New Sight (13 page)

“How you guys doing?” the clerk asked, curiosity in his voice. Lys heard the beeping sound as he scanned their items.

“Good,” Kamau said as he stroked Lys’s hair. Lys could practically hear the sneer in his voice. Like he knew he was about to get lucky. For a moment Lys thought about pushing him away. What kind of girl did he think she was! But then she remembered they had a plan, and that Kamau could somehow influence people. She berated herself for not asking him what his supposed sense was. Touch, like Brady, or sight like her? If she could use magic, she’d bet she used sight.

“Where you guys from?” the clerk asked.

“San Francisco,” Kamau said. “Road trip.” As if that explained everything.

“You traveling alone?”

“Yeah, just the two of us,” Kamau said. “All alone. On a road trip.”

“Where are you headed?”

Lys heard the clerk ask the question, but Kamau’s hand slid up her back. To both her horror and her delight, Kamau’s face came toward hers. She met his eyes. They were so dark, so intense, and so locked on her that Lys was helpless to resist the kiss that he gently planted on her lips.

Electricity exploded within her. Everything else in the world melted away, leaving her here, alone with him. Lys felt her lips respond. She slid her hand up into his hair, grabbing hold, afraid he would pull away. His lips parted; she allowed hers to do the same. One breath of his scent and Lys’s mind whirled. Her stomach turned into butterflies. This was better than satisfying the Need. She could feel like this forever and be happy about it.

Their lips separated for a moment, coming up for air. Ready to go in again, Lys dug her fingernails into Kamau’s neck—she felt him pull her closer, if that was possible. Their lips met again, and Lys felt herself melting into Kamau. The world could end now, she was happy.

“That’ll be $8.73,” the clerk said in a bored voice. “You want a bag for this stuff?”

The spell broke. Kamau drew back. Lys tried to hold him close, but he pulled free.

Lys reluctantly withdrew her hands. Kamau took a tiny step back—Lys felt like they were parted by the Grand Canyon. The spike of bliss suddenly fell away, leaving Lys feeling rejected and unfulfilled. She reminded herself that this was only an act. They were trying to get out and back to the others. It meant nothing.

Kamau handed the money to the cashier over Lys’s shoulder.

“Sorry,” Kamau said to the man, “what were you saying?”

The question must have been rhetorical. To Lys’s relief (and satisfaction) Kamau stepped in close again, but not quite as close as before. His fingers traced a path down both sides of her face. When his hands reached her shoulders, he leaned down and kissed her neck. His lips lingered—she could feel his breath in her hair. Lys melted. None of the boys she’d gone out with before had made her feel like this.

“Oh, nothing,” the clerk said, handing Kamau the change. “Wait, I asked you where you were headed.”

“Denver,” Kamau said. “We are going to Denver. Just a young couple in love.”

The cashier snorted. “Yeah, whatever.”

Lys listened in amazement. Even she could feel the pull of Kamau’s voice. She almost believed that they were going to Denver.

Kamau kissed her one more time before slowly pulling away.

“Thanks, man,” Kamau said in a casual tone. He retrieved the bag. “Come on, baby. Let’s go.”

Kamau turned, catching Lys with an arm and leading her away from the counter. The radio went off behind them, and the news announcer’s voice filled the station.

“If you have any information regarding this man, or if you have seen this girl, please call the number below on your screen.”

“Oh, no,” Lys whispered. She tried to walk faster.

“Don’t draw his attention,” Kamau said, holding her back. “Just walk.”

The news announcer went on. “Police are looking for help from everyone. They ask you be alert to strangers in the area.”

Ten more steps to the door. Lys found herself counting down. Seven, five, three . . .

“Hey, guys,” the clerk said.

They stopped three steps from freedom.

Chapter 17

Kamau handed
the bag to Lys. “Yeah?” he asked, turning his head back around.

“Do you want your receipt?”

Lys’s heart pounded against her ribs.

“Oh,” Kamau disentangled himself from Lys and walked back to the counter. “Thanks.”

Lys didn’t move. She didn’t even dare breathe. She heard Kamau’s footsteps coming toward her. When he arrived, he put his arm around her shoulders. They took one step forward.

The news announcer was still going. “The girl’s name is Lysandra Blake. She’s just sixteen years old from California.”

“Oh, and guys,” the clerk said.

Kamau squeezed her shoulder.

“Next time, wear shoes,” the clerk said.

Lys glanced up at the doorway—now just an arm’s length away. Sure enough, a sign that said “Shoes Required” hung next to the door.

“Sorry, man,” Kamau said. Lys almost jumped out of skin when Kamau’s hand wandered to her rear and gave it a squeeze. “You know how it is.”

“Sure.” He did
not
sound convinced. “Hey, can your girl please turn around for me?”

“You trying to hit on my girl?” Kamau demanded. Suddenly he seemed like a force to be reckoned with.

“No, man, we’ve just got this Amber Alert, and I’m a concerned citizen, okay?”

“A concerned citizen?” Kamau asked. “Okay, that’s very good of you. I’m grateful for your vigilance. You saw the girl when she came in. She’s nobody.”

Nobody! Lys was still trying to figure out if she should be mad about the butt squeeze. Now she was nobody?

“Well I didn’t get a good look—”

Kamau actually interrupted the guy. “Sure you did. Just as she walked in. She looks a little like the girl on TV, but this isn’t her. Not quite.”

“I don’t know,” the clerk said, his voice hesitant.

Lys stood stone still. She only took a breath because she felt herself getting dizzy. Would this guy fall for it?

Kamau went on. “And next time we’ll be sure to read the signs more carefully before we come in.” He paused. “Thank you for the receipt.”

“Sure, whatever,” the guy said. Maybe back to texting on his phone. “Just remember next time. Socks don’t count.”

The news announcer’s voice disappeared, replaced by a sports caster. “It’s been a wild day today for college football.”

“Let’s go!” Lys whispered the moment they cleared the doors.

“Just keep walking.” Kamau’s hand moved up to her back. He kept a firm hold around her as they moved through the gas pumps. It had to be the longest, slowest walk of Lys’s life. She expected the cashier to run out after them. Or he could be calling the police.

“We need to get out of here,” she said, twisting out of his arm when they finally reached the sidewalk.

“I apologize,” he said, releasing her and taking a step away. “I hope I did not offend you.”

“Uh.” Lys had more hormones rushing through her than she knew what to do with. “No, no offense.” A tiny part of her wanted to smack him for squeezing her butt—the other part of her wanted to go back to kissing right away. What did she want? Lys didn’t know. She didn’t look at him.

“I did offend you.”

“No!” Lys said. She changed the subject. “What are we going to do?” She wasn’t sure which she should worry about more, her face on the news or Doyle answering her parent’s phone.

“We should get back to the others,” Kamau said, steering Lys along the sidewalk to put some distance between them and the gas station.

Lys stopped. “But I’m not going back.”

Kamau stopped as well, looking down at her. “Lys, if Doyle is with your parents then you can’t go home.”

“I could just go to the police.” As soon as she said it, she knew the idea wouldn’t work. So she tried another approach. “Or I can call the FBI and ask them . . .” She shook her head. The words “I want to go home” echoed through her mind, but Lys knew that it wasn’t possible.

“Come back with me,” Kamau said. “Mark can help us get to Mason, and if he said he could help you, maybe he can.”

The smooth sound of his voice coupled with his hands on her shoulders and the concerned look in his eyes stopped her panic.

Wait, the sound of his voice? “You’re a sound user,” she said.

“I didn’t think you really believed in the magic,” Kamau said.

She didn’t let him dissuade her. “You just used magic on that guy!” She pointed her finger back the way they had come.

“Yes,” he said.

“Did you just try to use your magic on me?” For some reason this infuriated her. Had she been manipulated from the moment she first met Mr. Mason?

“No.” Kamau shook his head. “I did not.”

“Have you ever used your magic on me?”

Kamau nodded. “Only when you broke. I tried to help you.”

“Help me?” Lys stuttered.

“Yes.”

At that moment, when their eyes met, and the butterflies in her stomach overpowered everything else, Lys knew she was in trouble. After running from a ghost (or whatever that had been in the basement of the hospital) and then escaping from prison together, she found it hard not to at least like the guy. But he always took time to make sure she was okay. His smile turned his otherwise polite face into something she could get used to looking at every day. And he was brave. She’d always been a fan of the knight in shining armor. She couldn’t deny the desire to let him hold her forever.

Forever? Or just because the last few days had proven to be the most terrifying of her life? The sound of Doyle’s voice on the phone echoed in her ears. She couldn’t go to her parents for help.

She pulled her eyes away from Kamau’s. “I guess we should get back to the others.”

“You’ll come?” he asked. “I won’t force you.”

Lys laughed a bitter laugh. “As you so aptly pointed out, I don’t have anywhere else to go at the moment.”

“I did not mean to make you—” Kamau started.

Lys interrupted, holding up a hand. “Don’t worry, I don’t feel coerced.” She smiled, lowered her hand, and reached for his.

Kamau’s lips stretched into a broad grin as their fingers intertwined. “Good.”

They walked back toward the
alley, but Kamau turned into a small security entrance for the building. He led her through a hallway to a supply closet and then through a crawl space where his wide shoulders touched both sides. When they emerged, Lys found herself down the other hall leading from the old ballroom.

“Did they tell you how to get out?” Lys asked.

“Peter did,” Kamau said. “After they found you missing. How did you get out?” He dusted off the knees of his scrubs as he stood.

Lys pointed. “There’s a loose panel.”

Before she could show him, Brady’s voice filled the hallway. “You’re back!” he said, bounding toward them. “We were starting to get worried. Mark was ready to send out a rescue party.”

He stopped short when he saw the serious looks on their faces.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “You two have a lovers’ quarrel?”

Lys shook her head. “Where’s Mark? We’ve got problems.”

Brady led them back into the main ballroom where Mark and Peter sat in a set of old chairs, playing a card game on a rickety, wooden table. Mark looked up as they entered.

“Found her?” Mark asked.

“We have news,” Kamau said.

“Bad news,” Lys added.

Mark put his cards down. “What?”

They all walked to the table, and Kamau told Mark what they’d seen and what had happened. He left out the part about the guys in the alley. And the kissing. When he finished, Mark’s lips were turned down in a frown, his eyebrows knit together in a scowl.

“On the news?” Mark asked.

“An Amber Alert,” Lys said, “which means it’s going all over the country.” She paused. “And how is Doyle at my house? Is he FBI?”

“I doubt it. He’s probably got connections in all of those agencies, but I don’t think he’s employed by any of them.” Mark shook his head. “Doyle is working pretty hard for this one. I wonder what he thinks he’ll find.”

“He wants to find her.” Inez’s voice filled the large room with disdain. She walked across the floor, came to the table, folded her arms across her chest, and glared at Lys. “Why don’t we give her to him?”

“Inez!” Peter and Brady protested together.

Peter persisted. “Why would you say that? You know what those guys do to people!”

Inez nodded. “Yeah, I know what they do.” Her eyes swiveled to Peter. “And I know that they don’t ever stop looking.”

The younger boy shrunk back a little, but didn’t lower his eyes. “But they can help us.” Peter’s head jerked at Mark.

“Right,” Inez said, her gaze darting at Mark before once again settling on Lys. “Like she helped us?”

Lys, still riding the emotional roller coaster of almost being attacked by a gang of thugs, to being rescued, to seeing her face on the news, to the warm feeling of Kamau’s lips on hers, Lys’s filter didn’t engage before she spoke. “Me? What did I do?”

“You just leave?” Inez said, pointing back down the hall. “Without explanation and without telling anyone?”

“I didn’t know you cared,” Lys said. Her mind wailed at her to stop talking, but her emotions kept her mouth moving.

“I don’t. Not about you.” Inez took a step toward Lys. “Apparently the only thing you care about is yourself. Spoiled little rich girl.” Inez practically spat the last words out, throwing them to the floor like the proverbial gauntlet.

“What?” Lys asked, taking a step of her own.

Inez glared. “If anyone else’s picture had come up on that screen, would you have come back?”

“Would you have even told anyone about it if you knew?” Lys demanded. Anger filled her, and Lys saw only one outlet for the moment. “No, I doubt it. You probably would have turned me in for a ten dollar reward so you could get your next fix of whatever it is you do.” The harsh words felt foreign coming from her lips. They also felt good.

“Well at least I work for what I get.”

“You’d probably sell him out if it gave you what you wanted.” Lys pointed at Peter.

Inez reeled back as if she’d been physically assaulted. “You bitch!” she shrieked. Lunging forward, Inez reached for Lys, but in a flash, Peter, Mark, Brady, and Kamau all stood between them. Kamau planted right in front of Lys, his hands on her shoulders so she couldn’t move. It took Lys a second to realize that her fingernails were gouging into her palms. Her throat felt dryer than the desert.

Inez yelled at Peter and Brady to move.

Lys shook her head. “What’s wrong with me?” she whispered, feeling the anger drain away. Why did she want to annoy Inez? Sure, she didn’t much like the other girl, but Inez and Peter had helped them—were still helping them—and she’d just purposely provoked Inez.

“Get her out of here!” Inez bellowed. “Get that little bitch out of our home.”

“Inez!” Peter said, trying to overcome her volume. “Calm down. You know what it’s like.”

“I don’t care what it’s like!”

“Inez.” This time Brady spoke. “Give her a break. She just found out that those New guys are at her parent’s house. That means her whole family is in danger.”

“She’s put us all in danger,” Inez said through gritted teeth.

“How many times have I put us in danger?” Peter asked. Lys thought he sounded a lot more mature than his eleven or twelve years.

Inez said nothing, and a tangible wall of anger floated between members of the group.

Mark broke the silence. “I think that maybe I should try to show you guys a control technique for magic.”

The announcement brought everyone’s eyes
to Mark, who stood in the middle of the two groups, watching the exchange of verbal gunfire.

“A control technique?” Brady asked.

Kamau stepped out of Lys’s way. Inez glared at her.

Mark nodded. “Yeah, it’s the only one I know that works for every sense.”

“You’re going to teach us to use our magic?” Peter asked, stepping forward.

“No.” Mark shook his head. “I’m going to teach you all to channel your magic in the right direction. Once you can do that, it’s easier to actually use your magic.” He stopped and looked from Inez to Lys and then back again. “Plus, it minimizes the effects of using.”

“I haven’t been using,” Inez said.

Mark didn’t answer, he just stared her down until she lowered her eyes. Then he slowly looked around the room at them all. When his gaze met Lys’s (which she kept to a fraction of a blink), she saw that he looked tired. Tired, sick, and injured.

“Are you mates willing to listen to me before someone really freaks out?”

Lys nodded. Everyone nodded, although Inez did so reluctantly.

“Great, have a seat.”

Brady went to sit on a chair, but Mark waved a hand at him. “On the floor everyone. Make a big circle over here. Give yourself plenty of space.”

Kamau and Lys went to the far side of the space Mark indicated. They left enough space between them that their fingers couldn’t touch if they both stretched out their arms. Inez ended up right across from Lys. The other girl continued to glare, and for once Lys didn’t lower her gaze. She felt the Need growl, and much to her shame she almost urged the monster on.

Mark stepped between them, breaking the moment. “First off, let me make sure I know what I’m dealing with.” He looked at Brady. “Chaos, touch.” Brady grinned. Mark moved on to Kamau. “Ancient, what?”

“Sound,” Kamau said.

“Sound.” Mark nodded and turned to Lys. “Neutral, what?”

“Uh.” Lys didn’t want to say it. Saying it made it real. However, hiding from it wouldn’t make it any less real. “Sight,” she said. “I think.”

“Okay,” Mark said, looking at her as if he were sizing her up for the first time.

“Peter,” Mark said, pointing at the younger boy.

“Well, my eyes go red.”

“So Adolescence.” Mark nodded.

“And it has to be smell.”

“Smell?” Brady blurted out. “What good is that?”

Peter scowled. “I can track any person within a hundred miles. And I got us through the tunnels didn’t I?”

Brady held up his hands. “Sorry, all this hocus pocus stuff is new to me. I didn’t know.” He turned to Mark. “Can’t we rename the levels? Something cool, like maybe the planets?” His eyes lit up. “You know, Mars for the red eyes, Venus for the silver eyes, and maybe Saturn for Lys’s gold eyes. Although I’d like Saturn for chaos because I like the rings.”