Seers (17 page)

“Oh?”

“What?” I shrug and look off past her.

“What do you mean ‘what’? Leesie, you know I can
Read
you. I have been Reading you since you got here. I know how you feel about him.”

“That’s news, considering I still haven’t figured it out.”

She smiles again. It’s good to see her smiling. I have to wonder if she feels like she can relax, let loose around me a little, now that I know what she is. But this makes me realize how many more questions I have.

“Tell me about being an Aurae.”

She settles into her position at the counter. She leans toward me, shifts her weight from one foot to the other, tilts her head to the side, and starts: “I see people’s faces, bodies, gestures, as you do. But then I see around them. Everyone projects colors that signify mood and general disposition. Greens and blues, I told you, are calm, relaxed colors. Purples are passions. Reds are frustrations, anger. Yellow signifies fear, distrust. Shades in between allow for the mixing of moods and emotions. I see shades as well: whites and blacks.”

She pauses and searches me, checking for understanding. She had me until the whole “shades” business. She senses my confusion.

“People shade themselves if they are in a state where potential action trumps emotion. They will look like they have thrown a sheet over themselves. This happens usually when they are ‘ready to pounce,’ so to speak. The motivation behind their actions shields any color from showing through. All I can tell then is whether their actions are motivated by positive or negative force, if they are good or bad. Like you when you were trying to Navigate me.”

Crap. I knew this was going to come up. I knew she would demand an explanation as to why I felt it okay to violate her trust and violate her brain.

“And?”

“You don’t have to ask me, Leesie. You know why you did it. I know why you did it. I know you were trying to help me, help your Preceptor, and help the mission. I know you care about me.”

Her words rush me in a warm gust. I lean on the counter to steady myself. I am shocked by the amount of relief her words bring.

“I have known since you got here that you would find your way to the truth of this mission. That you would choose sides. You have chosen sides, haven’t you?”

My gut tells me I have. My gut has always told me, I guess. All those questions, all those times it didn’t feel right. And this group feeling like friends, like family. But …

“But what does that mean, Eri? What does choosing sides mean?”

“It means a new mission. It means us. Us fighting to keep critical information from landing in the wrong hands, in the hands of dangerous Preceptors. Us. You, me, my father, and Luke … against Tobias and everyone working with him.”

I was already on a side until a few minutes ago, and that’s been working out so well… .

As much as I think I trust Eri and Luke, I can’t help but wonder if I am jumping out of the path of an oncoming car by crossing into another lane of traffic instead of heading for the safety of the side of the road. The question is, who’s on the side of the road waiting for me? No one. So I join them. Otherwise, I’m alone.

Eri had taken my nod to mean I was in. My head was moving in allegiance to her before my brain could catch up. My heart was in it before I could think it all through. I guess I have known for a while now whose side I was on.

What’s funny is, now that I think back, I wonder what was at the base of my loyalty to Tobias. I was puppeting what is expected of Seers, I suppose. I was given my expectations and guidelines and was blindly obeying. “Here is your Preceptor, Elise Felton. Here is your life from now on, Elise Felton.” And I opened my arms and took it. What else was I supposed to do? But I search myself for real feelings of gratefulness or affection for Tobias or the few other Seers I have met at the Philadelphia headquarters. I have none. All business.

Add to that what Eri tells of the Preceptors in charge, of Tobias. He has been sending me on missions to evaluate my skills. He has been calculating my strengths to gauge if I am ready to Navigate for what he really wants. He has been using me.

And he is responsible for wiping out my memories. But how? He can’t Extract. Can he? Now that I know Luke is an Extractor, the door is wide open as to how many of them exist. If Tobias cannot Extract, maybe he sent someone after me who could.

That one hurts. Using me because I am valuable? Seems feasible if you are a power-hungry freak, which apparently he is, but stealing my life? How cold, how heartless, how evil, is that? Have I been missed by loved ones? Do they watch the news, read the papers, and post flyers, holding on to some remote possibility that I am out there somewhere? Did I have brothers, sisters? A best friend? A boyfriend? I don’t know at the moment which is more painful: the fact that my memory loss could be devastating lives or the fact that I have been willingly working for the man who has devastated mine.

I kick a stone off the sidewalk as I move swiftly down Delaware Avenue. Away from Eri’s. Away from Alsinboro Academy. In the other direction. Away from the center of Preston toward the outskirts and into a neighborhood I’ve never bothered to traverse.

I needed a minute. I needed some air. Eri was calling Luke. She was asking him to come over right away. She wanted us to discuss things further. She wanted me to hear Luke’s side, she had said. He has details to provide me with. Details about his mission. Details about his plan. That makes sense, but clearing my head takes precedence over anything else. So here I am. Walking alone and going nowhere. I know that in a few minutes I have to turn around and head back. There is no avoiding the next step. And I don’t want to avoid anything. In fact the more I stew, the angrier I become. I am intimidated, yes, by the idea of going after my Preceptor, but I know I’m “red,” as Eri says. I know I run hot. I know I will not shy away from the opportunity to fight back. But Tobias has always seemed so smart. He always seems to have all the answers and to know what to say to focus me or correct me. I have to get used to thinking of him as a liar. I have to get used to the idea of having to try to beat him at a game he says he’s only begun to teach me.

In front of me at the end of a tree-lined street is a house the color of an avocado. It has mango-colored shutters and stained glass in the front door. A herringbone-patterned brick walkway directs my eyes from the sidewalk to the front porch. I continue my gaze up to the second-story windows, where I can make out the wispy lines of lace curtains. Up the roofline, left of the chimney, sits a rooster atop an arrow. This weathervane, its bright copper hidden under a pale green film of patina, turns slightly to the right as the wind picks up. I stare at it as it mocks me, and then I laugh out loud at the irony of this bird. Yeah, rooster, I see you. I’m turning. I’m turning.

And I do.

As always my brain is in overload. When I should be reeling from all I have found out today, I end up thinking about nothing or noticing everything or, like now, taking in the architecture. I shake my head, determined to focus.

Luke is an Extractor like me. With that information comes a new plan. Luke’s mission that will somehow protect Dr. Kuono’s information
and
take out Tobias. A mission that according to Eri cannot be completed without me. Fighting with them means I get more time with them. I let this possibility plant roots. I let myself get excited. It seems too good to be true that I will continue to have this group on my side as my friends and as close to a family as I have. Whether they think that strongly of me is irrelevant, considering they have other people in their lives that care about them outside this group of friends. I do not. These feelings were bubbling under a closed lid before this afternoon. Now I get to take the lid off the pot and leave the water boiling rapidly. The steam can escape and cloud my future with possibilities of listening, lounging, laughing, loving… .

My stomach flips and pings as if there’s a beginner band student in there beating the mess out of a triangle and calling it music. Because he will be there. I will see him in a moment. And he will talk to me. Really talk to me.
Confide
in me. The perplexing nature of our connection is now replaced by the inevitability of it. The depth of it. Eri telling me someone is like me, and not just anyone—
Luke.
This changes everything. She took the jokers from the deck. Now we’re playing cards.

In front of her house, I look for Luke’s car. It’s not parked out front. It’s not in the driveway. He’s had enough time to get here from school. Where is he? I am too amped up for idle time. Where else does he have to be that’s more important than this? I hope he doesn’t think I’ll sit around and twiddle my fingers waiting for him to show up on his prized steed. I’ll go get my own horse. I can feel the frustration frothing in my stomach like it’s capping off a cappuccino.

Before I reach full-fledged flip-out mode, I see him. In the doorway. Watching the street. Watching me. He must have walked, or run. He is waiting for me.
Good. That’s more like it.

I slow my pace a little. The triangle resumes play in my stomach, and I can feel my cheeks flush red. I cross from sidewalk to slate conscious of my feet. I am watching them land from one stone to another as I make my way to the door. Why? Why am I watching my feet? I hate that. It’s a sign of blatant insecurity, weakness. I have to get a grip. I force my eyes up and am glad to see he has moved away from the door.
All that for nothing. He’s not even watching me walk up here.

Luke must have gone to tell Eri I am back, because now she is at the door, holding it open for me like before, only she holds my gaze this time as I enter. She smiles easily. She seems relaxed, as if she had no doubt that I would return.

“Have a nice walk?” she asks teasingly, as I make my way to what has become my spot at the kitchen counter.

“I did.” I scan the room for Luke. Wherever he is, he is not in the kitchen.

Making a grand entrance, are we, Luke?

“He went to the study to grab something. He’ll be right back.”

What, is there a color for ‘Where’s Luke?’ now?

I don’t bother to play it off like I wasn’t actually thinking that. I hate that she not only assumes she knows what I am feeling, but she has the nerve to be right, too.

I must have gone fire-engine red because she quickly adds, “He’s grabbing my father’s files. They’ll provide you with information leading up to the discovery.”

“Leesie.”

I turn to my right to see him entering through the dining room.

“I hear you’ve had a busy day.”

Does he have to toy with me and get me all riled up right off the bat?

“And I hear you’re quite the powerhouse.”

“No more than you.”

And in a few strides he is within three feet of me. His mouth is relaxed and smirking, but his eyes are serious. He wants to start light, I guess, but it is clear that the purpose for our meeting will outweigh any niceties or flirtations.

Eri cuts in: “Yes. Great. You’re both great, overachieving Extractors at their best. Seriously, you guys can do this later. We have a lot to discuss before Leesie needs another walk.” She shoves Luke and shoots me a look.

“Hey! Really? All you threw at me and all I needed was a walk? I think that’s pretty remarkable actually.”

“Speaking of which,” Luke says, “Eri filled me in on what you know so far. We have a little more to throw.”

Okay. I guess small talk is over.

I lean in and listen as Luke fills me in on how he came to know about the Preceptors’ plot to coerce Dr. Kuono into discovering the secret to creating Extractors.

I only got distracted by the curve of his bottom lip once and the shape of his jaw a couple of times. Not too bad.

Luke starts by giving me information about his own background. He has been in Preston for a few months. He came to Alsinboro Academy for the same reason I did: to get to Eri. Before that he had been with his Preceptor since the age of three.

I remember back to what Tobias told me about Seers finding their Preceptors. Three is the youngest known age for a Seer to venture out seeking his mentor. The younger the Seer connects, the stronger the Seer. Seers that strong go on to be Preceptors themselves.

I try to imagine Luke as a Preceptor. He is definitely leadership quality. He commands respect, gets attention, is listened to. But he isn’t cold and demanding. Is he? The Luke I have seen interacting with his friends, and even the Luke who has softened with me at times, seems more protective and nurturing than possessive and imposing. Maybe Preceptors just become that way over time.

When Luke gets to his ability to Extract, my mind stops wandering and I redirect. He says he hadn’t realized he possessed a special set of skills that other Seers do not until the age of eight. He doesn’t give me the details. I’m not sure if he does this to save time because he has so much to tell me that certain details must be cut or if he is not ready for me to know all the specifics. I am sure of one thing; I can tell by his tone and the fact that he does not stop for clarification that interjecting with questions would be frowned upon. I’ll just have to hope that I have the opportunity to ask him later. The story of his first Extraction is at the top of my list of things I want to know.