Crossing Nexis Page 17

  He led me through the dim concrete maze of the parking garage, and opened the passenger door of a black Mercedes. Thank God it wasn’t an SUV—like the one I crashed last year.

  I climbed in, and he took off, racing down the streets of Manhattan like someone was tailing us. Adrenaline pounded through my veins, waking up every nerve ended. The light turned red. He jerked to a stop, tires squealing.

  “Hey, watch it, buddy.” I bounced off the leather seat.

  “That’s what I get for trying to impress you.” He gripped the steering wheel tighter.

  “Hey,” I softened my tone, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. “You don’t have to impress me. I’m already impressed. Just drive like a normal person.”

  “Do you really mean that?” Hues of red washed over his sculpted face as he turned to me

  “You’re not as bad as I thought you were.” I gnawed on my lip, but too late. The truth was already out there.

  “I’m sure the Guardians told you I’m the worst person on the planet.” In a flash, he turned back to the road, that little muscle in his jaw twitching again.

  “Pretty much.” I couldn’t argue with that.

  The light turned green, but he didn’t peel out this time. His hand slid to the gearshift, and he eased up on the gas pedal. Then he stopped at another light. Glanced my way.

  I couldn’t help but look at him and smile as the light turned green.

  “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you. I tried a few times, but it didn’t work out so well. I’m going to try again. And hope you don’t hate me.” He pulled onto the GW Bridge, hand resting on the gearshift. In no-man’s land. As if waiting for me to make the first move.

  “I don’t hate you.” Staring out the window at the dark river, I gulped down my objections, letting them swim laps in the pit of my stomach. Except they weren’t my objections any more—they were Guardian lies. Or half-truths. Because they hadn’t told me the full truth about anything, least of all Will. A guy who only ever tried to help me. Tried to be with me. And I’d always pushed him away. Not anymore.

  “There’s only one thing left to explain.” I put my hand over his.

  “The bonfire.” He swallowed, Adam’s apple bobbing, and took a deep breath. “Okay, here goes. I’m really sorry it went down that way. Believe me, it wasn’t my intention. I just wanted you to know the truth about your brother.”

  “How long have you known about James?” I squeezed his hand, willing him to tell me more, even as fireflies did cartwheels in my middle.

  He turned up his palm and laced his fingers between mine. “Since I took over as president. I wanted to tell you as soon as you joined Nexis. But then you ran away. And I’m glad you did.”

  “You’re glad I didn’t join Nexis?” I glanced over at him, studying the outline of his profile in the glow of the streetlights.

  “I am. You’re much smarter than I am.” A rueful smile played across those oh-so-kissable lips. “At least about Nexis. I wanted you to join for purely selfish reasons. Mainly so you wouldn’t join the Guardians. But I thought I could protect you. Now, I’m not so sure.”

  “I don’t know how smart I am,” I admitted, gnawing on my bottom lip. “I just listen to my heart. Even if it means doing something dumb.”

  “That’s not dumb. That’s honest.” His hand slid to my knee.

  I stopped breathing for one. Two. Three seconds.

  He cleared his throat. “That night, at the bonfire, I wanted to go somewhere a little more secluded. Break the news to you gently. But you were so stubborn about it. Like it’d be so terrible to be alone with me. I guess I understand now, with the Guardians feeding you all those lies. Then you called me out in front of all your friends. I got angry. Too angry. And I snapped.”

  “Oh.” My gaze snapped to his profile.

  “I’m sorry. You deserve better than that.” He stopped at another light, face dappled in the red glow.

  I blinked, staring at his hand. Still on my knee. “Yeah, I remember. I called you creepy. But in my defense, they said God told you to marry me or something weird like that. I guess I shouldn’t have believed them.” It all sounded so ridiculous right now.

  “What?” He yanked his hand back and punched the steering wheel. “That’s messed up.”

  “Tell me about it.” I paused, hoping he might take my sarcasm literally.

  “Why would they say that? Because I asked if you were engaged?” He ran a hand through his golden locks, mussing up his perfect party hair. “I knew that would come back to bite me in the butt.”

  I cracked up a little at that, and Will laughed, too. Then he found my hand again. “There’s more to the story though. There’s a reason why James left.”

  “Why he left? I thought he got kicked out.” I scrunched up my forehead at him.

  He gave me a headshake. “Nexis banished him because he wasn’t the Seer. But they couldn’t kick him out of Montrose.”

  “I don’t understand. Then why would he live in the chapel, and run away to Europe?” I stared at him as his car whizzed over the bridge.

  He slowed for a car in front of us, his voice low. “I think it’s because of what happened to Maria Donovan.”

  I sucked in a breath, tensing every muscle. Bracing for impact. “What did happen to Mindy’s sister?”

  His jaw twitched as he stopped at another red light. “She was a Guardian spy. She was dating James. Trying to turn him. But it backfired. Big time.”

  “No.” The truth slammed me into the seat, even as the car lurched forward. I couldn’t think. Couldn’t breathe. Because I knew it was true—it was the Guardian way, after all.

  The city lights were more sporadic now as we approached Riverdale.

  A lone muscle in Will’s jaw twitched as he spilled the whole story. “I don’t know what happened exactly. No one does. The security patrol says she followed them to James’ banishment. When he tried to escape, she ran, too, and fell into the river. They say James reached out for her, tried to save her, and would’ve gone in, too. Except the guards were able to grab him and pull him back. It was a horrible accident.”

  “How awful. For Maria. For James.” I covered my face with my hands, rocking back and forth in my seat. The second I closed my eyes, all the visions I had ever had of that night collided into one.

  The field. James reaching out. The cavernous abyss. Maria falling.

  And suddenly I was there.

  On the muddy banks of the Hudson, with James on his knees.

  Rocking back and forth, back and forth. Hands over his face. Sobbing as I’ve never seen him sob before.

  I wrapped my arms around him, hoping that wherever he was he could feel it.

  James looked up at me. “It’s all my fault,” he whispered.

  “It’s not your fault.” I whispered back.

  The gray mist rolled in and my brother faded into the shadows.

  Will grabbed my hand, rubbing in circles. “I know, but I still should’ve told you sooner. Should’ve tried harder. Even after you ran away from me that day after junior assembly, I should’ve followed you. Made you listen.”

  “I don’t know.” I shook my head, trying to remember what we were just talking about. “I don’t know if I could’ve handled it all then.”

  “Maybe not, but you deserved to know the truth. So you could make up your own mind.” He squeezed my hand.

  “I’m not sure what to do with that.” Silence and miles of dark streets rolled by as my world turned upside down again.

  “Yeah. I just thought you should know.” He exhaled a long breath that fogged up the windshield for a minute.

  “Thanks, I think.” I leaned back as he pulled into the Montrose parking lot.

  “They say the truth will set you free.” He turned off the car and just sat there. Staring at me.

  “Not sure how that applies here.” I couldn’t look at him. Not yet.

  “I don’t know. Maybe now you’ll finally be free to make
up your own mind. Figure out what you really want.” Will still held my hand, caressing my palm with the back of his thumb. “What do you want, Lucy?”

  “I don’t know.” Tingles shot up my wrist as a strange feeling settled in my stomach. Maybe I did know, and I just didn’t want to admit it yet.

  Like that night in the kitchen. When he almost kissed me. The goosebumps were still there, but my heart was a pendulum. Swinging back and forth between the guy next to me and the one who chose the Guardians over me.

  “I’m so confused.” Still, I scooted next to him. Until our shoulders touched over the console.

  His lips curled up as he dipped his face toward mine. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t you come to the Nexis meeting tomorrow? There’s something I want to show you.”

  “What? How’s that going to help?” I lifted my gaze to meet his.

  “Trust me, it’ll be worth it. What do you say?” His gray eyes sent my heart pounding.

  “Fine. I guess I can trust you for five seconds.” Somehow I felt like I was about to give in to the dark side, but this guy put even a young Darth Vader to shame.

  “Good. Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” Those platinum eyes moved to my lips. But he sat still. Hovering mere inches away.

  My heart drummed a new rhythm, in time to his breathing. Before I could blink, let alone think, I leaned forward and brushed my lips against his soft mouth. A spark zinged straight through me, and I inched back. Did he see?

  “I shouldn’t.” I whispered, unable to tear myself away from the proximity of his hot breath on my face.

  “I know.” He murmured against my mouth. “But I’ll be here when you’re ready. I’ll always be here.”

  “Thanks, Will.” I breathed in a lungful of his spicy scent and touched two fingers to his lips. The look he gave me, longing mixed with contentment, made me want to give him more. Instead, I opened the door and walked into the cold night.

  ***

  “They’re not going to like this, but I don’t care.” A muscle in Will’s jaw twitched.

  What was he thinking when he did that? I wanted to ask, but instead I traced the golden nameplate with my fingertip. “It says Stanton Observatory. Right here.” I tapped the plaque with my index finger, raising my eyebrows at him.

  Those metallic eyes were a blade. Level and steady. Trained on me. Holding me in place like he knew I wanted to run away from this place.

  “You’re right about that, smart girl.” Will led me into the dim foyer of the only place on campus named after him. Or his family at least. The one and only Nexis headquarters. With one strong arm, he steadied me as we ascended up the familiar spiral staircase of the Nexis tower. In the observatory he seated me in the back row of chairs, next to Shanda and Mindy. Then he made his way up front.

  “Personal escort, nice.” She shot me a half smile.

  “Let’s call this meeting to order.” The hum of whispers grew louder, until Will cleared his throat. “What’s on the agenda tonight?”

  He glanced at Kevin, but before Shanda’s ex could say a word someone scraped their chair back with a horrifying screech. Like nails on a chalk board.

  “Since when do we invite outsiders to attend official Nexis meetings? Especially those with Guardian affiliations.” Colleen flipped her brassy hair at me, impaling me with her tawny glare.

  “You can’t take the prep school out of this girl,” Shanda muttered under her breath.

  Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I wrapped my fingers around the cool edges of my metal folding chair.

  Bam! Will pounded his fist into the podium. “Last time I checked, I’m the president of this group, not you. And I’ll invite whoever I want.” His mouth pursed into a solid line. He wasn’t messing around.

  “Four more months. Then we’ll see.” She whipped her head back toward him. Was that why Collen kept pulling all these crazy stunts? Did she really want to be Nexis president?

  “Get a life,” I muttered under my breath.

  In the front of the room, Will squared his shoulders and cleared his throat. “Now, if there are no other objections, I’ll continue. Where were we, Kevin?”

  “Right, the agenda.” Kevin stood up, rattling on about something.

  I barely heard him. I couldn’t stop staring at Will. Especially because he stared right back at me. My lips curled into a smile like they had a mind of their own. His shoulders visibly relaxed. Part of me wanted to run up and hug him like the brave defender he was. The look he gave me sent tingles shooting up my spine. Maybe this was the real Will Stanton, the one I’d failed to see from the beginning. If only I could be 100% sure.

  Out of nowhere, a musty stench wafted in. I glanced around the room. And froze.

  Black shadows snaked around the floorboards, uncoiling like ropes of mist and hissing as they circled the cluster of folding chairs. I gripped the edge of my seat—knuckles white, blood pounding in my ears. My eyes darted around the room as the demon snakes headed straight for me.

  I sucked in a breath and closed my eyes. Angel, please come. Please, God, send me your angel.

  No. I heard the word inside my head, as clear as if he spoke it out loud. My heart galloped into my lungs, leaving me gasping for breath.

  Why not? Fear seized my throat so I couldn’t utter a word.

  You’ll see, was all the reply I got.

  The odor putrefied, curdling the contents of my stomach. I wanted to retch, or run, or both.

  Will’s eyes widened, then focused on our favorite blonde. He marched up to Colleen and snatched a book out of her hands. “Do you have permission to take this from the chamber?”

  The shadows stopped circling, almost as if they were frozen. Chamber, what chamber? The word rang in my ears, somehow calming me a smidge.

  “Ssshh, she’ll hear you.” Colleen hissed, green eyes flashing at me.

  “I don’t care. This isn’t yours to take. I’ll have to return it.” He tucked the book under his arm and walked away.

  “Fine,” she mumbled, crossing her arms and pouting like a petulant child.

  Without looking back, he came and sat in the empty chair beside me, setting the book in his lap. The shadows retreated, fading away into the charcoal floorboards. The awful smell dissipated, too.

  I breathed in a gulp of fresh air, stench-free. My heartbeat slowed.

  “You okay, Lucy?” He slung his arm across the back of my chair as if he’d done it every day of the week.

  “I am now.” I nodded, my lips curling up at him.

  “Good.” His fingers brushed the edge of my shoulder, feathery soft.

  Blurry silhouettes filed out in front of me, down the spiral staircase, until only Will remained with me in the back of the dome.

  “What happened? Is the meeting over?” I glanced around the empty dome, wondering what I’d missed during my Colleen-induced vision.

  I longed to throw open the observatory window and kick my feet over the side like I did seven months ago. Talk to the moon as if she could really tell me her secrets. But I couldn’t move. Not when his fingers were toying with my shoulder.

  As soon as the last Nexis member left, Will cleared his throat. “It’s all going to be worth it when you see the Nexis Chamber for yourself.”

  “Are you kidding?” My heart lifted as I turned to study his face. “Isn’t that breaking the rules?”

  His lips curved at the corners. “About a dozen, give or take.”

  “A dozen? Really?” All the air rushed from my lungs. At least one guy didn’t mind breaking his secret society’s sacred rules for me. The fact that it was Will, and not Bryan, just resonated that much more.

  “I just want you to have choices for once in life.” Will’s words struck a chord, deep in the inner nooks and crannies of my heart—in the ruins Bryan left for dead.

  “Wow,” was all I could manage.

  “Of course, that means you’ll have to spend more time with me.” He reached for my hand and helped me up.

  “I thi
nk I can handle that.” A completely foreign feeling bloomed from the ashes. A strange, but exhilarating anticipation.

  I had to admit the truth, if only to myself. I was wrong about Will. Utterly and completely. Maybe that’s what he meant last night when he said the truth would set me free.

  As his eyes met mine, a shockwave rippled through the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t deny it any more. The shadows around him were gone. No more black, snake-like coils like I’d seen hovering over him last year. Instead, shards of pure light filtered through the gray mist around him in a mottled halo effect. My heart dive-bombed down my throat, slamming into the pit of my stomach.

  Maybe he was changing, too. Into a guy I could finally trust. But I had to be sure this time. I couldn’t make the same mistake again. My heart couldn’t take another beating.

  “You ready for your surprise?” he asked. The gray tendrils of mist around him dissipated, fading into nothing.

  I nodded, my eyes glued to the contours of his face.

  His mouth quirked up, and he took my hand, pulling me down the evil spiral staircase. Then he stopped suddenly, planting his feet in place. Flattened his palm on the black wall, his fingers tapped out some silent code.

  Whoosh, a black door opened a gaping hole in the wall. Scratch that. A doorway.

  He nudged me into the secret room, and my jaw hinged open at the sight that greeted me.

  Chapter 18

  “Shanda? What’re you doing here?” I asked, stepping into the tiny half-moon shaped room.

  “About time,” she hissed, slamming her fist into a button on the wall.

  Swiiish. The door behind me slid shut like it had never existed in the first place.

  Streaks of moonglow slanted across the narrow, crescent-shaped walls of stone in front of me. The room was obviously on the outer wall of the tower, with high rectangular windows as the only source of natural light.

  Will headed straight to Shanda’s desk next to the secret door and switched on a green library lamp, rummaging through the drawers.