The Secret of Spruce Knoll (8 page)

“We are especially sensitive to iron, that much of legend is true,” Zolin said.

Eren raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.

“We age too, though differently from others. We live to be about five hundred and don’t start looking like I do until into our four hundredth year. The excitement of so many viral years fades after you realize how often you’ll have to move so people don’t figure it out,” he went on.

A numbness spread through her that she had to concentrate on to banish. That was going to take a while to sink in so she just filed it away to think about later.

“How old are you?” she asked in a soft voice.

Zolin smiled, looking as though he had expected that question too.

“I’m 393.” 

Eren was so stunned she couldn’t move, couldn’t even change her expression. Her first instinct was to laugh it off as unbelievable. What rational person could believe such a crazy thing? Then again, what rational person could jump fifteen feet straight up into a tree, or pick up a hundred and fifty pound rock and toss it like it was a volley ball? Looked like her life no longer fit the rational mold.

“Then the Zolin Yaretz that wrote that book was…was you?” she asked, voice barely above a whisper.

He smiled and nodded, leaving her stunned. Another question broke through the paralysis. It was crazy, but since they’d already derailed from the rational, she thought, what the heck?

“So, what we’re like vampires?” She glanced at Aiden after asking and found him smirking at her.

“No, we’re nothing like them,” her grandfather said.

Eren felt very satisfied as Aiden’s smirk withered away and was replaced by awe. Finally, she had found something that neither of them knew. A thrill of triumph shot through her.

“Vampires aren’t real. Are they?” Aiden asked, sounding unconvinced.

“No, not like the legends at least. They were dark channelers who bathed in the blood of others to absorb their power. Humans gave them the name vampires. But they were killed off during the dark ages,” Zolin said.

“No way,” Aiden exclaimed.

He was now perched precariously on the edge of his chair, his hands interlaced beneath his chin as he leaned forward. Eren was going to laugh so hard if he fell.

“It’s true. Energy works both ways. It can be pushed out or pulled in. Some have used it for dark purposes in the past. They are the main reason for the torture and persecution of our kind. They did not respect their power or the Earth. What they did actually harmed it instead of worked in harmony with it like what we do. As the Earth suffers so do we. That is one thing you must never forget,” Zolin said.

Aiden looked like he’d heard part of this, but not all.

“Fewer and fewer channelers are born every year. The Earth is in a bad state because of pollution and misuse. Because of our connection to it so are we,” Zolin said.

“That’s why everyone in Spruce Knoll is so passionate about recycling and protecting the environment,” Eren observed.

Different species had their time in the sun, Eren understood that. But this wasn’t the same, this wasn’t natural selection. She had just learned that her kind was an endangered species and she didn’t know if she should be sad or furious.

“Maybe we wouldn’t be dying out if they knew about us, and all this,” Eren said.

“No!” Zolin and Aiden shouted in unison.

She drew back from their frantic faces. Aiden’s eyes softened as he touched her arm.

“They can never know about us. They’d hunt us down and kill us,” he said.

Zolin dropped his head in his hands and muttered to himself about why it was a bad idea to raise children away from the Societies. It sounded like he was criticizing Eren’s parents’ decision, but when he looked up she realized that wasn’t it. The look on his face wasn’t accusing, it was shameful.

“It’s happened before and it would happen again. The only way for us to live in harmony with normal people is if they don’t know what we are,” her grandfather said.

“Just think of the Salem Witch trials,” Aiden said.

Eren’s eyes widened. “No way,” she murmured.

He nodded and said, “Way.”

That was almost too much to absorb. “I understand, don’t worry,” Eren lied. It was easy to sound convincing since she was so concerned about displeasing her grandfather.

She didn’t understand, but she would try to. Still, it didn’t seem right. Her kind was dying out because others were slowly killing the world. Most people were getting more environmentally conscious but would it be soon enough? The image of melting polar caps and decreasing habitats she’d seen flash all over TV and the internet haunted her now.

“We didn’t migrate here. We were
driven
out of the countries we’re from. Each culture of channelers that lives here was persecuted in their own country. In Maya culture we were no better than servants. In fact, for a channeler to be a servant was for them to have value because it meant they were safe from the sacrifices.” Zolin twisted the word sacrifices like it was a dirty word.

“Sacrifices?” Eren asked.

 “Being a sacrifice was the most common way for us to serve our people. They tried to make it sound like an honor, saying the gods preferred us and the future was easier to read in our entrails. But there is no honor in being slaughtered on the killing block.” Zolin’s voice had grown so quiet toward the end of his story that Eren had to lean forward to hear him.

“That’s horrible,” she whispered.

“Yes. And it was the same for the Irish and the Romanians. The Tibetans were the only race whose people accepted them, but even they were driven out as animals when China invaded,” he finished.

She had no idea where he got the strength to retell that story. Just hearing it left her numb and speechless. But then, almost four hundred years was a long time to heal emotional wounds. Tragedy was supposed to be something that happened to other people and now she was learning it was part of her lineage. It made her want to know more about her family.

The next one was a tough question to get out because she knew it would cause her grandfather more pain. But she had to ask, she was tired of not knowing.

“What happened to Grandmother?” she asked in a quiet voice.

Aiden sat up and went rigid, an almost strangled look upon his face. Of all the possible reactions, she hadn’t seen that one coming, especially from him. Her grandfather looked as though he’d just had ice water tossed in his face.

“Hey, I’m going to buy a pop for the walk home. You want one, E?” Aiden forced false cheer into his voice as he leaped to his feet.

“Sure,” she said.

“Great, be right back,” he called over his shoulder as he was bounding out the door.

What the heck about her grandmother’s death could make him so jumpy? They were going to have a long conversation on the walk to the river.

When the bell on the door fell silent her grandfather sank back into his chair and sighed. His features contorted for a moment then slowly smoothed out with what looked like a monumental effort.

“Chantico was an amazing woman. She did what was right when no one else would and she died for it.” He paused, his eyes peering deep into Eren’s.

She tried to look brave and strong, not wanting him to leave anything out to spare her. He must have seen what he was looking for because he went on.

“There was a new Irish couple in town. They hadn’t been here long enough to belong to a Society yet. The woman became pregnant. She was the first one in Spruce Knoll to conceive in many years,” he stopped again and took another breath, this time for his own sake it appeared.

“As soon as she became pregnant a Romanian couple—Virgil and Camilia Moldovan—befriended her and her husband. When the woman was a bit over eight months pregnant the two couples went to the city on a shopping trip. They drove separate cars. The Irish couple crashed and the car caught fire. Virgil said he pulled the woman from the wreckage but couldn’t save her husband. The story was that she went into labor and gave birth right there, then died from the severity of her burns,” he said.

That last name sounded familiar but she couldn’t place where she’d heard it. Her grandfather was quiet for almost a whole minute and Eren wondered if he was going to go on. Then he ran a shaking hand through his salt and pepper hair and stood. He started to pace, his fingers tracing along a shelf of books as though touching them gave him comfort.

“Virgil and Camilia petitioned the Spruce Knoll Council of Societies for guardianship of the baby. Your grandmother suspected the Moldovans had befriended the Irish couple because of the pregnancy, and then staged the car crash, killed the couple and took the baby,” his voice was barely more than a whisper as he said the last part.

“Your grandmother challenged their right to petition for guardianship of the baby. She and Camilia had to fight for it. Literally. Not only was Camilia younger, stronger, and faster, she’s descended from a race of channeler warriors known as the Hunters,” he stopped and sniffled.

Tears rolled down his cheeks but he hardly seemed to notice them. He was too lost in the past. Eren’s chest tightened just watching him. There had been so much death in their family. Why couldn’t they just be normal people?

“She didn’t stand a chance, yet still she fought. Camilia could have just wounded her and the fight would have been over, but she didn’t. She killed her. Since it was all done within the parameters of our laws, I could do nothing.” He choked on the last sentence.

Luckily his pacing had brought him back to his chair. He collapsed into it and dropped his head into his hands. Eren was at his side in a heartbeat, wrapping her arms around him.

“I hope I can be the kind of person she was,” Eren said, one hand clutching the moonstone necklace her mom had given her.

Her words seemed to give him enough strength to pull away and smile up at her. He took a handkerchief from his shirt pocket and wiped at his eyes.

“You’re already well on your way,” he said.

The look of pride in his bloodshot eyes erased some of the guilt she felt for bringing the subject up. The last thing she wanted to do was cause him more pain, but there was something else nagging at the back of her mind that she had to ask.

“Does that have something to do with Aiden?”

That shameful, strangled look Aiden had got in his eyes when she mentioned her grandmother had burned into her brain. It made her wonder.

“Yes. He was the baby.”

Eren’s knees went weak and she had to sit back down. This explained his speedy exit and why he never spoke fondly of his foster parents. He must know the story. Which meant he knew his adopted parents may have killed his real parents. It had to be horrible living with that knowledge. But he was an innocent, there was no way he should feel guilty, not in Eren’s eyes at least.

Aiden was only a few months older than she was which meant this had all happened just before she was born. Her parents would have lived in Spruce Knoll at the time. That meant her pregnant mom had been forced to watch her own mom fight and die. Then she had left her dad and sister to deal with their grief. It didn’t fit the whole Society mentality. Something was missing but she had taken in too much to figure it out just yet.

She heard Aiden’s bare feet against the sidewalk long before he opened the door. Before he could come in Eren got up and gave her grandfather another hug.

“Can we come by later this week? I’d love to see some of the old scrolls,” she said.

Zolin’s smile was almost bright enough to banish the shadows of grief from his eyes. A bit of the pressure on Eren’s chest eased at seeing him smile.

“Of course!”

“Excellent! We’ll see you later, Grandpa.” Waving, she walked outside.

Taking one of the fountain pops from Aiden, she looped an arm around his and started walking. She had the distinct feeling her grandfather needed to be alone right now. Besides, she wanted to be alone with Aiden. There was much for them to discuss.

Chapter 15

Once Eren finished her pop, she started chewing on the ice left swirled around the bottom of the cup. It wasn’t the oppressive afternoon heat that made her do it but a reluctance to speak. The cacophony of birds singing in the aspens along the sidewalk sounded mocking. Worse than the birds was the look of guilt and pain on Aiden’s face and it was finally what got her to speak.

“It’s not your fault. My grandmother made a choice to stand up for your parents, a choice that was entirely hers, Aiden. I don’t blame you and I don’t think she would either,” Eren said.

She wanted to say more. Did he know his adopted parents may have killed his real parents? Unable to think of a tactful way to bring it up, she decided to wait.

Aiden turned his head away for a moment before grabbing her hand and giving her a smile. “Thanks,” he said.

It looked like he was thinking about saying more but someone came out of a store and started walking toward them. Eren hardly even looked their direction. Her eyes were glued to the sidewalk as she contemplated what else to say. 

At the last possible moment the person stepped right between them, breaking their hands apart and slamming into Aiden’s shoulder. Aiden spun around, making a sound that was as close to a growl as a human throat could manage. His energy spiked and crackled like a fire that was about to roar to life. The sheer amount of anger that darkened that energy was frightening.

The boy who had broken through them glared at Aiden, his fists clenched and feet apart in a fighting stance. Dark black hair framed a face that couldn’t have been much older than Aiden’s. He was tall and broad and the muscles of his chest filled out his shirt.

“Claud,” Aiden spat the name out like a bad piece of fruit.

“You’re keeping dangerous company. I didn’t even think
you
would lower yourself to hang out with a half-breed,” Claud said.

The tension between them was so strong it felt like Eren had stepped into the middle of a furnace. The fury in Aiden’s eyes was starting to freak her out. It became hard to breathe and made her body start to vibrate. Forcing in several deep breaths, she concentrated very hard on trying to stop the sensation. Cramps twisted her stomach and the pain of them drove her to a knee.

“Eren, are you okay?” Aiden asked as he took a step toward her.

Claud moved between them and the pressure increased, pouring over Eren like scalding water. With it came a horrible sense of loathing, and it was coming from Claud. Her vision blurred and the shaking got so bad she fell forward onto her hands. Blue mist started to leak from her pours. In her distracted state Eren wasn’t sure which scared her more, Aiden’s temper, this boy, or the idea of being forced to channel in front of them both.

“She hasn’t released her energy yet!” Claud exclaimed.

He looked down at her like she was something he wanted to exterminate. Her body shook so hard it felt like it was going to tear itself apart. There was something very familiar about this boy, something in his eyes. It was hard to think but she forced herself to focus. She’d seen those eyes before, staring out of the darkness of the forest. Then she remembered. The wolves that had come to spy on her that first night on the deck. He had been there with them. Everything went white and Eren began having trouble thinking.

A scream sounded above her and she got a sense of movement, then the pressure and heat were gone. Scrambling backwards, she worked her way to her feet and struggled to maintain her balance while the world came back into focus. It looked like Aiden had shoved the dark haired boy back and now they were squaring off. She didn’t want Aiden to have to fight him, not just because of her. Not to mention, the fury written all over his face had her kind of worried about how badly he’d hurt the othr boy.

“Stop!” she shouted.

They both turned to her, looking as if they’d forgotten she was there. Stepping up beside Aiden, she put a hand on his shoulder to steady herself. She thought moving close to Claud would make her start shaking again, but it didn’t. There was a slight thrumming beneath her hand; Aiden’s power. It protected her, she was sure of it, she could
feel
it.

“Leave us alone,” Eren said with a bit more confidence.

Claud’s brown eyes locked on hers and she could feel him trying to push his power on her, to hurt her again or make her anxious enough to release her power. But it didn’t work. All she felt was a slight tingling sensation. She smiled at him.

“Back off Claud, you can’t beat me and you know it,” Aiden said.

Breathing heavy, his fists opening and closing, for a moment it looked like Claud might test Aiden on that.  But then he stood up straight and waved his hand dismissively.

“Whatever. You’re not worth it. I’ll be seeing you around Donovan,” Claud said.

His eyes caught Eren’s before he turned and stormed off. There was such hatred in their depths that it made her tear up. She’d never done anything to this boy. She’d never even met him!

“Leave her alone, Claud, or else,” Aiden snarled.

The warning carried power with it, Eren felt it lash out and slam into Claud’s back. It barely moved the boy a few inches though. Ignoring him, Claud marched on down the sidewalk.

Aiden turned around and took Eren by the shoulders, holding her gently as though he feared she may break. The concern on his face only made her tear up worse. All that fury had drained away from him and he was once again the Aiden she knew and had spent her summer hanging out with.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

Unable to talk yet, she just nodded. A few more breathes and she was able to blink away the tears and felt like she could trust her voice.

“What was his problem?”

“He’s a jerk, and my brother’s friend. The two things are connected, believe me,” Aiden answered.

Putting an arm around her shoulders, he started walking. “Forget about him. Let’s go for that swim,” he said.

With his arm around her, it was hard not to relax. However, forgetting about Claud and that explosive flare of Aiden’s temper wouldn’t be so easy. The hatred in both of their eyes was going to stick with her for a long time. From what she knew of him she never would have guessed Aiden had it in him to get that angry. It had looked like he wanted to kill that boy. It reminded her that there was a lot she didn’t know about Aiden yet.

Worse yet, Claud was right, she would be seeing him. School would eventually start and Aiden couldn’t be with her every second. Hatred was like a plague, it quickly spread to others. That much she knew from experience.

Maybe the other kids would be more like Aiden, well, the Aiden without the scary temper. It was possible. There was a chance Claud was the black sheep. Even inside her head it sounded unconvincing though.  She had a very bad feeling that fitting in wouldn’t be the hard part here, surviving would.