Prophecy

Most mornings had been quiet.

Breakfast was an option I chose to ignore most days. Dad had convinced the police to release my school bag and I spent the first four hours of my day studying.

The evenings however were more rigorous. I was not only improving on my archery skills, but I was also being introduced to the art of swordsmanship. Those sessions I had with Seidon were intense and I’d received countless blows from all the blocks I’d misses as he jousted at me with the steel swords. Sometimes if Thorn got home a little earlier than usual, he would take over the sessions from his father. His teaching methods were certainly gentler than his father’s, but he took no pity on me when I started slacking off.

After licking my wounds from the afternoon’s pounding sessions, Thorn and I would be indoctrinated in the history, customs, traditions and old and more recent news about both of our clans by my dad, who was the best candidate for that job as he’d spent the last seventeen years living among the Lunes and centuries among our kind.

I’d gotten a few more visits from Detective Adams as he had some other ridiculous questions to ask. I of course, gave him nothing to go on, but he kept on trying.

Mom and dad bought a new house in town, but I still stayed with Seidon as it worked out easier for my studying arrangement. By the time night fell I was too tired to anything else but sleep.

Tonight, I’d fallen asleep in Thorn’s room, but I was awaken by hushed voices coming from downstairs. It sounded like my parents were down there, but what could have been so urgent for them to be here this late.

Sleep was tugging at my eyelids, but my curiosity got the better of me in the end. I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hands and slid out of bed. I slowly tip-toed down the stairs and stopped right at the last bend, preventing them from seeing me, but from where I could hear them clearly.

“ . . . Aurora is doing fine. I don’t see any reason for you to worry. She studies and her swordsmanship is improving rather well. It is hard to believe that she had only started learning a month ago. At the rate at which she is moving, she will be able to master those skills in months, instead of years. It is like she has this burning desire, just spurring her on. However, she will need more work on her bending, which she will not be able to do here.” said a voice I recognised as being Seidon’s.

“She is overdue another strength training exercise.” added my mother’s voice thoughtfully.

“No, no, no.” I mouthed silently. I didn’t want to have to sit in that refrigerator again until I passed out.

I was pleasantly surprised by Seidon’s appraisal. He was right about me having a spurring force pushing me to do well. I was practising hard for the next time I met Omayra. I had a burning desire to see her dead.

“What is the latest on the case?” asked Seidon. I stiffened and all the drowsiness I battled with finally shrank away as I listened.

“Well they autopsied the bodies and found that Aube and Frank were also poisoned.”

“With what?”

“With some plant-based extract.”

“Evergreen oil.” said Seidon. “That would be an explanation to how she would have weakened Aube so much, that the iron pole had caused that amount of damage.”

“More than likely,” dad paused and exhaled sharply. “Also a court date has been set in the first week of June for Summer’s preliminary hearing, but you’d said that you believed that things would be cleared up by then?” he seemed to be asking my mother’s confirmation.

“I think so, Seidon?” she asked.

“I don’t see it stretching much further than then either.”

“Good. Your gifts are truly comforting but I sometimes wish that you could see more than just, the outcome. I wish the path for us getting there would be just as clear.” dad let out another sharp breath. “The autopsies are complete and we are finally going to get the bodies from the morgue, so I think we should start making funeral arrangements.”

“We should, but then there is Caleb. He could wake up any day now, and what would he think if we’d buried his parents without him having a chance to say goodbye.” added my mother concerned.

“He will take it hard at first, but I think that he will understand that we couldn’t keep them like that forever just waiting for him to awake. Probably you could do a cremation. That way he would have the ashes.” suggested Seidon.

“That could work for Frank but not for Aube. Our tradition forbids it, as it is seen as a great dishonour for our bodies to be destroyed by the element we control. Burying will be the best way if we want to avoid stirring up further discord among the Council.” said my mother.

“Council of the Sun? Why should they be a problem, they have no business in this.” said my father sounding irritated.

“They have everything to do with it. The circumstances surrounding Aube’s death has sparked a lot of debate among the members. And the press attention that we’ve been receiving has added more cause for concern. They’re planning a meeting. The date hasn’t been set as yet, but I think they might even want to plan a coup.” said my mother.

It sounded as if she was pacing across the room, something she did whenever she was thinking.

“That won’t happen as long as I am still alive and is a member of that Council. Many of them are only revolting because they didn’t approve of our mission seventeen years ago, but all that will change when they see that I am back and well.” said my father more calmly this time.

The room became quiet as I was sure that they had probably slipped into their own private thoughts. I thought it best that I should leave now, as anyone of them could walk up the stairs any minute now.

I quietly clicked the room door behind me and slipped back under the covers. I had found out some information I wasn’t quite sure what I should do with as yet, but I would have to put it off for a while as tomorrow I would be going back to school for my first exam paper. I didn’t know what to expect and that lack of knowledge was driving me up the wall.

After much twisting and rolling around, I finally fell asleep.

“It is still early, do you want us to stay here?” asked Thorn as we’d pulled up into the sixth form parking lot.

“I will stay here until eight-thirty and then go over to the admin board room, you can go if you wish.” he rolled his eyes and then looked at me as if I’d said something absurd. “Or you could stay here with me.” I finished.

“Sometimes I wonder if you’re listening to the words that come out of your mouth.”

“What, I was giving you options.” I jibed.

“There you go again.”

“Are you saying that I’m ridiculous?”

“I am saying that the things you say sometimes are utterly silly. It makes me wonder what is going on inside that pretty little head of yours.” he said tilting his lips into a smile.

“Oh make fun of the concerned girlfriend, now that’s real mature.” I said rolling my eyes and shaking my head.

“Are you getting angry at me and having one of those mood swings I can never see coming, because you haven’t done that in a while.” he said still sounding very amused.

“I do not have mood swings, I just have very volatile emotions.”

“Same difference,” he chortled.

“Ja ja, but like you said I haven’t had one in a while so I think I am deserving of this one.” I said closing my eyes and resting my head on the back of the chair.

“I guess you are love.” he said taking my hand and placing it against his face. I turned to him and smiled and then I closed my eyes.

Ignore the stares. Ignore them all. “Good morning, I am supposed to go to the boardroom to do my C.S. exam.” I said shakily.

“Summer, it is good to see you.” said Ms Lawson coming from around the reception desk. I was taken aback as she hugged me. “I hope you are doing okay. I want you to know that I don’t believe a thing they’re saying about you.” she whispered into my ear.

“I, uh.” I stammered, still taken off guard. “Thank you, you don’t know how much it means to me to hear that,” I said smiling ruefully.

She returned the smile. “I know that everything will work out, just keep strong okay.” she said still holding on to my shoulders.

“I will, thank you.”

“Well come this way, your invigilator is already waiting.” she escorted me to the boardroom. “Good luck.” she smiled and then closed the door.

“Summer,” said the invigilator.

“Jae you are invigilating me?” I asked surprised.

“I was the only one brave enough to volunteer. I will also be overseeing the rest of your papers. You can start filling in the front and sign the receipt at the back as you will begin promptly at nine.” he said placing the paper in front of me.

I took out the pens I was carrying in my pocket and lay them out in front of me. This paper was going to be long. I had two and half hours to write four essays on Caribbean government, culture and global issues natural and manmade, affecting the region, and I hadn’t a minute to spare. As soon as the long hand was on twelve, I began.

“How did you get over here so quickly? The exam just ended a while ago and you were in the auditorium.” I stared at Thorn who was comfortably seated in reception area.

“I finished early and left. Are you ready to go?” he said casually and came to stand beside me.

“Yes. Ms Lawson.” I said waving to the receptionist. She smiled and waved back.

Thorn held the door open and I stalked outside. “What was that all about?” he asked suspiciously.

“I was just saying goodbye to a friend.” I smiled.

“So I take it that it went well?” he said keeping pace with me as we walked back to the parking lot.

“Much better than I was expecting. Ms Lawson offered support and a friendly face other than those in my family. I never realized how much I needed that. She kinda made my day. Added to that, Jae was my invigilator and will be for the rest of my exams. So my day was great.” I said with a wide grin spreading over my face.

As I was about to enter the car I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. I took it out and answered. “Hello?”

“Hello Summer, it’s me.” said the voice on the other line.

“Mom, is that you, because I didn’t recognise the number.”

“It’s your dad’s phone. I need you and Thorn to come home quickly.” she sounding slightly flustered.

“We are already on our way. Did something happen?” I looked at Thorn, who was also turned to meet my glance.

“Nothing inherently bad, it is just something we have to fix before it gets out of control. I’ll see you when you get here.” I heard the phone click on the other line when she hung up.

“Is everything okay back home?”

“Nothing is ever okay these days. She only said that we have something to fix and should hurry home.”

“Fasten your seat belt.” said Thorn as he stepped on the accelerator pedal.

“Mom! What is it? What is so urgent that we had to home so quickly?” I said bursting into the living room.

“Will you grab those bags in the kitchen and bring them up to the Rhino.” she said addressing Thorn. He left the room hastily and in a fraction of a second was standing beside me again.

“Are you going somewhere?” asked Thorn.

“No, the three of us are. We are going home to St. Ann, we have a few council members waiting for us there. Seidon and Nafad have already left to see what they could do, and I stayed behind to keep you up to speed as we are running short on time.” she said sailing in front of us. Thorn and I gave chase and we settled in the back passenger seat of the car.

“When you said council members, were you referring to the Council of the Sun?” I asked drawing on the information I’d overheard last night.

“The backup government Coronas have in case of an emergency?” asked Thorn.

“Yes, the council was established a few years after Mond’s assassination. They aren’t exactly a second government, but they act more like political ombudsmen.

“We wanted to establish a group that would monitor the coming and goings of those in charge, to prevent anything like what happened to the Lunes from ever occurring to us. At the time it seemed like a good idea to install them, but as the years progressed, they have become a royal pain in the side, sometimes making much ado about nothing.” she said sounding more peeved by the second.

“Well what is the disagreement all about?” asked Thorn.

“Me.” he turned to face me. “They’re becoming restless about the murder investigation that I’m facing and they don’t like the amount of attention being given to it, as it may risk us being exposed.” I said answering the unasked question he had marked all over his face. “They are also unsettled about the two of us, and our relationship.”

“You seem to know much more than I was expecting on the topic.” said my mother suspiciously.

“Well your conversations tend to drift up the stairs when you come over during the nights.” I said partially confessing to my eavesdropping. “And I happen to possess excellent hearing abilities.” I said with more chagrin as I plopped backwards against the seat.

“Umm hmm.” she said, obviously discrediting my version of the truth. Know-it-all.

“So what exactly are we going to do when we get there?” asked Thorn, whose thinking was always miles ahead of mine.

“The council represent the people. We keep them calm, we keep everyone else settled.”

“So in effect, preventing a revolt or revolution.” finished Thorn.

“That is correct.” said mother, who sounded impressed by his intellect.

“I am sure that this was something you could have handled on your own, so why bring us along?” asked Thorn.

“I’m not sure that it will be so easy to handle this time around, as our situation is...difficult. If it were just a regular Corona who had gotten into this bind, it wouldn’t be bad. But since it is my daughter that is being focused on, it makes things more complicated.

“We brought you two along as we thought that this would be a learning experience, as both of you will soon have your own clan to oversee.” she added more cheerily.

“Don’t remind me,” I muttered under my breath.

Thorn's expression was staid as if he agreed with my sentiment. I could hardly control what happened in my life; how was I supposed to help Thorn to govern the lives of hundreds of other people.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Sure, that would work with a few of the fruits, but what the frick would I do with the whole mountain of them that was piled high in front of me. I mean, I might have many lemons, but I could only squeeze so much juice.