Текст книги "Total Eclipse"

Автор книги: Rachel Caine

Соавторы: Rachel Caine
сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 2 (всего у книги 18 страниц)

Chapter Two

The first thing I heard when I woke up was a distant, soft echo of screaming. With it came a jolt of adrenaline, a feeling of drowning, of being consumed by something . . . massive.

Then it receded, like a tide, and I was left shaking and cold despite the piles of warm blankets on top of me. Lewis was asleep in a chair next to my bed, leaning forward with his head resting on the covers next to me. One long-fingered hand was touching mine, very lightly.

He was snoring.

I smiled wearily and ruffled his hair. Hey, I said. How can anybody sleep with that noise?

Lewis sat up, blinking, wiping his mouth, and looking so cutely rumpled and abashed that I felt something in me wobble off its axis. Dont look like that. Oh, and please dont look at me like that while youre doing it.He was tough enough to resist when he wasnt being adorable.

Sorry, he mumbled, and scrubbed his stubbly face with both hands. Bad night. Some focus came back into his eyes, and I was able to get that wobbling part of me back in balance. How are your ears?

I could hear you snoring like a chain saw. I must be healed.

That got a grin from him, brief as it was. Then I guess theyre intact.

I looked around. David was lying in the next bed over, still asleep. He looked pale and tired and anxious, even resting.

Cherise was curled in on herself in the next bed after David.

How are they? I asked. I was afraid of the answer, but he just nodded briskly, and relief flooded in on me in a warm wave. No lasting damage?

Worn-out, he said. David was able to talk a little before he drifted off. Cherise just needs sleep.

He told you My brain flashed back to the screaming Djinn, that sound, and I felt the panic race back, slamming into my body and jolting me into a sudden sitting position. It wasnt as loud this time. Or I was getting used to hearing that awful, awful noise. I swallowed several times and concentrated hard, and the screaming died away.

I was holding Lewiss hand in a death grip. I eased off, remembering to breathe, and saw the worry and fear in his face. Im okay, I said. If I said it enough, maybe it would even be true. David told you

About the Djinn disappearing, Lewis said. We heard thethe sound out there, everywhere in the ship. According to radio communications, we werent the only ship that heard it. It blew out speakers on a tanker ten miles out. It came from the Djinn? Youre sure?

I nodded, not sure I could trust my voice just then. I was controlling the effects of the experience, but my body was still reacting in flight-or-fight mode. Finally, I said, They just screamed and vanished. I dont know what happened.

I do, Lewis said. We reached the edge of the black corner.

I stared at him. I hadnt felt . . . anything.No change in my perception of the world. No connections snapping back in place.

I was still cut off.

That shouldnt have surprised me, but it did. It felt as if all the props had just been knocked out from under me, as if some joker had pulled the handle on a trapdoor and I was going to fall forever. Id saidI understood what had happened to me, but deep down inside, Id believedId believed that I was better than that. That my power would come snapping back, and once we were beyond the borders of the black corner, Id be . . . myself.

Lewis could tell. I hated to see the pity in his face, so I looked away, fighting back the tears. I couldnt do much about the trembling, though. So, I said, and forced my voice to be something like normal. The Wardens are back in business?

More or less, he said, and broke up into a fit of wet coughing. Once hed gotten that out of the way, he smiled ruefully. Some are feeling better than others. Jo

We knew this was going to happen, I interrupted him. David and I. We knew our powers were . . . gone. We just have to figure out how to get them back.

Its possible that theyll come back on their own, over time. That your body will be able to repair the damage.

Dont bullshit me, Lewis. Im not a child, and I dont want false hope.

Im not offering any, he said. Look, we just dont know. Things arenothing makes sense right now. The Djinn . . . the way things feel

What about the way things feel? I thought he was talking about the two of us, and that was dangerous, uncertain territory. But he wasnt, as it turned out.

The world isnt right, Lewis said. Things are wrong out there. Badly wrong. Bad enough that it blew the Djinn out like candles once they came out into the storm.

My breath caught in my throat, and I grabbed his hand again. Theyre not

I dont think theyre dead, he said. But theyre not visible to us, not anymore. I cant reach any of them, even on the aetheric. Its like theyve beentaken.

But what if theyre more than gone? What if theyre

Theyre not dead, he repeated. Id know if they were. Hell, the whole world would know, I think.

I shuddered, trying hard not to think about that. If the Djinn were gone, one of the key support structures in the delicate architecture of the planet had disappeared, sending us screaming off balance into the dark. We wouldnt survive that. Any of us, including Mother Earth herself. The Djinn were like antibodies in her bloodstream, designed to attack and defend her against dangerous infections. She needed them.

So what now? I asked. Lewis yawned, tried to cover it up, and failed miserably. Besides about a month of bed rest for you, and inhalation therapy, and a boatload of antibiotics?

Yeah, like thats going to happen. We both know the reward for a good job is more work, only done faster and more difficult.

He wasnt wrong about that, but I didnt know how much more Lewis could take. Hed been through as much as I hadmore, maybe, depending on how you count such things. And he didnt have a loved ones strength to rely on. Lewis only had himself.

And whose fault is that?a little voice whispered nastily in my head. Who shoved him away? Who ran off and fell in love with somebody else?

It didnt matter, I told that little voice as firmly as possible. Things were what they were. Lewis knew I cared for him, but David was my love, my lover, my husband. We all had come to accept that.

I thought.

Lewis was watching me, and I couldnt fathom what was going on in his head. I hoped he couldnt guess the argument going on inside mine, either.

Were two days from port, he said. Once we get there, we need to hit the ground running. There are reports of all kinds of problems breaking out.

I shook my head. Not exactly new.

Not exactly, he agreed. But were the mechanics of the world, Jo. And things need to be fixed. So most of the Wardens will get back to doing what they do best.

Most, I repeated. Meaning?

Meaning that Im going to pull the top three Earth Wardens, and were going to do our best to analyze what happened to you and David, and make it right if we can. Ive been on the phone to Marion Bearheart. She thinks that, in theory, it should be possible to open up the energy conduits within you again, if thats whats gone wrong.

That sounded hopeful. It also, at second breath, sounded painful. I winced a little, and saw sympathy flash across Lewiss face. Yeah, he said. Its going to hurt.

Used to that.

And David?

Signing myself up for painful psychic surgery was one thing, but David . . .

David can speak for himself, said a voice from the next bed, and Lewis turned in that direction. Behind him, I saw that David had pulled himself up to a sitting position, chest bare, sheets wrapped tight around his waist. He looked tired and vulnerable, but the sight of him up and alert made my heart take a mad leap of joy. What do humans take for headaches these days?

Depends on how bad it is, Lewis said, already moving in the direction of the locked medicine cabinets. On a scale of one to ten?

David thought about it, then sighed and rubbed a distracted hand over his short brown hair. Twenty-five.

Luis didnt seem surprised. He retrieved a preloaded syringe, came back, and unceremoniously delivered a jab to Davids biceps. David flinched, lips parting in shock, and said, incredulously, Ow!He sounded horribly betrayed by the pain. I wondered how long it had been since hed really been subject to a human nervous systemone he couldnt control, anyway. What wasthat?

Wait for it, Lewis said, as he disposed of the hypo in a medical waste container. Should be aboutnow.

David suddenly relaxednot quite enough to collapse, but I saw the tension just bleed out of him. His eyes widened and went a little unfocused. Oh, he said. Well, thats better.

Welcome to modern medicine.

Its nice, David said, and raised his eyebrows. Its reallynice. He slid off the bed, landed on his bare feet, and padded over to claim the chair Lewis had been using. Before he sat, he bent over and kissed me, long and sweet and slow, and I savored every bit of it.

Lewis cleared his throat.

Oh, bite me, big man, I said, too full of relief to care. Youre okay, honey? Davids skin felt warm against my handhuman warm, not the banked fire of a Djinn. He gave me a small, reassuring smile. Really?

Ill be fine, he said, and sat down. As long as you are. He turned his head toward Lewis, and his body language altered itself, just a little. Although I couldnt get the subtleties, it seemed to me that he was making an effort to be friendly, but he wanted Lewis to be anywhere but here. Lewis. What do you know?

About what happened to the Djinn? Nothing. We came out of the black corner, they screamed, they disappeared.

Davids eyes went briefly blank, and I knew that, like me, he was struggling not to relive that awful sound. There was something about it that just wouldnt die; it was like an endless recorded loop, playing in the back of my mind. The best you could do was keep the sound turned low. No, he said. Thats not what happened. Jo understands.

I did? I didnt. I shook my head.

You saw it before, he said. At the coast. You saw it take me.

I had no idea what he meant, and I was about to say so. . . . And then it came to me, like a physical slap. I sat up, staring at him. No.

Yes, he said. Exactly that.

Butthe Wardens would know.

Not if she didnt wish them to.

Excuse me, Lewis said, a little too loudly. Somebody want to clue me in?

David was the one to say it, which was good, because I wasnt sure I had it in me. Its the Mother, he said. It was her scream, echoing through the Djinn. Shes been hurt, and shes angry. She gathered the Djinn to her. Theyre in her power now.

I watched Lewiss face go very quickly pale. He put out a hand to steady himself. Youre saying

Im saying that the Earth is awake, David said. At least, I believe she is coming awake. The Djinn serve her, and when she calls, they must come.

This was, beyond any doubt, the worst thing that could happen. The Earth slept. We likedit that way. Even in sleep she was difficult, but once that vast, slow consciousness was roused . . . we had no idea what she would do, except that it almost certainly would end in extinction for a great many species, and the end of human civilization, at the very least. The Earth could not be reasoned with, or even directly communicatedwith. Not even the Djinn could do that. The only ones that had a chance, even a whisper of a chance, were the three Djinn Oracles.

Thinking of the Oracles made me think about my daughter, Imara, and I felt a leap of terrible fear. Had she screamed, like the others? Had she lost herself, too?

No, David said, and his fingers tightened on mine. Shes all right, Imara is all right. Wed know His voice trailed off, and I saw a flash of panic in his eyes. We wouldntknow. We were only human now, and our daughter, our child whod been born half Djinn and raised to become an Oracle . . . she was beyond our grasp now. David normally would have been able to reach out to her, over any distance, but now he was just as trapped in flesh and as clueless as I felt.

We both turned immediately to Lewis.

I dont know about the Oracles. I havent heard anything, he said. He knew immediately what we were thinking about, and the frown on his face said that he was worried about it, too. Ill get somebody on it. David, do you know whyshe summoned the Djinn?

Pain, David said softly. You heard the scream. That was her pain.

It rolled over me in a fresh, overwhelming wave of memory, and I had to concentrate hard to keep myself from shaking with the intensity of the experience. The black corner, I said. Shes been hurt. Thats why shes waking up. Wedid this.

David visibly swallowed, then nodded. Our hands tightened together, the only real comfort we could offer each other. It had been bad enough when wed been responsible for the pain and death of Djinn. Now we might be responsible for a whole lot more.

Well find a way to get back to ourselves, he said. We have to find a way.

I wished I could believe him. Lewis wasnt looking at me, and I could tell that he was trying not to reveal his own doubts. He pushed away from the bulkhead wall and said, You asked what we were going to do. I dont see that theres any reason to change the plan. We hit land, the Wardens scatter to handle crisis events. Id like you two at Warden HQ for the time being. Itll be easier to work with you there, and you can help us with coordination.

Coordination.

If the Earth was really waking up, really angry, really hurtwed be coordinating firefighting during a nuclear war. And it was a waste. He was sidelining us, and I didnt like it.

We have something more important to do, Lewis. I know youre trying to keep us out of the way, but we have to try to find a way to get our powers back, I said. David cant live like this. You know that. We have to see the Oracles. If anybody knows, they do.

I cant give you help.

We dont need any, David said. This will work, or it wont. But isnt it worth a shot?

Lewis thought about it for a moment, then nodded. Yes, he said. Its worth a shot. But if it doesnt work, I need you at Warden HQ. Understand?

Understood, I said.

No way in hell.

I got used to feeling sealed inside myself over the next two days; if David didnt, he hid it well. We didnt need confinement in hospital beds, so we checked ourselves out while Lewis wasnt looking. It wasnt really our fault, though. Cherise instigated it.

No way am I sleeping in thishorrible bed the rest of the trip, she declared within a couple of hours of waking up. For Cherise, she looked ragged. For anyone else, she looked magazine-cover ready, but I could spot the subtletiesa smudge under her eyes, a slight pallor under her tan, hair that wasnt quite as bouncy as usual. And the shower in here sucks. What is this shampoo stuff, anyway? Medical soap? Ugh. No. I am not doing without product. Theres a limit.

With that, and without anybody giving her permission to vacate the bed, she was up and moving, wrapped in a sheet and searching for her clothes. David helpedmore afraid that shed end up dropping the sheet and hed see more of Cherise than he intended, I thinkand once shed laid her hands on her shorts, shirt, and shoes, there was no stopping her.

Which was all fine with me, actually. I was heartily sick of this room. I dressed quickly. David was hilariously slow; I wondered how often hed actually had to pull on his own pants in the last few thousand years. Probably zero times.

Sunshine, Cherise declared as we followed her out of the medical area and into the more spacious public area of the ship. The utilitarian carpet and walls were replaced by lusher stuff the higher we went, and by the time we could see daylight streaming through windows, we were in posh territory, with fancy sitting rooms and dark wood paneling. And bars. A lot of bars. A few were even serving.

Cherise stopped at one and ordered us all margaritas.

I dont think this is the time, I said, but she pressed the glass into my hands firmly.

Sweetie, this is exactlythe time to drink, she said. We survived, right? Were heading home? Definitely happy hour, from now until, oh, ever after. She clinked glasses with me, then David, and led us out a side door onto the deck of the ship. We didnt much feel like celebrating, but it was tough to resist Cher when she was in a mood like this.

And she was right about taking us outside. It was beautiful.

Hard to believe that wed spent the last few weeksno, months? years?under such strain, facing such dire circumstances. When wed sailed out of Miami, wed done it in the teeth of a monstrous storm.

Today the sun was warm and kind, the sky a rich, clean-scrubbed blue. The breeze that blew in off the waves was gentle as it glided over my bare arms. The sea was calm; it glittered in diamond-bright swells, a sparkling fabric unrolled as far as the eye could see.

So beautiful.

David put his arm around me, and we stood there for a moment in silence, staring out at the vista. Cherise leaned on her forearms on the rail, smiling, turning her face up to the sun with an expression of pure delight.

Cher?

She turned at the sound of her name, and I glanced back to see Kevin coming at a run from a lower deck, taking the stairs two at a time. My relationship with Kevinthe youngest Warden we had, I believedwas complicated. Hewas complicated, more than most people I knew: damaged, and dangerous, and unpredictable, but still struggling to find and hold on to that core of goodness that against all odds survived within him. Hed been through a lot, in hiswhat was it now, nineteen years? He was three years younger than Cherise, which seemed like a lot at their ages. But that didnt stop him from being head over heels in love with her.

Hey, Kev, she said, turning from the rail as he jumped to the top of the steps and lunged to grab her in a hug. She was a very small girl, and he was tall and lanky, putting on more muscle all the time. An odd couple, but also oddly appropriate for each other. Cherises unending optimism was something Kevin needed in his life, which had seen way too much darkness. She was laughing in bright, silvery peals as he spun her around in his arms. Whoa, whoa, easy, dont make me yak!

He stopped and let her go, but she didnt go farjust far enough to kiss him, with authority. David raised his eyebrows a little but said nothing. I wondered what he thought about it. I suspected he was just as wary as I was of Kevin, generally.

Youre okay? Kevin asked. Lewis said

Yeah, look, the Djinn kind of freaked out and there was a thing, but Im all good now. See? Cherise did a runway twirl for him. Im fine.

Yes, you are.

She made a purring sound low in her throat and arched against him like a cat. Dont tease unless you mean it.

Oh, I Kevin suddenly stopped in midflirt, blinked, and looked at her with a baffled expression. David and I both turned to look at him. Cherise was just as baffled as Kevin, it seemed.

What? I asked, because it didnt seem like Cherise could even remember the word.

Kevin closed his eyes for a second, rubbed them, and opened them again. Relief spread across his face, and he shook his head. Nothing, he said. Jesus, Im tired. I thoughtits nothing. Im okay.

Cherise stepped forward and put her hand against his cheek, one of those loving gestures that I find myself doing to David so often. Kevin relaxed and bent toward her, covering her hand with his. Well, I said to David, theyve gotten cozy. Not really sure how I feel about that.

He acknowledged it with a nod, but I could tell his mind was elsewhere. Shadows in his eyes, weariness in his face. For the first time, it struck me that every minute he spent in a human bodya realhuman body, cut off from the Djinnhe was growing older, just as I was. I tried to imagine how it felt for him to have lost so much, to be so alone. I knew how Ifelt. Surely for him it was millions times worse.

David. I put a hand on his arm, and got his full focus. Are you okay? Do you need Lewis to

No mistaking the weary twist of his mouth. He hated being dependent on anyone, but hed have to face factshe couldnt draw enough power from me to fuel his life well, and Lewis was the best bet. But David didnt like being beholden to the first man Id ever loved. At all. Im fine, he said, voice unnervingly soft and even. If I have to see him for help, I will.

I didnt believe him, but he wasnt asking me to, in so many words. It was the big lie, and he was asking me not to push it. David wasnt the kind to be reasonable about his limits; after spending millennia without many at all, he was going to crash into human borders pretty hard, and it was going to hurt.

It wasnt the kind of thing hed thank me for pointing out, either.

Coordinating, I said, bringing us back to the dark center of things around which our lives revolved now. He really wanted to stick us with coordinating at headquarters.

That got a smile from him, if a brief one. Its not going to suit you if we have to do it.

Speak for yourself, Master ofI was about to say Djinnbut caught myself in time . . . ouchthe obvious. Im not giving up yet. Well find a way to get our mojo back. See if we dont.

David drained the rest of his glass and dangled it from his fingers, staring down now into the sparkling waves. You sure you want it back?

Are you kiddingme?

No, he said, and his voice had that odd, flat, soft inflection again, as if he were pressing all the emotion out of it with great care. Jo, think about it. We both want to be together, but weve always been of two worlds. I tried to make you part of mine, but that didnt work. Thisthis is a chance to make me part of yours.

I forgot all about the drink in my hand, the beautiful day, the laughter of Cherise and Kevin standing a few feet away, and fixed him with a disbelieving stare. David, youre dying.

Everyones dying, he said. Mortal life is short to someone like me even in the best case. If I dontresume my life as a Djinn, I can be a true husband to you. Living a human life. His eyes finally moved to meet mine. Giving you human children.

We didnt talk about Imara very often; our Djinn child was a beautiful, complicated gift, but she had never been a baby, never rested in my arms, never taken her first steps. The mothering instinct in me craved more, and he knew that. Id never said it, but of course he knew.

David

Its not a good time, he finished for me, and he was right on, even though we no longer shared that deep supernatural bond that had made it so easy for him to read me. I know. But theres so little good about all this, Jo. We should take what we can, when we can, for as long as we can.

Im not having children just to watch them die, if this turns bad, I said, and somehow managed not to add, again.Imaras death, before shed been made an Oracle, was something that would haunt me forever. Were in trouble. Dont think I havent noticed.

You know what Ive learned from thousands of years of watching humanity? Its always a bad time. He put his arms around me and held me, and the simple warmth of it made me want to weep. I didnt. It wouldnt do for me to get all girly and soft on him now. But all the bad times end, too.

Thus sayeth the dude with a long view.

Dude?

Sorry, it was my bad eighties teen years coming back to haunt me.

He kissed me, as if he couldnt think of any more words. That was okay. It got the point across just fine.

It was very strange to be on the outskirts of the whirl-wind of activity inside the Wardensa bystander, like Cherise. Someone included me in some of the meetings, out of courtesy, but being outside of the direct flow of crisis information made me feel like I was just holding down a chair at the table. It was, in fact, a literal table, the biggest one on the ship, and it seated about twenty; I supposed they used it for swank corporate meetings on the high seas. Or really large families, with equally large checkbooks. Lewis sat at one end, looking down the long expanse of wood; around it, every chair was filled with some powerful Warden or other.

Except mine and Davids, of course. We were just keeping the cushions warm.

We were an hour into the meeting, and what had started out as a grim list of problems had only gotten worse.

Reports coming in from South America, said Kyril Valotte, an exotic– looking young man who missed being handsome by the narrow set of his eyes. Earthquakes and lava flows in Venezuela. Weve got teams heading there now, but weve also got reports of odd animal attacks in Panama, some kind of disease outbreak in Guatemala. . . . Its a lot for the Earth team to handle at once.

I can send four Wardens out of Texas, said the head of the Southwest U.S. region, and made some notes on his map. Earth Wardens I got. Weather Wardens I need.

Ill send as many as I can, Kyril said with a nod. Well need ground transportation.

I held up my hand. Ill take it. I can still make phone calls.

They looked up, and I saw the frank confusion in their faces for a second before memory caught up. Then they both just looked uncomfortable. Kyril nodded and murmured something meaninglessly kind. The U.S. WardenJerry something?didnt bother. He just went back to his maps.

There was a lot of that going on. Lower– ranked Wardens came in and out, delivering notes and whispered messages to their bosses, and with each note, the deployments ended up revised. Thankfully, Cherise had come to my rescue with a genuine computer and network uplink, so I was dispatching travel authorizations and setting up rental cars at the speed ofwell, not light, but at the speed of whatever satellite I was bouncing my signal from. It was something useful to do, at least.

I was glad, because listening to the trouble was somehow worse than not knowing about it at all.

Lewis looked at his watch and said, Hour update, which was the trigger for us to go around the table, one by one, and list off the emerging issues, the ones being handled, and estimated numbers of casualties. I tallied it up in a spreadsheet. Nice and clean and neat.

By the time silence fell again, and my fingers stopped typing, I was shaking. The pause was deep and profound. I stared at the list of things Id recorded.

Jo? Lewiss voice was gentle. He already knew.

I cleared my throat. Were up to more than a thousand reported anomalies and severe issues, I said. Estimated casualties worldwide are climbing steadily. Right now, from what we have reported, the worst case scenario puts human lives lost at about half a million people.

People who were bad at math took in sharp breaths around the table.

Its going to get worse, David said, in the silence. The Djinn arent intervening. I believe they could be causing some of these events.

Why? Why would they do that? It was an emotional question, not a rational one, and it came from Kelley, down near the end of the table. She was upset, clearly.

Because they dont have a choice, David said. The Djinn arent operating under their own control anymore. At least, I dont believe they are. Otherwise, at least one of them would be here now. You cant count on any assistance from the Djinn, and where you meet them, you have to consider them as hostile.

We all knew what that meant; hostile Djinn were pretty much worst-case scenario all by themselves, and they were now only a part of our problems. I felt sick and light-headed, and I was pretty sure from the faces around the table that I wasnt the only one.

Focus on what we can control, Lewis said. Were dispatching Wardens to cover the hot spots, but thats reacting. We need to get ahead of this.

Someone let out a hollow laugh. How?

We need to get to the source of the problem, Lewis said. We need to get to the Mother herself.

This time, I felt Davidtake a breath. A sharp one, which he let out slowly before saying, I dont think thats a good idea.

I realize that were just humans, Lewis said, but sooner or later, she needs to understand what shes killing.

You think she doesnt? David asked, very mildly. That brought another few seconds of silence around the table. Humanity has done stupid things in the name of its own blind survival, worse in the name of its own comfort. Shes not concerned with individuals, Lewis. Shes concerned with balance. If you put all of humanity on one side of the scales, and all of the other life on Earth on the other side . . .

You know what? Im not here to debate humanitys crappy conservation record, Lewis snapped, and then he rubbed his face and sat back in his chair. Sorry. I get your point, but this has been brewing for a long time. If we cant establish direct contact with the Mother, we have to rely on the Djinn to influence her. Frankly, Im not feeling good about that plan, since the Djinn are already on her side. Are you?

Not at all, David said. But then, Im not feeling good about putting a human face to face with a being so vast and powerful that the Djinn themselves wont go there.

Oracles do, I said. Imara does.

And Imaras done all she can to make humanitys case. Shes young, shes new, and the Mother may not listen.

I could do it.

No, Jo, you cant. You had a lot of advantages the last time you tried something like this; you were a Warden, you had access through Imara and through me. Its not a good idea.

Because mere humans shouldnt be front and center? I shot back to David. Come on, this is aboutmere humans. Not Wardens. Not Djinn. Its about millions of regular people who are going to die, and their voice needs to be heard. Theyre not invisible. Theyre real.

I know theyre real, he said. But they have no voicenot that she can hear and understand. Youhave no voice, Jo. Not as you are.

Bullshit!

He smiled. Yelling isnt going to solve the problem, you know.

But it makes me feel tonsbetter, sweetie. I wasnt about to let his charm veer me off course. Well, not faroff course, anyway. We needed to go to the Oracles anyway. Theyre our one real hope of getting our powers back, fast. Im the logical one to do it. Lewis, if I get burned out, youre not losing much at this point.

He was looking at me, and I saw the expression that flickered over his face. We both knew that in personal terms, that absolutely was a lie, but on pure, coldly logical ground I was correct. I was human. Not a triple-powered Warden any longer. Not consort to the leader of half of the Djinn anymore.