The Reaping (The Fahllen #1)(32)
Author: M. Leighton

I pushed my top down and went back into the living room. Though the mark (as well as the other physical transformations of late) bothered me, it gave me some consolation to know that Derek evidently knew something about it. I’d never have dreamed that I’d draw that much comfort from just not being alone in all this, whatever “this” was.

“So what does it mean?” I said without preamble as I stepped into the living room.

“Obviously the flames represent your ability to wield fire. At this point, that’s no surprise.

“And the vines?”

“Another mystery.”

“Why? The way you made it sound, it has something to do with plants.”

“Well, if the display of dead vegetation at your father’s funeral was any indication, I’d say you can control earth, too.” His tone and expression made it seem like that wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

I would marvel over the control earth thing later. Right now I just wanted to know why he made it seem like such a bad thing. “Then why is it such a mystery? You figured it out quickly enough.”

“It was my understanding that each twin can control one of the four elements and when one twin defeats the other, he absorbs the second power. And yet you…” He shrugged in his customary way.

In my head, I finished his statement. And yet I was apparently gifted (or cursed) with two.

“What could that mean?”

“Honestly?”

“No, lie to me,” I snapped sarcastically.

“Honestly,” he snapped. “I have no idea.”

I walked back to the couch and sat down again. Derek turned back to the window. We were both lost in thought for quite some time before he broke the silence.

“Why were you wet?”

I looked at the back of his head, puzzled. “What are you talking about?”

“In the garage. Why were you wet?”

My mind was so overwhelmed it took me a minute to change gears. “What? Didn’t you see all that water in the garage?”

Derek turned to look at me. “The garage is dry, Carson.” A hint of concern shadowed his handsome face, but I also saw the tiniest bit of pity, like maybe he thought I was buckets of crazy and felt a little sorry for me. And that irritated me.

“Well it wasn’t. It was raining in there, falling up, like it was coming from the ground. Everything was wet, even the inside of the car.”

I was glad to see the pity leave his expression, even if it was replaced by an anxious frown that wrinkled his brow. “It was raining upside down?”

“Yes! All over the garage. Trust me. I know what I saw.”

“I just don’t see how that’s possible, Carson.”

“Well, it came as a shock to me, too. And if you don’t believe it then—”

“Oh I believe you,” he interrupted, cutting short my rising indignation. “It’s just that you shouldn’t be able to see that, much less experience it.”

“Why? What do you mean?” I felt like a three-year old, always asking why.

I saw him hesitate for an instant before he spoke, as if he was weighing the merit of telling me the truth. “It rains upside down in the Darkness,” he said gravely. “Things are very different there, almost completely opposite of this world.”

“And…”

“And the Darkness can’t be seen from here.” Derek turned back toward the window, the gesture casual and uninterested.

“Well, I’m just telling you what I saw.”

“Is that why you were so afraid?”

I didn’t answer. If he’d balked at the upside down rain, what would he say about the gruesome untouchable people in the shadows?

“Don’t even pretend that you weren’t scared to death. It was so strong I could feel it.”

I thought to ask him about that, but the topic at hand seemed more important. I’d have to add it to my ever-growing list of things I didn’t have the answers to. “No. I was afraid of all those people.”

Derek whirled back to face me, his frown back, so deep it was nearly a scowl. “What people?”

He gave me flack over my garage floor raining, but believed this?

“I don’t know. People. Hurt people. They were…” I trailed off, struggling to find the words to describe what I saw.

“They were what?”

“I don’t know. They were there, but not there. Like, I couldn’t touch them, but, after a while, I could feel them touching me.” Even as I spoke about it, the remembered fear formed a tight ball in my chest, that overwhelming sensation of powerlessness still fresh.

Derek walked to stand in front of me, looking down into my face as if trying to see inside my head, inside my soul. Whether or not he found what he was looking for, I don’t know, but he turned back toward the center of the room, ran his fingers through his hair and began to pace.

“These people,” he said. “Tell me about them.”

To the best of my ability, I described in intimate detail the scene that had terrorized me in the garage. Derek’s expression grew darker and darker the longer I talked. When I reached my conclusion, starring Derek as my rescuer, a black thundercloud had settled over his face.

“What does it mean?”

“That’s why he wanted me to find you,” Derek said absently, speaking more to himself than to me.

“Who?” He resumed his pacing, as if I hadn’t spoken. “Who, Derek?” Still he ignored me. I got up from the couch and stepped in front of him. “Who?”

“Who what?”

“Who wanted you to find me?”

“Fahl.”

Dread curled its icy fingers around my stomach. I could remember the smell of him, Fahl, and the way he made me feel, as if he’d just left the room. It was etched permanently onto my mind. “What does he want with me?”

“That’s the million dollar question.”

It took a few seconds for what he’d said to sink in. When it did, it brought anger with it. “Then why did you do it? Why did you lead him to me? What if he wants to kill me or something?”

“He doesn’t want to kill you, Carson. Anyway, I had no choice.”

“There’s always a choice,” I spat, remembering another of the many wisdoms my father had drilled into my head.

“Not always.”

“And why is that?”

“It’s a long story,” Derek said dismissively, walking around me to continue pacing.