Surfacing the Rim (Piercing The Fold) (10 page)

Sebastian’s worry was evident. “Balthazar, the longer the wormholes stay open—”

I whisper my thoughts aloud, “The likelihood of more beings passing through into our world.”

Chapter 14

Jesca

The image of Balthazar and Sebastian fades into a bright flash of light.

I blink quickly and see that I’m back in the plane, slumped down in my chair. I sit up quickly. The plane jumps as it touches down.

I think, It was a dream?

I see Nate’s head bob up from the seat in front of me. Then, I see Ezra’s head do the same from the seat across from both of us. Both Nate and Ezra look back at me.

Nate asks, “What was that?”

I answer, “It was a dream, and all of us were in it. How could we all be in the same dream?”

Ezra is concerned. “We were all in the same state of being at the same time. This made it easy for Sebastian and Balthazar to communicate with us simultaneously with Telepathy.”

Nate rubs his face and stretches. “Sebastian and Balthazar were giving us a message.”

Ezra replies, “Balthazar is on our side.”

I think about Balthazar and his relation to me. He would be my great cousin, I think.

I add, “Sebastian said that the focus is on keeping the Sondians from enslaving more people before opening a wormhole during the height of the intersection of our galaxy with Andromeda.”

Ezra nods. “We need to wait for their directive, but I think it’s safe to say we’ll be in route to Japan within a week.”

The plane comes to a stop. I feel nervousness creep into my stomach, and a chill runs through me. I can’t imagine what the Xander situation will resemble. I’m afraid of how Xander will react to us finding him. I’m afraid he’ll run, not giving us a chance to help him find his way as a Dobrian guardian.

Ezra announces, “There is a car waiting for us. Let’s go.”

Ezra heads to the front of the plane.

I lag behind as Nate grabs his things. “Nate?”

Nate barely looks in my direction. “Yeah.” He starts walking toward the front of the plane.

He’s snubbing me. I quickly grab my things and put my hand on his shoulder. “Hey.”

Turning around quickly, Nate asks in an irritated manner, “What?”

His harsh response catches me off-guard. I take my hand off of his shoulder. I want to tell him that I don’t want Xander joining our team to draw a line in the sand between us. I want to admit that the unresolved feelings I have for Xander are just as unresolved as the changing bond I have with him.

But, I can tell that a line has already been drawn just by the way he is looking at me now. I slide past him and whisper, “Never mind.”

Chapter 15

Jesca

There is an SUV waiting for us as we exit the plane. I see four men in black windbreakers and slacks approach Ezra. Ezra shakes their hands and thanks them for meeting us. They nod at Nate and me. I can tell they are guardians as well.

While the men load our things into the car, Ezra turns to Nate and me and tells us to get into the car. Quickly getting into the SUV, I move out of the cold rain that feels like pinpricks on my face. Ezra and Nate hop into the driver and passenger seats.

Ezra pulls a slip of paper out of his jacket pocket. He starts the navigation system on the car and punches in an address. I assume it’s the cabin where Xander has been staying.

Nate turns to me with a weak smile. “You okay back there?”

Showing little expression, I nod and look out the window to avoid him.

One of the men taps Ezra’s side window and gives him the thumbs-up to leave. Watching the men behind us, we drive off.

I absently ask Ezra, “Do they know what we’re doing here?”

Ezra replies, “No, for their own safety, it’s better that they don’t.”

Ezra tells us that it’s a short drive from Sevierville, Tennessee to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

As we keep our worries and concerns to ourselves, the car remains quiet, but none of us block our thoughts. Ezra warned us about blocking our thoughts when we might be in a dangerous situation. I rank this expedition pretty high on the dangerous situation gauge, considering that we’re going after Xander behind the Sondian fellowship’s back to tell him that he’s a Dobrian guardian.

Ezra is strategizing how he’ll react if Xander bolts when he approaches. Nate is wondering if Xander will react as badly as he did when he finds out they’re related. And, I’m worried about all of that in addition to the fact that I’ve been involved with both Xander and Nate.

What will Xander do when he sees me? Will he remember what he said to me the night he left? I don’t think any further about it because it will only make matters worse for Xander and Nate.

Ezra interrupts the silence. “When we get to the cabin, I want you two to stay in the car. If he’s been practicing his newfound abilities, he’ll sense us a mile away. If I approach alone, he might be less likely to run.”

Nate asks, “What do we do if he runs?”

“Just stay in the car. If we all go after him, he might think it’s an attack.”

The word “attack” makes me uneasy, and I hope that it doesn’t come to Ezra chasing down Xander alone.

* * *

The car winds up the mountainside for a good thirty minutes. The sleet is turning to snow very quickly as we gain altitude.

I look up, seeing an amber shard of light scale across the sky. “Whoa! What was that?”

Ezra looks at me, and I point out the window at the sky. “The streak of light. It scaled across the entire sky!”

Nate is looking out the window now. The amber shard of light streaks again, branching out across the sky as far as the eye can see.

“There! Did you see it?”

Nate says, “Wow! That’s amazing! What is it?”

Both Nate and I look to Ezra. He’s gripping the steering wheel tightly while his eyes are glued to the road straight ahead.

I ask again, “Ezra, what was that?”

Ezra says, “Lightning.”

I mock, “That’s some pretty big lightning, Ezra!”

Nate backs me up on Ezra’s quick answer. “Yeah, that isn’t typical lightning, Ezra.”

Ezra briefly looks at us both, and then his eyes move back to the road. “It’s arc lightning. It’s a sure sign of increasing amounts of cosmic rays entering into our solar system from outside of our galaxy. In this case, the rays are coming from the Andromeda galaxy.”

But, I haven’t noticed the lightning until today.

I ask Ezra, “When did this start?”

Ezra has worry in his voice. “Our researchers spotted the first sign of arc lightning two weeks ago in Melbourne, Australia. At first, it was sporadic and hopscotched across the sky. They tracked the locations as the arc lightning spread, increasing across the globe. I can tell you that this was not happening two weeks ago. And, today, it is. It’s happening at a rapid pace.”

My chest tightens, thinking that this is the beginning of the intersection, and I can only imagine in horror what to expect as a result. “How long do we have until the peak of the intersection?”

Nate looks at me, not anticipating my direct question.

We both look at Ezra for the answer.

I probe, “You’re getting daily intelligence from the fellowship, Ezra. What are they saying?”

Ezra pulls the car over. I look beyond the steering wheel through the windshield. We are at a street that has a
small green sign labeled ‘Lodging’. Ezra turns to Nate and me. “We have a week, maybe two max.”

I didn’t realize that I had been holding my breath until I release a long sigh. I turn to Nate.

He’s looking down at the center console. “Two weeks max until all hell breaks loose.” He turns to look out the window and starts biting his thumbnail.

Ezra glances at me. All I can bring myself to do is nod. Ezra puts the SUV back into gear and turns down the street. The pine trees become thick, and the snow is falling harder now. I see cabins peppered along the drive. Ezra pulls off the main road onto a winding private driveway.

My mind focuses on Xander, remembering what he looked like the last time I saw him. All of a sudden, I sense him. I close my eyes, trying to experience more of him. I smell his cologne, recognizing the scent that was on his shirt when we were in the club that night. I feel a warmth encircle me. He knows I’m here.

We drive through a canopy of trees. When we come out the other side, I see a cabin. My heart feels like it’s in my throat. I am both eager and afraid to see him.

Ezra stops the SUV about fifty yards away from the cabin. The front porch lights are on, and I can see one light on in the cabin.

Ezra turns to Nate and me. “Stay here.”

Ezra gets out, shuts the door, and walks across the light dusting of snow on the ground. I scoot to the middle seat and lean forward, watching Ezra approach the front door.

Nate turns to me. “Jes.”

I keep my eyes on Ezra. “Yeah?”

Nate says, “I’m sorry about the way I snapped at you on the plane.”

I look at Nate.

He continues, “I don’t want you to think that I’m mad at you. It’s my stupid personality flaws, alright?”

I can feel his tension, and I put my hand on his shoulder. “Alright.”

His face is still showing signs of worry, but his body instantly relaxes from my touch. Nate sighs, smiling a little, and then he turns back to look after Ezra who has approached the door.

Nate rubs his hands together for warmth. “He knows we’re here. We should be out there with Ezra.”

Knowing that Ezra should have let us come with him, I say, “Yeah, I could sense him as we turned onto the private drive.”

With that comment, I feel tension radiate from Nate, but it disappears as quickly as it appeared.

My attention is still on the door, watching as Ezra knocks.

I feel Ezra’s voice flooding through my mind. He is letting me in, so I can read his reaction to Xander when he answers the door.

I ask Nate, “Can you hear Ezra’s thoughts?”

“Yeah, I can kind of hear them both, except Xander’s thoughts are chopped.” Nate pauses, and then asks, “Can you?”

I whisper, “Yeah.”

Xander’s in there. We all can feel it. Xander’s thoughts are very faint and scattered, like an out of tune radio station. He’s trying to block us, but with three against one new guardian, he can’t win.

Xander doesn’t come to the door. Ezra knocks again and waits, putting his hands in his pockets. We know he’s here.

I can sense Xander is curious about why we are here. He’s wondering why we would look for him after he took part in the abductions with Sam back in Miami. He keeps repeating in his head that he didn’t know. If he had known, he would have never stayed with Sam. He would have never knowingly helped him. He starts thinking of me, knowing that I’m here.

I don’t get much more than that because Xander’s thoughts stop.

I see the door open. I don’t realize it right away, but I’m holding a deep breath in.

Nate reaches for the door handle as soon as Xander partially appears through the opening.

I put my hand on Nate’s shoulder and whisper, “Don’t.”

Nate holds his movement to open his door.

I say, “He will let us know if he needs us.”

Even though I’m being the voice of reason, my body is ready to surge from this car and into that cabin if Xander tries to run.

In my mind, I hear Xander and Ezra speaking to each other.

Xander blocks the doorway, crossing his arms over his chest. “Why did you come looking for me?”

Ezra sighs. “Because we need to tell you things that Sam omitted from your past.”

Xander looks around Ezra, focusing on the car. “We being you, Jesca, and Nate. What is he doing here anyway?”

Taken aback by Xander’s irritated tone, Nate whispers under his breath, “Son of a—”

I hush him, so I can continue to listen.

Ezra says, “He is a guardian, just like Jesca and me, and he is more to you than you know.”

Xander moves away from the doorway, disappearing into the cabin. Ezra turns to look at us sitting in the car. I’m sure we look like two children watching him from a quickly fogging windshield. He waves for us to come up to the cabin.

When we get out of the car, the temperature seems to have dropped at least another ten degrees. The air is intensely cold, chilling me straight to the bone. Nate and I walk with speed to the front porch and stand next to Ezra. Ezra walks in first, and we follow.

Chapter 16

Jesca

I look around the warm cabin. Rich amber-colored wood adorns the walls and much of the furnishings. My eyes gravitate to the fire that is blazing in the living room.

I hear Xander’s voice, and he sounds tired. “What? Did you think I would attack you at the door?”

I move my eyes from the fire to the kitchen where Xander is leaning against the countertop, wearing a dark blue sweater with a white T-shirt peeking out of the top and light wash jeans. My stomach flutters briefly from the anticipation of seeing him again. I look down to give myself a moment to subdue my excitement. Nate looks at me, and I know he senses it before I can curb it.

Ezra takes a seat in a chair in the living room, turning on the lamp on the side table. “You had a visitor before us.”

Xander admits, “Yes, an unwanted visitor.”

Xander glances at Nate and nods, and then he looks to me. The weight of his gaze stays with me even after I look away. I move to sit on the sofa across from Ezra, and Nate comes to sit next to me.

Xander’s eyes leave me, moving back to Ezra. “Wait. How did you know?”

Ezra crosses one leg on top of the other. “The same way you could sense us a mile away. And, believe me, Sam Crest definitely leaves an unforgettable presence in his wake.”

Noticing all of us sitting, meaning no harm to him, Xander slowly walks from the kitchen and sits in the vacant chair next to Ezra. Xander asks, “Is that why you’re here? To tell me what the hell is going on with my mind and body? Or are you here to kick my ass for being involved with Sam Crest in Miami?”

Nate snickers, and Xander looks at him with sheer anger. I elbow Nate for his bad timing on jokes.
Nate whispers, “Sorry.”

Seeing that I have chided Nate, Xander looks at me.
He has a hopeful look in his eyes. Jesca, please don’t hate me.

I think
I can’t hate you for something you knew nothing about, Xander.

His blue-green eyes take all of me in from head to toe. My heart speeds up from the intimate feelings his weighing presence is creating in me. I clear my throat, shift in my seat, and look to Ezra in an attempt to get the conversation rolling again.

Ezra takes the cue and leans toward Xander. “First thing, we’re here to tell you things that Sam Crest never did. We want to tell you what you’re a part of.”

Xander replies, “What I’m a part of? Ezra, I left Miami because I was confused and didn’t want to be a part of anything. I didn’t know who to trust then, and I still don’t know who to trust.”
Xander looks at each of us, pleading for us to understand why we haven’t earned his trust.

Ezra says, “I know, Xander, but that is precisely why we have come. We have answers for you—answers that your adopted father withheld from you. Just hear me out, and then you can decide if you trust us or not, alright?”

Xander sits back, sinking deeper into the chair. He closes his eyes. I can hear his thoughts again. He is contemplating if he should listen to three Dobrian guardians that are supposed to be the enemy. Well, ‘enemy’ according to what his warped and sadistic adopted father told him anyway. After a minute, Xander opens his eyes. “Alright, I’ll listen.”

Ezra’s eyes stay focused on Xander as he begins to tell Xander about his life. “You were born to Paul and Rebekah Sera in Boulder, Colorado. When you were five years old, your parents were murdered.”

Xander puts up his hand to stop Ezra from speaking. He looks utterly confused. “Wait. My grandmother told me they were in a car accident while on vacation.”

Ezra watches as Xander processes what he’s saying. He continues, “Your parents were Dobrian guardians.”

Xander puts his hands on his head and whispers, “I thought they were Sondian guardians.”

Ezra emphasizes, “Your parents were Dobrian guardians. They were not on vacation. They were on a mission. They got in too deep, and they were killed by a Sondian.” Ezra pauses briefly. “They were killed by Sam Crest. That is why he wanted you to think the opposite.”

Xander’s face becomes stone-like, all expression and color escaping as the betrayal surfaces.

Ezra explains, “The state granted your grandmother, Nina Fosstin, sole custody of you. When Nina passed, you became a ward of the state. Being in a foster home didn’t sit well with you, so you hopped from shelter to shelter until the day I tracked you down.”

Xander looks at Ezra with confusion in his eyes. His mind tries to make sense of when Ezra tracked him down before this.

Realiz
ation hits Xander’s mind. “You! A man was following me. I was afraid he was from the state. I was afraid he was going to put me back into the system, so I bolted. That was you?”

Ezra nods his head in agreement. “I was trying to tell you about your parents, who they were, who you are, and your inherited responsibility as a guardian. Then, Sam came.”

Xander yells, “Damn it! I was scared. If I wasn’t, all of this might have—”

Ezra warns Xander, “Don’t! You were a kid, and you were afraid. I did the same when Sebastian came to me.”

Xander is completely engulfed in Ezra’s words, and I feel like I can breathe easier for just a little while. I say a small prayer of thanks for Xander’s willingness to listen to Ezra.

Ezra tells Xander about Sebastian and Balthazar, Dobria and Sonde, and the implantation of Copulas. He describes Xander’s story of being implanted. Then, Ezra recounts my guardianship and relation to Sebastian. He explains that Anna was his wife and my mother. He continues by detailing when Sam Crest murdered Anna in the cabin while I sat in my crib in another room.

Hearing that story again chokes me up, and I have to excuse myself to the kitchen until Ezra is done explaining my mother’s passing.

Then, Ezra tells him about the upcoming collision of our galaxy with Andromeda. I’m waiting for Xander to have a reaction similar to mine.

Looking back, I thought Ezra was insane when he told me about the collision. It took a little while for the shock to wear off.

But, Xander doesn’t bat an eye. He takes everything Ezra is feeding him in stride.

Maybe he’s taking everything so well because all of this news is mild compared to the life he lived as a child.

He lost his parents and then his grandmother. He was put into foster care, ran away, and then the trusted father figure that took him in betrayed him. When someone has lived through things like that, it’s hard for anything else to come as a shock.

I walk back into the living room as Ezra tells Xander about his purpose. “Just as I told Jesca, Nate, and the other guardians, these abilities that you possess have always been within you, hidden your entire life. They are hereditary. The Copula you were implanted with as a child has intensified the strength of those abilities so that you can guard humanity. You are a Dobrian guardian, and your purpose is to use those abilities to protect yourself and our human race during and after the intersection. Your Copula will help you adapt to our changing world, survive it, and evolve within it.”

Xander sits quietly and leans forward. He puts his elbows on his knees, resting his mouth on his intertwined fingers. Xander stares into the fire. He looks tortured.

I remember that feeling like it was yesterday. I don’t want to see him go through it. It hurts me to watch it stir within him. I get the urge to walk over to him and hug him, but I hold still on the sofa, gripping the cushion on both sides of my legs.

Xander stands and walks to the fireplace mantel. “I don’t even know what my abilities are, Ezra. I’ve only stumbled upon a couple of them because I’ve had to…to survive.”

Ezra nods. “That is why we came. I knew that as soon as you started discovering them, it would be hard to hold back the others from surfacing within you.”

Ezra looks to both Nate and me now, and then he returns his gaze back to Xander. “We are going to help you discover what you are capable of. And, if you’re anything like your cousin, then we’ll have a lot to work with.”

Ezra moves his hand to his mouth nervously, realizing that his thoughts that should have remained in his head slipped out.

I think,
Smooth, Ezra, real smooth.

His eyes shoot daggers in my direction.

Xander turns from the mantel, facing Ezra with his hands on his hips. “Cousin? I don’t have a cousin.”

Ezra leans back in the chair, sinking down a little. “Uh, yeah, about that.” Ezra stands abruptly and walks to the kitchen. He mumbles, “Nate Sera is your cousin.”

Xander’s mouth tightens. His jaw is visibly twitching from his frustration. His eyes go straight to Nate. “You’re my cousin?”

I see that Xander has found his threshold for shocking news. And, it’s Nate.

Xander starts walking toward Nate. Nate stands, and I quickly jump between them.

I call for backup. “Ezra!”

Xander growls at me accusingly, “How long have you known?”

I snap back at him,
“I just found out yesterday, Xander! Nate didn’t even know. His parents never told him.”

Ezra moves quickly back into the living room, standing between Xander and me.

Ezra says, “Xander, it’s true. I just told them.”

Xander looks from Ezra to Nate. Xander backs up and starts pacing. He keeps his eyes on Ezra. “How could I not know about my aunt, uncle, and cousin?”

Ezra answers, “There was a falling out between your father and Nate’s. Nate’s father pleaded with your father and mother to become inactive for your sake, like Nate’s parents had done for him. Your mother and father refused, saying the only way they could guarantee your safety is if they remained active. After that falling out, your parents and your aunt and uncle were estranged. I would assume your mother’s mother—your grandmother—knew nothing about the rest of your family because of the separated relationship.”

When he spoke to us yesterday, Ezra did not tell us the story about Nate and Xander’s estranged parents or the story behind my adopted parents’ relation to
them. I realize that this means my sister, Bethany, is related to Nate and Xander. They are blood cousins.

I speak up. “Nate and Xander, you have another cousin by blood. My adopted parents, your aunt and uncle, had a biological child, Bethany.”

Both Nate and Xander look at me. They are as astonished as I am.

Ezra looks at Nate, and then he glances at Xander. “I get that you both have a bond with my daughter. To what degree, I don’t know. When things went down that night in Miami, the tension was in
stantly evident between you two,” Ezra raises his voice in anger. “Whatever was going on between you two in regard to Jesca needs to be put aside for all of our sakes. All of our lives are on the line.”

His voice cracks a little, and it causes me to look at his reaction. His eyes are red. He blows out his lower lip, looks down at his feet, and puts his hands on his hips.

He says, “Her life is on the line.”

Xander is looking at Ezra now, like he is studying him and trying to read his thoughts. “Why is her life in more danger than ours?”

Xander looks over Nate’s shoulder at me with concern written all over his face.

Ezra explains, “Sam was after Jesca as well as Corinna that night in the club. He was after her in Georgia before you were sent to track Jesca and me. Xander, Jesca’s abilities surpass all of the other guardians. The only other guardian that possessed similar abilities was her mother. The Sondian fellowship wants to eliminate Jesca because they know that she can put an end to their plans with the intersection. Sam is their assassin, and he is more than eager to be the one that brings down the foundation of our fellowship.”

Xander asks, “Where is Sam? He came to me this afternoon before you arrived. Was he really here, or was that a projection of him in my dreams? Like that lucid…whatever you were talking about.”

Ezra says, “He came to you in a lucid dream. He astral projected his soul, his life force, here to check up on you. He is in Japan with Corinna.”

Xander questions, “How did he know where to find me?”

Nate chimes in, “You have been out of the cabin. Sondians and Dobrians are everywhere. It’s not just us. How do you think we were able to find you?”

Running his hand over his mouth, Xander mutters, “They are always watching.”

Xander folds his arms over his chest. He continues to look out the window. A flash of lightning reflects an amber color across his face. The lightning has become more intense since we arrived.

Xander turns toward us and slowly walks away from the window. “Alright, what do we do now?”

It seems unbelievable that Xander could be so accepting of everything Ezra just told him. It makes me a little envious of his ability to accept things the way they have been laid out for him.

I say, “So, you’re completely fine with everything Ezra just told you?”

Xander looks at me with his magnetic blue-green eyes. “Nothing that he’s told me is
fine
. All of it is a disaster and insane, but I can sense that Ezra is telling me what I have needed to know my whole life—the truth. No matter how screwed up all of this is, it is still the truth, and that is all I have ever wanted.”