Guardians of the Boundary (The Conjurors Series Book 3) (2 page)

“He understands. It makes sense
for me to be on this world, where my weird past won’t make me a total freak,”
Tan said. “You promised once that you’d show me around if I ever came to the
Globe. Does that offer still stand?”

Valerie gave him a small smile.
“Of course. What do you want to see first?”

Several hours later, Valerie
dropped Tan off at the dorm of the Society of Imaginary Friends, where the dorm
matron and Valerie’s friend, Dulcea, said he could stay until he decided what
guild he wanted to join.

Even though Tan had been
pleasant and amusing as she’d shown him around, Valerie was exhausted. She
wondered if that was how her best friends, Cyrus and Kanti, had felt after
introducing her to life on the Globe when she’d arrived two years ago.

Her steps grew lighter as she approached
her new home with her father and brother. She reached the garden and saw her
father with his hands in the soil.

Oberon was teaching Valerie how
to garden. She didn’t have his natural gift, but she loved working in the
sunshine with him.

Without a word, Valerie knelt
beside him, and as they worked together, she let the heat from the earth and
the smell of the blooms around her relax her mind. Their peace was interrupted
by the sound of the garden gate slamming.

“I thought you two might be in
need of some sunshine to help those flowers grow, so here I am,” Cyrus joked.
He leaned down to hug Valerie even though she was covered in dirt and sweat.

She wiped a smudge from his
cheek. “Sorry. I must have lost track of time. Do we need to go?”

Cyrus shrugged. “You know the
cool kids always come late.”

He gave her a wink and then
blushed. Ever since he’d kissed her a couple of months ago, things had been a
little strained between them.

Valerie laughed, and she saw her
father smile at the sound. “Thanks, Cy. But for you, I’ll hurry up and get
ready.”

“Go on then,” Oberon said to
her. “I’ll keep Cyrus entertained.”

Valerie hurried through her
grooming ritual, hoping that jeans were okay for the Globe party that she and
Cyrus were going to with their friends that night. Every year, the Illuminators
Guild had an elaborate fireworks display, and it was one of the biggest parties
of the year. Valerie had been on Earth for the past two shows, so she was
excited to finally get a chance to witness it.

When she came back outside, her short
hair still a little wet, she saw that Cyrus and her father had their heads bent
together and were talking intently. When they saw her, they both straightened
up.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, the
tension returning to her muscles.

Cyrus sighed dramatically.
“Nothing bad. It’s a surprise. Now come on!”

Valerie and Cyrus hurried toward
The Horseshoe, where the view of the fireworks would be the best. Cyrus was
grinning like a madman, and his good mood was contagious.

“Let me guess. You finally had
enough hair on your upper lip to justify shaving,” Valerie teased him.

“No one shaves on the Globe,
little human,” Cyrus said with mock offense. “The Glamour Guild is happy to
give you whatever facial hair you would like. I assure you that, if I wanted
to, I could have a full and manly beard. I probably will, once I find a woman
worthy of it.”

Valerie laughed again, the
second time in one day. Some of her grief receded, and she let herself enjoy it.
The Horseshoe was crammed with picnic blankets and Conjurors of all shapes and
sizes. She spotted Kanti and Henry snuggled next to a family of bears.

“Break it up,” Cyrus said
sternly. “This is a family-friendly event.”

Kanti threw a pastry at Cyrus
without detaching her mouth from Henry’s.

“Ah, young love,” Jack said,
joining the group with Dulcea.

Now that Jack was out of Zunya’s
clutches, he was happier than she’d ever seen him. He tried to hold Dulcea’s
hand, without success.

“Where’s Tan?” Valerie asked.

“It’s good to be missed!” Tan
said, popping up behind her.

“Where have you been all day?”
Dulcea asked. “I was planning on giving you a tour of the Society of Imaginary
Friends.”

“Sorry, Dulcea,” Tan said. “This
Master in the Glamour Guild was talking my ear off. Trust me, I’d have rather
been with you.”

Dulcea smiled back at Tan.
“We’re glad you’re here now.”

“It’s good to have the gang
together for this,” Cyrus said as the fireworks began. “Now everyone shut up.”

Cyrus’s words weren’t necessary.
The fireworks made the Fourth of July seem like child’s play. The Illuminators’
display lit up the entire sky like a giant movie screen. Sparkling images of
scenes from around the Globe were perfectly timed to the most ethereal music
Valerie had ever heard.

The wild purple mountains of
Dunsinane melted into the turrets of an ice castle in Elsinore, which Valerie
was pretty sure was the home of Kanti’s parents and sisters. The sparkling
lights seamlessly morphed into the imposing skyscrapers of Messina, and then to
the deserts of Ephesus. The next display was an incredible light ballet of
scenes from Arden.

But after that, the mood of the
show changed. Threatening images filled the night sky—ominous shadows, guild
buildings crumbling, and a gaping hole that seemed to suck up all the light.

Everyone watching was utterly
silent as light was pulled slowly at first, and then faster and faster, into
the black hole, until the entire sky was dark.

Cyrus reached over and held
Valerie’s hand.

The sky exploded in a blaze of
light that was dazzling, lighting up the whole city as if it were the middle of
the day. And in the center of it all was the image of a girl with short hair
holding a sword up toward the sky, her head thrown back. She was powerful and
utterly beautiful.

The girl looked familiar, and
Valerie gasped. The music reached a crescendo, and all of the light swirled
around the girl and then faded, falling to the ground like petals.

“That image at the end—it was
mine,” Cyrus whispered to Valerie.

She turned to him and saw his
blue eyes staring earnestly into her own. “Was that me? At the end?”

“It’s how I saw you when you
saved us from all of the lightning thrown by the Fractus at the Black Castle.
You were a hero,” Cyrus said, sounding more serious than she’d ever heard him.
“That’s how I see you.”

Before Valerie could respond,
Henry was slapping Cyrus on the back. “Way to go, man. You captured her
exactly.”

“I gotta admit, that didn’t
suck,” Kanti agreed.

“Beautiful, like Valerie,” Dulcea
added.

Valerie stared at all of her
friends in surprise. “You all knew about this?”

“Of course! Cy’s been working on
it for weeks. The Illuminators Guild let him have the honor of creating the
final image because of his power. I think they’re hoping he’ll switch guilds,”
Henry said.

Dulcea produced some cups and
poured a golden liquid into them. Everyone took one.

“To Cyrus, a true artistic
genius,” Dulcea said.

“And to Valerie, a
true inspiration,” Cyrus added, never taking his eyes from Valerie’s.

After lots of dessert and
Dulcea’s punch, Cyrus and Valerie started wandering back to her home.

“Thank you,” Valerie said, glad
that it was dark and he couldn’t see her. “I really needed someone to remind me
that maybe I’m up for everything that’s coming.”

Cyrus slipped his warm hand into
hers. “Consider it a belated birthday present, since you wouldn’t let us throw
you a party this year.”

“You do have a knack for getting
me the best presents,” Valerie admitted.

“I know, I’m kind of an
all-star,” Cyrus said with mock seriousness. Then he was quiet for a minute,
and when he spoke again, his voice was serious. “So give me something back this
time.”

Valerie’s heart started beating
faster in her chest. “What do you want?” she asked. She didn’t know if she had
much left to give right then.

“For me to be yours and you to
be mine,” Cyrus said. He rushed through his next words as if he’d practiced
them. “I know that Thai broke your heart, and Zaki, Jet, and Midnight died, and
you’re a little lost yourself right now, but I don’t care. If we wait for the
perfect time, it might never come.”

“I don’t know if I can give you
what you’re asking for,” Valerie said. Her heart still felt like it was
duct-taped together after Thai had broken it.

“Give me a chance. A date,”
Cyrus said.

Valerie smiled. She couldn’t
help it. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Cyrus said, his voice
going up an octave.

She nodded, and Cyrus swept her
up in a hug and spun her around in a circle. When he put her down, Valerie
wondered if he’d kiss her again. But Cyrus was looking at something over her
shoulder.

Valerie turned
around and saw Oberon standing in the door of their house. She grinned and
kissed Cyrus on the cheek before backing away. This must be what it was like to
be a normal teenage girl.

That night Valerie pulled the crystal
that she used to connect with Thai out of her drawer. She’d been dreading this
visit, but after seeing Tan again tonight, a fresh wave of guilt had washed
over her. She had to make sure that Thai really knew that Tan was okay. She
wished that this thread of connection with Thai didn’t still burn inside her,
as if somehow they were still linked, even though they were a universe apart
and barely even friends.

Valerie gripped the crystal and
found herself on Thai’s university campus, where he was striding across a green
lawn. It was beautiful—probably another reason he’d never want to leave Earth.

At the sight of her, Thai let
out a strangled sound and spilled his coffee all over his pants.

“Sorry,” Valerie said, trying to
keep a straight face. She enjoyed seeing the usually unruffled Thai taken off
his guard.

“It’s fine. I didn’t think I’d
see you again. What’s wrong?” Thai asked, regaining his usual calm.

That’s when Valerie noticed that
he had a huge, yellowing bruise on one cheekbone, and a series of blue and
purple bruises on his throat. He’d obviously been in a fight.

The blood drained from her face.
“What happened to you? Who did this?”

Thai reached up to touch the
bruise on his cheek and winced. “It’s nothing for you to worry about. Chisisi
and I are on it.”

“If you had to talk to Chisisi,
then those aren’t from a normal fight. Start talking,” she commanded.

A grin crossed Thai’s face, but
he hid it quickly. “You sound different. Like you’re getting used to being in
charge.”

Valerie fought the blush rising
to her cheeks. “Don’t change the subject.”

Thai resumed walking, not making
eye contact with her. “I found someone trying to break into my bedroom two
nights ago. The person reminded me of Venu—and I was sure I could smell that
poison Venu had on his hands. We fought, and I got some punches in. But before
I could tie the person up, he bounded off. I’ve never seen anyone move so
fast.”

“Whoever that person was had to
be with the Fractus,” Valerie said, and Thai nodded.

“They’re getting bolder. Chisisi
has been hearing about weird attacks around the world.”

“What did that attacker want
from you?” she asked.

“No idea,” he said. “Maybe they
think I know something I don’t. They don’t realize that I don’t have friends on
the Globe anymore who would tell me anything important.”

Valerie forced herself not to
flinch at the coldness in Thai’s tone. She didn’t owe it to him to keep him
up-to-date on Globe politics anymore. But it reminded her why she was visiting
in the first place. “What about Tan? Maybe they think he’s giving you
information.”

Thai’s head jerked up. “You’ve
seen him?”

“Of course. I gave him a place
to stay and have been showing him around, like I promised I would. He’s doing
well,” Valerie said, softening her voice.

Thai didn’t reply right away.
Finally, he said, “I’m glad. He left me a note saying he was going to the Globe,
but I had no idea what his plans were, and he hasn’t shown his face since he
left. I’m really glad to hear he’s okay. I haven’t been able to stop thinking
about him.”

“I think he wants to figure out
who he is, apart from you,” Valerie said.

“I know I don’t have the right
to ask you any favors,” Thai began, meeting her eye for the first time. “But
will you watch out for him? He’s still like a kid in some ways. We separated
too soon. I’m scared someone will take advantage of him.”

“Of course. I would have done
that even if you didn’t ask,” Valerie said, hating how much she enjoyed catching
a glimpse of his smile.

“You always do the right thing.
I know that even though Tan’s hurt you, you’ll still take care of him. It’s one
of the things I love best about you,” Thai said, almost to himself.

Valerie stared at him, unable to
form words. If he really saw her that way, why did he leave her? Instead of
being touched, she was angry. Was he messing with her mind?

They had reached Thai’s dorm,
and they walked down the hall to his room. Valerie was about to say her
goodbyes when she saw that his door was ajar.