“Guess who’s in Midvale.”
“I have no idea, Dawn.” He looked at me, puzzled.
“You are no fun, Nick the Prophet,” I sighed. “Helen Price is here.”
“Oh, that. Yes, yes, I know. She called me earlier today and told me that she had made her way to town. I gave her the address so she should be here shortly.” He smiled at me. “You don’t look so happy to have another of your kind here.”
“I can’t explain what I’m feeling if I don’t know what I am feeling,” I said, with a groan. “I’m happy she’s here. I suppose. It’s other things that seem to be bothering me.”
“You want to talk about it?” There was a look of concern on his handsome face.
“No, I’ll figure it out on my own. However, are we planning on housing all the Wardens in this tiny little house?” I asked.
“I haven’t thought about that. I’m going to have to ask your mother. I don’t know how she would feel having all three of you in one spot.” He looked at the TV for a second then back at me.
“You say the three of us like there is no fourth,” I grumbled.
“There is a fourth. I just don’t know who it is yet. I haven’t seen anyone in any visions. Either they have no clue what they are, or they are just exceptionally good at hiding.”
“How did you find me?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
“See, that is different. My mother told me when we found out I was a Prophet, so I figured I had to find Angelina to find you. Your mother has always done well with masking her location,” he said, giving me a shy smile. “I knew something was up with you when we were kids, to be honest. You were always different from the other children.”
“That’s an understatement.” I sighed.
Nick’s phone rang, and he picked it up.
“Are you finding the place okay?” he asked.
I heard the sweet voice of Helen on the other end, and my pulse quickened. I looked out the window as Helen’s brand-new Chrysler 200 pulled into our driveway. I instantly felt that pang of misgiving again at the sight of it. Even her car was better than mine. What else was this woman going to have that outdid something of mine?
“She’s here,” I said slowly, fighting the inner turmoil inside me. I couldn’t make up my mind whether I would hug or punch her when she came in.
Nick said a few more words to her and hung up his phone. A huge smile formed on his lips. He nodded at me and walked to the back door.
“Dawn!” Helen exclaimed as she entered my house, throwing her arms around me, and holding me close. “It is so nice to see you again!”
“The feeling is mutual,” I said coolly.
She looked at Nick and laughed. “You weren’t kidding about her.”
Nick laughed with her, and my blood began to boil. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing bad, Dawn,” Helen assured me. “He just told me that you weren’t like us.”
“Like who?”
“Like me and Krista, silly.” She giggled and smacked me softly on the arm.
“Again, what is that supposed to mean?” I could feel the anger in my voice.
“Calm down, Dawn,” Nick said softly, and I felt a sense of warmth wash over me. “She doesn’t mean anything by it. Like she said, I just said that you were different.”
“How am I any different?” I demanded, trying to resist the calm he was trying to make me feel.
“I told you that the other two embrace the light side of their blood and refuse to delve into the darkness that is in their veins. You are both light and dark, which of course makes you different,” he explained.
His explanation wasn’t quite enough to soothe the restlessness in my soul.
“I must admit I didn’t believe him at first,” Helen said, taking a step towards me. Her eyes were apologetic, but I had a feeling that she wouldn’t say the words aloud.
“Why do you deny the other part of your blood?” I asked her quickly.
“I don’t deny it. I just choose not to use it,” she said quietly.
“Have you ever tried the power?”
“Yes, we all try it. Doesn’t mean we are drawn to it.” She rubbed her eyes. “Let’s not forget you pull fire, while I pull only earth. I found it to be more beneficial to be able to manipulate the Earth’s resources for a good reason. Sure, I could cause other countries to fall into famine and pull the vitamins from the soil if I wanted to. However, I prefer to give life to the land and help nourish the poor souls who are hungry and dying.” She looked at me with peace in her eyes.
“To defeat Miranda, you are going to have to pull from that darkness in you,” I warned her. “Making happy harvests and summoning grub worms is not going to cause her to give up and run away.”
“I understand that.” She bowed her head. “I know that I’m going to have to embrace the other side. I know I’m going to have to do things that I haven’t done in years.” Her eyes were pleading when she looked up at me.
“Good. Because understand this.” There was still anger in my voice. “I am no different than you.”
“Okay, that’s enough.” Nick clapped his hands together and stepped between Helen and me. “Let’s discuss how we are going to bring Krista back.”
Helen’s eyes were locked with mine. I think she could feel my anger, and in turn, I felt an odd sensation from her. She had no idea why I was so angry with her. To be honest, I didn’t really either. Then she switched her gaze to Nick.
“I’ve had a dream,” she began. “In this dream, I’m standing in a ring of fire.” She glanced at me. “I
