Deep blue stains my vision, and the call buzzes my lips. I try to bite it down, try to move.
Can’t.
I form an “o” with my lips and prepare to ease the buzzing pain.
Yeah, I’m going to call each and every one of them. The song swells in my throat.
“Pike!” Sadie’s voice slices through. Brings my ability to reason with it. I turn left, toward the sound of her voice. She stands there, her face twisted into a what gives expression. We lock eyes and I don’t dare look anywhere else.
That girl is the only thing keeping me human, so to speak.
Hands clamp down on my shoulders. My head jerks forward, and my eyes take in Jax. I didn’t hear him move, but now he’s planted right in front of me.
“Are you alright?” he whispers with a concerned dad tone.
“Um.” I gaze around the silent cafeteria and slowly nod. My eyes touch Sadie’s face again. This time she wears a half scowl. I grin before Jax pulls me up onto the platform.
The buzz in my limbs ebbs away as I trudge up the stairs and take the empty seat next to Kiwi. I keep my eyes averted. The last thing I need right now is a death glare.
My fingers lift to my temples and I rub out the last of my need to kill buzz. It falls away slowly; I swallow it to the pit of my stomach. When I get control of myself, my normal senses return. Sight first.
Juliet says something I don’t catch, then the room fills with applause. As she takes a seat, Jaxass steps up to the podium. He lifts a silver flask to his lips and takes a long sip. Then he places it into his inside pocket and swipes both hands over his lumpy, baldhead. The clapping dies down. He doesn’t speak until the room is still.
“We’ve all been living in hard times.” His voice, usually a soft whisper, becomes a louder whisper.
I sweep my gaze from him to the crowd. The better to see if they’re going to swallow this bullshit. Everyone is leaned forward and tense. As if one escaped word from Jaxass is a matter of life and death.
“We’ve all lost people we love, our sense of security.” He pauses. “Our civilization teeters on a scary cliff of the unknown.”
Heads nod. Tears roll. I surprise myself by not snorting. Instead, I let my gaze flitter over to Sadie. Her arms are crossed over her chest. She glowers at everyone around her with clear frustration.
And I can’t help but smile. Momma didn’t raise a fool. Glancing away before I start laughing, I place a fist under my nose to keep out the smell of BS.
“Well, I am here to tell you that hope is not lost,” Jax says, raising his fist in the air.
Someone in the crowd whoops. He goes on. “It is true that things may never be the same, but what is lost can be recovered.” Two of his fingers stab the podium. “And we will rebuild.”
Applause explodes inside the cafeteria, drowning out all other sound. Their happiness drizzles onto me. It makes for a nice little high.
I haven’t tasted hope like this in a while. Every human feeling in this space swells. Every. Human. Feeling.
Something makes me frown despite the light energy swirling inside my head.
Every human.
But, there have to be others. My kind. I focus my power and reach for them. Seconds trickle away. I have to block out Kiwi and Tripp’s energy. Minutes run out, and I find nothing.
“Residents of Compound Six,” Jax’s voice slithers out again, robbing my focus. “I submit to you that there is a cure beyond our protective walls.”
Stone silence. I glance over at the Colonel. Both his hands are draped on either side of the podium. “But we cannot continue like this. Divided… scared.”
I roll my eyes. He sounds like a poorly done Abe Lincoln.
He steps back and gestures to the three of us, eyes locking on mine. Then, in the loudest voice I’ve ever heard him use, he says, “I present to you… this brave team. A group of people and descendants of the gods who have dedicated themselves to retrieving our cure.” With a smile, he turns back to the awed
Can’t.
I form an “o” with my lips and prepare to ease the buzzing pain.
Yeah, I’m going to call each and every one of them. The song swells in my throat.
“Pike!” Sadie’s voice slices through. Brings my ability to reason with it. I turn left, toward the sound of her voice. She stands there, her face twisted into a what gives expression. We lock eyes and I don’t dare look anywhere else.
That girl is the only thing keeping me human, so to speak.
Hands clamp down on my shoulders. My head jerks forward, and my eyes take in Jax. I didn’t hear him move, but now he’s planted right in front of me.
“Are you alright?” he whispers with a concerned dad tone.
“Um.” I gaze around the silent cafeteria and slowly nod. My eyes touch Sadie’s face again. This time she wears a half scowl. I grin before Jax pulls me up onto the platform.
The buzz in my limbs ebbs away as I trudge up the stairs and take the empty seat next to Kiwi. I keep my eyes averted. The last thing I need right now is a death glare.
My fingers lift to my temples and I rub out the last of my need to kill buzz. It falls away slowly; I swallow it to the pit of my stomach. When I get control of myself, my normal senses return. Sight first.
Juliet says something I don’t catch, then the room fills with applause. As she takes a seat, Jaxass steps up to the podium. He lifts a silver flask to his lips and takes a long sip. Then he places it into his inside pocket and swipes both hands over his lumpy, baldhead. The clapping dies down. He doesn’t speak until the room is still.
“We’ve all been living in hard times.” His voice, usually a soft whisper, becomes a louder whisper.
I sweep my gaze from him to the crowd. The better to see if they’re going to swallow this bullshit. Everyone is leaned forward and tense. As if one escaped word from Jaxass is a matter of life and death.
“We’ve all lost people we love, our sense of security.” He pauses. “Our civilization teeters on a scary cliff of the unknown.”
Heads nod. Tears roll. I surprise myself by not snorting. Instead, I let my gaze flitter over to Sadie. Her arms are crossed over her chest. She glowers at everyone around her with clear frustration.
And I can’t help but smile. Momma didn’t raise a fool. Glancing away before I start laughing, I place a fist under my nose to keep out the smell of BS.
“Well, I am here to tell you that hope is not lost,” Jax says, raising his fist in the air.
Someone in the crowd whoops. He goes on. “It is true that things may never be the same, but what is lost can be recovered.” Two of his fingers stab the podium. “And we will rebuild.”
Applause explodes inside the cafeteria, drowning out all other sound. Their happiness drizzles onto me. It makes for a nice little high.
I haven’t tasted hope like this in a while. Every human feeling in this space swells. Every. Human. Feeling.
Something makes me frown despite the light energy swirling inside my head.
Every human.
But, there have to be others. My kind. I focus my power and reach for them. Seconds trickle away. I have to block out Kiwi and Tripp’s energy. Minutes run out, and I find nothing.
“Residents of Compound Six,” Jax’s voice slithers out again, robbing my focus. “I submit to you that there is a cure beyond our protective walls.”
Stone silence. I glance over at the Colonel. Both his hands are draped on either side of the podium. “But we cannot continue like this. Divided… scared.”
I roll my eyes. He sounds like a poorly done Abe Lincoln.
He steps back and gestures to the three of us, eyes locking on mine. Then, in the loudest voice I’ve ever heard him use, he says, “I present to you… this brave team. A group of people and descendants of the gods who have dedicated themselves to retrieving our cure.” With a smile, he turns back to the awed
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