Drystan shrugged. “Apparently you also leave residual energy that conveys your power on items you’ve worn. When Matt and I got to Lainey’s, she told me you were looking for the other glove you’d dropped. She asked me to catch up with you, since I knew the path we’d taken to find Lochlan that day. I grabbed the glove you’d left behind, and that’s when I saw myself saving you. I told them to call the police before I went to find you.”
“That’s one of the downsides of my dreams,” I said with a wry look. “If I change something from my dream, then my entire day can change in turn. I never dreamed about getting shot. Lainey was the one who was shot and seriously injured. I changed her fate when I went looking for the glove myself. And as for finding Lochlan, that wasn’t in my dream. I was only at her house that day because I’d inadvertently changed something else earlier in the day.”
“Inadvertently?” An incredulous expression filtered across his features. “You don’t change things on purpose?”
“Rarely. There are too many consequences and unknowns if I do.” I so wasn’t going to go into my issues with Fate.
Drystan snorted. “I’d be all over changing stuff I didn’t like in my life.”
I pressed my lips together. “Trust me. If you’d lived in my shoes, you wouldn’t.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re not telling me everything?” he said, eyeing me with a narrowed gaze.
Because everything
is too personal, too freaky, and would change your entire perspective on what you thought you knew about life in general
. I shrugged and spread my hands wide. “And now you know my secret.”
Drystan looked away, his eyes clouding over. “If I’d only known my dad was going to die that day, I would’ve never let him leave the house.”
My stomach lurched. This was the danger of others knowing my ability; they’d expect me to save their loved ones too. I couldn’t control everything, couldn’t save the entire world. The pressure would be crippling to take on the fate of millions.
“That’s the limitation to my power, Drystan. I only see what’s going to happen in
my
life, things that directly impact me.”
Drystan rubbed his forehead. “Wait, I’m trying to get it sorted in my head how your ability works. If you see your whole day, then why didn’t you know you were going to be attacked at the library? And why didn’t you foresee that your journal would be stolen? You could’ve taken it with you to avoid that from happening. And what about this conversation? Didn’t you dream you told me about your power?”
I grimaced. “Glitches happen. If I’m woken early, I don’t see my entire day, which is what happened the day at the library. I hadn’t dreamed that far yet.” I ran my hand down my face, feeling suddenly tired. “The journal is a little different. When I first started working on it, I dreamed about it every night, but later,” I paused and shrugged, “it faded from my dreams, which means I wouldn’t have dreamed about it being stolen. As for me telling you about my ability, I didn’t dream this conversation, because it’s about the book. Nothing about it shows up in my dreams, even talking about it.”
Drystan shook his head and blew out a breath. “How do you keep it all straight? How do you freakin’ not give yourself away constantly?”
My lips quirked. “I’ve been like this since I was seven, Drystan. I’ve had almost a decade to perfect my poker face, though I’m not perfect either. I slip up from time to time.”
“So, if I’m going to make a right arse of myself, would you tell me ahead of time?”
I laughed. “Believe it or not, people can surprise me every once in a while, like you did today when you changed your plans and brought me here to the slackline.” I raised my eyebrow. “In answer to your question, would it make a difference if I told you that you were going to be a ‘right arse’?”
The corner of his mouth tilted darkly. “Maybe, maybe not.”
“That’s what I thought,” I said in a dry tone as I glanced up at the wind whipping through the trees.
“Thank you for trusting me with your secret, Nara.”
Drystan had turned serious. I smiled. “Thank you for being so stubborn.”
His green eyes flared. “It’s my specialty.” Holding out his hand, he continued, “I’ll need to touch something related to the journal, something that was in constant contact with it, like you.”
Was I ready to go there? I wasn’t sure that I was. Plus, having him hold my hand might feel too intimate. He’d been able to use my residual energy that had embedded itself in Lainey’s mom’s glove. I turned and pulled a purple pen from its slot in my backpack, then set it in his hand. “Try this pen. I’ve used it every time I worked on the book. It should help you trace its location.”
He stared at the pen in his open palm, then pressed his lips together. “You’re doing it again.”
I tensed, surprised by his comment. “Doing what?”
The green in his eyes sparked with disappointment. “You don’t trust me.”
“It’s complicated, Drystan,” I hedged, glancing away from his penetrating stare.
“No,
you’re
complicated,” he shot back and folded his fingers around the pen, closing his eyes.
I held my breath as I watched him rub his fingers back and forth against the pen.
It seemed like minutes ticked by, but it was probably only seconds when his eyes flew open. “Is it in a drawstring bag? I can’t tell the color because there’s very poor light.”
“Yes!” I nodded, a huge smile on my face. “I can’t believe you can see it, but that’s great.”
Why could he see it when it had completely disappeared from my dreams
?
Drystan shrugged, his earlier excitement subdued.
I glanced at his hand. “Where is it?”
“In a locker.”
“A locker where?”
Drystan handed me the pen. “You can’t get to it, but I can.”
I shook my head. “No, you’ve done enough. Just tell me where it is and I’ll get it.”
He folded his arms, a stubborn look on his face. “Unless you can change your gender, you won’t be able to get it.”
“My gender?”
“It’s stashed in a men’s locker room at a gym.”
I snorted. “If it’s at a school gym, I can find a way to sneak in.”
“No, it won’t be that easy to get to. It’s a private, members-only gym.”
I wasn’t letting him risk getting in trouble for me. “I’ll find a way into the facility, Drystan. You’ve done enough. Just tell me the name of the gym.”
His gaze narrowed. “Do you know how to pick a lock?”
When I shook my head, he adopted an arrogant smile and stood. “I do. I’ll get the book for you. End of discussion.”
I stood beside him. “This could be dangerous. I don’t want you to risk getting hurt.”
“I told you I’d get it and I will.”
This time I narrowed my gaze. “What did you see, Drystan? It sounds like you just saw the drawstring bag. Are you saying you didn’t see yourself there?”
Drystan shook his head. “Apparently your psychic energy can embed itself on natural fabric like the leather glove, but not on an inorganic item like a plastic pen. I was able to make the connection for the location using my powers only.”
“But you didn’t see yourself retrieving it. Is that what you’re saying?”
As he slowly nodded, guilt and panic battled inside me. I couldn’t let him try to recover Ethan’s book without some assurance that he could retrieve it safely. Someone broke into my house to retrieve it. Who knew what they’d do to keep it. I’d never forgive myself if something happened to Drystan.
Ethan and I had shared that moment with the ravens
after
Drystan and my powers had combined over finding Lochlan, so I didn’t need to worry that doing so again would break the special bond I had with Ethan.
“Then I need to know you’ll be able to retrieve it without getting hurt.” I took a step close to Drystan and I reached for his hand.
His broad smile returned as he slid his fingers against mine. With a swift move, he folded our locked hands against his chest, yanking me close. “Close your eyes and focus,” he whispered in my ear.
I tried to keep my breathing steady and even, to stay focused like Drystan asked. After a full minute, he took a step back and released my hand, his expression hard. “I saw myself handing you a dark green drawstring bag. I need to steal it back tonight before whoever stole it moves it to another location.”
I released a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Drystan. Okay, tonight it is. Let’s make a plan.”
When he started to shake his head, I held up my hand. “I
will
help you do this.”
Also, while I’m there as your backup, you won’t have a chance to read it.
Drystan exhaled a frustrated breath. “Fine. It’ll be easier to keep this re-stealing adventure between us if I don’t have to borrow Matt’s car. You can drive, but you’ll stay in the car.”
* * *
“I’m way too far away. I can’t see detail.” I peered around Drystan sitting in my passenger seat, and past the trees and sculpted landscape of the business parking lot to the three-story, members-only gym in the shopping center across the street.
On each level of the facility, people were working out on various pieces of equipment from treadmills to free weights behind the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. The building had an odd L shape of a two-story building connected to a three-story building with glass windows on all three levels; old mixed with new. The one positive aspect was that since we’d waited until dark, with the place lit up on every floor, it was easy to get a general layout of the taller building from the outside. Well, except for the locker rooms and business offices, they were either in the two-story building or on the back side of the three story.
“That’s the whole point,” Drystan said as he scanned the two buildings like he was sizing up possible entry and escape routes. “Up here, in this parking lot surrounded by trees, you’re too far away for anyone to know you’re here with me.”
I snorted. “But that also means I’ll be too far away for
you
to get to if you end up being chased.” I started the engine. “I’m going to move closer.”
Drystan reached over and turned off my car. “Oh no, you don’t. I’m fast. I can get to you.” He thrust something he’d pulled from his backpack into my hands. “Use these if you want a bird’s-eye view. I borrowed them from Matt’s dad’s office, so don’t go breaking them.”
I glanced down at the binoculars and nodded. “What excuse did you give Matt as to where you were going tonight?”
He grinned. “Didn’t have to. He’s out helping Lainey pick up the decorations for the dance. She volunteered before she realized just how big they were.”
That explained why she didn’t call me for help. She needed muscle. “What do you think about this whole Matt and Lainey ‘getting back at their exes’ scheme?”
Drystan snorted. “That might’ve been his initial intent, but I think Matt has redirected his attention.”
“To Lainey, right?” I said, throwing my hands up.
Drystan chuckled. “He hasn’t admitted it, but I see it.”
“Me too. Lainey thinks I’m nuts.”
When Drystan’s attention shifted back to the building, I asked, “How are you going to get in?”
He pulled a lockpick kit from his backpack. I shook my head and muttered, “My Welsh friend is some kind of delinquent, and he just hasn’t told me yet.”
He adopted a serious expression. “I’ve done some things in my past I’m not going to admit to, but this,” he held up the kit, “was used more for learning secrets, than thievery.”
What kind of people did he hang with, who kept secrets that needed to be locked away? I wondered, but kept my thoughts to myself. “It looks like the shift of people coming from work are getting into their routines on the equipment. Now is probably the best time for the locker room to be fairly empty. You’d better get going. It’ll take you at least ten minutes to get down there.”
An arrogant smirk tilted his lips. “See you in a few.” Once he got out of my car, Drystan pulled his black hoodie up so it covered his blond-streaked hair, then slid his empty backpack over both shoulders and shot me a thumbs-up.
I copied his thumbs-up action, then shooed him on with the binoculars from my lap.
I followed his shadowy form down the hill, watching with interest how quickly and efficiently he moved. There were stairs, but Drystan didn’t take them. Instead, he vaulted from tier to tier down the cement structures edging them.
Once he crossed the highway, I lifted the binoculars to track his movements. I noticed that he stayed in the shadows, avoiding the lights in the parking lot. When he turned and pointed upward to one of the lights, I realized why when I shifted the zoom to the top of the light. Cameras were on a few of them. Smart. I wouldn’t have thought of that.
When he reached the building in six minutes, I smiled. He’d had a reason to smirk at my “ten minute” comment. I expected him to go around the edge of the building and try to get into a loading dock or back door where delivery or laundry people entered. Instead, Drystan jumped onto the corner of the tall building’s wall, grabbed onto a decorative ledge, then pushed off it to grip a higher ledge on the opposite wall. Pulling himself up, he grabbed onto a pipe that ran along the corner between the two buildings. He made efficient work of scaling the pipe to the roof of the lower building, then quickly ran along the wall across the rooftop to the door that connected the taller building to the shorter one.
I held my breath as he picked the lock, then exhaled in a gust of relief when he entered without sudden alarms blaring and roving spotlights scanning into the night.
As my heart hammered in wait mode, my gaze seesawed between the digital clock on my dash and the door Drystan had entered. Seven minutes had passed, and then another five. My neck tensed and my shoulders began to ache. Was twelve minutes long enough to get in and out? I wanted to ping his phone so bad, but was afraid he’d forgotten to turn it on vibrate mode, and my text would give his presence away. Instead, I bit my lip and waited, clenching and unclenching my fingers in a death grip around the binoculars.
Chapter Nineteen