Shadows of Uprising (Guardian of the Vale Book 2) Read online

  Daymon glanced at her, one corner of his mouth lifting. “There's not much point of secrecy anymore, is there? After we fought Malachi, all of CommonEarth knew you had the Vale, and that my family was set to guard it. Malachi took care of that.” He shrugged. “There was no more point in keeping it a secret.”

  Alayne fidgeted with the end of her braid, thinking hard. “You said you had a theory?”

  “Right.” Daymon nodded. “I think that the Elemental Alliance may not have known for sure that the Vale couldn't be Shadow-Casted. I think they were biding their time, waiting for a good moment, a time when you were in a large gathering, a large crowd or something, and then Shadow-Casted you, and through you, Shadow-Casting everyone around you. So, in the middle of an ice-hockey game. I think there may have been six or seven people who didn't come watch that night.”

  “Why wouldn't they have known that the Vale couldn't be Shadow-Casted, though?”

  Daymon shrugged. “No one's tried it yet, I guess. From what my uncle's told me, no one had tried it before my mom stole the Vale, and no one had ever attempted to Shadow-Cast her. I guess they wanted to make sure.” He stopped walking and faced her. “So, the next thing on the list is to kill you, Alayne. If you can't be Shadow-Casted, and you can't be talked over onto their side, then the next logical step they'll take is to end your life so that the Vale can be taken from you.”

  “And that's your theory?” Alayne blinked at him in disbelief.

  “Free of charge.” Daymon allowed a dimple to wink at her before turning serious again. He changed the subject. “Layne, will you go to the Christmas dance with me?”

  This jarring turnabout crashed like a cold wave over Alayne. “Wh—what?” She stared at him, and suddenly, images of Kyle's hurt face filled her mind's eye as she pictured his reaction if she said yes to Daymon. Not that he should be hurt. But he would be.

  Daymon flushed. “I mean, just as friends.” He cleared his throat. “Of course.”

  Alayne felt her cheeks heat. “Um...”

  “I just think—I mean, I wonder if maybe the dance wouldn't be the second time the Elemental Alliance would try something. People are having fun, the professors are going through too much wine, guards are being lowered. I—I'd feel better if I could keep you right with me the whole evening.” Daymon ended his sentence with his eyes on the floor. His face sported two bright red spots on his high cheekbones.

  “So...” Alayne fumbled for words, “you're just asking me because you want to protect me, and as a result of protecting me, you'd protect yourself as well?”

  A fresh wave of red crept across Daymon's face. “I know it sounds awfully selfish when you put it like that. I'm just trying to watch out for you, Layne. That's all, I promise.”

  “So you don't like me?”

  Daymon's face was almost purple by this time. Alayne's mouth twitched. She knew she was torturing the poor guy, but she didn't want to stop just yet.

  “Honestly, Layne, I like you a hundred times more than I did last year. How much more do you want?”

  Alayne burst out laughing. “Sorry, Daymon, I'm giving you a hard time. Sure, I'll go to the dance with you. It'll be fun, dodging death threats and Shadow-Casters.” She sobered as relief washed across Daymon's face.

  After a silent moment, she asked, “But seriously, Daymon, you say this oath thing, it's life-long, right? What if, in a few years, you found someone, a girl that you wanted to spend your life with? Would she understand your constant attention to me? You can't keep this up forever, you know.”

  Red tinged Daymon's ears again. He twisted away. “First, Layne, that's a big 'what if.'” He shrugged. “And if it ever happens, I'll deal with it then.” He headed for the chute, his expression closed. “We need to get back.”

  Alayne swung into step beside him. “Surely someone's caught your eye, Daymon. I know of a couple of girls who think you're pretty hot stuff. There's Sylvia from my ice-hockey team, and there's always Corn waiting in the wings for you—”

  “Drop it, Alayne.” Daymon's voice snapped across her ears like a whip. “I don't want to talk about it.” With those words, he picked up his stride and soon left her in the dust. He disappeared through the chute doors and left Alayne to walk the last hundred feet alone wondering if Daymon's bitterness regarding his oath had dissipated as much as he had claimed.

  * * *

  Kyle didn't find out that Alayne had agreed to go to the Christmas dance with Daymon until the following afternoon. Alayne had finished her last class of the day, made her excuses to Marysa, and dropped through the chute to the ground floor. A warm front was moving through the area, and Alayne breathed deeply of the air as she jogged upriver about a mile. She nervously searched the tree branches. The sight of the mountain lion twice in such a short amount of time still made her apprehensive.

  Glancing behind her, she saw Kyle's familiar figure jogging toward her, the sparkles from the river water nearly blinding her as he approached. The smile on his face carried an edge of unease. Alayne squirmed as she thought of the last time they'd been alone together.

  “Hey,” he greeted her as he drew near. “I was going to ask you if you wanted to run together, but you left too fast.”

  “Sorry. It's pretty warm for late fall. I wanted to take advantage before the sun went down.”

  They matched their strides, their breathing even as they jogged farther upriver. “Were you looking for someone?” Kyle asked after a few minutes.

  “What? No.” Alayne stumbled over a root in surprise. She impatiently twisted the elements, and the root shot into the earth, leaving a puff of dry dirt in the air. “Why do you ask?”

  “When I met you back there, you just looked like you were trying to find something in the branches.”

  “Oh, that.” Alayne hesitated and then explained about her few sightings of the mountain lion; she didn't mention her suspicions that it was the same cat that she'd seen on the mountain ranges the year before.

  The shock and concern on his face told her she had probably said too much.

  “Kyle, you're going to get all worried about me and tell me I can't come out here alone. I've already got Daymon on the fringes of everything I do. I don't need you to be a mother hen, too.”

  The hurt that flashed across Kyle's face instantly sent a stab of regret through Alayne. “I'm sorry.” She stopped jogging, resting her hands on her waist. “I shouldn't have said that.”

  Kyle kicked at a clod of dirt on the path, his face a picture of unhappiness.

  Alayne sighed and laid a hand on Kyle's arm. “Honestly, Kyle, I didn't mean it. I don't see you as a nagging mother hen.”

  “Really?” Kyle cut her off. “What exactly do you see me as, Alayne? Because I'm a little confused on that point.”

  “Wh—what do you mean?” Alayne stuttered, suddenly dreading what Kyle might have to say.

  Kyle turned his back on her, absently rubbing his neck. Finally, he swung around to face her. He spread his arms wide and shrugged. “Layne, you know how I feel about you. I've told you and showed you every way I know how. You say you pity me, which hurt, by the way, but I don't buy it. I think you return some of those feelings, but skies, Alayne, I can't get you to admit to anything.”

  Alayne stared at him, her thoughts jumping in a thousand different directions. She couldn't get her tongue to move, to say—what, she didn't know. Her tumultuous emotions still hadn't settled after Jayme's death. She couldn't put her heart and soul into another relationship when she still so plainly hurt from the one she'd had with Jayme. But still...

  What could it hurt, really? She truly cared about Kyle, and the lost-little-boy look that haunted his blue eyes loaded her with guilt when she knew she could do something about it. I could care for him, not like Jayme, but if it makes him happy... She wished she could say the words to make his face light up with unsurpassed happiness, but the last vision she'd had of Jayme swam into her mind. He'd sat dejected in his chair, the tears streaking his cheeks, hi
s brown eyes full of pain and loss.

  Illusion or not, she couldn't let it go. Not yet. She had to put her heart at rest first before she could move on. It wasn't fair to Kyle.

  And then she opened her big mouth and surprised herself more than anyone. “Want to go to the Christmas dance with me?”

  She didn't know what she was thinking; maybe she half-hoped that she could bring a little solace to his tortured emotions if she offered the dance; maybe she hadn't really been thinking at all.

  Kyle blinked at her. A torrent of words poured from Alayne's mouth. “I mean, Daymon already asked me, and I said yes, but it was just as friends, and only 'cause he wanted to make sure he was with me all the time, 'cause all the teachers go a little bonkers at the Christmas dance, and he wanted to be sure I was safe, so I only told him I'd go with him because of that. I know this is horribly rude to him, and majorly embarrassing, because now, I'm going to have to go tell him that I made an idiot of myself by asking you to the dance when he already asked me, so I may as well make a complete job of it and just... ask.” She shrugged lamely, thoroughly embarrassed. She half considered opening up the earth beneath her and letting herself fall in.

  A slow smile had spread across Kyle's face during her incoherent speech. “So, just to be sure we're on the same page, you're asking me to the dance?” His blue eyes glowed.

  Alayne half swallowed her “mm-hmm.” She could feel her cheeks on fire. She now took pity on Daymon in his embarrassment the day before. She was getting a taste of her own medicine.

  Kyle's grin was like a streak of sun. “In that case, I accept. Will you be buying the tickets?” He winked.

  Alayne's cheeks felt as though they crackled with the heat. She opened her mouth and closed it before nodding. “I—I can do that.”

  Kyle grinned and shook his head. “I was just kidding, Layne. You're beautiful when you blush.” His eyes grew serious, and he reached out a hand. “Better practice, don't you think?” He threaded his fingers through hers, tugged her closer, and put his other arm around her waist. “Can't show up at the dance not knowing how to dance.”

  Alayne glanced around. “Kyle, we danced last year. Both of us know how.”

  “Do we?” Kyle pulled her closer and rested his chin on her shoulder.

  Alayne felt ridiculous dancing in her running shoes on a riverbank with no audible music, but Kyle refused to release her. At last, she shrugged it off. “I suppose I'd better go tell Daymon the change of plans.”

  “Not yet.”

  The note in his voice pulled Alayne's head back, her gaze meeting his. He pressed her head against his shoulder again, holding her even closer. Nervous energy shimmered from him; Alayne couldn't understand the emotions that shivered through his body. It felt odd; she normally understood him quite well.

  “Kyle, are—are you okay?”

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “You seem—different.”

  “You just agreed to go to the Christmas dance with me. Voluntarily. Without me begging you.”

  Alayne sighed. “It's no big—”

  “Don't say it's not a big deal, Layne; please don't ruin this for me. It is a big deal. To me.”

  His arms tightened around her in a hug, and then he released her, stepping back. One thumb brushed quickly along her jawline before he dropped his hand to his side. “It means a lot to me, that's all.”

  He took her hand and lifted it, his fingers interweaving hers. His gaze dropped to where their hands joined, but not before a shadow crossed his face.

  Alayne walked beside him back to the spire, unable to explain even to herself why unease stirred her insides.

  Chapter 10

  Alayne met Professor Manderly Manders at one o'clock in the morning in his classroom for her scheduled appointment and then followed him along the hallway to the chute. “Where are we going?” she asked uncertainly as she scanned the classrooms blanketed in darkness.

  “Down.” Manders waited for her to join him in the chute and hit the button. When they reached the ground, Manders moved in a wide circle around the structure, Alayne following silently, wondering where he was leading her.

  At the back of the spire, Manders pulled a key from his pocket and stepped into a hedge of bushes taller than Alayne. She stopped, eyeing the spot where Manders had disappeared.

  His head poked back out of the bushes. “Come on in, Alayne.”

  Alayne pushed into the hedge. Completely obscured by the outside branches was a small brown door, low enough that Alayne had to bend double to enter through it. “Is this the entrance to the underground tunnels?”

  “It is.” Manders shut the door behind her. “A little bird told me you hoped to get down here sometime in the next couple of months; I thought I'd show you where the entrance is.”

  “Marysa told?” The words were out of Alayne's mouth before she could stop them. She sealed her lips.

  Manders smiled. “Marysa told Daymon, and he told me. It's good he did, Alayne. You can trust me, whereas we don't know whom else to trust on staff, and I happen to think it's important that you make use of your mirror now and then. Anything that bypasses the elements will give you an advantage over those who are restrained by them.”

  Excitement sparked in Alayne's mind. She had been planning to try to find a key in Sprynge's office, but of course this made everything much easier. “Thank you, sir.”

  “Just a word of caution, though, Alayne. I'd like you to tell me when you want to use the mirror, and I want to be with you when you go. I'm not the only one with a key to these tunnels, and I don't want you to come down here by yourself sometime and surprise someone who may not treat you favorably.”

  Alayne nodded as she glanced around. Blackness stretched before her. Manders flicked on a penlight. He could easily have asked her to light the way with fire, but the beam from his penlight plunged much farther into the dark tunnel than a flame would have done. Moss-strewn, wet stone shone in the white light, and Manders aimed the beam on cold, hard steps as he led the way to the floor below.

  In another moment, they had reached the floor, and Manders motioned Alayne forward. “May I?” He lightly grasped her arm and urged her onward. Alayne could see no end. There was only yawning blackness beyond the penlight's small circle. On the sides of the tunnel, they passed door after door covered in rust and moss.

  Alayne shivered. She reached out, feeling for any heat elements, but there were few in the immediate vicinity. She sensed some from far above the tunnel, near the surface of the ground, and she pulled enough of those around her to keep her warm. She notched the bend carefully. It felt incongruous, this warmth over her body as she looked at cold, wet stone, but she was glad to have it nonetheless.

  Manders stopped at last beside a rusty door and searched his pocket once again for his key. He slid it into the lock, and with a grunt, turned the key until the door creaked open with a groan.

  “Here we are. Would you mind?” He pulled a lantern from the wall and held it up for her.

  Alayne blinked at him, suddenly realizing he wanted her to light it. She cupped her hand, feeling the heat rush to the surface, and a moment later, a tongue of flame appeared on her palm. She held it to the lantern's wick and watched the flame take hold.

  “Thank you.” Manders slid the chimney back onto the base. “I usually bring a lighter, but I had you this time, and I knew you'd have no trouble with it.”

  The lantern's flame flickered against the four walls of the room. In the corner was a desk, various articles spread across it. An MIU sat in the middle of the desk, and a chair had been pulled up in front of it. In another corner was a coat tree. A rug covered the middle of the floor, and a rocking chair faced the desk from another corner.

  Alayne blinked. “You have a second office?”

  Manders smiled. “This is where I do my work for the Last Order.”

  Alayne spun to him. “I didn't know you were in that group.”

  A shadow crossed Manders's face. “I suppose on
some level, prejudice has always existed, Alayne, even from the beginning of time. How many times in history have we seen a person or group rising to power and then degrading others, abusing that power? Eventually justice comes, but another struggle always arises. Slavery, Nazis, apartheid, so many examples in ancient history. And here it is again with the Elemental Alliance, an insidious group that feeds on the fear people feel when their safety is threatened, and who creeps in when we lower our walls for the 'hero' to swoop in and save the day. It's sad, really, that we fall for it over and over and over. The Last Order gives a bit of perspective, but of course, since the LO is in opposition to the Elemental Alliance, today's current 'hero,' it faces the danger of attracting worldwide ire because of their stance against the majority. But honestly, Layne,” he smiled briefly, “I feel honored to be a part of a group that can possibly make a difference.”

  Alayne crossed the room slowly and sank into the rocker. “So you know what my parents do in the group?”

  “I do.” Manders said nothing else. He crossed to the desk. “Shall we begin?”

  Alayne's gaze still traveled over the items in the room. “I thought you would keep my mirror in here?”

  Manders shook his head. “Unfortunately, Alayne, I cannot risk having it here in my office. If someone were to find it here and then connect me with it and the contents of my MIU, my life would be over before I could draw another breath. It's a safety measure. My office has protection, but it's best not to risk adding more danger to this room.”

  “But you said you wanted me to see the mirror?”

  “Yes, I would. And I promise I will take you there at some point. But that's not the reason we're here today.”

  Alayne nodded. “I see.” She paused. “But how do you keep the other staff members from knowing about your office here?”

  Manders glanced around. “Mostly, I try not to raise suspicion upstairs. I rarely come down here except in the dead of night, and when I do, I'm very careful not to leave any trace that I've been here. There are literally thousands of doors and tunnels down here; it's very unlikely that anyone would just happen to look in here, especially since I have the only key. And,” he went on, “in the event that someone would happen to stumble across it, I've got safeguards in place.”