Flight of Life (Essence Series #1) (12 page)

“
Well, I thought it was
going to be easier than
that
,” she said.

Breccan just stared at his cousin,
amazed that Calloway protected his body with his own. He didn’t
speak for a long time. “Are you okay?” Breccan finally
asked.

Calloway nodded. He leaned against the
wall and caught his breath. His kept his eyes closed as he calmed
himself. The ordeal was still fresh in his mind. He had accepted
his impending death and now he was going to live.

“
I can’t believe you did
that,” Breccan said quietly. “You would have died.”

Calloway was quiet for a moment. “You
would have done the same for me.”

Breccan stood up then helped his cousin
to his feet. They both said nothing for a moment as they stared at
the dead Hara-Kir lying on the ground. Breccan nudged its arm with
his foot and Easton didn’t go near it.

“
I can’t believe we both
missed,” Breccan said as he looked at the two knives imbedded in
its chest. He pulled them out and wiped the blood on the jacket
that covered its body. “How is that possible?”

Calloway grabbed his knife from his
cousin’s hand and inserted it into his pocket. He was certain that
his aim was true. He stabbed the creature through the heart. But
the Hara-Kir continued to pursue them like it was unaffected by the
fatal wounds. Calloway pondered the situation in his mind. “It has
to be stabbed three times,” he said to his friends. “That’s what
the book meant by sections. We need to bisect the heart three
different times for it to stop beating.”

Easton looked at Calloway. “That makes
sense.”

Breccan sighed. “Why do they have to
make this so difficult?”

“
Otherwise it would be too
easy,” Calloway said as he patted his cousin on the shoulder. “At
least we know what to do next time.”

“
Next
time
?” Breccan asked incredulously.
“Didn’t we just learn our lesson? Easton could have died and you
were almost stabbed in the chest!”

“
But now we’ll be
prepared,” Easton said. “There are three of us and it needs to be
stabbed three times—it’s meant to be.”

Breccan rolled his eyes. “I was meant
to go to high school like a normal kid—not fight the forces of
evil.”

Calloway looked at his cousin. “I don’t
think that’s going to happen,” he said. “We are destined for a
different fate.”

Breccan sighed. “Damn.”

Gifted

Calloway and Breccan spotted the large
sign plastered on the library when they walked onto campus the next
morning.

WINTER WONDERLAND—WINTER
FORMAL.

Breccan stopped and stared at the
announcement with a saddened expression. Girls were gathered
underneath the sign, chattering about the details of the dance—what
they should wear and who they should go with—and the boys tried to
ignore their voices. Calloway and Breccan looked at each
other—neither one of them wanted to attend.

Breccan sighed. “My mom will make us
go,” he said sadly. “We may as well find dates—we won’t be total
losers, then.”

“
Why does your mom care
about this?” Calloway asked. “It’s just more time we have to spend
at school—I’m here enough as it is.”

“
I told you my mom was
annoying,” Breccan said.

“
That’s not what I said,”
Calloway said. “I just wish she wouldn’t pressure us.”

Breccan sighed. “Well, it’s
inevitable.” They walked toward the classroom building and ignored
the girls that were talking excitedly about the dance. “I got dibs
on Easton,” he said.

“
Why do you get Easton?”
Calloway asked. “Have you even asked her?”

“
She’ll say yes,” Breccan
said. “And I would rather go with her than a
girl
.”

“
I
am
a girl,” Easton said as she
approached them. Calloway and Breccan both flinched at the sound of
her voice. They hadn’t noticed her. “And what makes you think I
would even agree? You haven’t asked me—you just assumed I would go
with you.”

“
Fine.” Breccan sighed.
“Easton, would you attend the winter formal with me?” he asked
nicely.

She shook her head. “I wasn’t planning
on going,” she said. “And I’m surprised you two are.”

“
Brec’s mom is making us,”
Calloway explained.

“
That’s unfortunate,” she
said seriously. “Who are you going with, Calloway?”

Calloway shrugged. “Nobody.”

“
There isn’t anyone you
want to ask?” Easton asked. “It’s lame to go alone—you’re already
teased as it is.”

Calloway immediately thought of
Beatrice and he wasn’t sure why—her feelings toward him were clear.
Even if he had the courage to ask her she probably wouldn’t
respond. She would just walk away and ignore him. “I don’t have any
friends that are girls—besides you.”

“
We’ll figure something
out,” Easton said. “If not, the three of us could go
together.”

Breccan laughed. “Like we aren’t teased
enough as it is,” he said.

The bell rang and
announced the beginning of the school day. They walked to their
classes and ignored the signs on the wall that announced the winter
formal. Calloway walked into his English class and nodded to Mr.
Avey, who returned his acknowledgment with a slight smile, and then
sat in his assigned desk. They were still studying
Henry V
and the students
were reading aloud the different lines of the play.

“
Calloway,” Mr. Avey said.
“Please read the next line.”

Luckily, Calloway was paying attention
today, even though the traumatic experience from the evening before
still plagued his mind. He didn’t sleep last night, only finding
repose for minutes at a time. He straightened his back in his seat
and read the next line. His voice did not falter as he read the
wordy prose, and Mr. Avey listened to him speak, impressed by his
reading abilities. “And tell the pleasant prince the mock of his
hath turned his balls to gunstones, and his soul shall stand sore
charged for the wasteful vengeance that shall fly from them—for
many a thousand widows shall this his mock, mock out of their dear
husbands, mock mothers from their sons, mock castles
down—”

“
Stop there, Calloway,”
Mr. Avey announced. “Good job. What is King Henry saying in this
scene?” he asked the class. His question wasn’t directed at
Calloway, but Calloway knew he was waiting for him to
speak.

Calloway leaned back in his chair.
“Henry is stating his planned vengeance against the Dauphin for his
mocking jest toward him and his reckless youth. The king is
promising a vengeance that will not be stopped. His enemies can
only submit.”

Mr. Avey nodded. “You are correct—as
always.”

They finished reading the scene until
the bell rang, ending the period, and the students walked out of
the room. Mr. Avey addressed Calloway when he walked by his
desk.

“
I expect to see you after
school,” he said.

“
Am I still serving
detention?” Calloway smiled.

“
Call it what you want,”
his teacher said. “It’s the only way I can get you to
study.”

Calloway laughed. “I’ll see you then,
Mr. Avey.”

“
I look forward to
it.”

Calloway walked to his math class and
sat in the back row. For the first time, he wrote down the homework
on the board and completed it in class. He didn’t need the teacher
to demonstrate the problems—he just read the book. By the time the
period was over he already finished his assignment for the next
day.

The bell rang and announced the
beginning of lunch. Calloway walked to the library, and when he
spotted the librarian inside he stopped—she was smiling at him.
Calloway automatically looked behind him, assuming she was
acknowledging someone else, but he was alone—there was no one
else.

“
Hello,” Calloway said
awkwardly.

“
Hello, dear,” she said
with a smile. “Your friends are sitting at their usual
table.”

Calloway stared at her for a moment,
too shocked to move, and finally moved his feet after he found his
bearings. When he reached the table he stared at Easton. “What did
you do?” he asked.

Easton smiled. “I just cheered her up,”
she said.

“
And how did you do
that
?” Calloway
asked.

Breccan laughed. “Well, food is the way
to a man’s heart so what’s the way to a woman’s heart?” Breccan
asked. He nodded to the counter behind Calloway. “Easton got her
flowers.”

Calloway looked over his shoulder and
saw the vase of fresh flowers on the table. They were pink and
yellow, and the colors reminded him of the spring season. The
librarian smelled a rose with a smile on her face.

“
And her name is Nancy,”
Easton said.

Calloway smiled. “That’s all it took?”
he asked. “Just some flowers?”

“
Well, I talked to her,
too,” she said. “Nancy is incredibly lonely and she hears the
students say mean things about her. We’re the first kids to be nice
to her—she isn’t much different than us—just
misunderstood.”

Calloway turned back to Easton. “Good
work,” he said with a nod. He turned to his cousin. “It looks like
you can eat whenever you want.”

Breccan opened his sandwich and took a
bite. “We are about to find out.”

The librarian looked at their table but
her smile never faltered. She looked so different than her usual
self. The light in her eyes filled the dark room, illuminating it
with its own brightness, and her red lips were stretched wide as
they displayed her undeniable merriment. Nancy didn’t comment on
Breccan’s lunch—she didn’t even see it.

“
My sandwich has never
tasted so good,” Breccan said as he chewed.

Easton laughed. “All you care about is
food.”

“
You just noticed that?”
Calloway asked.

Easton opened the Kirin Book and
flipped to the page she was slowly decoding. Only half of the page
seemed to be translated, and Calloway wondered how long it would
take her to finish. He wished there was a quicker way to gather the
information.

Breccan noticed Easton’s slow pace.
“This is going to take forever.” He sighed.

Easton leaned back in her chair. “Why
don’t we ask Weston for help? I already told you she is practically
fluent in the Kirin symbols and she could translate this for us
instantaneously. Let me ask her.”

“
No,” Calloway said
quickly. “This stays among the three of us.”

“
Why?” Easton asked.
“She’s my sister—we can trust her.”

Calloway shook his head. “I’m sorry but
I can’t.”

“
Why does she know how to
read Kirin anyway?” Breccan asked. “What does she do with the
information?”

Easton was quiet for a moment. “I don’t
know.”

“
She could be aiding them
as far as we know,” Calloway said. “We don’t know what her invested
interest is in the Hara-Kirs.”

“
She’s probably fighting
them like we are,” Easton argued.

“
Yes, she
probably
is, but we
don’t know for sure,” Calloway said. “I can’t let this fall into
the wrong hands. I’m sorry, Easton. I trust you not to tell
her.”

Easton sighed. “Okay,” she said. “But I
thought you liked my sister.”

“
We
do
,” Breccan said quickly. “She’s a
cool chick.”

“
We just don’t know her
well enough,” Calloway said.

Easton looked at Calloway.
“I’ve known my sister my whole life and I can vouch for her. Sure,
we didn’t always get along and there were times when I wanted to
kill her but I
know
her, Calloway. We can trust her.”

Calloway sighed. “It’s too risky,” he
said. “I’m sorry.”

“
So we are going to fight
the Hara-Kirs on our own?” Easton asked. “How long can we last
doing that? We need allies.”

“
We’ll figure it out as we
go along,” Calloway said.

Easton leaned back in her seat and
sighed, clearly annoyed with Calloway for his paranoia and need for
secrecy.

Calloway stared at her. “Do I have your
word, Easton?”

Easton was quiet for a moment. “If I
was going to tell her, I would have done it already.”

Calloway nodded. “Thank
you.”

Breccan finished his sandwich and
opened a bag of chips. “What are we going to do about the body?” he
asked. “It’s going to decompose and stink up the place.”

“
I’m not touching it,”
Easton said quickly.

Calloway shrugged. “I don’t know,” he
said. “We could hide it in a closest.”

Easton shook her head. “That’s a bad
idea,” she said. “We’re going to kill more of these. We need to
dispose it somewhere where no one will find it.”