Becoming Calder(87)

"Calder . . ." I started, glancing back at my door. "We promised we'd be careful until we can leave . . . the sacrifice will all be—"

"I know," Calder whispered against my skin. "I'll leave in a second. Just another taste of you and I'll go."

"Mmm," I murmured as his lips feathered against my neck, sending a bolt of arousal straight between my legs. "The rain's stopping. You need to go," I said, running my fingers through his hair and pulling him back slightly.

Calder brought his head up and gave me his full beauty. I stared in his lust-filled eyes, his lips barely parted. With everything in me, I wanted to kiss those lips until I was dizzy and breathless. But Hector was right down the hall, and if we were caught, it would ruin everything.

Calder took my hands, stood up, and held me against him tightly. "I hate saying goodbye to you."

I nuzzled my face into his chest and then tipped my head back and looked up at him. "Just promise me once we get out of here, we'll never say goodbye again."

"I promise."

He leaned down and kissed me softly on my lips, and then I walked him to the window. It was just drizzling softly now. "Don't slip," I said, worriedly, eyeing the slick roof outside.

"I won't." He kissed me one last time, quickly, and then climbed through the window. I closed it behind me, watching him until he moved around the corner of the roof and disappeared into the rain.

I mopped up the water on my floor with a blanket at the end of my bed and then got back under my covers, feeling relieved yet still unsettled. I closed my eyes and said a prayer to the God of Mercy. He would always be my favorite.





CHAPTER TWENTY




Calder



The speakers went up the morning after I sneaked into Eden's room. Twelve of them in all, placed so wherever you were on Acadia, you could hear one of Hector's sermons being broadcasted.

I saw a few workers shooting each other confused looks as the sermons played on and on, only quieting once the sun set. Then it was like a sigh of relief just to hear your own thoughts. Everyone seemed to want to stay in the quiet of their own head after that and the usual chatter and laughter around the evening bonfires workers built mostly ceased. If we did talk, it was in quiet whispers. The mood shifted and no one seemed to know what to make of it exactly. My parents, though, seemed to be quietly accepting. At Temple, as I sat next to Hannah, Hector didn't explain the meaning of his broadcasted sermons. Instead, he repeated some of the same ones he had already given, growing quiet here and there as he stared off into space as if listening to someone, before he found his place again and continued on.

I saw him watching me though, his eyes meeting mine and lingering there, looking as if he suddenly didn't know who I was and was trying to figure it out. He didn't look at anyone else like that. I grabbed Hannah's hand and held it in mine and Hector's eyes moved down to our laced fingers and finally moved away. I couldn't help but to exhale. I didn't know what was going on with Hector, but something wasn't right. His hair was a mess, it looked like he'd slept in his clothes, and there were bags under his eyes. We needed to leave as quickly as possible.

Hannah squeezed my hand in hers and a pang of guilt raced through me. Not just because I was touching a woman who wasn't Eden, but also because Hannah was a nice girl, and she seemed happy with our engagement. It would hurt her when I simply disappeared. But it couldn't be helped. Hector had forced my hand and used Hannah as a pawn.

At the front of the Temple, Eden looked away. Be strong, Morning Glory, I whispered in my mind.

A week after the speakers went up, Hector declared we'd all be participating in special prayer sessions three times a day at the Temple. Truthfully, the prayer sessions were a quiet blessing. The heavy walls kept the broadcasted sermons out, and we all were able to sit quietly for an hour at a time.

I didn't talk to the gods anymore. Instead, I talked to Maya in my head, telling her about everything that'd gone on since she died. I told her all about Eden, and the things I'd never gotten to say to her when she was alive: she and Xander had always been my best friends, I was so proud of her, and I missed her every single day.

Xander and I also used the prayer sessions to quickly update each other on the progress of our money situation. Xander had been able to sneak into the council members' cars and take thirty-seven dollars total in change and dollar bills. He thought he'd left just enough to not make it look too suspicious. He'd even scored a gold chain in one car and a gold keychain in another. Apparently, the price of gold in the city was pretty high, or so Kristi had told him and it was common for people to sell it.

He kept it all under his floorboard at home, all ready to grab, along with the clothes he'd saved.