“But he thinks he can find a way to save me and I think it’s a lost cause.”
Laylen draws me to him and kisses my forehead. “You never know. Maybe he will… And I sure as hell hope he does.”
I trace the fresh wound on the palm of my hand as my heart shatters into pieces. I see where Alex is coming from, but it doesn’t make the empty void inside my heart feel any better.
He left.
And I might not ever see him again.
“Do you know what he promised me?” I ask.
“He promised you everything would be alright and maybe it will.” He pauses. “He told me to keep an eye on you, while he was gone. And make sure nothing happened to you.”
“I don’t need to be watched,” I say, upset. “I can take care of myself.”
“Yeah, you can, but you’re also precious cargo,” he says, forcing a playful tone. “And precious cargo needs to be taken care of.”
“I’m not precious cargo. I’m destructive. Without me, there would be no star, and therefore, there would be no problems.”
He leans back so he can look me in the eye. “That’s why he told me to keep an eye on you. He didn’t want you to sink into this sad pit of despair because he was gone. He has this theory that even though you guys aren’t supposed to be close because of the star, he also thinks that separation is bad for you… that it makes you feel like something’s missing, drains your energy, and makes you depressed.”
“Because of the star?”
“I’m not sure.”
I shake my head as hot tears spill down my cheeks. I can’t hold it back anymore, so I lean my head on Laylen’s shoulder and cry until I’m too exhausted to keep my eyes open. Then Laylen carries me back to my room as I drift to sleep, dreaming of fires, stars, and the heart beat that won’t stop flowing from inside me.
Chapter 39
A loud bang rocks the house and wakes me up from a dead sleep. There’s an orange glow coming from outside my window and my bedroom door is wide open, the hallway suffocated by darkness. I’m not sure how long I’ve been asleep, but I am guessing for an entire day and well into the next night.
As another bang echoes through the house, I quickly get out of bed, noting the separate heart beat is still haunting me. As I peer out into the hallway, I notice the door to where my mom is staying and the window is open, the curtain flapping in the wind.
I rush into the room, then trip back at the sight of the empty chains on the wall. “No, how did she…” She escaped, somehow, and got out of the window.
I’m about to go peer out when I get whiff of the scent of flowers and freshly fallen rain. I slowly turn around and step back, folding my arm across my stomach.
“You’re dead,” I say, backing away from Nicholas.
Nicholas leans causally against the doorframe, raising his eyebrows “Am I?” He matches my movements, taking two steps for every one I take, and closes the space between us quickly. When my back hits the wall, he stops in front of me, looks down at his arms and body and says, “Wow, I look really good for a dead guy.”
I shake my head as my pulse races wildly while the other heart beat inside me calm. “This can’t be happening.”
Nicholas rolls his eyes. “I think you always kind of knew I wasn’t dead. You saw me for God sakes.” He knocks his fist on the side of his head. ”Come on Gemma, think.”
“But that was a nightmare,” I say in an uneven voice as I inch sideways toward the window.
“Was it?”
“It was in my book.”
He rolls his eyes again, his playfulness draining from him. “I guess technically I shouldn’t be here, being dead and all.” He shrugs nonchalantly. “Yet here I am.”
“So you’re dead?” I brace a hand on the bedpost to keep from collapsing to the floor as my stomach starts to burn. “How can I still see you then?”
His grins. “Just another amazing thing about you, I guess.”
“This is the last thing I need right now. An annoying faerie ghost haunting me,” I snap through gritted teeth, the burn becoming almost unbearable. “Why the hell are you here?”
“Because you changed the vision,” he says, stuffing his hands into the pockets. “And that brought me back.”
“But I changed it back to what it was supposed to be to begin with.”
He narrows the space between us and I start to stand up and move back, but he takes my arm and makes me sit down on the bed, not roughly like I expect. “Not thatvision. The other one where I was supposed to take you to Stephan. I’m sure you’ve been noticing that things have been a little off and out of order right?”
“But I…” I seal my lips together, feeling as though I am going to throw up. “I didn’t mean to mess things up… I just didn’t want Alex dead…. And I thought I was helping the world by changing the other vision.”
“Doesn’t matter—you still did it. And now you’re responsible for my death. If it wasn’t for you changing events, I would never have been in that car to begin with. And now you’re stuck with me.”
My eyes widen in terror as I hunch over, gasping for air. “This can’t be happening.”
“Don’t worry.” Nicholas crouches in front of me so we’re at eyelevel. “I’m not here to hurt you. I’m here to help you.”
“You left the note on my bed, didn’t you?” I ask. “And you were that annoying talk-show-host voice too?”
He nods. “It was the only way I could communicate with you.”
“But why? Why help me now?”
“That’s another story for another time.”
I let a breath ease from my lips. “Why can I see you now? And when you’re dead?”
“Because you’re wearing this.” He touches the ring on my finger and I flinch. “It’s the orbis of silent or ring of the dead. It gives you the power of seeing the dead.”
Why would my father give this to me? How is seeing the dead my loophole?
Nicholas sits down beside me and I cringe from his closeness. “You have such a bumpy road ahead, and you don’t even know it,” he says, his gaze flickering to my stomach and then to the chains on the wall.
“Do you know where my mother went?” I ask.
“Perhaps.” He motions at the window. “You can look out there, though, and find out for yourself.” When I hesitate, he urges me by giving me a gentle push on the back. “Go ahead and look for yourself. Go see the damage you’ve caused, Gemma Lucas, the girl who destroys everything.”