Echo Into Darkness: Book 2 in The Echo Saga (Teen Paranormal Romance) (20 page)

"This scares me, Jaxon. More than when I started."

The conflict coming off his aura surprised me, but if I were in his position, I would have hesitated, too. He'd spent a lot of time chasing around on account of me. "Okay," he finally said. "I'll let it go."

"You'll walk away?"

"My foster father is dead. I guess the rest doesn't matter. There are lots of other mysteries I'd rather unravel." His chocolate eyes sunk into mine.

My belly fluttered, mostly from relief but also because of the hungry way he was looking at me. "Like what?"

"Like…" He put his hands on my face and walked me backward until I was pressed against his car. "What your lips taste like after curfew."

When he leaned in to kiss me, I flinched. An unnerving sensation crept under my skin, like I was bungee jumping toward an alligator pit. I knew the cord was short enough to keep me safe, but the threat of snapping jaws made me second-guess taking the leap. I chalked this up to my limited experience with boys like Jaxon.

"You and I are going out tomorrow night," he said.

"Okay. Wait, no. I have this thing I need to go to. It's a welcome home party for Raquelle's dad."

"How about I go with you and we can go out after?" he asked.

"I might get stuck there a while."

"We'll be stuck together, so there's no place I'd rather be."

"Wow, are we actually going on a date?" I teased.

"Are you suggesting I'd stand you up again? Because you're not getting away from me this time."

Chapter 23

The first thing I did when I got home was dig out the note I'd written to my dad and Kimber, the one that was intended to offer some comfort if I disappeared one day. It was right where I'd hidden it, beneath my sweaters. I ripped it into tiny pieces and flushed it down the toilet.

There was no need for those words that were supposed to soften the blow if I turned up dead. I was going to do what Gianna said. No more poking around in faction business. No more public displays for any reason. I'd do a better job of keeping my ability tacked down. My brazen behavior from the past weeks was forbidden, too. I'd taken risks I never should have, found one excuse or another to use my ability in the least desirable circumstances. As far as the outside world was concerned, I was just another normal, ungifted girl, going about her business.

I managed to convince myself I could pull this off. The acidic rock that had been growing in my stomach since the beginning of the semester dissolved.

I went down to the second floor to find my dad. He was in the master suite, reloading his suitcase for his flight to Bangkok. I launched myself onto the king-size bed and rested my chin on my knuckles. He zipped up his shaving kit and tucked it into his bag. The whole room smelled of his aftershave.

"I haven't seen that in a while," he said when he saw my smile.

"It's been a rough month."

There was no reason to tell him about my telekinesis or levitation or any of it, now. That decision alone was enough to wash me over with relief. There were some complications parents didn't need to know.

"Say hi to Mr. Crane for me, would you?" my dad said.

"About that. Is it okay if I take a friend to the party? We're going on a date after."

My dad waited to hear the string of details that I used to automatically share with him. I was fast growing out of that habit. So much of my life was unsharable. "His name is Jaxon." I left it at that.

"Is that the boy who stayed here one night? The one who wasn’t getting along with his family?"

"He's living with his brother now. Everything worked out okay."

My dad's enthusiasm, warm and cottony, cloaked my aura. "Sure, honey. I'm glad you're dating again. Take this one slow, okay? It took you a long time to recover from the last breakup."

"I'll be fine." I was keeping my heart out of this one. Jaxon wasn't going to get close enough to do any damage.

*******

Saturday afternoon, Jaxon picked me up and we followed Kimber's car up the hill to the Cranes' house. The sky was as blue and cloudless as a July day. It was supposed to downpour later, but you'd never know. Kimber had given me the okay to go on our date as long as we stayed at the party for an hour.

I was more excited than I'd been in months. This wasn't the emotional direction I was hoping to go. Jaxon was a temporary fix, a funhouse to explore until the "right" guy came along. Ultimately, I wanted to be with someone who was less crass, less frustrating, and more...oh who was I kidding? I was looking for a replacement for my soulmate, and that just was not going to happen.

"Where are we going after the party?" I asked.

"I thought we'd get something to eat."

"And then?"

He traced a circle on my thigh. "I can think of a few things."

I gave him a mock frown. "You have a dirty mind."

"You're just noticing?"

Inside the Cranes' mini-mansion, a butler took our coats. The three of us crossed the marble entryway into the parlor, where dozens of the Cranes' friends gathered. Waiters offered champagne to incoming guests. Jaxon swooped a glass off a passing tray, and Kimber swooped it right out of his hand.

"Why don't you kids get some punch and hors d'oeuvres?" She left us at the buffet table and joined the throng of people surrounding Mr. Crane.

I was in no hurry to talk to the guest of honor. My careless comments in his hospital room still scratched at my conscience. I hadn't forgotten his glassy, deadened stare right after I announced I was God's gift to paranormal beings.

"Echo Bennett."

I turned to see my principal loading his plate at the buffet table. "Hi Mr. Lauer. How are you?"

"Very good. Happy to see our mutual friend is home."

"Yeah, he looks a lot better than in the hospital. Oh, this is Jaxon. He's new at Lincoln."

Mr. Lauer gave him a long glare. "Where have I seen you before? Outside of school?"

Jaxon stiffened. "I have that kind of face. People are always telling me I look familiar."

Mr. Lauer blinked a few times and frowned, like an unpleasant answer had come to him. "If you'll excuse me." He headed for a group of adults.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"Dude needs to get his memory fixed." Jaxon's tone was edgy.

At that moment, the crowd around Mr. Crane thinned and Kimber motioned for us to join them.

Mr. Crane sat in a wheelchair with a blanket over his legs. His hair was salted with gray. The corners of his eyes crinkled with delight as guests leaned in to hug him. He was, in all appearances, harmless. Still, I linked my fingers through Jaxon's to keep from fidgeting.

"It's not permanent," he said when he saw my eyes fix on his wheelchair. "I asked for a scooter, but the missus doesn't trust me to drive through the house without damaging her Tiffany collection."

Everyone around him got a good chuckle out of that. He patted my arm. "Echo, it's wonderful of you to come by. Thank you."

"I'm glad you're doing better. Welcome home," I answered.

"Kimber tells me you visited me a few weeks ago. That was kind of you. I must have been a sight, tubes coming out of every orifice, drugged into the next world." His gaze shifted near and far, the memory of my visit distant and fuzzy.

His attention wandered and he greeted Jaxon and the next round of guests. Relief cascaded from my head to my feet. He hadn't remembered my visit.

I took Jaxon's hand and pulled him to the hors d'oeuvres table. Three strides later, I realized I'd been holding my breath.

"Everything all right?" he filled my cup with punch. I'd never told him about my visit to the hospital. At the very least, my behavior there was downright embarrassing.

"Just enjoying the freedom. No evil soldiers to watch out for, no lunatics following me. I'd forgotten what it's like to relax."

I noticed Mrs. Crane across the room, talking in low tones to Raquelle. Raquelle said something sharp to her mom and then stomped over to us.

"Welcome to our home. Thank you for coming. My mom's making me ask if I can get you anything, but you can forget it."

I bit my lip to keep from bursting out laughing. I shoved my plate at her. "I'm glad you asked. Those tiny crab puffs are delicious. We would like more, wouldn't we, Jaxon?"

"Yeah, sure. Tasty." He followed our battle, amused.

Raquelle shot poison darts with her eyes. Then, a look I couldn't decipher crossed her face. Right as the waiter passed by, she ever-so-casually bumped his tray full of champagne flutes. The glasses tipped, and before the waiter could recover, they crashed to the floor at our feet.

Champagne soaked my shoes. The room went quiet. I gaped at Raquelle.

Do it
, her eyes dared me.
Go ahead, get your revenge.

"Nice try," was all I said. Telekinetically dumping the punch bowl over her head would have made my day, but it wasn't an option.

Raquelle planted a hand to her mouth and recited one fake apology after another. Then she sauntered off.

"I bet there's a story behind this," Jaxon said.

"The Twitter version: I lost my temper, zapped a hole in her sweatpants, and now she's trying to out me."

"You can throw your energy? That is incredibly hot." His tongue played across his lip.

This tiny motion sent heat rising up my throat. "I think our hour is about up. I'm going to tell Kimber we're leaving."

Jaxon went to hunt down our coats. I spotted Kimber, signaled that we were on our way out, and slowly moved through the crowd toward the door. There must have been a hundred people visiting. It was obvious that Mr. Crane was respected, and even adored. I felt a guilty pang at the horrible accusations Connor had made about him, things that I'd eventually believed.

Free of the crowd, I headed down the long hallway to the exit. Mr. Crane appeared from one of the rooms and wheeled his chair next to me.

"I'm sorry you're leaving so soon," he said. "I wanted to thank you for visiting me in the hospital."

I smiled and placed my hand on his arm. Had the head trauma damaged his short-term memory? "Mr. Crane, you already said that, and you're welcome."

He placed a cold hand on mine. I squeezed it in a comforting gesture. He squeezed back. He didn’t let go.

"I wish I'd been able to talk when you visited, but those drugs made it impossible to answer your questions."

My blood cooled. "I don't remember asking anything." I said evenly.

His grip tightened. "Come now. You know who I work for, and you told me who you are. I remember well what you said."

I yanked my hand away. "The nurse gave you a painkiller. You were sleeping when I got there."

"The drug doesn't take effect for ten to fifteen minutes. Not when you've had as much of it as I have. You said you have telekinesis and can levitate. I bet it started after your accident last fall, after your coma, didn't it?"

"You're mistaken. I never said any of that." The tremble in my voice gave away my lie.

"There's nothing to be afraid of, Echo. I'm on your side. We can banter back and forth all day about what you confessed, but we're just skirting the real issue, and that is, what happens to you now?"

Chapter
24

My eyes grew wide. A scream tore through my chest.

"Steady, Echo. This isn't a good place to make a scene. Those of us in the Mutila stick close together." As Mr. Crane glanced across the room full of guests, I got his meaning. He was not the only member present.

The pleasant grin never left his face. "If the Mutila street soldiers had found you before I did, you would have ended up like so many of the young recruits—used up and thrown away. We have a way of making people disappear. I don't agree with all of the methods, which is why I'm grateful you came to me. I can make this easy for you. Most recruits don't have anyone to act on their behalf. That's when ugly things happen to them."

The crab puffs turned to acid in my stomach. "They're not recruits if you force them to go with you. That's kidnapping."

He waved my comment off. "Kidnapping is beneath me. I act as a guardian, and as such, I can ensure certain things. You allow me to introduce you to the head of the organization. In return, I'll see that no harm comes to you or your family. I can't make the same promise if the street soldiers drag you in."

Mrs. Crane's laughter floated from the other room. Raquelle's high voice reached me. The feeble-looking Mr. Crane was a respected member of the community, a husband and a dad. He was also a monster hiding in plain sight. Like Gianna had warned.

"If you go with me willingly, you can still resume a normal life. You'll go to school, have a boyfriend, go to prom. The only difference is you'll do a little work for us now and again. Nobody will ever know about your second life."

My mouth moved but no words came out.

"Take a day or two and think about it. Sooner or later, you'll be working with us. Everyone like you does, but there's no need for you to
suffer
."