Arise (Awakened Fate Book 4) (8 page)

“Hello,” Robin said with a smile.

“Hi,” Phil offered shortly, his attention more on tugging a handkerchief from his sports jacket than on us. “So what’s the big secret, Olivia?” He swiped the sweat off his bald head. “It’s hotter than hell out here. Why’d we have to–”

“If you would allow me to explain,” Olivia interrupted evenly. “I asked you out here because something has occurred that requires our attention and our assistance. This is Chloe. She is half-landwalker, half-dehaian. And she survived the change.”

Phil froze halfway through stuffing the kerchief back into his pocket.

Robin’s brown eyes widened. “She–”

“Are you
sure
?” Phil demanded. He turned to Chloe. “Young lady, you can’t just make claims like that and expect no one to–”

“I’ve seen proof.” Olivia looked to Chloe, raising an eyebrow. “If you’d please?”

Chloe hesitated. I couldn’t blame her. Robin seemed like a kid with a new toy, while Phil just appeared ready to bulldoze over everyone here on his way back to the car. Dave stood behind them both, his eyes on Chloe like he couldn’t decide whether to retreat.

With a quick glance to Baylie, Chloe let her spikes emerge from her forearms.

Robin’s mouth dropped open and Dave gave in, moving back a step like he’d obviously wanted to do. Phil’s gaze snapped from Chloe’s arms to her face, as though he couldn’t figure out how the two were attached to the same person.

I barely kept myself from getting up to make them stop staring. I hated it when people did that, mostly because I knew how much Chloe hated it too.

It didn’t help that it’d happened so often in the past few days.

But she wasn’t a freak. Or some kind of landwalker savior thing. I wished people would quit treating her like she was.

“Unfortunately, we are not the first to find out about Chloe,” Olivia continued. “Her parents, who had previously not heard of the treatments now available to half-dehaian children, sought the assistance of Harman Brooks in repressing those traits
after
she survived changing.” She paused. “I’m given to understand it did not go well. But with the help of my student and Chloe’s friends, she was able to escape and recover.”

The others glanced to the girls. Ellie dropped her gaze to the forest floor, visibly embarrassed at their attention.

“Harman also got his hands on another person,” Olivia said. “Someone who, by all rights, shouldn’t be here.”

She glanced over. “This is Zeke. He’s a full-blood dehaian.”

The expressions of surprise had been fading from the others’ faces, but now they came back in full force.

“Are you s–” Phil began.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, don’t start that again,” Robin interrupted. She looked to Chloe. “He is?”

Chloe blinked uncomfortably. “Um, yeah?”

Robin nodded as if that was all she needed to hear. “And how is he here?”

“Her,” Olivia said when Chloe paused.

They returned to their staring. My jaw clenching, I fought the urge to order them to stop.

“You all know the stories,” Olivia continued. “What it means for a person like Chloe to exist. There have already been signs that the creature of legend is returning – the storms on the coast, the seismic readings from the seafloor. And that is why I’ve called you together. Harman doesn’t believe in this. You know that; I know that. But given what he has
already
tried to do to her, if he got his hands on Chloe again, there is no question that he would continue experimenting on her. Meanwhile, her parents will also insist upon exposing her to the treatments again. We can’t let that happen. Repressing what she is won’t resolve this – though I realize that wasn’t her parents’ intent – and experimenting upon her is intolerable. So we need to keep Chloe protected and stop what’s happening at the same time.” She paused. “And I’m open to suggestions.”

The three of them stood there, staring like idiots and doing nothing useful.

“What have you ruled out so far?” Robin asked.

“Nothing. This is the first we’re discussing it.”

Robin frowned. “Okay…”

“Why not simply mask the magic coming off of her?” Phil suggested like we were all stupid for not thinking of it.

“How?” Robin asked.

“Put her underground.”

My eyebrows rose and I saw Zeke’s do the same. Incredulous, Baylie sat up straighter, looking ready to interpose herself between Chloe and anyone who thought to make good on that idea.

Dave cleared his throat. “What about–”

“The original dehaians tried that,” Robin interrupted, shaking her head. “They lived underground for fifteen years and it didn’t work. In the Vlostine account, there’s clear evidence they even–”

Phil made a rude noise. “I’ve read Vlostine. He was a moron. He wanted them to wear wire-rimmed skullcaps, for pity’s sake. But if you examine Dartinian’s records, they show that–”

“Oh, come on!” Robin countered. “Dartinian was a hack who couldn’t even
read
! He needed scribes to write down his theories, and he couldn’t tell if they got the words right!” She scoffed. “Underground. Honestly, Phil. If we go by the information from the archives of Longtiel, it shows that the original dehaians knew–”

Phil gave a bark of laughter. “Longtiel? You must be joking. How many times have I told you, Longtiel wasn’t even considered reputable in his own–”

“And
Dartinian
was?” Robin retorted.

The throbbing in my head worsened. Seated on the logs, the others looked like they were developing headaches of their own, while behind Robin and Phil, Dave kept clearing his throat and attempting to speak, though he never succeeded in getting a word in edgewise.

“Dartinian recorded thousands of dehaians living on land at that point in history,” Phil argued. “This is just one girl. The difference in scale makes this a viable strategy.”

“We could try–” Dave started.

“Scale is irrelevant!” Robin cried.

I looked away. They wouldn’t stick Chloe in a hole in the ground. I’d make sure they’d regret it if they tried.

And meanwhile, I wished they’d keep it down. The idiots could probably be heard for miles.

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, trying to concentrate on the sounds of the forest beyond their arguing.

Birds shrieked. There was a river not too far to our left.

“We have new technologies now,” Phil snapped. “We could shield her location in ways those dehaians couldn’t even have dreamed.”

“Technology isn’t the issue,” Robin replied. “Magic is energy. It will permeate the–”

“Energy frequencies can be disrupted,” he retorted.

I grimaced, struggling to hear anything past their voices.

A rustling came from deeper in the forest to my right. A branch snapped, and then another. More leaves rustled.

I opened my eyes, looking toward the noise.

“You can’t be serious,” Robin snapped.

“Says the woman suggesting we use Longtiel as a reference.”

I fought to focus. Something was coming this way. Maybe someone.

It could just be a bear.

That didn’t make me feel better.

The rustling sound came again, closer this time. A voice murmured, the words too low and distant for even my ears to pick them out.

My heart began to pound harder. Someone
was
coming. Someone avoiding the main path.

That couldn’t be good.

I hesitated. I needed a way to tell the others without those idiot landwalker elders learning what I was. Chloe hadn’t said anything about that to Olivia and from what I could tell, Ellie hadn’t either – though God knew why. But I appreciated it.

If I had it my way, the fewer people who knew I wasn’t human, the better.

I glanced to Chloe. She was looking back and forth between Phil and Robin like she was watching the tennis match from hell. At her side, Baylie held one hand protectively to Chloe’s arm, while Ellie was studying her phone, which was once again buzzing.

I swallowed, scanning the clearing. There had to be a way to get their attention.

Zeke was watching me.

I hesitated, but there wasn’t another option. The girls weren’t looking our way.

My gaze twitched illustratively back toward the forest. He drew a breath, tensing.

At Chloe’s side, Baylie caught sight of his motion. She looked to me and obviously read something of what was going on from my face.

“Uh, guys?” she called.

“And I don’t believe we can just– what?” Robin cut off.

“I, um… I think someone’s coming,” Baylie finished.

They all paused. Olivia’s eyebrow climbed.

“
Excuse
me?” Phil asked, disbelief clear in his voice. Craning his neck, he looked beyond us to the trail, while Robin leaned past him to do the same.

Dave fidgeted anxiously. “Were you expecting anyone else?”

Olivia shook her head, still studying Baylie.

I took the opportunity to move closer to the trees, straining to hear anything more. I couldn’t pick up on any of my cousins, although that didn’t mean much. Stupid as they were, they’d still know I’d be near Chloe. They’d hide their presences so I wouldn’t be able to tell they were coming.

Though, on that account, they also wouldn’t make noise. Or talk. They were good enough hunters to be careful about that, especially when they knew I’d hear them.

My brow drew down. Something wasn’t right.

A rustle came from beyond the opposite side of the clearing.

I looked back toward the sound.

“We need to go,” Baylie said, seeing my expression. “Now.”

Chloe and Zeke were already getting to their feet.

Another branch snapped, the sound coming from a different direction entirely.

A breath left my chest. We were surrounded.

How the hell had anyone gotten around us without me hearing them?

I pushed the thought aside. The answer was standing in the middle of the clearing, still seeming like they wanted to continue their argument. And meanwhile, I was burning time.

I strode toward Chloe and Baylie.

Ellie looked between us and Olivia. “What do we do?”

Olivia just watched us, saying nothing.

Something inside me went cold. She wasn’t helping. She only stood there.

Like we were a science experiment. Like she’d set this up.

“Come on,” I said, jerking my head toward the far side of the clearing. I hadn’t heard anyone that way yet. Maybe they hadn’t gotten that far.

Chloe nodded and hurried after me, with Baylie and Ellie sticking close behind. When I reached the next rise, I glanced back to see Zeke throwing a quick look to the other directions and then following as well.

“Now hang on,” Phil blustered, starting after us. “We don’t have any evidence there’s anyone actually–”

“Excuse me, folks.”

I froze. I knew that voice.

Turning, I looked back at the camp. A portly man wearing a brown police uniform walked out of the forest. Two guys followed him, both dressed in camouflage with rifles strapped to their backs, and I didn’t recognize them at all. But the portly guy was the police chief from Reidsburg. The one Chloe had been anxious about, back that day when her parents had taken her to the station.

Right before they’d heard about Harman. Right before they’d brought her to Iowa to be experimented upon.

It was hard to keep my skin from changing.

Two other men walked through the underbrush on either side of the clearing, one of them that nervous police officer from Reidsburg - Aaron or Adam or something – and the other a guy in camo gear who was damn near twice the scrawny cop’s size.

I tensed, putting my money on the last guy being greliaran if any of them were.

A branch snapped behind me. Another man with a rifle stepped from the forest onto the path.

“What seems to be the trouble, officer?” Olivia asked carefully, her dark eyes scanning the people surrounding us.

“Well, ma’am, my friends and I were looking for a group of runaways, and we had reason to believe you’d know where to find them. Local park ranger told us you might be up here and—” Chloe stopped breathing when he glanced to her. “—seems we were right. So now I’d like to ask you to turn those kids over to us. I’d hate for this to get awkward.”

“I don’t know anything about any runaways, officer,” Olivia answered. “These are my business associates and our children. We were just having a picnic.”

She gestured to the blue cooler bag and then glanced to the other three elders, something sharp in her eyes.

The chief gave her a weary look. “Ma’am, I imagine you know me and my friends here pretty well, just like we know you and your ‘business associates’. Doctor Brooks sent us, so I’d appreciate it if you’d drop the act. These kids are runaways. One of them’s got her grandfather back in town, worried sick and hoping she’s safe. And one of them’s going to be taken in for murder in not too much longer, once we settle the question of how he’s here.” His gaze flicked to Zeke and then returned to Olivia. “So with all due respect, please get out of our way.”

Olivia paused. “If you know who we are, then you realize how bad an idea it is to argue with us.”

The men surrounding us tensed. Fear in her eyes, Ellie glanced back to us and then retreated up the trail, coming closer to Chloe and me.

My brow drew down warily.

“But we’re trying to help Chloe,” protested the scrawny cop on the far side of the clearing. “Surely you can see that? Just help. You don’t need to–”

“Quiet, Aaron,” the chief ordered, not taking his eyes from Olivia. “Yes, ma’am,” he acknowledged carefully. “I do know. But I hope
you
realize that we’re here with the backing of your
other
business associates. And they want these kids to come home too.”

“T-they wouldn’t agree to this,” Dave stammered.

The chief rested his hand on the gun attached to his belt, his expression unchanged. “They have.”

No one moved. I made myself keep breathing.

“Alright,” Robin said.

I looked to the petite woman in alarm.

She stepped past Olivia, holding out her hands peaceably. “Alright. Just take it easy. There’s no need for this. Just look around. No one wants to see bad things happen in so nice a place. If everyone’s decided to make this problem disappear, then we need to go along with that.” Robin looked back. “Right? I’m sure everyone knows how important it is for us to stick together on these things.”