Lightning Kissed Page 30

  ***

  Flashing into the Synod’s meeting room was akin to going to the dentist. It wasn’t the most pleasant thing in the world. The people there were all smiley, even when they popped on the masks and cranked up the drill. But you knew that if you could just get the whole thing over with, you’d be relieved. And maybe, if you were lucky, it would be a full six months before your postcard came in the mail.

  The only punishment they’d ever really handed down was restraining me from flashing for a month or so at a time. Enduring the punishment was itchy, kind of like having restless leg syndrome all the time, but I dealt with it. Why I dealt with it, I’d never know. The only real power they had was threatening to hand us over to the government. It wasn’t even clear how they came into so much power. I assumed it was the same as any other society. Somewhere along the line, after they decreed the prophets null and void, the ones who spoke the loudest got together and decided they were in charge.

  The loudest voices weren’t necessarily right. They were just louder.

  We were all scared to be given over to those who would take our gifts from us.

  Fear was the biggest conduit of false respect.

  The place was intimidating, I’d give them that. You could only flash directly into the ‘welcoming room’ which wasn’t all that welcoming. The place was the opposite of welcoming. It read more like Hannibal Lector’s lair than reigning leaders of our people. It was all gold. Gold wallpaper lined the walls, golden chairs were stuck into corners, and a platinum chandelier with attitude gave you the first impression of the Synod.

  It was all façade.

  Regina opened the door seconds after I flashed inside and further summoned me with a flick of her wrist. She was cold and aloof as usual. There was no point in making small talk with her. Her tight red suit and ruby choker kept her from making any sudden noises or forming words without sneering. All that platinum hair dye had probably infiltrated her brain as well.

  There was once a rumor that she was involved with a male Resin.

  I mimicked the curt pop of her hips as we walked. No wonder these people were always in such a bad mood. There were enormous sticks up their asses and their skin-tight skirts stopped them from removing them. My hip popping turned into a dance by the time we got all the way down the embellished hallway. My nervous energy was on overdrive. I didn’t know what to expect. Other than knowing that Theo was the Eidolon, I hadn’t done anything wrong—really.

  All conversation halted when I walked in. The other two cleared their throats and faked straightening papers. I covered a smile with my fist. Did they know they looked like uptight news reporters when they did that?

  Almighty help me, I just know I’m going to say something ridiculous.

  “Colby Evans, it is a pleasure to see you as always.”

  I curtsied, not out of respect, but rather a lack of. Collin would’ve swatted me on the back of the head if he’d seen that.

  “A pleasure as always.”

  “You know why you’ve been summoned?”

  How was that for an open-ended question? Did they really expect me to answer? Anything I said would be twisted and turned into an implication. These people needed to up their game.

  “I couldn’t begin to imagine.” I pointed my answer at Clarita. She seemed the most amused at my snippety nature. On more than one occasion, she’d barely stifled a laugh at my antics.

  “Please have a seat, Colby.”

  That was a punishment in itself. With all their wealth and golden, glorious furniture, the chair that was placed in front of their larger than life, Brazilian walnut table was a six-dollar metal folding chair. I’d seen better looking chairs at third world cock fights. I bet late at night they got their jollies off making Lucent sit in the cheap monstrosity while they lounged in luxury desk chairs.

  Because their work was so daunting.

  The chair protested with a squawk when I sat down. My bracelets banged and clanged against the sides. The sound made Regina squint her eyes.

  Maybe I liked this chair after all.

  “You haven’t been traveling much. We wanted to make sure all is well.”

  I cocked my head to the side and gave her a snide grin. “How sweet of you to be concerned. I assure you, everything is perfect.”

  Regina leaned back in her chair and attempted to cross her legs, but her skirt was yelling ‘no dice.’ “Excellent. Today’s meeting will be a little off course than our previous ones. We wish to reveal some things to you.”

  “Like why in the hell you even exist?”

  Regina stood. “What was that, dear?”

  “Nothing at all.”

  A third member, Arlene, stood after Regina. She was the most frigid. She reminded me of the bride of Frankenstein with the gray stripe of hair that ran down the sides of her head.

  She’d also been my grandmother’s best friend.

  And the first one to suggest that the prophets were no longer needed.

  “There’s nothing more important to us than the continuation of our species. We want our females to thrive and grow stronger. It’s imperative for our race to follow the path Xoana laid for us. Don’t you agree?”

  I threw my head back in aggravation.

  Everything I told Theo I was going to do and the way I was going to behave just went out the window. There was no way I could continue to be polite when they were acting like deranged detectives.

  “Can we just skip the bullshit here? What the hell did I do and how long are you going to try and keep me pinned down?”

  They hated it when I cursed.

  A flap in the ceiling opened above Regina and Arlene after they’d flipped some switches. A screen turned and emerged from the opening.

  “Oooh!” I clapped in fake amusement. “We’re gonna watch a movie? I hope it’s Beaches.”

  “Come now, Colby. You haven’t done anything wrong, correct? We just wanted to show you some pictures. We know how you like history.”

  “Aww, no popcorn? Bummer.”

  Regina simpered at me, and suddenly, every light in the room shut off. The last thing I saw was her brighter than white teeth. The bright blue screen flickered to life. Soon, black and white images flooded the screen. And they didn’t ease into what they were doing either. The first two were pictures of old Portugal. But the third—it was a picture of Eivan.

  Frost replaced heat in my veins as the pictures rolled along. My heart drummed against my sternum, begging for me to flash out of there and away from the nightmarish images on the screen. Someone crouched next to me. I expected Carlita. She’d always tried to comfort me in one way or the other. But the waft of regal perfume that permeated my nose let me know that it was, in fact, Regina.

  The photos bordered on grotesque. Some were Eivan in a hospital bed, patches of his hair missing. In others, his eyes, the glare he gave the camera, shone with madness. I couldn’t believe my eyes and found myself looking for clues that these pictures were fakes.

  Pema told me he’d died of old age. But pictures didn’t lie, right?

  And just when the edges of numbness began to creep in from the slide-after-slide, gruesome portrayal of the equivalent of my childhood hero—the slideshow changed to images of Sevella.

  I didn’t know if those pictures hit me harder because of my new position and of who Theo was—or if they were just scarier in general, or because she was female. It was Sevella, chained to a wall, crying out for Eivan—crying out for mercy above all else. She was stripped down to her bra and underwear, and the only other thing she wore was a key-shaped pendant on a long necklace.

  Regina clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Poor thing. Bless her heart. If Eivan had just fulfilled his destiny, the task he was born to complete—none of this would’ve happened. We had to do what we did in order to maintain his allegiance. You see—the things we do don’t just affect us—they affect the Lucent species as a whole. It’s because of Eivan that the path to Paraíso ha
s been obstructed. And your Theo is our key to regain access. Forget restoring the Resin. They were weak. His purpose is to bring those caught in the fray to their resting place. Eivan refused to do his job—simple as that. Good thing Theo is such a rule follower. And while he’s at it, he may be able to serve a bigger purpose for us. I bet Pema didn’t tell you that, did she? I bet she told you the sentimentalized version of it all. Makes sense, given your place in all this. Lights, please.” She arose with a snap, commanding the lights to come on. I stayed petrified in place. A million insinuations and conclusions flittered through my head beginning and ending with ‘this will not happen to Theo.’

  “Answer the question!” Arlene slammed her hand down on that overpriced rainforest wood.

  There were very few times I’d been truly scared in my life. The first was my initial experience traveling. The second was when Theo asked me to marry him. The third and fourth were about Theo and his gifts.

  But those were fears of the heart. Those were fears that I’d done something wrong—or that Theo would be hurt.

  This fear—this fear was palpable, quaking and penetrating me down into the marrow of my bones. This fear wasn’t just one event.

  My insides quaking was more like a culmination of the past week’s worth of fear, bubbling to the surface—maybe more than that. I couldn’t even remember what question I was supposed to be answering. Oh, right, Pema.

  “Pema did not mention it.” I hated how my voice changed and showed them just how shaken I was. I needed strength, but I couldn’t muster a lick of it. My reaction seemed of no consequence to them. Arlene and Carlita went about their scribbling while Regina looked bored.

  “I bet not. She will in Portugal. Mark my words.”

  Regina returned to the table, and just when I expected to be reamed a second time, she snapped and the door opened behind me.

  “Wait! What is he supposed to do? What do you want from me?”

  “From you? Please. Other than the connection to Theodore, we have no use for you in the slightest. We’ve watched you all this time to see how much you were going to screw up our plans—simple as that. And now we will continue to use you for information only. Aww, sweetie, did you think you were important? How disappointing. As for what Theo can do, maybe the three of you need to study a little harder. What we want is to know what you know. So next time we summon you, maybe you should be more prepared to answer questions. Or maybe you just need a little further coercing. Then again, to help you out, we could get the Resin off your tail for a while.”

  Before I could ask anything else, a woman, more like an Amazonian Sumo wrestler, grappled me out of the door and into the golden room—which now didn’t seem so golden at all.

  I couldn’t see Theo like that. He would freak and ask me seventeen million questions. I got my phone and dialed the first number I thought of.

  “What up, babe?”

  “I—I can’t…”

  I’d never called Ari upset, but now I needed her.

  “Flash to me now. You know where I am. Seek out my location and get to me.”

  And I did.