Chrysalis: The Emergence of Emery (The Gifted Series Book 1) (5 page)

“Falling in…
Are you serious?
”

“Completely.” Elijah nods and grabs my hand.

“Who?” I ask.

“I can’t know for sure.” His voice is laced with worry.

“But you have an idea.” I don’t ask a question, this is a statement because I’m sure he knows.

He nods in reply.

Suddenly as if a mask has been unveiled from my face I see everything, emotion washes over me as all the puzzle pieces slot into their rightful place. I open my mouth and one word drops from my lips.

“Kade.”

Then, as if in slow motion, Elijah’s head moves up and down, giving my brain the confirmation that my soul never needed.

Kade…

I can’t stop repeating the name in my head. Elijah gave me a boatload of information this morning, and I’m struggling to wrap my head around everything. Even so, the one thing I can’t see past is the idea that Kade might be the other half of my soul. It’s ridiculous.

“You need to stop thinking about it,” Elijah murmurs from next to me.

I glance across at him. “I wasn’t talking in my head.”

He smirks. “No, but I can feel that you’re all knotted up inside. I can think of a few reasons, but only one thing really stands out.” He shakes his head, but doesn’t look at me. We’re currently on the way to school. I wasn’t overly keen when Elijah suggested I attend today, but he said it was the right thing to do, that we needed to keep things as they were. Personally, I think there’s more to it, but if there is, then as per usual I’m out of the loop.

“I don’t see how he can be the other half of my soul? Wouldn’t I know?” I question.

“Emery, you have to remember, I didn’t say he was, just that it might be a possibility. The other possibility is that you have developed the power yourself.” He frowns.

“What?”

His arm flexes as his grip on the steering wheel tightens. “Usually, in families, the line is pretty straight. What I mean by that is the
bloodline
is pretty straight. So siblings look similar. Traditionally, we all have names that start with the same letter. That would be the same for the whole house, and the same house colors—”

“House?” I cut him off mid flow.

“I wish you’d stop doing that,” he complains.

“But if I did then I’d forget what I wanted to ask,” I whine. Elijah looks my way and chuckles.

“You’re everything I imagined you’d be up close.” He smiles and once again it rocks me inside. I swallow and look away not accustomed to the affection I hear among his words. “It’s okay,” he tells me softly, reaching over to hold my hand.

“What’s okay?” I croak.

“Being scared.” I start to shake my head, opening my mouth to tell him he’s wrong, but I don’t get the chance. “You are. Before you try to explain how you’re not scared, how you’ve been doing fine being alone all these years etcetera. Save it. I can feel you, remember? You’re scared. I get it, you still don’t know me, but you will. Then you’ll love me like everyone else does,” he says winking and I giggle at him. His attempt at placating me a little is working.

“So the house?” I prompt after a few moments of silence.

“Well, we’re from the House of Laird.”

“That sounds like we belong in an old fancy English movie,” I reply, thinking how cool it would be to have a big ole house in the English countryside.

“You really do have an overactive imagination,” Elijah says biting his lip.

“Really? You’re gonna go there, after the freaky crap you’ve shown me in the last few days?” I respond grinning.

“Okay, I have no answer to that.”

I laugh. “So we’re the House of Laird. What exactly does that mean?”

“There’s a lot to it, so don’t expect me to tell you it all now.” I frown at him, and he catches it when his eyes flit to mine. “Before you go all postal on me, I’m not trying to keep anything from you. It’s just… I will forget stuff. There’s so much you don’t know. I’ve learned this over the course of my whole life, and you expect me to tell you all twenty years, and then some, of information in a couple of days. It just doesn’t work that way, Em,” he says sighing.

“Okay, I’m sorry. I’m going to shut up now.” He glances at me quickly. “I will, I swear… okay? I’ll promise to try and keep my mouth shut.” I roll my eyes.

“Not every bloodline is special, that’s the first thing you need to know. But there are some families who are a part of what is known as a House. That usually means they’re very wealthy or important. If that is the case then they’re called the House of whatever their surname is. So for us it’s the House of Laird. Usually within these
Houses,
all members have the same initial for their name. We also have house colors that you are to wear to represent your House. However that tradition was lost long ago, when all the houses were torn apart.”

I really want to ask Elijah a million different questions, and I bite my lip to stop myself saying anything.

“Bloodlines usually have the same powers. Not necessarily exactly the same, but if you have the power to entrance, and it’s not from Kade, then that’s a new power to our House.”

“I know I said I’d be quiet, but I still want to know something that I asked earlier, but you haven’t answered yet.”

“What?”

“Well, if I am the other half of Kade’s soul, wouldn’t I know? I mean you said that we all know the moment we lay our eyes on that person.” I ask him rubbing my temples.

“Usually, that’s an easy yes, but you’re the first person who has ever come into their powers so late in life. If we come into our powers at say age sixteen, then two months later meet our other half, we probably wouldn’t realize it. Your abilities aren’t even all showing yet, so being able to control them and being aware of little signs will take time. If Kade is your other half then you might not even know it.”

I nod at his response. “So why do you suspect he is?” I question biting my lip.

“Little things. He knew you were in trouble. He never explained why, but I could sense something from him, I’m just not sure what. Kade doesn’t have the ability to feel, but he has many other abilities, and I know Tess told you how strong he is. Kade’s better than the rest of us at almost everything. He never allows me to read him, I can never feel him. The fact that I could threw me. There’s also no other real explanation for him knowing you were in trouble. I didn’t know.” He pulls the car over and I’m vaguely aware that we have reached my school.

“When I asked you how you knew I was in trouble you said ‘
We
could feel you.’” I narrow my eyes on him and he turns in his seat to look at me.

“I could feel you, but only as I drew nearer while I was running to you. Kade burst into my room that day, shouted that you were in trouble and bolted. I struggled to keep up with him, he’s so fast. But I had to, if I lost him I wouldn’t have known where you were. He could guide us to you, to your exact location. We arrived just at the moment Zeit ripped your top. Kade froze. Honestly Em… I’ve never seen him react like that. The more I think about it, the more I realize it’s the truth. You’re his other half.”

I sit opening and closing my mouth, for once I have not a single thought or question in my head. I turn and watch the other kids arriving at school. A couple of popular girls in my year notice me sitting with Elijah, and I watch as they tap the boys, bringing their attention to us. The boys eyes light up as they notice Elijah’s car. I turn back to my brother. “What happens now?” I ask flatly.

“You go to school.” He smirks.

“But I thought you said the only place I was safe was with you?” I rush out, worry powering up through my chest.

A look of agony slips over Elijah’s face. “I’m sorry… I need you to continue as normal, just for a couple of days. I want to get all the paperwork for you cleared, both for your school and living arrangements. I can’t have anyone sniffing around because you go missing.”

I snort at his statement. “No one will miss me.”

He puts his hand on the back of my head and pulls me into him. “You
would
be missed, Emery. Don’t worry, I promise someone will be watching you all the time. You’re safe,” he tells me, letting me go.

Off to school. Great.

“Now Emery, go play nice with the other children. And if they upset you… don’t zap them.” He winks and I cross my arms. I don’t know whether I’m more worried about hurting someone, or being their scratching post whenever they have an itch.

“Fine. Will you be picking me up?” I ask, pulling myself from the car.

“You know it, baby sister.” He laughs and salutes me, pulling away from the sidewalk with a screech of his tires.

The rest of the day I ignore stares and whispers directed at me, though this time it isn’t because people are saying nasty things, it’s because they all want to know about Elijah.

Things come to a head after the fourth period. Jennica corners me as I leave the library. “So, you have a boyfriend. I’m surprised. He seemed hot, kinda cool too with that car. I’m not sure what you could offer him?” She holds her hand up like she’s looking at her nails. “I bet you’re still a virgin. He’s gonna realize what a mistake
you
he’s making soon.” She stops then claps her hands together excitedly “I know Emma… introduce me to him, that way when he dumps your fat butt he can hook up with me. At least then you’ll still see him.” She looks at her friends then back to me. “From afar, while he’s kissing me.” They all laugh, amused with themselves.

I roll my eyes and walk away, I’m so used to their harassment that it bounces off me, for the most part, these days. How different their attitudes would be if they knew who he truly was.

Walking outside the building toward the car park, I desperately need some air. Passing under some trees I’m suddenly yanked back and thrown against the library wall.

“Emma, or Emery.” The words are whispered, and as I look up to see a face I know only too well.

My body jolts as fear flits through me.

In front of me is Michael.

One of the boys I killed the other night.

“I… you… ” I stutter.

“You killed me. Yes, that’s right
,
you did. But I was stronger than the other two, and with some help from Zeit, I reconnected with my life-force. Although, I guess technically I’m still dead.” He laughs and it’s a creepy sound. He doesn’t sound like the Michael I knew from before. He was always horrible, one of the meaner boys. Now, though… now he’s truly scary.

He smirks, and I feel pure evil flutter in the air. “It’s amazing to think,” his eyes roll, “…all these years you’ve been under my feet. Emery fucking Laird. In
my
school. I had you here at my fingertips, and I just played with you from afar, when I could have been playing with you up close and personal.” He leans forward and sniffs my hair.

Suddenly, everything seems to happen in slow motion. I watch as he moves back from me, then his hand closes in on my face. It’s like he’s about to stroke my cheek, but it’s so slow, and it confuses me. As I look around I realize
he’s
not making everything slow, something else is. Before I can question my sanity his hand is ripped away from my sight and I turn to see Kade holding him against the wall.

“Stay away from her or I will end you,” Kade says in a low, menacing voice which sends a shiver down my spine.

Michael—stupidly I think—laughs.

I feel my stomach dip and swirl as Kade leans into Michael. “Believe what I say. I don’t lie.”

Michael’s eyes widen slightly, and he grabs at Kade’s hand which is locked around his throat.

“I’ll kill you…” Kade leans closer, and I can just hear him as he whispers, “even if you’re already dead.”

I can feel Michael’s fear, it’s saturating the air surrounding us all.

Kade drops him. “Come on,” he commands grabbing my hand. I feel like my arm is going to come out of its socket as he pulls me from the school grounds. We stop at a shiny motorbike.