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After
a bit, we all gathered in the courtyard for an early dinner. We pulled two teak
tables together, and I found myself seated between Jessica and Jason’s mom.
Over a fabulous meal of grilled salmon, roasted corn in the husk, baked
potatoes with the works, and an arugula salad, we discussed the day’s events as
well as numerous other topics. We didn’t broach the subject of the Ray-pacs,
though. Apparently, that wasn’t polite dinner conversation.

As
Jason’s mom talked enthusiastically about becoming a grandmother, I caught his
eye and smiled brightly. Ever since we’d left Friday Harbor I’d been trying my
best to act like I would if we’d never kissed. Unfortunately, I wasn’t exactly
sure how that would be, so I decided just to be friendly and smiley, like I’d
never been mad at him in the first place. Acting the part was very difficult,
because I still wanted to throttle him and knock some sense into him.

After
dinner we gathered in the living room. Bright flames danced in the gas
fireplace, enhancing the ambiance of the big room. The fire certainly wasn’t
needed for the warmth, but the added element of coziness was welcoming. A wild
display of purple and pink hues lit the sky behind the large windows as the sun
sank below the horizon.

Standing
with stature at the end of a sofa, Jason’s dad spoke first. “During the week, I
asked Mark Olsen,” he glanced at me, “just so you know Lexi, he’s a fellow
Guardian from Seattle, who also happens to be a tracker. I asked him to trail
the Ray-pacs you kids encountered at Nooksack Falls last weekend. Having
followed their path as far east as Montana, he felt certain they were currently
nowhere near Bellingham.” He reached down and touched Janet’s shoulder; she was
sitting at the end of the sofa.
“Even so,” Jason interjected, “I think they’ll be back to the west coast soon.
A lot of the things Kieran said that day up at Nooksack makes me think they’ve
settled in Canada – somewhere close to the Vancouver area.”

“That’s
what makes the most sense,” Max said, making it a point to single me out with
his eyes, “Kieran basically bragged to Lexi about killing the four Guardians in
B.C.”

Jason’s
dad nodded and said in a deep voice, “I hear you both, and yes, we’ll be taking
precautionary measures. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Ray-pacs intentionally
headed east to throw us off their trail. They could easily head into Alberta
and then circle back and meet up with whoever remains of their group. Even
though Mark felt pretty confident they were no longer in Washington, we still
need to be cautious and be prepared if they return.”

“If
they return?” Jason said impatiently, heat rising in his cheeks. “They’ll be
back all right. Kieran is way too interested in Alex not to come after her
again. And that was a pretty gutsy move to try and come for her twice in the
same day. ” He clasped his hands together and leaned forward. His mom, who was
sitting next to him on the couch, rubbed his back.

“What
about
your
safety?” Madison cut in, leaning forward on his other side. She
reached over and touched his leg. “You’re the one they’ll be tracking when they
return.”

“I’m
not concerned about me.”

“Well,
you should be,” Madison said angrily.

“At
least they can’t track Lexi, too,” Jessica said.

“Why?”
I asked.

“The link
is what allows them to track us and us to track them,” Jessica responded. “So,
they won’t be able to track us.”

“Which
is why,” Mr. Walker said, “we Guardians need to be very careful about not
leading them to Lexi.” He looked at me gravely, “We’ll keep you safe – have
some friends of ours who are not Guardians look out for you, but the rest of us
will need to keep our distance for awhile. And, when we do meet up, we just
need to be extra careful.”

I must
have looked crushed, because Jessica put her arm around me and said, “Don’t
worry Lexi, it won’t be a permanent thing, and you and I can still hang
together.”

“The
one positive is that it should take time for Kieran to regroup and recruit new
members before he can even think about launching another attack on us,
especially one in our territory. He knows we’ll be scouting regularly and
planning for his return, and he won’t want to fail again,” Max added.

“That’s
exactly what we’re counting on. We’ve already been in discussions about how to
deal with them,” Jason’s dad said, motioning to his wife and the Nelsons.
“We’ve contacted, Nick, the Senior Guardian of the Vancouver Circle and devised
a tentative plan, which we’d like to share that with you and get your
feedback.”

For
the next hour we listened and discussed ideas. Regardless of the fact that
everyone felt certain there was no immediate threat from Kieran, we were all to
be extremely careful and aware of our surroundings at all times. Jim had
arranged for his friend Mark to scour the Bellingham area once a week for any
Ray-pac activity, but the big retaliation was set to take place in a few
months. Since Towhead Island was the New Year’s destination spot for the
Guardian gathering, we’d wait until then. After all the festivities and urgent
business was over, we’d amass the whole group of Guardians and do a complete
sweep of the entire Pacific Northwest and then ascend into B.C. Our target date
was set for January 2
^nd
.With so many Guardians working together,
that would almost ensure our success against Kieran and whatever Ray-pac posse
he’d managed to re-organize. They decided casualties on our side would be
minimal.

Of
course, they had no idea about my recurring vision in which I was linking with
Kieran. Despite the warmth in the room, a cold chill crept up my spine. This
time, I knew I didn’t want to die, but I wasn’t sure if I could outwit fate a
second time. According to them, Dentelle’s didn’t survive. Besides, there was
no way I was going to accept losing the lives of any of my friends, so I just
had to make sure my meeting with Kieran took place before January 2
^nd
.There
was also no way I could let any of them know I was a Dentelle; that would
thwart my own game plan.

“When
the Ray-pacs come back to town, Jason will be their only lead,” his mom said anxiously,
her hand still resting on his shoulder. “We need to make sure he’s not alone.
And should they find him and decide to follow him, we need to make sure he
doesn’t lead them to Lexi.” She looked at me with a reassuring smile.

“I
promise to be careful mom,” he said and patted her hand. He and I locked eyes,
but almost instantly he looked away again.

“The
yacht will be the safest place for you dear,” she replied. “The Ray-pac’s
abilities will be handicapped that close to the bay. But I also don’t want you
traveling around town solo. You need to be with one of us for awhile.”

Madison
jumped in at that point. “Oh don’t worry. I won’t let him out of my sight.”

He
didn’t look overly pleased with that idea. And while part of me wanted to shoot
Madison, I knew he’d be much better protected with her around. If there was one
thing we had in common – it was protecting Jason’s life with our own.

“Also,”
Mr. Nelson broke in from his spot on the other couch, “we will be especially
vulnerable when our links break.”

“As
will the Ray-pacs,” Trevon commented.

“Yes,
but that would be the perfect time for them to hire more goons and plan an
ambush.”

“All
the more reason Alex shouldn’t be alone when there’s a full moon,” Jason said.

“You’re
right,” agreed Mr. Nelson. “None of us should.” With his jet black hair and
olive colored skin, he and Max looked like carbon copies of each other.
Strolling over to Jason’s dad, they exchanged quiet looks. “So, we’ll make in
depth, precautionary sweeps of our area the couple days leading up to a full
moon. Then on the day of the full moon we’d like everyone, including Jessica
and Laci, to come together either on the boat or at our home. We’ll be safer
and stronger as a whole group.”

For
another hour or so we discussed different aspects and scenarios of how things
could play out. I felt rotten sitting there and participating in the
conversation and the planning when I knew I was going to undermine the whole
operation before it ever came to pass. They’d certainly kick me out of their
Circle after I went rogue, but that wouldn’t really matter, because I’d be dead
by then. And hopefully, so would Kieran and some of his closest Ray-pac
friends.

Once
the meeting adjourned, the Nelsons and Walkers encouraged us to spend the rest
of the evening in the game room or relaxing in the hot tub before we headed
back to Bellingham the following morning. After some time in the game room, we
finally put Ray-pac affairs to the side, and lightened things up by battling
each other in foosball.

“We
kicked butt,” Jason proclaimed, raising his arms in the air after he and I
bested Trevon and Shelby two out of three games.

“Sorry
Shelby,” Jessica said, “Looks like we have new reigning champions in the house.
She gave me a high-five.

“Definite
rematch next time,” Trevon demanded.

“You’re
on,” Jason said but then looked at me and added, “I mean, they’re on, right
Alex?”

“Of
course,” I said rubbing my hands together. “We have to prove this wasn’t just a
onetime deal.”

Madison
crossed her arms and harrumphed. “So juvenile,” she muttered under her breath.
“Let’s go in the hot tub.”

“Oh,
where’s your team spirit?” Jessica asked, slapping her on the back as we left
the game room.

Donning
swimsuits for the hot tub presented an opportunity, and I took it. Hannah had told
me that when she erased a memory it swept away everything about that memory
including any conversation as well. So, when we were climbing into the hot tub,
I noticed the
Sa
tattoo on the small of Madison’s back. Loudly enough so
that everyone else could hear me, but making sure not to make eye contact with
Jason, I asked her all about it, like I’d never seen one before. If he’d had
any doubts about whether Hannah had erased my memory, he sure shouldn’t after
that inquiry.

Morning
arrived early, and before I knew it, we were saying our good-byes at Squalicum
Harbor. We’d already said our adieus to the Walkers and the Nelsons out at the
Retreat, and the rest of us were on the yacht, nearing the harbor with Max at
the helm. We were all up on the top deck, but Jason was standing off by
himself. I walked over to him, because I wanted a chance to say good-bye to him
privately, before we docked.

As I
approached him, my eyes settled on his face. His neck was still red, but the
scratches on his cheeks looked much better. He hadn’t shaved in several days,
so he was at his most rugged – which was totally mountain-man sexy. Saying
good-bye to him was going to be difficult. First, because I couldn’t fathom how
I could stay away from him, and second, because I had to say it without
revealing the depth of my feelings for him. I felt like I’d dropped my heart
overboard and it was drowning in the sea.

“Hi
Alex,” he said in a gentle voice, his eyes meeting mine. “I guess this is
good-bye for awhile.” Pressing my lips together, I nodded. “Promise me you’ll
be careful and watch your back.” He kind of teetered back and forth on his feet
as he drummed his hands against his jeans.

“Only
if you promise the same,” I said and smiled. I tried to focus on his eyes and
avoid looking at his lips.

“Deal,”
he said.

Regarding
him for several seconds, I said, “I had a lot of fun just hanging out with you
this last week. I especially enjoyed beating you at foosball,” I added with a
laugh. “Although, whipping Trevon and Shelby into shame was a highlight, too.
But mostly, the whale-watching surprise was the best part of my week. The orcas
were beautiful and truly amazing. Thank you.”

“You’re
welcome. That was a great day,” he said, but I detected a note of melancholy in
his voice.

“The
best,” I managed, biting my cheek. Heartache was heavy in my chest, and I knew
it wouldn’t be long before tears made an appearance.

“I
guess I won’t see ya for awhile, but if something ever comes up or you need my
help – you call me immediately,” he said.

“I will,”
I promised. “I guess I’ll see you during the next full moon; that would
be…September 4
^th.”

He
smiled, “You remembered.”

“Of
course, you made me promise to always be aware of the dates,” I said.

“I’m
impressed you listened for once.”

“Jason,”
I said and touched his arm, “I always listen to what you say, I just don’t
always follow your explicit demands.”

“Hmm,
I’ll keep that in mind,” he said softly. “But will you at least promise to be
safe?”

“Of
course,” I said with extra spunk, in hopes of covering my sadness. “You too.”
Then, because I didn’t think I could say another word without breaking down, I
turned and walked towards Jessica.

I
wondered if Essence could heal broken hearts.

I told
Ally a lot, but I couldn’t tell her everything. I did tell her about our
friends being Guardians, the battle in the forest with the Ray-pacs, my time
with Jason at the Retreat, and about the not so forgotten kiss. I hadn’t
necessarily planned on telling her I was a Dentelle, but once she found out our
friends were Guardians she became really excited, because she remembered
Grandma Rose’s journals stating that Seers needed to link with Guardians. She’d
immediately asked which of our friends I thought I would be linking with, and I
had to explain why that wouldn’t be happening. Besides that, if she ever talked
to Jessica when I wasn’t around, I couldn’t have her slipping up and mentioning
I had premonitions, so keeping her in part of the loop seemed the best option.
I just skewed some of the facts and left out a few details. The biggest secret
I kept, though, was about the recurring vision with Kieran at the lake.