Perilous Light (The Afterglow Trilogy #2)(17)
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy

“Oh. Thanks for having us.” Being a southern girl, I knew how to be polite, but I was always so thrown off by the way people treated me in Energo that I sounded like a lost child. James elbowed me and gave me a funny look, so I added, “We appreciate any help we can get. These are dangerous times.” Great. I was practically quoting Harry Potter.

Monty saved me from further embarrassment. “Mindy, Aaron, do you have news for us?” I was glad he used the couple’s names because I had no clue who they were. The lack of introductions was odd, but with all of the tension, it wasn’t the biggest oversight.

Mindy studied me for a moment, as if gauging how much bad news I could take. “Yes, but I am afraid it is not good. Blake has been setting up checkpoints throughout Energo under the guise of looking for illegal goods, but he is searching for the Essence.”

Monty nodded. “Thank you for the warning. We will have to be sure to hide Charlotte.” Monty’s ability to appear calm surprised me. He was a better actor than I expected, but then he had successfully convinced me for almost sixteen years that he had been born and bred in Charleston.

“I know a good way to hide her.” Lawson was so excited his elbow hit his bowl of soup, splashing the contents all over the table.

James ignored the mess in front of us. “Let’s hear this idea.”

I searched for a napkin, but realized that no one else seemed particularly concerned. Attempting to overlook the liquid dripping onto the floor, I waited for Lawson to share.

“One of us needs to pretend to be taking Charlotte for unification. No Bravado will dare question it. Besides, no one believes that the Essence could even pretend to be with any man besides her Gerard. As long as she can play the part, we will be fine.” Lawson looked to me for approval.

Monty didn’t hesitate before answering. “It should be Liam.”

“I agree,” Lawson and James said simultaneously. I gave Liam a guarded look.

“So what exactly are we supposed to do?” Liam asked, his expression unreadable.

Monty ate a few spoonsful of soup. “You and Charlotte need to pretend that you are heading north for unification. Many people do it at the Mason Falls. It is much like the cathedral at Bellgard; it is connected to the Source. A union is our equivalent of a marriage.”

“I see. So Charlotte and I are going to pretend to be engaged so we can get through a checkpoint?”

Monty smiled. “Yes, that about sums it up.”

“I think we can handle that. Can’t we, hon?” Liam winked and put his arm around me.

“Sure thing.”

I tried to act as relaxed about it as Liam, and pretend it was a joke, but it was different for me. First of all, I was in love with Calvin, and secondly, it brought me back to being eight years old and staging our wedding with Barbie and Ken as stand-ins. I was really glad that Liam had no idea of how big a crush I used to have on him.

Chapter Nine:

Kevin

After a day and a half on the boat, I was more than ready to get back on land. I split my time between sailing lessons from Bry and staring out at the water, trying to prepare myself for meeting the council. The former I did because it seemed like a skill I should have, and the later was unavoidable. Everyone kept telling me to follow my blood, but I had no clue what that meant. I was glad Monty was with Charlotte, but I could have used his insight and encouragement. For the first time since discovering Energo, I started to picture what my life would have been like had I been raised there. No matter what blood I had running through my veins, I clearly lacked the experience I needed, and I wondered if Charlotte felt the same way.

As Bry pulled the boat into the busy marina, I took a deep breath and swallowed my insecurities. Whether confident or not, I couldn’t show any hesitation.

Henry had told me that Alak was the largest port city and the center of trade, but what awaited me was even bigger than I expected. We walked onto the dock, and once again, I was in another world. Energo looked like something out of the Middle Ages, whereas Alak appeared more like a bustling modern city. Bright neon billboards filled with languages I didn’t recognize lined the streets, and I had to anchor my feet to avoid becoming lost in the crowd.

“Follow me.” Bry took the lead, and we wordlessly tailed him. I hoped he knew where we were going. The water continued throughout the city in an intricate network of canals. Pedestrian walkways full of rows upon rows of people lined the canals. Buildings surrounded us, some only a few stories high, while others soared as skyscrapers. Instead of the stonework that dominated Energo, the buildings were built of glass and metal. Still, Alak showed signs of distress. Once the initial shock of seeing such a modern city faded, I noticed boarded-up buildings and several signs with only half of the bulbs lit.

“Energo was not the only place to enter hard times without the Essence.” Henry answered my unasked question. It still seemed hard to believe that the fate of my mom and sister had an impact on so many people.

I blindly trailed Bry through the crowd, nearly falling into him when he stopped to push open a large metal door. I assumed we had reached our hotel, but since I couldn’t read the lettering on the outside of the modern building, I wasn’t sure. We stepped into a small pitch-black hallway and walked for a moment before a bright light hit my eyes. A large elevator stood opened before us, and I was pushed inside. The ride lasted for several minutes until we came to an abrupt stop. The doors opened, and I finally had some breathing room.

We walked into a room with both the walls and floor made of glass. The windows gave an incredible view of the city. We must have been seriously high up. The skyline looked funny with the alternating short and tall buildings, and I felt disoriented when looking down at the glass floor. The effect of watching the city below was dizzying. Gazing up, I was struck by the tall ceiling that seemed to continue on forever. The only furniture in the room was an oval desk and a pair of matching chairs, all of which appeared to be made of glass. Bry approached the desk.

Behind the desk stood a woman who looked as if she were covered entirely in diamonds. The sparkling reflections made it almost difficult to look directly at her. Despite the brightness, her figure left little doubt that she was a woman.

Samantha’s slap brought me back to attention. “Did you just slap me?”

“We already warned you to hide your reactions. Drooling over a Zale is not going to help anything.” I couldn’t help but notice that Samantha blushed as she made the comment.