The Fake Heart (Time Alchemist Series) (18 page)

“Your loss,” she said, sweet as molasses, “Have fun holed up in your room. I’ll tell Jack that you’re missing out on the fun.”

I paused.
“You do that. And I’ll tell him what a sweetheart you were in the girl’s restrooms last week. I think he’d be so appreciative of you laying claim to him like a piece of meat. Do guys go for the violent chicks nowadays?” She opened her pink glossed lips to retort but I had already spun on my heel and walked away.

“Don’t think I owe you anything, Ellen Miller!”

“It’s
Emery
,” I called back, “And
believe
me, you owe me
big time
, and I’ll make sure of it one day.” Giving Samantha a small, knowing smile, I turned
away, slamming my
door in Mallory’s pretty face.

◊◊◊◊◊

An hour
later I faced the ice cold drops of rain sliding down my face as I braved the weather. My yellow slicker and black umbrella couldn’t keep me dry from the downpour, and I was seriously considering turning back or taking shelter in the library. But I was already this far, and the clock tower was just in sight.

It was unusually easy to lie to Dove about where I was going. In fact, she seemed pleased, saying that
there was some
research she didn’t want me to see. I was a little hurt, but I understood. I lied and said that I was going to the library to check out some books for class, and offered her any of my school supplies to make her translating easier. She was deep in her work when I left with a final warning for her to stay quiet and keep warm.

But with every slushy step I took, stepping ankle deep into muddy puddles, the worried feeling I had all night long seemed to grow.

The clock tower was huge, and
it was very well kept
despite hardly being used. Seems like a lot of old buildings that didn’t serve any purpose on St. Mary’s grounds were just used in show keeping. Although
, I did hear
that the groundskeeper took care of the clock tower and lived
in the first story. Unlike the
chapel
, which was nice and secluded, a perfect place for underage
drinking (or if you were an ex-
alchemist seeking shelter), the clock tower was in plain sight and occupied, therefore making it harder for students to sneak in and trash the place.

Not like there was anything worth breaking
in for—the bell would probably be too heavy to steal, and
I doubt any of the rich kids cared if some old groundskeeper lived there. So it may as well just be called a normal tower.

I ran the last ten feet to the doors, slipping in puddles. Despite the cold weather I was out of breath, and I leaned on the door to swallow gasps of cold air. Just my luck, once I reached the doors a loud clasp of thunder erupted, sending me almost flying.

This was not a good idea. Not a good idea at all.

Either way, I took a deep breath and pushed the doors open.
Locked.

“
Dammit
!” I hissed, trying again. The doors rattled, but wouldn’t budge. Who invites a girl to meet up with him and forgets to mention the damn door is locked? I wanted to kick som
ething, like this stupid door, but I took a
couple seconds to calm down.

It wasn’t Leon’s fault the door was locked. Use common sense,
Em
! The groundskeeper probably kept it locked when he was away. I just had to find another way in.

I bundled my jacket tighter, lifting the hood to try and keep dry, and braved the storm again. I circled around, looking for any windows that may have been left unlocked. I finally came across a back door, almost hidden behind the large bushes. I plodded up the steps and grasped the handle, twisting it slowly until I heard it click. It was unlocked!

But for one pithy
of a
second I considered just turning around. Running to the library, or back in my room, whatever…it was hard to explain. Even though I knew this was stupid, there was still a part of me that needed to do this.

A flash of lightening and another crack of thunder jolted me out of my thoughts and I barged inside. It was a little warmer than outside, but there was an indefinite chill. I shook my umbrella
on the steps quickly
and decided it would make a decent weapon, instead of leaving it by the door like I usually do at home.

I scanned the area. There were a few doors shut tightly, but
there was a metal staircase at the end of the hallway
. There was a faint, soft light coming from the top, and I knew that had to be a way to the top floors of the tower.

The top where Leon awaited.
It was the only possible reason for there to be light coming from the top floor when the groundskeeper was gone.

I held the umbrella in a tight grip and ascended the stairs, winci
ng with every creak and groan, b
ut I wasn’t going to sneak around—better let him know somebody was coming up. The stairs gradually started to spiral upward when I reached the second story, but judging by how dusty and old they were, it looked as if it nobody had used them for a long time. They must have been just an emergency stairway, hidden in the back away from prying eyes, but a good enough place where somebody could sneak up to the top without being seen.

I finally reached a wooden door that was left open. Warmth immediately wrapped around me. I peered inside;
there was
a heater nestled in the corner, a make shift bed, and a crooked black bookshelf/table. There was even a small fridge and microwave near the window, with a small cabinet that I guess held dry foods.

But no Leon.

I pushed the
door wider and walked in.

“What are you doing?”

“
Ohmigod
!”
I whirled around, almost tripping over a pile of books, “Don’t scare me like that!”

“Then don’t invade my personal space,” Leon said, brushing past me. I was too angry to recoil at his touch, but I was confused. What was with this sudden change in attitude?

I stepped towards the door, refusing to budge another inch, “Well excuse me, you’re the one who wanted
me to come here.” I shot back. The alchemist
either didn’t hear me or chose
not to
as he
fell
face down on his bed with a heavy wallop. “Are you
even
listening?”

“Yeah, yeah,” his voice was muffled by the pillows, “Come sit down and make
yourself
at home, I guess.”

You guess?
“No thanks. I don’t make myself comfy in the presence of a killer.”

That must have struck a chord, because his sea green eyes shot open like I had just stabbed him in the back.

“S-Sorry, that was rude…”

“No, it was accurate,” he said, forcing himself up. There were heavy black rings under his eyes and his face was flushed a bright red. It seemed like every time he moved his body he
groaned in pain. Even his clothes were covered in mud and wet from the rain. He didn’t even try to remove them.

“You’ll catch a cold if you don’t change clothes,” I said, eager to avoid the topic.

He arched an e
yebrow, a sly smile on his face.
“You want to see me naked?”

“Okay, make your point in the next five seconds or I’m leaving.”

He raised his hands in surrender. “Sorry, I’m just kidding around. But you are right; I do need to get out of these clothes…”

I already pivoted fro
m my spot.
“Change and talk while I stand in the hallway.”

“Doesn’t it make more sense for two people to see each other when they are discussing life or death problems?”

“Not today it doesn’t.” I stepped out and around the door before Leon could protest. I heard rummaging and shuffling coming from the other side. Wet clothes fell to the floor with a flop and for a second I just realized he really was stripping beyond the door.

My face grew hot. Like
,
sauna hot. Then I wanted to kick myself. I like
Jack
, not Leon! It’s normal for a girl to blush at some other (very hot) guy undressing. I still remember back in September when he had fought against Dove
shirtless. He was really
well built…

“I take it you know about the Elixir.”

“Y-Yes.” was all I could say.

There was more shuffling about, and I heard the microwave come to life.

“I take it you also know that you need to find it.
Fast.”

“Also a yes.”

“I need to find it too—“

I jumped in, wanting this whole thing to go over as fast as possible. It was beyond freezing in this gloomy hallway, “I know already. I know you’re trying to find the Elixir for a different reason that has something to do with your mentor Guinevere. What I want to know is why you want to find it so badly other than fulfilling your mentor’s wish.”

There was silence, save for
the whir of the microwave.  “She’s gone
.”

His voice was so heavy and hurt, my heart squeezed. He sounded just like Dove when they reminisce about their mentor. They must have really loved her. “I know that too,” I said softly, “And I know that she wants the Elixirs to be destroyed.”

“You’re wrong,” he said quickly, “She would want us to use them for good.
To heal the sick and to give to the poor.
We could save people with that kind of power!”

“But that isn’t
what your mentor wanted, was
it?”

“We—I don’t know that for a fact, I just have to find it. And I need your help.”

“So that’s why you gave me those pages,” I replied, feeling sick, “You knew I would give it to Dove and she would translate it. Do you really think I’ll just backstab her like that? How did you even know I knew Dove?”

The door creaked open, flooding the hallway with light. Leon was dressed in a loose green turtle neck with baggy jeans. The tips of his hair were still wet as he slung a small towel over his shoulders. His shoulders were broad, and I finally noticed how tall he was. Not as tall as Jack, who was a head t
aller than me, but still pretty…
tall.

“I knew because she would have been the only person to pull an act like that trying to save you.”

Yeah, only because you tried to kill her and instead killed me, remember?
I wanted to shoot back, but held my tongue. He gestured for me to come in but I refused to go in first. I followed him in, basking in the warmth and the smell of sausage biscuits and coffee. He pulled out two hot biscuits from his microwave and placed them on the uneven table. “Want one?”

I passed, and sat on the opposite side, ready for a quick bolt when I needed it.  He took a long sip of coffee and gulped one of the biscuits down before I started.

“How did you know I was alive?”

“I saw you walking through campus,” he said, “I work with Mr. Jones, the groundskeeper. That’s how I got this place. I work for the room and he helps with food when needed.”

So he’s in with the groundskeeper,
I thought. That’s perfect access to a lot of places to snoop around and look for clues. Which also explains how he manages to sneak in and out the library’s bottom levels without drawing suspicions.

“Was that you who snuck into the girl’s bathroom last week?”

He almost choked on his sandwich, turning a bright
,
beet red, “What? No! I don’t—I wouldn’t do that! Why would you think that?”

“No reason,” I shrugged. Judging by his reaction, either Leon was a
helluva
good liar or he was being honest. But the figure I saw that night looked just like him—or was it really just some stupid boy trying to play a prank or sneak a peek at some unsuspecting girls?

“You knew Dove was the one to save me.
How?”

“It’s her alchemy,” he explained,
“Dove is—well, she’s always been a top notch alchemist. S
he makes an amazing healer. She can’t patch up broken bones, but she can stop wounds from bleeding, and even stop internal bleeding, as long as she knows where the injury is she can fix it, no problem. That’s how we made money traveling around—she would offer her services for a reasonable price.”

I was amazed. I had no idea Dove was that gifted. No wonder it wasn’t too much of a challenge for her to “fix” my heart. All she had to do was find something to fill the gap—the
pocket watch—
and use her alchemy to fill in the rest.

And now…because of me, she couldn’t be a healer again. I always knew how much she had sacrificed, but it felt like it never sunk in until just now. I still recall just how…sad and beautiful she looked—like an angel who had been sent down to save me.

Dove was more than my mentor, and fri
end….she was my guardian angel of sorts
, too.