That made me pause. “So everything he says is true? That would mean I’m the lost one and you’re the guiltiest of all.”
“Any truth Caleb may have spoken might not be the truth as you or I would see it,” he said.
“Okay, enough with the cryptic pronouncements,” I said. “Tell me now, does his mind get lost in Othersphere or something? What if he can’t come back?”
Morfael didn’t say anything, but his eyes narrowed.
“Return,” I said, remembering what Morfael had said to help Caleb a few minutes earlier. “Were you calling him to return from Othersphere?” I studied his strange, gaunt countenance. It gave nothing away, but something in my head clicked into place. It was exactly the opposite. “Or were you telling something inside Caleb to return
to
Othersphere?”
His face changed. I had surprised him.
“He opens himself to . . . things from Othersphere whenever he calls out to shadow, doesn’t he?” I said. “When he gets overwhelmed, he becomes a window for whatever’s over there at the time, and it sees us through his eyes.”
Morfael did not respond.
“Are you ready to tell me how I can go home yet?” I said, all the frustrations of the last week at last coming out. “You know so much more than you’re telling. I think it’s time you stop playing games and just tell the truth.”
“It would be best for you to return to your cabin now,” Morfael said, his voice resonating through the room. My anger slipped away, and a sudden need to be in my bunk overtook me. “Thank you for helping with Caleb.”
I was outside on the way to my cabin before I realized I hadn’t wanted to leave. So that was why shifters didn’t like or trust callers. I’d been so caught up in my curiosity and resentment that it was easy for Morfael to get me out of his hair.
Damn him anyway!
I was trying to protect my family and Caleb, and Morfael had brushed me aside. Why would he do that unless he had something to hide? All the more reason to find out what that dark sun rune meant, and anything else I could find.
I almost bumped into Arnaldo, standing outside the girls’ cabin in human form.
“Sorry!” I said, stopping abruptly.
“How is he?” he said. Bundled up against the cold, he didn’t look so thin and gawky. He was tall, as tall as me. If he ever filled out, he’d cut an elegant figure.
“Okay, I guess. Asleep.”
“Good.”
“It’s not your fault,” I said, realizing that worry creased his forehead. “Morfael seems to think he’ll be able to learn from it, get stronger, for whatever that’s worth.”
“Morfael’s probably pissed you figured out a way to counteract a caller’s ability,” he said. “Don’t let him get under your skin.”
I laughed. “Is it that obvious?”
He raised both brows and cocked his head as if to say, “Duh.”
“All I did was ask Morfael what those things Caleb was saying meant. And instead of answering me, he used the old velvet voice and got me out the room!” I’d never talked to Arnaldo so frankly before, but I was too angry to care. “It’s like I’m some puppet he can make do whatever he wants.”
“Welcome to caller versus shifter,” Arnaldo said. “Morfael’s a good teacher and all, but it’s not like you can trust him all the time. He wouldn’t hurt us, I don’t think. But he’s more than happy to manipulate.”
“Don’t you ever get sick of all the suspicion?” I said. “The shifter tribes hate each other; they can’t trust the callers; they’re threatened with death by the Tribunal. What a crazy mess!”
“Yeah,” he said, his voice becoming thoughtful. “Sometimes you can’t even trust people within your own tribe.”
“Some of us don’t even have a tribe at all!” I said, and couldn’t help laughing at my own emphatic tone. “God, listen to me. I’m ranting.”
A smile flickered in his eyes. “Look, I’m here because I wanted to say thanks.” At my clueless look, he continued, “For giving me that hint on how to stop Caleb from forcing me to shift. I should’ve thought of it myself—canceling out one frequency with another. It’s so simple, it’s elegant. Most kids would’ve kept it to themselves, you know, not wanting to give anyone else the advantage.”
“Maybe I wanted to use you as my guinea pig,” I said.
“No, you were being nice,” he said firmly. “So I thought you should know something. Even a clueless geek like me can sense the tension between you and Caleb. But he’s hung up on you. Big-time.”
His eyes beneath the heavy overhang of his brow were sincere. “What makes you say that?” I asked, heart beating fast.
“He says your name in his sleep,” he said, and turned to go. “Have a good night.”
After he left, I don’t know how long I stood there, staring off into space.
CHAPTER 19
The next day Morfael took us out into a glade in the woods and blindfolded us. The person who found a book he’d hidden there and handed it to him would get the grade on their history paper bumped up a notch.
The one good thing about these exercises was that they drove every other thought from my head. I had to focus on the task at hand so hard, I couldn’t spare any brain cells on my parents, Caleb, Morfael’s deception, or the words “lost one.” Silence dropped over us as we all stilled.
Morfael had shown us a worn blue hardback and hidden it somewhere in the clearing. I pictured the area in my head.
The book had to be inside the blackberry bushes to the east or under one of the rocks, I decided. A flat-topped rock was just a few yards away, so best to check it first.
I’d gotten pretty good at moving without making a sound, but then so had everyone else. November’s breathing hit my ears before her footsteps. I stepped up the pace and made it to the rock, sliding my hands around the base to see if Morfael had left anything there.
Across the glade I heard Arnaldo and London exclaim in unison, probably as they somehow collided. There was nothing around the base of my rock. I touched something soft and pulled away with a gasp, then realized it was November’s arm.
“Sorry!” I whispered.
She giggled. “This is so dumb.”
It struck me how right she was.
“What if we all tried to find the way back to school instead of looking for some stupid book?” she whispered.
“Or, what if . . .” I raised my voice so that it would carry across the glade. “The book’s not at this rock on the north side.”
“What the hell are you doing?” hissed November.
“Morfael never said we couldn’t cooperate during these exercises,” I said in a normal tone. Everyone in the glade would be able to hear me. “And he hasn’t stopped me so far. Has anybody checked those bushes to the east yet?”
Nobody responded.
“I’ll check them,” I said. “Arnaldo and London, if you’re over by that big rock, be sure to check the crevices.”
I didn’t bother to hide the sound of my footsteps as I walked to the east side of the glade, arms outstretched.
“Actually, I’m at the big rock,” said Caleb, his voice catching slightly with hesitation before growing in volume. “Nothing here.”
My pulse raced when he spoke. He’d jumped right in after me, but then he was the reckless type. The others might be too cautious to follow.
A pause developed. I moved forward slowly. “What else is over there?” I said.
London cleared her throat. “Wasn’t there a fallen log?”
“I’ll search that next,” said Caleb. His boots thumped over the dried grass.
Another pause, then:
“London and I have the two low rocks on the southwest side covered,” said Arnaldo.
“I’ll check the big pile of leaves over here,” November called out.
My mouth widened in a smile no one could see. That was everyone but Siku. I had no idea how to draw him in.
The bushes couldn’t be far now. I leaned forward, bumped my hands into something large, and recoiled. “Whoa! Who’s that?”
Foliage thrashed, then Siku’s voice said, low and rumbly, “I made it to the bushes first.”
“Cool,” I said, a rush of happiness warming me. Even Siku was in it now.
“I’ll check them down here,” I said, shuffling past Siku. “We can meet in the middle.”
He grunted, and the bushes trembled as he searched them. I ran my hands first over the top. Then I jiggled the branches in the middle, before feeling around the base, pushing aside sticks, rocks, and crumpled leaves.
November made a gagging noise. “Nothing over here, and if I touch another worm I’m going to throw up.”
“What if it’s not at a landmark?” said Caleb. “It might be somewhere random.”
“You mean, like the center of the glade or something?” Arnaldo’s voice moved with his steps. “Maybe if we all just wander around, pushing aside leaves . . .”
“Sounds like fun,” said November.
Crunching noises took over the clearing as we began shuffling our feet through the fallen leaves, feeling for anything that didn’t belong on the ground. The leaves were very dry, and the crackling became epic, blending into what sounded like a gale force wind harassing a forest.
Something brushed my arm. As I whirled, I heard a sharp intake of breath and felt the warmth of a body near me.
Caleb
. I would have recognized his scent and the sound of his breathing anywhere. I felt his hand warm on my arm, pulling me up against him before I could protest. Something brushed the blindfold over my eyes, and the silk of his blindfold slid against my skin as his lips touched mine. My heart contracted, and I responded until my brain kicked in and I pushed against his chest.
“Of all the things I’ve stolen,” he said, low and intimate, “I think that kiss was my favorite.”
“What do you want from me?” I was still shoving against him, but not with very much strength. His arms were encircling my waist, and a delicious warmth was taking me over.
“I want just a moment with you,” he murmured. “Just one.” And kissed me again.
Something deep inside me opened up. As if in a dream, I wound my arms around his neck. The world melted into a single point of fire. I lost track of everything except the pressure of his arms; his soft, urgent lips; and the storm of snapping and popping as our oblivious friends romped in the dead leaves around us.
Behind us, Siku grunted out, “Ha.” His large body hit the ground and made a noise as if he were rolling full length in the leaves.
I couldn’t help laughing, my lips still against Caleb’s. He joined in. In that moment I was completely happy.
“Found it!” shouted London. “I got the book!”
Time to take off the blindfolds. I stepped away from Caleb and reached up to remove the piece of cloth covering my eyes. But Caleb slid his hand over mine and said loudly, “Wait! As soon as we take the blindfolds off, whoever has the book has to hand it to Morfael and get the credit.”
“I don’t remember that being the rule,” Arnaldo said, sounding befuddled.
“So let’s decide who gets the credit before we take them off.” Caleb pulled me close and kissed my neck.
“The game ends when the blindfolds come off, right?” I said so that all could hear. “We won this together, so let’s figure this out together.”
“I guess that sort of makes sense,” said Arnaldo.
There was a general murmur of agreement.
“London found it,” said November.
“With help from us.” That was Siku’s voice.
Caleb’s hand slid up my neck to find my mouth, tracing my lips. I kept myself from gasping and whispered, “They’ll hear us.”
“I only found it because Caleb suggested we search the middle of the glade. Maybe he should get it,” said London, sounding uncertain.
Caleb raised his voice as he wrapped both arms around me and lifted me off the ground. His heartbeat resounded through my body like my own pulse. “All this was Dez’s idea. She should get the credit.”
I wiggled as quietly as I could, kicking my legs, breathless with withheld laughter. “We all did this,” I said. To my own ears, my voice sounded distracted, dizzy. “Not just me.”
“One last time,” Caleb whispered, and allowed my body to slide down his to the ground, his hands on my hips. Then he kissed me, strangely urgent.
One last time?
Was this good-bye?
“November’s the worst at history,” said Siku. “She needs it most.”
“I can’t learn it,” said November. “So I’m doomed to repeat it.”
“I vote November gets it,” said London.
Caleb’s lips left mine. “Me too,” he said.
I felt dizzy. “Sounds good,” I said.
“Okay,” Arnaldo said.
“Yay! Half moon instead of crescent moon!” said November. Light footsteps marked that she was moving. “Where are you again, Wolfie?”
“Over here, Rattie,” said London. “Here you go.”
Caleb released me. I hastily combed my fingers through my hair and adjusted my coat.
“Got it! Blindfolds off!”
I removed the black cloth. Everyone was grinning, arms and legs covered with bits of foliage. Siku was just getting to his feet, his broad back speckled with red and brown bracken, beaming like he’d stumbled on a honeycomb. Caleb shot me a glance that made my face hot.
Morfael stood at the edge of the clearing looking like one of those elongated saints in a Mannerist painting, all pointy elbows and burning eyes.
Oh no.
He must have seen the whole thing. I blushed furiously, but no one was looking at me. November walked up to Morfael, holding the book out like it was some sort of shield.
“Here,” she said.
He looked down at her, and we all stilled, waiting for his verdict. Had I ruined the test by getting everyone to collaborate?
“Very well,” he said, taking the book from her. “Now back to the locker rooms for your midday shift before lunch. I believe Raynard is making pizza.”
“Woo-hoo!” November swiveled and ran right at Siku. She would have bowled him over, but with that unexpected grace of his, he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her over his head. She whooped, arms outstretched like a dancer. It turned into a scream when he pretended to drop her, but he caught her a few inches from the ground, grinning. She gasped, flailing at him with her fists and giggling.
“Whoever’s last to the locker rooms has to wash the dishes alone!” yelled Arnaldo, taking off into the trees toward the school. The others laughed and ran after him.
I looked for Morfael’s reaction. But he was nowhere to be seen. Caleb and I were alone in the glade.
The place where he’d kissed my neck still burned like a brand. I didn’t want to break the spell by talking about it.
“Guess we’ll be doing the dishes,” I said, trying to sound hearty and failing.
“You did it again, you know,” he said.
“What?” I said, alarmed. “What did I do?”
“You broke the unspoken rules.”
“I didn’t mean to break any rules,” I said. “It just seemed like it might go faster if we all worked together . . .”
“You were right.” He smiled at me, and we turned to head back toward the school, side by side. “It was brilliant.”
“Oh.” I relaxed. “You’re one to talk. Isn’t there some rule about not grabbing one of the other players during these exercises?”
“Only if the other player objects,” he said, his suppressed smile returning. “You didn’t object for long.”
My ears were growing warm. I didn’t know what to say. “I . . .”
“You really don’t know the effect you have on people, do you?” He shook his head. “The group never would’ve done that together if you hadn’t made it happen.”
“It was all of us, not just me.”
“See, that’s what I mean,” he said. “You don’t want to take the credit. You want to include everyone, make sure we all win somehow. Even kids from different shifter tribes, brought up to hate each other, are affected by it.”
Again he’d rendered me speechless.
“Don’t get all embarrassed,” he said. “I’m just telling you what I see.”
He was right there, inches away, being sweet and supportive. Just moments before we’d been locked in a passionate embrace. It would’ve felt so natural to take his arm or hold his hand. But now that the blindfolds were off, I remembered how he’d said he was leaving the school. That and his lies still stood like a wall between us.
“You’re leaving soon, aren’t you?” I said, watching him carefully.
He ducked his head and didn’t answer for a moment. “I was being selfish. I just . . . I couldn’t resist.”
“And you still can’t tell me why you have to go? Even after . . .” I gestured back toward the glade, where we’d been kissing moments before.
He shook his head, not meeting my eyes. “I wish I could.”
We walked without saying anything for a few minutes. My emotions were a riot of contradictions—anger, resentment, friendship, desire. Above it all, I was now worried for him. I had no doubt that whatever he planned to do when he left was dangerous. Maybe he didn’t want me to know because it would endanger me as well.
I cleared my throat and decided to settle on friendship, for now. “If this were a normal camp, I mean, a camp of humdrums. . .” He smiled as I corrected myself. “There’d be midnight raids on the girls’ cabin and love triangles and lifelong friendships formed. But we’re all supposed to hate each other, so it’s taking a bit longer.”
“Midnight raids?” He raised his eyebrows at me. “Now there’s an idea.”
At lunch, caught up in the giddiness left over from the book-finding exercise, November and Siku held a contest to see who could fit the most celery sticks into their mouths at once. November won. Caleb recited three dirty limericks, leaving us red-faced with laughter. Then Arnaldo stood on his chair and sang an aria from
The Marriage of Figaro
in a strong, beautiful baritone. As the last pure note faded away, we cheered and London threw bread rolls, which nearly led to an all-out food fight before Morfael squashed it with a reminder that we’d have to clean it up. That was the only time he remarked on anything, going back to cutting up his pizza into small, delicate bites.