Chapter 45
(Gemma)
Saying good-bye to Laylen was the second hardest thing I d ever had to do. The first was just around the corner. And that was saying bye to Alex.
I Foreseed us to the edge of the lake, right on the shore, our backs to the grey-stoned Keeper s Castle. I wondered if the Water Faeries were down there, watching us from beneath the water, wishing we d fall in so they could torture us.
Everything seemed clear now; clearer than it had ever been for me. My head had always been so packed with thoughts and worries. But they were all gone now. The answers were right in front of me.
Well, almost.
I turned in a circle.
I don t think we re in the right spot.
He gazed around, scratching his head.
Where are we supposed to be then?
I pointed at the trees.
Well, all of them came from there, but right now they re in the castle.
He kicked a rock into the lake and the water rippled.
We should have had you see the whole vision then.
No, we shouldn t have.
My eyes took in the trees. Then I shut my eyes and breathed in the air.
You feel that &.
My eyes opened.
The Death Walkers.
That was really creepy,
he said, forcing a light tone.
It s like you smelled them or something.
No, I just felt the cold air.
My eyes lingered on the castle, the electricity warming up, preparing itself for the end. The grass was kissed with morning dew, the sun barely breaking.
He stared at the other side of the lake and then he took off, dragging me with him.
What are you doing?
I stammered, tripping over rocks and twigs.
Making this right.
He dodged us around a large tree.
You said they came from the trees. So we will see them coming and have enough time.
We ran by our hideout, the violet bush flitting away from my sight as we raced farther into the forest. I stamped the picture in my head, wanting to take it with me forever: two kids, pressing hands tight, promising to be together forever.
Little did they understand that their time would be short and precious. That their forever was merely a glitch in time.
We walked the half circle around the lake, breaking from the forest edge and out into the open. The lake stretched between us and the castle.
This works?
He pointed at the castle.
We can see when they re coming.
I think so.
I memorized the trees, the water, the sun hiding behind the clouds.
He took the phone out of his pocket.
What did I say when I called?
I don t know.
I shrugged.
I guess that s up to you.
He dialed the number and put the phone to his ear. It rang and rang and rang and then I heard the muffled
what.
Look out your window.
He paused, raising his hand and flipping his father off.
If you want us, come get us a*shole.
Then he snapped the phone shut.
That was your final words to him?
I questioned, my breath and heart erratic.
He chucked the phone into the lake.
Yep, that s all I had to say.
Suddenly everything moved fast like flickers of lightning bolts flashing across the sky. They barreled out the front door of the castle, their cloaks blowing behind them as they froze the land over.
He clutched onto my hand.
Breathe, Gemma.
I sucked in a breath as the sounds of ice and twigs and wind blew around us. Alex said something to me, but his words were just whispers of a language I would soon forget. Tears filled my eyes, but I couldn t take them off the trees, frozen with icicles, as they marched closer and closer, irreversibly breaking free from the shade of the forest. It was Stephan s eyes I saw first, cold and deadly, and then Alex regained my focus.
It will be alright,
he whispered and then he kissed me, like I was the only thing left on this world, like he could finally breathe for the very first time. Like we were one. And I finally realized something, all on my own, without the help of the prickle.
I love you.
My words carried away in the wind. I didn t say it because he was perfect or because every time I was with him it was magical. Nothing was perfect and I understood that. I said it because I was standing here in death and there was no one else I wanted beside me.
I love you,
he whispered back.
Always have. Always will. Forever.
And those were the magic words, the ones that burned the light free. It was the words that emptied us, but freed us at the same time, along with the star. Its energy smoldered brightly for the very last time and swallowed us with it.
I saw everything that had been and would never be. I saw my past and a future I d never know. Every emotion I d ever felt flashed through me at once: hurt, happiness, pain, love. And then my body sank as my life slipped away and I became one with the earth. The star had expired, saving the world, not ending it. But taking my soul with it.
But I would never forget him. No matter what happened.
Because we were bonded together.
Forever.