Page 157 of Burning Embers
Nothing.
Not that I’m even surprised.
They only just left the house.
Is Hale going to get Grayson arrested? For sneaking into the house?
Or is there something else going on, something I’m not privy to?
I toss my phone down beside me with enough force for it to careen off my bedding and land on the floor with a thunk. Wincing, I drag myself towards the edge of the bed and lean over it. I close my fingers around the phone just as my gaze homes in on a tiny box. It looks to have been kicked slightly underneath my bed.
It’s black, velvety, and has a silk ribbon tied into a neat bow at the top.
My heart pounding erratically, I reach for the box and tug it up to my chest. A note card dangles from the side, and I turn it over to read the chicken-scratched words.
Happy birthday, Gracie
The pounding turns into a thundering as I untie the bow. Butterflies spin drunkenly in my stomach, and a surge of warmth radiates through me.
Grayson.
He must’ve dropped this in the scuffle.
I slowly open the lid.
A gasp slips free at the sight of the necklace nestled in the center of the box.
It’s gorgeous—unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The chain is long and silver, knotted in a way that seems almost intricate. A strange crystal dangles at the bottom. It’s half the size of my pinkie and is curved on one end. There appears to be a red liquid in the crystal that sluices around when I twist the necklace to and fro.
It’s beautiful.
I swallow heavily and hope the fire burning in my chest cremates the lump in my throat.
With shaky fingers, I clasp the necklace around my neck and feel the comforting weight of the crystal between my breasts. It’s almost…warm to the touch, and trails of heat burn through me.
“You can’t leave, you know.”
The voice startles me enough to elicit a screech of fright.
I spin, my heart racing, one hand coming up to clutch at my new piece of jewelry.
Seth stands in the doorway of my room with an indecipherable expression on his young face. His headphones still rest around his neck, but for the first time since I’ve met him, his eyes are focused on me. Almost unerringly so.
“What?” I will my heartbeat to settle down.
Seth’s eyes dart away from mine and focus on the wall. Or, more specifically, on one of Lissa’s posters. It’s some rockstar I’ve never heard about until I met her.
“You can’t leave. Not yet.” He cants his head to the side, as if listening to a voice I can’t hear. “They need you.Weneed you.”
My brows scrunch together. “I don’t understand.”
A tentative smile touches the edges of his lips. “You will. You’re like me, and I’m like you, but we’re not the same.” He frowns. “You can’t leave until the dead stay dead and the living thrive.”
What the hell?
I open my mouth to say just that when Seth tugs his headphones over his ears, effectively ending the conversation. He slips out of my room and disappears into his own, the door shutting softly behind him.
Leaving me alone once again.