Claire Carter's life was homecoming court and petty high school drama before her world unraveled. Her older sister has been hiding the secret of a lifetime - the ability to summon and control lightning. And she's not alone.
As the world around Cla...
"Mierda." All of us cringed as bright white light flooded the bus, warning us that our plan had failed again.
"Language." I reprimanded Brianna.
"Sorry, I meant to say shit," Brianna muttered under her breath.
"So, I'm guessing that didn't work?" Alex called from the other end of the bus.
"I don't think any of our powers work here," I admitted. "So, Brianna can't hurt you." I gave Alex an awkward thumbs up. Brianna was back in her seat, probably thinking of a way to disappear.
It looked like Brianna's awkwardness was mutual as Alex hesitantly walked back towards us. He didn't take his seat next to Brianna, which I wasn't taking as a good sign.
"Guys I think... I think it's time we talk about where this bus is going." I whispered. Everyone fell silent, and I couldn't hear anything over the bus' engine.
"You don't think she would actually send us there, right?" Hannah asked.
"I wouldn't put anything past that sorceress," said Darren.
"Melia." Hannah corrected.
"That's what I said."
"We just need to be mentally preparing ourselves for our destination, that's all," I explained.
"Okay, so like, not that I don't know what you're talking about, because I completely and totally do, but I really think you should say where you think we're going so I can make sure everyone else is on the same page," said Darren.
"The Borderline," Hannah concluded.
A hush settled over us when Hannah finally said the quiet part out loud. None of us knew much about the Borderline: just that it was a dangerous place, ruled by someone formidable in a mask, and that they were responsible for the letters. I shuddered at the memory of Mae receiving that first letter while we were downtown. I didn't understand how she could have been so unafraid then. Now, I knew the truth.
"Alex, do you not want to sit down?" Hannah asked, noticing that he had never bothered to pick a seat.
"Um..." Alex looked at Brianna, who didn't look back at him. "I don't think she would want that."
"I'll switch." I offered, standing next to Alex. "Sit next to Mae. She's pretty harmless while she's asleep."
Alex pursed his lips, and while he wasn't thrilled with the situation, conceded and sat next to Mae. I slid into place next to Brianna, casually smiling like we weren't on a bus destined for our deaths.
"You still have that?" I noticed that Brianna was holding the chess piece from earlier.
"Yeah." Brianna inspected the piece as if she were hypnotized by it. "Where did you get it from? It doesn't look like it's from the library."
"It was Charlie's," I answered. I looked over at Mae, who was still fast asleep. Alex was next to her, but he was half-sitting on the aisle like Mae would strike at any moment.
"Maybe I shouldn't be touching this then." Brianna realized. "Charlie es el nombre de su hermano muerto, sí?"
"Yeah, he passed away before they moved here from the UK," I answered. "Mae never talked much about him."
When Brianna passed the chess piece back to me, I noticed that her hand was shaking. "You good?" I asked.
"Claire, you're not scared of me, right?"
"Of course not." I reminded Brianna. Not anymore.
"It's just that he still is," Brianna admitted, glancing at Alex.
"Can you blame him?"
"No... I can't."
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A/N: I meant to publish more while I was in LA, but I was way busier than I expected. Between internships and activities and networking (which actually consisted of singing old 1D songs in the car at 1 am on Sunset Boulevard), it was a lot. But now I'm back, and ready to keep this story going. I know this is a very small update, but at least it's something.
