“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” was a force to be reckoned with. It followed me in from Lucy’s mom’s SUV, and now it was making my orange chicken taste a little sour. Lucy didn’t seem to mind, though, as her head bopped back and forth to the tune, and she manipulated her chopsticks like she’d been using them her whole life. I preferred a fork, and right now, I was contemplating shoving it into my eye. This song needed to stop.
“I hope my mom didn’t get lost,” Lucy giggled. “Either that, or she accidentally stumbled into Sephora on her way to the car.” Mrs. Burk, who never seemed to eat anything, had given us some money for lunch and said she’d be back later under the guise of taking the bags to the car, though I agreed with Luce; she was probably shopping again by now.
“So… how’s your sister?” Lucy asked, taking a slurp of her pop. “When will she be home?&rd
“You really do need to tell me what’s up with that,” I said, gathering up my trash and placing it on top of my mostly empty plate.Lucy took my tray like she was the waitress and stepped over to dump it into a nearby trash can before she returned to the table. Now that Liam was gone, and without her mother in sight, she sat back down. “I just don’t like him,” she replied with a shrug, pulling her phone out of her pocket.I knew Lucy well enough to know that there was more to it than she was letting on, but I didn’t question her further. Regardless of what Liam had just said about me, Lucy was gorgeous. She has long, dark-blonde hair that flows past her waist and bright blue eyes. She complains that her nose is too small, but I think it’s perfect. He could’ve just as easily have been talking about her being the prettiest girl in the mall.“Em said she wishes she would’ve come with us. Her dad is tr
We went to church on Christmas Eve like we have every year for as long as I can remember, but my mom was solemn the entire time, and I couldn’t really blame her. Even though I hoped my sister was having a good time on her date, I also missed her desperately. There was something missing when Cadence wasn’t there, not just on the outside, but on the inside as well. It was as if part of my heart had been stolen away from me. I tried not to think of the dangers she might be in, the threats that might come up against her because of her new situation, and focus instead on how happy she seemed to be, whatever she was these days.I’d wrapped the gift I’d purchased for Elliott but didn’t bother to put it under the Christmas tree. He wasn’t coming for Christmas either, obviously, if my sister wasn’t even going to make it home. I slipped it onto the top shelf of my closet, thinking he might show up sometime, sooner or later. He had sent me a tex
The house seemed quieter than usual when I opened my eyes just before dawn. There was a moment when it hadn’t quite registered that it was Christmas morning. Once I realized it was the most magical day of the year, my first instinct was to run next door and pounce on my sister so we could race each other down the stairs like we used to do when we were little. But everything came flooding back, hitting me like a ton of bricks, and I remembered, not only was Cadence not there, Cadence wasn’t really Cadence anymore, either, at least not the one I’d known back when both of us believed the only person who might be wandering around on our roof at night wore a big red suit instead of black leather.Nevertheless, I had made a Christmas wish, and I wanted to see if there was any chance of it coming true. So… dressed in my festive Christmas pajamas, the ones my mom had given me the night before, I tossed the covers off, slipped my feet into my Mukluks, and went
I think some of the statements I’m glossing over here may have actually shocked Cadence a little bit because her eyes were wide and no longer threatening tears. She agreed with me, though, and then she began to giggle, which made me happy. I was glad she could find me amusing even when she was obviously having a rough time. It made me want to go find Aaron McReynolds and kick him in his smug little overly-attractive face.Before any of us could say more, the stairs behind us creaked, and I could hear my mom’s voice wondering aloud, “Who is Cassidy talking to?” I found it hard not to laugh that she couldn’t figure it out, but then, it wasn’t like we didn’t have all sorts of “people” sneaking in and out of our house at all times of the day and night.Cadence managed to pull her legs out of the throw she’d had over top of her and swivel around so she could get up before I even fully turned my body. I caught Ellio
My dad came in with three cups of coffee and exclaimed, “Let the Christmas present opening begin!” He handed one to Elliott and one to my mom, and I wondered if he forgot that Cadence is also an adult.She was back now, looking kinda cute in her PJs, even though I could tell she was embarrassed. “Oh, don’t you look darling!” my mom exclaimed, making Elliott choke on his coffee before he agreed. My dad said nothing, only chuckled, and I decided I’d had about enough of their stalling.“Can we open our stockings now, pretty please?” I asked, taking advantage of my non-coffee-drinking childhood.“Yes, you may,” my mom said, emphasizing what she considered to be correct grammar, and I approached the mantle, handing my sister her stocking before I took mine.“I guess Santa knew where I’d be at this morning after all,” Cadence mumbled, her voice sounding a little sad. We cross
Once my parents were settled in front of the TV in the living room, my dad reading the paper and my mom crocheting, I headed to the kitchen, looking for something to do, and decided I could empty the dishwasher since my mom and sister had done the dishes earlier. I’d just pulled out my mom’s heavy serving platter when Elliott’s voice startled me. It slipped from my fingers, but before it could hit the ground, he dashed across the room and caught it.I looked up in awe. He’d crossed about ten feet in less than a second, faster than gravity. I stared at him as we both clutched the dish. “How did you…?”He didn’t answer. “Didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, taking it from me and opening the correct cabinet and sliding it inside exactly where it belonged.“It’s okay,” I mumbled, turning back to the dishwasher. “I guess I should be used to that now. I’ve seen it enough ti
The next morning, I took my time getting up, showering, dressing, and hauling myself down the stairs. Christmas magic was long since gone, and I looked at the Christmas tree with disdain, wishing it would fold up its branches and put itself away.My parents were in the kitchen, chatting with Elliott over leftover cinnamon rolls. They all greeted me when I came in, but I proceeded to march to the coffeemaker with little more than a mumble in their general direction. I poured a steaming cup of joe, added almost half as much cream, two cubes of sugar, and stirred it up. I’d never drank coffee before, but I had decided I was an adult now, and adults drank coffee.It was awful. I almost gagged it tasted so bad. Despite my attempt to make it sweet, it was bitter and gritty. I wanted to dump it down the sink, but I couldn’t let them through my façade, so I took my steaming cup of poo into the living room and found a seat by the window, staring out into the
I was in my room trying to decide what to use the gift cards on that my grandma had given me for Christmas when my sister came in. She did a little half-knock but didn’t really wait for me to say anything, which was fine, just not like her. I set my laptop aside when I saw her face, and she plopped down next to me on the bed, wrapping her arm around my waist and slumping against my shoulder.A little caught off guard, I said, “Hi,” but it came out more like a question. One of my favorite songs was playing on Spotify, but I leaned over and turned it down, thinking she must have something she wanted to say.“Hi,” Cadence said quietly. The room grew silent again, and I debated asking her all of the questions that were dancing in my head, the ones Elliott had answered and the ones he’d evaded. I knew my sister had a secret life now, one she wasn’t able to talk about, and it was increasingly frustrating to be around her but not be a
Cadence was glowing, holding both of her babies, one in each arm. I smiled at her and then focused on Josephina. She wasn’t crying now, but her little face was wrinkled as if she might burst into tears at any moment. Aaron had his hand on her back, beaming with pride as he looked at his little family. Jamie and another Healer, Ona, were cleaning up a tray table, but I caught his eye, and he winked at me. I hoped he could tell how grateful I was. If it wasn’t for him and his life saving blue magical healing powers, not to mention his medical skills, Cadence never would’ve come back to life.“Where’s my new favorite lil girl?” Elliott asked beside me.“Hey! I’m your lil girl. You’re going to have to think of something else to call her.” I threw an elbow at him.“Oh, I’m just teasing,” Elliott assured me. “Still, she is definitely lil. And she is my girl.”“I&rsqu
I’ll never forget the day my sister died. Even now, eight months later, sitting outside of Jamie’s operating room with Brandon’s hand in mine, every time I think about what happened that day, I get tears in my eyes. So many things could’ve gone differently, if only one of us would’ve made a different choice. I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on what I could’ve done differently myself that day, and even though everyone tells me there’s no point in dwelling on it, what’s done is done, it still haunts me sometimes when I’m trying to fall asleep at night, when I can so vividly see Cadence hanging there in the air before she plummeted to the ground, the whoosh of power that left my hand just missing its mark.The new Hunter Leader is a guy named Daniel Bower. He came in from California a few months ago. He’s awesome. I’ve known him for a while. He’s the one who helped capture Professor Stewart after th
I continued to beg and plead with her to come back to us. At fifteen minutes, Scarlet’s whispers were loud enough for me to detect what she was saying to Cale. “How long will he give it?”“I don’t know.” Cale seemed agitated and upset, certainly more connected to my sister than Scarlet. “Not yet.”“Please... Cadey, please.” I felt as far and as deep as I could, thinking about how I’d had to go so very far into her brain to plant that dream. The clock continued to tick. Cadence still wasn’t breathing, and Jamie began to sound desperate. At twenty-five minutes, when Jamie said “thirty,” his voice broke. He knew that the chances of her coming back to us now, after this long, were minute at best. He couldn’t give up, though. We couldn’t give up.Aaron blew two breaths of air into my sister’s lungs, and Jamie started counting again.Something was diff
After Aaron finally moved forward, I followed, staying back a little bit. I didn’t want to see her like that. I had never seen a person’s body after they’ve fallen that far, but I could imagine what it was like.Only when I finally did take a few hesitant steps around the trees, Brandon’s hands on my shoulders, she didn’t look like I expected her to at all.Cadence was lying flat on the ground with her hands folded over her abdomen, sort of like Snow White. Her feet were out straight, and her hair was blown out around her. She looked absolutely beautiful. And still. So very, very still.Jamie was doing chest compressions, and when it was time to breathe, Aaron did that for my sister. Some sort of automatic pilot must’ve turned on for him because his movements were very robotic. Jamie would say thirty, and Aaron would breathe into my sister’s open mouth twice before Jamie started counting again.Tears were rolling
“No!” My scream echoed across the mountainside as I watched in horror as my sister fell. I cannot guide what I cannot see, and I didn’t have a chance to get a grip on her before she plummeted. My hands shot out in her direction, but the surge of power I’d sent to grab her went over her head. I saw a streak of blue do the same and knew Jamie had missed as well.Fumbling through Cadence’s stream of consciousness, I tried again, hoping I’d be able to figure out how to get my powers around her before she hit the ground, but she was moving too fast, and without my eyes on her, I wouldn’t be able to get a grip.Part of me wanted to at least jump into her head, to be with her, to let her know she was okay, but then, the thought of what she was about to endure, when she hit the tops of the trees and then cascaded down through them to the earth, I couldn’t bear the thought, and I knew she wouldn’t want me to see it.I
“Brandon!” I shouted, floating over to where he had disappeared. He didn’t answer, and I realized he must’ve fallen all the way in. “Dang it.” I looked around the battlefield. I knew he was safe down there, but I hated that he was in that miserable place. Cadence was firing at Daunator now while Christian moved in, to place the grenade, I assumed, so I thought perhaps she’d be safe for a few minutes. I decided to help Brandon.“Are you all right?” I asked, using my telepathy.“Thank goodness,” he thought, probably not even to me. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just really dark in here.”“I know. Hold on, and I’ll get you out.”“If I hold on, won’t it be harder for you to get me out?”“All right smarty pants.” I needed to focus all of my energy if I was going to do this
“You okay?” Brandon shouted to me as he moved a little closer to where I was standing. The holes in the ground were not shaking now as much as they had been before, but they were still an obstacle we had to consider. I didn’t want him to get too close because of my tornadoes, but I was glad he was nearby.“Great,” I called back, sending another pile of creatures over the side of the mountain.Aaron was fighting his way through the crowd of black creatures, working his way to Cadence. The path was getting clearer, as far as the minions were concerned, but once he got within about a hundred yards of Cadence’s location, one of the Vampires that had been engaged with our forces closer to the top of the mountain broke off, clearly on his way to intercept the Guardian Leader.Whether he liked it or not, Aaron wasn’t alone now. I wasn’t sure where she’d come from, but Eliza was running parallel to him, fighting off
Moving the black creatures off of the ledge worked well, and I was just starting my second round when I realized my sister had taken off running toward Daunator. Christian had reached him already, a grenade in his hand. I prayed he didn’t get sucked down into another hole. The fact that Cadence was so far away from Aaron was worrisome, but he was busy with the creatures. While Cadence was slowed a few times by the minions sinking their teeth into her arm or grabbing at her heels, for the most part, they seemed to be letting her through, which seemed like a bad sign to me. Did Daunator want her to fight him?A blast of light illuminated the mountain, and then a wave of smoke obscured my view of Christian and Daunator. He’d thrown a grenade, the old kind, the ones he knew wouldn’t work. When the smoke cleared, Daunator’s laughter echoed through the air, and Christian went flying twenty feet in the air.Paul’s voice came over the IAC as I tos
Christian’s eyes widened. “Get out of here? We can’t. We have to get Daunator.”“We will. But for now, we need to go back and regroup. The most important thing is that you’re safe now,” Cadence explained to him.Christian was starting to freak out again. “No, Cadence, you don’t understand. We can’t just leave from here! We can’t just let him go!” His eyes were wild, and he reached forward and grabbed my sister’s shoulders. That lasted about half a second before Aaron grabbed him and pulled him off.“Listen, Christian, I agree. It’s important we come back and end this, but you need medical attention. And a good visit with Hannah.”And a shower, I thought to myself. But I was staying out of this one for the moment. I felt a stirring in the ground and a shift in energy somewhere further up the mountain. The argument was about to be moot.“No,