“We’re going in there?” I demanded.
“If you dare,” Pete said coolly in my ear.
Tristan shot him a look, and together, he, Krista, and I stepped inside the cave. The air was about twenty degrees colder, and the opening narrowed so swiftly that it forced us into a single line for a few feet before it widened into a huge, round chamber. The second we stepped inside, my jaw dropped.
The walls surrounding me burst with color. They’d been graffitied so thoroughly that hardly any of the black rock was visible beneath the intricate lettering and design work. I stepped toward the nearest wall and ran my hand over the first name I saw. It had been spray-painted in red and yellow, the letters square and bold.
RYAN DUNN (CORRIGAN) 1995.
JACINDA RAND (LORNING) 2004.
MISTY CALLAIT (RABAT) 1982.
KRISTA KINCAID (PARRISH) 2012.
I stared at Krista, and she nodded, lifting a shoulder almost like an apology. “That’s me.”
I turned in a quick circle now, names and numbers assaulting me—2010, 2001, 1965, 1984, 1921, 1876.
“Eighteen seventy-six?” I gasped, gaping at the tight cursive. My words bounced off the high ceiling and echoed back at me, filling the chamber with their screeching tone.
“Every Lifer who ever came to Juniper Landing has written his or her name on these walls,” Tristan explained, stepping up next to me. “The year marks the date they accepted their calling and received their full powers. For you, today is that day.”
I glanced around the room at all the faces, every one of them watching me closely.
“Are you ready to become a true Lifer?” Krista asked.
I swallowed hard.
“I know it’s overwhelming,” Tristan said softly. “And I know you’re worried about your family, but look around. We’re your family, too, now, Rory. This is your new home.”
My heart thumped painfully. Kevin rubbed his nose with the back of his index finger. Bea gazed at me unwaveringly. Krista beamed, like I was her new baby sister. Pete tapped his toe, glancing over his shoulder. Joaquin shot me a small smirk, Lauren teetering and hiccuping at his side. Fisher smiled at me, like we were sharing a private joke. Nadia and Cori stood arm in arm, an alliance of two, while Nadia scowled openly.
I tried to believe what Tristan was saying—that these people could be my family—but my heart closed in on itself. I hadn’t shared Christmases and birthdays and Thanksgivings with them. They’d never seen me win a science fair or run a race. They hadn’t been there when I contracted the chicken pox at age six or when I broke my arm on the tire swing at my grandma’s or when they lowered my mother’s casket into the ground.
I knew who my true family was. But you still have them, I reminded myself. You still have Dad and Darcy. At least for now, and hopefully for always.
“If it means anything,” Tristan said finally, “I think you’re ready.”
“We all do,” Joaquin added loudly.
I looked at Nadia, who stared past me at Tristan, smoldering. It was obvious she didn’t want me here. We might have been “family,” but it was pretty clear we were never going to be friends. But I wasn’t about to let her and her blatant feelings for Tristan stop me from accepting my new mission—or from being with Tristan.
“I’m ready,” I said, my gaze locked on Nadia. “I’m beyond ready.”
Her eyes narrowed at me for a brief second before she looked away.
“Yay!” Krista cheered. She produced some kind of string and held it out to me. It was a woven leather bracelet. I reached out my left arm and let her tie it to my wrist. The leather was hard, its pungent, tangy scent emanating from my arm. When I moved, it slid halfway to my elbow, then back down again. It was nothing like Tristan’s, which was so worn the color had faded to a light tan, and so fitted it never moved from his wrist.
Joaquin let out a whoop, and everyone started applauding. The sound filled the cave, and the crowd collapsed toward me, hugging me like I was the long-lost kid sister they never knew they had. Krista threw her arms around me so tightly I thought she’d never let go, and Fisher put his massive hand on my head to ruffle my hair. As I turned into Bea’s arms, I saw Nadia hovering near the edge of the cave, and a chill went right through me. She shot me a sharp, slit-eyed scowl before turning her back on the rest of us and disappearing into the night.
She’s feeling it now. What it’s like to be accepted. What it’s like to be part of a group. I’ll bet she didn’t have a lot of friends in the other world. She was too serious for that. Too focused. But here, things can be different. There will be no graduation, no Ivy League to strive for, no stellar career out there waiting to be achieved. Here, she can relax. She can have fun. She can take risks and be wild and maybe even fall in love.
She’s starting to feel it.
I did, too, once upon a time. But I’ve been here long enough to know that this fairy tale doesn’t last. The euphoria ends. That’s why I’ve written a new happily ever after, off this make-believe island. The world is changing, and my new adventure is about to start.…
I woke up early the next morning, the bright sun shining through the window behind my bed, and blinked in confusion. I didn’t even remember dozing off. I’d been so wired after partying at the cove with my new “family” that I’d felt like I would never fall asleep. But as I stretched my arms over my head, I was oddly energized, and when my stiff new leather bracelet slipped toward my elbow, I knew exactly why.