The Secret of Strange Waters (The Light Keeper Series Book 2) (6 page)

AFTER SCHOOL,
MOM WAS
still in bed. She was certain it was a stomach bug, so she told us to stay away. We spent the evening in Talon’s room and he played guitar. He’s been playing since he was eight years old, and he’s very talented. He tried to teach me at the end of the summer, but I couldn’t keep my fingers straight. Frustrated, I quit after two attempts. I preferred listening, anyway.

He got a new acoustic from his mom, and since I told him I liked the sound of it better than his electric, that’s all he played for me. I loved those times; it was so relaxing. I could watch him play forever. I loved the way he moved and held his expressions as he played. There was such emotion in the sounds. I felt totally at peace.

Later, before dark, I walked next door to visit with Granny. I noticed Hunter digging in Mr. Hill’s yard as I walked in. Granny was in her apron, standing at the stove. She was preparing to can tomato sauce.

“What’s Hunter doing out there?” I looked out the front window in the living room.

She turned from stirring her sauce to face me. “He’s out there digging, determined to find that gold.”

Hunter had been searching off and on for the gold he’d seen at Mr. Hill’s house before he died. Mr. Hill found out we’d been nosing around, so he hid it. We figured it was old coins, nothing valuable, but Hunter thought otherwise. Now that I knew about Granny’s flowerbed fortune, I believed it, too.

Granny motioned in his direction with her spoon. “He’s all keyed up over Holly. He wants to buy her something,” she said.

“Why doesn’t he use the gold coin he found?” I asked.

“Because I made him put that up for college,” she said with a chuckle.

“Oh, but I thought
you
were paying for their college?” Granny was so confusing.

“I hope to, but
he
doesn’t know that,” she sighed. “It is better he save it anyway. I’m still afraid to touch that loot.”

“What if he finds Mr. Hill’s stash?” I couldn’t imagine the battle between the two when that happened.

“He’s nowhere close,” she responded, and then she bit her lip realizing she said too much.

“You know where it is. You saw Mr. Hill move it, didn’t you?” My jaw dropped as she nodded. I never understood how Granny could see so much while keeping her head in the TV all day, but there wasn’t much she missed. “Then why are you making him dig all day searching for it?” Poor Hunter had become about as crazy of a digger as Mr. Hill.

“Well, I figure by the time he finds it, he’ll have at least earned it.” She lifted a shoulder and went back to stirring her sauce. I shook my head. Granny had some strange ways of raising her boys.

“Mom’s been sick.” I changed the subject as I joined her in the kitchen. “She got sick last night and then again this morning. We think it’s a stomach bug. I was wondering if you had any popsicles. She keeps asking for one and Talon doesn’t want to drive all the way into town this late.”

“She wants a popsicle?” Granny asked with a chuckle as she wiped her hands. “I might have some left. The boys won’t eat the grape ones.” She dug in the freezer.

“Yeah, I think she’s feeling better now, she’s been snacking all day. She was surrounded by empty wrappers when I got home. She’s probably building her strength back.”

Granny stopped as if her thought paralyzed her. She pinched her face, as if trying to solve a mathematic equation. “How old is your mother, Lily?”

“Mom’s thirty-eight.” Granny shook off her thought, and handed me the box of frozen purple rejects. I wasn’t sure what she was getting at, but I said goodbye and left to bring Mom her treats before they melted.

* * *

Later, I was getting ready for bed when Owen called. “Lily, my birthday is this weekend,” he reminded.

“I remember,” I said, pushing out a deep breath of frustration. He still wanted me to see his driving test results.

“Well, I wanted to remind you. I take my test Fri—”

“I know,” I cut him off. “Look Owen, I can’t promise you anything, but if I see your test results, I’ll tell you, okay? Is this all you called for?” I asked.

“No, I wanted you and Talon to come to my game Friday. It’s at home and you promised, remember?” I did and I had. I promised to go to every home game, even though I’d rather eat glass than watch football.

“I guess we can.” I felt really bad for jumping his case. “I think we’re going out with Hunter and Holly after, though. You ought to bring a date and go with us.”

“Maybe,” he said with a groan. “Promise you’ll come?”

“I promise.” I put my hand over the phone and let out a long yawn.

“Thanks, ‘night, Lily.” He hung up.

I sat there shaking my head for a minute. I’d have to tell Talon of my promise tomorrow and make plans to go to the game. He wouldn’t mind, since
he
liked football. It wasn’t that football was all that terrible; I never learned anything about it. My old school didn’t have a team, and it wasn’t like I had a dad around to watch it with. Mom wasn’t much on sports.
Maybe I could get Talon to talk me through the game.

I sat up in my bed and reached out my hand to summon the Light. I’d try and see something for Owen, if I could. It was the least I could do after biting his head off. As I stared deep into it, I was surprised when the vision didn’t include Owen at all. Instead, what I saw would throw things into a spin.

In the vision, I walked around the side of my house and saw Talon standing on the porch, backed against the front door. Cornering him was a bleached blonde in tiny shorts and a tight tee; her legs were so orange from fake tanning that she was almost fluorescent. Even though I could only see them from the side, I knew immediately she was a girl I’ve seen around school, though I didn’t know where she came from or why she was at our house. All of a sudden, she leaned in and
kissed
Talon, pinning him back against the door. His hand came up to her waist and anger swelled up inside me, along with the feeling that I had been punched in the gut. Before I could react, the vision ended, and I was left stewing in my bed, the Light fading away.

What did this mean? Were we breaking up? Was Talon cheating? My heart sank as I cursed Owen.
Damn him and his curiosity
. And then it hit me that I had been concentrating on Owen for the vision. Given my theory of the visions pertaining to my thoughts, I should have at least
seen
him
in the vision. Now I didn’t know what was happening. Was this a result of changing things to avoid the baby? Had we thrown things into some cosmic spin? I got up and peeked around the corner at Talon, who was sleeping peacefully, sprawled out on his bed, the covers pushed to his feet. He was so peaceful there, sleeping, and my heart ached. I didn’t know what it meant, but it was going to happen. I started to get angry, and returned to my bed before I had the urge to wake him.

Come morning, I told him all about it.

“Really? Was she hot?” He waggled his brows and teased. Usually, the smile he had on his face would melt me.

My jaw dropped. “Very funny. This is going to happen, and I want to know why. I’m being serious, Talon.”

“I can’t help what you see, Lily! No more than you can.”

“Yes, you can. You can make sure you don’t go off kissing any strange orange girls!” I poked his arm.

“Okay, calm down,” he said. He held his hands up defensively. “I promise. Gosh, Lily, don’t you
trust
me?”

“It’s not a matter of trust. I
saw
it happen.” We got into the truck, and I slammed my door a little harder than normal.

“Man, I can’t believe I’m getting in trouble for something I didn’t do.” He started the truck

“Not
yet
, but it’s something you
will
do.” I quieted my voice and realized I shouldn’t be so hard on him. I hadn’t actually seen how he reacted to the kiss; only that it happened.

“I doubt that
now
,” he said, cutting me a sly look. “Will you at least show her to me?” He laughed, teasingly, and I poked him softly in the arm. Talon had never been the type to ogle at girls in my presence, but I was certain he wasn’t oblivious to them ogling him.

Turns out I didn’t have to show him to her. Owen did. He walked right up with her at lunch, holding her hand, and introduced us. “This is Meagan Martin.” Hunter and Holly greeted them along with Talon and me, but judging by the way they seemed to dismiss her, they had already met her. “Meagan, this is my cousin, Lily, and Talon.”

“Hi,” she said. She looked right over me to Talon and smiled. Her gaze lingered on him, taking in every inch. I immediately glared his way to see his reaction, but there was none. He was polite but uninterested.

“We’re going to Homecoming,” Owen announced. “And, we’re going out after the game this Friday for my birthday.” He gave her a peck on the cheek and pulled out a chair for her. My eyes narrowed. I didn’t like the way she looked at him either; especially knowing she was going to kiss Talon. That is, unless I could stop it.

“You want the usual?” Talon asked. He stood in line for my salads every day. Hunter did the same for Holly.

“The usual,” I replied with a smile. He was always so sweet to me. I shouldn’t let the vision bother me. Talon would make sure whatever Meagan was cooking up wouldn’t happen.

“Can I get you anything?” Owen offered Meagan.

“I’ll have a salad with
ranch
,” she said. She stared as they walked away, and then turned to me. “Your brother’s so hot!”

“My brother? I don’t have a brother.” I knew she meant Talon, but I wasn’t sure why she thought that.

She glared at me like I was stupid, and I wondered if Owen had explained how one day we would be stepsiblings. “I thought Owen said you two were his cousins.” She curled her lip and glanced back at him, confused.

“We’re not brother and sister. We’re dating,” I clarified. “
I’m
Owen’s cousin.”

“Oh,” she said with a sneer. “So how long have you two been dating?” Her tone was almost offensive, as if someone like me should not be with someone like Talon.

“Since June,” I answered. “When we
moved in
together.” I wasn’t going to offer the reason for us sharing a roof.

“So you
live
together?” she asked in disbelief. I nodded. Then she cut her eyes to Holly. “And you date Hunter?”

“Yes.” Holly nodded, not smiling, which was not like Holly to be so unfriendly—at least, not that I knew of, but Holly already knew her. She cared for Meagan about as much as she cared for Owen; maybe less.

“Cute,” Meagan said, feigning interest as the guys returned. It was strange, but her whole personality changed for their benefit. She became sweeter and more sincere sounding, or so it would seem by her tone. But I could see the venom bubbling inside her—she was such a fake. Worry made my heart sink for Owen. She was going to break his heart. But my sympathy for him soon ended when he put me on the spot.

“Hey, Lily,” he said. “Do you think that Meagan could crash at your place after the game? I’m sure Cate wouldn’t mind, right?” My mouth popped open, and I looked at Talon for help. He was stumped, too. I couldn’t believe he did me like that.

I cut my eyes to Holly before answering. She looked to the floor, not wanting to give her opinion. “I guess I can ask.” I couldn’t say anything else without looking like a horrible person. The thought of her being in my house, so close to Talon and the opportunity to make a move, had my blood boiling. I barely touched my salad after that. Once the bell rang for class, I pulled Talon aside to let him know that she was the one.

“Her?” Talon asked. “I highly doubt that’ll happen, Lily. She wears so much make-up that if I were to kiss her, I’d get a make-over.” He squished his face in disgust. I was glad he was so turned off by the thought, but I knew what I saw. I gave him a quick peck and headed off to class with Holly.

“I absolutely hate her,” Holly said. “She’s always been such a fake. I actually feel sorry for Owen. I think she’d rather be with Talon. Honestly Lily, did you see the way she looked at him?”

“I’m not worried about her.” And I wasn’t, really. Even though I’d seen what she was going to do, I still knew Talon loved me. Besides that, I had the upper hand—my gift. I already saw what she was capable of, but she had no idea about me. Even though I should be ashamed to ever think it, I’d use my advantage any way I could when it came to Talon.

“Well, Friday ought to be interesting.” Holly held the door open as we walked into class. The rest of the day would be gone before I knew it, and so would the next.

AFTER LUNCH
ON FRIDAY
, Owen left school to take his driving test. He made arrangements for Meagan to ride home with me, and since he had to be back at the school at five to prepare for his game, she would hang out with Holly and me until it was over. I couldn’t be rude, of course—unlike Meagan.

As we sat talking, Meagan used the same disgusted tone she always used for us when the guys weren’t around. “Wow Lily, were you robbed?” she asked, her upper lip curling in distaste. “There’s like,
nothing
in this room! Do you have OCD? Are you, you know...a neat
freak
?”

Swallowing my response was hard, but I managed. I was saving my explanation for someone I cared about, but Holly decided to share for me.

“Lily and her mom lost their home in the hurricane,” she explained, as if it would soften Meagan’s criticism. But that was wishful thinking.

She raised her brown brows and peered down her orange, base-caked nose. “Wow! That would totally suck. So you don’t have money to replace anything?”

“I’ve been too busy to go shopping. Talon keeps me pretty occupied.” I glanced to Holly, who pressed her lips tight to keep from laughing.

“Nice
nightlight
,” She sneered, turning to my dad’s picture. “I see those freaky green eyes run in the family. I would have sworn they were contacts. I saw some for sale at a costume store once.
Really
weird
.” I wanted to say something, but Holly beat me to it.

“Yea, almost as freaky as that fake tan you’ve got going. What shade is that, day-glow ho?” As Meagan cut her a glare, I almost bit my lips off restraining the laughter.

Meagan didn’t say a word. She grabbed her phone, went into the bathroom, and shut the door. I couldn’t contain my laughter. “Hunter’s rubbing off on you!”

Holly blushed. “Maybe that was a little harsh?”

“A tad, but worth it.” I usually wasn’t so catty and felt that girls should stick together, but Meagan had not tried once to be nice, and she constantly stared at me like I was a bug.

Talon opened the door. “You ladies about ready?” He scanned the room. “Where’s Meagan?”

“She’s in the bathroom.” I tried to keep the smirk off my face, with no luck. He raised a brow as Meagan opened the door and glided out of the bathroom.

“Hi, Talon, you look hot.” She cut me a smile and winked at him. Her voice was sweet as honey, and her personality altered to match it. She even carried herself differently. Holly and I exchanged a look.

“Thanks.” He put his arm around me. “Lily seems to think so, too.” He kissed my forehead and gave me a wink.

The room went silent for a few awkward seconds before Hunter walked in to hurry us along. “Come on! Let’s go! I want to get a good parking spot.”

We piled into the Lincoln, and I made sure that I was between Meagan and Talon in the back. With her mouth shut, staring out the window, she wasn’t so bad. But I still couldn’t see what Owen saw in her. Guess I’d have to be a guy to get it. Sure, she could be a knockout if she’d lay off the products, but the damage was done.

* * *

After twenty minutes of noise and butt-numbing bleachers, I was ready to leave the football game, but it hadn’t even started. Once it did, I was bored. I didn’t understand what was going on, and Talon didn’t do a very good job of explaining it. I did know what it meant to make a touchdown and would cheer along with the crowd, not really sure what else was going on. Owen was fast, though—almost
too
fast. Even though it seemed he was holding back, no one could catch him. Everyone was screaming for him, too, which was exciting. Owen was on his way to becoming a football legend, only he was a fraud—just like his new girlfriend. Hunter gave me a worried glance, and from his expression, he was thinking what I was thinking:
This has to stop
.

“Man, I never knew Owen was so fast,” Talon said. “He’s really good.” I couldn’t tell him why I agreed with him. It was a first for Talon to give him any credit, and I waited for the moment when he’d figure it out.

After the game, which we won thanks to Owen and the Water, we hung around and fought off his crowd of fans while he showered in the locker room and changed for his date. After he was finished, we rode into town to get some burgers, and brought them out to a park. It was closed, but Hunter knew a way past the gate.

It was a nice park. I thought it must be very shady in the day, since it was pitch dark at night. You could only see the sky in tiny patches through the trees, like on Bragg Road, except this was so close to town that you could still hear traffic in the distance. We hung out there and ate and talked for a while.

“I hope my picture looks okay. I think I blinked,” Owen said. He told us all about the driving test and how he aced it. His confidence was soaring today, and I hoped it had more to do with the game he had won, and not his obnoxiously vain date.

We all sang him “Happy Birthday,
”
except for Meagan, who wasn’t “into singing.” Hunter chased him down and gave him his birthday punches (because spankings were for girls), which consisted of twelve quick jabs and four hard punches in the arm after he got loose and ran away. He needed re-fueling for sure. He wasn’t much stronger or faster than Hunter at the moment, and I wondered when he’d dosed for his game.

Finally, we headed home, with plans to make a fire and hang out on the patio. “Have you ever seen the Light?” Meagan asked Owen. It was the standard question where our road was concerned, and I was not surprised she’d asked, as Holly had. It was what our road was famous for after all.

“Sure, lots of times,” he answered. I froze, and I could hear Hunter sigh as he turned down our road.

“Have you really?” Meagan cocked her head and rolled her eyes. “I heard it’s fake. My dad said it’s nothing but car lights at the other end.”

“No, it’s not. There’s a Light,” Owen insisted. Meagan looked at him like he was an idiot. I held my breath, not wanting the conversation to continue. I was surprised Owen felt the need to be so defensive.

Hunter coughed as Holly put her head on his arm and whispered something to him. “Holly wants to look for it again,” he announced.

“Whatever,” Meagan laughed. “It’s so childish to believe such stories. Everyone knows it’s not real. There’s no such thing as ghosts or headless men with lanterns. I mean, if he‘s headless, how can he
look
for anything? Duh! It’s such a stupid legend.” We didn’t know what to say to that. She had a point, but I was not happy that she was making Holly feel bad for wanting to look.

“Are you scared to look for it?” Holly asked. She wasn’t about to let Meagan get the best of her.

“No, I’m so sure!” Meagan laughed and tossed her hair.

“I’ve got an idea,” Hunter said. He pulled over in the entrance to the little shack. “Let’s get out for a second and see if we see anything. With all this driving I could stand to stretch my legs a bit.”

We all got out and stretched. Owen wrapped his arms around Meagan and pulled her in close to him for a kiss. I wanted to puke. I didn’t know how he could kiss her if her breath was as sour as her attitude.

Hunter walked away from Holly and called me and Talon over. “Can you keep it together enough to
show
them the light?” he asked. “I don’t want you freaking out or having visions or anything.”

“Control it?” I shrugged. “I can
try
.” I thought I probably shouldn’t, but I was so ready to shut Meagan’s mouth I couldn’t help myself.

Talon spoke up, “She’s still figuring it out, Hunter. I’m not sure this is the best idea, not with the headaches and all.”

“Just try. A quick one won’t make you sick, will it?” His elbow bumped mine as he nudged.

“Yeah, sure, but if I get a headache, you owe me a bottle of Tylenol.” I could give them a little peek. That’s when Meagan made the mistake of opening her mouth again.

“This is so stupid. Everyone knows it’s a fraud, Owen. You’re such a liar.” Pouty, she stomped her foot and crossed her arms.

“I’ve seen it, too,” I defended. I didn’t like the way she talked down to him. I couldn’t stand the way he put up with it even more.

Owen let out a long, impatient breath. “Yeah, Lily has seen it and so has Talon. We
all
have.”

“Yeah right, you’re only trying to scare me.” She laughed nervously, staring around at us all, her eyes fixing on Owen. I noticed her standing as close as possible to him, as if she
were
afraid. She was scared.

I was fully prepared to make sure I kept the Light at a distance, but then she spoke again. “You are all such bad liars. I’m ready to go, Owen.”

Most of the time it appeared right in front of me, but with a little control, I could make it appear where I wanted. This time, I summoned it from the shadows. It took a little longer having it manifest at a distance. It would also earn me a pain.

“What’s that?” I pointed out into the darkness at the glowing orb that was making its way slowly from the road through some brush. It hovered, low at first, and then rose higher and higher as it came towards me like a loyal pet.

Holly froze and Hunter held her tight. Meagan wasn’t moved. “It’s just a flashlight. Someone’s out there trying to scare us.” She kicked at the ground, not letting go of Owen. All of a sudden, it was too close to be someone with a flashlight, and she was terrified. I watched as she clutched Owen’s arm tighter and hid behind him, peeking over his shoulder.

The Light came closer and made a beeline right for Meagan and Owen. It shot past them as they ducked, and then it disappeared right over my head.

Owen shot me a glare as Meagan screamed, “Take me home!” Then she ran to the car.

We piled in and listened to Meagan’s ramblings all the way home about how it tried to “get her” and probably would have “killed” her. She was shaking like a leaf.

Holly loved it. “That was awesome, Hunter. Can we try and see it again sometime?” She was giggly and practically bouncing in her seat with excitement. I wasn’t sure if it was the Light or the fact that it scared Meagan that excited her most.

Hunter kissed her hand. “Sure, anytime, but it isn’t always that easy to find, you know.” When we got out of the car, he leaned down and whispered to me: “A little extreme, you think?”

“Sorry, but you asked for it,” I whispered. I really didn’t mean to do that. Or did I? I wasn’t sure. The pain found its way home, deep in my temples.

Meagan was still composing herself when we went in to say hello to Granny. I don’t think she’ll ever deny that the Light exists again.

“Granny, this is Meagan,” Owen announced proudly with his arm around her.

Granny looked her up and down, and then looked at me for some reason. I rolled my eyes, which may have been a mistake. I’m not sure, but it might not have helped Granny’s first impression of her. After all, she respects my opinion.

“Hi Meagan, it’s very nice to meet you,” Granny said. I have never seen Granny force a smile, but this time it was definitely forced.

“Hi.” Meagan choked the word out and stared back with terror still on her face as she clutched one arm in the other nervously. Granny looked at Owen with raised brows.

“Meagan had her first encounter with the Bragg Light,” Owen explained, gritting his teeth and giving me a glare as Meagan gripped him around the waist.

Granny looked at me like I was nuts. “Yeah, it can be quite an experience, honey.” She patted her arm. “Why don’t you kids go build a fire and visit a while before you get settled in for the night? Lily, I need to talk to you, honey.” I stayed behind as the rest of them went out.

“Lily, you need to be careful,” Granny lectured. “She’s scared to death.”

“I know. Hunter wanted Holly to see it, and then Meagan started calling us all liars. I should have said no; I can‘t control it well enough yet.” I actually felt worse explaining it to her.

Granny nodded understandably, and I joined the others who gathered round the fire ring. Talon saved me a place next to him, but Owen was still giving me dirty looks. It hurt that he was mad at me. “Hey Owen, I’m really sorry about earlier,” I told him. He would understand. He gave me a nod and a half smile to let me know I was forgiven. I figured he would have been laughing too if Meagan was someone else’s girlfriend.

Holly was still going on about it when she and Hunter decided to go for a walk. “Maybe we’ll see it again,” she said as they strolled away.

Owen pulled Meagan out of her chair. “Walk with me,” he said, so softly that I barely heard. I noticed the look in his eye, and I could imagine what was on his mind. I’ve seen that look before I learned he was my cousin. I recognized it from the night he kissed me at the movies. Soon enough, they walked off together, and Talon and I were alone.

We watched the fire in silence for a few minutes till he finally spoke. “That was funny, by the way. I didn’t know you could be so mean.”

“I feel bad. I really didn’t mean to do that.” I wasn’t even sure if I was trying to play innocent or not, but part of me did feel bad.

He laughed. “Don’t beat yourself up. You‘ll figure it out one day. Hunter shouldn‘t have asked. Besides, that chick is annoying, calling us all liars.”

“Anyone could have said the same thing. We weren’t so sure at one time ourselves, remember?”

“Yeah, I do. I was so scared you would go in to a vision and never come back. And those Shadows you see, I didn’t know what to make of that. At least now you have a Light of your own to chase them away. Do they even come around anymore?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t been in the dark, not without my trusty nightlight.” I waggled my brows at him and then rubbed my eyes, feeling the drain from my prank. My fingers rested on my temples as I remembered seeing the Shadow on Bragg the night I sneaked out with Owen. I didn’t think it was best to remind him of that, though.

“You’ve got another headache, Lily?” He leaned in and stroked my hair. “They’re getting worse?”

“Yeah, I must have overdone it. I shouldn’t have summoned it so far away, but on the upside, at least I got some practice. It’ll be fine.”