Violette offered to leave the party if I wasn’t having a good time, but it felt like that would be giving up too easily. I would have to face these kids for at least four years at the Academy, so I figured I might as well get used to it now.
“They’re not all bad,” Violette assured me. “Lots of these kids are just here to let off some steam. Not everyone parades around hoping to get noticed by the elite.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“So, what do you want to do?” she added. “There’s a shooting range at the far side of the building. You could take your frustrations out on something with a little firepower...”
I paused and stared out at the colorful party lights as they moved in waves and flashes around the room, feeling like I’d had enough target practice for one night.
“What if we just danced?” I suggested.
Violette didn’t hesitate. “Sounds good to me.” And then she led me happily to the dance floor.
We had just made it near the center of the dancing crowd when a pain suddenly pierced through my head. It was so sharp that I groaned and lost my balance.
Before I could think, a vision appeared in my mind, forcing the kids around me to disappear from view.
It was Orion. I could see his location, like I had with my mom. He was at one of the Thresholds, one I had never been to before.
I wasn’t sure how I knew it though. It was like the information was suddenly there, yet at the same time it was like it had been there all along. Then I realized it wasn’t just Orion’s location I was sensing. I could sense his thoughts and feelings too. I was connected to his mind.
I knew the unfamiliar Threshold because Orion knew it. In that moment, I understood his thoughts almost as well as my own. He was there for an experiment of some kind. Anticipation grew within his being as I saw him remove a needle from his arm, as if he had just finished injecting some kind of unknown liquid into his veins. I couldn’t see what the liquid was though. I only knew that it was familiar, like it was a part of me.
Whatever he had done, it had connected me to him in this moment. And yet, he did not seem to recognize it. He couldn’t see me.
Orion grasped an object in his hand with eagerness and determination. Something magnificent was about to happen. He was sure of it. I couldn’t see the object hidden inside his palm, but Orion believed it to be something special and powerful.
He walked to the front of the Threshold and stopped just before it, letting the silvery blue light reflect off his skin. He wondered hopefully for only a moment and then stepped into the light, straining to hold himself at the center.
He couldn’t hold it any longer; the undulating power all around him compelled him forward to the other side.
Once he was through, he looked immediately to his wrist, expecting a rapid sign of change, but there was no change to be seen.
Only seconds later, the vision of Orion went black in my mind. The connection was gone.
I tried to steady myself as Violette spoke muffled words of concern. But the room was spinning… the lights and the dancers and the music all whirled around me.
I tried to balance my legs but it was no use. I collapsed to the ground.
***
The next thing I knew, I was on my back looking up weakly at a crowd of unfamiliar faces, all except for Violette.
“What’s wrong with her?” one of the guys asked Violette. His tone sounded more annoyed than concerned.
Violette ignored him and helped me up to my feet.
“Can you walk?” she asked.
I took a few practice steps until I felt sure. “I’m okay,” I finally said. “I think I just need to sit down for a minute.”
Violette led me out of the crowd and found some chairs near a table of snacks and drinks.
“Do you want me to call Rayne?” she asked.
Talking to Rayne sounded like the best thing in the world at the moment, but if he knew I had passed out right in the middle of a crowd he might never let me go into the city again.
“No, don’t call him,” I said. “I think I’ll be okay.”
“How about something to eat then?” Violette said. “Would that help? I can go get you something.”
I nodded. “That would be great. And maybe some water...”
“Sure,” Violette said. “I’ll be right back.”
As I watched her walk toward the snack table a voice came from beside me. “Are you okay?” the voice said.
I glanced up and found a woman with deep blue eyes looking down at me with concern. She seemed older than most of the people at the party, maybe even a few years older than Rayne.
“I’m fine,” I answered. The last thing I wanted was to bring more attention my way.
“Mind if I sit?” the woman asked. I hesitated, but before I could even answer the woman sat right in the chair next to me. “You must have fallen pretty hard,” the woman continued. “I’ve never seen anyone take so long to heal from a bump on the head before.”
“I guess so,” I said. I wasn’t sure what else to say. All I knew was that I didn’t want any questions, especially questions about my apparent inability to heal the same way other people in Banya did.
The woman squinted and stared at my face. “You look… familiar. Have we met before?”
Her question made me pause. It didn’t make sense. I had only met two people at the party thus far, and somehow, both of them seemed to think that they had seen me before.
I tried to act as casual and uninteresting as possible. “No, I don’t think so,” I answered.
“I’m Naples,” the woman said, holding out her hand, “Naples Dupree.”
I took her hand without thinking and said, “Naples? Like the city?”
“Yes, that’s right,” the woman said, amused. Then, she smiled shrewdly and said, “But most people say… Naples? Like the Threshold…?”
I realized my mistake immediately. Naples was a city on Earth, not Ambrosia. Anyone from Banya would know that Naples was one of the Thresholds at the Hall of Clocks.
I swallowed hard. “Oh, uh, I just… know a lot about Earth, you know, because I’m training to become a Water Keeper.”
The woman smiled again, but it felt more like she was smiling to herself rather than at me.
I couldn’t believe my own ears. How could I let something so important slip out like that? How could I be so careless?
I must have bumped my head even harder than I thought. It didn’t help that all I could think about was the vision I just had of Orion at the Threshold.
“Wait, now I recognize you,” the woman said. “You’re the girl everyone sees with Rayne Stevens when he comes to the city.”
I practically choked on my own tongue.
“Have the two of you known each other long?” she went on. “Where did you meet? Are you a couple?”
I didn’t answer. It suddenly became clear that this wasn’t a casual conversation; it was an interrogation.
I stood from the chair to make my escape just as Violette returned with a plate of food.
At the same time, the woman also stood and with a wicked grin said, “Well if it isn’t Violette Stevens… Rayne’s beloved little sister…”
Violette scowled. “I see you’ve found someone new to harass.”
The woman’s grin never left her face. “We’re just having a friendly conversation… that’s all.” She looked at me then back at Violette. “I assume you two know each other, right? Since you both spend so much time with Agent Stevens…”
Violette handed me a plastic cup and motioned for me to follow her. “I think that’s enough questions for one day, don’t you?”
I followed her quickly as we left the woman behind us.
When we were safely across the room, back near the front of the building, I finally was able to ask Violette who the woman was.
“Naples Dupree,” Violette said. “She’s a reporter—a very nosy reporter. She’s taken more photos of Rayne than his own mother.”
I shook my head. “I don’t understand how she knew I would be here.”
“She probably didn’t know,” Violette said. “It’s not unusual for the media to find out about these parties and lurk around in hopes for a good story. It didn’t really help that you were out cold for almost ten minutes. It attracted a lot of attention.”
I sighed. “I guess we should probably go home then.”
“Yeah, we probably should,” Violette agreed. “But don’t be surprised if there are pictures of the two of us plastered all over the tabloids tomorrow.”
I winced at the thought. If there were photos of me and Violette posted all over the city Rayne was bound to come across at least one of them. Who knew if he would ever let me go to the city without him again?
At this point I wasn’t even sure I wanted to. There was too much at stake. If the media people started snooping around they could end up jeopardizing my future at the Academy.
We left the party quickly and made our way to the train platform to wait for the next to arrive.
“So,” Violette said, “am I allowed to ask what happened to you in there? I mean, I know you explained to me how you pass out after healing people at the border, but has this happened to you right here in Banya before?”
“Sort of,” I replied. “But it just started today, so I’m not really sure what it means yet. I keep getting these weird flashes in my mind, like images of people. Then afterwards, my energy feels drained. The one at the party felt different than the others though. I’m not really sure what happened.”
“After you passed out I looked at your Watermark,” Violette said. “It was so dark it was almost black. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
I pulled up the edge of the leather cuff on my wrist to check. My Watermark looked clear white and glowing just as it always did these days.
“Well, it looks okay now,” I assured her. “It always goes dark after I heal someone. At least, that’s what Orion tells me. I’m usually not awake enough to see for myself.”
“But, you didn’t heal anyone tonight, did you?” Violette asked.
I took a long breath. “No… you’re right, I didn’t heal anyone.” I paused, feeling confused. “I have no idea what happened tonight, and to be honest, I’m too tired to figure it out right now.”
After that, the ride home was pretty quiet. I was exhausted, so I didn’t have any questions to ask like I did on the ride there. By the time we got home I was ready to crash. My energy was completely drained. All I could do was throw on some pajamas and collapse into bed.