The Zeuorian Awakening Page 20

  “When I saw him sneak over to your car, I followed him into your backyard.”

  Another convenient excuse. “I’m still not convinced. ‘Cause if you followed him into my house from the bathroom window, you wouldn’t have been able to overhear me talking to my aunt and known that I had dated a boy from Colorado the summer my parents had died? Now can I go?”

  “Not yet.”

  Damn. Tyler wasn’t going to let her go until she believed him. She better just say everything is cool so he would let her sit down. “I’m listening,” she said, motioning for him to go on.

  Tyler turned toward the door as more students entered the class. Once they took their seats he escorted her as far as they could away from them. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but I have no other choice.” He checked the area one more time before continuing. “I know about the boy you dated that summer, because I’m him. I’ve been following you around because your parents told my father everything about you and asked him to protect you if anything ever happened to them.”

  That seemed right. Irene even admitted his father helped cover up her parent’s murder. But every lie he had told her in the past seemed right at first since he used factual information and slightly skewed it in his favor.

  He could’ve learned about her Watcher helping her while overhearing about the boy she dated in Colorado. Then he pieced it together it had to do with her abilities after he witnessed her redirect the lightning.

  Actually now that she thought about it, if he had known about her abilities, he wouldn’t have been surprised when she redirected the lightning. If her parents told his father everything, then he would’ve known others were after her and the importance for her to avoid doing anything that would reveal her location to them. He would’ve taken it easy on her instead of pushing her to the point she caused an earthquake, a lightning storm and a typhoon.

  Just as she suspected, he was using his knowledge of her abilities to trick her into dating him. Well two can play at that game.

  She shot him a sad look, pretending to be upset. “Then you must understand why I can’t date anyone right now. It’s not safe.” She twisted the end of her hair around her finger. “I guess I better go.”

  Before she could walk away, he blocked her. “I know that look. You’re lying to me. You don’t believe a word I said? You’re just pretending you do.”

  “Yeah I am. It seems to be the only way you’ll leave me alone.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.” He moved closer to her, invading her one-foot safety zone. “We belong together. You know it too or you would’ve never almost slept with me.”

  She glanced out the large window and searched for Stephan. He didn’t appear to be close by. But she needed to end her conversation with Tyler before Stephan did show and caught them together.

  Even though Everett didn’t believe Stephan could figure out she could be the full-breed by talking to Tyler, it could make Stephan suspicious enough to try and read her past memories. She had no clue how to block him from reading her memories with his touch.

  But how was she going to get rid of Tyler? Playing along with him wasn’t working. She smiled when Dillon entered the classroom. Dillon would keep Tyler away from her.

  She side stepped around Tyler and ran to Dillon. Once she reached him, she flung her arms around his neck and whispered into his ear, “You were right about Tyler becoming determined when he doesn’t get what he wants.”

  “You need me to keep him from bothering you,” Dillon said with a grin on his face. “I can pretend to be your boyfriend or beat him up, whichever you want.”

  “Just stay close to me and follow my cue,” she said, taking his hand in hers and escorting him to a desk on the opposite side of the room of Tyler. Then she pointed to a desk to her right and motioned for Dillon to sit down.

  Angie took the seat in front of her just as the first bell rang. “I didn’t see Stephan anywhere,” Angie said. “So how did Tyler take you telling him to stay away from you?”

  “What do you think,” Lexi said, motioning toward Tyler as he took the seat across from Dillon’s.

  He glared at Lexi and said, “You can’t hide from me forever. We’re going to talk whether you like it or not.”

  Her eyes flicked toward the door when her premonition perked up. Stephan was staring directly at Tyler and her. She listened to his thoughts. He noticed the slight change in the weather and wondered if the full-breed had something to do with it. He wasn’t sure which girl in the class could be the full-breed since there were over eighteen girls in the room when he came inside. Still, he placed her on the top of his list since she had been talking to Tyler.

  Great. If that wasn’t bad enough, a tiny voice in the back of her head kept repeating like a broken record, Nothing you do will keep Tyler away from you and Stephan from figuring out you’re the full-breed.

  30 CORNERED

  Lexi stuffed her government book in her backpack and slid to the edge of her seat as the second hand on the clock moved up one tick mark. Her leg bounced up and down, waiting for the fourth period bell to ring, which should be in about two minutes and thirty-five seconds.

  Thank heaven. Her government class was the last one she had with Tyler. She wouldn’t have to worry about him sitting next to her for the rest of the day. All she had to do now, avoid him during lunch and she would be safe, well until school ended.

  But she had a bad feeling Tyler was up to something. He hadn’t tried to sit next to her in the front of the room. Instead he took a seat in the back row across the room from her while Neal sat in the front of the room right by the door.

  She read his thoughts for the fifth time since class started, still nothing about a plot to trap her. However, her premonition told her otherwise that Tyler was definitely up to no good.

  “Do you want me to wait,” Everett asked, bending down to tie his shoe and pretending he wasn’t talking to her.

  His offer was tempting, but she couldn’t accept it. If Everett stayed to protect her from Tyler, he wouldn’t be able to block Stephan from touching Tyler and reading his memories. She rather chance Tyler approaching her since talking to him wouldn’t automatically mean she was the full-breed, compared to viewing his memory of her redirecting a lightning bolt.

  “I’ll be fine once I leave the room.” She slid her backpack over her shoulder. “Dillon promised to meet me after class and eat lunch with Angie and me.”

  Everett glanced over at her. She could tell he didn’t like the idea of Dillon keeping Tyler away from her, since Tyler had outwitted Dillon several times before.

  “I’ll stay long enough to block him,” Everett said.

  Lexi gave him a brief nod before focusing on the second hand on the clock. It raced toward the number twelve as she lifted her butt off the seat and hovered over it.

  Ten. Eleven. Twelve. The bell rang.

  She jumped to her feet same as Everett. He rushed toward the door and exited the room right after Neal. She closely followed him. When she entered the hall, her heart briefly stopped at the sight of Stephan standing close to the classroom door. He seemed to be waiting for Tyler to exit the room as well as her.

  “Don’t walk by him,” Everett said telepathically to her and motioned to Stephan touching a girl and reading her past memories as she passed him in the hall. “Go the other direction. I’ll make sure he doesn’t follow Tyler or you.”

  Before Lexi could move, Tyler pushed past her and walked over to a group of cheerleaders. He wrapped his arms around two girl’s waists and proceeded down the hall toward Stephan. The girls blocked Stephan from being able to touch him, but she didn’t fall for his act. He was definitely up to something.

  She briskly walked down the hall in the opposite direction. The entire time she searched for some type of trap Tyler had set for her while fighting the urge to see if Stephan followed after her.

  After turning the corner, she came to halt. A group of football players including Neal where lined up in
a single row and blocked her from going around them.

  “Get out of my way,” she said, attempting to push past them, but Neal shoved her back as the other players surrounded her.

  “Tyler wants us to hold you until he gets here,” Neal said.

  She scanned the crowded hall for an escape, which she couldn’t see at the moment until Dillon appeared. He causally strolled down the hall, high-fiving boys on the way. When his eyes locked onto hers, she could hear his thoughts. He instantly knew Tyler had the football players corner her.

  Dillon pushed his way between two of the football players, shoving them into lockers without straining a muscle. He stood an inch in front of Neal and glared down at him like a bear facing a person. “What are you doing to Lexi?”

  “We’re not doing anything to her,” Neal said, his voice shaking. “W-we were only talking.”

  “Is that true?” Dillon asked Lexi.

  She shook her head. “They’re holding me hostage for Tyler.”

  “You won’t be a hostage for very long.” Dillon turned his attention back to Neal. “You better get out of our way or I’ll break every bone in your body.”

  Neal looked to his right at two football players. They both shook their heads and backed away. They knew Dillon could take them all on and beat them. Then he looked to his left at another football player. He shook his head as well and moved toward the lockers, leaving Neal standing alone until five other football players showed.

  Neal smiled. “I’m not moving.”

  “Yes you are.” Dillon shoved him aside and said to Lexi, “Run. I’ll take care of them.”

  She mouthed to Dillon, “thank you,” before running down the hall toward the exit.

  Students continued to pour into the hall, making it hard to push past them. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Tyler headed toward her.

  “Move,” she said, pushing through a group of girls gossiping about a boy and continuing down the hall. Her auto shop class door came into view. She could exit out that way.

  Tearing open the door, she ran inside the class. A few boys were working on their cars and lifted their heads when she ran past them toward the large metal doors. Before she could exit outside, a hand gripped her bicep and jerked her to a halt.

  The little bit of sunlight shining into the room disappeared. “Tyler, let me go,” she said, attempting to get away from him.

  “Uh-uh. Not this time.” He turned her around and pushed her up against the metal door. “You’re coming with me to my house where we can talk in private.”

  The wind whipped through the room, blowing paper off the teacher’s desk. She debated using her telekinesis to break free of Tyler before Stephan caught them together, but she couldn’t with all the boys watching them. If Stephan touched them, he would be able to see what she had done.

  She had to wait until they went outside.

  Tyler pulled her through the metal doors and exited the building. He headed toward the parking lot as she checked the area for anyone watching. There were two guys smoking under a tree within eyeshot of them. To her right she noticed a girl pulling her hair in a ponytail to keep it from blowing in the wind.

  Dammit, she couldn’t use her telekinesis out here either. She had to get rid of Tyler with her own strength.

  Lifting her hand, she shoved Tyler. He stumbled back and released his hold on her. She ran back toward the auto shop doors. Tyler caught up to her and grabbed her arm as lightning struck a tree in the quad near the cafeteria.

  “Relax,” Tyler said in a soothing tone. “I’m not going to hurt you. I only want to talk.”

  She scanned the area for Stephan. There was no sign of him. If she left that minute, she would be able to avoid him seeing her with Tyler.

  “This really isn’t a good time for me,” she moved toward the metal doors, “can we talk after school? I’ll meet you at your house.”

  “No. We’re talking now.” Tyler slowly backed her up to the brick wall in between two tall bushes as thunder rumbled above and shook the metal roof. “I want to be with you and I know you want to be with me. If it wasn’t for Everett turning you against me, we would be together.”

  Everett. He was her only hope of escaping Tyler. She called to him telepathically, “I need your help. Tyler has me trapped along the side of the school.”

  “I’m stuck,” Everett said. “Stephan locked me inside the gym and I can’t get out. He saw the weather and his headed in your direction. Get out of there.”

  Only one way Tyler would let her leave, she had to tell him the truth about Stephan. Even if meant giving him more ammo to use to his advantage.

  “Shush,” she said, interrupting Tyler from convincing her to date him. “There’s something I should tell you—“ The words got stuck in her throat when she saw Stephan headed in their direction.

  When he noticed Tyler and her, a wicked smile spread across Stephan’s face. She could hear his thoughts directed toward her. “Come out, come out. I know you’re there. Stop hiding behind the little human boy and face me,” he thought.

  Her hands trembled. He knew the girl next to Tyler had to be the full-breed, but from what she could tell from his thoughts, he couldn’t get a good look at her. Tyler blocked his view.

  He still didn’t know she was the full-breed.

  She frantically scanned the area for an escape and there were none without him seeing her. That left her only one option—use her atomkinesis.

  With a lift of her hand, the wind gust and blew Stephan on to the ground. He rolled across the quad until he caught hold of a cement bench. Then she grabbed Tyler’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

  She pulled him toward the parking lot. She had to take him with her or Stephan would read his past memories and discover her identity.

  31 CONFRONTATION

  Lexi ran into the school entrance, pulling Tyler behind her as Stephan chased after them. Tyler glanced over his shoulder and back toward her, “What’s going on? I thought we were going over to my house?” he asked with a confused look on his face.

  “Change of plans,” Lexi said, waving her hand in the air and sending several lightning bolts toward the school.

  One lightning bolt hit near the front of the building, lighting up the hall. Another struck the roof. The last one hit the generator and the lights flipped off. The hall darkened. She could barely see the lockers or Tyler from a dim light shining through the classroom door.

  Perfect, now Stephan wouldn’t be able to see them clearly unless he came right up on them or used a flashlight.

  Lexi spotted a girl wearing a cheerleading outfit and grabbed her arm. She pulled her in between two lockers. “Trade clothes with me.”

  The girl opened her mouth and Tyler cut her off. “Do as she says.” He turned his back and blocked anyone from touching them as they tried to make way through the dark hall. “So do you want to explain why we’re running from that guy?” he asked Lexi, glancing over his shoulder and admiring what he could see of her half-naked body.

  “I’ll tell you later.” She shot him a dirty look. “Now turn around.”

  She yanked the tight sweater over her chest, stretching the woven wool until a few threads broke. Then she stepped into the tiny skirt and zipped it up as far as it could go. The girl zipped up her jeans.

  “I’ll keep the hoodie,” Lexi said to the girl, stuffing her hoodie in her backpack. She didn’t want Stephan mistaking the girl as her and trying to read her memories.

  “We better go, the guy almost caught up to us.” Tyler pulled her down the hall. Once they rounded a corner and rushed into an empty classroom barely lit, he turned to Lexi, only an outline of him was visible to her. “Now tell me what’s going on?”

  “Give me a second.” Then she said telepathically to Everett, “Stephan saw me talking to Tyler and now he’s following me. I’m trapped in Chem lab. I need your help.”

  “Stay hidden,” Everett said. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  She st
ood on the tip of her toes and peeked out the door window into the dark hall. Several students were using their cell phones to help guide their way. But there was no sign of Stephan. Thank heaven. She turned back toward Tyler.

  “Now are you ready to tell me what’s going on,” Tyler said.

  She had no choice, but to tell him the abbreviated truth. “That guy is after me. He doesn’t know who I am. Just what I am and can do.” She hinted to her abilities. “He figured out you must know who I am since he saw you fighting Everett.”

  “How did he figure that out? We never mentioned anything about you having powers.”

  “It’s a long story, but that guy knows Everett is helping me. Now that he saw us together while I made the weather act up, he knows I’m the one he’s after, but he hasn’t been able to get a clear view of my face. I’m hoping if I hide until school lets out, I can keep him from seeing me.” She glared into Tyler’s dimly lit face. “If my plan works, you can’t come near me until he leaves town. You got that?”

  “Okay. I’ll help you, but I’m only going to stay away from you in public. We can still see each other in private.”

  Before Lexi could debate the issue with Tyler, she noticed Stephan a few feet from the room, touching a girls arm. “He’s here,” she said.

  “Get away from the window.” Tyler yanked her into the dark room. “You don’t want him to see you.”

  She listened to Stephan’s thoughts to check if he saw her. A sick feeling swept over her. He saw her staring out the window.

  Her stomach twisted into a knot as the classroom door opened and a faint light flooded the room. A second later Stephan slowly entered inside. His eyes roamed the small area like a hunter would do while searching for his prey.

  Lexi ducked behind a couple of desks with Tyler. She held her breath and focused on controlling the weather, trying to keep the lightning from striking and revealing her location to Stephan.

  But as the sound of Stephan’s squeaking shoes moved closer and closer to her the harder it became to keep the weather under control. When he stopped right next to the desk she was crouched behind, a blinding flash of light filled the room.