Shadow and Stars

Thirty-One

The upper corridors of the Crescent are quiet as Julian and I creep across the thick carpet that runs down the middle of the floor. The silence hangs heavy around us like a dense fog, and I feel the need to speak in order to break it.

"What if this isn't it? What if this doesn't actually tell us what we need to do...or it's a trap," I whisper, leaning in toward Julian.

He slides his arm around my waist and pulls me closer. "I don't think it's a trap. And if it doesn't tell us what we need to know, well...we'll keep looking. Simple as that."

I lay my head against his shoulder as we walk. "I'm sorry you got mixed up in all this. It was just supposed to be a freaking history project."

He stops and turns me around to face him. "Never apologize for coming into my life, Camryn Young. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I know that sounds horrifically clichéd, but it's the truth."

I chew my lip and rise on my tiptoes, pressing my lips to his. "I love you, Julian Byrne."

"And I love you. Now let's go do this," he says, taking my hand and leading me to the door at the end of the hall that, according to the map Julian had snapped a photo of, leads to the attic.

I slide the key into the lock and turn. The door clicks and opens a sliver.

I inhale and exhale like it's the last breath of air I'll ever take and push it wide open. The hinges' groan is so loud that the sound reverberates off the walls, and we both jump and spin around, making sure no one has popped out from a darkened corner. The hallway is empty, so we slip inside, letting the door close behind us.

Instead of walking directly into the attic, there is another set of stairs to climb. Dust hangs in the stale air, and if it weren't for the light coming from Julian's iPhone, it would be pitch dark. I cling to his arm as we ascend the stairs together, and when we step foot into the attic, the chill rattles my bones.

The décor is straight from the 1900s, and it is clear that no one has entered this room in a long time. There are rickety wooden chairs strewn about, broken school desks piled in the corner, and countless boxes of junk, just like in the records room.

"I can't believe my dad hasn't been up here to clean up this disaster area," I joke. "Clutter is not something he can abide very well."

"I bet being up here creeps him out too...considering all he knows, ya know?" Julian says, peering into boxes and underneath chairs.

"True. Well, what do we do now?"

"Say the quote again."

"Be stirring as the time; be fire with fire; threaten the threatener and outface the brow of bragging horror," I whisper, my eyes scanning the room for anything that stands out.

Julian mumbles to himself. "The threatener is obviously Luna, the bragging horror is...well, all of this shit." I can't help but grin as I listen to the rest of his thoughts. "Stirring as the time...trying here, Pearl, but you aren't really giving us any more clues."

My gaze rests on the fireplace on the back wall of the attic and all the empty space around it. The wall is blank—painted a dull, graying black.

"Fire," Julian murmurs.

I glance at him, and his dual-toned eyes flash with recognition.

"What?"

"Be fire with fire. That means to fight fire with fire." He looks back and forth between my hands and the back wall. "Do you see that? The sheen of ash on that wall with the fireplace?" He takes my hand and we walk closer, and I realize the wall isn't painted black at all. It used to be white and is now stained with years and years of ashy residue.

"Yeah, what are you thinking?"

"This is a total shot in the dark, and it may end up being disastrous. But I have a feeling it's going to work."

"I'll do anything. What is it?"

He takes my hand and intertwines my fingers with his, bringing our hands to his chest. "Remember the library?"

I nod, and as he squeezes my hand, I know what he's about to say.

"Use it, Cam."

"I don't know if I can, Julian. All of the times I've used my fire, I was feeling some pretty intense emotions—anger and frustration to be precise. As scared as I am now, I don't know if I have it in me to wield it."

Julian's eyes harden, and he grips my shoulders, turning me to face him. "Camryn. You have to. This is not the time for you to chicken out, back down, let Luna have her way. Remember how it felt to watch her with me...to see her hands on me?"

I know what he's doing, I know he's trying to make me mad on purpose, but it's so hard to get angry with him after everything he's done for me. "Stop, Julian."

"No, I'm not going to stop. If you don't do this, if you don't fucking try, then you might as well kiss me and the rest of your future goodbye because you won't be here to live it. She'll take over your life, destroy what's left of your relationship with your father, further damage your reputation at school, and you know what else?"

My blood boils at the thought of Luna winning. I won't let her; not after I've spent seventeen years building the life I want. "No."

"She'll prove Levi right—"

"No!" I clench my fists at my side, my entire body quivering. "I am not any of those things he called me! I'm not someone else's pawn to use in their fucking games!"

I spin toward the wall and thrust my arms out, spreading my fingers and pushing forth the fury and devastation I feel at the thought of Luna's victory over me. Fire bursts from my fingertips and the wall ignites, flames licking the ash covered paint as it spreads. At first, I think I've done nothing but set the room on fire, but then, letters begin to take shape.

"Holy shit," Julian and I mumble at the same time, and I stumble back into the circle of his arms.

The flames crackle as the outline of the words becomes clearer, and Julian and I whisper them in unison.

Where the compass points South, you'll find the decanter of Loolo. Trap her within and incinerate the vessel. The moon can no longer contain her. You must use the power of the Sun. There are no second chances; it's either you or her. Be stronger than I was; do not let it be her.

And just before I am certain the room will burst into flames, the words on the wall fade and the embers lose their orange light, everything going dark as if nothing had happened.

I turn to face Julian, and the look on his face says everything I'm thinking.

"Let's figure this out. Now."