Garreth had already explained that this star was Hadrian’s mark, but deep inside I knew I had seen it somewhere else before. The power of déjà vu hit hard and I found myself profoundly irritated. Maybe I saw it in a past math class? Frustrated, I closed the file and completely shut down the system. I grabbed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder.
The itching on my palm had resurfaced with a vengeance and I opened my hand to examine it.
Gross.
An unpleasant raised line appeared on the surface of my skin and I scratched at it with my stubby nails, careful not to split open the ugly welt now forming.
Obviously, I had been exposed to some sort of poison oak or sumac during my trek through the woods the other night. I thought quickly of the contents of our medicine cabinet. Surely it contained some sort of cream that would erase yet another reminder of my last night with Claire. As I turned to head into the bathroom, I stopped dead in my tracks.
A familiar hum had come from my window.
Claire.
The ache in my heart spoke her name but I shook my head, knowing there would be no white car waiting at the curb. Yet, the sound of the engine was so familiar. I heard a door open and close.
I turned around and crossed the length of my room to the window. My wishful thinking was never practical and my heart was pounding wildly out of rhythm, but I couldn’t stop myself from checking. My eyes widened, expecting to see white. That was what I most desperately wanted. What I didn’t expect, however, was to see how beautiful gunmetal gray could appear in the bouncing light of a morning sun. I practically ran out of my room to the top of the stairs, the first aid forgotten.
I tiptoed down the steps and stood in the doorway of the kitchen, watching in silent disbelief. It was one thing to see his car parked outside, but it was something else entirely to see my own personal angel sitting in my kitchen, chatting with my mother as she refilled her coffee mug.
“Hi, honey. It seems you don’t need to introduce me to your friend after all. Garreth thought you could use a ride to school since word’s gotten out that you loathe the bus so much.”
My eyes drifted toward the only light in the kitchen worth looking at, as comfortable as anything in the chair that was usually mine. He smiled that particular smile that I knew was only meant for me.
Calm washed over the room and I knew he was responsible for it. I knew he was timing his heart with mine, using it to calm me. For that reason alone I had never felt closer to him. Who else’s heart would beat in time with mine? Who else would breathe when I did?
Or, better yet, breathe for me?
“A ride would be nice, thanks. Is that okay, Mom? That Garreth takes me to school?” My voice sounded pleading. I hoped she wouldn’t notice.
“Absolutely. In fact I’m glad you came over, Garreth. I told Teagan I wanted to thank you for the ride you gave her the other night. It means a lot to me that you were there for her. She’s very special to me. She’s all I have.
”
“You’re very welcome, and you’re right, she is special.”
I was taking a sip of orange juice just as those words slipped from his mouth, and I gulped to keep from choking on it.
“Well, we should be going now. I am so glad you two met.” I grabbed my backpack, a piece of toast, and Garreth’s arm as I dragged him to the door.
“So nice to meet you, Garreth,” Mom called out behind us as I raced ahead of him to the Jeep parked at the curb.
We drove in silence at first but then I couldn’t hold back any longer.
“You could have warned me, you know.”
“Sorry, I thought I would surprise you. But, if you feel that strongly about it, I think I can catch up to your bus.
It’s 4E, right?”
I smiled at his joke then I looked at him and lost my train of thought. The sun was shining through the windshield, bringing out the tints in his sandy hair. He was looking straight ahead, concentrating on the road.
I let my eyes travel from his perfect profile, down the smooth skin of his neck where the breathtaking incense was strongest, down his arm to the loosely rolled cuff at his wrist, and then out to his strong but delicate hand.
“What are you doing?” he laughed.
“I’m memorizing you.” My voice caught in my throat.
He was with me. Here. Now. Yet, as hard as I tried, I couldn’t shake the plunging feeling that overwhelmed me at the end of each day, bringing closer the day I dreaded.
“You don’t need to memorize me.”
“Of course I do. You’ll be leaving soon.”
“I’m not leaving you. You just won’t be able to see me as you do right now.” A look of remorse spread quickly across his face. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, my coming here.”
I jumped on his words. “How can you mean that?”
“I’ve been very selfish coming to you like this. I broke a cardinal rule.”
“Which is?” Exasperation seethed within me.
“Putting my own wants first, before your protection. I’ve endangered you, Teagan. I wanted to know you so much that I placed what should be secret and sacred behind all that. Knowing about Hadrian places you in a danger greater than ever.”
“But wouldn’t he have found me anyway? The bloodline?”
He continued staring straight ahead, even though we had already arrived at school and were parked in the spot Garreth had claimed for himself these last few days.
“Yes, he would have found you, regardless. I just can’t help feeling responsible, like I’ve brought him closer…sooner than what may have transpired. As you grow stronger, Hadrian is becoming more aggressive.”
I could only hope that Hadrian never confronted us. I couldn’t imagine Garreth becoming part of a powerless legion of fellow Guardians, forced to watch helplessly as their charges were manipulated. I was picking at my nails, what was left of them, when he took my hand.
“It would have been safer to guide you in my natural form. I can’t stop protecting you, Teagan. It’s who I am.
But my feelings for you have only sped up the inevitable. You are Hadrian’s greatest enemy right now.
You have the power to destroy him.”
I leaned into his chest. My eyes closed, for a second, and then the bell echoed over the parking lot.
Half of the day managed to go by before I couldn’t stand it any longer. I couldn’t take walking the halls, staring down at my shoes or straight ahead, avoiding the invisible question marks tattooed across everyone’s faces. I had just about thrown a fit when the guidance counselor called me out of class for the third time to “monitor” me. Only one good thing had come of it all: Garreth had appointed himself to be my emotional chaperone.
“This is ridiculous.” I hugged my books tighter to my chest, like a shield.
“They’re in shock, Teagan. A part of their little world has just drastically changed and they’re looking for an answer.”
“And they think I have it?”