Ignited (40 page)

“Asher couldn’t get free of me, so I imagined a box and I shoved all of my energy inside it so he could escape. As soon as he got away, it hit me. I didn’t have to be one thing or the other.” I shrugged. “They’re both part of me. As soon as I stopped fighting, the two sides melded somehow. Healer and Protector, bonded in a single person.”

I couldn’t think of another way to describe it. Since I’d met the Blackwells, my powers had been knocked off balance, as I absorbed bits of their energy. Then I stole Seamus’s energy, really throwing things out of whack. That was why I’d been so quick to attack Erin, and why I hadn’t been able to stop myself from absorbing her energy when she’d died. But stealing her power had rebalanced things inside me. I just hadn’t known it until I was dying.

“I can control my abilities now. It’s not a struggle like before. It’s as easy as breathing. And I’m not immortal, Gabe. I should be after Erin, but it’s like the energy that I stole from the Protectors canceled that out.”

He listened to my excited explanation, and then he exhaled and stared at the ceiling. “Are you going to go back to Seamus’s?”

“What?” I asked in confusion.

“It’s okay if that’s what you want. I know he thinks you belong with the O’Malleys, and if you want to be there, then we’ll make it work. I bet we could still catch a train if you wanted to get back there tonight.”

I stared after him in bewilderment as he disappeared in the direction of the living room. It occurred to me that I’d handled this all wrong. He thought I didn’t want to be here.

I rose and followed him to the living room. He stood in the middle of the room, looking a little lost.

“Do you remember that last night in your kitchen in Blackwell Falls when I showed you what I imagined our future would be like?” I asked. He spun to face me, and I kept on. “I had it all wrong. Do you want to see what I picture now?”

He gave me a slow, hopeful nod, and I held out a hand to him. “Close your eyes.” I waited for him to listen. I walked backward and pulled Gabe after me as I took small steps. Then I opened my mind and let the movie roll.

We lived together in this apartment. I went to school to become a doctor. He studied music and played a guitar in the evenings while I did my homework. Some nights my family or his would call—because it was safe for them to do so now—and we would catch up on all we’d missed and talk. And even when he made me mad, he could say something and I would laugh, and an argument would end with lots of kissing. We were happy and in love and our life together began when I led Gabe down the hall to our room and we opened the door together.

Gabe’s eyes opened, and he lifted a hand to my cheek. “I love you, Remington.”

I turned my face to kiss his palm and whispered, “I know. It says so right there on your chest.”

His gaze shot down and he peered under his T-shirt. I stood on my tiptoes to spy the design, a replica of the Sharpie markings he’d once tricked me into “healing.”

“Wow,” I said. “I did that without even looking. These new powers are going to be awesome.”

Gabe smiled. “Guess what?”

“What?” I asked cautiously. He had the look of someone who was up to no good.

A second later, he whipped a Sharpie out of his back pocket. The same pen he’d used to write my scavenger hunt notes. His eyes promised retribution, and I took a quick step backward.

“Don’t run, sweetheart. I might mess up and have to start over again.”

He uncapped the marker, and I shrieked with laughter.

The chase was on.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First and foremost, I want to thank the readers and bloggers who have loved this series from the beginning. Your notes, reviews, posts, tweets, and pictures put a smile on my face every day. I’m so humbled by your love for Remy and her world. Special thanks to the Mundie Moms for arranging the
Touched
blog tour and trailer premiere and to Jaime Arnold of Two Chicks on Books who live tweeted her reading of
Pushed
and
Ignited
, much to my enjoyment.

With every novel, I learn how to write all over again.
Ignited
required frequent phone brainstorms and panicked meetings at Mel’s Diner and/or Starbucks to work through twisty plot points. Lots of love to Kari Young for listening to me blather on about “emotional continuity.” You have the patience of a saint, friend.

To my agent, Laura Bradford, I’m so glad you loved this series and that you made it possible for me to write the whole thing. Thank you for letting me discover who Remy would become.

I owe my editor, Martin Biro, a big basket of Ghirardelli chocolate for his work on this book and the series. Thanks for everything you and the team at KTeen do to get these books out into the world, with special gratitude to Vida Engstrand, Craig Bentley, Arthur Maisel, Alicia Condon, Alexandra Nicolajsen, Michelle Forde, and Megan Records, who encouraged the direction this book took. I also want to give thanks to the team at ThienemannVerlag who contributed edits and input to the series, especially Heike Brillmann-Ede, Bettina Traub, Heidi Lichtblau, and JuttaWenske. Thanks to all of you for letting me discover who Remy would end up with.

AC Gaughen and Tracy E. Banghart, your notes were brilliant, especially the lusty ones about Gabe. Thanks for making this book far better than I could alone! The same goes to my crit group—Kari Young, Jay Lehmann, Stephanie Kuehn, Karen Langford, Angelica Hagman, and Justin Sloan—who were always there to celebrate my successes and give me a shove when I was ready to give up.

To the Class of 2k12, Bookanistas, Apocalypsies, and YA Rebels groups, I couldn’t have made it through the last two years without you.

And last, but never least, to my family, thanks for putting up with me. I love you more than salted caramel mochas with whipped cream and those little salt sprinkles.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

1. Four months have passed since the end of
Pushed
. How has life changed for Remy, Asher, and Lucy? How has life on the run affected their relationships?

2. In
Touched,
Remy was isolated and traumatized by the physical and emotional abuse inflicted on her by her stepfather, Dean, and her mother. How has she changed over the course of the series?

3. In
Pushed,
Asher was kidnapped and tortured by Franc’s men. How did this experience change him? How has it impacted his relationship with Remy?

4. Lucy blames Remy for their changed circumstances, including what has happened to their parents. Is she right to punish Remy? Could Remy have done anything to change the outcome? How does Lucy change over the course of the series?

5. Remy discovers that Erin has also been abused. How did they each deal with the abuse? How does Remy’s discovery affect her relationship with Erin? Why do you think Erin makes the choice she does at the end of the novel?

6. In
Touched
and
Pushed,
Remy struggles with how others view her abilities and how she chooses to use them. Sometimes the others call her a martyr or criticize her willingness to sacrifice her well-being. What drives Remy to put herself at risk? Does her view of her own abilities change in
Ignited
?

7. Remy is torn between Asher and Gabe. Do you believe it’s possible to love two people at once? How does her love for each of them differ? How does their love for her differ?

8. Remy has often been disappointed by her family, but in
Ignited,
her ideas about a family unit change. What does a family look like to her? What does each member of her group bring to their family? Does having a family change Remy? If so, how?

9. How is the Phoenix symbolic of Remy’s internal and external journey over the course of the series? How does it reflect who she has become?

10. At the end of the novel, Remy is beginning a new life. Is her ending a happy one?

SOUNDTRACKS

When I begin a book, I create a playlist. The songs I pick fit the mood of the novel, or the lyrics may reflect a certain moment or character. As I write, I listen to these songs over and over. By the time I finish a book I’ve listened to each song upwards of 100 times. They become so much a part of my process that they feel like the backbone of the story. Below is a partial list of songs that I listened to while writing the Sense Thieves series. A lot of these bands may be new to you, but I hope you check them out

Touched

Song (Artist)

Because of You (Kelly Clarkson)

Waiting on an Angel (Ben Harper)

Daughters (John Mayer)

Breakable (Ingrid Michaelson)

Yes I’m Cold (Chris Bathgate)

Trouble Is a Friend (Lenka)

You’re Not Sorry (CSI Remix) (Taylor Swift)

Hangin’ by a Thread (Jann Arden)

Falling (Tyrone Wells)

Inside My Head (Clare Reynolds)

Come Down to Me (Saving Jane)

The Death of Us (The New Amsterdams)

Hero/Heroine (Boys Like Us)

Falling (Keri Noble)

Next to You (Tim Easton)

Closer (Kings of Leon)

Hang On (Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan)

So Long Sweet Misery (Brett Dennen)

Winter Song (Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson)

Arrivals (Aqualung)

I Would Die for You (Jann Arden & Sarah McLachlan)

That’ll Be the Plan (Daniel Martin Moore)

The Night Will Go As Follows (The Spill Canvas)

All I Can Do (Tyrone Wells)

Don’t Give Up (Clare Reynolds)

Pushed

The Light Song (The Homes)

Come Over Here (Sarah Bettens)

Someone to Fall Back On (Aly Michalka & I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On)

The Fear You Won’t Fall (Joshua Radin)

The Road Knows (The Homes)

Stay Over (The Rescues)

Youthless (Beck)

Into Dust (Mazzy Star)

Safe & Sound (Taylor Swift)

Sit With Me Tonight (Garrison Star)

Jungle (Emma Louise)

The Trapeze Swinger (Iron & Wine)

The Only One (The Black Keys)

Lonely Hands (Angus & Julia Stone)

Fever (Adam Freeland & Sarah Vaughan—Verve Remixed 3)

Run (Katherine McPhee &
Smash
Cast)

Firefly (Ed Sheeran)

Call It Off (Tegan and Sara)

The House That Built Me (Miranda Lambert)

Somebody That I Used to Know (Gotye)

Free (Graffiti6)

If Not Now, When? (Incubus)

Falling Awake (Gary Jules)

Live Forever (Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors)

Sail (AWOLNATION)

Ignited

Cripple Me (Elenowen)

You Can Close Your Eyes (feat. William Fitzsimmons) (Brooke Fraser)

Belong (Cary Brothers)

Falling (The Civil Wars)

Titanium (Madilyn Bailey)

I Will Fall (
Nashville
Cast Album version) (Clare Bowen & Sam Palladio)

Too Close (Alex Clare)

Turn into Earth (The Yardbirds)

Half Moon (Iron and Wine)

Can’t Go Back Now (The Weepies)

High Hope (Glen Hansard)

Stubborn Love (The Lumineers)

Counting Stars (OneRepublic)

Ho Hey (The Lumineers)

All Your Gold (Bat for Lashes)

Into the Wild (Lewis Watson)

If I Didn’t Know Better (
Nashville
Cast Album version) (Clare Bowen & Sam Palladio)

Stay Over (The Rescues)

Feel Again (OneRepublic)

Fade into You (
Nashville
Cast Album version) (Clare Bowen & Sam Palladio)

Heavy Cross (Gossip)

I Will Follow You into the Dark (Death Cab for Cutie)

Home (Gabrielle Aplin)

Carry (Chris Ayer)

Overwhelmed (Tim McMorris)

See how Remy’s journey began in Corrine Jackson’s

TOUCHED

You’d think being able to heal people with a touch
would be a blessing. But to 17-year-old Remy O’Malley,
it’s more like a curse.

Every injury Remy heals becomes her own. She lives in
fear of the day she’s forced to mend a wound from
which she can’t recover—and she’s desperate to keep her
amazing ability a secret.

Enter Asher Blackwell, a scarred eighteen-year-old with
dangerous powers of his own. Asher seems to know
more about Remy’s abilities than she does—and maybe
more than he’s letting on. If she opens up to him, she
might find out what it truly means to be a Healer. But
she’ll also expose herself to capture by an old and very
determined enemy. And if they catch her, they won’t
just injure her.