Image (Insight #3)(36)

“What’s the deal with that tattoo anyway?” I heard Marc ask.

I looked up at Dane, and he nodded, letting me know that it was safe to turn around. Drake was pulling a long sleeve shirt over his T-shirt, and his eyes caught mine before he answered Marc. “Part of it represents my name; the other part represents what makes all of this hell worth it: Willow.” Drake finished butting up his shirt as he stared at his mother. “I was named after a constellation in the northern sky that never rests: a protector,” he said, sighing.

“The dragon in the sky,” Landen said, looking at Drake. Drake nodded.

“I’ve heard it called more than a protector,” Marc said in a teasing manner.

Drake looked at Marc, unamused. “I’ve heard every mythology there is about that constellation, and I find it foolish; it’s not me and I’m not it...nothing more than stars,” he said to Marc.

I sat my cup down on the tray and picked up two more cups of tea, then walked over to Drake and handed him one. As he took it from my hand, he stared deep into my eyes, and I held back the emotions that wanted to move through me. I walked to Landen’s side and handed him his cup. He took it, then protectively put his arm around my waist, pulling me to him. I took in his calm and leaned closer.

Dane offered Marc a cup of tea, but he refused it.

“We still need the two of you to open this,” Alamos said to get Drake and Landen’s attention.

We all gathered around the table. Alamos was carefully drying off the small stone black box they’d recovered. In the center of the box, there was a scorpion along the edges, and there were stars made of metal nailed to the black stone. On the side of the box was a latch that divided into two separate parts, each lining the side of the box. Drake reached for one handle, and Landen reached for the other; they then looked at each other, then to the box. They raised their handles slowly and pushed them away from one another, and the metal cried out as it was turned. The levers clicked into place, and the lid rose slightly. Alamos reached his hands vigilantly to the sides of the box and gently lifted the stone lid, and a burst of energy escaped as it was removed.

Inside the box, lying on a dark purple cloth was the most beautiful knife I’d ever seen in my life. The handle was black with silver shimmers, and it was round and thin. The blade was five inches long; it was so clear, you could see the purple cloth beneath it. The light of the room danced off the sharp edges. Perodine slowly reached her hand in the box. She let her finger barley graze the side of the blade before she pulled away, and I could see the blood surfacing where her finger had touched.

“Now, that’s a sharp knife,” Dane said under his breath.

Perodine raised her eyebrows, confirming Dane’s quiet remark. Alamos reached carefully for the lid and set it back on the stone box. He then looked at Perodine, then to August. “Now that we have it, we must discover how to use it,” Alamos said.

“Did you not create the scroll? Why can you not just tell us?” Marc asked as he pulled out a chair at the table.

“All I did was map the heavens; I didn’t interrupt them,” Alamos answered.

“But you will now,” Drake said quietly, looking blankly at Alamos.

“I will do my best, son,” Alamos answered. His response disgusted Beth, and she turned abruptly and walked to the couch.

I followed her; I thought if I helped her emotion, I would somehow calm myself. We sat on one of the side couches so we could see the conversation around the table. I felt a sympathy rise inside of Landen, and I looked across the room and saw him staring at Drake. He felt my gaze and looked back at me, then took a deep breath and gave his attention to Alamos.

Drake walked to the cart. He had his back turned to us, but I could see him reaching for the pot of warm tea. When he turned around, he had a full cup. His eyes caught mine; they were darker than before and looked so sad. He came to Beth’s side and gave it to her, and she smiled slightly as she took it.

“You need your rest,” he said to her. She nodded and brought the warm cup to her lips. Drake watched as she sipped the tea; when she was done, he took the cup from her and leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I love you,” he whispered to her. She smiled and said, “I love you.”

Her eyes questioned his display of affection, but he looked away from her and made his way back to the table. Beth gave me a curious look, and I shrugged my shoulders; I’d never understood the calm he always seemed to have.

Dane came to my side, sitting as close as he could get. I put Beth’s hand in mine and thought of Preston playing, Chrispin laughing, and Marc and Stella’s celebration. I felt her eyes on me and looked at her; she was smiling slightly. “I wish I could have been there,” she whispered to me.

I looked curiously at her. “You could see that?” I asked quietly.

She nodded. “Is that uncommon?” she asked.

I looked to my side at Dane, and he shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve never seen anything,” he said as he stretched his legs out and closed his eyes.

My eyes moved to Beth’s hand, and I let more memories come to me: the first time I’d seen Chara, my celebration, meeting my beautiful family for the first time...as my eyes moved across the crowd that stood in front of me, I heard Beth gasp, and I looked up at her. “Was that your mother standing next to Jason?” she asked. I called the memory back of my parents, how happy my mother was that night; she almost glowed. I nodded.