I bit my lip. The soft way he said that stupid nickname and the revelation about James sparked hope in my heart. Since he finally told me the truth, didn’t I owe him the same? “It’s from an accident, after I caught Jake cheating. Eleven stitches, one concussion, and three days in the hospital.”
“Ouch. That must’ve been the first vision I saw.” He parted my hair, pressing his lips against the bumpy ridges. “If only I could make it go away.”
“I wish.” My scar tingled with his warmth, and I huddled into his arms.
He smoothed my hair back in place. “I know nothing makes sense right now. But once we figure things out, we’ll see about making you a member of the Guardians.”
“Yeah, we’ll see.” With a limp effort, I shrugged my shoulders. Maybe I didn’t want to join the Guardians anymore.
“I’ll be here to help you every step of the way. Don’t worry.” His words sounded hollow and empty after all we’d just shared. His cold hand brushed against the small of my back, leading me to the lobby like a little lamb back into cruel reality.
I sank my teeth into my bottom lip, fighting to keep the tears in check. The truth escaped anyway. “This sucks.”
His lips curved. “I know. But it’s my job, after all. To protect the Seer.”
“Great. That’s just what a girl wants, a bodyguard.” More hollow words hurled at my already bruised heart. I tried to push them away, like I pushed away everything else, but numbness wouldn’t come. Instead my whole body ached, more than the superficial injuries from the fire. Why did it have to hurt so much? A sharp pain filled my chest, searing me straight through. Maybe he didn’t understand how much I needed him. How could I make him understand? Even I didn’t understand right now.
I followed him outside, watching as the bagpiper caught the water bottle and tossed it back to him. That was supposed to mean all clear, right? Nothing about tonight felt all clear. My life felt muddier than ever, all because someone finally knew the truth. And here I thought the truth was supposed to set you free.
Chapter 19
The academy chapel was becoming my favorite place on campus … and the most frustrating. Every time I came here to study my brother’s postcard, someone always interrupted. Maybe my secrets weren’t so secret after all.
It’d been five days since that horrible church fire. We’d all agreed to lie low for a while. For the poor beat-up guys, it meant wearing baseball caps everywhere, even class when they could get away with it. The scar on my wrist had started to take shape. I’d have a triangle with an oval, swirling eye in the middle stamped on my wrist for the rest of my life. Yeah, I think I could definitely scratch the Watchers off of my list of secret societies to pledge.
After that strange library initiation, I’d already scratched Nexis off the list, too. Those guys had some seriously weird plans to take over the world, and I didn’t even want to know how they planned to use me. But I’d still play along as long as my sanity would let me.
Even though I’d mentally crossed the Watchers and Nexis off of my list, I didn’t have to tell them my decision. But after Bryan’s odd reaction to what I’d thought was a great kiss, I wasn’t so sure about the Guardians either. There had to be more to my brother’s story than either Nexis or the Guardians were telling me. I still had to make sure he was safe over there in Europe.
As soon as the sun set, lights illuminated the stained glass windows from the outside. Instead of sitting in one of the nearby pews, I decide to walk down the aisle in front of the windows to get a closer look at each scene. The stained glass depicted typical Bible scenes, but all were somehow connected to the three societies. The flood, Noah’s ark, the tower of Babel were all on the West wall.
At the end of the aisle, close to the altar, I stopped in front of an all-too-familiar scene. Etched in glass, St. Lucia stared back at me, holding a tray with two eyes. A shiver ran down my spine. Why did this saint matter so much?
With a shrug, I pulled out the telltale postcard and analyzed it line by line.
Wish you were here, lil sis. I found a great church here. I hope you find one, too. At first, I’d thought that meant this chapel, but now I knew he’d wanted me to find St. Lucy’s church all along. What our favorite saint had to do with the sacred stones, I still had no idea.
I’m not sure what you’d love more, the stained glass windows or the libraries full of old books. Books hold so many secrets, just waiting for you to find them. Did he mean the stained glass here, or at St. Lucy’s, or both? I’d found the book with the pages he’d ripped out, but it probably burned up in the fire. Maybe, since he wrote the word books twice, he meant to lead me to more than one book.
Don’t worry about me. You just take care of yourself until I see you again. Love, James. At first, I’d thought he meant that literally. Now I wondered if his farewell had a deeper meaning. Was he trying to take care of me somehow?
“Ahem.” A shadow loomed over my shoulder.
I practically jumped three feet in the air. My blood ran cold at the sound of Will’s familiar voice.
Shoving the postcard in my back pocket, I turned to glare at Will. “What do you want?”
Leaning in closer, he murmured in a low voice. “I heard you joined the Guardians.”
“What?” I screeched, my cry echoing around the stone sanctuary. “Who told you that?”
“It doesn’t matter.” His lips curled, and he stepped closer. I
