Both guys were sitting, staring at me and waiting for an answer.
“I have to go find him,” I told Seth and Ty. “I have to go to the future. He’s there somewhere.”
“You can’t,” Seth growled at me. He was very upset even at the suggestion that I follow the lines to Kye. “He left on his own free will. No one took him. You can’t chase after him.”
“What if he’s in trouble?”
“Then that’s his fault. We don’t go after him. We don’t give up our safety,” Seth replied. He was being logical, but I couldn’t be. Kye was my son, and I knew Logan wasn’t going to be nice to him. Kye was probably off being tortured because he chose to rescue me.
I crossed my arms and pouted at Seth. I wasn’t about to give up on Kye. Miller had made it very clear that Logan was going to punish him. I didn’t need to know how, I already knew how upset Logan was going to be. I couldn’t leave Kye alone with him.
“Mari, listen to Seth on this one. Kye is the only one that can travel outside the country, as he’s the only one that can feel Logan. Seth is right. It isn’t safe. And you know Kye wouldn’t want you to be unsafe.” Ty was pleading with me now.
“So we just leave him to Logan?” I asked. I tried my best to not think of torture methods.
“Yes. Leave him to do whatever he went there to do,” Ty replied.
“Like tell Logan all our plans,” Seth added quietly.
I gave him my best mean stare. I didn’t care that Kye was half Logan. He wasn’t anything like him. Seth would have to see that Kye was good, and, unfortunately, that would be the day Kye got his way and disappeared.
I looked between them. Neither of them could understand. I could feel it just like I could feel it when Seth was gone. Something was off. Kye went away on his own, but the lack of telling us where he went told me that he was doing something strange. My gut told me that I had to go find Kye.
“I have ninety plus stones in me now. I can jump all over the place and come right back here if I want. Heck, I can just hover in the in-between world if I take one of you with me, as the future would have to be reset if you were to go there,” I added. “We wouldn’t even need to set down more than a moment before coming right back. There’s no danger in it.”
“Unless Logan is waiting for you,” Seth added through gritted teeth. “The only reason Kye left without telling us was to set a trap.”
“Or he couldn’t tell us,” I added. I didn’t think Kye went back to Logan willingly. Something had to be up.
“We should wait,” Ty added. “There’s no reason to act rashly. If Kye doesn’t return in a day or two, then we go looking for him. It isn’t like we can’t just go to the future to the exact time he went there. Waiting won’t make us miss anything.”
I shrugged. Ty was technically right, but I still didn’t like it. Kye went off to face something alone. I had no doubts he went on his own idea. Logan must have done something, but the question was what.
I let exactly twenty-four hours pass before I was looking to make a plan. I wasn’t happy with Seth, and he wasn’t happy with me. I could feel a tinge of jealousy coming from him, but his anger was more directed at the idea that I was planning to do something he didn’t deem safe. The worst part was that he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to protect me.
“He’s not back,” I commented to Ty just after lunch was taken away. “I have to go find him.”
“How, exactly, do you plan to do that?” Ty asked, because Seth wasn’t going to take part in the conversation. I already knew he was against me going after Kye.
“I’m going to take you with me and follow Kye’s line. When I see where he’s at, we will come right back. Seth doesn’t need to worry. We won’t set down anywhere and we will stay away from Logan,” I answered.
“You think it’ll be that easy?” Seth asked. “We only know a little bit about the time travel stuff. How does Logan rewrite the future and past? Can he go to that same place you go to do so? Can he meet you there and take you?”
I looked at Seth. He was worried. I hated that he didn’t trust that I could take care of myself.
“And how can he take me? I have all the time travel powers to go anywhere I want. He can’t take those from me, and he doesn’t know I have them,” I replied.
Seth shrugged. “We know very little about this stuff and he knows a whole lot. He’s lived a dozen lifetimes learning all of it. You’ve been at it for only a few months. I don’t think you’re ready to face him.”
Tears began to well up in my eyes. It stung to hear Seth not believe in me. Did I know how to do everything Logan could? No. But did that matter? I had more power in me than he could ever imagine. Logan had tricked me before, but that was back when I thought he was still a good guy. I knew better now. I wasn’t going to fall for any of his tricks this time; I was going to win this one.
I wiped the stray tear that made it out and Seth finally noticed how much his words hurt me. Quickly he was in front of me, wrapping me in his arms.
“I’m sorry, Mari. That wasn’t nice of me. I’ll never forgive myself for making you cry.” He buried his face into the top of my head and gave me tons of kisses. Gently he wiped the remainder of the tear away. “I don’t trust Kye, but I should trust you. If you believe Kye is good, then I should also. I don’t doubt you or your ability. You’re amazing, and I know you don’t need a dozen lifetimes to learn how to do all the time travel stuff. You’re brilliant and can do any of it naturally. I just worry. That’s all.” Seth pulled me against him as he hugged me. “I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you. I couldn’t stand a lifetime without you. I wouldn’t want to live.”
I sniffled a little and was glad the tears stopped at his touch. I needed Seth to believe in me. There were enough doubts on my own. Of anyone, he was the one I needed.
“I want to be the one that goes with you this time,” Seth told me. I nodded.
“I could take you both with me. It won’t be a strain on me since I’m loaded with chalcedony now,” I replied.
Seth and Ty shared a look. It worried both of them, but it had to be done. I couldn’t wait another day. Something was going on, and I had to find Kye and find out what.
I held out my hand to Ty and he looked at me.
“You want to go now?” Ty asked.
“No time like the present,” I replied.
Seth let go of me and moved to my other side. He took my little hand in his large one. I felt more confident as Ty took my other hand. They didn’t need to agree with me, but it did help to know they both believed in me.
I closed my eyes and instantly we were traveling through time. It was easy now. I didn’t even need to think about what I was doing. We were standing in my room one moment and hovering in space the next. I froze everything as I looked for Kye’s line. It was easy to see. and I followed it. As we neared, everything came into focus.
Kye was in Minnesota, at my college. I knew the scene and saw he was in Seth’s old house, which at one point was also mine. The house was empty, and he sat there alone. Why hadn’t he come back to me? What was he doing?
“What do we do now?” Ty asked.
“Looks like a trap to me,” Seth commented. They both looked closer at it.
I couldn’t agree more. It did look like a trap, and I had no clue what to do next. Kye was alone, but that didn’t mean he was safe or there by his own free will. Something was going on.
“Do we go down there?” I asked the guys. I really was unsure what to do. I trusted Kye, but the situation seemed off.
“You sure you can handle Logan?” Seth asked in reply.
I nodded. That much I was sure about. Logan wasn’t going to trap me again, and I had the power to beat him, whatever way I was supposed to do that.
“Then let’s go see what Kye has to say about leaving,” Seth added.
I looked to Ty. He nodded with Seth.
I placed us down and realized that I didn’t need to change anythi
ng. It was like we had never left and everything from our lives fell back into place. Kye looked up at me as I appeared. I saw the strain on his face; he was happy and sad to see me at the same time.
“You shouldn’t have come,” Kye told me.
Seth immediately tensed and looked around, like we would be attacked. I didn’t feel anything coming, but I didn’t let my guard down.
“Why’d you leave?” I asked.
“I had to,” Kye replied.
“Without telling me?”
Kye sighed. “I knew you’d want to go with me if I told you.”
“Well, we’re here now,” Seth replied, still looking around the room.
“You can relax. Logan’s not here. He’s waiting for us to go to him,” Kye said to Seth, but that didn’t relax Seth any.
“Why would we go to him?” I asked. Kye still hadn’t told me what was going on, and part of me wanted to go over to him and shake a solid answer out of him.
“Because he took something you would want back,” Kye cryptically told me.
I still had no clue what he was talking about.
Ty’s eyes went big as memories began to trickle into each of our minds.
“He took Sim,” Ty said, horror on his face at the thought. I slightly remember now living in the house, and Logan asking Sim to go back to Chicago with him. She had never been there and readily agreed to go.
Kye looked to me and nodded.
“I was hoping to find a way to take her back before you came for me,” Kye added.
“Where is she?” I asked, though I had a clue already.
“She’s at the pool house,” Kye replied. “He’s had her for two weeks now, and he called to tell me that if you want her to ever be able to live her normal life again, then we need to give him a fair trade. You for her.”
“No way,” Seth growled at Kye.
“I didn’t say I was going to trade her, or even let her near that building,” Kye replied. “I was just relaying Logan’s message.”
“We have to do something,” I replied, ignoring the arguing. It wasn’t like they got along normally. Ty nodded along with me.
“What are our options?” Ty asked. At least he was past fighting.
“Go there or not. That’s about it,” Kye replied, running his hands through his hair. “I’ve been here since I arrived, and I can’t find any other way to deal with this. I know Logan, and I know he’s beginning to lose it. He’s never involved someone that wasn’t part of things before. Taking Sim without her knowing about the time travel world goes against everything. He’s desperate.”
“Or he knows the goddess is gone,” I added. All three guys looked at me. No one had thought of that. “Logan always behaved before because he feared the goddess. Now that she’s gone, there’s no one he has to be accountable to.”
Kye’s mouth dropped. “I have to go now.”
Kye stood up and took the stone sitting on the coffee table.
“Wait.” I grabbed his arm. “You can’t just leave us again. I’ll just follow you.” I threatened him.
“Mari, wait here. What you said gave me an idea. Just wait for me to come back,” Kye told me.
“How long do I have to wait?” I asked. I hated him going off on his own. Logan wanted Kye as much as he wanted me. Well, maybe not as much, but close.
“I have to run around this time a little bit. I won’t be able to instantly come back. Give me until tonight at six o’clock. If I’m right, by tonight I can get Sim free.” Kye stared into my eyes as he spoke. “Don’t go anywhere but here. If Logan shows up, go back to Egypt. Don’t even worry about the guys. They can time travel back to the border and walk to safety inside of Egypt. Logan won’t chase them. Protect yourself.”
Kye disappeared.
“He finally said something I agree with,” Seth added. “Don’t worry about us. Ty and I can get home on our own. If you see Logan at all, leave.”
Sim was in danger. I could see the fear I felt mirrored in Ty’s eyes. It was going to be a long two hours. With Kye gone and just having to wait around the house, I had nothing to distract my mind from the worry that was taking over. After pacing around and finding everything like we had left it, I began to walk through the rooms. Seth hovered not too far behind me as I wandered. I was still a little mad at him. He was always so mean to Kye and all Kye was doing was trying to help us.
“Go take a nap,” I told Seth. He looked like he wanted to pass out.
“I can’t. I need to protect you,” Seth replied. He was on edge. I didn’t blame him. I was too, but it gave me more energy than anything.
“Nothing is going to happen. You heard Kye. Logan wants to trap me, not take me. He gets that I can time travel. He may be acting rashly, but he isn’t stupid,” I answered. Seth didn’t look convinced. “Fine, come with me to my room. You can rest, and I’ll sit around doing nothing.”
I led Seth back to the room that had once been his. A smile crept onto his face as he looked at the purple room.
“I don’t recall it looking so…” Seth smiled more.
“Girly?” I asked. I had forgotten Seth hadn’t been back in the house since Logan changed the past.
“Yeah, girly,” Seth replied as he walked over to the bed and wiggled his eyebrows.
“Take a nap,” I told him as I moved and sat down at my desk.
Seth sighed but jumped onto the bed.
“I’m pretty sure there’s room for two here,” Seth teased.
“Go to sleep,” I told him as I opened my laptop up and turned it on. Seth huffed at me and rolled over to go to sleep. I really needed to do something to fight back.
I looked at the start-up screen on my computer and wondered what I was even looking for. How was I supposed to help Sim? I didn’t even know why the pool house was a no-travel zone. Was it something similar to how my father protected Egypt? I was severely regretting not asking my father about that before we went looking for Kye. I hoped Kye would return soon, and we would be able to plan a bit more.
I felt the vibration on my desk and realized my phone was there, and it was charged and ringing. Flipping it open, glancing at the number. It was Sim.
“Sim,” I whispered excitedly. She was calling me. I hadn’t even thought to call her. Guess I had spent too much time in the past already.
“Oh, wouldn’t that be nice,” Logan cooed into the phone.
My heartbeat picked up. What was he doing with Sim’s phone?
“Don’t worry,” he told me, though I had no reason to believe him. “Sim is fine for now.”
I got the message. For now.
“What do you want?” I asked dryly. I really wished Kye would come back now.
“You know what I want. Now I’m wondering if I need to up the stakes to get you to agree to it,” Logan spit out. He was angry.
“It doesn’t matter what you do; I’m never going to be yours. Why can’t you just give up and move on?” I asked.
Logan laughed. “Oh, Mari, you think you get a say in all this? No. It’s fate that you and I met. You don’t get to choose anything. You were always supposed to be mine. Now if you’d just return to me like a nice girlfriend, I won’t have to take any drastic measures.”
I sucked in my breath. I didn’t know how drastic he was talking, but I was sure I didn’t want to know.
“Just let Sim go. She had nothing to do with this,” I told him. I tried to keep my voice firm and hoped he didn’t feel the quiver I felt as my hands shook a little.
“You come alone to the pool house,” he told me, completely ignoring my threat. “You send your annoying ex-husband back to his time, and I promise I won’t go back there and do what I’ve wanted to do since the first time I met him. If you can handle that, then I won’t have to resort to hurting your friend or our son.”
Our son? Where was Kye? I looked at the clock. It was already six fifteen. Kye was late.
“Oh, no retort to that one?” Logan asked. “I told Kye that he would be your
downfall. Sim, you could ignore and leave her to me, but not Kye. You’ve always had such a soft spot for him, even though I kept him from you while he grew up.”
My heart broke. He would punish Kye, and I had promised Miller I’d keep Kye safe. Why did Kye have to be a hero and rush off without us?
“You don’t even want to know what I’ve been waiting to do to that disobedient child. At least I’ll let him live. Don’t come to me, and you won’t have a past to go back to. Seth will be the first one I have killed. So what is it going to be, Mari?”
I couldn’t reply. I was being forced to act before we had our own plan.
“Come alone or Kye will be the one to suffer.”
The phone clicked dead. He didn’t wait for a reply. I looked across the room to Seth. He was sound asleep on the bed. Logan was serious. He’d already tried to kill Seth once. He wouldn’t give up until he did so. And I couldn’t leave Kye. No matter what Seth thought of him, and even if Kye was half Logan, he was still my family. I couldn’t leave him with the monster Logan was becoming.
I snuck out of the room and downstairs to where Ty was. He was watching TV. He must have missed a bit of the future as basketball played on the screen.
I didn’t want to go alone, but I was sure Logan would know if I brought the guys with. I also knew neither of them would ever let me out of their sight without them. I had to no choice. To save Sim and Kye, they couldn’t be part of it.
“Kye back yet?” Ty asked. He wasn’t worried that Kye was late.
“No, not yet,” I replied.
I paused as I placed my hand on the couch behind him. I gave each guy the ability to travel. I had to hope they wouldn’t figure it out before I could save Kye. I inched my finger closer so that it just touched Ty. I felt the power come from me, but instead I knew just what I needed to do. I drained his two stones as I sent him back to the past where he belonged.