“I’m not kissing you,” Madison said weakly.
Drake glanced at me, then back to her. At that moment, I pulled the ring from her skin and stepped away as fast as I could. I wasn’t going to let her shut him out before he had a chance to defend however she assumed he’d wronged her. I knew that without that ring, every emotion would soar to the surface, and if I weren’t standing next to her she would kiss him and he would know once and for all what girl was in his dream. What girl had changed his life. And she would know that no one can chose who or when they fall in love.
“Maybe not today, or even in this lifetime...but,” he said as he reached to let his thumb trace the bottom of her eye, “one day I will know if you’ve danced in my dreams...I will know if my heart has been truly fooled.”
“You were fooled,” Madison said as her cheeks blushed, “and because you were fooled, you’ve lost every chance you could have ever had with me. The man who has my heart will love my soul, not what I look like, not for what I can do...he will love every imperfection just as much, if not more than, my perfections -- and I’ll be damned if he ever mistakes me for someone else.”
Drake boldly stepped forward, reached for the back of her neck, and pulled her to his lips. Seeing that her emotions were in full play, that she was facing this, I quickly walked away - but when I reached the doorway, Aden and Draven were walking in. Their wide eyes dared me to look over my shoulder. I saw Madison raise her hand in defense but then fall weakly as Drake kissed her. A second later, she found her protest and pushed him back.
“You have your answer,” Madison said quietly, refusing to look him in his eyes, which were full of disbelief. “Now go stand at her side - and every time you look at her, you think of that dream, you think of how blind you are. What you’ll never have.”
I pushed against Aden and Draven to move, to leave them alone, but they were too protective of Madison to leave; they weren’t going anywhere until they knew she wanted them to.
“And will you think of me when you stand at Britain’s side?” Drake asked as his eyes moved rapidly across Madison’s furious face.
She looked up at him as guilt washed over her angry expression. “How do you know about him?” she asked.
He furrowed his eyebrows, which intensified the pull of his magnetic dark eyes. “Another life, Madison, another dream - and perhaps we’ll both exercise patience.” His eyes glanced over her once more. “You deserve everything you want in a lover. I can’t change anything. I can’t understand why fate is so cruel, why it chooses to toy with my heart.” He turned to leave but hesitated and glanced back at her. “Thank you...for everything.” He glanced down before he walked confidently toward us.
He hesitated as he passed Draven. “Why do I feel like I know you?” he asked him.
Draven carefully looked over him. Seeing them stand side-by-side was empowering. Even though they were the same age in this life, I could feel the age in Drake’s soul, the craving for a mentor in Draven’s. If I had one wish at that moment, it would be that Drake could see like we could, that Draven could open a door and show Drake all that he’d been through in his existence, every fall, every victory. I knew Drake would find understanding, or even compassion for Draven.
The first time I’d found Draven, he was a King of a dark dimension, one that was entirely too much like Esterious.
“Another life, another time,” Draven finally said.
Drake glanced at me, then to him. “If you need anything, anything at all, come to me. I’ll teach you everything I know. I’ll teach you control.”
Draven nodded once.
Drake stepped forward, and as he looked down the hall he said, “I’d really like for you to teach me to see. I think that would clear up a lot of misguided thoughts.” Longingly he glanced at Madison.
Draven didn’t have a chance to respond. Drake walked away, holding his head high, holding the image of a powerful leader.
My attention turned to Madison. The second Drake was out of sight, she leaned forward and braced herself on her knees. I slowly walked toward her as Aden and Draven entered the room and closed the door behind them, giving us the privacy we needed to help our best friend, to reflect on what had happened to all of us.
“This is my fault,” I said to her.
She quickly looked up at me like I was crazy.
“This has nothing to do with you, Charlie,” Madison said with a sigh, standing up.
“It has everything to do with me,” I argued as Draven and Aden came to our side. “I was an idiot. I thought I could handle Britain and Bianca on my own, that I could stop them. I admit, I thought I was protecting all of you,” I said as I glanced at Draven. “But I was still an idiot. I lost my memory in that battle, Madison. And even when all of you came together in my darkest hour and helped me find myself - I was still too close-minded to come here.”
“Coming here was a mistake,” Madison bit out, looking away from me. She was still blushing from Drake’s kiss. Who could blame her for that? I was surprised she was able to stand. I could still feel his energy in this room.
“No,” I said firmly. “This is my fault. Draven begged me to leave for Chara the night of my accident,” I said as I glanced at him, “but I refused. That was the first of June, Madison. Willow and Landen didn’t find each other until August. If we’d left when I was begged to, they would have known from day one that there were two green-eyed Scorpios. Drake wouldn’t have had the chance to be fooled.”
“He was, though -- and you can’t recover from that,” Madison said, crossing her arms.
“Listen,” Aden said. “I’m not taking sides here, but from what I’ve seen, I have no idea how Drake can think straight. Madison, they forced dreams on him, that Alamos guy did, that evil angel - when he was alive - was his mentor. I’m sorry to say this, but I think he should have a little slack. The fact that he hasn’t flipped his dark switch tells me that he wants to make things right. For everyone.”
“How deep did you look into him?!” Madison asked coldly as her eyes pierced through Aden.
He raised his hands, telling her he’d said his peace.
“I looked deep,” Madison said. “I saw it all. I saw every time he told her he loved her. I saw every time he plotted to have her at his side. I saw him give her his energy - his energy; that’s sacred – that’s something that only soul mates share. It’s not the body. It’s the soul. No more than fifteen minutes ago, he told Willow it didn’t matter if she found someone who looked just like her, that he loved her - and then he walks in here and wants to bring up a dream that happened a year ago? No thanks. I’m done. He didn’t fail a test; he ripped it up and burned it -- just like Britain told me he would.”
“He thought he was fighting for you.” I mumbled. Catching her glare. The glare that told me I was right. So right.
“Britain told you about him?” Draven asked.
Madison turned her scowl to him. “He told me he would know my energy anywhere. That he wouldn’t fail where others had. That he would never play me. That even though his nature was dark, it was faithful. That he could never see another girl once he committed to me. That if I left with you, I would have a broken heart and he’d be waiting on me when the pain was too much for me to handle.”
I may not know much about the zodiac, but what I did know was that Scorpios were insanely jealous, that once wronged, they never forgot. I knew that loyalty was what they craved, so it made sense to me that she’d be furious with Drake and find comfort with Britain, but Draven didn’t see it that way. I felt his body tense next to mine. “Did you see him in The Realm?” he asked her.
“I did,” she said firmly.
“Well, guess what? I did, too.” Draven said shortly. “I saw him mock Drake’s image. I saw him try to kill Willow. I saw her push light into him, and I saw him take it willingly and relish in the essence of it. Britain has crossed over. He’s an addict. He’ll say and do whatever he needs to survive, to get the light he needs. You??
?re too good for that, Madison. You’re not a drug, an object, and you’re too smart to fall for those endless lines. He knows what to say and how to say it to you.”
“He didn’t mistake me for someone else!” Madison yelled at him.
“No, but he went after Charlie, didn’t he?!” Draven bellowed.
“I get why you’re on Drake’s side, Draven - but you need to butt out. You have your own problems,” Madison said coldly.
“I’m not on anyone’s side!” Draven yelled. “I don’t think any of us are good enough for either of you,” he said as his eyes moved between me and Madison. “I’m just telling you that we’re a team. The four of us trust each other. We’re not scared to call each other out on our flaws, to die for each other. To fight side by side. This test, this ‘he loves me, he loves me not’ thing is hurting us, making us weak. Do you honestly think that this evil that we’re fighting didn’t see this coming? That it’s not pulling every trick in the book, causing us to turn on each other?!”
“I’m not turning on you!” Madison yelled.
“You want to leave!” Draven bellowed. “That’s giving up! You want to leave because you don’t want to face him. I’m not asking you to love him, or even like him. You just met him. I’m asking you to practice what you preach.”
“Practice what I preach?!” Madison repeated sarcastically.
I pushed Draven behind me, knowing the two of them were getting out of control.
“Madison, what he means is that you preach to rise above duality, you preach to not let your heart be your weakness -- running away makes your heart your weakness. You’re admittedly showing all evil that all it has to do is put you in an uncomfortable situation to make you weak. Love Britain, love Drake, find someone else. Love no one, even, if that’s your choice - but running, hiding behind some test or jealousy? That’s the act of a coward - and you are not a coward; you’re the one that thinks straight, the one that keeps us all in line. Rise above duality, forgive Drake for what he says and does; not so you can love him, but so we can fight at his side, at all of their sides. I know you, and I know that as soon as you analyze this, you’ll see how your heart was played by the devil and you’ll be furious, furious enough to end this war. We just want you to stand at our side...we want you to be happy.”
Her eyes rushed between the three of us, then she tilted her head down and held her arms out for us to come to her. The four of us embraced each other and silently vowed to stay, to fight, side-by-side.
A knock on the door interrupted our peaceful moment.
Chapter Nineteen
Draven let go of us and walked to open the door; August was there all-alone. I nodded once at him as he smiled wisely at all of us.
“I believe Landen and Willow are almost ready to take you home, but I wanted to speak to you before we left.”
“Is something wrong?” I asked as Monroe instantly came to mind.
“No, not at all,” August said as his eyes moved across the room; it was as if he were trying to sense if we were really alone in the room. I’d been raised by a ghost, and I knew what a room felt like when there was some unseen presence watching. We were alone, but it seemed that August didn’t completely trust that notion.
“You see,” August began, “we have a very welcoming family, and I’m sure that when you enter Chara it will take me some time to find a private moment with the four of you in one room.”
“Did you find the book you were looking for?” Aden asked.
Draven didn’t take the time to ask; his eyes were the color of coal, which meant he was searching through all of August’s thoughts.
“I did, and there is still much for me to learn about all of you. Many questions. You are very complex. Am I right in assuming that you haven’t slept in forty-eight hours?”
We all looked at each other, then nodded.
“And you’re not tired?” August asked.
“I’m sure it’s the adrenaline,” Madison assured him.
“Perhaps, but I find it fascinating. You see, when your ancestors extended their lives, they slept rarely, and when they stopped seeing, more times than not they didn’t die of old age; they died of exhaustion. I need all of you to sleep as soon as we get you fed.”
“Plan to,” Aden said. “We usually sleep; the past few days have been the exception.”
August nodded. “I’ve also spent some time with Grayson. We need to analyze Escorts just as much as we need to understand what you can do -- not to mention the undead Witnesses you’ve come across.”
My stomach sank. I’d forgotten all about Clarissa. Did he know? Was she not his granddaughter? Aden glanced at me and moved his head from side to side, telling me he didn’t.
“We don’t know much,” I muttered.
“I think you know more than you realize,” August replied. “There are several variables now, and in order to understand what will happen, we must understand what has happened. After you get some rest, we will teach you to meditate. Landen and Willow can teach you how to move your soul to any place you wish.” He hesitated. “We need you to unlock the doors of the past.”
Madison and I glanced at each other, then looked at Aden; I wasn’t so sure that was such a good idea.
“Carefully,” August added. “We must tread carefully when we open those doors. I believe we are missing a book, though.”
“What book?” I asked.
August pursed his lips before he spoke. “Everything I know is second hand. Monroe hasn’t spoken to any of us except Preston, and even though his soul is old, he still speaks as the six-year-old child that he is. From what I understand, the book is small, black, and has metal on each corner. Within it there is a passage, a spell that will protect us when we open the doors of your past. Preston explained that it is a passage that the Escorts use to remember who they are once a test is passed. It is a sacred spell, one that allows them to feel no regret and embrace their past and calling at the same time. From what I know of spells and mythology, intent is what gives words their purpose. If we use this spell with a positive intent, we may be able to walk through the past without the fear of breaking alliances that are already in place.”
Draven glanced at me. “I bet I can find that.”
“I thought you would say that,” August said. “It’s important that we have that before we move forward.”
We nodded to confirm. I was almost sure that that was the book Draven had taken from Britain’s house a few weeks ago. The last time I’d seen it was when I pushed it under Madison’s bed; I’d bet money it was still there. Now I had an excuse to go home and see my mom, my dad. I didn’t think I’d miss them this much. It had only been a day. How was I going to go through with this move?
“Alright then. I’m sure they’re ready by now. I’ll see you at home,” August said as he glanced over Aden and me, then left the room.
As we grabbed our bags, Draven warily looked over Aden. “What’s behind that wall, brother?”
“Nothing that’ll change this life,” Aden said confidently as his eyes avoided mine.
Draven reached for my hand. I took his and squeezed it as tightly as I could.
We found Landen leaning against the wall that led to the room the passage was in. I thought it was odd that he was alone. He was so deep in his thoughts that he barely noticed us as we approached.
“Are you alright?” Madison asked him.
He looked up quickly, and his eyes moved across her carefully. “Just trying to grasp what happened to me. It’s...it’s...um...I feel different, but I’m sure it’s nothing.”
“How different?” I asked, quickly remembering that Clarissa had said that some memories were out of place. Oh yeah, and a flaming bird soaring into him. No big deal there.
Landen smiled weakly, revealing his dimples as his crystal blue eyes moved to the floor. “I’m fine.” His eyes found Madison. “Do the words ‘when the darkest hour comes, hold me, hold my soul, and I will guide you’ mean anything to you?” r />
Madison’s expression was blank. “Not at all,” she said after a moment of awkward silence. Landen’s face lost all its color for a second as he looked away from her. He then cleared his throat as he glanced at the rest of us. “I really am sorry that I didn’t listen to Austin when he first came to me,” he said to us.
Draven began to tell him not to worry about it, as well as something else, but I wasn’t paying attention. My eyes were peering into Madison; I knew her too well. I’d felt her tense next to me. I knew that when her face held no expression, she was terrified. Those words did mean something, and she’d just lied to Landen. Did she forget that he had the gift of truth? That he knew instantly when someone was lying to him? Then I had a horrible thought: what if that was what she said in that dream to Drake? What if a part of Drake was really inside of Landen now? What would that mean for all of us?
Willow approached us with two others. One of them I’d seen in my thoughts before Marc, Drake’s brother. The woman I’d only seen vaguely, but I knew she was Drake’s mom, Beth.
Beth gazed at Madison, then bowed once. She then looked at Marc and said, “I want to change before we go home.” From her thoughts, I could see that Chara was Beth’s home -- at least that’s where she and her late husband had lived before evil called them. I had to look away from this woman; her heartache was tearing into me.
Marc told us he would bring Beth, Stella - his soul mate - and Drake home. I felt Madison tense again and reached for her arm.
Landen looked at all of us as Marc and Beth walked away. “Can I assume that you can see in the string? I believe Austin mentioned that to me.”
“Seeing is a blessing and a curse for us,” Aden answered.
“Tell me about it,” Landen said under his breath as he reached for Willow’s hand and led us into the string, giving the simple direction to just stay in the center.
A few seconds after we entered the string, Willow hesitated as she looked behind her. I glanced over my shoulder to see three images approaching us. As they became clearer, I saw Clarissa. A tall, well-built boy was with her, as was Winston. Aden and I looked at each other, then to where Winston was. What was he doing with them? He was supposed to be in Chara.