Gifted, A Donovan Circus Novel (44 page)

I wished I wanted to gloat, but
I didn’t feel satisfied. The battle was over, but what happened next? I took a
seat by Sheffield’s desk as he poured himself a drink.

“I’m impressed with you, kid.
You became a leader, took us into battle and won,” Sheffield said. He passed a
glass of whiskey over to me. I took it without objection but it still burned
after a sip. I hid my wince at the bite.

“For how long?” I asked. “Even
you’ve said that Felix is one of many. They’ll keep coming for you, for me,
especially now that your gift is known and mine is proven to be so powerful.
Felix could have handed out more of his vaccines, told others we’re a threat to
their existence. We don’t know all the facts.”

“That’s true,” he admitted. “But
I think tonight, we accept a victory, no matter how small it might seem.”

He raised a glass to me; I
halfheartedly mimicked his motion. Despite our success, I felt bitter, empty
inside. I already worried for the next fight. Sheffield read me correctly.

“You were fantastic out there
tonight and will continue to be. Lenny would be proud,” he said.

“I hate that it got as far as it
did. And I don’t just mean tonight, but the last several years.”

“I know and hopefully we’ll see
the signs if it ever starts to happen again. But I’ll be there and from the
looks of it, so will you.”

“I don’t want any part of a war
between our kind. There are too few of us as it is to go around fighting.” I
stared at the amber liquid in my glass.

“I understand. There are some
who will always find their lives unsatisfactory and believe in hierarchies or
power schemes. Not all of us are good or want to use their gifts for justice
like you do. There are many gray areas that you don’t understand yet. Some of
us, myself included, do not always use our gifts for right and wrong, black or
white.”

“There are gonna be changes,
aren’t there?”

“With what?”

“Within the show, our group, the
gifted world…with me and my own ideas of what the world used to be to me.”

“Yes, that seems evident. It’s
useless to fight it, but if you want out, you can always leave. I would never
ask you to stay unwillingly. You’ll never fight a battle that you don’t want.”

“You’re wrong,” I told him over
my glass. “Would I be any safer if I left? I think I would be even less so; at
least here I have friends to watch my back.”

He nodded and finished off his
whiskey. “This is true. They will never let you fight alone. Neither would I.”

“I can’t believe they let me
lead them. They protected me, saved my life tonight. Most of them barely even
know me.”

“They know you are capable of
great things. You wouldn’t leave them, wouldn’t allow Felix to hurt them
anymore. You didn’t kill Felix so that you could live. You killed him so we all
could. They believe in you and won’t forget anytime soon.”

I stared at my glass of liquor,
swirled the contents around as I kept my focus on it. “If only my dad had
believed in me enough to tell me what was going on, we may never have had this
problem.”

Sheffield sighed, took a long
pause before he spoke. “Lucy, it was never that your father didn’t believe in
you, your gift. He knew you had the skills, the talent to go far and he feared
it for you. He worried about your safety because others will come for you. He
didn’t want you to hurt anyone, kill anyone like Felix, because he thought you
to be too innocent. You’re his little girl; he would never wish anything like
that on you.”

I scowled. “He should’ve warned
me so I could be better prepared. If I’d known what might come after me, I
could learn more, protect others and myself. His secrets might kill me.”

“They won’t. You’re here,
surrounded by those who can help you grow. And while I won’t tell you
everything tonight, you’ll know everything there is to know about Lenny. He was
a good friend and person, but he was a damn fine father. He only wanted the
best possible life for you.”

An excited yelp outside startled
us both. I hopped out of my chair and threw the door open to find my friends
still outside. They seemed as stunned as I was to find Delia standing next to
her identical twin. Sheffield walked up behind me and gave a satisfied nod.

“We were waiting for you,” one
Delia explained. “Finley talked about shifting and—”

“I’m gifted again!” the other
Delia exclaimed. He shimmered back into Finley. “I thought…oh man, thank you
baby Jesus! I have never been so happy in my life!”

Finley ran the few steps over to
Nikolas, clapped a hand on his shoulder and matched his appearance. He shifted
back into himself, clearly delighted he was no longer simply human. Fin
surprised all of us again when he walked up to Delia and kissed her. I caught
Brooklyn’s eye and she winked at me; she’d probably overheard Finley’s thoughts
about Delia on more than one occasion. Finley pulled back and grinned at
Delia’s dazed look.

“Sorry. Caught up in the moment
and always wanted to do that,” he told her. She nodded absentmindedly and I
caught the interested look she gave him when he turned away.

“So Felix’s crazy science
experiment for humanity works like your gift?” I asked Sheffield. “It only
takes it away temporarily?”

“Seems so. We are gifted for life,”
Sheffield said. “There is no cure for who we are.”

I nodded at him, gave a weary
smile. “Thanks for everything tonight. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Nor I without you,” he replied.

“You gave me a new life. Where
else was I gonna go?” I stepped away from him, down next to my friends.

“Speaking of which, only a
couple more days left here. It’s almost time for the next city,” Sheffield told
us. He spoke directly to me. “Think you’ll be ready?”

“With this group? Absolutely.”

Delia turned away from Finley
and slung an arm across my shoulders. She glanced at Keegan and Gabriel and
gave me a knowing look. “C’mon, Lucy. Let’s get you home.”

“I am home.” I winked at her and
she grinned. She looped her arm through mine and gave a reassuring squeeze on
my wrist.

The group began the walk back to
our campers. Information about my father would come, just as my abilities
within the Donovan Circus would. I would spend the rest of the night catching
Delia up as we consumed our weight in chocolate. Then I planned to sleep from
now until we arrived in the next city and hope for the best. Whatever or
whoever came next for us would have to wait until tomorrow.

End

###

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A huge thank to you to my family and
friends. To my husband, who supports every crazy idea I have. To my mother, who
has always been my biggest cheerleader. Thank you for everything you do.

Morgan and Emily, this book wouldn’t
be what it is without you. Thank you for the reading, the edits, and the
enthusiasm you gave me in every text or email.

To my best friend and cover artist,
Erica Dickson—you know me so well you made the cover I wanted without
even knowing it! Thanks for always being able to do that.

And finally, to Courtney Cole,
fabulous author and my phenomenal new friend. Without her, I’d still be having
a meltdown over what to do next. You’re my Obi-Wan and you didn’t let me give
up when it felt incredibly scary or frustrating. Thank you.