Revival (The Variant Series, Book 1) (25 page)

— 21 —

“I
was wondering where you’d disappeared to.”

Aiden O’Connell sat on the stone edge of a large rock waterfall, positioned at the very center of the atrium. It was rare that he found his way to the cabin these days. Rarer still that he found himself a welcome guest.

He returned the mass
of water he’d been toying with to the fountain beside him. “Alex still asleep?” he asked.

“Fourteen hours and counting,” Nate answered, his shoes crunching on the gravel path as he approached.

“Yeah, well,” said Aiden. “We both know that’s nothing, for her.”

Nate smiled, handing him a mug filled to the brim with steaming black liquid.

“Coffee,” said Aiden after taking an appreciative sniff. “Thanks. I needed this.”

“Careful,” Nate replied. “Kenzie made it.”

Aiden frowned warily at the mug. He’d had Kenzie’s coffee before. It gave new meaning to the phrase “high octane.”

“So what happened to the roof?” asked Aiden, nodding toward a ten-foot stretch of blue tarp that covered the glass ceiling above them. It crinkled loudly as it whipped about in the wind outside of the enclosure.

“Declan happened,” said Nate. “Although I suppose I helped a bit.”

“Uh-huh,” said Aiden, taking a sip of coffee.

Nate settled onto the fountain’s edge beside Aiden, rested his elbows on his knees and hung his head low, staring at the ground. Aiden recognized the look—he was losing himself in the memories of days gone by.

The last rays of the evening sun filtered through the trees that surrounded the enclosure, creating an army of shadows that danced upon the gravel pathway as the leaves above them trembled in the breeze.

This had been his home, once.

It hadn’t lasted long, but it had been the most peaceful six months that Aiden had ever known. Nate wasn’t the only one guilty of wishing he could go back in time and relive the past.

“I thought it’d be different, man,” said Nate, looking up.

“Different how?”

“I don’t know. Just… different. Easier.”

“You told her anything yet?”

“How could I?” he asked, a bitter edge to his voice. “I say the wrong thing, and he dies.”

“Yeah,” said Aiden. “Or you say
nothing
, and
she
does.”

“We don’t know that,” said Nate. “Not for certain. Besides, how do we know what the wrong thing to say even is?”

Silence settled over them. They’d had this argument before. Aiden wasn’t sure if they’d ever agree on what action to take. One thing was certain, though—now that Alex had finally arrived, they were running out of time to make a decision.

“She saw something in my head last night,” said Nate. “Kenzie had her digging around for a location for Declan. Somehow she managed to glimpse an image from Seattle.”

“What did she see?”

“Probably the worst thing she could have.” He heaved a sigh. “She saw herself on the deck of the
Misty Rose
.”

“
What
? What did you tell her?”

“I didn’t tell her anything… I just refused to answer her and then I changed the subject as fast as I could.”

“Well, shit.” Aiden raked a hand through his hair. He was all-for telling Alex what he thought she needed to know, but that particular piece of information he’d planned on leaving out.

The door to the house opened and Kenzie stepped through. “Yo, Nate!” she called over to them. “The boss is back. Family meeting in five.”

Aiden and Nate got to their feet.

His cousin walked on for a short ways, then turned when he realized Aiden hadn’t followed.

“What is it?” he asked.

Aiden smiled. “Think now would be a bad time to ask Grayson how he plans on paying for my apartment?”

*   *   *

“Alex, wake up.”

“Mmpff.”

Alex recognized the familiar tug and click of a ceiling fan cord being pulled. Light flooded the room and Alex burrowed deeper beneath the pillows in protest.

“
Alex
,” said an insistent, distinctly feminine voice from somewhere above her. “So help me, Lex, if you don’t get your butt up
right now
, I’m coming back with the ice water. It will be Rebecca Anderson’s third-grade slumber party all over again. Do you really want that?”

“That sounds like a fun story. Let’s hear about that,” said a second voice.

Declan.

“If she tells you anything, I’ll have to kill her,” Alex mumbled into a pillow. “Then I’ll have to kill you. So if she knows what’s good for her, she won’t say
anything
.” 

When Alex finally pushed aside the pillow she was greeted by the sight of Cassie, hands on her hips, glaring down at her. Declan stood across the room, leaning against one of the dressers with his arms crossed.

He looked bored.

How long had he been standing there?

“Look at that,” he said. “Issuing death threats and she’s not even fully awake yet. Impressive.”

“Finally,” said Cassie. “You’ve been dead to the world for ages.”

“How long was I asleep?” It felt like she’d only laid down a few minutes ago. Surely she couldn’t have been out for
that
long…

“Well, seeing as how it’s nearly six in the evening here in the lovely state of New York… If I were to guess? I’d say, roughly fifteen hours.”

“
What
?” Alex bolted upright, resulting in a rather painful rush of blood to her head. She fell back against the bed. “Ungh… Why did you let me sleep so long?”

“Trust me, it wasn’t my first choice.” Cassie sat down on the mattress beside her. “The others said you needed it, though, so I let you sleep. We’re only waking you up now because Mr. Grayson’s back and he wants to see everyone downstairs.”

“Family meeting,” said Declan, the words coming out at a crawl. She looked up. Declan was studying her from his spot across the room. His expression of boredom had morphed into one of confusion. “You feeling alright, Lex?”

“I’m fine. Why?”

Cassie appraised Declan. “What’s with the look?” she asked.

“Something’s… different,” said Declan. “Alex?”

“Yes?”

“If I told you to jump right now, could you?”

She’d managed a jump last night, just before she went to bed. Whatever that pulse had done to her in the parking garage, it appeared to have been temporary.

“Sure, I…” she trailed off.

Declan was right. Something
was
different.

The soft thrum of electricity she’d grown so accustomed to these last few days was missing once more. Her connection to Declan had been severed.

But it wasn’t just that.

Her thoughts were entirely her own again. Even without the mental walls in place, she couldn’t hear Cassie, or sense the presence of anyone else in the house. No matter how hard she concentrated, Alex couldn’t feel or hear any of them.

And even though she hadn’t made much headway practicing her telekinesis last night with Nathaniel, Alex was fairly certain that that had disappeared as well. For the first time in months, Alex felt almost….
normal
.

She sucked in a ragged breath as panic set in.

“That’s what I thought,” said Declan.

Three days ago, Alexandra Parker would have given anything to be normal again.

Now, on the run from the government and a psychopath who’d already killed two people and kidnapped her best friend, Alex’s only means of protecting herself and the people she cared about had just vanished.

She was defenseless.

“It’s gone,” she whispered. Icy tendrils of fear were coiling inside her chest. “All of it… Just
gone
. How can it be gone? Declan, what do I do?”

“
What’s
gone?” asked Cassie.  “Alex, what is the matter?”

“Hop up, Cassie,” said Declan.

For once, Cassie didn’t argue. She moved aside and Declan took her place, sitting down on the bed next to Alex.

Without saying anything more, he reached up and placed his hand on the side of her face, cupping her cheek.

“Declan? What are you doing?” Alex asked, but didn’t pull away. She sat perfectly still, transfixed by the look of worry in Declan’s hazel eyes.

After a few seconds, the heat radiating from Declan’s palm was joined by a second sensation—the familiar quiver of electricity.

It was back. Declan’s touch had reawakened her ability.

The look of relief that flooded his expression caused Alex’s breath to catch in her throat, but it was the smile that followed that threatened to do her in entirely.

“That’s better,” he said. “For a moment there, I thought I’d lost you.”

His gaze journeyed south, fixing on her mouth, before flickering back up to meet her eyes.

“Will one of you please tell me what’s going on?”

Declan dropped his hand, but made no move to get up.

“I don’t understand, Decks,” Alex’s voice was barely above a whisper. “What just happened?”

He surprised her again by offering his hand. “Just in case,” he said with a shrug. When she still didn’t move, he added, “You’re getting your abilities from touching other Variants. I don’t know how it works—or how long the contact needs to last—but I figure, better safe, than sorry. Now, hup to, princess. Grayson and the others are waiting.”

Alex looked down at herself, suddenly self-conscious. She’d collapsed into bed the night before in a pair of yoga pants and an oversized sweatshirt. Not exactly her best look. She swept her unruly hair up and into a messy bun using the elastic band around her wrist, stealing a quick glance at her disheveled reflection in the dresser mirror.

Great. She looked like an extra gone AWOL from the set of a
Flashdance
remake.

Alex supposed it could have been worse. At least she hadn’t ended up in the lake yet today.

Accepting Declan’s outstretched hand, Alex slid from between the sheets, cringing when her bare feet met with the frigid hardwood floor. For a split-second, she gave serious consideration to diving back into the warm, comfortable bed, settling in beneath the duvet, and spending what was left of the day hiding from the world outside her bedroom.

It seemed like a perfectly acceptable response to the mess she was in.

World got you down? Discovered you’re a mutant? Pesky psychopath on your trail? 

The solution was simple: Go back to bed!

Alex was fairly certain that she could solve all those problems and more, if she could just have five more minutes of sleep.

Cassie led the way into the hall. Declan followed just a step ahead of Alex, arm twisted behind him, long fingers still entwined with hers. The longer the contact lasted, the more clearly she could sense the electrical currents in the people, objects, and air surrounding her.

Alex wondered, briefly, if Declan’s offer to keep hold of her hand had been given solely to ensure the return of her ability, or if he might have had another motive… And then promptly decided that that line of thinking couldn’t lead
anywhere
good.

Whether it was from the chill in the air, or the tingle of electricity flowing through their joined hands, Alex wasn’t certain, but she couldn’t hold back a shiver.

The currents surged.

Declan cast a quick glance at her over his shoulder. When their eyes met, the corner of his mouth quirked upward in a crooked grin.

Nowhere
good.

As they reached the landing, Alex gazed down upon the living area below.

Brian and Nate were seated on the couch on either side of Kenzie, laughing at something the redhead had said. Grayson, meanwhile, stood near the front door, arguing in a low voice with Aiden. It was the most dressed-down she’d seen the patriarch thus far, in a pair of dark jeans and a pressed, white button-down shirt. He turned his head when he heard them descending the stairs.

The skin surrounding his left eye gleamed a nasty shade of purple, and had nearly swollen shut. Alex felt a wave of guilt wash over her. That one
must
have hurt.

“Ah, Alex, you’re awake,” said Grayson.

Aiden’s black look was replaced with a soft smile and a nod in Cassie’s direction.

Well
that
was an interesting development. She’d have to corner her friend later and grill her for details.

“How are you feeling?” asked Nate.

The trio reached the foot of the stairs and everyone moved to find a seat in the living room.

“I’m alright,” she said, releasing Declan’s hand and settling in next to Nate in the last open space on the couch. Declan sat on the arm of the couch beside Alex, as Cassie claimed the love seat, Aiden the ottoman in front of it, and Grayson returned to his spot on the hearth. “I had an unpleasant surprise waiting for me when I woke up, though.”

“What, you mean my brother?” said Kenzie. “I suppose waking up to his face would be a shock to
anyone’s
system.”

“Kenzie,” said Grayson. It wasn’t so much a warning as it was a subtle reproach. “What happened, Alex?”

“I woke up and my abilities were gone.”

“What, all of them?” asked Kenzie.

“All of them,” she said. 

“Alex’s ability—her
real
ability—seems to be the power to absorb another Variant’s abilities through touch,” said Declan. He looked pointedly at Grayson. “And I can’t help but wonder how she wound up with an ability that only one other person on the planet has ever laid claim to.”

Grayson’s jaw clenched.

“What? There’s someone else out there like me?” she asked. Something akin to hope stirred within her chest. Somewhere out there was someone who could understand what she was going through.

Alex wrung her hands. Declan reached down, first stilling her movements and then reclaiming her hand in his.

Declan’s voice was overflowing with accusation. “You going to tell us how Alex wound up with Samuel Masterson’s ability, Grayson?”

“Wait…
What?
” Alex yanked her hand from Declan’s grasp and climbed unsteadily to her feet. “Masterson? The same Masterson that went crazy and murdered all of our parents? I have
his
ability?”