Phantom Universe (5 page)

How do you know about beer? And how do you know there aren’t really aliens, vampires, faeries, and pixies?
She rereads her two questions, hoping she formed them right. Then she adds,
I’m pretty sure you can’t see them because of their magic glamour.
She slides the notepad across the prep table, and Landon picks it up.

He snorts loudly then has a coughing fit. “Ducky, not this again!”

She shrugs, waiting for his answers. You see, before Landon joined the Cosmos, Dale and Aaron would tell Summer of these creatures. Sometimes she had gotten so wrapped up in their stories that she would stop cleaning. Many of these creatures fascinate her, and she even has dreams about them. Aliens and faeries she finds the most intriguing. She didn’t believe at first, but after reading some of the books Landon’s given her she can’t help but assume that these creatures are real—much to Landon’s chagrin. When she was first learning how to write, she brought up faeries, and Landon thought she was joking. She wasn’t, and that only made him laugh even harder. He’s been trying to convince her ever since that the creatures are fictional and that Aaron and Dale were having fun with her lack of knowledge.

“
They’re fictional characters, Ducky. They aren’t real.” He pauses, looks her over carefully, and sighs. “Ye win. But one of these days ye’ll realize I’m right.” She stabs the word “glamour” with her finger.

“
I don’t even know where ye got that word.”

She grins widely and writes,
A book
.

“
Of course!” His hands fly into the air. “What have I done?”

They both laugh.

“
Actually,” he says suddenly, perking up. “I always thought ye looked like a little faerie.”

She puts a hand on her hip and rolls her eyes.
Don’t be silly,
her body language conveys.

“
I’m pretty sure ye are a faerie now that I think about it! First, there was that one time I found a bunch of glitter under yer bunk.”

Her lips are between a scowl and grin, twitching like she’s trying not to do both, and her sapphire eyes glare at him humorously. He can’t help but laugh, though she really is trying to put on a Serious Face. She flippantly punches him in the arm again.

“
I swear it wasn’t me!” He raises his hands in the air in a Don’t Shoot Me gesture.

She reaches for the notepad and writes,
You had glitter on your face the next morning.

His face goes slack, surprised he’s been caught—not red handed, but sparkle-faced. “Fine, Ducky. Ye caught me. But then there are these pointy ears!” He gently clamps his fingers at the tips of her ears. She shakes him off as he beams down at her. “And don’t forget the tiny nose. What the hell is up with that? It’s unnaturally button-sized. Definite fae material.”

She bites her bottom lip, thoroughly embarrassed because he’s making fun of her. Her face even flushes into a soft rose color. Only he could fluster her so meticulously. Landon’s not like anyone she’s ever met; he makes her have all these emotions she never knew existed. Or she forgot about them. She’s certain she loves him, but when she reads romance books she can’t relate to the romance part. He’s not romance . . . he’s salvation. Her protector and best friend. After four years, she’d be honored to call him her brother.

Cheers come from the dining room, and she knows they’ll all be piss drunk tonight. They’ll probably have to help a few of them to their rooms, though she’s versed in Landon Reasoning—he’ll want to play the part of the knight and not let her help. It’s because of what Jarvis did, so she can’t hold it against him. She doesn’t want a repeat of that horrific day either.

Ignoring the crew, Summer points at the first question on the notepad.

“
Aye, how do I know about beer? My father liked to drink a pint or two sometimes. He let me try it when I was just a wee tyke.” He rubs his neck in discomfort, and she hopes she didn’t overstep her bounds.

There is one thing he doesn’t talk about, and that is his family. She wonders why but doesn’t feel like she has a right to ask. Just like with her speech—or lack thereof—it’s one of those things they just don’t talk about.

His brown eyes are fixed on the ground so she lightly touches his face to gain his attention. His eyes meet hers, and she tries to read what secrets are in the depths. Since the beginning she’s wanted to just dive right in, but he’s always kept up a wall even she can’t penetrate. He frowns, which is the last thing she wants. The day, besides the arrogant storm, has been a good one.

Then she does something that she hasn’t done since she was four. She mouths, “I’m sorry.” No sound comes out, but the gesture is so huge he just stares at her intensely for a few seconds, like he’s trying to convince himself of what he witnessed. Though honestly? She tries to persuade herself that she just mouthed two whole words. Three syllables. Where’s the trumpets? The heavenly chorus singing Hallelujah? The massive amount of chocolate cake? The party hats and presents?

“
Did ye just . . . ?” His eyebrows scrunch together.

She nods and covers her mouth, disbelieving. It’s a mile stone; a new feat!

“
Listen, Ducky. My family—” He’s abruptly cut off.

There’s a loud bang, and the whole ship shudders like they’ve hopped onto land. They both go flying across the kitchen and land against a metal shelf. The contents crash over them, and Landon’s secrets are hidden beneath.

“
Summer? Summer? Are ye okay?” Landon asks frantically from below the rubble.

She taps once on a pan over her head, and he sighs in relief. They both struggle and eventually crawl out of the debris, unscathed besides a few bruises. The kitchen, on the other hand, looks as if it got sick and vomited its contents.

The crew members in the other room sound like they are still cheering and carrying on like nothing happened.
What
did
just happen?
she wonders while getting to her feet with Landon’s help. They exchange questioning glances then make their way across the destroyed kitchen. She mentally curses because she knows exactly who’ll have to clean up this mess.

This is going to take all night
, she laments as she steps over a broken mug.

Landon arrives at the kitchen window first. Right before she stands on tiptoe to catch a glance too, he ducks and pulls her down with him. His finger goes to his lips to tell her to be quiet. A smile over takes her at the gesture.
I don’t speak,
she thinks and covers her mouth, trying not to laugh.

He shakes his head and closes his eyes briefly, realizing his mistake. “Sorry,” he mouths. He points at the door and whispers, “Intruders with guns.”

Her sapphire eyes go wide. Guns, unlike whips, kill instantly. As she backs away in a waddling position, the nickname Ducky suddenly fits the situation perfectly.

“
She’s like a ticking time bomb!” a woman barks with venom.

“
There’re no women on this ship besides you, lady!” Captain Travis argues. This surprises Summer.

“
Sit your drunk ass down,” a man commands. Something clicks.

The intruder’s voices grow louder as they come closer to the door. Landon takes Summer’s hand, pulls her up when they aren’t in the window’s view anymore, and sprints down the hallway. She continually glances over her shoulder, wondering if they are behind them. Her heart is pumping rapidly, and her palms grow sweaty. Landon doesn’t let go, only picks up pace. Her blonde hair flies behind her like a waving curtain. She’s running out of breath quickly—living on a ship doesn’t exactly provide much exercise. As they round the corner, they both come to a skidding halt. He swiftly pulls her behind his back and tries to keep her out of view. She looks under his arm at the girl standing in the middle of the hallway—the reason they stopped.

CHAPTER 5: JADEN

15 years old

Long, shiny black hair, beautifully bronzed skin, and eyes so dark you can’t even call them brown. The girl is about her age, she notices. But who is she? They’ve never seen her before. Around her neck is a leather necklace with five wooden button-like beads that look like they’re choking her. The girl holds her hands up to say that she means no harm and whispers low in an American accent, “Follow me if you want to live.” The voice is familiar.

“
And why should we?” Landon interrogates, his voice low and sure. His muscles are stiff, and he’s on high alert.

“
Did you not understand the part about living?” the girl asks in disbelief. “Suit yourselves, but when you’re flying around as ghosts remember I told you so.” The girl turns, flips her black hair behind her back, and strides away.

Summer pulls at the back of Landon’s shirt. When he looks back she can tell he’s not certain of what he should do. She points at the girls back and gives him a little push.

“
Wait!” he calls out, and the girl freezes.

She pivots around while a smile creeps up her face. “Ah, thought you’d change your minds, but you had me thinking otherwise for a second.”

“
What’s yer name, and what’re ye doing on this ship?” he asks sharply.

“
My name’s Jaden, and I’m here to capture Summer,” she says simply, like this is normal for her.

“
Pft
!” he huffs, but a surprised Summer peeks around him and points at herself in question. He sidesteps so she’s not in view anymore.

“
Yes you, silly. Remember me? We used to have cells next to each other.”

Summer steps the other direction and looks around him again. The memories of her time as a four year old are some of the worst of her life. The only part she remembers without physically flinching was when she and Jaden would sneak in conversations when the guards left. They never saw each other besides through a slot in their doors, but her voice sounds so familiar. She nods at Jaden.

“
I see you never got out of the slave business. Well, neither did I.” Jaden frowns and absently rubs her scarred wrists.

Landon steps back to look between the two girls and their interactions. “Ye know her?” he asks Summer.

She nods, her eyes not leaving Jaden who’s almost Landon’s height. She has scars up her arms that remind Summer of her own burn marks. Her eyes look haunted, though her face is unruffled. Her body is not quite as small as Summer’s, but clearly her diet isn’t that healthy.

“
And can we trust her?” Landon asks out the side of his mouth like Jaden can’t hear them.

Summer glances at Landon then back to Jaden. The years of slavery are etched into Jaden’s skin. This is the girl who gave her advice to stop the beatings—she’s partially the reason Summer’s mute. But beneath the haunted exterior of her eyes, there is a spark of hope. It’s the one thing she lost long ago. She raises her hand slowly and shakily to the rusted metal wall of the hallway and raps once. The noise reverberates eerily down the empty hallway.

“
Lead the way,” Landon says to Jaden.

“
We’ve wasted too much time already.” Jaden begins to run down the hallway. “They’re looking for you, Summer. We need to find a place to hide so I can explain what’s going on, and so we can find a way off this ship!”

Landon gives her instructions on where to go until they stop in front of Summer’s room. She quickly pulls free her key, and he takes it to unlock the door. All three of them enter, and Jaden quickly falls on Summer’s bed like she’s known Summer all her life.

“
All right,” Jaden begins. “Here’s the deal—apparently these people have been tracking you since you were taken.”

Hope, for the first time in forever, blossoms inside Summer like a vine reaching toward the sun in a dense forest.
People have been looking for me?