THERE WERE NO words to express my shock. I stood staring at her shaking my head. My eyes were wide and my mouth agape, horror building inside me. How could she offer to sacrifice herself like this? Didn’t she know I needed her? Mom grabbed my hands and led me off to the side.
“There’s one last thing you need to know, Amelia. One last thing every gaia needs to know. The bond between two gaia is a Life Bond. You are truly committing your life to his. Why had she held this information back from me before? I was a little angry with her since I thought she had already told me everything. But it was buried beneath a massive block of confusion and fear. It must have been plain on my face because she smiled at me and took my hand. There was an elephant in the room and she wanted to talk about the chairs? Maybe I was being deliberately obtuse, but I simply didn’t understand what she was trying to say to me.
“It’s a Life Bond, girly. As in my life was over the minute your father died. I’ve felt my strength fading since he died. I won’t live to see the dawn. You have to stop whatever it is you’re doing. It’s not that I’m not grateful for the strength you gave me, Amelia. It let me get us this far, and it will make my death stand for something. But now you need to conserve your strength for what is to come.”
“I don’t know how!” A tear slid down my cheek. “I didn’t do it on purpose. I have no idea what I’m doing or how.” I tried to feel for energy flowing out of me the way it had when I was helping my father or the witch, but there was nothing like that.
“Ok, it’s ok, baby.” Mom put her hand on my cheek, her fingers laced in my hair. “We will not defeat Monica tonight, so you guys need to run. Prepare. Trust your brother and sister—and Nate. He will take care of you, baby, I know that. You have more strength in you than anyone I’ve ever met, and I'm so proud to have gotten to see hints of the woman you will become. I love you.” She kissed my forehead and turned away, but I knew she wasn’t done with me just yet.
Xander and Sariah climbed out of the car, either because of what they heard or because they knew. The three of us faced her in silence. Mom met each of our eyes with a weak smile. “My children. Do you have any idea how much I love you three? I can’t begin to express how proud of each of you I am. It breaks my heart I won’t be there to see all your accomplishments. But I want you to promise me that no matter what happens you will stay together and look after each other. Family must always come first. Don’t let anything ever change that. You too, Nate. You’re family now. I don’t think anything could have kept you two apart from the day you met.” Xander scowled momentarily then placed his arm around his friend’s shoulder pulling him into the line.
Sariah stepped forward and hugged Mom, clinging to her in a way I hadn’t seen her do since she was young. Mom said something in her ear and she nodded. As she turned away, I watched her face go from pain and grief to the eerie blankness. Xander stepped up, all the goofiness and stoicism he used as a defense mechanism were gone. The vulnerable boy terrified he would be rejected clung to the one person who had made him feel redeemable. He backed up kissing her hand before turning away, and another thought hit me. They’d known. I was the only one who had been kept in the dark, and I didn’t understand why. I expected grief to overwhelm me, but instead I was angrier than I had ever been in my life.
“Why Mom? Why did you keep all this from me? There is so much you haven’t told me! Why? Because of some stupid fear from something that happened years ago? But it wasn’t too horrible for Xander and Sariah, just me? Why? What make me so damn different? Why didn’t you trust me? I am strong, you said so. I am strong enough to take it!”
My mom gave me a sad smile, placing her hand on my cheek. “Amelia, I never for one second doubted your strength. We all kept secrets from you because we wanted to spare you this burden. Think of everything you’ve had to shoulder in the last two days. Every moment I could give you without that was worth every bit of your anger now. But we don’t have time, Lia. Monica is coming, and she’s not going to stop until someone makes her. These witches will protect Evelyn, and they will help me hold her mother here. But you have to go! It’s all pointless if you don’t get a good head start.” I stood looking at her a long moment, letting the confusion and exasperation paint itself on my face. I sighed and shook my head. Wrapping her in my arms, I clung to her then backed up to hold her hands. There were so many things I needed to tell her, but I couldn’t get it out of my mouth. All I could do was study her, trying to commit this moment to my memory as I gripped her hands with every fiber of my being. “I love you,” I whispered.
“I love you too, Amelia. So much.” There were tears glistening on her face, and I felt hot trails on my own cheeks. She removed the crystal pendant that had always hung around her neck and pressed it in my hand.
Nate’s arms wrapped around my waist, lifting me off the ground. He carried me effortlessly, putting me into the van despite my struggles. I screamed and tried to stop him—to get back to my mother. The world was strangely silent as he closed the door. I climbed to the back of the van, staring out the window as we pulled away. I saw a shadowy presence at the edge of the parking lot stalk towards her, but we turned a corner and she was lost to my sight.
“No!” I screamed, beating on Nate’s chest. “We have to go back!” I reached for the van’s door, but Nate grabbed my wrist to stop me. Yanking my hand away like his touch burnt me, there was no mistaking the hurt on his face. But I was beyond caring. I climbed to the front of the car and shook Xander, but he ignored me as he drove into the night. Sariah stood and climbed over the center console into the back with me. She gave me a sad smile and placed her hand on my shoulder. Guiding me into one of the captain’s chairs as the world began to grow fuzzy around the edges then went completely out.
My world was darkness, sadness, and pain. I floated in overwhelming grief and self-pity, with no words, no thoughts just misery. Occasionally, I felt hands on me and heard distant voices, but I ignored them. Something severed as the van plunged into the night, and I knew it was my mother dying. I tried to cry out but there was no sound, only silent body wracking sobs. Retreating into the darkness, I wallowed in my own misery.