Whisper (Whisper #1)(78)
I wish his praise didn’t make me feel so warm, but it does.
“You say I cheated. I say I used my imagination.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
By the time Ward escorts me back up to my suite, my headache has returned with a vengeance. Even after Cami heals me, I’m so exhausted from the strain of the past few hours that I drop right off to sleep without eating dinner.
The next day passes in a similar manner, without the skirmish action but with the addition of a few nagging worries. I wonder when, how and even if I should try to verify Kael’s story. It’s not like I don’t believe him. His story was so complex and full of detail that I’m sure some of it has to be right — or at least based on some form of the truth. But no, my hesitation is because I know that if I do find evidence to corroborate his tale, there will be no coming back from it. And what will I do then? Prison or haven, Lengard is my home. And if Kael is right — that will change everything.
To avoid planning my infiltration of Falon’s office, after I finish training for the day I crash on the couch for a movie night with Cami. Keeda shows up carrying two bags stuffed to the brim with junk food, and we welcome her with open arms. We laugh and chat — or they chat, since I’m still not confident enough away from the Karoel or Ward to join in — and we have a perfectly relaxing night.
I need a night without responsibilities. And I take it.
But the next day is harder. Because today is the final day Pandora’s gloves and glasses will work, so I actually have to make a choice.
It’s quite simple, really.
Do something … or don’t.
Investigate … or ignore.
Summon courage … or submit to fear.
While I try to create a miniature landscape in the training room, with a forest-bordered river and a snow-dusted mountain range half the height of my body, I’m distracted. Enough that I make fresh snow fall from invisible clouds above us, rather than have the snow already stuck to the peaks of the chair-sized Alps. Ward isn’t impressed, so I quickly vanish the icy flakes now covering us both and construct a miniature ski village at the base of the mountains, chairlift included. All the while, my mind is repeating a litany: Go, don’t go. Do it, don’t do it. Go, don’t go. Do it, don’t do it.
When I’m back in my room later that evening, acutely aware that it’s now or never, I still lack the motivation to make my move. Lying on my bed with Schr?dinger curled up at my side, I am paralyzed. I know there’s no choice, really. Not if I want to know the truth. But still …
I
don’t
know
what
to
do.
Frustrated by my inability to gather the courage and just go, I’m interrupted by the most unexpected of voices.
“What the hell are you waiting for, princess?”
I bolt upright, only to see Kael standing in front of me — in my bedroom.
I half wonder if I’m hallucinating. But seeing his agitated expression, I know I couldn’t have summoned a face so accurately — and vividly — demanding an explanation for my delay. Even so, I’m frozen in place, because I suddenly hear voices floating through my closed door from farther down the hallway, telling me that Cami has returned. By the sound of it, she has company.
When Kael draws in a breath to speak again, I do the only thing I can think of: I launch myself off the bed and straight at him, intending to slap my hand over his mouth to keep anyone from hearing.
I don’t proceed with caution; I propel my entire weight at his body. But instead of slamming into his torso and silencing him, I keep going, straight through him, until I crash noisily into the wardrobe behind him.
Ow, ow, ow, ow, owwwww, I mentally complain, but then I hear hurried footsteps approaching my room, and I frantically try to untangle myself from the clothes at the base of my closet.
I come unstuck just as my door bursts open. Ward rushes into my room, followed quickly by Enzo and Cami. I know I have approximately one-point-five seconds to come up with a valid reason for Kael’s appearance — not to mention, my current position — but when I notice that all three of the new arrivals are staring only at me, not him, I flick my eyes to where he was standing, only to find that he’s no longer there.
“What happened?” Ward demands, following my gaze with clear suspicion.
Cami pushes past her brother to help me out of the closet and to my feet.
“Are you okay?” she asks, concerned.
“You can talk,” Ward quickly adds. “I’m covering you.”
Something about his assurance prickles me. It’s frustrating that after all the training I’ve endured, including playing skirmish outside the safety of my Karoel room, he still doesn’t trust me to talk without leaking power. What’s the point of him teaching me control if he’s always going to insist on protecting my words, regardless? It’s no wonder I have trouble believing in myself, when it’s clear he doesn’t.
“I’m, uh, not sure what happened,” I answer Cami, rubbing my throbbing shoulder. “I just … tripped.”
Enzo laughs. “Clumsy much? This is what happens when you stop training with me and start training with this brute.” He elbows Ward, whose only response is a slight narrowing of his eyes.
“Thanks for coming to check on me,” I tell them all, feeling embarrassed — and acutely confused. Where is Kael?