Madly (7 page)

How had I not noticed that before? I had been looking so hard for it, waiting so long for it, dreaming so often about it, how could I have missed it?

Silently, as Aidan watched me with what I now recognized as blatant appreciation in his eyes, I searched my own heart, my own body, for some kind of complementary reaction. I hoped desperately to find something inside me to mirror his feelings.

But, alas, it was with an abysmal honesty that I admitted to myself that I felt nothing, nothing but the same brotherly affection I’d had for Aidan all my life. And for the first time since I was a starry-eyed pre-adolescent, I began to doubt the strength and even the
existence
of the mating tie.

I was cerebrum-deep in those morose thoughts when a familiar velvety voice interrupted my musings.

“
I need to see Madly James,” it said to Mrs. Kinkaid.

Aidan leaned past me to look toward the front of the room. I stayed exactly where I was. I had no need to turn around. I didn’t need to see him to know that it was Jackson that I’d heard. His voice had bounced around inside my heart like a lonely ghost since I’d heard it for the first time in nearly three years.

I sighed. I never would have imagined how much could change in such a relatively short amount of time.

“
Madly, your new R.A. needs to see you,” Mrs. Kinkaid announced, as if we hadn’t all just heard as much.

Without a word, I turned, closed my book and straightened my desk before scooting from my seat, determined to avoid Jackson’s gaze for as long as I could.

“
Bring your bag,” Jackson added. “You probably won’t be back to class.”

At that, I looked up at Jackson. His eyes gave away nothing. He was the perfect, poker-faced soldier. Mrs. Kinkaid, on the other hand, seemed a bit surprised by his admission, though she made no comment.

Grabbing my bag from the floor, I was turning toward the front of the room when Aidan caught my arm.

“
Do you want me to come with you?” he asked, his eyes sweetly concerned.

I couldn’t help but smile.

“
Nah. It’s probably nothing, but thanks.”

Though he let go of my arm, Aidan still didn’t look comfortable with me going alone.

His concern was so touching and so reassuring, and his feelings were so obvious at that moment, I leaned down and touched my lips to his cheek. As I pulled away, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed that the contact didn’t stir anything more than a friendly affection in me.

“
What was that for?”

I thought of a thousand responses, but uttered only one.

“
For being so good to me.”

“
Ah, nothing to it,” he said, waving me off.

Aidan’s lips curved into a casual grin, but it was his eyes that belied how truly affected he was by my spontaneous display.

I turned to make my way to the front of class and I nearly stumbled, my gait faltering, when I looked up and met Jackson’s glittering blue eyes. They flashed with anger.

Before I even reached him, he spun on his heel and walked out of the room. I followed along behind him, mystified.

When we’d emptied into the hall and it didn’t seem that Jackson was going to slow down, I scrambled to keep up with his long-legged stride.

“
Jackson, slow down. Where are we going?” I asked from several steps behind.

“
Commander Jessup has some information for you,” he said brusquely.

I wanted to shout,
What is your problem?
But I did not. I decided to go with a more passive-aggressive approach.

I slowed to a pace more comfortable for me, absolutely refusing to run just to keep up with him.
He
was supposed to be watching out for
me. He’s the one
who claimed that it was necessary. If he left me behind, that was his own fault. I wasn’t going to make it all the easier for him.

After we’d walked for a few minutes and I was falling further and further behind, Jackson finally slowed. Without looking back, he managed to let me get within a few strides of him and then maintained that pace until we got to the brick building that housed Transport.

We were both quiet in the elevator, each simmering in our own angry juices, though I had no idea what he had to be angry about, any more than I understood his sudden aversion to me.

Shaking off those thoughts, I concentrated on what was to come, praying that Jessup would have some helpful news, if not downright
good
news.

When the doors opened to the operations center this time, at least there was less chaos, which made me feel marginally better. Commander Jessup was close to the elevator, obviously waiting for us, which made me a little uneasy.

“
Princess,” he greeted, bowing deeply from his waist.

Strangely, that gesture—the dramatic, very pronounced nature of it—made me feel suddenly panicky. It was as if he was recognizing me in a position that I didn’t occupy, that I had no right to and had no desire to fill—that of Warden Major or Warden Queen. That type of generous genuflection was reserved for the highest powers of the sea, for Mer like my parents, not for me.

To my heart, it felt as if he were giving up on their survival, acknowledging that I was the new ruler. And I didn’t like it.

“
Please, Commander Jessup, I am only the child of royalty. I am in
no way
deserving of such respect and I would appreciate your adherence to those customs previously established for our interaction. My parents are not dead, nor will they be for quite some time.”

I tried to keep the sharpness from my voice, but the flush of color that spread up Jessup’s neck said that I’d more than clearly made my point. I had no wish to embarrass him in front of his subordinates, but I didn’t want them to make the same mistake. I couldn’t handle that. It was like admitting that there was no hope, something that I refused to consider.

“
Now,” I said, moving off to one side, away from even Jackson, where we could talk more privately. “Do you have information for me?”

I injected as much pleasantness as I could into my expression, recognizing it as unwise to alienate someone so crucial in the liberation of my parents and in the possible saving of countless lives.

“
The Seers, they were able to ascertain the circumstances surrounding Lady Sheelah’s death, though the perpetrators took precautions that kept their identities hidden from the Seers.”

“
And what were those circumstances?”

“
It would appear that her attackers had singular plans to learn the identities of the descendants, as Lady Sheelah is the only Mer on land privy to that information. She has been stationed at Veritas Academy since its inception and has lived among the descendants for hundreds of years.”

“
And what would they do with that information?”

“
That, Princess, is as yet a mystery, but we can only assume that they are working in concert with the persons responsible for the release of the Lore. It’s possible that they’ve freed those eight spirits for a particular reason. Only, of course, we have no idea what that reason might be.”

“
What am I to do to recapture the spirits? Commander, I’ve never- I mean I don’t—”

“
Your Sentinel is reading the law. He has also been trained in things that, thus far, you have not. It was his destiny to be ready before you and now we see that our preparation of the Sentinels is spot-on.

“
As for you, by all means, read the law when Sentinel Hamilton is finished. But you mustn’t put off beginning the search for the sake of reading. Your Sentinel will help you. Between your knowledge of the history of the Lore, his knowledge of the law and the use of your bracelet, you cannot fail, Princess.

“
Remember that Mer royalty has been doing this for thousands of years. It is what you were born to do. With Atlas on lockdown and the shield out of operation, your power is multiplied exponentially. Use it. Listen to it. Work your magic. Your bracelet will lead you to the Lore and then Sentinel Hamilton will help you to capture them. If we are lucky, one Lore is all that we will need to free your parents.”

“
One?”

“
Yes. Hopefully Sentinel Hamilton will be able to get inside Atlas when the first spirit is deposited and put an end to their captivity.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
When a spirit-filled pearl is dropped into the sea, it is naturally drawn to the containment unit. When it reaches an empty cell, it will become ensnared in the magic, resetting the alarms to include that cell’s occupant. As the pearl settles into place, there is a period of about thirty seconds when the alarms will cease to sound when someone nears the portal.”

I couldn’t help the way my eyes flickered to Jackson, who was casually leaning up against a bank of computers a few feet away, chatting with another Sentinel.

“
And Jackson will be trying to get through?”

“
Yes, Princess.”

I looked back to Jessup, frowning.

“
But won’t that be dangerous?”

“
It is what he was trained to do.”

“
But he could
die.”

Jessup shrugged helplessly. “He’s the best chance we have to save your parents and your sister, to save Atlas and the descendants. There is no other way.”

Once more, my eyes were drawn to Jackson like some irresistible magnetic force. Only this time, he was looking back at me.

CHAPTER EIGHT

After Commander Jessup and I finished, Jackson stiffly escorted me back to the elevators. He stood by my side, stoic and rigid, until the doors opened. He motioned for me to proceed him, which I did, and then he climbed in behind me and hit the button that would take us to ground level.

I looked at the list Jessup had given me as I listened to the quiet whir of the cables that were pulling our car toward the surface. The list named the eight spirits that had been freed from Atlas and the order in which they were released. Like me, Jessup could only assume that we would see them in order.

The atmosphere surrounding Atlas caused a delay for anyone traveling to or from the city, a delay that would turn seconds into a day, maybe two. In some cases, it could be even longer.

For the first time ever, I was able to see the delay as a
good
thing. I smiled when I thought of the many trips my family and I had taken to the surface over the years. At some point during our ascent, I would begin to complain about the delay and my parents would gently scold my impatience. If only they could see me now… finally finding a good use for the delay. In this instance, it would give us time to locate each Lore as they surface, starting with Lore Escapee Number One, Ulrich Wolfhardt.