The Guardians (MORE Trilogy) (37 page)

Ava still couldn’t believe this was her life now.

Protectors would be coming soon—within a day or two if their intel was correct, not that Ava wanted to rely on that—but Caleb and Ava had yet to get to the front walk, let alone the front door. Ava knew their only chance was to bind Sophie long enough to convince her they weren’t there to hurt her. Convincing Caleb of that, however, was easier said than done.

“We can wait her out,” he said as a burst of smaller ice pellets hit them. He pulled Ava into his arms and rolled closer to the wall to shield them from the worst of the blast. “She’s panicking . . . afraid . . . and her gift is lashing out. She can’t keep it up for long. When she calms down, or gets tired, we’ll be able to get to her.”

“And how long will that take?” At his silence, she pushed away from him. “You have no idea, right?”

Caleb rolled over to sit braced against the wall and glared at her with a mulish expression, but said nothing.
 

Ava took a deep breath and crawled over to sit on her knees between his sprawled legs. She reached out to touch his face, the mingling of their power settling them both. “I’ll be okay,” she said softly. “I won’t use much. You know it’s only bad when I try to do too much—”

“We don’t
know
that.”

“I’m
fine
,” she said, willing him to believe it and ignoring the ache behind her eyes. “We have to do
something
. It’s only a matter of time before a neighbor calls the cops.”

As if emphasizing her words, another ice ball crashed into the garage door.
 

Caleb glared in the direction of the noise, and she knew he was desperately trying to think of an alternative plan of action.
 

“Come on.” She got to her feet and held out her hands. “We need to do this. Now.”

Caleb tried to stare her down, but when she didn’t look away, he took a deep breath and let her pull him to his feet. “You sure you’re okay?” he asked, obviously unconvinced.

“I’m sure.” She stepped close and wrapped her arms around his waist as another ice ball flew past them. “Let’s go.”

Ava closed her eyes as Caleb shifted them across the yard and took only a second to steady herself before peering around the trunk of the tree. She spotted the girl peeking out from the living room blinds. Ava used her gift to rattle the garbage cans by the garage and smiled when another ice ball flew in that direction. She reached out for Caleb’s hand, using his gift to boost her own and to ground her.

“Okay, I’m going to bind her so she can’t run, then you shift us inside,” she said.
 

“I really don’t like this.” He squeezed her hand, though, so Ava knew he was with her.

“I can deal with anything she throws at us.” She glanced back at him with a wry smile. “You do the talking.”

“Great.”

“Hey, you’re the one with all the experience.” Another ice ball crashed into the garage. It was smaller, though, and Ava hoped that was a good sign.

Caleb yanked on her hand a little. “First sign of trouble and I’m shifting us out. She’ll just have to take her chances with the Council.”

“I’ll be fine,” she said with a reassuring smile. “Ready?”

He gave a curt nod, and Ava turned back to the window. She let her gift flow up and out—willed it to wrap around the cryokinetic, visualized ropes lacing around her in a tight web. When they heard a muffled shriek from inside, Caleb pulled Ava close and they shifted inside.

Ava swayed on her feet when Caleb released her, and tried to stay focused on keeping Sophie bound. The girl screamed, and a small ice ball shot toward them that Ava deflected easily.
 

Caleb maintained a safe distance, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. “Please, calm down,” he said. “We’re not here to hurt you. We want to help you.”

The girl struggled against Ava’s grip, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was young—maybe Ava’s age, possibly a little older—with warm brown skin and curly black hair. She wore jeans and a red sweatshirt tattered at the sleeves. The room was cold, ice crystals forming around the windows, and Ava shivered as she watched the girl’s panicked eyes search for an escape.

Eyes like Ava’s—one brown, one hazel-gold.
 

“Caleb,” Ava murmured.

“I see it.”

There wasn’t time to contemplate the discovery, however, as another spray of ice shards flew toward them. Ava stopped them in midair, and they fell to the ground like they’d hit an invisible shield.
 

The girl choked out a sob.

“Don’t be afraid,” Ava said in a quiet voice, stepping around Caleb.
 

Sophie whimpered, and the temperature dropped a little, but there were no more ice balls, thank goodness.
 

“I’m going to let you go, but don’t run, okay? We just want to talk. We’re not going to hurt you.”
 

After a moment, the girl nodded jerkily. Ava pulled her gift back, and Sophie slumped to the sofa. “What do you want?” she asked, wiping away tears with the back of her hand. “Who are you?”

Ava smiled and eased down to sit on the other end of the sofa. “I’m afraid that’s kind of a long story.”

Ava closed the bathroom door quietly and leaned back against it, closing her eyes against the pain in her head. Once Sophie had calmed down, Caleb began to explain about the Race and Half-Breeds, and Ava had been able to excuse herself without much notice.

She left the light off and fumbled in her jacket pocket for the little container of painkillers she’d taken to keeping close at all times. She popped a couple of the pills in her mouth and swallowed them dry, followed by a couple of R-cubes. With a heavy sigh Ava turned to the mirror and winced at her washed-out appearance. She prodded at her nose carefully, glad that she’d at least managed to avoid a nosebleed. There was no way she would have been able to hide that from Caleb.

She’d been hiding a lot lately.

But with the ongoing threat of the Rogues, and the upcoming trip to New Elysia, she knew she was needed. Her gifts were needed. If they were to come under attack, Ava had to be able to fight. If Caleb or the others found out that her headaches were getting worse—that she’d started having them even when she wasn’t using her gifts—they’d leave her behind, and she couldn’t let that happen. She couldn’t let them face the Council, not to mention the Rogues, without her. She couldn’t let
Caleb
face that kind of threat alone. Not after she’d come so close to losing him.

Ava bent over the sink and splashed some cool water on her face, swiping it over the back of her neck as she sagged against the counter. She’d see the healer again once she got back to the Colony. Hopefully, he’d be able to help, and since he was bound by the same confidentiality as a human doctor—she’d made sure of that before she had ever approached him in the first place—he’d keep her secret.

It was only for a short time, anyway. Once they got to New Elysia, the doctors there would figure out what was causing her problems and she—and everyone else—would be able to focus on figuring out how to stop the Rogues.

“Ava?” Caleb’s muffled voice at the door made her jump. She’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t even felt his approach. “Are you all right?”

She turned off the water and wiped her face quickly with a towel. “Yeah. One sec.” She checked her appearance once more and brushed her fingers through her hair. The headache had eased, thankfully, and her face had regained its color. Ava reached for the door and forced a relaxed smile before opening it.

Caleb searched her face. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Of course,” she said, widening the smile a bit. “Everything okay with Sophie?”

“Yeah. We really should get out of here, though.”

“Well, let’s go then,” she replied, patting his chest as she squeezed past him in the narrow hallway. She felt him trail behind her as she made her way into the living room, which had warmed to a normal temperature, the ice on the windows melted and dripping onto the carpet.
 

Sophie emerged from a bedroom on the other side of the living room, carrying a small duffle bag and a backpack.

“You ready to go?” Ava asked.

Sophie took a deep breath. “I think so.” Her lip trembled slightly and Ava crossed to her.

“It’s going to be okay,” she said, reaching out to gently squeeze the girl’s shoulders. “We’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

Sophie nodded and swiped away a few tears.
 

Ava led her to the front door as Caleb opened it and poked his head out to scan the yard before waving them through. He grabbed Ava’s arm to hold her back.

“Are you
sure
you’re all right?” he whispered, glancing at Sophie a few steps ahead on the walkway. “No headaches?”

Ava ignored the curl of guilt in her stomach. She hated lying to Caleb, but she didn’t see an alternative. Not if she was going to keep
him
safe.

“I told you, I’m fine,” she said, popping up to kiss him lightly.
 

He caught her around the waist and studied her for a moment, focused and intent as he looked into her eyes.
 

She forced herself to meet his gaze—not to flinch, even as her heart thumped heavily in her chest.

“Okay,” he said finally, sliding his hand down to squeeze her hand. “Let’s go.”

Ava let out a slow breath as they took off at a jog toward the road. It was probably nothing anyway. Her powers were new and her body was still getting used to them. Even the Colony healer couldn’t deny that that was a possibility. Her body—her brain—simply needed to adapt to her new abilities, then the headaches would stop. She’d be fine.

Ava picked up the pace and turned right toward the gate.

She’d be
fine.

Also by T.M. Franklin

MORE

Ava Michaels used to think she was special. As a child, she fantasized about having magical powers . . . making things happen. She felt different from others her age, and just knew she was meant for something important. But, like most kids, Ava grew up and eventually accepted the fact that her childish dreams were just that, and maybe a normal life wasn't so bad after all.

Now a young college student, Ava begins to wonder if there were more to her childhood fantasies than she thought. She’s haunted by terrifying nightmares of a frightening man chasing her, determined to catch her, to take her—a huge hulk of a man with one blue eye and one green. Even during daylight hours, there are moments her hair stands on end with an uneasy prickle of awareness . . . and she just can’t shake the feeling that she’s being watched.

Unable to decide if she’s imagining things or just plain crazy, Ava finds an unlikely ally in Caleb Foster, a brilliant and mysterious man who comes to her rescue as a Physics tutor, but in reality has another mission in mind. What he shows Ava challenges her view of the world, shaking it to its very core.

The thing is, Caleb’s not quite what he seems. In fact, he's not entirely human, and he's not the only one.

Together, the duo faces a threat from an ancient race bound to protect humans, but only after protecting their own secrets—secrets they fear Ava may expose. Now they’re after her, bent on her capture or maybe even her extinction.

Fighting to survive, Ava has to depend on Caleb to lead her through the strange new world opening up before her. A world of magic and mystery, where she learns she’s not
actually normal . . . she's not even just special.

She's a little bit more.

Download a sample of this book at
The Writer’s Coffee Shop
.

About the Author

T.M. Franklin started her career writing non-fiction in a television newsroom. Graduating with a BA in Communications and specializing in broadcast journalism and production, she worked for nine years as a major market television news producer, garnering two regional Emmy Awards, before resigning to be a full-time mom and part-time freelance writer. After writing and unsuccessfully querying a novel that she now admits, “is not that great,” she decided to follow the advice of one of the agents who turned her down—
write some more and get better at it
. Her first published novel,
MORE
, was born during National Novel Writing month, a challenge to write a novel in thirty days.