Scorched (14 page)

At least that explained why he’d lost her signal. He’d been following her spark, reaching out to her through the back door he’d created in her mind when he’d shown her the vision of the Scorch. But as of yesterday, he’d found himself at an impasse, her mind blocked against him. Caleb must have shown her how to shield herself, which would make it nearly impossible to find her.

“Santa Rosa, New Mexico.” Connor glanced over to see Trinity’s grandpa consulting an old-fashioned paper map. The man looked up. “It’s not even fifty miles from here. Let’s head out.” He rose to his feet, his eyes shining with eager desperation.

Connor sighed, feeling old and defeated. He wanted to tell the man it would do no good. That they could follow them to the ends of the earth, but they’d always remain one step behind as long she kept herself blocked to him. If she didn’t want to be found…

“Are you coming?” her grandfather asked, hovering at the open door.

He reluctantly rose to his feet, resigning himself to the fool’s mission. At least it would make her grandfather feel better. To feel like he was doing something instead of just sitting around uselessly, waiting for news.

They’re quite a pair
, he thought as he followed Trin’s guardian to his parked car.
So
devoted
to
one
another. Ready to risk everything to keep one another safe.
He tried to imagine what it must be like to have someone like that in his life. Someone who cared more about him than even the end of the world.

Of course, his father had once. And he’d died because of it.

He firmed his resolve. In the end, nothing had changed. His mission was still on, still vitally important to the survival of the world. And if Trinity didn’t believe him? If she refused to go along with the plan they’d made? Well, that made her his enemy. Just like his brother.

Don’t give up on her, Connor.

He started at the sudden thought slamming into his brain. No, not just a thought—a push. A powerful push. So strong that even he, with all his training, had to fight to keep it from lodging into his consciousness. He looked around, wondering where on Earth it could have come from. After all there were no—

He stopped short, catching Trinity’s grandpa squeezing his eyes shut, as if he were in sudden pain.

“Did you…um…say something?” Connor stammered, searching his deeply lined face.

The old man’s eyes snapped back to the road, but not before Connor caught a flash of guilt cross his face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he muttered. “Now, are you ready to go or what?”

But
you
do,
Connor thought excitedly.
You
know
exactly
what
I’m talking about.

Aloud he said, “Yes, I’m ready. Let’s go.”

Her grandfather grunted and pulled out of the parking lot, the car’s tires screeching as he turned onto the street. As they drove down the road, toward Trin’s last known whereabouts, the sharp push came again.

She’s worth fighting for. She’s worth everything.

If you’d asked Trinity what she thought Dracken Headquarters would look like, she probably would have guessed like something out of a sci-fi movie—deep in the desert with watchtowers and electric fences, maybe a few landmines littered along the way. Not to mention the requisite men with machine guns, high-tech security gates—all the stuff that was supposed to go along with any self-respecting top-secret military operation. So she was quite surprised when Caleb directed her to pull off the highway and into the parking lot of a seemingly abandoned shopping mall instead.

“We’re here,” he announced, gesturing for her to stop the truck and put it into park. “Home sweet home at long last.”

“Um.” She looked around doubtfully. “This is it?
This
is Dracken Headquarters?”

The Nevada mall sprawled out before them had presumably seen better days. The store signs were crumbling, and colorful graffiti had been splashed over almost every available surface. Tall weeds poked defiantly from cracks in the pavement, and the sidewalks were lined with rusty shopping carts from days gone by.

Caleb looked at her with piercing eyes. “Is something wrong?”

Trinity shook her head. “Sorry, I guess I just didn’t expect the secret headquarters of a dragon-worshipping sect from the future to have a JCPenney.”

He snorted. “The actual mall went bankrupt five years ago, princess, after a developer built an open-air shopping center a few miles down the road. The Dracken were able to scoop it up cheap. It’s actually the perfect home base if you think about it. Lots of space. Lots of bathrooms. They’ve spent the last two years converting it. The outside’s just to scare off the tourists. Wait till you see what’s beyond the front doors.”

He shot her an excited grin; he’d been in a good mood all morning, becoming more and more animated the closer they got to their destination. As if he couldn’t wait to introduce her to his world and his friends. She, on the other hand, felt more than a little apprehensive about the impending meet-and-greet with the Dracken. Unfortunately she had little choice in the matter. While Caleb didn’t treat her as a prisoner, he also wasn’t about to let her go.

They parked the car and headed into the mall’s main entrance, Caleb triggering some kind of special sensor at the door that pricked his finger and matched his DNA before unlocking and swinging open. As he gallantly suggested “ladies first,” Trin gathered her nerve and stepped into the belly of the beast.

The two-story mall was dimly lit and more than a little dusty, the entryway caked with cobwebs and littered with debris. Just more props to scare away potential intruders, Trin wondered, or were the Dracken simply lousy housekeepers?

At first glance, the place seemed deserted. At the same time, she got the uneasy feeling of being watched as their footsteps echoed down the hall—by a hundred pairs of unseen eyes. The whole thing was unnerving to say the least. Even more so when the doors behind them clanked shut with a booming crash, effectively sealing them in.

“What, no welcoming party?” she managed to joke, shoving the fear down her throat. “You’d think for the Fire Kissed they’d at least spring for a few balloons. Maybe some chips and dip?”

Caleb smirked. “Just wait, princess,” he replied. “You’ll get all the welcome you want. And then some.”

Sure enough, not a moment later, Trin caught a mop of blond curls poking over the mall’s second floor railing. “He’s back!” the girl shouted, her voice echoing through the empty corridors. “Hey, guys! Caleb’s back!”

The mall sprang to life, dozens of people spilling out in every direction, rushing toward them with wild abandon. Soon Trinity found herself completely engulfed in a sea of excited faces, all babbling over one another, trying to get her attention.

“You’re here!”

“You’re finally here!”

“We’ve been waiting so long!”

“We’ve been dying to meet you!”

“Where’s the egg? Has she hatched yet? Did you bring the dragon?”

Overwhelmed, Trin took a hesitant step back, shooting Caleb a “help me” glance. He laughed, then clapped his hands together loudly.

“Hey, hey! Back up!” he commanded the crowd. “Let the poor girl breathe.” As the multitude sheepishly complied, he turned to Trin. “Guess I should have warned you,” he said with a sly grin. “You’re a bit of a legend here.”

Trinity’s eyes darted around the crowd, trying to take it all in. The group standing before her appeared to be all kids around her own age, dressed identically in navy blue sweats, white T-shirts, and matching tennis shoes. But the similarities ended there. Some were tall; some were short. Some were athletic, while others were fat or thin. Male and female, fair-skinned and dark—seemingly from every country under the sun. As if someone had managed to gather up an entire teenage United Nations under one roof.

“Are these the Dracken?” she asked hesitantly. “Are they all from the future?” The idea that all these kids had traveled back in time together was hard to believe.

Caleb shook his head. “These are the Potentials,” he explained. “All from your time.”

“Potentials?”

“Potential Dragon Guardians,” he clarified. “For the last two years the Dracken have been busy combing the world, looking for kids born with the gift. The ones they find are brought here to be tested. If they pass their initial trials, they’re initiated into the organization. Eventually each one will be assigned a dragon to bring back to his or her country. It’s the best way to make sure everyone gets to enjoy the dragons’ gifts in a peaceful, ordered way.”

“Right.” Once again, Trinity couldn’t help but wonder what the dragons themselves would think of such an arrangement. Would they get to choose their country or just be randomly assigned? Like, what was the poor dragon stuck shivering in Siberia going to think of his friend happily firing things up in Fiji? There were still a lot of unanswered questions to the Dracken’s master plan.

Before she could ask, a tall girl with smooth, olive skin and large, golden eyes stepped out from the pack of Potentials. She offered Trin a wide smile, then, without pause, threw her arms around her in a big bear hug. Trinity stiffened at the sudden spontaneous display of affection, but somehow managed to stand her ground.

“I’m Rashida,” the girl said as she pulled away from the hug. “May I be the first to welcome you home.”

Welcome
home.
Trinity couldn’t help but flinch at the all-too-familiar greeting. The same one she’d always hear when walking through the front door of yet another foster family. As if it could be that simple. As if the strangers standing before her could somehow become an insta-family—just add water!—by simply uttering those magic words. And while sure, some of the foster families had been nice enough and she’d eventually settled into their rules and routines, never once had any of those houses ever felt like home.

But this girl looked so happy. In fact, they all did. Every face in the crowd glowing with enthusiasm, as if completely thrilled to have Trin join them at last. She found she didn’t have the heart to disappoint them.

“Well, there’s no place like home,” she declared, flashing the Lollipop Guild a smile she didn’t feel. Now if only she could score some ruby slippers…

As Rashida retreated back into the crowd, a sudden rumbling echoed through the mall. Trin’s eyes lighted on an elevator at the center courtyard, its doors yawning open with a loud groan. The crowd immediately parted like the Red Sea as a man and a woman stepped out and made their way toward Trin and Caleb.

They were dressed simply—not unlike the rest of the Potentials. But something in their manner—something fluid and graceful—made them stand out from the pack. They were also older. The man was probably in his late fifties, black hair speckled with gray. The woman’s age was harder to judge; she had a seamless face but dark, serious eyes and long blond hair cascading down her back like flowing water. They glided through the crowd, and the Potentials bowed their heads one by one as they passed.

These had to be the Dracken, Trin determined. The real ones who had come back from the future with Caleb.

“Welcome,” the man said, his voice warm and rich, a blinding smile spreading across his clean-shaven face. He reached out, pumping Caleb’s hand vigorously while the woman opened her arms, enveloping Trin into another hug. These Dracken people certainly were touchy-feely. She shot a furtive glance at Caleb and realized he was smiling broadly.

“Trinity, I’d like you to meet Darius and Mara,” he said. “Darius is Master of the Dracken and Mara is our Chief Birthing Maiden.”

“Um, hi,” she managed to spit out, not sure the proper Miss Manners etiquette for greeting visitors from the future. “Nice to meet you.” She realized her hands were shaking and shoved them behind her back.

Thankfully the Dracken didn’t seem to notice. Darius turned to Caleb. “You have done well,” he told him. “Even with the extenuating circumstances. I am very pleased.” He gave him an approving smile and Caleb beamed back happily. From the way he was acting, Trin got the feeling the Dracken leader must be some kind of father figure to him.

“And you, my sweet girl,” Mara said to Trinity, her voice light and musical. “Welcome to our humble headquarters. I know this must all seem very strange to you, but we hope you will find a way to make yourself at home here. You are our honored guest. Our Fire Kissed. And we are here to meet your every desire. Anything you need, you must only ask.”

“Can I go home?” Trinity blurted, not missing a beat. She could hear the other Potentials snicker until Darius shot them a look. “Sorry,” she muttered. “But you did say
anything
.”

Mara gave her an apologetic smile. “You’re right. I did. And if only we could honor your request. It would be my greatest pleasure to allow you to return home. But I fear it’s not safe for you there, and your safety is of utmost importance to us.”

Trin frowned. Of course they’d play the safety card. And, she had to admit, it was a tough one to argue with. “I’m sure I’d be okay,” she tried. “If I could only—”

“I don’t think you understand,” Mara interrupted in a kind but firm voice. “Your government has labeled you a terrorist, dealing in what they consider biological weapons of mass destruction. If they capture you, they will hold you without trial for as long as they wish. Torture you even. Are you prepared to face something like that?”

Trin stared at her, heart pounding in her chest. Terrorist? Sure she’d broken some laws. But terrorists were Osama Bin Laden, the Taliban, not teenage girls from West Texas who only advocated violence when it came to zombie-blasting video games.

“Not to mention the Hunter is still at large,” Darius added. “If he tracks you down—and I have no doubt he would if we allowed you to leave—he will kill you in order to slay the dragon. And we cannot, under any circumstances, allow that to happen. After all, this little dragon holds the future of the world in her hands. And so, through her, do you.”

Trin swallowed hard, looking around the room. And here she thought Caleb was intense. What had she gotten herself into? She tried to force her pulse to steady, to order her thoughts. Okay, fine. They wouldn’t let her go.
It
wasn’t a big surprise, really
, she tried to tell herself. But there was one thing she could ask for. Something they might still agree to.

“If I can’t go home to my grandpa,” she said, after gathering her nerve, “then can you bring him back here to me? He’s the only family I have and I won’t be able to settle in until I know he’s okay.”

Darius looked at Mara. She nodded. “Now that’s something we can arrange,” she said.

Trin’s shoulders slumped in relief. “Thank you. That would be great. Really.”

“We’ll put our best men on it,” Darius assured her, laying a hand on her arm. “They’ll find him and bring him back here and he can live as our honored guest just like you. If we’re quick, perhaps he’ll even be able to arrive in time to witness the dragon’s birth.”

Trinity nodded enthusiastically, loving the idea of her grandpa getting to see Emmy hatch. After all, he was the one who had brought the egg into their lives in the first place. Without him, none of this would be happening.

“Thank you,” she said sincerely. “I can’t tell you how much that means to me.”

“Not half as much as you mean to us,” the Dracken returned grandly. He turned to Rashida, who was still hovering at the front of the crowd. “Now, would you mind, Sister, taking our guest to her chambers? She must be exhausted from her trip.” He turned back to Trin. “We have prepared everything for your arrival—rooms, clothing. Even now your handmaiden is drawing you a hot bath.”

Trinity raised her eyebrows. She had to admit, a bathtub sounded good in and of itself after their days on the dusty road. But a freaking handmaiden to boot?

Emmy, we’re not in West Texas anymore.

But
where
am I?
she wondered as she followed Rashida down the darkened hall, the creepy feeling returning with a vengeance the further they went.
And
what
do
they
want
from
me, now that I’m here?