Ambrosia Shore (20 page)

At this point, I still wasn’t sure if it was the dance I cared about missing, or if it was really just Rayne. The sound of his voice was the sound of home—and I was homesick. It was like the feeling of home couldn’t exist anywhere if he wasn’t there with me, not even here. I missed Rayne’s warm arms, his soothing touch, the sweet freedom of being completely myself with nothing to hide and knowing that it was enough.

I wandered down an empty hallway, searching inside myself, reaching to find that feeling again, wishing it were possible without Rayne here.

A force suddenly clamped around my arm. My mind jumped into focus as my body was yanked sideways and disappeared behind a door. The light flipped on in the tiny room. My eyes went wide with surprise.

“Ja—” I started to exclaim, but he shoved his hand over my mouth.

Jax looked amused as he released his hand, placing one finger over my lips to shush me. He reached in his pocket and pulled out what looked like a pen. He clicked down on the button at the top, while at the same time twisting the silver body.

“Okay, it’s safe to talk now,” he said. He checked his watch then raised his eyebrows with a mischievous smile. “This device will scramble the signal from your tracker. It should give us ten full minutes to talk about anything we want.”

Without thinking, I leapt forward and threw my arms around him. “Jax! What are you doing here?”

“Wow, somebody missed me,” he teased.

I wasn’t sure why I was so happy to see him; maybe because I thought he might have an update about Rayne, or maybe I just knew he would be good at cheering me up again.

“I thought you couldn’t get through the border anymore,” I whispered with intrigue. My tracker may have been blocked, but that didn’t mean the janitor closet was soundproof to anyone passing by the door in the hall.

“As soon as my father left Banya he reinstated my clearance,” Jax said.

“But how did you know I came back here?”

Jax’s mouth rose with a grin. “I know a lot more than that, Sadie. I mean, I was a little disappointed to learn you weren’t some top-secret spy for the Ambassador, but half Earth-girl half Banyan is kind of sexy too.”

I was pretty sure my cheeks were turning bright red. “So…how did you figure it out?”

“Once my father was gone I was free to do a little snooping. And my father’s assistant kind of has a thing for me, if you know what I mean.”

“Tessa?” I gasped. “She told you about me?”

“Yeah, well she may seem a little rigid at first, but once you get to know her…” Jax raised his eyebrows suggestively.

“Maybe I don’t want to know,” I said, cringing.

Jax leaned in closer and whispered, “What can I say…when you have the skills, it’s a shame not to use them. She was begging me to persuade her for more information.”

I swallowed and sunk back against the shelves behind me. “Um, will you be staying in the area for a while, then?” I knew it was a ludicrous idea, but I was almost tempted to ask Jax to fill in for Rayne at the prom. It didn’t hurt that my friends still thought he was Nicole’s cousin Derrick.

“No, I’m leaving tonight,” he said. “Even I have to do a little work every once in a while. I’m being shipped off with a team to raid some Russian science lab. I’m kind of looking forward to it actually.”

“Sounds like fun,” I joked.

Jax’s expression went serious. “Sorry I can’t stay and help. Is everything okay here with you? Is there anything I can do before I leave?”

“Not unless you can persuade the Council to let Rayne go,” I said sadly.

“Sorry,” Jax said. “Being the son of a Councilman has its perks, but I’m afraid that’s a little over my head.” Then he laughed. “Maybe if the Council members were all women that would be a different story…”

I hit his arm playfully. “You really think highly of yourself, don’t you.”

“Oh that reminds me; I was sure you’d be devastated to hear that I couldn’t stay, so I brought you a little present to ease the pain.”

I watched him from the corner of my eye, trying to suppress a smile. “A present? Like what?”

Jax moved to the far corner of the closet and removed a dark bag from under a bucket. “Well,” he said casually. “I know how much Rayne means to you, and once I found out he was going to be stuck at the Court of Ambassadors for a while, I figured you would probably give anything for a chance to talk to him. So, I dropped a few tranquilizer pellets into his guards’ coffees.” Jax reached into the bag and pulled out a purple leather book as he said, “Then I slipped one of
these
into Rayne’s cell…”

“My diary!” I said, taking it energetically from his hand.

“Yep,” Jax said proudly. “And as you can see, the light is still lit, which means I was a perfect gentleman and resisted the urge to peek at Rayne’s message.”

I stared down at the book with eager gratitude. I couldn’t help it; I jumped forward, grabbing Jax for another hug. “This is the best present ever!”

“I thought you might like it.”

When I let go, Jax reached back into his bag. “Now, try not to go crazy, but there’s more to your present. Well, I mean, if you want to plant a big wet one on my lips I probably won’t protest, but try not to pass out.”

I shook my head and laughed. “Okay, I promise. So, what is it?”

“You left this back at my place the other day,” he said, pulling out another book from the bag. “I thought you might want it back.”

“Oh my gosh, I almost forgot,” I said when I recognized the book. “Jane Carpenter’s journal… I wanted to bring this with me, but I never had the chance to come back for it. Thank you.”

Jax scratched his head. “That’s it?” he said, sounding disappointed. “For how valuable this book is, I was expecting a somewhat more animated response.”

My eyes shifted to the side. “For how valuable it is?”

He smiled. “You don’t even know what this is, do you…”

I knew that Jane Carpenter was my ancestor, but I was pretty sure Jax didn’t realize that fact.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Oh, Sadie, you are so innocently
amusing
it kills me. I don’t know if I want to pinch your cheeks like a child, or rip your clothes off and have my way with you right here in this broom closet.”

“Jax! That’s disgusting.” I pushed his shoulders away from me. “And you’re not getting anywhere near my clothes, so you better just tell me what it is that’s so special about this book, or get out.”

He glanced at his watch. “No, you’re right. We only a have a couple of minutes left until your tracker reactivates. That’s not nearly enough time.”

“
Jax
,” I said again, frustrated.

He threw up his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. It was just a joke. I’m sorry. I got a little carried away by the moment, but I promise to behave and keep my hands to myself.”

I pulled my arms in and folded them over my chest. “So, this book is more than just a journal or something?”

“No, it’s just a journal,” Jax said plainly. “But it’s a journal that a few crazy people out there would probably kill you to get their hands on.”

“Why?” I asked.

Jax rolled his eyes. “Because they’re crazy. And because it’s been lost for hundreds of years. And they think it holds the keys to a bunch of old prophecies or something like that. I don’t know what they’re talking about though. I flipped through it, and I didn’t find anything you couldn’t find in just about every history book in Banya.”

“If it’s so valuable—at least to these crazy people—why did you bring it back to me?”

Jax shrugged. “Basically, because I think it will be fun to see what you decide to do with it.”

I shook my head. “I wasn’t planning to do anything with it.”

“Well, now that you know what it is, I bet you won’t be able to resist. Where did you find this thing anyway?”

I reached to take the journal from Jax’s hand. “An old lady in a barn gave it to me.”

Jax didn’t let go right away, catching my attention. We both held one side of the book as he looked me directly in the eye. “Whatever you do,” he said, “just be careful with this book and any information you find in it.”

I stared back at him with unsettled eyes. “Um, yeah. I will.” Jax gazed at me a second longer, lingering, searching my face. Nervous heat flashed through me.

The school bell rang in my ears, and I quickly looked away. “Lunch is over,” I said. “I have to get to class.”

Jax checked his watch. “Your tracker will reactive in thirty seconds.” He reached into his bag and pulled out a baseball cap, tossing the empty bag on the floor. “Next time you’re in Banya you should look me up.” He winked and tugged the hat down over his eyes. “Say hi to Rayne for me.” Then he slipped out the door, merging into the hallway full of students as if he belonged.

I watched the door close. If I wanted to make it to class on time, I would need to leave too, but I had a message from Rayne sitting in the palm of my hand at this very moment. Anticipation took over. I found the page number illuminated inside the light on the butterfly and flipped frantically through the pages. When I saw Rayne’s familiar handwriting, I was so happy I wanted to cry.

DEAR SADIE,

I HOPE MORE THAN ANYTHING THAT JAX GETS THIS MESSAGE TO YOU. I HAVE SO MUCH I WANT TO SAY. I LOVE YOU. I MISS YOU. I MISS YOU SO MUCH IT HURTS. AND I’M SORRY. I FEEL LIKE I’VE HAD TO SAY THOSE WORDS TOO MANY TIMES. I’M SORRY, SUNSHINE, I’M SORRY.

 JAX TOLD ME WHAT YOU DID FOR ME AT THE HEARING IN FRONT OF THE COUNCIL. HE TOLD ME EVERYTHING. I DIDN’T WANT THAT FOR YOU. THAT WAS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS TRYING TO AVOID. I THOUGHT I WAS PROTECTING YOU, BUT I SHOULD HAVE NEVER LEFT YOUR SIDE. WE SHOULD HAVE TRIED TO RUN TOGETHER LIKE YOU WANTED. I SHOULD HAVE KEPT YOU SAFE.

My heart soared then fell again. There was nothing more alleviating than to feel his thoughts reach mine, but the thoughts weren’t what I wanted to hear. Rayne was blaming himself again, punishing himself with regrets. I wanted to stop right there and write back to him,
no, please don’t, none of this is your fault
, but before I could read another word, the closet door burst open. My head jerked up with a start, and the diary fell from my hands.

Agent Duke jumped in front of me and drew a gun from behind his jacket. “Are you alone?” he asked urgently.

“It’s okay,” I said. “There’s nobody here.”

“Are you sure? We lost the signal on your tracker for a full ten minutes.”

I tried not to laugh. “Really,” I said. “I’m completely fine. There’s no threat here. Maybe the tracker malfunctioned or something.”

Agent Duke spoke into his earpiece, “I found her. She’s alone.” He paused to listen to someone reply, then he said, “Understood. We’ll meet you at the extraction point.”

I reached down to grab the bag Jax had left on the ground. “Extraction point?” I asked.

“Yes, your father is ordering us to bring you home immediately.”

 I shoved both my diary and Jane’s journal inside the bag. “I don’t want to leave. It was just a false alarm. I’m not in danger.”

“Sorry,” Agent Duke said, “orders are orders.”

Thirty seconds later, we were at the back side of the building, where a black SUV was waiting for us. Agent Duke rushed me to the back seat and jumped in beside me. “Let’s go,” he called to the driver.

We peeled away so fast the tires made a screech across the asphalt, like we were fleeing a bank robbery. It was kind of ridiculous. I looked back as the school disappeared through the view of my dark tinted window. Apparently, this was my life now. I clutched Jax’s bag in my lap, anticipating the moment I could finish Rayne’s message and write him back in the diary. Jax’s visit may have cost me the rest of the day at school, but it was definitely worth it.

My father was waiting at the front door when our car screeched into the driveway. “Is everything okay?” he asked me as the agents herded me inside.

I shook my head. “Yeah, it’s fine. But just so you know…this wasn’t really necessary. I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me.” At this point, all I cared about was talking to Rayne.

I made it a few steps toward the hallway when I heard Orion’s voice enter from across the room. “Lin,” he said urgently. “I think you need to see this.”

I stopped to listen.

“What is it?” my father asked.

Orion placed the laptop in his hands down on the table. “We just received a video transmission from Border Patrol,” he said.

I hurried across the room and moved in to watch as Orion opened the file on the computer screen. In the video, a female reporter was pictured in front of a crowd, with the caption
Breaking News
blinking below her on the screen.

“I’m standing at the steps of the Court of Ambassadors,” she began, “where a mixed mob of protesters, as well as concerned citizens, have gathered outside the building. Sources have confirmed that the demonstration was rallied in response to a newscast which aired earlier this morning, claiming that the Ambassadors Council is secretly holding Water Keeper Rayne Stevens under arrest for serious allegations.”

An official-looking photo of Rayne in his Academy uniform appeared on the screen as the reporter continued. “Some have called the well-known agent the face of the Keeper Program and a symbol of faithful service to Banya.”

Then, a video clip began to play, showing Rayne in the same uniform, up on a stage with my father’s arm wrapped around his shoulder, smiling and waving in front of cameras. The reporter went on, “Ambassador Fairbanks himself mentored Mr. Stevens at the Academy and created an advanced Keeper curriculum specifically for Stevens, granting him the rank of a Scout while maintaining the title of a Water Keeper. However, some people say that they view Mr. Stevens as more of a puppet, who represents a ploy set forth by the Council to garner the people in favor of outdated programs and traditions.”

The screen switched to a man standing amongst the crowd outside the Court. “I’m not at all surprised,” the man said, shaking his head. “Agents are given too much power by the Council. I think a lot of them are getting away with things they shouldn’t be, and it’s just a matter of time until those little things turn into serious violations.”

The video cut to an older woman in the crowd. “Do you believe the allegations against Agent Stevens?” the reporter asked her.

“Not at all,” the woman replied. “I love Rayne; my entire family loves Rayne. We’re here to show our support for him and all the Water Keepers he represents. Those agents sacrifice a lot to keep our city safe, to protect all of Ambrosia, and I think these accusations made against Rayne Stevens are a bunch of lies.”

“What do
you
think?” the reporter asked a younger man standing outside the Court with a group of friends.

“I haven’t really decided yet,” the young man said. “I think there are definitely groups out there who would do something like this just to slander the Keeper program, but on the other hand, nobody’s perfect, so you just never know. Maybe he did do it.”

A girl standing next to the young man chimed in by saying, “I’m just upset that the Council kept the arrest a secret in the first place. I mean, we’ve been out here for hours and they still haven’t shown their faces to give us any answers. It makes you wonder what else they might be hiding from us. I’ll admit it…if they don’t make Rayne Steven’s Court hearing open to the public, I’m going to be angry.”

The reporter appeared back on the screen. “The fact that the person accused is a high-ranking agent known to have strong ties to the Ambassador has stirred up a lot of issues beyond a simple arrest—issues that could also affect the Ambassador’s campaign for reelection this year. Several activist groups have already rallied this morning, including those that support the closure of all the Threshold borders indefinitely.”

The camera centered on a mass of people holding up signs and chanting, “Protect our fate; close the gate. Protect our fate; close the gate.” Many of them had symbols painted on their faces that looked like a blue circle with a red X crossed over it.

One woman from the circle of chanters forced her way up to the camera, calling out in a heated tone. “This is just more proof that the Keeper program risks all our lives every day! We don’t even know if we can trust these agents. If they mess up, we could all pay for their mistakes. All the agents in Banya should be taken out! Rayne Stevens needs to go down!”

The reporter returned to the screen with a serious expression. “As you can see, there’s a lot of heated debate going on out here. It’s clear that opinions in the crowd are strongly divided. However, I think everyone here today would agree when I say…we are all eagerly waiting for the Council to make an official statement regarding the allegations against Rayne Stevens.”

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. My glare turned and centered on my father’s face. “We have to help him,” I said in alarm. “Half of Banya is ready to burn him at the stake.”

“She’s right,” Orion said. “You have to go back and meet with the Council, Lin. This situation is getting out of hand.”

My father looked down. “I know, but I have obligations here. Leena—”

“Mom will be fine here without you,” I cut in. “And if you won’t go, then I will. Somebody has to do something.”

“You can’t,” my father said. “You wouldn’t even make it past the border on your own.”

I shook my head. “Orion can take me. He has all the paperwork. The two of us can go help Rayne together.”

Orion glanced at my father. “If that’s what you want us to do, I can make it happen. But keep in mind, the Council will be notified when Sadie returns.”

My father closed his eyes with a grimace. “No, that’s not a good idea. Sadie, I don’t want you to be involved in all this.”

“I’m already involved,” I said. “Thanks to you, the Council already knows who I am. No matter what, I’ll have to go back to Banya and face them eventually, either that, or change my identity and go into hiding like a fugitive.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” my father said. “But now is not the time. I’ve thought about what you said yesterday about finishing school, and I think that is exactly where you need to be. You only have a few weeks left until you graduate. We need to make that our priority.”

I laughed without humor. “You pulled me out of school early because of a false alarm.”

“Well, we still need to make sure you’re physically safe,” he answered. “But, I think you should go back tomorrow.”

“Fine,” I said. “I’ll go back to school just as soon as you return to Banya and get Rayne out of this mess. This whole thing is your fault; you realize that don’t you? He’s been loyal to you from day one, covering up all of your lies. The least you could do is return the favor.”

My father brought his hand to his forehead and sighed. “You’re right. I have to do this for him. Rayne has served me and Ambrosia faithfully for years. I can’t stand by and allow him to take the fall for my transgressions.”

Thirty minutes later, my father was ready to leave. I wanted so badly to go with him, but I knew I wasn’t prepared to face the Council just yet, and a part of me still cared about graduating from high school, despite how insignificant it felt compared to everything else affecting my life right now.

I wanted Orion to go back with my father as well. He said he could leave Agent Duke in charge while he helped my father talk to the Council and persuade them to help Rayne. But my father wouldn’t allow Orion to leave, not when Voss was still out there somewhere planning his next attack. After I thought about it though, I did feel a little safer with Orion here. It would be nice to know that he was personally protecting my mother while I was gone at school all day.

After my father made his final instructions to Orion and his men, my father stood at the center of the living room with my mother, whispering gently and gazing into her eyes. With Agent Duke a foot behind me, Orion standing a few feet away, and my father’s two personal guards waiting at the door…the moment felt a little awkward, like we were all eavesdropping. But it didn’t matter. My parents couldn’t see us. They only saw each other. I wondered if a man in my father’s position even knew what it was like to have privacy anymore.

My father pulled my mother closer, sliding his hands across her back. “I meant what I said last night,” he whispered. “I’ll find a way to make this up to you. I’ll find a way to be together again.”

I watched him kiss her from across the room. I wanted to believe him just as much as she did. I wanted more than anything for his words to be more than empty promises. He brushed his thumb across her cheek one last time. Then he finally turned away.

He glanced up at me in earnest. My eyes returned his gaze. “I’m going to fix this,” he said. He waited, as if hoping I would come to him, not wanting to force it upon me. I almost moved. I almost ran to him for an embrace. But I was stuck. I stood in place and nodded back at him in response. I wanted to love him; I was just too scared. He accepted my nod with care, with thoughtfulness and grace. Then he motioned to his guards, and they escorted him away.

The burning desire to run back to my room and throw open the purple diary consumed me. There wasn’t anything I wanted more than to talk to Rayne right this second. But then I saw my mother’s face, her gaze lingering after the empty doorway. She would soon bury that look, that longing; hide it away in her pocket like a secret crystal of hope, just like the Water Briolette I kept hidden in mine.

Before my mom could throw on a fake happy face, before I could do the same, I grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the door. “Orion…Agent Duke…grab what you need and meet us at the car. We’re going out.”

My mom stopped and pulled away. “Sweetheart, no, Lin wants us to stay at the house. It isn’t safe.”

“You’ve been locked up in the house all week,” I complained. I came behind her shoulders and nudged her toward the screen door. “Just look at that beautiful blue sky. Don’t you just want to go out there and soak it all in? The fresh air would feel so good that you would barely even notice Lin was gone.”

“Oh, honey,” she said with concern, “is that what this is about? You don’t need to worry. I’m fine.” I wasn’t sure if I believed her or not.

“Well, I’m not fine,” I said.

Mom rubbed her arm. “I don’t know, sweetie…”

I turned to Orion. “Your guys can handle it, right? We wouldn’t go very far, just down to the beach or something.”

Orion hesitated. “I don’t think your father would approve, but personally, I don’t see it as a problem. In fact, if it were my choice, I would say an outing might be good for the both of you.”

“Mom, come on,” I said. “We haven’t spent any alone time together since I’ve been home.”

She looked down, pondering. “It does look like a nice day out…”

From that moment forward, I knew I had her convinced. Before the end of the hour, two black SUV’s were turning into the parking garage behind the shops on Main Street in Huntington Beach. I had to laugh as the group of agents exited the cars. Watching Agent Duke try to blend into the crowd with his Hawaiian shirt was kind of hilarious. Even Orion’s polo shirt and khaki pants caused me to chuckle.

Orion gave orders to the men as we walked to the street. When we arrived, they disappeared into the crowd to find strategic positions. Agent Duke and Orion both stayed close by, giving my mother and I only a few feet of space, but it was enough. We strolled down Main Street until we reached the intersection closest to the beach, then we crossed the street to walk down along the pier. The sun was strong in the sky, the salty air soothing to the senses. Being near the sand and the sea was the closest to home I had felt since being back again, and spending time with my mom; that felt like home too.