Soul to Shepherd (45 page)

“So are you, Teddy.”

It was still early, and I couldn’t go back to Quinn’s house—not yet, anyway. La Casa was out, too, considering I was pretty sure Quinn’s birthday surprise for me would take place up there, and I didn’t want to spoil it. Besides, I was so upset over the news about Peter all I really wanted was some time to myself.

The Falls popped into my head. I knew I’d agreed to leave it alone, but I couldn’t get it out my head. I needed to see it—to be there.

I arrived in the Falls and was immediately nostalgic. I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed this place and all the memories Quinn and I created here together. The sounds of the waterfall rushing over the edge and plummeting into the pool below were music to my ears. The lush green grass and plush canopy of trees overhead was a sight for sore eyes. My first thought was that nothing had changed, but when I saw the scattered stones of the cairn Dylan had erected, I knew everything had.

“Hello?” I called out without materializing. “Is anyone here?” I called out again when there was no response. I remained invisible and headed into the cave. I was stunned when I arrived in our makeshift bedroom. It looked like a disaster zone. The bed, Quinn’s books, what little clothes he kept there—everything had been picked over, broken, and strewn everywhere. It was so disheartening to see.

“Hello?” I called out again, only to be met with silence. I phased in enough so I could sense whether another presence was with me, but I was alone. I didn’t detect any demon B.O. either, so if a demon were responsible for trashing our home, it hadn’t returned in some time. I bent down and picked up a picture of Quinn and me at the concert we’d gone to last spring and my tears began to flow uncontrollably. Learning that Peter was gone, missing the Falls, seeing all this damage, and knowing whoever caused it wanted to hurt Quinn—it was all too much.

I set Quinn’s bedside table upright and shoved a book under one cracked leg for added support. Then I laid the picture on top of it and stared at it a minute longer through teary eyes before walking out of the cave. I stripped off my clothes and dove into the cold water, hoping it’d wash away my sadness, but knowing nothing could. I took a huge breath, plunged under the water, and screamed. It felt good, so I did it again. Only this time, I felt more than a release—I felt a twinge of anger stir inside me.

This was not the time to grieve. This was the time to act. There was no way I was going to lose anyone else to the Servants. I needed to focus all my energy on figuring out everything I could about this ritual so I could save Quinn’s life, and I was pretty sure I’d just figured out a new piece of the puzzle—the spear of light. I swallowed back my tears, pulled myself out of the pool, and shimmered into jeans and a tee.

Taking a deep breath, I composed myself and put on my game face. I didn’t want to ruin everyone else’s moods, so I decided to keep the news about Peter and my visit to the Falls to myself until after tonight’s birthday celebration.

When I arrived back at the Harrisons, it was only three-fifteen. Quinn’s parents were still out, and Quinn, Dylan, and Minerva weren’t back yet either. I was relieved to have a little more time to myself so I could shove my sadness and anger to the back of my mind and lock it away for the time being. Plus, I wanted to follow up on my new lead about the lightning. I was sitting at Quinn’s desk doing some research on his laptop when Minerva materialized.

“When did you get here?” she asked.

I looked at my watch. “About a half-hour ago.”

“Evie, you shouldn’t be here alone.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I needed to research a few things, and I guess I lost track of time. Are Quinn and Dylan with you?”

“No, but they’ll be here shortly.” She walked over to where I sitting and peered over my shoulder at the computer screen. “So, what did you need to research?”

“I think I discovered something. You know how we’ve had trouble trying to figure out the ‘spear of light’ part of the ritual—what they use to expose the soul?”

“Yeah?”

“So, it has to be something pretty intense to
expose
a human soul, right?”

“Right,” Minerva agreed uncertainly.

I clicked on an image of a single lightning bolt hitting the ground. “So I think the spear of light is a lightning bolt.”

“Okay, that makes sense in theory, but how can the Servants create lightning out of thin air when they need it?”

“I don’t think they have to create it. Think about it—if you only have one night a month on Earth to perform a ritual revolving around a human getting struck by lightning, where would you go?”

“Probably to the one place that gets struck by lightning the most often,” Minerva replied.

“Exactly,” I replied, grinning.

It turned out there were a handful of places on Earth known for their conductive qualities. The mountains in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ranked number one for the most lightning strikes per year, although areas in Venezuela, Singapore, Brazil, and Florida had their fair share of lightning as well.

“Well, it’s a start.” I sighed.

“I’d say it’s better than that,” Minerva stated enthusiastically. “I think you just singlehandedly narrowed down the list of where the Servants perform the ritual. Bravo, Evie!” She high-fived me.

“What’s with the high-fives?” Dylan asked when he and Quinn arrived.

“Evie not only figured out
what
the ‘spear of light’ refers to in the ritual, but she also figured out
where
the Servants perform the ritual,” Minerva announced proudly.

“
Maybe,”
I said, qualifying her praise. “Maybe I figured it out.”

“There’s no ‘maybe’ about it. She nailed it! The ‘spear of light’ is a lightning bolt. And the location of the ritual is most likely one of these five hot spots for lightning on Earth,” she explained, pulling up screenshots of my research.

“Well done, Miss Smarty Pants,” Quinn noted, kissing me on the cheek.

“Totally!” Dylan agreed. “And I can’t think of a better time to celebrate a job well done than on your birthday, can you, K.C.?”

Ugh, Peter died on my birthday.
The fleeting thought was enough to dampen my spirits.

“What say you?” Dylan asked in a terrible British accent.

I looked at Quinn, who was anxiously awaiting my answer, and remembered what Minerva had said earlier about how much effort he’d put into this day. I pushed all the sadness and loss to the back of my mind once more and focused on the positives: I had Quinn; I was fortunate to have great friends, who were willing to risk their own safety to protect Quinn’s and mine; and, I was pretty sure I’d figured out a key part of the conversion ritual and the possible locations where the ritual would be performed—and that was huge.

“I say let’s celebrate!” I took Quinn by the hand, and kissed him on the cheek. “I can’t wait to see my surprise,” I whispered in his ear.

“You won’t be disappointed.” He flashed me his million-dollar smile and his eyes lit up with excitement.

“So let’s go!” I exclaimed in anticipation.

Quinn looked at his watch and then Dylan. “Hmm, I don’t know. What do you think, Dylan? Another five minutes?”

Dylan looked at his watch. “Maybe ten.”

“C’mon, quit stalling!” I planted a sweet little kiss on his lips. “If you make me beg now,” I whispered in his ear, “I’m going to make you beg later.”

“Promise,” Quinn whispered back as he pulled me into him. The second our bodies met, it was like sparks collided and the glow around our auras intensified. I took a deep breath to still the desire stirring in my belly, but all I managed to do was stoke the flames.

“You two need a moment alone?” Dylan teased.

“We should get going,” Quinn suggested in a hoarse voice, his eyes never leaving mine.

“Yeah,” I replied breathlessly.

He pulled a duffle bag out from under his bed and took out a thick winter parka, hat, scarf, and gloves. I looked him over and suddenly realized he was already wearing ski pants and boots.

“It’s ninety degrees outside,” I pointed out.

“Not where we’re going.” Quinn grinned mischievously.

We arrived in a portal, which could only be described as a fairytale winter wonderland. The night sky was lit up by streaks of green, blue, and violet, and millions of stars were suspended in the air like radiant confetti. The colorful hues from the Aurora Borealis cast their soft reflection on the thick white blanket of frozen powder covering every inch of ground for miles. Groups of pine trees were nestled about, their branches weighed down by snow that sparkled like diamonds under the illuminated night sky.

“This is unbelievable,” I whispered, looking up at the sky.

“I knew you’d like it,” Quinn acknowledged. “The snow reminds me a little of the first day I spoke to you.”

“You mean when you braved below freezing temperatures and followed me from psych class to my bio lab?” I teased.

“Hey, you bolted out of class so quickly I didn’t know how else to ask you out.”

“Well, I’m glad you did.”

“Me too.” Despite being bundled up, Quinn was already beginning to shiver. “C’mon, I want to show you something on the other side of the ridge.”

“Which ridge?”

“The one right behind us.”

I turned around and gasped. There was a snow-trodden path beginning from where we were standing and ending at the top of a gentle slope fifty feet away. The path was lined on both sides with snow lanterns—lit candles enclosed in small pinecone-shaped towers made entirely of snowballs.

“Are you sure? You must be freezing,” I said, concerned.

“Just blow some of your heat waves over my way, and I’ll be good to go.”

I focused on warming up my hands and then placed them on Quinn’s arms, heating him up in the process.

“Ahh, much better. Thanks.” He grinned. “C’mon.”

“As if this place wasn’t magical enough already,” I said, completely awestruck by the scene before me. “You did all of this?” I looked at Quinn.

“With a little help from my friends.”

“Don’t even try to pass off any of the credit,” Dylan piped in. “You planned it all. M and I just helped with the logistics.”

“It’s amazing—perfect, actually. Thank you.”

“There’s more,” Quinn stated.

“More?” I asked in disbelief.

“C’mon, put these on.” He pointed to a pair of snowshoes.

“Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously!” He chuckled. “We’re going to hike to the top of that slope the old-fashioned way, and unless you want to sink two feet deep into the snow, I suggest you use those.”

“Where’s all that steam coming from?” I asked after strapping on my snowshoes.

“You’ll see.” I couldn’t help but notice Quinn was grinning.

When we reached the top, my breath was taken away again as I stared down into a large natural hot spring.

“Last one in is a rotten egg!” Dylan cried out as he quickly hopped down the other side of the snowy ridge to the edge the spring. He disrobed completely and plunged into the hot water. “Woo-hoo!” he shouted when he resurfaced. “Nice and toasty!”

“Let’s go!” Quinn urged as he followed suit. A few minutes later he, too, was naked in the water. “C’mon, the water feels awesome!”

I looked at Minerva, who just shrugged her shoulders at me. She phased out of view and reappeared in the water also
sans
clothing.

“Here goes nothing,” I said aloud to myself. Feeling a little modest about being naked in front of anyone but Quinn, I followed Minerva’s method of entering the water. I sidled up to Quinn, who was no longer shivering. Still, I couldn’t help but notice the tiny icicles forming in his wet hair.

We all stayed in the water, admiring the view of the northern lights, laughing, and talking about anything and everything except Shepherds, Servants, strategies, the next full moon, or Quinn’s safety. Dylan, Minerva, and Quinn actually sang Happy Birthday to me. It felt good to let go of it all for a while. I felt unburdened, relaxed, and content. It was just what I needed.

At one point, Dylan jumped out of the water and rolled in the snow buck naked. “Whew!” he shouted when he jumped back into the water. “Now that’s how to wake yourself up! C’mon, College Boy, I dare you!”

“Not gonna happen,” Quinn replied.

“Chicken?” Dylan taunted.

“No, I just want to prevent a certain part of my anatomy from freezing and falling off.” Quinn eyed me and winked. “This one promised begging would be involved tonight.”

“I can’t believe you just said that.” I could feel the heat surge to my cheeks, and I shook my head in embarrassment. Dylan, Quinn, and Minerva cracked up laughing, and I couldn’t help but join in.

“Speaking of freezing,” I said when the laughter subsided. “I think it’s about time we head back, don’t you?” I asked Quinn. It’d been almost forty minutes since we arrived, and I couldn’t tell if Quinn’s lips were reflecting the colors of the northern lights or if they were actually blue. I kissed him and his lips were ice cold. I kissed him again, warming him up with my hands.

“Better?”

“Yes.” He kissed me again much more passionately.

“Yeah, looks like it’s time for the second half of your surprise, K.C.,” Dylan observed.

I quickly pulled away from Quinn. “There’s more?” I asked excitedly, grinning from ear to ear.

Quinn smiled. “Sky’s the limit for you.”

“Laying it on a bit thick there, don’t you think?” Dylan joked.

“It’s called being
romantic.”
Minerva smacked him on the chest.

“Ouch! You want romantic, woman? I’ll give you romantic!” He smiled devilishly, scooped Minerva up in his arms, and kissed her as he submerged them both under the water.

The second half of my birthday surprise was at La Casa. We all teleported back to the portal and said our good-byes to Dylan and Minerva, who planned to return just before dawn so we could all go back to the Harrisons’ the next morning.

“So,” I said, turning to Quinn once we were all alone in the living room.

“So,” he repeated, flashing me his heart-stopping smile. I unwrapped the blanket Quinn was bundled up in and leaned up against his bare chest. He was still freezing, so I warmed him up with my own body. “Mm, that feels good.” He wrapped the blanket around me so we were both snug inside it.