“Thank you,” I said, giving him my first real smile in days.
“You’re welcome.” He handed me the milk shake. “Drink up.”
I took a long sip, then whispered, “I missed you. When I was gone, I missed you like crazy.”
His shoulders slumped on a huge exhale and his eyes closed for one second, two. “I’ve waited almost nine months to hear you say that.”
“It doesn’t mean—”
“Shhh.” He tapped two fingers against my lip. “Let me savor the admission for a few seconds, okay?”
I laughed. I couldn’t help myself.
We sat there for a while, not talking. Both of us lost in our own thoughts. I drank my milk shake and ate a few of the french fries before sliding the burger over to Mark. He looked like he was going to argue, but in the end, he just shrugged and took a big bite. I guess he was enjoying the peace as much as I was.
I’m not sure how long we sat there, but I slowly became aware of someone trying to reach me. I could hear a voice, faint, echoing, in the back of my head, like it was coming from a long distance and I wasn’t quite on the right frequency.
At first, I tried to ignore it. Since Kona had disappeared without a trace, I figured the only person who had enough power to reach me this far away was Hailana. And I didn’t want to talk to her—or listen to all the ways I wasn’t as good as my mother because I had chosen to be here for my family instead of training with my clan.
But whoever it was seemed insistent, and eventually I dropped my guard, let him or her in.
Tempest? Kona sounded far away and more than a little annoyed.
Kona? Where are you?
I’m with Zarek. I went to him to see if he could help heal Moku.
Excitement thrummed through me. Why hadn’t I thought of that? Can he?
He doesn’t know, since Moku is still completely human. But he’s willing to try. We’re on our way—as long as it’s okay with your dad.
I’ll make sure it is, I told him. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Don’t get too excited, Kona warned. We don’t know if he’ll be able to help.
Still. It’s something more than sitting around and waiting to see what happens. I’ll never be able to thank you for thinking of it.
I’ve never wanted your gratitude, Tempest.
There was an awkward pause as we both thought about what he did want. I glanced at Mark, who was looking at me strangely, almost as if he could sense that something was going on.
I turned my head so I wouldn’t have to look at him while I communicated with Kona—the combination completely freaked me out. When are you going to be here? I asked. I want to let my dad know so that he can meet Zarek.
We’re moving fast, so probably three or four hours.
I’ll make sure we’re ready.
Okay. He paused, like there was something else he wanted to say.
What is it, Kona?
Nothing. I guess I’ll talk to you when we get there.
Be careful. Tiamat’s been awfully quiet the last few days.
He didn’t answer.
Kona? I said sharply. Are you still there? What’s wrong? What happened?
Everything’s fine. I have to go now.
And then he was gone, and I was left torn between excitement and dread. It would be amazing if Zarek could help Moku, could wake him up. I was frantic to see his eyes open, frantic to hear his voice tell me about all the things I’d missed. But at the back of my head were two questions that I just couldn’t ignore.
What would I do if Zarek couldn’t help my brother?
And what was Kona being so secretive about?
Four and a half hours later, I stood on the right side of Moku’s bed, holding my little brother’s limp hand. My dad and Rio stood to the left of me, and opposite us were Kona and Zarek. We’d managed to get all of us into the CCU together for a few minutes—a very few minutes—by explaining that Zarek was a spiritual leader in our church. It was a stretch, especially for a man covered in forest-green tattoos who also sported three earrings and a number of other piercings, but the nurse didn’t hassle us too much, as we’d been pretty good about obeying the rules the rest of the time.
Which was a very good thing, because my father had made it crystal clear that Zarek was not getting near Moku without him being there. I tried to explain that Zarek had saved my life less than two weeks before, but that had been a mistake. What I’d hoped would be reassuring had only ended up stressing my dad out more.
“What are you going to do to him?” Rio asked Zarek belligerently. “You better not turn him into a freak, like the rest of you.” His contemptuous look raked over Kona, Zarek, and me.
“Rio!” my dad barked, looking angrier than I had seen him in a long time. “Keep your mouth shut or get out.”
Rio folded his arms across his chest and glared at my dad, but he made no move to leave. Which was good. If this worked, Moku was going to want to see him there.
That’s all that mattered, I told myself as I shoved the hurt his words caused deep inside myself. Rio wasn’t trying to be a jerk—well, he was, but only because he was so hurt and angry himself. I couldn’t take what he said seriously and hoped Zarek and Kona didn’t either.
“What are you going to do?” my father asked. “Will it hurt him?”
“No.” Zarek’s voice was calm, confident, and I felt my own nerves settling at his obvious assurance. “I’m just going to check him over, see if I can find anything inside him that needs healing.”
“How are you going to do that?” my dad asked, but Zarek was already in the zone. Eyes closed, body swaying, hands hovering an inch or two above Moku’s stomach, he looked like every bad-movie version of a charlatan. I could feel the suspicion emanating from my father and knew that the only reason he was giving this a try was because I had been so insistent.
Still, he was poised and ready to yank Zarek away from Moku at the first provocation. It wouldn’t do any good, since Zarek, in essence, arrowed his energy straight into Moku. But I didn’t tell my dad that. Some things he was better off not knowing.
The next ten minutes passed in tense silence as Zarek did just that—propelling his entire consciousness deep into my brother’s body so that he could heal his injuries from the inside out. I think the only thing that kept my father standing there as Zarek grew completely unresponsive, was the fact that we could actually see small things healing on my brother.
The cuts on his right arm gradually faded and then disappeared. The same with a bruise on his jaw and a scrape along his temple.
“He’s really doing it,” my father whispered in awe. And Zarek was—slowly but surely healing every wound my brother had, leaving only slightly pink scars behind.
Then Zarek’s breathing shifted, grew more intense, like he was expending a lot of energy though he hadn’t moved at all. A light sheen of sweat coated his face and the hands he still held extended over Moku began to shake.
Is he okay? I asked Kona silently.
This is what a selkie healing looks like, especially if someone’s been— He stopped abruptly.
Been what? I demanded. Just tell me.
If someone’s been gravely injured.
So Moku really is in that bad of shape? He wouldn’t have woken up without Zarek?