Chasing Xaris (15 page)

A

RI
halted. His eyes widened, then flickered with fear. In a whirl, he shut the bedroom door and turned to me.

“What are you doing here?” he whispered.

His harsh tone rocked me backward, until I was pressed against the cool stucco wall. I couldn’t speak.             

“Chandler,” Ari said, gentler. “Say something.”

“What are you doing here?” I whispered.

He stared at me without blinking. “You want to know what I am doing here? In my house?”
He gave me a strained smile. “Nick and I were in Delphi’s suite.”

“Ah.” I sneaked a glance at the windows and wondered how fast I could climb back down the lattice.

“Chandler, why are you here?” Ari strode toward me. His clothes looked almost silver in the moonlight.

I took a deep breath. “I brought people here. The guys who killed my parents kidnapped me and my friends—Jordan and Winnie. My teacher is one of them.”

I wanted to stop talking, but I had to get it out. “They threatened my friends, and so I had to bring them here. I’m crazy sorry, Ari. I know you probably hate me, but I really want to make it right. That’s why I’m here. I escaped—”

“Where are they?” Ari’s voice was a low rumble. He sounded ready to kill. Me?

He stepped closer, his eyes softening. “I’ll take care of them, Chandler. Just tell me where to find them.”

I blinked. He
was going to help me. Instantly, I thought of everything I had said to him. I’d even called him a murderer. But he wasn’t. I didn’t blame him for my parents’ deaths anymore. Not after looking Gene and Mr. Whit in the eyes.

“Did they hurt you?” Ari asked, assessing me.

“No,” I said. Other than killing my parents, they hadn’t.

“Do you know where they are?” he asked.

“I left them near the old Chronis House, but they’re headed this way to get one of the vault keys. They think they’re in your treasury because of Santiago’s journal.”

“They won’t find a key
there,” he said.

“I know.” I paused. “Um, so, also… my teacher and his brother have guns.”

“
Chandler?
” Nikandros stood in the doorway with his spear.

Ari stepped in front of me.

“There are four other foreigners on the island, Nick,” Ari said. “They’re after our stone.”

Nikandros’ eyes went to mine, widening.

“She was brought to our island against her will, Nick,” Ari added.

“But how did any of them come here?” he asked.

“I gave Chandler xaris when I helped her escape.” Ari’s voice was calm, but I could see the tension coiling in his shoulders.

“Have you lost your mind?” Nikandros demanded. “You’ll be killed if the people discover that.”

“That’s why we must find the foreigners immediately. There are only four, five if you include Chandler. Only two have guns—the other two are captives.”

“And what if we fail? What if the people discover this? They
will assume we still consider ourselves above the law. We could trigger another war.” His eyes filled something deeper than anger. “Our mother would have died for nothing, Ari.”

Ari’s back stiffened. “We’ll find the men tonight, Nick. No one will know.”

“I hope you’re right.” Nikandros peered over his shoulder into the suite’s main room. “I’ll bid Delphina goodnight for us, and then we can go.”

Ari squeezed his brother’s shoulder. “Thank you, my brother.”

Nikandros gave him a grim nod, then disappeared through the door.

Ari exhaled slowly.

“I’m really sorry, Ari,” I said, but the words sounded so small.

Ari faced me, his sho
ulders sagging. He looked weary and I knew it was my fault. I had put him in an impossible situation. Again. Worse, I had betrayed his trust.

“And I’m so sorry for what I said before—” I began.

“It will be all right,” Ari said. “We’ll find your friends.”

I nodded, thinking of Jordan and Winnie. I had no idea if they were all right. If they were hurt. If Gene had snapped… They had to be terrified. But I was doing everything I could. I’d found help.

Quick footsteps approached.

I turned in time to see Delphina striding straight toward me with her spear. Her sandals slapped against the tile. Her dark hair swung wildly.

“Chandler,” she said. Her eyes narrowed, like she was mentally jabbing her spear into my body.

Nikandros stood in the doorway. “I had to tell her,” he said.

“Delphi, this is not your concern,” Ari said, eying her spear.

“Of course it is.” Delphina moved toward me, but Ari stopped her with his hand.

“Do not bar my way, Ari,” she said, smacking the staff of her spear against Ari’s forearm. He grunted but didn’t let go.

“Nick, why did you tell her?” Ari asked.

“She has every right to know,” he replied.

“You should have been the one to tell me,” Delphina said. Her cheeks were flushed. Her dark eyes glittered. “Not that you remembered me when you helped this filthy foreigner escape, only for her to bring back others.”

Ari was silent.

“Do you think I am blind to your feelings?” Delphina asked. “Why else would you risk everything to help her?”

My cheeks burned at her words, at what they meant. Was she serious?

“Delphi,” Ari said softly.

“Is she the reason you wish to leave our island?” Delphina asked.

“No. I’ve wanted that for years. Delphi, you know how long I’ve felt like a prisoner.”

“Prisoner,” Delphina murmured. She
sighed and dropped her spear to her side. “We are betrothed, and you call yourself a prisoner. Does that make me your warden?”

“Betr
othed?” I asked. “You guys are engaged?”

“I assumed you told her,” Delphina said to Ari.

“And I thought you had,” Ari replied. He rubbed his forehead and sighed. “We’ve been betrothed since childhood, Chandler. The union of our families will end the threat of war.”

“It’s our duty.” Delphina searched Ari’s face. “Isn’t it, Ari?”

“It’s more than that,” Ari said.

Delphina shook her head slowly. “No. I don’t think it is.” She narrowed her eyes. “Did you plan this, Ari? Do you want foreigners to take away our xaris?”

“Are you mad?” Ari asked.

“You’re always talking about how we keep xaris all to ourselves. How we should disperse it.”

“This is hardly the way I’d choose to disperse it, Delphi. I want to capture the foreigners as much as you do.”

Delphina eyed him. “Fine. Then we should leave. But we aren’t bringing Chandler with us. She’ll only slow us down.”

“No, I won’t,” I said. “My best friends are being held at gunpoint. I’m not staying here.”

“We can’t leave her unguarded,” Nikandros said.

“She comes with us,” Ari said. He strode to the windows. “It will be less conspicuous if we climb down the lattice.”

“Wait, aren’t we bringing guns?” I asked. But I couldn’t look him fully in the face. Not after what Delphina had just declared so loudly.

Ari shook his head without looking at me. I could hardly blame him—first I’d called him a murderer and then Delphina had accused him of being in love with me.             

“We’ll knock the guns from the foreigners before they can fire them,” Nikandros said.

“Spears against guns?” I asked. That was insane             

“We don’t have firearms on the island anymore,” Ari said.

“Seriously?” I asked. Jordan and Winnie were Gene’s prisoners. They needed a serious rescue with serious weapons.

“What about some kind of xaris
weapon?” I asked.

Delphina glared at me, her lips pressed tight. “There is our misos
stone. But it isn’t xaris, and we won’t use it as a weapon.”

“Why not?” I asked.

“You’re a foreigner—you wouldn’t understand,” she said.

“Chandler, our spears are enough,” Ari said. “We’ll save your friends.”

He looked me fully in the face and I saw what Delphina had seen. It was so obvious now. But I honestly hadn’t seen it before.

“I’m not slowing my pace for stragglers,” Delphina said. She crossed to the window and began her descent without looking back.

Nikandros followed her out, and I hurried to the window. Ari didn’t try to assist me, but he did let me mount the lattice first.

I tried not to look at Ari as we climbed, but my eyes kept drifting in h
is direction. He cared about me and I’d hurt him so deeply. I needed to apologize, but how could I now? I just kept climbing—and hoping Ari wouldn’t start a conversation about it. I’d only hurt him if we talked.

When I finally reached the ground, the other two were waiting for us.

“We must be quiet,” Delphina said to me. “So don’t go stomping around like a pregnant elephant.”

“We’ll head east,” Ari said, his gaze flickering to the
jungle ahead. “The foreigners are searching for our home—our goal is to intercept them before that happens. Remember, two of the foreigners are innocent.”

Delphina huffed. “I doubt that.”

“They’re prisoners,” I snapped.

“So you say,” she said.

“We’ll stick to the Hunters’ trails,” Ari said.

I frowned, and he added, “They are unmarked trails. They will help us move unnoticed as we search.”

“I hope you can keep up,” Delphina said, and then she took off running toward the line of palms and mangroves.

The brothers exchanged a look. Nikandros shrugged and followed Delphina. Ari waved me forward and together we sprinted into the jungle. Delphina stayed at the front of our little group, and I struggled to keep up. For someone with short legs, the girl could seriously move.

As we ran, I thought I heard Delphina say something that sounded a lot like “pregnant elephant.” But I had no idea how to run as silently as the three of them. I just focused on Ari’s back in front of me and poured all my energy into my legs. My muscles strained, and I knew couldn’t keep up this pace for long.

Minutes passed and I kept on sprinting. My ears rang. Pressure pounded behind my knees, my eyes, but I kept running. For Jordan and Winnie, I’d keep running.

But finally Ari slowed to a stop. I glanced past him, gasping for breath, and saw the olive orchard just ahead. The trees were just as giant as I remembered and the leaves just as silver in the moonlight. At the base of one of those trees, I saw two people tied and gagged.

Jordan and Winnie.

M

Y
stomach lurched. They weren’t moving.

I started forward, but Ari grabbed my arm. His hands were slick with sweat.

“Wait,” he whispered. “It could be a trap.”

“I don’t care,” I replied, but the words were barely audible above my gasping.

“You can’t help your friends if you’re dead,” he said.

“But what if…”

“They’re all right, Chandler. Can’t you see?”

“They are?” I peered forward, and that was when I saw Jordan’s neck jerking back and forth. He was straining against the bonds.

“He’s okay,” I whispered. Tears kept streaming down my cheeks. “They’re okay.”

“Yes,” Ari said, dropping my arm. His eyes were darker and wearier than I’d ever seen them.

“Maybe they aren’t really prisoners,” Delphina said.

“Of course they are,” I snapped. “What is with you? They’re in trouble, and they need our help. Can’t you just get that?”

Delphina raised an eyebrow at me. “Fine. Let’s assume that they’re prisoners. It could still be a trap. The other foreigners are luring us into the clearing so they can shoot us.”

“
I don’t care,” I said. “I’m freeing my friends.”

I started to move forward, but Ari grabbed my arm again.

“No,” Ari said. “Wait here. I’ll go.”

“No one is going anywhere,” a familiar voice said.

Prytanis strode forward with his spear, his shirt half-open and rippling in the wind. His fierce eyes were fixed solely on me.

I backed away from him, but he came forward all the faster, aiming his spear at my throat.

Ari slapped his father’s spear away with his own. He planted himself between his father and me.

“Do not fight me,
gie mou
,” Prytanis growled. He looked from Ari to Nikandros to Delphina. “What have you done? People saw the three of you leave our home with the foreigner. What has happened?”

Ari held out his hand. “The fault is mine, Father. Two wicked men are here, searching for the misos. They brought Chandler and her friends to our island against their will.”

Prytanis stared at me with glittering eyes. “She brought them here with the xaris she stole from us.”

“I gave her xaris in case she needed to return,” Ari said.

Prytanis’ face paled. “That can’t be true.”

“It’s not.” I fought to step around Ari, but he wouldn’t let me any closer to his father. “I came here on my own, without Ari’s help,” I said.

“You won’t take my punishment, Chandler,” Ari said. The muscles in his neck flexed as he raised his chin. “Father, if you want to sentence someone as a criminal, it should be me. I’m the traitor. Chandler is innocent—she and her friends were brought here against their will.”

“With her xaris,” Prytanis argued.

“Which I gave to her,” Ari said.

The two warriors stared at each other, both gripping their spears, neither blinking.

I didn’t breathe. The air felt too thin.

“I can’t keep this situation from our people,” Prytanis said finally. “You must not speak of your part in it.”

“I won’t stay quiet if you sentence Chandler as a
parabatis
,” Ari said.

Prytanis’ lips flattened into a straight line. “Don’t you realize what will happen if you confess your part? You will destroy the fragile peace we’ve built through blood. Your own mother…” His voice cracked, and I saw pain flash in his eyes. He gestured in Delphina’s direction, his silver-black braids shaking. “Think of the price your betrothed has paid. How many years has she lived fatherless?”

“That isn’t Ari’s fault,” Delphina said. “And you can’t put the blame for tonight on Ari’s shoulders either.”

“I don’t,” Prytanis snapped. “I put the blame on all of you. Delphina, you should—”

“Delphi has done nothing wrong,” Nikandros interrupted. “She’s only tried to help Ari.”

Prytanis raised an eyebrow. “You are eager to defend your future sister.”

Nikandros’ jaw flexed.

“Can’t we place blame after we’ve caught the foreigners?” Ari asked. “Our
first duty is to protect our people.”

Prytanis studied his son with a grim frown. “So be it,” he said.

“There are four foreigners unaccounted for,” Ari said. “The younger two are captives.” He gestured ahead to the olive orchard where Jordan and Winnie were bound. “The older two have firearms.”             

Prytanis cursed. “Firearms?”

“Only two,” Ari replied.

“Two firearms are still dangerous,” Prytanis said.

“But we can overpower them,” Nikandros said. “If we assembled the Hunters, we would outnumber the gunmen fifty to one. They only have so many bullets.”

“Then more Greek blood would spill because of foreigners,” Prytanis said. His gray eyes met mine. “I won’t allow another
Aletheian to die at foreign hands. Not one.”

“But we have to fight them,” Nikandros argued.

“There is another way,” Prytanis said. “We will use our misos stone.”

Delphina’s eyes widened. Ari and Nikandros exchanged a look.

“We can’t control what our stone will devour,” Ari said. “The elders specifically warned us away from it. We would be wise to heed their advice.”

“I am your
pateras
. You would be wise to heed mine.”

“But what about your shield?” I asked.

Prytanis fixed his harsh stare on me. “Are you concerned for us, foreigner?” he spat.

Ari held out his hand, keeping his father from me. “The shield will weaken,” Ari said. “But it won’t drop if we return the stone to the vaults quickly enough.”

“We must head south,” Prytanis said. “We’ll retrieve the misos stone from the vault before one of our kin stumbles upon the gunmen first.” He strode away from us. “Come, we must hurry. Leave the younger foreigners to their bindings. It is most likely a trap, which means the gunmen are near. I will return with the stone.”

He began sprinting, deeper into the jungle, as we all watched. No one spoke.

“He truly means to use it,” Delphina said finally.

“We must stop him,” Ari said.

Delphina met his gaze and nodded.

She exchanged a glance with Nikandros, and they took off after Prytanis.

Ari moved to follow them, then looked at me.

“I’ll catch up,” I said.
I had to free Jordan and Winnie before Prytanis came back.

I took off toward the olive orchard and heard Ari’s footsteps behind me.

“You don’t have to come,” I said.

“We must be quick,” he replied, racing ahead of me.

He reached the olive orchard first. By the time I neared, Jordan and Winnie were already free.

“Chandler!” Jordan collided into me, bringing us both to a hard stop. His arms wrapped around me tightly. “You’re okay?” he asked.

I nodded, but I so wasn’t okay. Everything was such a mess. I never should have given xaris to Mr. Whit and his brother. No, I never should have come to this island in the first place. I’d hurt so many people—I’d screwed up an entire civilization.

I buri
ed my face into Jordan’s soft tee shirt, breathing in the scent of sunblock and sand. But his smell made my chest ache, so suddenly and strongly that my knees shook.

“You’re
all right,” I whispered.

“Impressed?” he asked.

“Surprised,” I replied.

“Chandler!” Winnie said.

Jordan slipped away and stood back as Winnie hugged me.

“Are you all right?” she asked.

“I’m fine,” I said into her hair. “How are you doing?”

Winnie pulled back and gave me a strained smile. “I’m okay,” she said.

I squeezed her shoulders.

“Actually, I’m not okay,” Winnie continued. “Our teacher kidnapped us. He straight-up kidnapped us. And where are we? This island just appeared out of nowhere. That doesn’t happen. And I’m really sorry I fell when we were trying to escape. And who is he?” She pointed to Ari, who was studying Jordan with a faint frown.

“That’s Ari,” I said. He gave Winnie a stiff nod.

Jordan held out a hand to him. “Dude, you could have told me you were a shark slayer,” he said.

“That’s not the way of my people,” Ari replied. “Do you know where the gunmen went?” he asked Jordan and Winnie.

“They headed that way,” Winnie said, pointing south. “They kept getting turned around and got tired of dragging us with them.”

Ari surveyed the surrounding jungle with a frown.

“You think they’re still around?”
Jordan asked.

“This could be a trap,” Ari said.

“I really think they’ve left, man,” Jordan said. “They want to get the stone and peace out before morning. They’re not interested in trapping you guys. They want to avoid you.”

Ari studied
Jordan and then nodded.

“I believe you’re right,” Ari said.
He turned to me and pressed something into my palm, but his gray eyes barely met mine.

“Keep heading east
,” he said. “You’ll find a kayak on the beach.”

I glanced down and saw xaris glittering against my skin.

“
Yia sou
,” he said. And without another word, he turned and jogged into the jungle.

I stared after him, knowing he’d said goodbye. I wanted to respond, but the words wouldn’t come.

Ari had just given me an out. If I left now, I could get back to Gran. I could get Winnie and Jordan home safely, too. What time was it? Probably after midnight.

I needed to just take the xaris and escape from this place—and
never look back at the mess I’d left behind.

“I can’t,” I said.

“You can’t?” Jordan asked, coming to me.

“I can’t leave Ari,” I said. “Not now.”

Jordan’s eyes flickered. “Okay,” he said slowly.

“I’ve screwed everything up,” I said. “I’ve hurt this entire island.” I thought of the huge hall full of people I’d seen during my one dinner with them. The young faces
, and the old. What if they died because of me? What if a whole war broke out?

“I’m not leaving,” I said.

“Okay,” Winnie said. “We’ll stay with you.”

“No,” I snapped.

Winnie raised her eyebrows.

“Sorry.” I took a deep breath. “But please, you can’t stay here any longer. I’ll meet up with you back home.”

“No,” Jordan said. “That’s not going to happen, Miss Bloom.”

“Yes it is. You can’t die. Nobody else is going to die.”

Jordan’s face softened. He stepped forward and reached for my shoulders, but I pushed to stop him. My whole body was shaking.

“Just go,” I said. “Get off this island, okay?”

“We can’t leave you here alone,” Winnie said.

“Ari will look out for me,” I said.

Jordan’s eyes flickered.

“Chandler, put yourself in our shoes,” Winnie said. “What would you do?”

“I’d leave,” I said.

“Liar,” Jordan said. “Either come with us or accept that we’re all staying.”

“I can’t decide something like that,” I said, feeling a rush of heat.

“Then we’ll take a vote,” Jordan said. “Majority wins. Who votes that we stay on the island and help Ari?”

I raised my hand. Jordan raised his.

“So we’re staying,” Jordan said. He slung an arm around Winnie’s shoulders. “Are you cool with that?”

“Yeah,” she said, giving him a weak smile.

“Lead the way,” Jordan said to me.

I hesitated, but fighting Jordan about it anymore would just waste precious time.

I turned and led us south. Minutes passed, and my mind grew hazy. I’d gone numb, inside and out. Had I gone the right way? We hadn’t seen the vault yet. But I kept running, kept hoping it was around the next turn.

Thankfully, Winnie or Jordan didn’t complain about my pace. At least, I didn’t think they did. Maybe I was just tuning them out.

But then I distinctly heard my name.

“Chandler,” Winnie said again.

I slowed to a walk.

“What’s up?” I asked. But I didn’t turn around.

“Why didn’t you tell me about any of this?” she asked.

“I thought you’d take over,” I replied, and then pressed my lips together. I couldn’t believe I had just said that out loud.             

“I probably would have,” Winnie said.

I glanced over my shoulder, and she gave me a grim smile. I couldn’t believe how different she looked. Her hair was sticky with sweat, her upper lip was smeared with dried blood, and her lacy shirt was a muddied mess. But it was more than that. She was acting so different—so not perfect.