Mom and Dad were waiting for me in the room Lily had temporarily given to me. My mom immediately hugged me, and Dad patted me on the back.
“I still can’t believe you fought that awful...” my mom said. “He could have...”
“Moira’s here and she’s fine,” my dad said. “I don’t think she needs a reminder.”
I smiled at him. “Yeah.”
“All right.” My mom let go of me. We all went toward the bed, and I sat in between them.
“It’s over now, right?” she asked hopefully. “This nightmare is finally over, and we can go home and live our lives without fearing someone will steal you from us or make you forget us.”
“Yeah, but Mom...” I started to say, and I hated to see disappointment in her eyes. “I was thinking I could do something to help elementals like me, and I... I’m planning to use the inheritance Anton Marlau left me.”
She flinched away from me. “I don’t think you should take anything from that man.”
“He’s dead,” I said. “At least his money can be used for a good thing. If I don’t take it, someone else will. And they’ll use it for God knows what.” My name was in Marlau’s will, but I wasn’t his only family. It was a surprise someone hadn’t already filed a dispute against me.
“I guess you’re right.” A forced smile appeared on my mom’s lips. “But what are you planning to do?”
“I don’t know yet, but I’ll figure something out.”
“We’re so proud of you,” my dad said. “And you have our support no matter what you decide to do.”
“Thanks.”
“Is that... Is Jack Maiers’ son going to stay with you?” my mom asked, not hiding her dislike for Jaiden.
“Yes. He’s my boyfriend.”
“Honey...” My mom licked her lips. “I think you should be careful around him. You don’t know what he really wants from you. He could be using you to get off the hook for what he’s done. If you think he’s anything like you, you’re wrong. You were drugged and mind-controlled, but he... he knew exactly what he was doing when he killed all those people.”
“Mom...” I shook my head. I knew she was only worried about me and she didn’t really know Jaiden. Actually, most of what she knew about him was what she’d heard from other people. “Jaiden isn’t manipulating me. If he simply wanted to escape, he could have done it countless times already and no one would have stopped him. But he stayed here in the city and searched for me even when he knew Lily’s agents could capture or kill him. And he gave me something that was precious to him.”
I still didn’t want to tell anyone about Jaiden’s expiring elements. My mom knew he hadn’t been born with them, but she didn’t know the truth about the serum. I was sure there were still people out there who considered Jaiden an enemy for what he’d done when he’d been working for Elemontera. And if they’d heard he’d helped his father escape, they’d try to get revenge for it sooner or later.
I didn’t want that particular piece of information about Jaiden to get into the wrong hands. I only wished I knew what Jaiden’s father had in mind. If we didn’t catch him soon, I’d have to try to explain everything to my mom or maybe to some of Lily’s scientists, even though I wasn’t sure if anyone other than Jack could successfully create the serum. There was still time for that, though.
“That doesn’t mean he didn’t have ulterior motives.” My mom gave me a pointed look.
“Don’t worry.” I laughed. “Once you get to know him better, you’ll change your mind.”
My mom’s shoulders sagged, and she shook her head.
“Your mom has trust issues when it comes to boys. Took me ages to get her to fully trust me, too,” my dad said and grinned at me. “How’s Jaiden doing, anyway? I heard he got shot.”
I cringed. “He’ll be fine. Just needs time to heal.”
“I suppose he got shot defending you,” my mom said.
“Um, no, actually, I was shooting at Blake and... one of the bullets hit Jaiden.”
My mom’s eyes flew to mine. “Oh.”
“Well, enough of that,” my dad said. “How about we go grab something to eat? I’m starving.”
My mom actually rolled her eyes. “You always think only about food.”
“True. Can’t help it. So, are we going?”
“Sure.” I could use a bit of normalcy in my life. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had lunch with my parents.
As we passed through the hallway, I saw the agents who’d been fighting Blake with me. They were all mostly fine, just a bit bruised. Noah lifted his head as I passed by, and he got up from his seat and jogged toward me. He had a bandage on his head, but he seemed to be all right.
“Hey,” he said. “I was wondering how you were. I mean, they told me you were okay, but...”
I waved at my parents, indicating I’d be right there with them, and my mom immediately tugged at my dad’s hand and dragged him down the hallway. Why did I have the impression that my mom would be much happier if I’d chosen Noah as my boyfriend?
“Yeah, I’m fine. What about you?” I asked.
“I’ll live. Hit my head on a fire hydrant when Blake tossed me back. The doctors say I have a mild concussion.”
“Ouch. Did Lily tell you what she’s planning to do?”
“Yep.” He flashed me a smile. “It’s a good thing. No more hiding for us.”
“Do you think the world will accept us?”
He waved his hand in dismissal. “They will. If they accepted element preservers, they’ll do it with us, too. Lily will explain everything in a nice way and show everyone we’re not a threat.”
“Listen...” I was a bit hesitant because I wanted to speak to Lily first and not go behind her back, but I could at least ask Noah what he thought. “If one of us founded an organization to help those like us and deal with our problems instead of Lily, what would you think about that?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugged. “If it’s a good organization, I don’t see a problem with it.”
“Great.” I offered him a smile. “I have to go now. My parents are waiting for me.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “Okay, but is there something you’re planning to do?”
“You’ll see.” I winked at him and left before he could ask anything else.