

“None of this affects you now. You won’t want anything I want right now.” He let go of my knees and leaned back—

away from me. “But it doesn’t work that way for me. Being near you means the connection is choking the crap out of me. Like right now, your heart is racing. So is mine. Being this close to you is like… being inside your head, but you stil have time.”

Processing al of this wasn’t easy. I mean, I got what he was saying. Since he’d gone through the whole palingenesis thing, whatever it was between us was already wrapping its super-special cord around him, but not me. Not until I turned eighteen. Then? “Why didn’t Lucian tel me any of this?”

“You didn’t stick around, Alex.”

I made a face at him. “I don’t like any of this, Seth. We’re talking seven months here. In seven months, I’l be eighteen.”

“I know. Seven months of me helping you train, so try to imagine what the hel I’l be feeling this whole entire time.”

I tried, but couldn’t. “This isn’t going to work.”

He leaned forward and tucked a strand of blond hair behind his ear. “That’s what I’m thinking. I came up with an idea. Now, hear me out on this. I can deal with this for right now, because even though it’s strong, it’s not that strong.

It’s doable—for me, but after you Awaken, things wil change. If we can’t handle it—if you can’t handle it, then we’l separate. I’l leave. You won’t be able to because of school, but I can. I’l go to the other end of the earth.”

“But the Council—Lucian—he wants you here, with me.” I rol ed my eyes. “For whatever reason. He’s ordered you here.”

Seth shrugged, and then he flopped down onto his back.

“Whatever. Screw the Council. I’m the Apol yon. What the hel can Lucian do to me?”

Those were dangerous, rebel ious words. I kind of liked them. “You’d actual y do that for me?”

He turned his gaze to me, smiling slightly. “Yes. I would actual y do that. You seem surprised.”

One of my legs dropped off the side of the bed as I leaned over him. “Yes. Why would you? It sounds like everything comes up rosy for you.”

“Do you think I’m a bad person or something?” He continued to smile up at me.

I blinked, a bit taken aback. “No… I don’t think that.”

“Then why would you think I’d force this upon you? Being apart won’t stop the connection from growing stronger, but it wil stop the shifting of power. Things… wil be intense once the transfer happens. If I leave, we wil each stil be our own person.”

Out of nowhere, it struck me. “This is for you. You don’t think you’l be able to handle it.”

He only acknowledged my words with a sardonic twist to his lips.

This connection thing must actual y bother him if he real y thought he wouldn’t be able to handle it down the road.

Wrong as it may be, it kind of made me feel better about the situation. In the end, if things became too much, there was a way out. I stil had control. So did Seth.

“What are you thinking?”

Snapping out of my thoughts, I looked down at him. “The next seven months are real y going to suck for you.”

Seth tipped his head back and laughed. “Ah, I don’t know about that. This— this thing—has its benefits.”

I sat back, folding my arms. “How so?”

He smiled.

“What are you thinking?”

“That we’ve actual y held an entire conversation without insulting one another. Next thing you know, you’l actual y consider me a friend.”

“Baby steps, Seth. Baby steps.”

He turned back to staring at my ceiling. There were no stars that glowed, just ordinary old, dul white paint. Without thinking, I moved again, reaching out and touching the hand resting near my thigh. Cal it an experiment, but I wanted to see what would happen.

Seth’s head whipped in my direction. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing.” And nothing was what happened. Confused, I wrapped my fingers around his.

“Doesn’t look like nothing,” His eyes narrowed on me.

“I guess so.” Giving up on my impromptu test, I lifted my hand. “Shouldn’t you be—” Whatever I was about to say died on my lips. Incredibly fast, Seth grabbed my hand and threaded his fingers through mine.

“Is this what you wanted?” he asked, ever so casual y.

It happened. Being so close to him this time, I could see where the markings came from. The thick veins in his hand were the first to darken, branching out before spreading up his arm. Mesmerized, I watched the inky tats cover every piece of exposed skin. Before my eyes, they shifted away from his veins, swirling around his skin. Breaking off into different designs as he—we—continued to hold hands.

“What do they mean?” I looked up. His eyes were closed.

“The markings?”

“They are… the marks of the Apol yon.” He answered slowly, as if he were having trouble forming words and sentences. “They are runes and spel s… meant to offer protection… or in our case, alert each other to our presence… or something. They mean other stuff, too.”

“Oh.” The runes glided down his skin, toward the tips of his fingers. Cal me crazy, but I was confident that those markings were reacting to where our skin touched, and for a split second, I real y believed those glyphs would jump his skin and spread across my flesh.

“Wil … I look like this one day?”

“Hmm?”

I pul ed my gaze from our hands and looked up. Seth’s eyes were stil closed, his expression relaxed. Actual y, it was more than that. He looked… content. Pleased. I’d never seen him so calm. “Is this one of the benefits?” I meant it as a joke, but the realization smacked me upside the head before he could respond. It was because he was close to me. Something as simple as that did affect him . I affected him that way.

I recal ed what he’d said after my run-in with Kain. “I real y do have al the power in this.”

His eyes opened and they shone like two giant, tawny jewels. “What?”

My fingers tightened around his, and his lips parted, al owing a sharp sigh to leak out. Then, slowly, careful y, I loosened my hold on his fingers. Interesting. “Nothing.”

“I never should have told you the truth about that.” His voice held a certain rough edge to it. “You do, at least for now.”

I ignored the last part and pul ed my hand free before the marks could touch my skin. We didn’t say anything for a couple of minutes. I leaned back against the pil ows and Seth closed his eyes once more. During that stretch of silence, I watched the steady rise and fal of his chest. He almost looked like he was sleeping. Relaxed as he was, the beauty of his face didn’t look so cold or methodical.

This time, I was the first to break the silence.

“So… what are you doing?”

“Now?” He sounded sleepy. “I’m making up plans. Things I’m going to show you—in training, of course.”

My brows rose. “I don’t see how there is anything you can show me that Aiden can’t.”

Seth laughed then, and when he spoke, his voice was smug and knowing. “Oh, Alex, I have a lot to show you.

Things that Aiden wil never be able to teach you.”

Staring down at him, I admitted to myself that there was a teeny tiny part of me that actual y looked forward to whatever it was that he planned on showing me. I felt confident that it would be entertaining if not fruitful.

We real y didn’t talk after that, and al too soon, the excitement of everything faded, leaving me exhausted. My eyelids started to get too heavy to keep open, and I wanted nothing more than to kick Seth over, so I could lie down. As it was, he took up quite a bit of space sprawled across the middle of my bed.

Not al that surprising, Seth opened his eyes then and looked at me. When he gave a little half smile and pushed himself to his feet, I wondered if he’d sensed he was about to get a roundhouse kick in his side.

There went the element of surprise.

“You leaving?” I asked, because real y, I had no idea what else to say.

Seth didn’t answer. He lifted his arms above his head and stretched, showing off a row of taut muscles as the black shirt rode up his stomach. The image of a cat flashed before me. That was how he moved, feline and predatory. It was a subtle grace neither human nor half.

“Do you know what your name means? Your real name—

Alexandria?”

I shook my head.

He smiled slowly. “It means ‘Defender of Man’ in Greek.”

“Oh. That sounds cool. What does your name—?”

Suddenly, he bent at the waist and swooped in. He was so damn fast I didn’t even have a chance to jerk back, which by the way, is total y a natural reaction when the Apol yon comes at someone that quickly.

He brushed his lips over my forehead, lingering only long enough I could be positive he’d placed a gentle kiss against my skin before straightening.

“Good night, Alexandria, Defender of Man.”

Stunned, I mumbled something along the lines of goodbye, but he was gone before I could ful y get the words out. I reached up and brushed my fingers over the spot his lips had touched. His gesture was weird, unexpected, wrong, and… sweet.

I eased down and stretched out my legs. Staring up at the ceiling, I wondered what the next couple of months held in store for me. For the most part, I came up empty.

Everything had changed—I had changed, but the one thing I could be sure about was between Aiden and Seth, I’d be learning lots of things.

***

The fol owing afternoon, I remembered the card from Lucian I’d dropped on the table. I slipped my finger under the crease and tore it open. I slid the money out, and for the first time, I actual y read the note.

It wasn’t bad or too fake, but stil , nothing stirred in my chest as I stared down at his elegant handwriting. No matter how much money he sent me or how many letters he personal y wrote, he couldn’t buy my love or erase the suspicion surrounding him like a thick cloud.

But his money was going to buy me some pretty sweet shoes soon.

With that thought in mind, I showered and found something to wear that covered the worst of the tags.

Keeping my hair down helped with the neck situation, but it didn’t cover al the splotches.

To my surprise, the Guards didn’t stop me when I crossed the bridge to the main island, but as I prowled the main street, I had a feeling of being watched. A quick glance over my shoulder confirmed my suspicions. One of the Guards had broken away from his partner on the bridge and kept a discreet distance behind me. Perhaps Lucian or Marcus worried I’d make another run for it… or do something else incredibly irresponsible.

I tossed the Guard a saucy grin before darting into one of the boardwalk’s tourist shops owned by the pures but run by mortals. The one I dove into featured an assortment of homemade candles, mosaic tiles made out of crushed shel s, and sea salt baths. Smiling to myself, I sensed I’d be spending some of Lucian’s money here.

Excited by al the girl stuff I planned on indulging in, I considered the simple pleasures of life often overlooked when preparing to kil daimons. Bubble baths were usual y a low priority. I grabbed a few white votive candles in little pinewood spirit boats and a handful of big, chunky ones—

the kind that smel ed like they’d overdosed in a Bath and Body Works sweatshop.

At the checkout counter, I ignored the way the obviously mortal clerk kept staring at my neck. Pures used compulsions on the mortals who lived near the Covenant, convincing them that al the weird things they saw were actual y normal. This chick looked like she could use another dose.

“Is that al ?” She stuttered over the last word, forcing her gaze away from my scars.

I shifted uncomfortably. Was this going to be how people acted until the damn tags faded? My eyes dropped from her to a set of ocean- themed stationery next to the register.

“Can I add that?”

The girl nodded, sending highlighted hair across her face. Unable to look at me directly, she rang me up pretty quick.

Once outside the store, I sat on one of the white benches lining the street and scribbled a couple of lines. After sealing the envelope, I headed across the street and cut between a bookstore and a novelty shop.

I didn’t need to look behind to know the Guard stil trailed me. Ten minutes later, I climbed the wide steps to Lucian’s beach house and slid the note through the crack under his door.

There was a good chance he wouldn’t even get it, but at least I’d attempted to thank him. I’d feel less guilty about spending my mini-fortune on my back-to-school wardrobe.

After al , I couldn’t wear dress greens and workout clothes al year long.

I rushed off his porch just in case he was actual y home and caught me there. With my bag of smel y goodness, I started back to the Covenant-control ed island.

“Miss Andros?”

Letting out a huge sigh, I turned and faced the Guard turned stalker. He stood by his partner now, a bland look on his face. “Yeah?”

“The next time you wish to leave the Covenant, please gain permission.”

I rol ed my eyes, but nodded. I’d come ful circle since I’d returned to the Covenant. I stil needed a babysitter.

Back on the campus, I made one more stop before I met up with Caleb: the courtyard. Hibiscuses had been Mom’s favorite flower, and I found several in bloom. I liked to think they smel ed like the tropics but I could never real y catch any scent from them. Mom had just liked how beautiful they were. I snatched about a half of dozen and left the garden.

As I neared the girls’ dorm, I spotted Lea sitting on the front porch with a few other half girls. She looked a lot better than the last time I’d seen her.

She tipped her chin when I passed her, using one über-tanned hand to flick her gloriously shiny hair over her shoulder. Silence stretched between us, and then she opened her mouth.

“Don’t you look lovelier than normal?” She pushed away from the thick columns and bit her plump lower lip. “Wel …

at least the tags draw the attention away from your face.

Guess that’s a good thing, huh?”

I didn’t know rather to laugh or punch her in the face.

Either way, as ridiculous as it sounded, it felt good to see Lea back to her bitchy self.

“What?” She narrowed her eyes in chal enge. “You have nothing to say?”

I thought it over. “I’m sorry… you’re so tan I thought you were a leather chair.”

She smirked as she strutted by me. “Whatever. Freak.”

Normal y those words would have started a never-ending battle of insults, but this time, I let it slide. I had better things to do. Inside my room, I separated the candles and the little boats used to guide spirits into the afterlife. The meaning was total y symbolic, but since I didn’t have a body or a gravesite, it was the best I could come up with.

I took my time getting ready. I wanted to look nice—wel , as nice as I could look with half my body covered in tags.

When I felt satisfied my hair didn’t look like a frizz bal and the dress I’d worn to the earlier funerals wasn’t covered in lint, I picked up a light cardigan. Slipping it over my arms, I gathered up my stuff and headed off to meet up with Caleb.

He was already down by the water, near the edge of the marshlands and where the staff cottages sat. It was the best, most private place to do such a thing, and I felt glad for that. Seeing Caleb in his nice clothes felt like a punch to my chest.

He must’ve dug a pair of black trousers out of the bottom of his closet, as they were a couple of inches too short for him. Even though Mom had tried to kil Caleb, he’d dressed up out of respect for her memory and for me. Something stuck in my throat. I swal owed, but the sensation didn’t go away.

Sympathy radiated from Caleb as he stepped forward and took the flowers out of my hand. Quietly, he set about setting up the little boats, and I plucked off the soft petals and sprinkled them in the boats. I thought she… would’ve liked the extra touch.

Staring down at the three boats, I swal owed again. One for Mom, one for Kain, and one for al the others who had died. “I real y appreciate this,” I said. “Thank you.”

“I’m just glad you’re doing this.”

The burning in my eyes increased and my throat tightened.

“And you wanted to include me,” he added.

Oh, gods. He was going to make it happen. I was going to cry.

Caleb edged closer to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “It’s okay.”

A single tear snuck out. I caught it with the tip of my finger before it made its way down my cheek, but then came another fat tear… and another. I wiped at my face with the back of my hand. “I’m sorry,” I sniffled.

“No,” Caleb shook his head, “don’t be sorry.”

I nodded and took a deep breath. After a few moments, I reined the tears back in and forced a wan smile.

We were kind of lost in each other’s arms for a while.

Both of us had something to mourn—something we’d lost.

Perhaps Caleb needed this, too. Time seemed to slow down until we were ready.

I looked at the candles. “Shoot.” I’d forgotten a lighter.

“Need a light?”

We turned toward the deep, rich voice. I recognized the sound al the way down to my soul.

Aiden stood a short distance from us, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans. The setting sun created a halo affect around him, and for a tiny moment, I almost believed he was actual y a god and not a pure.

I blinked, but he didn’t disappear. He was real y here.

“Yes.”

He stepped forward and touched each vanil a candle with the tip of his finger. Abnormal y bright flames sparked and grew, unfazed by the breeze coming off the ocean. When he was done, he stood and looked at me. Pride and reassurance fil ed his gaze, and I knew he approved of what I was doing.

I swal owed back more tears as Aiden retreated back to where he’d been standing. With effort, I tore my gaze from him and picked up my little boat. Caleb fol owed suit, and we walked to where the water turned to white, wispy foam, licking at our knees—far enough out that the surf wouldn’t carry the boats back in.

Caleb sat the two boats down first. His lips moved, but I couldn’t hear what he said. Possibly a prayer? I couldn’t be sure, but after a few moments, he let go of his boats and the waves carried them off.

So much stuff ran through my head as I stared down at my boat. I closed my eyes, seeing her beautiful smile. I pictured her nodding and tel ing me it was okay, okay to let it al go now. And I guess, in a way, it was okay. She was in a better place. I real y believed that. There’d always be some sort of guilt. Everything she’d done from the moment the oracle had spoken to her had led to this, but it was over

—final y over. Bending down, I set the spirit boat on the water.

“Thank you for everything, for al you gave up for me.” I paused, feeling the slick wetness running down my face. “I miss you so much. I’l always love you.”

My fingers lingered around the boat for a second more, and then the foamy waves carried the boat from me.

Further and further out, the three boats went, their candles stil glowing. The sky had darkened by the time I lost sight of the boats and their soft light. Caleb waited for me on the sand, and beyond him stood Aiden. If Caleb thought anything about Aiden’s presence, it didn’t show on his face.

Careful y, I made my way back to the beach. The distance between Aiden and me seemed to evaporate, and it was only the two of us. A smal smile crept over his lips as I approached him.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

Aiden seemed to understand I was thanking him for more than just a light. He spoke in a low voice so only I could hear him. “When my parents died, I never thought I’d find peace again. I know you have, and for that, I’m happy. You deserve it, Alex.”

“Did… you ever find peace?”

He reached out and brushed his fingers over the curve of my cheek. It was such a quick gesture I knew Caleb never saw it. “Yes. I have now.”

I inhaled sharply, wanting to say so much to him, but I couldn’t. I like to think he knew, and he probably did. Aiden stepped back, and with one last look, he turned and headed home.

I watched until Aiden became nothing more than a faint shadow. Returning to where Caleb sat, I dropped down beside him and placed my head on his shoulder. Every so often, the salt water would tickle our toes, and I’d catch the scent of vanil a from the breeze rol ing off the ocean. The air felt warm and pleasant, but the edge of the gentle wind held a soft chil , signifying autumn was on its way. But for right now, the sand felt warm on the island off the Carolina coast and the air stil smel ed of summer.

THE END

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