Lost Energy (17 page)

She rubbed the tentacle, doing that
clicking thing again. "Yeah, I guess so." She clicked a few more
times and motioned toward the top of the tree it held onto. After a hesitation,
the thing crawled upward, growling. "Question is why do they hate you?"

Winston didn't bother answering. Instead,
he hooted so loud his voice echoed.

"Um, Winston? You all right?"
I took a step away from him with each word. If he snapped, I didn't want to be
close.

Winston high-fived Farren, who
reciprocated with that same dumb look he'd sported since Winston rescued him.
Shaina got a huge kiss, which she didn't seem to mind at all. When Winston held
his hand up for Tarek, who ignored it with a scowl on his face, he shook his
head and came over to fling an arm across my shoulders. "You know what I
think, people?"

When we all shook our heads, he
hooted again.

I smacked his shoulder. "Hey,
crazy pants. What the hell?"

He looked up and saluted the
hissing squid. "I think we're going to be fine."

CHEVEYO

Winston didn't bother explaining
anything. Honestly, his tight-lipped routine didn't piss me off this time. The
confidence he had was enough to convince me. If the guy thought we'd be fine, I'd
listen to him. Who cared if he didn't want to share?

Yeah, everyone else.

Winston smiled while people threw questions
at him. He said, "Be patient."

That was like telling the Pope to
stop praying. Tarek ranted, threatened, and even pleaded a little, hiding the
more desperate pleas under insults. Nothing changed Winston's mind. He took
Shaina's hand and headed back to the castle.

"You all need to get ready."
He nodded toward me, crinkling his nose. "You should bathe or something."

I stopped, Mom bumping into my
back. "That's just rude."

He shrugged. But I did take him up
on his advice and switched directions to the riverbank. Tarek followed, as did
Mom and Jake. The rest went with Winston.

"I think I could wash off some
dirt, too," Mom said, rubbing her upper arms.

Jake's face brightened. "Ah,
yeah, that sounds like a plan. I'm in."

I sighed. A private moment with
Tarek dashed. Thankfully, Jake steered Mom farther down the bank. A straight
line of bushes now gave us all some privacy.

I stripped down to my underclothes
and headed into the warm water, a soft moan escaping. I waded out to the
middle, focusing on the opposite bank. Though dangerous, Arcus really was
beautiful. The forest's bright colors and tropical climate had a soothing
quality when not all riled up. And damn, it felt good to immerse in the
fluorescent blue water and have the tension melt from my shoulders.

Tarek's soft splash rippled into
the water. I smiled.
Even better.

I sunk into the depths, hoping the
sweat and grit would loosen from my hair.

By some miracle, the water was clear
even with the fluorescent color. The little elephants I hadn't seen since my
first trip swam around, jolting me, their trunks giving a tingly zap instead of
the bee sting I remembered. I reached out to pet one, but it swam away–and came
back to inspect me some more. If oxygen weren't so important, staying down there
all day would've been nice.

Strong arms yanked me to the
surface. Familiar arms. My giant's. Tarek pulled my legs around his waist and
turned in a languid circle. His smile melted my heart. "Hi."

I kissed his nose. "Hi, back."

We moved in that circle a minute
longer, his eyes doing all the talking. After a soft kiss, he said, "It
scares me, the way you're risking your life."

"Do I have a choice? Because
if I do, I choose to forget about everything and be here with you."

He brushed hair away from my face,
and then traced a finger down my cheek. "I suppose that's not an option."

"No, it's not." I left
Tarek's arms after one more kiss to float on my back. The skyline's shift from
purple to gray started maybe a half-mile away. A reminder that everyone waited
for us at the castle so we could move forward, try to convince someone else to
fight against Exemplar.

Wonder if this Cheveyo guy would be
as accepting if we led Exemplians to his doorstep as we did Winston's? Like I
did Empyrean's? Guilt festered under my skin. If I had stayed away, Teenesee
and her people wouldn't be fighting for their lives.

I'd do everything I could to right
that wrong, even risking another Warden's temper.

One more dunk in the water and I
swam back to Tarek, tangling myself around him again. He was happy to oblige,
his muscled arms holding me close.

I ran my fingers through his wet
hair. "What do you think Winston has planned?"

Tarek's face grew tense, all the
softness disappearing. "He wants me to bleed the lines between here and
Empyrean." He didn't say it like an assumption. He knew it, and he didn't
like it.

"Would that be such a bad
thing?"

He looked beyond my shoulder,
toward the castle. "For the plan to be effective, the lines will have to
be severed."

"So?"

His eyes found mine. "Severed
lines mean anyone can get through, no need for Protector ability."

Oh. Oh, right, that wouldn't be
good. "Are you–I mean maybe that's not what he has in mind?"

"What else would it be?"
He didn't wait for an answer and carried me to bank.

Good. I didn't have one to give.

As we dressed, Mom and Jake walked around
the bushes, secretive smiles on both their faces. Resolve hit me. Tarek might
not like Winston's idea, but if it saved my family–saved Teenesee's world–how
could I say no?

Simple, because saving them put
Tarek and his world in danger.

Shit.

If an easier solution would drop
from the sky…

Actually, I didn't want a goddamned
thing to fall from the sky.

∞
∞ ∞

We ended up in Arizona. Of all the
places in Earth to hang out, the dimension's Warden chose the hottest, driest
dust heap imaginable. Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration, but the sweatshirt and
jeans I had changed into definitely weren't conducive to an Arizona summer. Not
even the setting sun helped with the heat.

The sweat factor doubled since our
portal opened in a stuffy pole barn big enough for the five of us. The place
was empty except for a lawn mower and some shovels. Funny, because when Winston
pushed the door open, easily breaking the padlock with a little finger magic, not
a blade of grass existed.

"You could've let me in on
where we were going. And a tool shed? Nice one." I frowned at Winston,
placing the blame directly on his shoulders. The suffocating heat didn't get
any better. It hitched a ride with us as we hiked to the center of town.

"Hey, blame little Miss Guide
over there. She's the one who gave coordinates."

Avery didn't look comfortable,
either, with her long smock plastered to her perspiring body. Small stains
showed under her arms every time she raised them. "I am sorry, Lena. Cheveyo
designates the landing spot so no one sees our portals. To open anywhere else
would show disrespect."

I snorted.

"Again, my apologies."

"Whatever." I cinched my bag
higher. "I'll grab a T-shirt from a gift shop or something." I took
in the small town–er, I guess it was a small town? "What is this place?"

Winston walked ahead with Farren,
obviously neither up for a game of twenty questions. Avery was nice enough to
fill me in. "It's what is called a reservation."

I tried hard not to give her a "duh"
frown. I knew what a reservation was; I did take history class. Instead, I kept
listening even as I pushed open the door to a small shop with T-shirts hanging
in the window.

"Cheveyo has lived on this
very spot of land for centuries. He has never left, even when the land was
stolen."

Okay, time to stop the history
lesson.
I already
had enough to feel shitty about. "Yeah, my ancestors, along with every
other person of European descent, were assholes. Got it. I'm already onboard. Question
is, why? I mean, the keeper of all Earth's energy chooses to live here?"

She held up her chin, her eyes
turning to stone. "He stays because these are his people, regardless of
his burden."

Uh-oh. Think I touched a soft spot.

I went into the tiny dressing room
to swap my Penn State sweatshirt with my brand new
I Love Arizona
T-shirt.
I raised my voice so she could hear me over the cheap partition. "Sorry.
My bad."

I came out to her serene smile, the
same one she gave during our first meeting. Freaked me out, really. "Forgive
me, Lena. This has been quite stressful. I do not mean to be short with you."

"No worries." I walked to
the register after grabbing five waters from the front cooler. I pointed to my
shirt and the waters, the woman cashing me out barely acknowledging me. "So,
do you think he'll help us?"

"He respected you before, and
I hope he respects you still."

Something hit me. "Hey, you
knew where Winston was. Why not everyone else?"

She looked down. "It was part
of our bargain…for him to always let me know where he dwelled. I-I sent you
close to him…after your execution, hoping he'd find you, maybe help you."

"Looks like that didn't work
out for you, either." We filed out of the small store, and I handed a
water to the guys. "Don't say I never did anything for you."

"Thanks, kid." Farren
cracked open the bottle and took a huge swig.

"Don't call–whatever. You're
welcome."

Winston stuffed his in the back
pocket of his baggy pants with a nod and again took the lead. Farren shrugged
and went with him.

Avery didn't move. She waited until
they were half a block down the road and cupped her mouth with her tiny hands. "Gentlemen,
you are going the wrong way, I'm afraid. Please, follow me."

Winston and Farren turned.
Nicolette smiled as Avery veered toward the open land beyond the settlement. Just
like that, we all followed the Guide, her Protector staring on with pride.

We trudged through the sand and
stone for what felt like hours. As the three of us walked behind Avery and her
guard dog, Winston kept his voice low. "I need to let y'all in on
something. The Warden, he does some shit to your mind with his voice. Hell,
with any sound he makes. His way of controlling the situation."

I smiled. "You mean like Teenesee's
beauty? Don't worry. I can be around her without drooling too much."

The side of Winston's mouth curved
up. "Don't get cocky, Tainted. He's like venom on the brain. You'll be
smiling right up until he breaks your neck. You might even ask him to do it."

Farren tensed up beside me. "How're
we supposed to handle that, man? Plug our ears? Won't that piss him off?"

Winston pulled his earbuds from his
front pocket and scrolled through his phone. "Do what you gotta do, but
try not to get dead, you heard?"

Well, that didn't sound comforting.

At least the desert was beautiful.
It shined at night, the plants and muted color like an ocean bed. Dry air
smelled clean, as if the moon brushed away the dust. We stopped at a ridge hiding
a small opening wide enough for two people. Avery didn't attempt to walk in,
but stood in front with hands fidgeting at her sides. Taking her example, we
all waited, no one saying a word.

Nerves snuck through my body,
making my hands tremble. This was it. If the guy didn't want to help us–worse,
if he wanted to kill us–we were alone. Screwed, really. Yeah, we'd go to
Empyrean, but our help wouldn't amount to shit. Unless you asked Winston.

Shadows coming from the opening
brought me out of my head. Faint footsteps echoed off the stone and calm washed
over me. A person floated toward us, his gait graceful. Winston and Farren
flanked me, not helping the nerves at all, regardless of the peace juice
flowing through my blood.

All of us had faces painted with
that ridiculous Arcus color. Hopefully the guy wouldn't kill us for looking
stupid. When the person, who hummed low, ended up being a slight man who I
assumed was Cheveyo, the calm intensified, suffocating the fear. I wanted to
curl up in a ball and sleep, not caring if poisonous reptiles snuggled with me.

My eyes drooped, and I would've fallen
to my knees if it weren't for Winston, who grabbed my elbow and held me up. I
searched his face, a drunk smile hanging out on mine. "Thanks."

Winston shook his head, not even
close to relaxed. "He's using his crazy shit. Snap out of it."

I tugged on his blond-tipped dreads.
"Lighten up, chief."

He held me tighter with one hand
and elbowed Farren. "You too. Pay attention or he'll kill you. Both of
you."

Farren heeded the warning better, looking
away from Cheveyo. As the Warden's footsteps grew louder, Farren slammed his
palms over his ears and hummed. I tried. Really. But this feeling, this Zen,
why waste it on trying to stay alive?