Torn Mind

Chapter 42: Cal

"You what?!"

"Kilorn, we've been over this," I explain, "she used a serum to get you to talk, you bursted into my room a loopy mess, your memory of the event was wiped, and now we are here."

"Why me though? Why couldn't you have drugged Cal!"

"Woah—" I try to defend myself before Zalia cuts in.

"I'm sorry about that but you were an easier target." She says while packing some of her vials into a bag. Kilorn looks like he wants to retaliate but he knows she's right. The rest of us have already packed as we are all ready to start moving but since the addition of a new member, we are behind by a few hours. We've all crowded into her small room, watching as she brings the essentials with her. This mostly just consists of her concoctions and clothing.

Evangeline is standing by the door, evaluating every inch of the room, Cameron is leaning against the wall, staring quietly at the floor while tapping her foot, and Kilorn is inspecting Zalias possessions. "What's this pink one do?" Kilorn says while reaching for it.

Zalia's eyes bulge and double in size as she reaches forward, grasping it out of his hands. "You shouldn't touch that. One wrong move and we're all knocked out."

Evangeline sighs, obviously bored. "Are you almost done yet, we have to get going."

"There's no need to rush, Julian is going to stop by Cal's rooms in about half an hour to check up on him so we should stay until then so he doesn't suspect something is going on too soon."

"How do you know?" This is something oddly specific.

"I told you I have a talent for figuring things out."

"This is sort of creepy," Cameron juts in, "but you have to admit, it's also really useful."

Evangeline narrows her eyes, "I suppose."

"In that case, I should head back there and prepare." I say, trying to keep Evangeline from making another rude comment. "Let's say we all meet up where we initially planned in two hours."

"Sounds good to me." Evangeline responds, leaving the room right after.

I turn to everyone else and they all respectfully nod their heads in agreement and head out, going on their own ways. After giving Zalia a curt nod, I also make my way back to my rooms. If Zalia is right, Julian should be arriving within the next few minutes. I have no clue how she knew, but I don't doubt she's right; I've seen what she is capable of. Julian never mentioned that he was going to visit me today so I begin my usual panicked pacing around my room, worrying about what he wants to discuss, I can only hope it's not some dreadful update about the war that might affect our plans.

I swivel at the sound of a sharp knock at my door, afraid to open it. I stand right beside it, my hand hovering over the doorknob, preparing myself to keep cool. When I swing it open, I am still surprised to see Julian there even though Zalia gave me the warning, it's just extremely shocking that she was right about something so unpredictable.

"Hi Julian, I wasn't expecting you." lie.

"I just wanted to check in on you. You seem different lately and I wanted to talk to you as family, not as your superior."

"Come on in."

He takes his time, slowly walking around the perimeter, as if he's scared to fully step into my space.

Noticing how messy and unprofessional my room is, I get embarrassed. "Sorry about the mess."

"No worries," He finally pauses near my desk, examining all the papers sprawled haphazardly on it. "How are you holding up, Cal? I'm still sorry that we can't do anything about Mare at the moment."

"I understand, it's only the logical thing to do."

"So, when do you leave?"

My heart drops and I try to best to conceal my reaction, "I'm sorry?"

"To rescue Mare, I mean. I know you, Cal, and I want you to know that I'm not going to stop you. I can't help you because of the position that would put me in, but something tells me you won't need my help."

"I thought I was hiding it well."

"Cal, I've known you your whole life. One day, you stopped pestering me about rescuing Mare but I initially figured you had come to your senses. You usually do, you know, I've seen you pick the logical choice over even the choice you want most because you know it's the right call. However, when it comes to Mare, logic doesn't matter to you."

He's right. I know strategy speaking, this is a terrible idea, risking our lives trying to save Mare. But I could care less about that. I'm not going to tolerate losing her. "We leave in a few hours."

Julian steps closer to me and pulls me into an embrace, "Be careful, okay? I'll come up with some excuse to cover your absence but it will only buy you a few days until the others start to realize the truth."

"Thank you, Julian." I mumble into his shoulder. His caring nature reminds me of my mother and I fight the tears that prick at my eyes. I refuse to let them fall until I can hold Mare in my arms once again.

~~~~~Author's Note~~~~~

I'm sorry about being a day late, I've been studying for finals and I completely forgot that I needed to write! Hopefully, it's not too big of a deal, but as a fair warning I might be a little late next week as well. After that though, my semester is over, which means less stress and more writing! I really enjoyed writing this moment between Cal and Julian because they're the only family they have left and I think it's important that they keep a strong bond. I've also had so much fun bringing in new characters to the story, it really brings a fun twist to things. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, if you did, I would be super grateful if you gave it a vote! Thank you for reading this as always, I love that I can write for others enjoyment instead of just my own. Today in the comments, I'd like to know one random tidbit about you guys. Maybe a secret you want to get off your chest, or even just your favorite color!