My hands trail down his arms until I release him. He motions for me to proceed him into the forest, and I take one step before I stop, turning back to him. “Wait. Cornelius said to make sure we looked back at where we were.”
A shadow falls over his otherwise peaceful expression, and then he turns and looks back at where we’d been lying. The good humor leaves his expression, and his lips press together slightly before he finally says softly, “Fuck.”
At his sudden change in demeanor, I step around him, looking back at where we were and frowning in confusion. “What is that?”
He turns back to me with raised brows. “Scorched earth.”
Well, that can’t be good.
A million questions run through my brain at the same time, but I don’t bother voicing any of them. Zion heads off into the woods, and after one last look behind me, I turn and follow.
TWENTY-THREE
A BRIEF EXPLANATION
Zion
Scorched earth is never a good sign.
Obviously, I was aware that some wild stuff was going down, and at one point, I did realize things had escalated beyond normal control. But even if I’d wanted to stop it, which I absolutely did not, by then, it was too late.
What otherworldly nonsense had been instigated by us being together was already in motion. And for Cornelius to be here and aware of it means there must have been some kind of ricochet. The unfortunate reality of this is that if he’s aware, many others are, too.
I’m completely lost in thought, growing more agitated with every step toward the house, when I realize Vivian is no longer right behind me. I stop in my tracks, whirling around to find her trailing along behind me as if we have all the time in the world. She eyes me quizzically, still not hurrying, and I hold my hand out to her, motioning for her to come closer. The closer she gets, the calmer I become, and it dawns on me that my agitation didn’t stem from our current circumstances but more so from her distance from me.
Which can’t be good either.
I can only imagine this is how a lap dog feels when its owner has left its side. And while I’m not entirely upset about this revelation, it’s still disconcerting/ I have a good feeling that it will only get worse as time goes on. Giving her a stern look, I take her hand in mine, and she raises her brows and then sticks her tongue out at me. I don’t bother saying anything; I just turn, pulling her along as we head back to the house.
We find Cornelius in the kitchen—no great surprise there. He continues eating for a few moments, completely ignoring us, but then slowly puts his fork down, chews, and swallows, and then leans back in his chair. His eyes meet mine, and a shiver runs down my spine.
I’ve known Cornelius for a long time, pretty much as far back as I can remember clearly. He was the first ever to insinuate that there was something different about us. Cami was there for one specific conversation many years after this first moment, and it quickly became clear which side of reality she lived in, and, after a few failed attempts at trying to confide in her, I finally gave it up. Cornelius had been telling me the whole time that it’d been fruitless, that nothing I could say or do would ever turn her to any other reality beyond the simple truth she already believed.
And there’s something to be said for the simple truth. There’s good and bad, no further explanation needed.
Cornelius looks between Vivian and me before finally settling back on me and asking, “Did you see it?”
I nod, not even having to ask what he’s referring to. “How many other people know?”
Cornelius shrugs. “Hard to tell. The only saving grace you have is that they can’t locate where.”
“But do they know who?”
He shakes his head and places his palms on the table as he says, “Not yet.”
“So, what do we do?”
“Beat them to it?—”
“Wait a minute,” Vivian interrupts tiredly. “What are you talking about?”
Cornelius keeps his eyes trained on mine, anger glinting. “How come she doesn’t know anything?”
I look over to Vivian, and I’m sure my serious expression softens as soon as I catch sight of her confused face. Then I smile and turn back to Cornelius. “She has never needed to before now.”
“Well, she’s gonna need to learn quick. This isn’t going to wait.”
“Learn what? What’s not going to wait?”
