Sorry for the wait - i could say excuses about exam period and stuff, but no one will believe them. So i had a sick-day and stayed home from school and did this to pass the time. sorry for the wait!
I walked into school like a soldier walking into battle. People stared, curious despite themselves, and I glared back at them until they hastily looked away. Sky was trying to make herself look as small as possible, staring at her shoes.
I know what they're thinking, she was saying to herself, 'There she is – the girl who was kidnapped. Cracked up, we hear. Gone crazy.'
"That's not true, Sky." I murmured in her ear, pressing her close to my side "No one thinks you're mad. They understand." Of course, they wouldn't understand – I wasn't even sure I understood completely what Sky has been through in her life, but I knew better than most. We were soulfinders, two people linked across continents by a bond that cannot be severed. I would protect her.
We walked into the office together, with Yves hanging behind protectively. Mr Joe's face erupted into a smile when she saw Sky.
"Little Sky!" he cried dramatically "You're back! We've all been so worried!" he wiped an imaginary tear from his eye and sniffed "Are you quite sure you are ready?"
"Yes, Mr Joe."
Mr Joe looked Yves and I from head to toe "You're going to make sure she's all right?" I could tell my sudden change from Bad Boy Benedict to the perfect boyfriend still made him distrustful of me, and still threw him off balance when it came to me.
"Yes, sir." I promised in that secret way guys do that's stronger than a hand-shake or fist-bump; I held his eyes and nodded my head once, and ever so slightly.
"You do that." he said, warning in his voice, and gave Sky a little card "Now get along with you. You don't want to be late on your first day back."
I was forced to part from her during the day, but I didn't pay attention to my lessons, preferring to keep tags on Sky and how she was doing. More than three times a teacher caught me out for 'daydreaming' in class. I could sense Sky's annoyance at people treating her like a baby, some breakable doll made of sugar glass that could shatter with a breeze too strong. At lunch, I met up with Sky for music practice. Mr Keneally pounced on her like a cat on a bird, shoving her on piano.
"But the concert's next week!" she protested.
"You're right." He revealed a stack of sheet music with a flourish "Plenty of time to learn the piece I picked out for you."
"You're expecting me to perform on my own?" she looked around the room for help, but every face was grinning back at her – even I couldn't keep a smile from my face.
"You were expecting not to?" Why learn an instrument if you don't want to be heard?" he cried to the whole room.
"I'm not sure I'm feeling up to this." She muttered fearfully.
"Nonsense. Best response to a hard knock like you've had is to fight back." I wasn't sure whether to be angry – like he had ever put up with half as much as Sky had battled through – or in awe at his truthful, shockingly wise words.
"Ok. I'll have a look at the music." She sighed.
"You'd better do more than look. Your name is already on the programme. I told Nelson to put it back on as soon as I heard you'd come to school this morning." He called over his shoulder, and Sky poked her tongue out at him behind his back.
Victor was waiting for us when we left school. I could tell he had news, and my stomach tightened in anticipation.
"Maria Toscana – better known as Maria Toscana Kelly." He brought up a picture of a harsh-looking woman "She married an Italian Count but she dumped him two years ago and joined Daddy's empire. Lucky escape for him, I'd say."
"They're trying to get to me through my parents." Sky said coldly.
"And through you to us. The Kelley's score with the Benedicts has grown longer since we took out two of their men at the warehouse. It might be the lead we're looking for." Alarm bells went off in my head – my arm tightened around Sky's neck and I sat up straight.
"You can't use Sky and her parents in this, Vick." He warned. Vick snapped the laptop shut.
"We're beating out heads against a brick wall at the moment, not least on the whereabouts of the two escapees. The whole family should be behind bars, but we can't even keep those we put there under lock and key. It's frustrating to say the least."
"What do you think I can do?" Sky pressed, ignoring me. I felt like screaming, or punching something. I imagined leaning forwards and seizing control of the steering wheel, climbing into the front and speeding so far away from the Kelly's and their poison that we could forget all about them. But I knew I couldn't – so I let my fingers twitch at my side and concentrated on Sky's breathing next to me.
"I had in mind that you could wear a wire when you met Maria Toscana Kelly."
"But she'll be walking into a trap!" I yelled, feeling like I was shouting so loud that the windows would rattle and fall out into the road.
"Not if we know about it first – then we can reverse it, catch the instead." Said Vick, ignoring my tone "These people won't stop coming after us until we get them. I'm thinking of her as well as us – she's one of us too." I had never been so unhappy about Sky being one of the family; if she was just some normal girl, if her soulfinder wasn't such a danger magnet (and not in the good way), then she'd be safe at home while we all risked our necks. I'd be much happier then.
"Don't listen to him, Sky." I told her gently.
"But I can help." She insisted.
"I'd prefer to know you're safe and well even if it means that the danger doesn't go away from my family." I said resolutely.
"What's the use of that? We'll all be in a kind of prison – one run by Daniel Kelly."
"Oh God, sky, don't do this to me." I begged, putting my forehead against hers and trying to show her through eye contact how much I loved her and how much I hated this.
"No, I won't be doing it to you, I'll be doing it for all of us – and because it's the right thing." She snapped "I don't want it on my conscience that I did nothing when I had a chance to make a difference. Who else will Daniel Kelly mind-mug if I don't help stop him?"
"Vick!" I turned to my biggest brother – when I was little, he had always seemed to strong and untouchable, like a bear protecting its family, but now he looked woefully small and alone compared to the might of the Kelly's; and Sky looked so exposed I actually tugged her a little closer to me, as if it could help "You can't let anything happen to her."
Vick nodded gravely "I promise. She's one of us, isn't she? I wouldn't let those creeps get us, so I won't let them touch Sky. And she won't be going in without protection." I frowned, unconvinced.
"What kind of protection?" Sky asked Victor.
"Sky, just shut up." It came out harsher than I intended "You're not doing this. I've seen what these people can do – I'm not letting you get messed up in that." In return, I got a sharp elbow in the ribs from my sweet little angel.
"You have no right to tell me to shut up, Zed Benedict. You act like I have to be kept in cotton wool. I've seen bad stuff too – you know I have."
"Not like this. I don't want it touching you." I had no idea how I managed to squeeze the words out – in all truth, Sky terrified me when she was angry.
"So it's OK for you to fill your head with these horrors, but not me?" she insisted, not giving me an inch of room. I heard Vick chuckle in the background.
"Well, yeah."
"That's just stupid – and sexist."
"Zed, we need her." Vick butted in.
"Keep out of this, Victor." Sky snapped. That was when I knew she was really pissed – she'd never used that tone with any of my brothers before. She was really a Benedict now.
"Yes, ma'am." Vick obediently replied, shocked by her tone too. Sky glared at both of us.
"I've been wanting to say this to you for some time now. You need help, Zed, help coping with the stuff your family dump in your head." I was too stunned to interrupt "I know it makes you angry and frustrated and you take it out on other people, like the teachers, because you can't reach the people who did the bad stuff. . ."
"Just a moment, Sky. . ." I interrupted – she spoke over me.
"No, you wait a moment," Her eyes blazed with fury, two orbs of blue fire with terrifyingly small dots of black in the middle that were her pupils "I'm not finished. I happen to know rather more than most about what bad experiences can do to your head and you need time to sort yourself out with Kelly's threat hanging over you. So to give you that, I'm going to Las Vegas to. . . to kick Daniel Kelly's butt."
"Well said, Sky." Vick applauded. Whatever I thought he was going to say, it wasn't that. I glowered at Sky.
"Now, back to business." Sky said briskly "What protection did you have in mind?"
"We're not finished here." I growled.
"Yes, we are." For a second, I genuinely though she was going to hit me again "Victor, you were saying?" Vick grinned at me.
"The lady's made up her mind, Zed. I'd drop it if I were you. Sky, I'll work with you on your shields. Last time, they were pretty weak. Bedroom walls, right? This time it'll be Windsor Castle thick, rings of protection, OK?"
"OK." Sky smiled. Well, at least someone could.
"And I have a few ideas of what you can do to that scum, Sean, if he goes sniffing around your emotions."
"Even better." Vick patted Sky's hand in a brotherly gesture.
"I like you, Sky. You're a fighter."
"I am, aren't I? Hear that, Zed? No more Bambi comparison. I'm a Rottweiler – with a temper." She poked my chest for emphasis.
"A very small Rottweiler." I grumbled, unconvinced, and both Sky and Vick pressed their lips together to stop laughing.