Seconds Before Sunrise (The Timely Death Trilogy) (29 page)

Camille stepped on her face. She didn’t need a weapon to silence the child.

“Let her speak,” I ordered my guard, but Camille refused to look away from the enemy.

“She’s an intruder,” Camille said, but she didn’t kill her. “You can’t trust anything she says.”

“I’ll decide that,” I said, and Camille’s foot moved to the girl’s back. She wasn’t letting her get up.

The light whimpered, and I knelt down to meet her eyes. “You’re safe,” I said, knowing my words were debatable.

“Thank you, Shoman,” the girl squeaked, and I tensed, knowing my identity was gone. She tried to push herself up, but I grabbed her shoulder.

“I don’t control her,” I said, pointing to my guard. “Stay on the ground.”

The child’s eyes were filled with tears. “Promise me a life, and I’ll guarantee your survival at the battle.”

“He’s destined to win,” Camille said, grinding her foot into the girl’s back. “He doesn’t have to promise you anything.”

“I promise,” I said, ignoring my guard.

T
he girl wriggled. “Let me up.”

She’s asking for too much
,
Camille said, but I glared at her, and she moved off of the light.

The girl squirmed to her knees before she made it to her feet. “I’m not like them, th
e other lights,” she began.

Camille interrupted her. “So
, stop babbling and tell us why you’re here.”

The girl shivered, stepping away from my guard. “
Stop protecting the third descendant,” she said. “Can’t you see that’s what the Light wants?”

I couldn’t breathe.

“What are you saying, light?” Jonathon was in-between us, and the girl was panicking.

“
Darthon can’t survive without the third descendant,” she said. “All your protection does is give them a chance at winning,” she ranted. “If she dies, he dies. It’s that simple—”

Jonathon stopped her. “We won’t kill the third descendant.”

The girl turned her face and focused on me. Her cheeks were pale. “You’re actually in love with her?”

It was the last
thing she would ever say.

A light b
lew out of her eyes, and her mouth hung open, releasing a gasp. Her ribs folded in on one another, a cracking sound splitting the air, and she crumbled to the driveway. She was a human, and she was dead.

Jonathon stumbled back, falling into me, and I grabbed him, unable to look away
from Camille. Her fingertips were shaking, and her hair was spiked up, hinting at her powers. She had killed her, and she did it without touching the girl. I was reminded of what Luthicer said about half-breeds struggling with their conscience. For the first time, Camille didn’t seem to have one.

“There are other ways to kill lights,” she mumbled, falling back into her human form with ease. It was eno
ugh to know she had killed before. “You didn’t need to listen to that.”

The girl’s warning was echoing inside of me. “Jessica’s safe,” I said, knowing Darthon wouldn’t kill her. “She’s been safe this entire time.”

“Then, why would she warn us?” Teresa spat. “It’s probably the opposite, Eric, and that girl was trying to convince you to kill someone to guarantee their survival.”

“I would never kill Jessica.”

“She obviously didn’t think it through,” Teresa said. “But Darthon will if it means you’ll die along with her.”

Teresa was convinced it was the opposite,
that I would die instead of Darthon, but the look in the girl’s eyes had been too convincing. I’d even promised her life, and it didn’t happen.

“If they know who you are, they are going after her right now,” Teresa continued. “She needs to be able to defend herself.”

“You can’t go to her now,” Jonathon said.

“And why not?”

“Because she’s with Crystal—”

“You’re Jessica’s guard, and as a guard, yo
ur duty is to protect her first,” Camille said. “Not her human friend.”

Jonathon didn’t have an argument.

“Where is she right now?”

Jonathon grabbed Camille’s hand, and a light flickered between them. Teresa’s blue eyes were black pits for only a millisecond, and I knew Jonathon had transferred his tracking.
“You should know now,” he said.

“Thank you,” she said, turning to me. “You need to prepare yourself. This is about to get ugly.” She transported away as the front door opened, and a golden light spread over the girl’s body.

The door shut. “What happened here?” my father asked, rushing forward, and Jonathon divulged everything with impressive speed.

“What do we do?” Jonathon asked, and my father
picked up the girl’s body.

“I’ll take ca
re of this,” he said it like he had picked up the trash. “You two go with George to the shelter until sunset.” The directions sounded far away. “There’s a war waiting for us.”

Jessica

Crystal had slept over, and I promised her a coffee for staying. We were sitting in the coffee shop, only silent because her obsession with pumpkin flavoring kept her lips on her mug. I didn’t mind if it meant avoiding the topic of Robb and Zac. She had already apologized too many times for me to handle.

“Are you seeing him today?” Crystal asked, breaking away from her drink.

I was barely listening. “Who?”

“Eric,” she said, sipping once more. “It’s his birthday, remember?”

I knew it was, but I wasn’t sure if I could get close to him. The more time that passed since his visit, the more I believed I couldn’t help him. “I’m not seeing him.”

She pouted. “Why not?”

“He’s busy.” I acted as if I had spoken to him. I wanted to avoid talking about Eric as much I wanted to avoid talking about the other boys.

“Seems everyone is busy today,” she said, glancing around the shop. For a weekend, it was unusually empty. We were the only customers, and Crystal had no problem pointing directly at the owner. “I think he’s closing up early.”

I glanced over my shoulder and watched him as he cleaned up. “Sorry, girls,” he said, shrugging one shoulder. “I’m closing in fifteen.”

I groaned, turning ba
ck to Crystal. “Looks like it.”

She wasn’t nearly as upset as I was. In fact, her eyes lit up with curiosity. “Is something going on?” she asked the owner, but he didn’t respond. She lowered her head and whispered, “I wonder what’s gotten into everyone. All of the hotels in town are booked. Even Zac and Robb are busy.”

She mentioned everything I didn’t want to think about, and my stomach twisted with nausea. Whatever was going on had to do with Eric’s visit, and I hated to dwell on something I couldn’t fix. I wanted to talk to Crystal more than ever, but I bit my lip to stay silent.

“I am sorry—” she started, but I stopped her before we could repeat the same conversation again.

“It’s fine.”

“But it doesn’t feel fine,” she whine
d. “And I don’t want to go home feeling like that.”

A panic rose in my ch
est. “When are you going home?”

“My mom is coming to pick me up.”

I sighed, laying my head on my hands. I couldn’t be mad even though I wanted to be. She couldn’t stay with me forever, and I would be alone before I knew it. “Can your mom pick you up at my house?”

“She’s already on her way.”

Of course she was.

“I texted her when I saw he was closing,” she said
. Her mom would be here within minutes.

“It’s okay.”

“Listen, Jess,” Crystal said, touching my arm. “If something’s going on, you can tell me.”

But I couldn’t. Not without looking crazy. Even if I could tell her, I doubted I would. It was hard to trust her since she was da
ting Zac. I could only hope she would take my advice and get rid of him.

“Nothing’s going on,” I said, and she accepted it without an argument.

Her phone buzzed on the table, signaling the end of our conversation. “Lola’s here,” she said, standing up. “I’ll see you later?”

“Sure,” I managed.

She left, and the soft music seemed louder than before. It stopped, and I turned my chair around to face the owner. “Mind if I stay for a minute?”

“Only ten more,” he said, continuing to clean. “I have
to be somewhere.”

“Thanks,” I said, watching
the clock as time inched forward and wondering if I would have to face whoever was after me the second I left alone.

Eric

Footsteps echoed off of the underground walls of the shelter, but no one spoke. Shades rushed around, avoiding eye contact, and suited up, dressing in lavish garbs as if they were going to a fancy party instead of a death match.

Boys and girls wore thick, leather pants, and they braided their long hair down their back
s. The youngest fighters had taken the opportunity to paint their faces with the colors of their powers, with emerald-greens, midnight-blues, and moonlight-silvers. I yearned to see the royal purple Jessica’s powers had, but she was the only one I knew of, and she wasn’t here.

“Put these on,” Urte
− the previously drunk George − spoke without a slur to his tone, and he threw us heavy clothes without swaying. “We’ll leave soon.”

“You sobered up quickly,” Pierce muttered, throwing on the bigger jacket.

“Alcohol doesn’t affect my shade self,” his father said without explaining if it was exclusive to him.

Pierce got dressed instead of asking
. “These are surprisingly comfortable,” he said, squaring his shoulders as he shook his arms out. The sleeves fit him perfectly.

I sulked into mine. “I don’t see why these are necessary,” I said, even though I did. It was added protection, but I didn’t want to admi
t that I needed it. Not when the battle was close enough to taste in the air.

“You’ll be fine,” Pierce said, jumping up and down. “Are you ready?” he asked, and I half-expected him to punch me in the arm like we were preparing for a sporting event.

I didn’t answer as Urte walked around the crowded room. Everyone was awaiting his orders, and everyone knew we had to obey them the second he spoke them. One man vomited in the corner while another pulled him to his feet. A woman, perhaps his sister or girlfriend, ignored his shameful nausea. I wanted to tell him it wasn’t, but the crowd stared at me.

I was their descendant, and my actions would d
ictate how long the war lasted. There would be death before daylight, but we didn’t have to wait for daylight to end it. The quicker I killed Darthon, the less of a massacre there would be. But I couldn’t afford to think about my people if I were going to stay focused, and they knew it as much as I despised it.

“We’re going,” Urte spoke as his eyes flashed. “To the hill,” he ordered, and the room filled with the smoke of those who transported first.

I followed before I could see if anyone lingered.

When I reformed, I was standing on my favorite p
lace in Hayworth. The grass was blanketed was a thin layer of snow, but the willow tree swayed like it was summer. A leaf brushed my shoulder before my heart even had a chance to pound.

The sun was setting, and the small slit of sunlight burned my vision. I could only see the field in front of us, littered with an array of shades, young and old, but I didn’t see the slightest trace of the Light.

“Where are they?” I asked to no one in particular.

“They’re here,” Urte answered, standing in front of his son. “They’re just hiding.”

The hill looked odd with dozens of black-haired, light-eyed people walking from side to side. Snow shifted beneath them, turning into misty rivers, but the weather was to their disadvantage. Our dark hair would stand out in the moonlit reflection off of the snow.

I glanced from face to face, trying not to think about which ones would die. “Where’s Camille?”
I asked, wondering how long it had been since she went after Jessica.

“I don’t know,” Pierce admitted.

I tried to send out a telepathic message, but it crackled out.

“I already tried
,” Pierce said, knowing what I had done.

My gut twisted, and I distracted my worries with a checklist. My father was present. He was with Luthicer, and Eu hovered n
earby. I glanced around, wondering which woman was his wife, Ida, and I regrettably remembered their daughters, too young to fight, too old to be oblivious. The amount of families who would lose someone in the battle shook me.

“Where are they kee
ping the kids?” I asked Pierce.

“Not at the shelter,” he said. “Too dangerous.”

I thought of his brother, knowing he didn’t have anyone to look after him tonight. “Where’s Brenthan?”

“Home,” he answered without a flinch. “I only hope he stays there.”