The Reverence of One: Book Three of the Shadow Series (27 page)

Alyssa’s jaw dropped. “One-hundred and twenty years?” she asked, unintentionally brash.

Lauren began to laugh out loud. As she rested her right hand over her chest, she patted the seat next to her, motioning for Alyssa to sit. “Yep! I’m an old woman,” she replied in jest.

Kicking at the ground and visibly upset with herself, Alyssa took the seat offered. “Dang it! I’m sorry. Sometimes I can be so insensitive.”

Still laughing, Lauren put an arm around her. “Don’t worry about it, kid,” she said with a playful wink.
Seeing that Alyssa’s frown remained, she shook her lightly. “Seriously, it’s no big deal.”

Alyssa glanced up, her lips turning up slightly at the corners, and replied. “I’m still sorry, but okay.”

Once more the two of them leaned their heads back and stared into the sky. Their view was now partially obscured by a tree branch that hung over them from behind the bench. Though there was very little breeze, the leaves on the branch still rustled softly, intermittently blocking out a star or two with each movement.

Suddenly, Lauren shot up from her seat, remembering the moment that she and Alyssa were stalking Prim outside of her home.

“What
’s
wrong?” shouted Alyssa as stood.

“It can’t be that easy,” said Lauren aloud. “It can’t. Someone surely would’ve thought of it before.”

Placing a hand on Lauren’s back, Alyssa asked in a panic stricken voice. “What are you talking about? What’s wrong?”

As she pulled her hair back from her face, Lauren stared at Alyssa with a fierce intensity. “Nothing’s wrong.” She turned from Alyssa and began walking back down the path towards the house.

“Lauren?” shouted Alyssa.

Glancing over her shoulder, Lauren held out her glowing hand for Alyssa to take. “Come on
—we
have to talk to Jenz.”

***
*

Though she was exhausted, Jenz lay on her back, snuggled in her bed a
s she
stared at the ceiling. It had been a long time since she’d felt the things she was feeling. Excitement, anxiety, fear—all of these had been mostly absent for many years. She and Prim had made a spot for themselves and enjoyed the quiet life together. She considered him a son in many respects, and though she felt fairly certain that he was safe, her mind strayed to the possibility that something had gone wrong.

Suddenly, a familiar sensation came over her and, knowing that a vision was approaching, she sat up in bed to prepare.

She found herself staring at Prim and Test from a distance as they stood opposite each other in her garden. Both of them held stern looks on their faces and had pulses of energy running the length of their arms. She
watched
Prim
as
he
glanced uncertainly to Lauren who stood beside them.
Test looked strange and was difficult to bring into focus. She watched as he leaned forward and, in a blink, rushed through Prim apparently without phasing to the other side. Prim’s body fell as Lauren reached for him, but that was all she would see.
As suddenly as it began, t
he vision had ended.

***
*

Lauren and Alyssa storm
ed
into the
house, oblivious as to how late it had actually become. Slamming the door behind them, they entered into the living room from the entry hall, stopping instantly as they saw Test jump to his feet with arms held to his side and pulses of energy blasting down his arms.

“Where’s Jenz?” asked Lauren, paying no attention to his display.

Test let his arms fall, the light within them fading quickly, and shook his head.

“What the hell are you doing?” he asked angrily. “Damn!”

Ignoring his question, Lauren asked once more. “Where’s Jenz?”

In frustration, Test replied with sarcasm. “She went to
bed;
the same thing most normal people do this time of night!”

Without acknowledging him, Lauren turned and began to search for Jenz’s room.

Alyssa shrugged her shoulders as Test gave her a confused look, and then motioned for him to join her as she followed Lauren.

The first door that Lauren opened revealed Jenz sitting up in bed, staring blankly at the wall.

“I have an idea,”
said Lauren
bluntly.

Jenz blinked her eyes quickly, as if dust had just been blown directly into them. She wiped her brow and then turned to Lauren
, noticing
Alyssa and Test standing behind
her
in the doorway.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” asked Jenz
, still trying to shake the cobwebs of the vision
.

“I thought of something that I think could be useful,” replied Lauren.

Jenz pushed herself back in her bed so that she could lean her back on the headboard. Patting the mattress, she motioned for Lauren to sit
next to her
. “Well, let’s hear it then.”

Lauren walked quickly to the bed and took a seat with one foot
hanging off the side.
Out of breath, she began to speak at a very fast rate.
“When I first felt Prim, and I was stalking
…
.
”

Jenz placed a hand on her forearm. “Hold on,” she interrupted. “Take a deep breath.”

Slightly annoyed by the interruption, Lauren rolled her eyes.

“I’m waiting,” said Jenz as if she were talking to her child.

Knowing that she would not be able to begin until she did as she was asked, Lauren took in an exaggerated breath and puckered her lips childishly as she exhaled.

With a crooked grin, Jenz asked, “Better?”

Surprisingly, Lauren found that she did feel a little calmer as she continued. “When I was stalking Prim, I could feel him in front of me.” She glanced to Test and Alyssa as they took a couple of steps into the room. “Alyssa was with me, but she was on the other side. At one point, the path narrowed, and I guess she forgot she was a ghost.” Lauren gave Alyssa a whimsical look. “Anyway, she passed in front of me, intercepting the line between Prim and I.”

Jenz pushed herself up and leaned forward as she listened intently.

“Something happened,” continued Lauren. “At the moment that she crossed that line, Prim’s push of energy faded.” She watched Jenz’s eyes widen as the moment of understanding struck. “It was almost as if her pull had erased a percentage of Prim’s push.”

From just inside the doorway, Test’s voice boomed in the room. “I don’t get it. Why would that be so important?” he asked
in a demeaning tone
.

“Because, idiot!” replied Lauren
, instantly annoyed by Test’s remark
. “My point is that I think it’s possible that a group of spirits could hide a Shadow from being felt by another!”

An initial rush of anger swelled within Test, but it was quickly replaced with embarrassment as he realized the
true
importance of her discovery. He tried to come up with a dignified response, but his mind failed so he kept quiet.

Throwing the blankets off from atop of her, Jenz flung her legs off the opposite side of the bed from where Lauren sat. “That is certainly an amazing theory, Lauren
,
one that I think would be wise to test.” She looked to Alyssa who stood at Test’s side. “Alyssa, would you mind stepping in front of Test?”

A bit confused and
weary
, Alyssa responded by simply stepping in front
of Test. She watched as Jenz studied them for a moment.

“Now, can you step away please?” asked Jenz.

Alyssa
again
did as she was asked and watched as Jenz’s expression remained unchanged.

“I can certainly feel a difference, but it is very slight,” said Jenz as she looked to Lauren. “I don’t think it would keep me from sensing Test’s presence.”

Frustrated and knowing that her theory was correct, Lauren stood
from the bed with determination
. “Maybe you need to change forms,
” she said to Alyssa.
“Maybe you need t
o be on the other side?”

“Okay,” replied Alyssa in a meek voice, feeling somewhat like a lab rat.

In an instant
she
was gone, though all three Shadows could still feel her presence.

“Please, step in front of him, Alyssa,” asked Jenz, her next breath coming in a short and sudden gasp. “Incredible,” she stated in awe.

Lauren felt a rush of excitement flow through her. “What do you feel?” she asked.

“I can still feel Test’s push, but it is diminished greatly. If he weren’t standing so close, I could definitely see where this could be effective.”

“But what if the Shadow was standing behind me,” asked Test bluntly. “How could Alyssa know where she needed to stand in order to cover me?”

Pondering his question briefly, Jenz replied.
“She couldn’t
.”

An arrogant smile appeared on Test’s face and Lauren was quick to respond. “I didn’t say it was the answer to all our problems!” she shouted as she folded her arms across her chest.

“Please, both of you settle down,” interrupted Jenz in a calming voice. She gave Test a disapproving glance and then turned to Lauren. “This is a magnificent discovery, my dear. I do think that it will prove useful. The true test will be to try it on Prim upon his return. His perceptions are much stronger than ours, and if this proves effective on him, I see no reason why it would not be effective on Isaac.”

Hearing Prim’s name spoken caused Lauren’s heart to instantly skip, distracting her from the animosity that she’d felt towards Test.

Walking towards
the doorway
, Jenz began to speak as Alyssa re
-
materialized. “It is very late.” She put an arm around Alyssa’s shoulders. “I think it wise that those of us who need it get some rest.” Running an open hand down the back of Alyssa’s head, she spoke giving
her
a playful wink. “Tomorrow will be an important day. All of the others will join us, and then the work can begin.”

Feeling bad about his lack of support for Lauren, he stepped to her side and draped his left arm over her shoulder. “Sorry, sis.” The word
‘
sis
’
came from his mouth without even a thought and took him by surprise.

“Sis, huh?” replied Lauren with an innocent grin. “Okay, you’re forgiven
,
little brother.” She wrapped her right arm around his waist and the two of them squeezed gently.

“Aw,” replied Alyssa with
puppy dog eyes and
a smile as wide as the room. “Look at you two.”

The comment shattered any tension that had remained
, and the four of them stood gleaming at one another feeling as much a part of a family as they had their entire lives
.

Sleeping on the couch, the sound of the front door opening d
idn’t register with Test until
it
closed. Remembering the over-reaction from the night before, he tried to remain calm. It occurred to him that the Reapers wouldn’t bother using the door. Had they decided to show up, he would have been dead already.

He sat up slowly and peered through the darkened room; the only light coming from the first beginning of the sunrise outside. The figure of a short, very thin, woman walked into the doorway and his heart stopped as she turned into the room.
He quickly reached behind to turn on the end table lamp.

“Nicole
?
” he whispered in a gasp. Shocked by her frail appearance, he strained to keep his concern hidden. “How are you?”

Nicole fidgeted anxiously, wrapping her hair around her index finger while unable to look at Test. “I’m fine,” she replied with a shaky voice.

Test stood from the couch. He saw Nicole glance at him and then quickly look away.

“You look like you’re doing good,” she said while biting her nails.

Test looked down and realized that he was in nothing but his boxers. “I’m sorry,” he replied anxiously as he grabbed his clot
hes from the floor. Getting dressed in a matter of seconds, he stood and realized that there was a man standing behind Nicole.

“Hello,” said Test. His insides were twisting from the tension in the room. “You must be Thad.”

Exhausted, Thad
waved
a hand into the air and replied. “You must be Test.”

“Pleased to meet you
,
” answered Test.

Feeling a spirits presence in the room, he assumed that Cliff was standing next to his grandson. Without thinking Test began to release a small amount of energy to allow his old friend to come through. The instant that his hands began to glow, Nicole’s body became rigid and her eyes wide with fear. Just as Cliff’s form had begun to materialize, Test stopped the release to comfort Nicole.