“Everything’s always crumbling,” Isaac said, shrugging. “That’s just how Four Paths is.”
“This is different.” Gabriel looked at Isaac, his expression deathly serious. “This isn’t the Gray, Isaac. The more this corruption spreads, the more I see how different it is. How dangerous.”
“Of course it’s dangerous,” Isaac said. “That’s why we’re evacuating the town. So we can fight without worrying about everyone else.”
“I’m not staying,” Gabriel said.
Isaac blinked at him. “What?”
“I’m evacuating with the rest of the town, Isaac, and I think you should come with me.”
The words didn’t register at first. They were nonsensical, foolish. Sullivans didn’t hide from a fight—in fact, they were usually the ones who’d started the fight in the first place. And Isaac wasn’t leaving his friends, his home, to fall to the corruption.
“I’m not running away,” he said, his voice hoarse with disbelief. “And I can’t believe you are. What about your healing powers? Our research?”
“All we’ve found are dead ends and proof of lies,” Gabriel said. “We didn’t ask for this fight, Isaac. It was forced on us, but we can turn it down. We can say no.”
“You’re a coward.” The words came from deep in Isaac’s gut. He watched them hit his brother like a blow, but he didn’t regret them. “You’re right that we didn’t ask for this. But this is our life. Our family. Our responsibility.”
“You don’t understand,” Gabriel said, leaning forward. “Something is coming, Isaac. The corruption is just a symptom. We haven’t even seen the full disease yet.”
Suspicion bloomed in Isaac’s mind. A few days ago, Gabriel had been ready to stand by his side. A few weeks ago, Gabriel had a root crawling under his skin.
“Who told you this?” he asked.
Gabriel averted his eyes. “No one,” he mumbled. “Common sense.”
But Isaac knew he was lying. Something had happened, something to scare Gabriel away. And he wanted to know what.
“I thought you meant it when you said you regretted leaving me after the ritual,” he said. “I was even thinking about why you came here. About letting Mom go. But if you’re running now, then I guess you haven’t changed at all. And I never should have listened to you in the first place.”
Gabriel’s face shuttered. “I’m not running. I’m trying to save your life.”
“Oh, really?” Isaac’s power surged furiously through him, begging for release, but he forced it back. Instead, he kept his words clipped and cold. “Get out of my house. And give me my medallion back. You don’t deserve it.”
Isaac was unsurprised by how quickly Gabriel listened to him. The door slammed shut, and the only proof that he’d ever come back at all was the cracked medallion sitting on the couch cushion. Isaac scooped it up, closed his hand around it, and let his power free, shuddering. In mere moments, it had crumbled to ash.
And now he was all alone again, the only Sullivan left to fight against the rising tide of disaster.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The woods behind the Carlisle cottage were deathly silent. No birds sang in the branches; no animals rustled in the dying underbrush. It was a defeated, uneasy sort of quiet. Harper had to fight the urge to hold her breath, to make her footsteps as soft as possible.
The evacuation was nearly finished, and Harper could not shake the feeling that the lifeblood of the town was draining from it alongside most of its occupants. She tightened the bandanna over her mouth and gazed grimly out at the lake. The corrupted flowers that hung low over the water had done their job, turning the water entirely silvery and iridescent just like the lake she’d seen in the Gray.
Although it was a disturbing sight, the lake still kindled a warmth in her chest. It reminded her of the kiss—a kiss that Harper had held gently inside herself like a great candle burning in her rib cage. She and Justin had managed to get to the Carlisle cottage afterward, where they’d gotten a ride back to town from Seth. She’d woken up to the news of the evacuation, and from that moment onward it had consumed both of their focus.
Harper knew they would have to talk about it eventually, but she didn’t feel ready. It had only been a day, after all, and she wanted to keep this one good thing safe and untarnished for a little while longer.
For now, though, she needed to focus. She and Violet had spent the afternoon trying to keep the corruption as contained as they could, but their efforts could only slow it, not stop it. They’d started with the Sullivan ruins, then moved on to the Carlisle lake, where Harper touched trunk after trunk, strengthening the red-brown stone she’d used to cloak the trees while Violet protected her from stray flailing branches. But to Harper’s dismay, her power was not working the way it had when she’d helped Justin. She had more control over it—that hadn’t changed—but she could feel whatever energy lurked within the trees growing stronger.
Harper wasn’t sure how much time they had left before all their efforts failed, but she knew it was coming soon. All they’d done was put a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. Violet had headed back to the town hall to regroup, but Harper hesitated, lingering at the edge of the trees.
She sighed, cast the lake a final glance, and walked over to the cottage. When she saw the cars in the driveway, her stomach sank.
She’d thought her family was already gone. But she’d timed it wrong, and instead she heard the telltale noise of children from inside the house. She was about to turn and hightail it back into the woods when the front door opened and Brett and Nora spilled out. They saw her immediately, of course, and rushed across the lawn, both bundled in their winter coats and clutching backpacks full of toys.
“Are you coming with us?” Nora asked, looking hopeful.
Harper shook her head, her heart heavy. “I have to stay. But I’m going to help make it so you can both come back soon, okay?”
“That’s what Mitzi and Seth said.” Brett‘s voice snaked up into a high-pitched whine. “And they said I’m too young to help protect everybody—”
“That’s not true,” Harper said quickly, placing her hand on his shoulder and looking him in the eyes. “You and Mom are going to protect Nora and baby Olly, aren’t you?”
Brett sniffled. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess we are.”
“Harper.” The familiar sound of her father’s voice made Harper stiffen, her heartbeat speeding up. They hadn’t spoken since he’d gotten his memories back; he had called her a few times, but she hadn’t responded. “Can we talk?”
Harper hesitated. Brett and Nora were looking at them both, visibly confused. “I… I don’t know.”
“Please.”
The word was so soft, Harper thought for a moment that she hadn’t heard it at all. This was him, begging her. Harper knew she could walk away if she wanted to. But it was the knowledge that it was her choice, that she was capable of saying no, that made her nod.
“All right.”
They wound up standing awkwardly at the edge of the driveway. Brett and Nora had been sent inside, to “help” their mother finish packing. Harper didn’t feel entirely comfortable alone with him, but she didn’t want the kids to see this.