Chrysalis: The Emergence of Emery (The Gifted Series Book 1) (22 page)

This is probably the nicest place we’ve stopped at in the last three weeks. I never really realized just how many safe houses Kade had secured for us.

Five days after Elijah went with Sicily and Elodie, we moved on from where we were staying. Tristan told me it was a risk, staying there that long, it was too close to where the fight had happened, but I knew Kade had stayed in case Elijah came back. He was my brother and Kade loved me so he would do it for me. But he was also Kade’s best friend, his family, and I know that Kade wants him back as much as me—we all do.

Since then we have moved into five different houses. This one is my favorite. It’s light and airy, modern and pretty big. All the rooms are on the ground floor, but it’s not cramped in any way. The biggest bonus is that the house sits on a cliff, and has a huge backyard which overlooks the sea.

I sit at the boundary edge, the only noise is that of the waves crashing against the shore. It’s the closest to peace I’ve felt since Elijah left. But it’s not quite peaceful enough.

My hairs stand on end as I feel Kade before he arrives. His raw magnetism is connected to me, it’s times like these—when he’s walking up behind me—that I can sense the Pith connection between us.

“I’m okay,” I whisper softly. My voice floats forward on the breeze and anyone else, anyone
normal,
wouldn’t be able to hear me.

“You’re not, but it’s understandable, princess,” Kade answers, proving that he
always
hears me, even when I’m trying to hide.

I wrap my arms around my chest and let the first few tears silently escape from my eyes. I’ve cried so much, I’m sick of myself, but I feel helpless. Kade steps up behind me. His body is pressed against mine, the warmth somehow managing to wrap me up, even though his arms remain at his side.

“He’ll come back,” he states, his voice firm above my head.

Biting my lip, I continue to stare at the sea. Waves crash against the cliff’s edge, although I can’t see it, I can hear every movement. My senses are even sharper now the Convergence has fully woken up inside me. I thought there would be a struggle for supremacy, I thought there might be a chance I’d lose myself to
her.
I’ve since found out that’s never going to happen. She’s quiet, in the background but supportive, she’ll only appear if I’m in danger, and at those points I’m not going to complain about her arrival.

However, I can feel her drain, her pull on my natural self. I haven’t told anyone, not even Kade, he’d only worry more than he already is, and I sense that there’s little I can do. She’ll need to move into a pure host before I’ll be safe, but at least now I know I’m not condemning someone to this life. I know she’ll look after them forever, they’ll be safe, but I’m not sure if my old friends are the way to go. I sense the Convergence should settle in someone without family to mourn, someone who would be happy outliving their current life expectancy and who could welcome this new, unknown and sometimes slightly strange world into their lives.

“Emery, he’ll come back,” Kade tells me again.

I nod, allowing a small sigh to blow through my lips. Turning, I bury my face into his strong, firm, warm chest. Instantly, Kade wraps his arms around me, dropping his chin onto my head.

“I love you. Always you.” Kade’s voice vibrates through me, and I close my eyes, relaxing into him. Leaning down he lifts me up easily, placing his arm up my spine for support. I wrap my legs around his waist and pull back slightly. We stare at each other. Cupping the side of his face, my eyes follow my thumb as it moves across his cheek and brushes over his mouth. I admire the contrast of his face, the strong edged jawline against his full, soft lips. Then I take in his straight manly nose, and the deep hazel eyes, big and full of love.

I know that he’s waiting for me to do something, the last few days he’s taken a step back, allowed me space without actually giving me any real distance or time away from him. Every touch has been instigated by me, he’s making me set the pace, and as I take in his face, I realize that I’ve missed his touch, his kisses. I don’t want to push him away. Slowly I lean forward and tentatively place my lips against his, keeping our eyes locked the whole time, I move my mouth slowly, peppering kisses along his lips.

Suddenly his eyes ignite, gold blazes fiercely and it’s enough for me to let my eyelids close as Kade takes over. With one hand still supporting my back, he pushes the other into the hair at my nape. Nipping my lower lip, his tongue trails along the top, automatically I open, aware of what he wants and knowing I need it too. The second I do he slips his tongue into my mouth and touches it to mine, causing them to dance together. Kade groans down my throat and I feel my whole body tingle. It’s the first time in days that I’ve felt something real. My skin is prickly with need and my heart beats like it might punch out of my chest at any moment.

Kade pulls away and it takes a second for my brain to catch up, when it does I open my eyes and find I’m looking directly into his, the gold is still blazing and there’s a lopsided smile on his face. The fingers threaded in my hair move slowly, massaging my scalp.

“I’ve missed you,” I murmur, touching our lips lightly again.

“I’ve missed you too, princess. It’s been hell without you.” Kade’s voice is gentle but I can hear the pain laced throughout the words.

“I’m sorry,” I return, my heart squeezes as a sad smile appears on his face.

“Nothing to be sorry for
,
Emery. None of this was your doing. I have to say, if you were taken, converted to the dark...” he trails off, scrubbing a hand down his face. I keep my silence, waiting for him to finish whatever it is he needs to say, “I’d do the same as him.”

I gasp at his words, my mouth hanging open. Kade’s eyes drop and then I feel him move until he places his fingertips under my chin, closing my mouth.

“It shouldn’t surprise you, princess. You’re my world, above all else, above everything I fight for and everything I am. More than the battle of light and dark, and above the destruction of this world as we know it. There’s you. Above everything.”

My heart speeds up at his words and the emotions completely overwhelm me. A mixture of amazement, concern, and mostly relief, takes over my body and I close my eyes, dropping my forehead to his.

“It’s not right,” he mutters, and my body stills in his arms. “Princess, listen, I don’t mean what I feel for you isn’t right.” My breath releases and I sink into him. “It’s the fact that I’d let the whole world destroy itself before I’d let you go. That’s never been the way I’ve worked, but…” he shakes his head as a chuckle bubbles up from his throat, “…although I’m pissed that Elijah has gone, I do understand. If it were you...” He shrugs, and I get what Kade’s telling me. He pulls his head away until our eyes meet. “You’re the most important person in the world to me. Nothing comes above you, Emery. Nothing.” He stares at me for a few seconds before he moves, keeping me in his arms. He strides across the yard, into the house and right to the back where our bedroom is. Not using his super speed, instead going slow, the whole time keeping his eyes trained on mine. Sitting on the edge of the bed, with my body still wrapped around him, Kade’s eyes move over every inch of my face, leisurely, lovingly, almost like he’s scared he’ll forget.

“Kade?”

“I can’t have sex with you.”

My body jerks in his arms. Shock and concern course through my veins because I know we’ve already touched on this subject.

“W-What?”

“I’m sorry to throw it out there like that. It’s been on my mind since we spoke, it’s what I want, so much that my actions are almost uncontrollable. But it can’t happen, and I’m now starting to realize it’s going to be a long time before there’s even the small chance that it can.”

“Kade.” My voice wobbles with emotion.

“Shhh…” He strokes the side of my face. “I’ll explain in more detail.” His breath touches my cheek and it’s like a calm washes over me. “With normal Piths, you share each other’s powers by confirming you want to be together, choosing to becoming a couple allows the other to tap into their gifts. I’ve always told you that we’re different. You have my powers at your service, whenever you need them. You are the Princess of your House, 
your
powers cannot be freely given, but once we come together, your gifts will be at my fingertips, it’s a protection for you. And I already told you I can’t do it, Emery. I can’t take your powers, not while this war hangs over us, no matter how much I love you and how much I want you.” He strokes his thumb across my lower lip. “And trust me, I want you.”

Kade shakes his head as his eyes dip down. “I just can’t. The whole time, I’d be worried. Then at every fight I’d be scared that I’d take your powers, it’s not an emotion I’m used to feeling, I wouldn’t be able to fight properly. I’d put you, me, and others in danger, I need to always be at my best and at the top of my list is keeping you safe.” His eyes move back to meet mine and once again the golden color is like a fire facing me. “I plan on spending my life with you, Emery. However long that might be.” His words elicit a pain which jabs at my heart, the thought of not having Kade with me makes me feel hollow, and I know that I would be barely a shell if he left me.

I blink away the tears gathered in the corner of my eyes, the ones I’d been ignoring.

“Hey…” Kade soothes, kissing my wet, salty lips. “We have the rest of our lives to do what we want. Let’s just be happy we’ve found each other, and try to stop the dark from winning.” He kisses me again and moves back, placing his thumb on my lower lip. I quickly open my mouth and take his thumb between my teeth, letting my tongue swipe across the pad. His eyelids dip as the hunger swirls. “Doesn’t mean we can’t do other things… lots of other things,” he rumbles slipping his hand up the back of my top and tracing circles against my spine.

My breath catches in the back of my throat, and I close my eyes, leaning my forehead back against his. “Kade, just tonight, do whatever you can to help me forget, to make sure I remember what this fight is for. Show me that you love me,” I plead.

Kade lifts us both back up, then lays me down in the center of our bed.

“That, I’m more than willing and able to do. Your wish is my command, princess,” Kade tells me, then proceeds to show me just how much I’m loved, without breaking the protection I have on me. Protection that he deems so important, his love for me bigger than anything else I’ve ever known, felt or seen before.

“Elijah,” I shout. He’s across the field, but I know he can hear me. I see his head twitch when I call his name, but just like all the other times, he ignores me. “Elijah!” I scream louder, pushing my voice. I try to move, but both my legs are still Earthed. I swing my head to the right, seeing the back of the dark being who took control of my feet. A strange sense of familiarity washes over me and I tilt my head slightly wishing he would turn around.

“There’s no point trying, you should know when you’re beat,” Elodie sing-songs from next to me. I spin my head the other way, glaring at her, trying to shoot fire from my eyes even though I know it’s not one of my gifts.

Hopefully, it’s not a gift anyone possesses either.

“You shouldn’t believe everything that comes out of your own mouth, Elodie. You may have Elijah right now, but he’ll come back to the light. He’ll come back to me. It doesn’t matter what you say because I know it’s true, I’ll never give up,” I hiss out, anger bubbling up inside me.

Elodie throws her head back laughing. I feel the frown spread on my forehead and start paying attention to the situation I seem to have found myself in. I slowly peruse the field, dark beings are everywhere, and they seem to be creating some kind of machine—no, it’s a building. They’re building a base for something. I can see a tent, inside of which it looks like something is being worked on. Vials both empty and containing liquids are visible as are people with white coats, maybe scientists?

Elijah pulls my focus toward him when he walks up, standing shoulder to shoulder with my twin.

“Emery.” My full name sounds so wrong coming from him now, I’m so used to him calling me Em. It’s cold and emotionless, and I want to scream at him. Instead, I feel the tears start gathering and it only makes me angrier. I pull at my feet, but cannot seem to gain my freedom.

“Elijah,” I whisper, and there’s a glimpse of him, a momentary flash of pain crosses his face. It’s so quick I find myself standing, wondering if I imagined it.

“We’re building a lab… making lots of interesting serums,” he tells me, his voice flat.

“Serums?” I mimic.

“We’re creating things to help the dark be the leaders that they should’ve always been,” he says, his eyes bore into mine.

“Elijah, enough,” Elodie snaps out.

“You’ll never get away with this!” I shout to them both. I can’t hold the tears back anymore as they erupt onto my cheeks. My heart hurts looking at Elijah and seeing someone completely different from the brother that I love.

“I don’t think there’s much you can do anymore,” Elodie snarls with a smirk on her face. I take her in. I should never make the face she currently wears, it doesn’t look good on us. “You see we have something special now. Something that would have been your saving grace before, but now you have nothing.”

Her words turn me to stone, there’s a tone in her voice which makes me realize that she isn’t bluffing. The dark being that was to my right, the one who has me grounded walks over, but I can’t look at him. My eyes are pinned to Elodie’s, and I somehow know that’s his doing too. I see an arm slip around her shoulder in my peripheral vision, at that moment my body becomes my own again, and my eyes immediately move to the being that’s connected to the arm. Soft full lips, masculine jaw, straight nose, dark hair and hazel eyes look back at me. There’s no emotion in his face.

“Kade?” I whisper.

He says nothing, just stares at me bored.

“See, I have everything you had, everything you ever wanted... ever needed. It’s all mine now.” She throws her head back once again and laughs. I take a stumbling step back, then I do the only thing my body will allow, I run, and run and run. A sharp pain slams into my back and my eyes close as my body hurtles toward the ground.

I bolt upright, gasping for breath, my heart beating a mile a minute.

“Breathe
,
Emery, you’re okay, I’m here,” Kade murmurs in my ear before I shriek and edge away from him, falling off the bed.

“Hey, it’s okay,” he soothes as I crab crawl backward until my head hits the wall. Kade frowns, worry and sadness warring on his face. The door swings open, bouncing off the wall and an arm pushes out before it slams closed again.

“What’s going on?” Tristan questions, stepping into the room with Tess trailing behind, rubbing her eyes.

“There was a bang, and some shouting. Is everything okay?” Katarina asks rushing in after them.

Kade looks like he’s about to lose his patience as my eyes flit between them all.

“Do you not think if something were wrong I would handle it?” he grumbles pulling his hand down his face.

“Dude, you can never be sure,” Tristan returns and I smile, slowly.

Kade sees it and uses that moment to edge forward, carefully like I’m a feral animal.

“It’s okay,” I tell him, biting my lip. “I had a bad dream.” I look down at the floor and quickly move myself into a sitting position, my back against the wall and my knees pulled up to my chest.

Kade crawls over and sits next to me, our bodies touch each other but he makes no move to hold me, obviously fearing I might freak out again. I make a decision and thread my fingers through his, the second I do his body relaxes.

“You turned dark. You were against me with Elijah, and you were... you... you...” I squeeze my eyes shut and take a breath.

“What, princess,” Kade demands tentatively.

“You were with Elodie. You chose her, over me.” The words are so quiet coming from my mouth that I wonder for a moment if he could hear me, even with his super hearing. I know my answer when his body stills and his hand squeezes mine so tightly it begins to hurt. “You’re hurting me,” I tell him and instantly he loosens his grip.

“Sorry, baby. You just... even in a dream, you can’t... never... just...” Kade starts to say, then abruptly he stops speaking and pulls away from me. He stands up, clenching his fist and punches the wall, before stalking out the room, slamming the door behind him.

I stare at Katarina, Tristan and Tess with my mouth hanging open, their faces pretty much mirror my own.

“I’ll go speak to him,” Tristan spits before storming out the room too with Tess hot on his heels.

Katarina walks over to me, all sleepiness now disappeared. “Come on.” She eases me up off the floor and brings me back to bed, tucking me in. I feel my heart rate pick up now I’m back in the bed again. With the rapid beating of my heart lately, it’s lucky I now have full control of my own powers, although new ones can appear at any time, so I know that I have to be mindful.

“He’ll come back, tell you what his issue is. You know he can be moody sometimes... Mr. Growly, remember?” she says smiling down at me, trying to make me feel better. I give her a small smile back.

“Thanks, Katarina,” I whisper, and I genuinely feel grateful that she’s taking care of me right now. We haven’t been close, but I can see lately how much she has been trying. “I’m fine now, you go back to sleep,” I whisper, squeezing her hand.

She nods and walks out, giving one backward glance at the door.

I stay squashed in the middle of the bed, between Kade’s pillows and my own and stare at the ceiling.

I miss you.
My mind whispers to a lost Elijah.

I miss you, too, Em.
I almost believe I hear him whisper back.

“Emery.” The word wakes me from the restless sleep I’d managed to find after hours of lying here alone and scared. “Emery.”

I open my eyes and look straight into Kade’s. They’re hazel now, no gold shimmers back at me in the early morning light.

“Kade, what do you want?” My voice is flat, and it’s because I’ve had enough.

Enough of everything, I now live in a world I never knew about, after being left alone for so many years of my life. The brother who pulled me from my sad existence has now left me, instead joining with a twin sister I never knew I had. A twin I hasten to add, who seems to want to kill me. A father who tried to kill me! I’ve seen people die and I’ve killed. My life is not my own anymore as my body now inhabits the Convergence, which will kill me if it stays inside too long. And it seems that not only the life of my brother but the fate of the world seems to lay solely with me, Kade and our ever-shrinking group. And to add insult to injury, Kade explains nothing, decides to storm out, after punching the wall, when I’ve had a nightmare—one that scared me to my bones, leaving me alone in the bed, afraid and thinking it may have been better if I died that night.

I stare at him, this handsome man, and I know he loves me, truly loves me, as I do him. I can’t be sure how much more I can take until I end up breaking. I can feel my resolve crumbling already.

“I’m sorry. Really I am. Stop thinking what you’re thinking right now,” he says quietly, sitting carefully on the edge of the bed. He doesn’t touch me, yet again it’s something he does less and less lately.

“I know,” I reply with the words he needs to hear. I’m not entirely sure I believe them right now, but I’m still willing to give him this.

“Don’t lie to me, Emery. You may not be thinking out loud, but your feelings are as clear as day to me. I’m your other half. Even if I wasn’t your Pith, I love you, I know you. I know I don’t deserve it but... talk to me... please.”

I sigh and sit up. “Why did you storm out?” My question is snapped at him, I don’t mean it to come out so harshly, but I won’t apologize when he hasn’t explained anything to me yet.

“Your dream—”

“Nightmare,” I correct.

“Nightmare.” His voice has a tinge of anger. “I needed to check some books, needed to make some calls. But it only confirmed what I already thought.”

“Which was what?” I reply.

“There were stories, years ago. There are some who can talk in dreams or nightmares,” he tells me.

I gasp, pulling both my hands to my mouth.

“They say that some people can talk, make dreams go the way they want, influence people even.” Kade drops his head shaking it from side to side, before looking back at me. “There are those… although I’ve never met even one… who can supposedly make actions happen in dreams. So if they want you to tell someone you love them, when you wake up, that’s what you’ve already done. If they want you to steal something, upon waking it’s in your room. And if they want you to die—”

“Upon waking—”

“There is no waking!” he shouts. “If they want you to die then you don’t wake up.” His breaths are rapid and harsh, I watch his chest heaving up and down.

“So you think...” I get to my knees in the bed and shuffle forward, placing my hands on his shoulders and steadying myself, while the reality sinks in, “…that somehow Elodie might be trying to kill me in my sleep?”

He looks up at me, his face blank. “Yeah.” He clenches his jaw, and I watch as a muscle jumps in his cheek. Suddenly he lifts me up and pins me to the wall, his hands hold my butt and he stares into my eyes. “I don’t care what new tricks they have, they’re not going to get you. Ever. I’ll kill them all if I have to.” Kade grits his teeth with rage.

“We’ll figure it out,” I reply gently, even though I have no clue how.

We stay in that position for a while, Kade working out whatever he needs to, while holding me tight.