Matt Archer: Legend (6 page)

Tink stirred in my head, muttering something about “wanton
hussies” and it was all I could do to keep from laughing at the sheer insanity
of this moment.

“Yeah,” I said, trying to sound more excited than I felt.
“See you tomorrow.”

Sami stood up—the show was over apparently—and blinked fast,
like she hadn’t expected me to be so curt. “We’re still on for seven?”

I nodded. “Pick you up then.”

Will and I watched her walk away, swinging her hips just the
right amount to render every guy in a twenty-foot radius mute.

“Man,” Will said after she disappeared through the cafeteria
doors. “She’s hot enough to melt concrete.”

I dropped my napkin over my meatloaf. “I guess.”

“‘I
guess?’
Did your lunch kill you and I just didn’t
notice?” he asked, glancing at my tray.

I didn’t answer right away; Ella was talking and laughing
with her friends halfway across the cafeteria, but even from here I could tell
she wasn’t really all that happy. Her smile didn’t reach her eyes, and she
looked tired.

When I turned my attention back to Will, he was nodding.
“No, you wouldn’t notice Sami, would you? Not when Ella’s in the same
universe.”

“You were the one who said I should go out with someone
else.” I leaned my elbows on the table and propped my chin on my hand.

“My advice wasn’t to go out with someone just because,” Will
said. “It was for you to move on and forget her. Obviously, you can’t do that,
because Ella’s stuck on a never-ending loop in your brain. So, I was wrong
before. What you need to do is fly solo for a really long time. Months, maybe.”

That stung, partly because I knew he was right, and partly
because the knife-spirit was grating my nerves like she wanted them shredded on
a pizza. “Probably, and maybe you should take your own advice. Stop chasing
Penn—or anyone else—for a while. If you back off, she might be more
interested.”

Will’s gloomy expression made me feel bad for suggesting it,
but sometimes the truth hurts. “What’s wrong with us?
Six months ago, you had Ella and I was totally okay with hooking up with
any girl I wanted. Now the only girl I want thinks I’m an idiot, and you’re
going out with the hottest girl in school, but you look like you’re facing a
geometry test. And then there’s my dad and all his bullshit…” Without warning,
he clenched his fists on the table. “My life just sucks right now.”

“Dude, what are you talking about? So Penn isn’t interested?
You’ll get past it someday.” I swallowed hard, not sure my next words would
clear my throat. “And…and I’ll get past Ella.”

“But what if we don’t?” Will asked, his voice rising. “What
if I’m destined to follow in my old man’s footsteps, never do anything but play
football, sell cars and marry the freaking homecoming queen? I want to matter,
okay? Right now, I don’t. I don’t matter! And it’s killing me a little bit every
day.”

“Will…what’s going on? Are things getting bad at home?” Why
was he cracking now, in the middle of the cafeteria, when only a week ago he
was dodging rock monsters and saving my butt without wigging out? Had his
parents finally punched his last button? “Whatever it is, it’ll get better.
We’ll be fine—you’ll see.”

“If I’m anything, it’s not
fine
!” With that, Will
shoved his chair back so hard it banged into the wall. Heads swiveled around to
check out the scene as Will slowly stood, grabbed his tray in a death grip and
stomped away, leaving me staring at his back with my mouth hanging open.
Normally I was the one who suddenly flipped out at school. Will didn’t lose it
like this—he found his Zen by slamming into guys on the football field, and it
was typically his job to reel me back to earth when I went Hulk-Smash for no
good reason.

Not today, though. Today, it looked like it was my turn to
figure out how to keep him from breaking. I was crossing through the cafeteria
doors on my way to do just that when a hand landed on my elbow.

“Let him go,” Ella said.

A thrill zipped through my body, but I kept walking. I
didn’t follow Will, though. Instead, I went the opposite direction to an empty
classroom and Ella wasn’t far behind me. I ground my teeth in frustration;
somehow I knew she was right and Will needed a few minutes alone, but it drove
me crazy.

What was going through his head right now? Why’d he go off
like that? Was Penn now Sacred Ground, or was it something else, something
bigger that I just didn’t understand?

Worried, I flung the classroom door open so hard it flew out
of my hand and slammed into the wall. I waited for Ella to follow me inside,
then tugged the doorknob free of the hole it’d made in the plaster and closed
it behind her. Unable to stand still, I paced back and forth across the cheap
carpet, hoping Will wasn’t out driving his BMW into a tree or doing something
equally stupid while I gave him space.

Ella crossed the room slowly, like she was trapped with a
caged tiger. “What’s going on with you two?”

What sucked was that she sounded genuinely interested and
worried. “I broke Will.”

“
Broke
him?” She cocked her head to one side. “How
did you do that?”

I couldn’t tell her about Penn and I sure couldn’t tell her
how Will and I had determined we were complete losers when it came to girls.
“Just pushed the wrong buttons, I guess. I don’t know; I think something’s
wrong at home and I have no idea what it is.”

Ella took a hesitant step my direction, then another. “He’s
got a lot to deal with. I know what his family’s like.” She gave me a sad
smile. “And I know about Penn. I see how he looks at her. Will has a ton of
confidence, so when things don’t go his way, it’s a bigger deal because it
doesn’t happen very often.”

I took a step toward her, wondering how close she’d let me
get...wondering how close
Tink
would let me get. When Ella didn’t back
away, I inched closer, until we were only a foot apart. “You’re probably right,
but I think there’s more to it. I need to go check on him…will you tell Mr.
Hooper I went home sick?”

“Skipping history? Matthew, I’m ashamed of you,” she said. A
real smile bloomed on her face. “But…since you’re such a good friend, I’ll
cover for you. Just this once.”

So, this wasn’t a banner day for me, and her smile set my
nerve endings on fire. Not sure what else to do, I kissed her.

It started out as a gentle kiss, but I was too overloaded to
keep any kind of control. I kissed her hard, trying to take her breath away, to
keep it for myself, to fill up the emptiness I always seemed to carry inside.
My hands tangled in her hair and my body was pressed against hers until Ella
became my universe; nothing else existed. I wasn’t even aware of when she
started kissing me back, but at some point I realized her fingers had dug into
my shoulders deep enough to bruise and her lips were just as eager as mine.

Then a headache exploded in the back of my skull.

Gasping for air, I stepped back. “Damn it!”

Ella gulped and avoided my eyes. “It’s like that time at the
pond, isn’t it? The knife is hurting you for kissing me.”

Her pained expression matched the migraine pounding in my
head. “Ella, I’m really sorry. I mean, I’m not sorry for kissing you. It’s just—”

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “No, I’m
sorry. This shouldn’t have happened. I…just forgot.”

Ella turned and ran from the room before my brain caught up
enough to tell her I still loved her.

I went out to the parking lot with my mouth aching from the
kiss; the rest of me ached from everything else.

“Tink?” I snapped. “I’m on my way outside, now. You gonna
let up on the headache?”

The pain dissolved.
You needed a reminder.

“A reminder of what? That you have complete control over
me?” I asked, getting angrier by the second. “Or are you trying to tell me that
I’m not allowed to love anyone? Because if that’s what you’re saying, then I
quit. Find another wielder.”

You won’t quit.

I opened my mouth to tell her to try me and see, but the
floodgates of my memories were flung wide: flashes of a little girl wearing a
nightgown as she was yanked from my arms; Schmitz, impaled on a giant
scorpion’s stinger; the sound of my nightmares, as Mamie screamed in the dark.

You won’t quit,
the knife-spirit insisted.
You know
worse will happen if you do, and I’m the only one who can help you beat back
the darkness.

“There are days when I really hate you,” I said. But Tink
was right, even if I constantly questioned her motives. My ironclad sense of
honor, probably something I inherited from both my dad and Uncle Mike, wouldn’t
let me turn my back on anyone’s suffering, not if I could prevent it. Still, I
couldn’t help wondering if I was just a puppet to Tink, turned into a thing
without a heart who moved at the will of the entity pulling the strings.

If that was true, I was no better than any of the monsters I
killed.

Sick to my stomach, I walked faster, ready to leave school
behind. When I got to my car, Will’s BMW wasn’t parked in the next spot over
anymore. Just as I suspected—he’d cut out, too.

Ten minutes later, I pulled into the circular drive in front
of Will’s mini-mansion. His car was nowhere to be seen, but no surprise
there…the Cruessans had garage space for seven vehicles. After taking a minute
to pull myself together, I trudged up to the front door and knocked.

Millicent, Will’s housekeeper/surrogate mom answered the
door. Her expression was stern. “Mr. Matthew.”

Oh, man, I was in trouble for sure. Usually, she burbled
some sweet welcome and let me inside after shoving a half-dozen cookies into my
hands. Today, her expression would rival the toughest guard at the state pen.

I clasped my hands behind my back. “Is Will here?”

Her frown was the very definition of disapproval. “That
depends. Why aren’t the two of you in school?”

Ugh. if I wanted to get inside, I would have to grovel. “He
took off, upset about something, and I got worried, so here I am.”

Millicent’s frown melted into a sad smile. “Well, it would
be shame to waste an entire German chocolate cake on William alone. Go on
upstairs, and I’ll call you two when the cake comes out of the oven.”

She let me inside, then disappeared into the kitchen without
another word. The smell of baked goodness stirred in her wake, but it didn’t
make my mouth water like usual as I stared up at the balcony rimming the second
floor. Had Will been upset for a while? Had I been too preoccupied, whether by
Tink or my own stupid drama, to notice? If that was the case, I was the worst
friend on the planet.

No matter what, I wasn’t getting the job done standing in
the foyer. Out of excuses, I started the climb up the curved staircase. Will
had most of the second story to himself, especially since his parents were
rarely home unless they were entertaining. His room was a like a
mini-apartment, with its own bathroom and living area. A dream for most people,
but now that I didn’t have to share the second story with Brent and Mamie, my
house felt too quiet and I’d taken to falling asleep with my iPod on just for
the background noise. What if my whole life had been like that?

Knowing Will would curse me for feeling sympathetic, I shook
off that thought and knocked on his bedroom door. His heavy tread creaked the
floorboards.

He cracked the door open. “What?”

I bit back the angry retort ready to leap off the tip of my
tongue. “I came to find out what’s eating you. You gonna let me in, or am I
going home before the cake’s finished baking? Because I might have to hate you
forever if you did that to me.”

He didn’t open the door.

I sighed. I’d have to prod him a little. “So, after you
walked out of the cafeteria, I kissed the lip gloss right off of Ella’s mouth
in an empty classroom and Tink gave me the mother of all headaches. Kind of
complicates things, you know?”

Now he opened the door. “You
kissed
Ella? And she let
you?”

“Well, Tink didn’t, but Ella seemed okay with it—she even
kissed me back. Then she said it was a mistake and ran away. Tink’s pushing her
out of my life, and I have no idea how to stop it.” I leaned against the wall.
“Then there’s the whole Sami thing.”

Will motioned me to come inside and we flopped down on the
leather sofa where we’d played thousands of video games in the past. Neither of
us made a move for the remote or controllers this time.

“So here’s a riddle. Why do you always want Chik-Fil-A on
Sunday?” Will asked.

“That’s a random thought leap,” I said.

“Not really. You want Chik-Fil-A on Sundays because you
can’t have it. They’re always closed on Sundays.”

So it was time for life lessons, served with fast food. “I
guess that’s true. But, dude, I wanted Ella even when I had her.”

“I was talking about me.” Will put his feet on the coffee
table. “I never wanted anything I couldn’t have before. Now there’s two things,
and I don’t have a shot at either one. Penn has zero interest in me, no matter
how hard I try. The other…well, it’s completely out of my control.”

“What’s the other thing?”

Will flushed and stared at his hands. “It’s stupid…you’ll
laugh.”

“I doubt it,” I said, not sure I could back up that
statement. What if he told me he wanted to be a figure skater instead of a
football player? I wouldn’t be able to
stop
laughing if that was his
secret.

“I’m tired of being the sidekick.”

Will’s words hit the floor with a clatter, and the room went
so quiet, my breaths sounded like a hurricane in my ears. What would I do if he
quit? I’d already lost so many people, and others—like Mamie and Ella—weren’t
around anymore. I couldn’t do this without him.

Swallowing past the pumpkin-sized lump in my throat took
some doing. “Are you saying you want off the team?”

To my relief, he shook his head. “No. I want…to fight for
real.”

Bewildered, I said, “You
do
fight. You had that rock
monster chasing you all over the place. You knocked me out of the way before it
landed on my head. And what about in the woods? All those times you helped me
flush out the monsters…hell, you tackled that one She-Bear and knocked her
clear off her feet. Then there was that time in Australia...”

Will seemed to diminish right before my eyes. His shoulders
slumped, and he curled in on himself like I’d wounded him to the core rather
than pointing out how important he was. “I’m bait, or a bodyguard. I don’t mind
it—you need me to watch your back. I just wish there was more to my job. That I
could be in on the fights themselves, instead of always being support staff.”

Now I understood what he meant. And he was right—joining the
fight the way he wanted to wasn’t something he could just wish for, or work
hard to get. The knives chose us; not the other way around.

“It’s not as cool as you think it is,” I said carefully.
“I’m constantly fighting to keep control of my own mind. Do you want that?
Because that’s what being a wielder means…sharing your brain with something
that’s usually reluctant to let it go. Being controlled by a force you don’t
understand. It also means you’re a walking target at all times.”

“I know that,” he said, sounding hurt down deep, in some
place I couldn’t touch. “It’s just, lately—”

My sat phone rang, interrupting us. We both stared at it
like it might jump up and chew our faces off. Only two people had the number to
the special satellite phone I carried with me at all times—two people I really
didn’t want to hear from today.

The Army was calling.

I groaned. Hadn’t enough happened this afternoon? “Crap.”

“Gotta answer that,” Will muttered.

“You answer it,” I said.

“It’s your butt with the colonel if you don’t.”

Will’s voice was tinged with jealousy, which provoked me
into picking up the phone. “Archer, by way of the Cruessan mansion.”

“Did you have to sell me out, too?” Will whispered.

All I wanted to do was make him feel included. He didn’t
have to be a butthead about it.

“You’re at Cruessan’s? I worried I’d catch you at school,”
Colonel Black said.

I shot a guilty look at Will. “Um, we got out a little early
today. What’s up?”

“We have a problem.”

“That’s how every conversation we have starts, sir.” I
rubbed my eyes, so freaking tired of this day.

“Brandt called in. He didn’t say much, but enough that I
read between the lines—we have a serious issue brewing in Africa. People have
started disappearing in rural sections of Botswana again. Brandt doesn’t have
enough crew to investigate even though he thinks he can handle it on his own.
The issue is that Ramirez is off the grid, already out in the jungle with Jorge
somewhere, and I sent Parker to China yesterday to do some recon—they’re in the
direct path of the first lunar eclipse in December. We need another wielder in
Africa as soon as possible. That leaves you.”

“By ASAP, do you mean Thanksgiving break, or do you mean
biting the bullet and asking Mom to check me out of school?”

“Major Tannen is on his way to Billings to convince your
mother to sign you out again. He’ll be there tomorrow morning to discuss it
with her. We’ll provide a means for you to keep up with your classes online, if
that’s an objection, but we need you.”

After the day I’d had, leaving school on an extended op
sounded pretty good, even if it meant hanging out with Brandt for several
weeks. He was a righteous bastard, but I’d take it if I didn’t have to look
Ella in the eye for a while. “Is Uncle Mike coming along with us?”

“Yes. He wanted to ensure your safety, and we both think
your mother will be more likely to agree if he’s your CO. Captain Tannen will
stay stateside, by General Richardson’s orders.”

Well, I hadn’t expected Badass Aunt Julie to ditch Baby Kate
and travel halfway around the world with us. By the way the colonel phrased it,
though, I got the feeling my aunt was ready to see some action that didn’t
involve strained carrots and diapers. I hoped Mike’s deployment wouldn’t make
her angry. Aunt Julie was cool, but she could also break a grown man’s arm with
a flick of her wrist.

“Ask how he’s going to get me out of school,” Will
whispered.

“How about Cruessan, sir?”

“Cruessan? Umm….” A loaded pause. “Well, he’s not strictly
necessary to this mission, and don’t try to blackmail me by saying you won’t go
if he doesn’t. We can’t afford that kind of behavior right now. And doesn’t he
still have a few football games left in the season? I doubt his coach would be
happy if I stole his best defensive player.”

Plus, his parents would have to sign him out of school, and
they’d never say yes. Our cover of the “gifted-and-talented” program wouldn’t
work in the middle of the semester. I shot Will a worried look and shook my
head slightly. “I understand. But what about the holidays?”

Will slammed a hand against the armrest of the sofa and
stomped across his room.

“If we’re still out there during Christmas break, we’ll
bring him over. You have my word,” Colonel Black said. “As for you, assuming
your mother agrees, I’ll see you at Fort Carson on Monday evening.”

I took a few notes about logistics, then thanked him and
hung up. Will was standing at his bedroom window, staring at the trees lining
his backyard.

Feeling guilty, I walked over to him. I’d made him a promise
in Afghanistan last year, about making sure he could go on all my ops, and now
I had to break that promise. “Sorry, man. I hate that you can’t go to Botswana
with me, but I’m not about to let all that training we did the last few months go
to waste. I’ll push to make sure you get to come at Christmas if I’m still out
there. Count on it.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said, not sounding fine at all. “I’m just
being stupid. My parents can’t know, so I can’t go. You’re the important one.”
He gave me a grim smile. “And I’m not saying that to be a jerk.”

“I know, but the whole thing still sucks.” I picked up my
phone, weary down to my bones. “The worst part? I’m not leaving in time to
cancel my date with Sami.”

“I got no sympathy for you there,” Will said. “But, Matt? I
won’t be in Africa to watch your back, so be careful and make sure you carry
the flashlight. No excuses.”

Even after everything, Will still cared about what happened
to me, down to demanding that I carry the good luck charm from our first hunt.
“I’ll be careful. See you soon.”

I snuck downstairs and made it to my car without Millicent
noticing. It sucked to miss out on the cake, but Will needed to be alone and I
had a trip to prep for.