Winter's Edge

Chapter 93 - Perspective

Ian

LATER that day, I sat under the purple petals of the jacaranda tree while Abby rested her head on my lap. Each flower bud that spiraled down from above gave off a distinct feel through the new connectedness I had with the world. Streaks of sunlight streamed through the branches all around us as I stared into Abby's beautiful blue eyes. They seemed to smile back at me without a single movement from her lips.

"You have the most beautiful eyes," I said. "I could get lost in them all day."

Abby blushed. "Says the guy with the brooding, hazel eyes that melt girls' hearts."

I snickered. "Whatever."

We sat silent for a bit just enjoying the moment.

But before long, a thought came to mind and I broke the silence. "You know, my dad said something weird before he died. He said to ask my mom about secrets. I'm not sure what he was talking about, but if I find her and ask, I might put her at risk...not to mention getting exiled from Winter's Edge. I don't know what to do."

She shook her head. "I wish I could help, but I don't make the rules around here. And I wouldn't want your mom to get killed because of some bad advice I gave you."

"It just seems like an impossible situation."

She nodded, snuggling closer to my stomach. "I'm sorry."

I gestured toward the Hebrew journal that sat on her stomach. "Why do you think Agathe stole that?"

"Maybe her day job is a serial killer, but she moonlights as a klepto." She gave a quirky smile and I laughed.

"No really. How did she know the names of the flowers were in the back of your journal? And why would she steal the one journal that teaches the language of the Old City? Was she looking for something?"

Abby frowned. "What would she be looking for?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. It just doesn't make sense to me, that's all."

"Yeah, it's a little strange," she said. "But I can't imagine what she'd want with the Old City."

"What if the Hunters wanted her to find something down here?"

Abby frowned. "I think you're making a leap there. The Hunters probably didn't even know about the Old City until they got here. I doubt they have any interest in it."

"But what if Lena told her something about the Old City?"

"Not likely. Lena didn't know much about the Old City. She never seemed interested in it."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Despite my dismissal, I still couldn't shake the feeling that there was something we'd missed. Something big. If Lena or Agathe had found something valuable to the Hunters in the Old City, they'd stop at nothing to get back to Winter's Edge. Unfortunately, worrying about it wouldn't help.

The walls around us wore inscriptions making beautiful designs all throughout the room, which reminded me of something.

"Remember the prophecy I deciphered by the theater? The one about freeing the people from darkness and bring them into the light?"

Abby nodded.

"Some are saying that prophecy is about me."

She raised an eyebrow. "Maybe. I wouldn't discount it. The Hebrew letters did spell English words, and you were the one who figured it out."

"But what's the darkness? And how did I lead anyone out of it?"

She shrugged. "It can be pretty dark down here in the Old City."

"But we're all still here."

"Hebrew poetry's difficult to figure out. All the prophecies are written in it. Maybe we have no clue what it's really talking about." She had a thoughtful look. "Or maybe it's not finished yet."

I hadn't considered that. "I don't like it. I'm no different than anyone else here."

Something about it made me uneasy. Maybe it was that people might think I was someone special or might have expectations of me. I wasn't quite sure. All I knew is that I wanted to relax and forget about the world and just be with Abby.

"All I ever wanted was to be normal," I said. "But I realized that if I were normal, I never would've met you."

"Often, it's the things we don't like about ourselves that lead us where we need to go." She smiled endearingly. "I wouldn't change a thing about you. Besides," she poked my side, "normal's boring."

I returned her smile, but my mind just couldn't seem to stop drifting. "This is all going away, isn't it?"

"It's hard to say. Dad said a few people left this morning. But others don't want to abandon the life and home they've built here. They're arguing that even though the Hunters found us, it'll still take them a while to find their way back again since we blew the tunnel. You've seen how long that thing is and how many branches it has."

I looked up. "What about the holes in the ceilings?"

"We'll probably have to close them up."

"Why not just go to Summerlight?"

Abby's lips stretched flat. "I'm not sure we're welcome there. And Dad says it's not that simple. We'll have to stay here for a while."

A light breeze fell through the hole above and blew a lock of hair in her face. I tucked it behind her ear, looking deep into her eyes.

She leaned up and pulled my head close to hers, then pressed her lips against mine, kissing me for a long moment. When she pulled back, she said, "Don't worry, we're safe for a while. Everything'll be fine."

And like a fool, I believed her.

Because, after all...things are not always what they seem.

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