Enduring Light (19 page)

“You say the dream felt like a flashback. Where were you? How were you watching it?”

“I was looking at it from a distance somehow.”

“Like you were hiding?”

I shrugged. “Maybe.”

 
“How clear is the dream?”

“Clear on the action but blurry everywhere else.”

Emma wrapped her arms around her middle. “That is not a flashback. It is impossible. You are only a year older than Kevin. You would have been an infant. You couldn’t possibly remember… but it is a true memory.”

“We don’t know that. You just said she would have been too young to remember.” Kevin kneeled at her side.

“We do...” She placed her hands in her lap. “That does not mean he killed him. It does not mean he helped Blake. There has to be an explanation.”

Kevin put a hand on her shoulder. “I know, but why didn’t he tell us, or at least you.”

“I need to talk to Theodore.”

The mention of Theodore surprised me. “You think your other brother had something to do with it, too?”

“No. But he was always with Blake…”

“Should I get him?” I asked.

“No. Please stay to talk.”

“I’ll go look, Mom.” Kevin hesitated for a moment before walking off.

Emma watched him go then turned back to me. “Clearly, my mind went right to Monty’s presence, but I will explain why you had the dream.”

I already had an idea. “It is my dad. You said I have part of him in me.”

“Yes. The Source chose to give you some of his memories. But that meant he was there that day.”

I gasped. “You do not mean that he was involved, too?”

She shook her head. “No, but he witnessed it. Blake must have found out.”

“My parents were killed within months of you leaving…”

“Exactly. Blake knew your father witnessed it.”

Theodore, Emma’s older brother, took a seat across from her at the table.
 
“Emma? You wanted to speak with me?” He looked a lot like Monty, just older. Like all Guardians, his aging had slowed, but he looked closer to forty than Monty’s thirty.
 

Kevin sat next to me. He took my hand, and I soaked up the strength he had to offer.

“The day… the day my Gerard… the day he died.” Emma stopped. Even close to twenty years later, the emotion was raw. “Where were you? Where was Monty?”

“What do you mean? I was at the castle.”

“And Monty?”

Theodore shifted in his seat nervously. “I do not know. He disappeared for a while. I assumed he was out roaming as usual. You know how he did that sometimes.”

“Would it be impossible to believe he was with Blake?” Emma crossed her legs.

“What? What are you suggesting? Monty was the one who supported you the most after what happened.”

“Because you didn’t believe me.”

“Emma, I have apologized as heartfelt as—”

“I know. That is not the point. Monty supported me because he knew my feeling was right. He knew Blake killed my Gerard.”

“Why would you think that? What would give you that idea?”

“I know it. That is enough.”

 
I sighed with relief. I did not want anyone else knowing about the dream or the accusation it contained.

A look of understanding crossed Theodore’s face. “Blake wanted a safety net. He wanted a witness, someone to tell people that he had been made the new Gerard.”

“But he wasn’t. Blake was never my Gerard. I never felt anything for him. I would have known if he were meant to be my Gerard.”

Theodore nodded. “And his sword never turned blue.”

“But Monty didn’t back him up, right?” Kevin jumped in.

“No, he didn’t. And then Blake threatened to have Monty jailed. Monty was the one who told me to run. He said we had no time.”

Theodore stood and started pacing. “Blake said he had proof he did not do it.” He let out a small gasp. “Blake was going to pin it on Monty if you still did not believe the skirmish story. He would have sentenced him to death and taken his place next to you.”

“Or he would have offered me a choice. Blake liked offering choices.”
Emma seemed lost in thought.

“It sounds like you knew him well.” I had not meant to let the words slip out. I was too tired to filter properly.

“I did.” Emma’s face hardened. “But that is not something we will discuss. Monty knew what was coming. He went with Blake because he wanted his acceptance. Theodore and Blake always left him out.”

Theodore groaned lightly. “Because he was younger. It was only natural.”

“If he’d only told me…. what a weight to bear for so many years.” Tears slid down Emma’s face again.

I held back any further comments. I felt as though I was listening in on a conversation I had no right to, even if I was the one who had dreamed the scene.

Emma looked pensive. “There had to be a reason we were supposed to discover the truth. The Source always has a plan.”

“How did you find out?” Theodore asked.

“It does not matter. But it all had a purpose.”

“You.” I pointed at Emma. “It was you.”

“What do you mean?” Theodore asked.

“Aside from the Onyx and scroll, we still need to get to Blake. We know his weakness.”

“It’s me. I’m his weakness,” Emma said passionately. She understood where my thoughts were going.

Theodore sat up straighter. “He was always in love with you.”

Kevin mumbled something.

“What?” Emma asked her son.

He cleared his throat. “But he locked you up for years. He might love you, but he’s crazy.”

“But he’s still going to pay attention to what I do.”

Theodore stopped in front of her. “You cannot mean to put yourself in danger, Emma.”

“We are all putting ourselves in danger. My daughter is still out there. My husband and our brother are missing. Surely I can afford to put myself on the line when I may have caused all of this.”

Theodore leaned over her. “You did not cause anything.”

Emma rested her hand on the worn wooden tabletop. “The past is the past. We need to focus on the future.”

“So we wait
another day for Charlotte?” I asked.

Emma leaned back in her chair. “Yes. We wait… but not for long.”

Chapter Nineteen

Kevin

We left Mom and Theodore talking and walked outside to get some air. I needed a break, and I was grateful that Samantha had come with me. “You’re older than me.”

“So? Does that matter?” She watched the dragons fly off to hunt for food. I’d been worried the dragons were leaving, but Samantha seemed pretty confident that they’d be back.

“No. I just assumed we were the same age. I’ve never dated an older girl before.”

“Kevin.”

“Yes?”

“I am a year older than you. That is not much.”

I smiled. “You’re robbing the cradle. Completely robbing the cradle.”

“If you are uncomfortable with it…”

“Not uncomfortable at all.” I moved to sit next to her on a rock. “Very comfortable with it.”

“I cannot believe my mom united with a man from the lost world. I always imagined they grew up together.”

“Maybe the women in your family have a thing for exotic men.” I wriggled my eyebrows.

“You are an Energo man. You just did not realize it.” A look crossed her face that made me wonder if she actually believed what she was saying.

I laughed. “All right. Well, you’re exotic then.”

“I like knowing I have some of my father’s memories in me.” She looked wistful. “It is like I know him a little now.”

“It sounds like he was a pretty cool guy. Moving to another world and all.”

“I wonder why Percy never told me any of that.” Percy, Ruth’s Gerard, had raised Samantha from a young age. Samantha never talked about his death, but it had to have been hard on her.

“Most likely Ruth told him not to. The Source probably didn’t want you to know until the time was right.”

“You say it so much more naturally now.”

“What?”

“The Source. You really believe in it now.”

“How could I not?” My arm brushed against hers. “I’ve been living it.”

“I cannot imagine life without it.”

I thought about that for a second. “I think it was always there for me. It’s kind of like fate or destiny or something like that.”

“But the Source is more.”

I tried to come up with a comparison. “It’s your religion.”
 

“Religion?”

“You know what? Never mind.” My parents always warned me about discussing religion and politics. It wasn’t worth it.

“The Source is what guides us. I used to doubt it. My life seemed empty. I do not doubt it anymore.” The way she looked at me had me struggling for air. The look said so much more than the words ‘I love you’.

“What does it mean to unite?”

“I thought we had to wait until we were done before I told you?”

“I want to know.”

“It is a ceremony. We bind ourselves as a partnership for life.”

“Who does the ceremony? Like who presides?”

“An elder. I always thought Percy would do mine if I ever met someone. Now I do not know.”

“We can worry about that later.”

“Yes, we can.”

I kissed her. It wasn’t a passionate kiss, it was light, but intense in its own way. We’d been through so much together, and I knew I never wanted us to be apart. We may have been from different worlds, but we were so alike. I sensed that she needed me as much as I needed her, and I liked it. I wanted things to always be equal with us.

She broke the kiss and rested her head on my chest. “If we make it through all this, will you live in Bellgard?”

“That depends.”

“On?”

“Where do you want to live?”

“With you.”

“Yeah, that’s my answer, too.”

“And I was right.” She pointed at the distant outlines of the dragons. They were coming back.

“I guess you were.” I watched her. Her eyes were so big. “You want to keep them, don’t you?”

She smiled. “Am I that obvious?”

I laughed. “Just a little.”

“Do you think we can?”

“Keep them?” I pulled on a thread that had come loose from her shirt. She’d already changed back into her usual Energo clothes. I liked that she was more comfortable that way. She wasn’t trying to be anyone else.

“Yes. You think we can convince Ollis?”

“Yeah. I think we can.”

She took the tiny thread from me and tied it into little knots. She had some seriously good fine motor coordination. “We could do some great traveling with them.”

“I’d like that. There are so many nations to see.”

She smiled that breathtaking smile of hers. “I cannot wait.”

“Just remember all of these plans when things get crazy. Don’t give up, and don’t get hurt.”

“We will have the chance, Kevin. We are going to make it.”

“I love so much about you, but your conviction is pretty high up there.”

“I will stay positive then.” She stood up. “Let us get the dragons settled. We should probably get some rest.”

“Do you think Charlotte will make it back tonight?”

“No, but not because she is hurt. Calvin knows better than to travel too great a distance at night. Blake has the undead on his side. They would have the advantage in the dark.”

“The undead… how could I forget?”

“I hope that is a joke.”

I just smiled.

***

I was far too worried to actually fall asleep that night. I played it cool with everyone else, but my mind raced with the possibilities of what could have happened to Charlotte. After hours of lying awake, I bolted from my bed when I heard a commotion outside. I grabbed my sword and ran out of the cave.

Calvin held Charlotte in his arms. She was shivering even though wrapped up in a blanket. I pulled her from him, not really thinking about whether I had the right to that anymore. Energo customs didn’t matter when it came to my sister.

“What happened?” I barked.

Calvin kept his eyes on Charlotte’s face. “She walked into the river.”

“What? How did she walk into a river?”

“She was sleepwalking. I do not know what happened.” Calvin stepped toward me. “I woke up quickly, and Henry was on watch, but he was patrolling the area around our camp, and he didn’t grab her fast enough.”

The agonized look on his face forced me to calm down. He had tried his best to take care of her.

She opened her eyes. “I’m fine.”

I let out a sigh of relief but then wondered if she’d been awake the whole time. “Were you trying to torture me?”

“You can put me down. I just need to find dry clothes.”

I set her down. “Sleepwalking? When did you start sleepwalking?”

“I think this is the first time.” She wrapped the blanket tighter around her.

Mom walked out of the cave. “Charlotte?” They hugged. “Why are you all wet? What happened?”

I touched the damp spot on my shirt from Charlotte’s hair. “Apparently, Charlotte sleepwalks now.”

“What?” Mom released Charlotte from the hug. “Did you open up your mind?”

Charlotte shook her head. “No. I just remember falling asleep and then Calvin shaking me awake.”

Mom sighed. “I don’t know for sure, but I would assume it was Blake.”

“What trying to get her to drown herself?” I asked.

Mom nodded. “His abilities are more powerful than any of us understand.”

“Mom?” Charlotte said. “Can we find me clothes? I’m freezing.”

I grinned at her. Charlotte knew what she was doing. Mom needed an excuse to do what she did best—mother.

Mom put an arm around Charlotte. “Let’s see what we can find.”

***

We weren’t a big group. There were only seven of us. I was with Henry, Liam, Calvin, Theodore, Lawson, and Charlotte.
 
Samantha and another group that included Mom hung back with the dragons. The third and largest group of the Resistance was supposed to be moving in quietly right behind us. Even though I’d rather have had Samantha with us, it was the smart move. Besides, those dragons would protect her far better than I could.

“Do you think you’ll be able to get me to the cathedral?” Charlotte asked again. She seemed so calm and collected, but she wanted to run through the plan a million times.

“Yes. We’ll cover you. I have no idea what’s waiting for us inside, but the number one goal is to get you inside the cathedral.”

She nodded. “Just tell me when to create the distraction.”

We had decided to enter on the west side of Bellgard. From what we could tell, that side was guarded almost entirely by the undead. Zombies were scary, but at least we knew their weakness.

“How many do you think there are?” Henry asked. His eyes were fixed on the dark sky. It looked like a storm was brewing. I had a feeling it wasn’t just a rainstorm.

“Expect thousands.” Theodore stood beside me. I still didn’t know that uncle well, and I couldn’t tell what was going through his head.

“Let’s do this.” Liam gritted his teeth. I knew he wasn’t planning to leave Charlotte’s side for a second. I was glad.

The forest cover crept up close to the outer wall, providing us with coverage from discovery. Theodore and I scaled the wall first. I jumped down on the surprised humans that were guarding. Evidently, it wasn’t just the undead. I took out the humans first, knocking them out with the hilt of my sword rather than killing them. I saw the rows of undead moving toward us, and my stomach dropped. “Charlotte, it’s show time.”