Page 30 of Against All Odds

“Addiction is a rough one,” he admitted. “One of these instances where the human brain lies to itself. It tells you it needs the substance, the adrenaline, the money – but really, it is an escape from something they refuse to address.”

I nodded slowly. “How do I know what she needs when she doesn’t even know it herself? It’s not like I can ask her or read her mind. Right?”

I flinched when his gaze rested on me. Had I pushed it too far?

“It is correct that you cannot read your assigned’s mind,” he said slowly, staring at an unseen point in front of him. “But just as you are connected to the Source, so is she – and if she communicates with the Source, the line goes through you. You can choose to tune in and listen.” He turned to look at me. “Do you understand?”

I blinked slowly. “Eh, not really.”

“Think of the Source as a tree that branches out into individuals. If Soraya opens her mind to it, intentionally reaches out to something bigger than herself – that’s a way for you to be there and listen. Listen to where her mind’s at, what frequency she vibrates at, so you can understand what she needs – even if she may not understand it herself. People often start praying when in danger. This way, guardian angels can know their interference is needed, even when they aren’t currently with their assigned.”

“I’m not sure Raya is the type to pray.”

“Maybe not, but tuning in to the Source can be done in many ways. Praying is one of them.”

I stayed silent for a beat, letting his words sink in. I remembered the look on her face during Fabian’s banishment. I remembered how her chestnut eyes seemed to lock with mine when I stood in front of her, even though it was impossible for her to see me. She was sensitive, especially when she wasn’t numbing herself with substances. I should be able to use that to my advantage.

“So… are you saying mortals have, like, an encrypted communication channel to… above?” I nodded slowly, allowing the threads a moment to connect in my mind. “Private only to them and their guardian?”

Jurrian’s gaze fixed on me until I looked away.

“You are smart, Seren,” he said finally. “I’m sure you wouldn’t dare think of finding ways to use this information for cheating.”

“No, of course not,” I said quickly. “And… Jurrian? Thank you. Are you helping all your guardians like this?”

“No, not all of them,” he said cryptically. Without elaborating further, he gave a nod. “I have to go. I hope you’ll take my words to heart, Seren.”

Before I could reply, he pushed the air aside, splitting the atmosphere open into a gray-clouded hole, and stepped through it.

I waited a few seconds before picking the book back up. He was right, of course. I needed to be a lot more careful with the probmanu.

Fortunately, I might have found another way to get through to Raya… one that should be impossible for the Court to detect.

Chapter 14.

Raya

“Raya.”

She called out my name in the corridor when I was walking to class. I froze, instantly recognizing the voice. The one I had been avoiding for weeks now, because I missed her so badly, just seeing her once would be catastrophic.

And now, she was here – where I couldn’t run. A mouse caught in the cat’s trap. Slowly, I turned, forcing a smile that I hoped seemed genuine. “Rebekah.”

A shock rippled through me at the sight of her. Rebekah stood in the middle of the corridor, students passing her left and right in slow motion. Most of them glanced her way – they always did – but she barely acknowledged them, her gaze focused on me, head tilted. Her blonde hair fell in elegant waves down her body – shining, freshly washed, not a hair out of place as usual. But something was different. Her blue eyes gleamed with something I didn’t quite recognize.

When neither of us spoke, she broke the silence. “Can we talk?” She bit her lip. “Somewhere… private?”

My brow furrowed, but nonetheless, I nodded. As if I would ever refuse her anything.

I followed her into one of the empty classrooms. She closed it behind her before turning to face me.

I swallowed hard, my hands tightening their grip on my backpack. I had rehearsed what to say to her so many times, but now that she was standing in front of me, I couldn’t find the words.

Rebekah cleared her throat, and her next words shattered the ground beneath me. “Parker and I broke up.”

My jaw dropped. “Wait, you did? Why?”

She hesitated, fidgeting with her gold bracelets. She seemed unusually nervous. “It happened right after you moved out. I meant to tell you… but…”