The Embers Of My Heart (42 page)

"She's my mentor. Goes by Absynthe these days."

"Interesting. That's a different alias. Well, I guess I need to see what help she needs."

"Do you want me to get her on the phone? I can send her a telepathy message."

"No, I want the two of you to pick me up at Albany International in two days."

"Wait, what?" Star broke in again. "You're going there? Yourself? They'll figure it out and fucking shoot down your plane!"

"Alex will figure out how to keep it quiet."

"I'm not letting you do this, Todd."

"And how do you think you can stop me, Sarah?"

There was a moment of silence. I could imagine her fuming. "Well, how about this. I'll be flying in that day too."

"You will be, will you?"

"I can't let you go that deep into hostile territory without backup." Star's tone firmed up. "You're scatterbrained sometimes, you know. Operational security rules. No heading into hostile territory without backup, especially when it's the Establishment. You wrote that yourself. I'm your backup and you're not going to argue with me about it. Lashawn can cover the cell in my absence."

"We'll figure it out." Todd sounded like he was about to laugh again. "So you'll be getting me and my aide. Think you can arrange that?"

"I don't think that'll be a problem."

"Good. See you soon, then." There was a click.

"This is unreal," Star said. "I must have done something really good recently to be this lucky. I didn't think I'd get to see you again so soon."

"Don't get too excited. This is a business trip, not a pleasure trip," I said. "We'll be lucky to spend any time together, let alone private time."

"I don't care. Seeing you is enough for me. Though I'd prefer to see you naked."

"One track mind." We shared a laugh. "I have to contact Absynthe. I don't know how she's going to hide the two of you, but I trust her."

"You do that. I hope she doesn't mind being woken up." She laughed. "Listen to me. I was sleeping just a few minutes ago, and now I'm all giddy. No way can I sleep now. I need to get tickets, I need to coordinate with Todd, I need to pack, I need to contact my cell leaders. I have so much to do. I'm going to go do it. You go do your thing. I can't wait."

"Neither can I." Her enthusiasm made me smile.

"See you soon," she said.

As soon as she hung up, my smile faded. I hid the phone once again and sat down on the bench. The cold from the wood seeped into me and I called up my power again, heating my body, and then seeking out Absynthe's mind. It took longer than normal to find her. When she finally responded to my repeated pokes, it was slow and sluggish. "There better be a good reason you woke me up."

Her mental realm resolved to its normal decor. Instead of her normal clothes, she wore a bathrobe and her hair was in a bit of disarray. I kept my amusement to myself. "I've got some good news for you."

"It better be good. I swear I haven't been asleep more than five minutes. I didn't think I was going to get any sleep tonight. Alistair's already blaming me for the security lapse. I wouldn't be surprised if I was replaced as your mentor and guardian soon." She yawned and waved her hand at me. "All right. Hit me with the good news."

"I talked to Todd." Her eyes widened. "We need to pick him up at the airport in two days."

"That mad son of a bitch." She closed her eyes. "This is going to play havoc with our work scheduling. I might have to twist some arms and call in some favors. I can't believe he's doing this. Is he insane?"

"He's not coming alone," I added. "One of his agents is coming with him."

"And that agent, oddly enough, is going to be your Resistance girlfriend."

"Imagine my surprise when I found that out."

She sighed and rubbed her temples. "You didn't put that idea in his head, did you?"

"About coming here or about bringing her?"

"Both."

"No to both, actually. Star came up with that idea herself, and he said he needed to talk to you in person to see what help you need. What sort of help do you need, by the way? You never actually said anything specific at that meeting."

"Anything he'll give us, at any price he asks." Her eyes finally opened. "If we can't protect you against Shade, maybe he can."

"Speaking from the perspective of someone who doesn't want his friends, family, or self to die, I'm all for that idea. Let me know what I can contribute."

"Even if you're the price?"

"If I'm the price, what would be the point?"

She smiled. "That's fair. I don't know. He could ask me for anything. If it keeps you alive, if it ends Shade's threat, it's worth it."

"Why are you so intent on protecting me?" I asked. She looked at me and tilted her head. "I get that you're opposing Alistair, but wouldn't it be easier to just, you know, let me die?"

She nodded. "It'd be easier. It wouldn't be right. You don't deserve to die just because Shade's pissed off that you beat the shit out of him." I grinned. "It's not right to hang you out to dry like this. And before you ask, yes, there's more than that. You're a symbol, now."

"A symbol and a superior human. I'm getting all sorts of ego boosts today."

"You're the rallying point for those who are fed up with Alistair's plans and motives. He made a mistake, Kevin. If he stood by you, Shade would already be dead, he'd score points with you, and he'd rally the Establishment around him. Instead, he's letting Shade operate openly and people are noticing. Our faction grew because we know that if he's letting you twist in the wind, what's stopping him from doing the same to anyone else? Everyone knows how important you are after that hearing."

"And if I die, what happens?"

"Alistair gets what he wants, we lose, he wins."

"How do we stop him from winning?" I asked.

She stood up and tightened her bathrobe before it could fall open. "Shade's afraid of you, Kevin. If Shade's afraid of you, Alistair is afraid of you. If Alistair is afraid of you, you have the potential to stop him. Better yet, they don't know how much potential you have. They can't risk open conflict until they know they have what it takes to beat you."

"That's a lot to live up to."

"Our primary goal right now is making sure you don't die." She smiled at me, showing her teeth. "After that, we can work on stopping him. Now, I have things to do. Get some sleep for me."

"I'll try," I said as the connection between us faded. I turned and headed back inside. Even in the middle of the night, the hall lights were bright. Normally, even at this hour, I'd hear murmurs of conversations and noises from inside rooms. Tonight, silence ruled.

I hesitated before opening the door to my room. Drew didn't say anything and I closed the door behind me, making sure not to let it slam. I looked up at his bed and saw a lump there. Something prompted me to check on him. I didn't think he'd try anything stupid, and I hadn't sensed any psionic activity, but I needed to make sure. When I lifted myself up to peer at him, I let a trickle of power light my eyes. He was breathing slowly but steadily. Tear tracks shone on his cheeks.

I let the power go and stepped back down to the floor. After a moment, I tapped my power again and reached out for him. Dreams were simple to sense. I couldn't tell exactly what he was dreaming about, but I could make a good guess. With another trickle of power, I banished his dreams for the night. At least one of us would sleep well.

Chapter Twenty Eight

I leaned against the window and tried not to bounce with excitement. Less than an hour ago, Absynthe walked into my room like she owned it and said, "Get dressed. It's time to go to the airport." One quick shower and a change of clothes later, we were on the way. She drove calmly. I would have floored it the entire way.

"Let me ask you something," she said, breaking the long silence. "Your friend, Max. We flagged him in the interviews and orientation tests, but we couldn't awaken him, no matter what we tried. You didn't use your more advanced powers, obviously, but what did you do?"

"I did some research on PSInet when I found he was latent," I said. "I went through some of the easier techniques, but the one that worked was when I triggered his defenses over and over."

She shook her head. "That's on our list. We go down a list that includes all the ideas on PSInet and then a few we came up with ourselves. The full treatment lasts for the first trimester. If we haven't awakened someone by then, we re-evaluate whether their potential is worth additional effort. Max didn't qualify. You put in far less effort than we did, and awakened him in a fraction of the time. How?"

"You're asking me?"

"Has he had any significant life changes in the time you've known him?"

I thought about that. "Let's see. He reconciled with his family. He got a girlfriend. He quit smoking."

"Smoking?" She nodded. "That could be it. Physiology is important."

"Does that apply to everyone? If I smoked once, would I lose my powers for a while?"

"We haven't made any definite link. I know a few smokers who use their powers just fine. In fact, I know a few people who made a game out of using their powers on various drugs." She gave me a grin. "You know what using your powers while on a trip feels like? It's beyond surreal."

"I can't imagine you doing that sort of thing."

"College is the time to experiment. Having biokinesis and a sober partner to watch you lets you take risks. I tried heroin when I was your age. Amazing experience. That first time is better than the best sex you'll ever have. Your uncle found out and put me through weeks of withdrawal in a minute or so. Worst minute of my life. Never went back. I'm surprised you haven't tried anything harder than alcohol."

My head spun for a moment. This was more about Absynthe that I ever knew, or wanted to know. "Not really interested, but then again, I've never really had the opportunity."

"I'm not encouraging you to do anything illegal, mind you," she said. "I'm just saying, do it now while you don't have responsibilities."

I sighed. "I think that time's already past."

She looked over at me for a moment before looking back to the road. "Sorry."

We arrived at the airport and I got out of the car in a hurry. My mood had soured quickly and I wanted to meet them in a more positive mindset. "So, how long has it been since you've seen Todd?"

"Officially? When he snuck out in the middle of the night and vanished." She followed me across the parking lot. We both walked as fast as possible without breaking into a run. The cold and wind were murderous. "Unofficially, I last saw him about three or four years ago. It was only for a few minutes. Not nearly enough time to talk."

"I've been wondering this for a while. Why didn't you go with him?" She looked over at me. "When he left. You seem to be much more on his side than the Establishment's."

"I ask myself that on a regular basis." We entered the airport and headed to baggage claim. It was just past noon and the place was busy, with two of the carousels spitting out steady streams of suitcases. "Loyalty, I would say. I was young and idealistic. I thought trying to change the Establishment from within was the right thing to do."

"Doesn't work that way, does it?" I asked.

"No. I should have followed my heart, not my head."

"Your heart?"

She froze and glanced at me out of the corner of her eye. "I do have one, yes."

I hid my smile. "Just curious."

"Keep your curiosity to yourself, young man."

"I'll try. When are they arriving?"

"Their flight got in a few minutes ago." She gestured vaguely at the arrival board. "They should be down soon."

I fidgeted for a minute. "How'd he let you know when they'd arrive?"

She glanced at me and smirked. "You think you're the only one who has secret means of communication? Mine's hidden a bit better than a cell phone under a garden paver."

"That was spur of the moment!"

"You aren't subtle."

Anything else she was going to say was lost as she looked up at the escalator and tensed up as if danger approached. I followed her gaze, half expecting to see Shade staring down at us. Instead, Todd Green stood at the top of the escalator, looking back over his shoulder. She joined him a moment later and they rode down the escalator together.

I didn't know what I should do. I wanted to maintain some sort of decorum in front of Absynthe. I didn't want to make a spectacle in front of so many people. I took a step forward and Star flung herself at me. I almost fell backwards, but she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me hard enough that I saw stars. I could feel my cheeks heating up as she finally pulled her lips from mine. "Hey, you," she said with a tiny smile.

"Hey yourself," I said. "You look a little different."

She stepped back and touched her hair. "I thought it was time for a little change." The long curls that hung halfway down her back were gone, replaced with straight hair that just barely brushed her shoulders. It still sparkled in the light, though. "Do you like it?"

"I do like it," I said. "It's cute."

"Thank you," she said, giving me another kiss. "It's so good to see you again. I've missed you. It's lonely out there without you."

"Even with all the responsibility you have?"

"Even then." She looked over at Todd and I heard her giggle. I looked over to see Absynthe's arms wrapped around Todd and her face buried in his shoulder. I grinned. "I didn't expect to see that," she whispered.

"I didn't have any idea," I whispered back. After watching them for a few more seconds, I cleared my throat. Absynthe jumped backwards and shook her head. Todd frowned, but something in the way he held himself told me the frown wasn't aimed at any of us. "Good afternoon, Uncle Todd," I said.

He blinked and looked toward me. "Good to see you again, Kev. Your face is a little red."

"Must be the weather. It's cold out there."

"Sure." He smiled and made a gesture between Absynthe and Star. "Alex, meet Sarah. Sarah, Alex."

"Nice to meet you," Star said, offering her hand.