Skylar couldn't take in air. Mason was standing too close. When she caught his eyes, they stared back at her. Then he blinked and looked away. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Mason was so sweet to take care of her, but she was so awed by watching him use his powers that she was completely speechless and couldn't stop gawking at him.
"Don't stare at me," he said, making sure the swathe wouldn't come undone.
"I-I-" Skylar couldn't muster up a sentence. It was caught in her throat.
"What happened?" he asked, peering up from under his thick eyelashes to catch her eyes.
"You-your hands they . . . the monsters turned into ashes by your hands," Skylar rambled. "I saw lights. I mean flashing, lightning lights, like the ones you see up in the sky. They came out of your hands, or fingertips, or somewhere . . . and your eyes too. And you move-you all move so fast . . . and how did you-? Oh my God! I can't even believe I'm saying all this." Flabbergasted and so caught up with what Mason was able to do, she didn't answer his question.
"You do remember me telling you that I can do things like that, right?"
Skylar nodded, looking like she had seen God himself. She recalled being told, but hearing it was one thing. Seeing lightning bolts flash out of the palms of his hands, and seeing him move with such great speed, was a whole different story.
"I'm still me, okay? You're not afraid of me, are you?"
Skylar shook her head. "No."
"Good. Now you've just seen some of the things I can do firsthand."
"Why didn't you fight them off when they were trashing Kayla's house? If you could do what you just did, why did we run?"
"I had just met you. You would've thought I was a freak and tried to run away from me too. It would also have been two against one. Not that I couldn't take them on my own, but I would have been putting your life at risk. I'd rather hide and protect you than try to kill two of those. Enough about me. What happened?"
Ignoring his question, she looked at him. "You're hurt," she said, looking at the patch of crimson on his torn white T-shirt. Starting from his right shoulder, it was ripped diagonally across. She stared at his exposed tattoo, remembering how it had lit up when the lights shot out of his fingertips. Slowly her hand reached out to touch it, but she dropped it when Mason stiffened and retreated a step, seeming to anticipate what she was about to do.
"I'm fine. I'm healing. Now what happened?" His tone was sharper, as if demanding his question be answered.
"The thing came at me. I picked up whatever was in front of me and jammed it through it and Amanda chopped its head off. My hands"-Skylar gazed at her hands-"I cut my hands when I jabbed the broken pieces into its back, but the thing turned and I accidentally touched the bleeding wound on its chest. It was already bleeding from whatever Amanda had done."
"So your bleeding hand touched its open wound?"
"I guess. It happened so fast. That is how I think it happened. Why do you ask?"
"Nothing. I'm just trying to figure out-"
"How it turned to stone?" Skylar assumed what he was thinking.
"No." His eyes fell to her chest, looking surprised.
Skylar followed his gaze and realized again that she was braless. Her face flushed with warmth. Too busy trying to survive, she had forgotten. When she crossed her arms, he looked away shyly and continued, "Don't be so brave next time. You could've gotten killed," he said in a scolding tone, changing the subject.
Did he seriously say that to me? "What do you want me to do next time? Let it kill me instead of defending myself?"
"No, of course not. Nick and I were there. You should've let us handle it."
"Amanda was right there. She-"
"Doesn't matter. Amanda thinks she can do anything."
Anger was boiling to the surface, but Skylar kept it at bay. After all, he was right. Her human speed and strength were not comparable to theirs, but his hot and cold personality infuriated her. One minute he was so sweet and tender, and then the next, he was arrogant and back to his old self.
Just when things were getting awkward Nick entered. "That was fun. Amanda and I cleaned up the mess. Breakfast anyone? I'm cooking."
"Sure." Skylar faked a smile.
"No. We can't stay," Mason said, standing in front of Skylar and blocking Nick's view, apparently covering Skylar with his body.
"Where are you going?" Nick inquired. "And just so you know, Amanda told me everything."
"Whatever she said is wrong. You need to hear it from me," Mason stated.
"Whenever you're ready."
Skylar turned red, wondering how Nick felt about Remus's death. She tried to read his facial expression but he had none. Either he was good at hiding them or he didn't care, like Mason. And how much did Amanda know?
"I was going to tell you," Mason said, looking sheepish. "I told Amanda parts, but not all."
"I know, but you don't have to do this alone. Let me help you," Nick muttered, standing in front of Mason, looking deeply into his eyes. "You can trust me."
Mason paused, inhaling a deep accepting breath. "Okay. But I don't know where to start."
"My recommendation is to seek out the Oracles." Amanda entered the kitchen, talking as if she was already part of the conversation. She looked at Skylar with a quick smile, as if to apologize for what she had done the previous night.
"Are you nuts?" Mason snapped. "We tried before, but they didn't appear."
"Amanda is right," Nick interrupted, walking toward the stove. "They would be the ones that could answer all our questions. They may appear this time, especially since we'll be bringing an unknown along."
"The unknown has a name," Mason snapped.
"Mace . . . chill. I didn't mean it that way."
"Okay, sorry. The road ahead could be dangerous. I don't think we should take Skylar there."
"Why is it dangerous?" Skylar asked, wondering if she had any business butting into their conversation.
"It somehow limits our powers," Mason explained. "I won't be able to protect you like I can here."
"I'll have to agree with Mason. Going really could be dangerous," Amanda seconded. "So no problem. I'm coming with you guys. Someone has to protect you."
"No. You can't go," Mason protested.
"And why not? Because I'm a girl? I can handle myself. There is strength in numbers. I'm going, Mason, and you can't stop me."
Mason let out a defeated sigh. "Fine. When do we leave?"
"After breakfast. I'm starving." Nick took out a frying pan from the bottom cabinet and poured oil into it.
"I'll help." Amanda opened the fridge, took out the eggs, and handed them to Nick.
"What are you going to tell Kayla?" Mason asked.
"She'll have to come. I can't just ditch her."
"You're putting her at unnecessary risk," Mason said.
"Bringing a human may help. You know they won't show themselves in front of humans," Nick reminded, cracking the eggs into the frying pan.
"True, but . . . all right," Mason agreed.
"Hey, it won't be like the last time," Nick said. "We know better."
"The last time we went for fun and that was stupid."
"But it was fun." Amanda giggled.
Using the spatula as if it was an extension of his hand, Nick rattled it as he spoke, "Like I said, since we know what we're up against this time, we'll be more prepared."
Amanda clapped her hands once, breaking up their conversation. "Okay boys, don't forget to bring camping gear. We need to pack lunch and dinner. This is going to be so much fun."
Skylar stood there gaping back and forth between them as they had their conversation, having no idea what they were talking about. Just when she wondered where Kayla was, she entered, yawning and stretching.
"Good morning," she cheered, heading to Nick. "Did you put these ear plugs in my ears?" She held them out. "I slept like a baby. I need to get me some. It was the best sleep I've ever had."
Nick turned to Kayla, giving her a quick peck on the cheek, and then turned to Skylar with a wink. "I like to have them around just in case."
She bet he did, wondering how many girls he'd slept with. "Would you like some help?" Skylar offered, looking at her hands, then remembered she was braless and thought twice about what she'd said. Oddly, her wounds that had been throbbing a minute ago were now painless.
"Why don't I help you pack instead?" Mason suggested, guiding her out the door. "You also need a few more layers on."
Skylar looked over her shoulder to see Kayla give her a big smile. Skylar knew that look. She wanted details. There was so much to tell her, but she couldn't.
After driving along the highway for a while, the road became unfamiliar. Skylar didn't know where they were headed, but she knew they were going higher into the mountains. After a couple of hours, they finally arrived at their destination.