CHAPTER NINE
But that’s insane!” I protested. “I’m just a high school junior. Why does everyone think I have anything to do with this?”
But I knew in my heart it was true. It was the reason why my mark was different and why I’d been having visions. It was why my friends were developing crazy powers. My heart was pounding and my arms and legs were going numb.
“Because you have more k’ul than anyone our world has ever seen,” Adriana said. “You’ve been accumulating it for centuries, all for this one day in time.”
“The reincarnations,” I said. “So Damian was right.”
“The Mayan people have always believed in reincarnation. We had been searching for you for years, as had Toltec. But it wasn’t until last summer that you were found.”
“Last summer?” I asked.
“It must have been quite soon after you and Matt got together and all the changes started happening. You had such incredibly strong k’ul that Richard sensed it. Around the same time we also learned that Victrixa had purchased a large piece of property nearby. That also tipped us off.”
All I could do was blink my eyes and try to keep up with all of it. “Who’s Richard?” I asked.
“Richard is my mate. He found you last June. He’s been keeping an eye on you ever since.”
“His second form wouldn’t be an owl by any chance, would it?”
She laughed. “Yes. Tunkuruchu. I’ll have to speak to him about his hooting habits.” She laughed again. “Oh, Maya, you have no idea how very glad we are to have found you … if for nothing else than to keep you safe from Toltec.”
But I knew that wasn’t the only reason. As we talked, the weight on my shoulders was growing heavier.
“I need to talk to my Grandma,” I told her.
“Of course you do,” she said. “I’m sorry. This is a lot. I know it must be very hard for you to take it all in.” She laid one hand on my shoulder. “I can’t even imagine. But you’re not alone in this. You need to know that. And before you say anything, I should tell you that, either way, we are prepared for your answer. If you decide to go, we have everything all arranged. And if not, we will be able to offer you our protection until after solstice on December 21st.”
It was funny how she phrased it that way, as if I really had a choice, because we both knew I didn’t. Plain old history class seemed like a total waste of time when you compared it to actually helping to make the world better. I just wished I believed in myself as much as Adriana seemed to.
“Matt will want to be there with me,” I finally said.
“I would expect nothing less. He is your mate and he has that right.”
“Oh, crap, Adriana—the twins! I can’t believe I forgot about them. Something else has happened. They’ve become telepathic. They can read each other’s minds!”
She nodded. “We wondered if they might phase or some other such thing.”
No, not again. “So I did do that to them? Is it from being around me, like what happened with Matt?”
“First of all, Maya, I want you to understand that although it’s not common for one mate to follow the other into the phase, it does happen. I followed Richard.”
“You did?” Holy crap!
“Yes, I did. So I can tell you with total honesty that it just feels totally natural to me. And I’m sure Matt feels the same way. As for the twins, something tells me that they still have some part to play in this whole thing. I’m just not sure what.”
“Will they need to come with us?”
“So you’ve agreed then!”
“Yes, I…I guess I have.” Sometimes I wished my heart and brain would just shut up for two seconds already.
“I think it would be best if they came,” she said. “And your grandma. I think there’s a chance we’ll need her wisdom.” She smiled warmly. I didn’t know if she was just saying that or if it was actually true, but I couldn’t have cared less.
As we pulled into my driveway, Adriana put the car into park and turned to me.
“Maya, we need to be ready to leave for Mexico no later than the day after tomorrow. I’m going to need you to talk to your father about a trip with your grandmother to spend Christmas with your relatives there. I know it’s not going to be easy, but you’re going to have to be very convincing. It’s important for his safety. We can’t risk him trying to find us or asking any questions. Do you think you can do that?”
I nodded. I hated lying to Dad, but I knew he would be worried sick if he knew what was really going on. And if it would keep him safe…
“It will work best if Matt and the twins use the same story. Do you have your cell with you?” I handed her my cell phone and watched as she quickly hit the keys and then handed it back to me. “I’ve programmed three numbers into your cell,” she said. “You have mine and Richard’s. You also have Alma’s. She runs the safe house in Mexico. If you get into trouble, use them, in that order. And, Maya, this is very important. I need you to be very, very careful between now and the time we leave. There will be shifters here, around your property, to keep an eye out. Richard is here now. In Lak’ech, Maya. And be safe.”
“Ala K’in. And thank you.” I got out of the car and, lost in my thoughts, watched her drive away.
I started to walk toward the door when I suddenly felt a strong arm grab me around the waist and a gloved hand go over my mouth. Frantic with terror, I tried to pull away, but the guy was too strong for me. I was being dragged to the back of the house. I knew that if we got that far, I’d never survive. I tried to phase, but I couldn’t calm down long enough to focus. I managed to hook my boot on the corner of the house, but that only slowed us down momentarily. And that’s when I heard it. It sounded like a rabid dog, snarling and growling. I managed to turn my head just enough to see. It was Matt in his gray wolf form! My would-be kidnapper turned and ran toward the trees, phased into an eagle, and flew out of sight. Totally freaked out and exhausted, I fell against the side of the house. Matt trotted over, phased back, and put his warm, human arms around me.
“It’s okay, My, it’s all right. I’m never gonna let anything happen to you.” He held me while I cried. It wasn’t until I finally calmed down, that I began to wonder why he was here.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I’m here with Richard,” he said, to my surprise. “While Adriana was with you, Richard paid me a little visit.”
“Jesus, Matt!”
“I know, I know. It’s a lot. Listen, I’m relieving Richard for the night, so I’ll be here if you need me.”
“I want to meet him,” I said. “Thank him.”
“He’s already gone. We’ll see him tomorrow. Come on, let’s get you inside.”
We walked around to the front of the house where Dad was standing just inside the front door.
“What the hell happened out there?”
“Just some kind of stray dog,” Matt said. “It caught us by surprise.”
“Sounded like a whole pack of stray dogs,” Dad answered.
I noticed Matt couldn’t help but grin at that. I leaned up and squished his cheeks.
“Well,” he said, “I guess I’d better get going. I don’t want Mom worrying about where I’ve got to.”
Thankfully, Dad excused himself and went up to bed after warning us to keep it short.
“You’re gonna be out there alone?” I asked, worry creeping into my chest.
“I’ll be fine, babe. And there’s backup further out if I need it. I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you.”
“Ditto,” I said, leaning up and touching the side of his face. “In Lak’ech,” I said, laying my hand on his heart.
“Ala K’in.” He put his hand on mine and he pulled me into a soft, gentle kiss that made my insides warm.
We said good night and I walked upstairs and knocked on Dad’s door.
“Come in, sweetheart,” he said. He had his glasses on and was lying on his bed reading.
>
“Dad, could I talk to you about something?”
“Of course. But first tell me why your English teacher was here tonight.”
More lies. I hated this. “Well, she’s been working with me on something for English … an essay contest, and she just told me that I was accepted into the first round. She just bought me a coffee. She wanted to talk about where we were going to go from here.”
“That’s excellent, honey! I knew you’d been working hard lately. I’ve hardly seen you.”
One down. “Uh, I wanted to ask you something, too. Grandma has invited me to go to Mexico with her to celebrate Christmas with her family. I know we usually spend the holidays with your family, but Grandma just thought it would be good for me to meet my other relatives.” I waited while he thought about it.
“Well, you know how I feel about that Mayan business,” he began. “Now hang on,” he said as I opened my mouth to protest. “Hear me out. You know how I feel about it. But on the other hand, I feel like I kind of owe you one after how I acted when you told me about being a shifter. I should have been more supportive. So, yes, you can go. As long as you make up your school work.” He put on his most serious face.
“Really? I can go? That’s great, Dad! Thank you so much!” I ran over and gave him a hug.
“You’re welcome. Now good night.”
“Thanks again,” I said, heading for the door. But as soon as it clicked behind me, my smile faded, because I knew what he didn’t know. What I was going to Mexico for was far from a holiday.
When I woke up the next morning, Dad’s car was already gone. I took a shower, put on some jeans and a sweater, and ponytailed my hair. Not only was I happy to be able to wear my hair my favorite way again, but I also felt proud to show my mark. (Even though the rest of the world thought I was just super fond of tattooed trees when they saw it.) I had just started to put some things in my duffle bag, but when I picked up Grandma’s little incense stove I felt the familiar chill run down my back….
Grandma was walking outside on her land. She raised her camera and took several photos of some birds. She was backing up as she looked through the lens, trying to get the best angle she could. But she wasn’t looking where she was going. There was a hole in the ground behind her. Her back foot slipped and as she tried to get her balance, she fell in.
“Grandma!” I yelled. I ran to my bedside table, grabbed my phone, and hit the speed dial for Adriana’s number.
“Maya, what’s wrong?” she asked as soon as she picked up.
“It’s Grandma. I had a vision. She’s fallen or is about to fall in a huge hole on her land.”
“Maya, listen to me. I want you to stay where you are. I have shifters who can fly there quickly. I’ll call you as soon as I know anything.” She hung up.
No, no, Grandma, I thought, gripping my phone for dear life. I rocked back and forth on my bed, tears flowing freely. Fifteen long minutes later, my phone rang in my hand. It was Adriana.
“Maya, we’ve got her. She’s going to be okay. It looks like she’s got a broken ankle and a bunch of scrapes and bruises.”
“Thank God. How did you get to her so fast?”
“We have a couple of shifters that phase into hawks.” She paused. “Listen, there’s something you need to know. The hole wasn’t a natural sink hole. It was dug out by shovel. There were several of them.”
“You…you mean this was done on purpose?”
“Toltec. Had to be. We’re taking her to Gila Regional. I’m sure you’ll want to see her. But with her age and injuries, I’m afraid she won’t be able to make the trip with us. I know it’s a blow. Stay strong now. I don’t think they intended to kill her. I think this was done purposely to rattle you. You can’t let them get to you.”
“Right now I just wanna see her.”
“Of course. But take Matt with you.”
What the hell was I going to do? What was happening to the people I loved? They were all being hurt just because of me. They were all in danger. Damn it! I heard the screen door slam.
“Maya?” Matt.
“I’m up here,” I called. “I’m coming.” I grabbed my bag and headed down the stairs.
“She’s okay,” he said, putting an arm around my shoulders as we walked to his car. “She’s gonna be fine.”
When we got to the hospital, it was all I could do not to race to her room.
“The doctor is still with her,” the pretty blond nurse in puppy dog scrubs said, “You’ll have to wait a few minutes.”
We sat down on some chairs in the hall. I sat with my legs over Matt’s, playing absently with the silver Figaro chain he always wore around his neck. He traced my mark with his finger. Neither of us spoke. When they finally told me I could see Grandma, I got nervous jelly legs. I’ve never particularly liked hospitals, and I didn’t want to see her hurt, lying helplessly in a hospital bed. I peeked around the corner of the door. Her eyes were closed. At first I thought she was asleep, but she caught me.
“Maya, baby, come in.”
“Hi, Grandma, how are you feeling?” God, she looked awful. She had cuts and bruises everywhere and they had her ankle elevated.
“I feel okay. They gave me something for the pain. Come over here and give me a hug.”
As she held me, I started shaking and I could feel the hot redness of my eyes threatening tears.
“Oh, Grandma, I’m so sorry,” I said.
“Sorry for what, ts’unu’un?”
“This is all my fault. Toltec is trying to get to me. If it wasn’t for me, this never would have happened.”
“Listen to me now,” she said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “What you are doing is an extraordinary good. Toltec did this to me in their evil, not you. You can feel badly that this happened, but I will not have you take on guilt for something you are not responsible for. You do that far too often.”
“I’m scared,” I whispered.
“Of course you are! What you’re doing takes a tremendous amount of courage. But you can do this. Draw on the wisdom of the great women whose souls you share and on the strength of Balam. I believe in you. You were born to do this, ts’unu’un.”
“I wish you could come with me,” I said.
“I do too,” she said and hugged me tight again. “But my spirit will be with you.”
“I love you, Grandma.” I kissed her cheek and left the room before I turned into a puddle.
Matt took my hand and we walked out into the sunlight.
“You should have seen her,” I said, “She looked so little and frail. She had cuts and bruises everywhere and they have her leg up in this sling thing. I’ve never seen her look like that before.”
“Grandma Rosa has a ton of spirit, My. She’s like a force of nature. She’ll be okay.”
Matt dropped me off at home so that he could finish packing. I noticed that my car was back. The twins must have been by while we were at the hospital. Yep. There was a note on my windshield telling me that they knew about Grandma and that they would be visiting her that evening. Once I was finished with my packing, I started what would be the last dinner for my Dad and me, at least for a while. I decided to broil a steak. I usually tried to keep his red meat to a minimum, but this seemed like a special occasion. He might not have known it, but I did.
“It’s very generous of Rose to offer to take your friends down with you,” he said.
Oh, no. Dad had no idea about Grandma, and she was our cover!
“Yeah,” I said, “well … I think she thought it would be a really good experience for everyone. You know, the twins go down quite often, but this would give them a chance to see the Yucatan. And Matt’s never been at all.”
He cut another bite of steak. “This is delicious, sweetheart. You really went all out tonight. Any special reason?” Man, he was not making this easy.
“No, it’s just that I’m going to be away for a while, leaving you to your take-out and frozen dinners.” (Not that
it mattered to him. He’d eat like a truck driver if I let him. Sheesh.)
Dad volunteered to do dish duty, so I headed up to my room and my phone so that I could text everyone a reminder that our parents could not know that Grandma was in the hospital. I also asked the twins to be sure to remind Grandma about it. Man, lying just sucks.