Hunter grabbed her hand and stroked it. "Not like that. You were heavy from your wounds. Energetically, it was like I could feel them myself, like I'd been the one injured. I got so tired, so fast. I'm surprised I made it to camp with both of us. I must have been in shock, or more injured than I realized."
A vague memory tickled at the back of Lucy's mind. There was a missing piece to the puzzle, but what? He'd felt her wounds, and she'd healed faster while he got worse. She remembered the pulsing, warm and strong as he carried her. She'd thought it was the sphere, but then thought it was Hunter. It felt like Hunter.
She clutched her pocket, and felt the comforting pulse of the sphere calm her heart and steady her pulse. Hunter. The Sphere had fed on him to heal her. It all made sense, in a horrible way.
While she healed, Hunter had paid for her mistakes. And Luke was still paying too. His foot hadn't improved as much as it should have. Everyone she loved was getting hurt because of her.
What the hell am I doing? "I... I'm not feeling good. I have to go."
She stumbled out of the tent as Hunter called out to her, asking what was wrong.
The valley hummed to her in its subtly layered voice. All around Lucy could feel the inhale and exhale of the earth, as it breathed out their destinies. But none of it made sense anymore.
She slumped into a rock and fought her tears, so sick of the sopping mess of emotions she was becoming. The sphere pulsed more strongly in her pocket. She pulled it out and stroked it, embracing the calm it always offered, trying not to think of the price it required.
Mr. K's deep voice filled her mind and shattered her calm. 'You should not rely on the sphere, Lucy.'
Oh my God. Lucy froze in shock. No one knows about the sphere. No one! Not even my brother. But Mr. K had been in her mind, so of course he'd find out. How could she have overlooked that small detail?
A ball of dread formed in her gut as she looked toward his tree. The leaves opened like a curtain, creating a path for her.
Against her own instincts, she walked the short path to the enclave of Mr. K's tree to talk to him in person. "I don't rely on it. It just makes me feel better sometimes."
"There's nothing wrong with feeling good. Nothing wrong with getting some help, either. But if you're right about what that sphere did to Hunter, then you have to be careful."
Irritation flared in her. "The sphere saved my life. If I didn't have it, I'd be dead."
An upper branch rustled and a bird flew out, chirping out a much-too-happy tune given the current conversation. Mr. K ignored his long tree limbs and stayed focused on her. "I understand. You just have to be cautious. We all do. Perhaps if the others knew, they could help you understand its powers."
Her heart skipped a beat. "I can't tell them."
"Why not?"
"They wouldn't understand it, or me, or why I need it. They'd want to test it or get rid of it or— "
"Relax. No one is going to take it from you. But you have to consider Hunter's safety, your brother's safety."
Now, indignation. I'm just a veritable plethora of emotions, aren't I? "I do."
"Then tell them."
Stubbornness. "I can't."
"You won't!" roared Mr. K, with much more power than he'd ever spoken before. His branches stood more erect, and shook as if angry. "Stop making excuses. You're like a child, playing games instead of doing your homework, justifying all of it."
She crossed her arms and had to restrain herself from stomping her foot like a petulant child. "I don't have to justify anything. I don't have to explain anything to you."
Mr. K's branches slumped forward and the whole tree seemed to sigh with sadness. "No, you don't."
Lucy nodded and turned to leave.
Mr. K didn't seem to mind talking to her back. "But I will not allow you to jeopardize Hunter and Luke. If you won't tell them, then I will."
"No!" Lucy yelled and turned back around viciously. The sphere pulsed in her hand and began to glow, softly at first, then brighter and brighter, as if to match the rage that grew in Lucy herself. "You will not tell them. And if they ask about it, you will lie and say you know nothing of the sphere. Because you'll mind your own goddamn business."
Mr. K's branches swayed as if disconnected from him, and his large eyes took on a glazed, trance-like look. "I will not... tell them," he repeated. "I will lie. I know nothing of the sphere."
What? What's he doing? Lucy looked at the sphere in her hand. It glowed bright and strong. What the hell? In a rush, the euphoria disappeared and she dropped the sphere with a shriek. The glow faded from bright to nothing in seconds.
Mr. K jerked his branches as if waking up from a dream. "What? Lucy, are you okay?"
She plucked the sphere from the ground and hid it before he could focus on her. "Yes, yes, I'm okay." She had tried to sound confident and happy but feared it came out more emo-scared-girl.
Mr. K didn't meet her eyes when he spoke. "It's late."
"Yes, I have to go." Lucy's heart raced as she hurried out of the tree's shade and made her way back to her rock.