“Blue was my mother’s favorite color.”
“So, it is to honor her?”
“Yes.” She barely spoke above a whisper.
I put my hands inside of my pockets, looking out at the stars. “Death is a difficult thing. It snakes its way inside of you until you are empty and as cold as ice.”
“I do not have a heart anymore, I am afraid.”
She may, indeed, have had a broken heart, but she also had a melody, and it was the strongest one I had ever heard before. She was the hope of Terra. Hava’s songs were proof of it.
“When you lose your heart, sometimes, you find your soul,” I whispered.
“I’m sorry, but I came out here—”
“To get away?” I asked, looking again at the stars, wondering when the knight would tell her who she was, and where amongst the stars she truly belonged.
“Yes, my father, he loved the stars. They make me feel close to him.”
“I am sure he did. He passed that love on to you?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I will leave you to your thoughts, Emma. We are all searching for something, and I truly hope you find what it is that you are looking for.” I turned and walked away, down the side of her house and through the backyard to the street. Afew cars still lined the road, and some people lingered outside. I walked for a few blocks with a smile upon my face because I knew then, more than ever before, that I had found her: the girl who could save us all from the corruption, who could even save me.
I woke up with a start, my melody swirling around me as I caught my breath. That memory of that conversation kept swirling around in my mind as I lay my head back down on the pillow. She had appeared so lost as she looked out toward the stars, as if searching for answers. I’d done that very thing countless times since my arrival on Earth. I tried to push away the feelings of compassion that I felt toward her. I reflected on the new emotions which hadn’t been there before I had a soul. I felt more connected to her with a need to hold her in my arms and comfort her. That startled me. My melody was out of control. I needed to reign it in and file each specific emotion away inside of myself. The cage thing seemed to work for Emma and a bit for me, too–once.Maybe, I can work on enhancing it slightly so that it becomes a filing system to hold my emotions, allowing me to pull out what emotions I need at specific times.I groaned, understanding all of the work that I had ahead of me. I did have the rest of my life, though, to navigate through the secrets of having a melody, so notallhope was lost—I was just worried about not knowing how to shield my soul–having all my secret desires being out in the open. I needed to work harder at mastering that specific skill because, if I wasn't careful, Shad’s feelings might come out and mingle with my own and confuse me. I looked out the window; it was still night. I covered my facewith my pillow, hoping to get a few more hours of sleep before I had to go to school.
Aiden was right—school was tedious.
Chapter twelve
Aiden wasn't a soulless.
I watched as he walked down the hallway at Oak High, watched as he spoke with Ashlyn, Emma’s little seeker friend. I’d asked him to get closer to Emma and her group of friends, and he was doing what I had asked him to do. He was getting homework help from Ashlyn. He didn't need it, but his deception had worked.
I leaned against my locker as I continued to watch Ashlyn speaking with Aiden. It was very subtle, and I almost missed it—but I heard it—his melody. I stared at him, eyes squinting as I wondered why, and how he had infiltrated my band of soulless and did my bidding.
If he is not a mindless soulless–what is keeping him with me?
I sighed, irritated with myself. Would I have realized it sooner if it had not been for the fact that my melody and emotions were running rampant, taking me over completely?
Yes. I would have.
The boxes and files inside my brain worked pretty well at shuffling through both my and Shadrict’s memories, but I stillhad a lot to figure out. I hoped there was a way to remove Shadrict’s memories from my melody entirely.That would solve all of my problems. Because with each passing day, Shadrict became a stronger force in my mind.
Aiden and Ashlyn turned down the hallway out of sight. I went over the pros and cons of confronting him.Could it be that he is working for Emma and Ryker? Had they sent someone in to find out information about me? About my plans?If so, why hadn't the irritating knight come to attack me, along with all of the soulless whom I had created, used, and buried?No, it couldn't be that.I kept making lists and numbering the ideas and options placed before me. I subtracted my emotions from the equation and decided upon a plan of action that would best suit me. I walked in the opposite direction, away from Aiden and Ashlyn, doubling back around to meet Aiden when he came out the other end of the hall. As I walked, the bell rang, and I saw Aiden wave to Ash, then walk down the hall toward me. His melody sang for just a moment before he stuffed it away, along with his hands, into his pockets as he came closer.
“Ah, Aiden,” I called, motioning him to come over to me.
“Yes, Sire,” he answered, whispering that last part.
“You can cut the ‘sire’ part. Here, Aiden, it’s Cade.”
“Yes.”
“Anyways, I was wondering how things are going with Ashlyn. Any information?”
“She’s a nice girl, she goes by Ash. Emma and she are good friends.”
