Earth(84)

I exhaled the words of the spell, using air to intertwine my breath with Akasha, "In love and in trust, in peace and in wisdom, I release you." The men were gone in a wisp of smoke before I finished speaking. I lowered my arm, and my voice, "So mote it be."

It suddenly felt empty. I turned back to Cato and Ted. "And you?"

In perfect sync, they answered, "We're staying."

It was a little creepy, and I had to remind myself they were just ideas, or images of the men they had once been. I tried rubbing the goose bumps out of my arms. I glanced at my hand. There was no pain this time. Did that mean my conscious was clear?

"So what now?" I asked.

"Now, we prepare you." Cato said, stepping forward.

I stepped back, narrowing my eyes. "How?"

"Well, what do you need?"

I took a deep breath. "I need you to answer a question, first. It comes from Micah." I glanced at Ted, then back over to Cato. "Does the mission of The Seven, according to the doctrine, supersede family ties?"

Cato didn't hesitate. "Yes, it does."

"Oh," I mumbled. I was almost positive that was the wrong answer.

"However…" Cato continued.

My eyes snapped back to him.

"That doctrine no longer applies."

He was right, Susan had rewritten it, but after he had died. "Since when?"

Cato smiled. "If I'm honest, since the day you stepped into our lives, Kaitlyn."

That is a better answer – I think.

Cato asked, "You are trying to decide whether or not to trust me, which is understandable. After all – it is my son you are trying to kill."

"Micah stands with me; don't you consider him your son – or at least as much of one?" I snapped back.

"If not more so," Cato answered. "He was my natural choice to take over as Rais."

"Not Susan?"

Cato shrugged. "The Seven has never been run by a woman. But – times are changing."

"That they are," Ted mumbled.

I wondered if he was a former Rais.

"Let me share some of my knowledge with you." Cato held up his hand, palm out toward me. "You can decide whether or not to trust me later."

I hesitated. Couldn't hurt, right?

"What is your element of choice?" he asked.

I stepped forward, raising my good hand to meet his. I glanced into his dull, blue eyes. "Earth," I said.





Chapter 52





To Say the Least





Micah cracked open his eyes. His eyelids were heavy, and the light that crept in was blinding.

"Are you okay?" a soft voice asked. It wasn't Kaitlyn.

Micah tried again, squinting against the early morning sun. Details of a darkened form slowly emerged. Natasha.

Micah groaned. "I have to pee."

"Oh," Natasha glanced around the circular tower, eyes resting on a bucket. "Do you want me to—?"

"No, no. Sorry; it can wait. Where’s Kaitlyn?"

"She…got restless, I think. Said she was going for breakfast." Natasha didn't look at him. She was concentrating.

For the first time, Micah noticed the tingling at his palm. His arm twitched.

"Hold still," Natasha said. "Almost done."

Micah glanced down, "Oh."

The barely detectable glow between each of their palms was the telltale signature of Natasha's energy transfer.

Micah looked back at her.

She wavered, sweat dotting her forehead, then toppled over.

"Natasha!" Micah pulled himself up, then rolled, using his arms to drag himself forward.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just…winded." She rolled over on her back, breathing hard.

He lay down next to her, doing the same. "We are pathetic."

She laughed. "To say the least."

"I'm still not sure I have the energy to even make it down the stairs." Micah sat up slowly, propping his back against the wall.

Natasha sighed. "I'm sorry…"

"No, no. I didn't mean it that way. It's just – I've got to find some way to keep up with her."

Natasha sat up, leaning against the wall, too. "We need more people. We can still make it work."

Micah looked at her with a wry smile. "Thanks, I—"

His eyes traveled outside the tower. "Wait, is that her?"

Natasha followed his line of sight, squinting. "I can't tell. Things are kind of blurry for me."

"Well, not for me." Micah made an attempt to stand. He couldn't get off his knees.

Kaitlyn was already past the train tracks, headed downtown.

He tried again, fell, and knocked over the backpack Kaitlyn left behind. Something clattered out. He sighed, mumbling, "I'll never catch her."

I'll never survive this.

"I have a headache." Natasha rubbed her temples. "I miss ibuprofen."