The Night Isn't Always Quiet ch 16-18

CHAPTER 16


True Love Blossoms At
The Most Unlikely Times











"Did you forget to mention something?" Mallory asked Yasmyn when they were out of the hearing range of the others. She had spent the entire day struggling to contain her emotions as she watched Jet with Lilian. Watch him touch Lilian like he had once touched her.
"I suppose," said Yasmyn, looking sheepish.
"How could you let me go in there unprepared?" fumed Mallory. "How do you think you would feel if you saw Lucien kissing another girl?"
Yasmyn paled at the thought. "Sorry."
"What am I going to do?"
Glancing over at Mallory, who had her palms pressed against her forehead, Yasmyn grinned. "Well, you're going to send her back to her territory."
Mallory smiled too, just a little bit. Yasmyn grabbed her hand and dragged her down the corridor.
"If we're fast," she said, "we can catch her before she meets up with Jet again. I'm sure you don't want to do this with him around."
"That will just make him ask questions I don't want to answer. And we both know how well that worked out last time."
"Nate wouldn't approve too highly of this plan, either."
They both chuckled. When they turned the next corner, Mallory saw Aleisha and Lilian standing there.
"You had this planned all along, didn't you Yasmyn?" she asked.
"Of course. Lilian has no place where she is, chasing after Lux."
"If she knew who he really was, she wouldn't be chasing after him."
Yasmyn lowered her voice as they drew closer to the other two. "Of course she would. She just wouldn't be the only one."
"Hey, Mallory. Hey, Yasmyn," Aleisha said when they reached her side.
Lilian opened her mouth to echo her, but closed it when she detected the suddenly hostile air radiating between Yasmyn, Aleisha and Mallory. A hostile air aimed at her.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"How long have you and Jet been going out?" Mallory answered Lilian's question with another.
"About two months. What's it to you?"
Mallory exchanged a glance with Yasmyn and Aleisha.
"Jet's off limits," Aleisha said. "And he has been for a long time."
"But seeing as its only been two months, we may let you off alive," added Yasmyn.
"You're kidding me, aren't you?" Lilian spluttered. "Last time I checked, Aleisha, you were pretty involved with Nate Herondale. And Yasmyn, he's your brother."
There was a short silence before Mallory snarled, " He's mine."
Lilian laughed. "Of course. Is avoiding him for months your way of saying 'I love you'?"
"You think you're funny, don't you?" asked Mallory. "I'll tell you what you are. You're incredibly and unbelievably ignorant. Do you even realise how long I've known him? Thousands and thousands of years. You haven't finished school yet, but when you do, you'll be told that you've lived on this planet before. Many times. Maybe, if you're lucky, you might have lived in Kurong. But I've been around for a hell of a lot longer than you have, since before the Immortal Wars even existed. And soon, he will remember as well. Then you'll just be a passing memory. Because what is two months in a thousand years? Nothing. So keep away from him. And if you say anything of this conversation to him, you will be sorry."
Mallory stepped away from her and turned back the way she had come, Aleisha and Yasmyn hurrying after her. Lilian stood there for a long time, frozen with fear. Because during that speech, she had been sure Mallory would hurt her if she touched Jet again.
When she had finally coaxed her legs to move, Lilian raced to where she was meeting Jet.
"Lilian!" he exclaimed, frowning when he took in her expression. "What's wrong?"
He can read me like a book, she realised. And she thought she had been hiding her emotions so well.
"Nothing," Lilian said, too quickly. Jet only raised an eyebrow.
"I don't want to talk about it. Come on."
He watched her back for a second as she walked away, still frowning, then hurried after her.

~~

"Oh, God," Mallory said, throwing her head in her hands. "I can't believe I did that!"
"It's not something you should be ashamed of," replied Yasmyn. "She's way out of her depth."
"Do you think it worked?"
Both Yasmyn and Aleisha laughed. "You didn't stick around long enough to see her face," said Aleisha. "I don't think she'll feel safe in Jet's presence for ten years!"
Mallory smiled. "I suppose something good came out of this, then."
"That's the Elissa we know and love!" Yasmyn exclaimed, hauling her to her feet. "Come on. We're going to meet up with the guys and make you forget all about Lilian!"
Mallory allowed herself to be dragged along again, grateful for the time to shove all her wild emotions back behind the barrier she had formed in the back of her mind. She might have removed Lilian from the equation, but that didn't mean Jet had suddenly remembered.
Suddenly she could see Nate and Lucien down the corridor, with Jet a little bit apart from the other two. He was facing the other way, and seemed deep in conversation with someone.
Yasmyn, Aleisha and Mallory sucked in a shocked breath at the same time when they saw it was Lilian.
"How dare she?" Aleisha whispered murderously.
"Doesn't she take a hint?" Yasmyn snarled at the same time.
"Guys, it doesn't matter," murmured Mallory. They noticed how she flinched, however, when Jet reached out to stroke Lilian's cheek, and continued to hiss at the girl.
Mallory ignored him and walked the last few steps to Nate and Lucien with her eyes on her feet.
"Are you okay?" Nate asked in an undertone, placing a hand on her shoulder as his other arm snaked around Aleisha's waist.
Mallory nodded, not trusting her voice enough. She was scared it would give away how she was really feeling.
She could tell Nate didn't believe her. She knew he would be asking for more of an explanation later. Hopefully she'd have one by then.
"Hey, Jet!" Lucien called. "You coming?"
Jet and Lilian glanced up. Lilian's face transformed into a mask of shock when she saw Mallory, Aleisha and Yasmyn standing there. Jet followed her gaze, and his eyes locked with Mallory's for a second. When he turned back to Lilian, she was gone.
Wise move, thought Mallory, thinking of the murderous glares Yasmyn and Aleisha had been giving Lilian.
Mallory ignored the restraining hands when Jet ran off in pursuit of the other girl. She knew it was unlikely she would want to see what was going to happen, but it was certain she had to. Otherwise, there would be no stopping whatever was growing between Jet and Lilian.
He found Lilian quickly. She was leaning against the door frame of an empty classroom. When she noticed him, she beckoned him inside.
"Jet. . ." she began. But he didn't let her finish.
"What's wrong, Lilian? Why are you running from Mallory and Aleisha and Yasmyn? What did they do to you?"
"Nothing, except maybe remind me of my place."
Jet's face begged for more of an explanation.
"Jet, you aren't mine to love. You haven't noticed, but when you and Mallory are together, there is almost a visible connection between you that is a lot older and stronger than anything we feel right now."
"This isn't about Mallory. Lilian, I love you, not her."
Lilian took Jet's face in both her hands. "I know. And I love you too. But I also know, at first, I was just a distraction for you. Because you were so torn up when Mallory first started avoiding you. You only knew her for two or three days beforehand. What other explanation is there?"
Instead of responding, Jet leaned down and kissed her. She made to pull away, but he wound an arm tight around her waist, forbidding her from retreating until he permitted it. Her fingers braided into his shaggy hair as they deepened the kiss until they had to release one another to breathe.
Both of their heads flicked to the door when they heard the ragged, pain-filled intake of breath. Mallory stood there, eyes wide and locked on Jet's face. There was a tense moment of dead silence as Jet and Mallory stared at each other. Even the sounds of the corridor faded to nothing. Then she turned on her heel and fled.
Jet had taken two steps after her before he even remembered Lilian was there.
She smiled when he faced her. "You see what I mean?"
He nodded slowly.
"Go on. You'd better catch up with her."
Grinning suddenly, Jet swept her into his warm embrace and kissed her on the cheek.
"Thank you," he said fervently.
"No problem. Just remember I'll be here if you can't find her."
Lilian closed her eyes briefly, and when she opened them again, he was gone.

~~

Jet knew exactly where Mallory would be.
He could hear her sobs when he emerged in the rooftop garden. She was curled up against the wall they'd fought in front of on the first day they'd met.
"We seem to be making a habit of meeting up here," Jet noted when he reached her.
Mallory jumped, having not noticed his approach. When she realised who it was, she glared at him.
"What do you want?"
"I want you to stop crying. You're not as pretty as you usually are."
"I'm not in the mood for jokes."
Jet crouched down in front of her, reaching out to cup her face with one hand. She flinched, but didn't draw away.
"I'm not joking," he said, forcing her to look at him when her eyes dropped. "You don't have to cry."
"What am I supposed to do, then? I need to let some emotion out, somehow. I've been bottling it up for much too long. And when I saw you and Lilian in there. . ." Tears welled up in her eyes again.
"There are better ways than crying out here by yourself. Why haven't you talked to Nate or Aleisha or anyone?"
"Because they don't understand!" Mallory's words came out harsher that she'd intended, but Jet didn't seem to notice. "I've tried, but they can't relate to what I'm feeling, so I gave up."
"Talk to me, then."
She laughed. "I can't talk to you about you."
"Why not?" he asked. "Who's going to be better at talking about me than me?"
That made her laugh again. He smiled. Laughing was much better than the crying.
"I still can't," Mallory said. "It has to do with what we were talking about with Lucien and Yasmyn."
"Oh." His face fell the tiniest bit, for just a moment, but Mallory picked it up.
"Don't worry. I'm going to talk to Nate and Markus about letting you in on it in the morning.
Jet smiled, and Mallory was taken aback by how beautiful he suddenly looked.
"You don't have to do that," he said.
"You deserve to be told. But it's no big deal. It's not my secret to tell."
His smile widened, then he turned serious. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"No," she said. "How can I be okay when tomorrow I have to watch you and Lilian together again?" She paused for a second. "When did you figure it our, anyway?"
"Lilian told me. She said that the two of has having an almost visible connection, or something like that. By the way, we broke up."
"Really?" Mallory's face brightened almost immediately.
"Well, she knows I'm not going to be going out with her any more, so I guess that means we broke up."
She laughed. "That counts in my definition of 'breaking up'."
While they had been talking, both had been unconsciously moving closer together, until they were sitting as they were now; Jet slightly to one side, still facing each other, impossibly near.
Jet put one arm on the other side of her legs, bringing his face closer hers until they were only a few inches apart.
"That's good," he breathed. "Because otherwise I wouldn't be able to do this."
He placed his free hand on her neck, his thumb rubbing tiny circles behind her ear, and pressed his lips to hers.






CHAPTER 17


Truth Will Always Triumph










Mallory couldn't remember being so happy. At least, not in this life.
Three days had passed since Jet had kissed her in the garden. She had expected to wake up the next morning and find it was all a dream conjured by her desperate longing. But Jet had greeted her at the doorway of the cafeteria and taken her hand as they joined the others. The only problem was that he still didn't remember. Mallory was surprised at how stubborn his mind was. She had been sure the kiss would have reminded of others they had shared, and brought those memories bubbling to the surface. But they remained locked away.
Not for much longer, thought Mallory as she watched jet out of the corner of her eye. After breakfast, she, Nate and Markus were taking him to the Aerewolf Inner Circle, highest leaders of the aerewolf world. It was only luck they were in session at the Institute, meeting with the Jururgan Inner Circle.
The bell rang, bringing Mallory back to the present.
"Come on, Mallory," said Jet, dragging her to her feet.
When he turned to follow Lucien, she grabbed his hand and towed him towards Nate.
"You're coming with me," she said.
"Am I allowed to ask where?"
She grinned. "To be told the secret."
"The one you told Lucien and Yasmyn?"
"How many secrets do you think I have?" After a moment, Mallory added, "That I haven't told you?"
Jet shrugged. "I don't know. Goddesses are tricky creatures."
"And teenage boys aren't?" Mallory asked with a laugh.
"Now you sound like my mother."
She laughed again as, up ahead, Nate called, "Hurry up, lovebirds! Markus is going to be so mad if we stand the Inner Circle up!"
"The Inner Circle?" Jet echoed, face suddenly pale.
Mallory pulled him to a stop. "Jet, are you okay?"
He nodded, but his face contradicted the movement.
Sighing, she reached up and wrapped her arms around her neck.
"I can tell when you're lying, you know," she murmured against his skin as he returned her embrace.
"I guessed as much. I just didn't want to seem like a. . ."
"Wimp?" Nate suggested. "Wuss? Coward?"
Mallory turned slightly so she could glare at him.
"Right. This is a 'Nate, your help is not needed or wanted' moment."
"I was nervous the first time I met them as well," said Mallory, turning back to Jet.
"And how many times have you met them?"
"That isn't important."
He groaned.
"Walk and talk, people," Nate interrupted. "We're running late as is. Walk and talk."
Jet reluctantly released all of Mallory but one hand as they trailed after Nate.
"Did Lucien and Yasmyn meet the Inner Circle?" he asked.
"No," Nate and Mallory said at the same time.
"Did Aleisha?"
"No," they both replied.
"Then why do I have to?"
"The Inner Circle will explain everything," she muttered. "I'm so sorry about this, Jet. It was Markus' idea, not mine."
"S'okay. I guess I just have to man up and face them head on."
She grinned. "Now we're talking."
Nate had stopped and seemed to be searching for something on the wall with his hands.
"I can never find the catch," he said when the other two had caught up.
Mallory rolled her eyes and checked the corridor was empty before placing her hand flat against the wall. There was a soft click as a small indent appeared beside her hand. She pulled one side of it, and a piece of the paneling slid away with a hiss to reveal a small square doorway.
"You've got to look for the groove," she reminded Nate.
"Groove, schmoove," Nate said, voice mocking as he swung himself through the gap.
Mallory shook her head and gestured for Jet to go next. He clambered through the hole much more hesitantly and a lot less gracefully than Nate had. There was a short slide before he was spit out into a small room that resembled a library.
Bookshelves ringed the walls and several armchairs were scattered around the room. The walls were painted a rich red, the armchairs the same colour. An open fireplace sat in one corner, its flames throwing reflections on the polished floorboards.
"The Library of the Kings," Mallory breathed. Jet jumped; he hadn't realised she had come through the doorway.
Someone rose out of an armchair by the fire.
"Finally!" Markus exclaimed as he crossed the room. "You three are lucky their meeting ran late or you'd be sorry."
"Yeah, yeah, we know," Nate said. "We would have been here sooner if Jet hadn't decided to have a mild panic attack in the corridor."
Jet flushed, and Mallory frowned.
"Don't be mean," she scolded. In a quieter tone she added, "Ignore him, Jet. He likes to tease."
Nate rolled his eyes. "Can we go in yet?"
"They were going to send someone out when they were ready," said Markus.
"And that someone is me," a familiarly smooth voice purred.
Mallory stiffened, and her next comment was aimed at Markus. "It seems you forgot to mention Emilio was here."
"I enjoy to listen to the insults you make up on the spot."
"Ha ha."
Jet was not paying much attention to their conversation as he searched for the face behind the five silken words. There was a light chuckle, and Emilio stepped from behind one of the bookshelves.
Emilio's blonde hair was the first thing that caught Jet's attention. He was even blonder than Lucien. That pale hair was cut to a straight edge in line with his chin, framing a face so fair and angelic that at first glance Jet had mistaken him for a girl.
His eyes were the next thing that stood out. They were light purple in colour, something Jet had never seen before. He realised he was staring after a moment, and glanced away.
"Ah, dear Elissa!" Emilio exclaimed. "It seems a lifetime since I saw you last!"
"That's because it was," muttered Mallory. "Though I wish it were longer."
"Tut tut, Elissa. That's no way to speak to your elders."
She snorted. "Oh, please."
"Your brother was always the politer one," said Emilio. "Hello Ash."
"Emilio," was all Nate said.
"Can we go now?" Mallory asked. "We're here for a reason."
"Oh yes! The one that doesn't remember." Emilio's eyes slid to Jet. "Think of all the things I could say in this moment!"
"But won't," Mallory cut in. "We're not here to listen to your rubbish. Let's go."
Emilio sighed. "I forget the impatience of youth. Come, then. The Inner Circle awaits."
Mallory hung back when the others followed, keeping Jet with her.
"Don't trust a word Emilio says," she murmured. "He's a slippery little snake, who more often than not twists what you say to make you seem like you're the one at fault. And he's the only one who's ever beaten me in a swordfight."
Jet grinned. "Don't judge a book by its cover."
"Exactly," she said, smiling a little. "Come on. We'd better catch up."
Mallory found the door that led out of the room quickly, and Emilio, Markus and Nate were in the corridor beyond.
Jet gasped when he saw the walls. They were made of marble and carved in elaborate pictures. They depicted all sorts of things; from epic battles to the building of cities to debates of some kind.
"What are these?" he asked when they reached the others.
"The histories of our races," Nate said.
Mallory reached out to touch the wall closest to her. "This wall is for Jururgan. The other one is for aerewolves."
"What are all the blank spaces?"
"They're meant to be the Immortal Wars," she said pointing to the roof. "Our joint history goes up there. So the Immortal Wars belong there."
Jet craned his neck to examine the carvings. They all depicted bloody battlefields, full of talons and bursts of magic. All except one.
He walked closer. It was the plainest of all the images, and was of three people, two boys and a girl, holding hands. He recognised the girl in the centre immediately.
"Elissa," he whispered to himself. Then he fixed his gaze in the man on the right, another familiar face. "Ash."
Jet frowned when he looked at the last person.
"Mallory," he called. She was at his side in an instant.
He gestured to the picture. "Is that me?"
"Jet. . ."
"Answer me, Mallory."
Instead she turned to Nate and said, "We're going in right now. I don't care how busy they are."
Nate came over and looked at the image. "Right. Let's go."
"Where are we going?" Jet asked when Mallory wound her fingers through his and pulled him after Nate. Markus and Emilio followed after a moment, muttering to each other.
"That isn't a question I can answer," Mallory said after a moment.
At the end of the corridor, there was a pair of large, oaken doors inlaid with swirling gold patterns. Just before the doors, she stopped and turned to Jet.
"I don't know what I can tell you," she murmured, straightening his collar and pushing his hair out of his eyes. "It can get pretty wild in there. Most of the Inner Circle have been around longer than I have, and like to play word games. Perhaps I should tell you to speak only when spoken to, but I don't think that will happen. Anyway, if they say what I know they're going to say, there won't be any keeping you quiet."
Jet smiled and kissed her forehead. "It'll be fine."
Mallory smiled too, and faced the door again. With a deep breath, she walked into the room beyond, Jet and Nate at her shoulders.






CHAPTER 18


Well Met Indeed











All talk ceased at their entrance. There were at least twenty people, aerewolves and Jururgan, situated around a ring of tables. Mallory continued forward, not meeting any of the gazes fixed on her. She leapt over one of the tables so she stood in the centre of the circle. Jet and Nate followed her.
One man rose from his seat and bowed to the three of them. But when he spoke, it was only to Mallory.
"Welcome to our halls, Goddess. We thank you for honouring us with your presence." He bowed again.
Mallory didn't bow in return, but inclined her head a little.
"Thank you for your welcome," she said, her voice suddenly filled with power. "But we are not here for myself, Jayek, however much I may wish it so. We are here for Jet."
Immediately Jayek's eyes flicked to Jet.
"Ah, yes," he murmured. "The one who does not remember."
Funny, Jet thought. That's what Emilio called me.
"We were hoping you could fix that," said Nate.
"Of course it is in our power, Ash. But we will not do so unless there is an excellent reason for it. You know our laws."
"Surely you have heard of Irani and his threats?" Mallory asked. "Isn't that reason enough?"
"Yes, but we have known about him for months," a woman said. "Why have you only brought this Jet before us now? And few among even us can perform such a delicate task as unlocking memories. I know both of you are more than capable, however. Why have you not done so yourselves?"
There were several whispers of agreement at her words.
"This is true, Ingrid," Nate replied when Mallory gave no sign of speaking. "But this is also a last resort. We wanted him to remember naturally, but time is against us. Irani could be directing his army here right now. It's not like we hide our presence from those who know what to look for. We need to be as strong as we can."
Jayek nodded. "That is a good point. But you have still not answered Ingrid's other question. Why haven't one of you unlocked him memories already?"
"That is something you don't need to know," Mallory snapped, glancing up and glaring at Jayek. "Why do you even ask that, anyway? If you're worried about the danger of the operation, know that we wouldn't have brought him here if there was any!"
"My forgiveness, Goddess. We will begin right away. Emilio!"
"No!" she snarled, taking a step forward.
Emilio ignored her. "Yes, master?"
"You know what you need to do," said Jayek, gesturing towards Jet. "The rest of you are dismissed."
Mallory opened her mouth to protest again, but both Jet and Nate knew nothing good would come of it and tried to calm her; Nate touching her shoulder and Jet taking her hand.
"Come along," Emilio said. When Mallory moved to accompany him and Jet, he added, "I do not need you to watch over my shoulder, Elissa. Need you be reminded that I am your elder by many a long year?"
She didn't meet Jet's gaze as Emilio led him out of the room.
Once they were both out of sight, Mallory turned to Nate and muttered, "He's up to something, I'm sure of it."
"Yes," he replied in the same low tone. "He finds this an opportunity to hurt us, particularly you. He hasn't taken well to the power we have within the Aerewolf Circle, seeing as we aren't aerewolves."
She nodded. "What can we do? I won't let Jet be hurt."
"I don't think Emilio will hurt him. I think he'll do something that will hurt you. And I can think of several things he knows that would turn this situation to his advantage."
Her horror-struck face made Nate pause for a second, but he continued quickly, knowing there was no point in letting her dwell on anything until Jet returned.
"At any rate, we can do nothing. We can't risk angering the aerewolves by taking action against a member of their Inner Circle without proper proof! You have to remember, Mallory, that in these places we represent our entire race. We have not thrived outside of Kurong the way that the aerewolves and Skiteriah have, because we are more connected to the wild magic of the land that the other races. If we lose the good will of the aerewolves, I fear the Jururgan will perish."
"I know, I know," she said, beginning to pace. "But we have proof!"
"The only problem is it's proof that makes us seem crazy. And in a place like this, that will spread like wildfire. We have sensed his dark heart with our abilities, but not everyone here knows about or understands our gifts."
She didn't answer.
"Come on," he said, nodding towards the Jururgan still seated around the table. "Let us greet the other Jururgan."
Mallory frowned, but trailed after her brother. Nothing he had said had shifted the weight in her stomach that told her letting Jet go with Emilio had been a mistake.

~~

"All you have to do is stand there," Emilio said.
"What are you doing?" asked Jet.
"Oh, I'm just releasing a few of your memories that the Circle finds, ah. . . quite valuable. There's no need to be suspicious. I suppose Elissa's been telling you terrible stories about me."
"I wouldn't call them terrible."
Emilio laughed. "You and Ash were always so similar. Always trying to lessen Elissa's sharpness, to mould her to society life. It never really worked, did it?"
Jet blinked several times. "Excuse me?"
"I keep forgetting you don't remember. Sorry." A slight pause. "Don't you find it strange, that when Lux, Ash and Elissa were born and given their gifts, that only one of the three was an aerewolf?"
"Not particularly," Jet said. "I mean, it was probably meant to be a Jururgan, a Skiteriah and an aerewolf. But whoever gifted them would have known the Skiteriah would betray the other two races, so chose Ash and Elissa, because they're half Skiteriah. And then Lux is just an aerewolf. One chosen at random."
"They really told you everything, didn't you?" Emilio muttered.
"Not everything. They never told me who Lux was, though I'm sure they know."
"Oh, they know alright. Enough talk. I need to work."
Emilio's eyes slipped closed as Jet lapsed into silence. He immediately felt something like a small knife digging though his mind. He winced as it grew, bigger and bigger until it was all he could do not to cry out.
That was when the images started. Oh, so many. Memories flashed through his thoughts faster than he could identify them. Standing on top of a towering cliff, running through a forest with Yasmyn and Lucien, a large palace with its flags fluttering in the wind. All seemed unnatural images created by some unseen force, but he knew they were his memories, his past lives flashing before his eyes once more. He remembered first meeting Nate and Mallory, but realised after a moment that it was in fact something from the story of Ash and Elissa.
The truth suddenly crashed into his already reeling mind with a force that sent him staggering. He was Lux. It made so much sense now. Why Nate and Mallory had been so hesitant to tell him about Lux, why Mallory hadn't been able to meet his eyes the first few days. All she had seen was the only man she had ever loved without a single memory of her. How it must have tortured her to watch him with Lilian.
But when he searched for his memories of her, he couldn't find them. Not any of them alone, anyway. It was as if someone had erased them, or suppressed them somehow.
That thought was quickly whipped away as another clot of images crowded into his already over-flowing mind. He was quickly caught up in them again as they swirled faster and faster, until all he could make out was patches of green, blue and yellow.
Emilio smiled. He didn't speak, but gave Jet's mind a final jab that made him cry out. Then he left the room.

~~

Mallory didn't hesitate when she heard Jet's scream. Nate made an excuse behind her as she raced through the door Jet and Emilio had exited through. It didn't take long to find him. Emilio was gone; had fled like the coward he was.
Jet was crumpled on the ground, unconscious.
"Oh, Lux," she murmured. "Why did we bring you here?"
"Come on, Mallory. Let's get him out of here."
Nate's voice made her jump. She hadn't heard him following.
He wrapped an arm around Jet's limp torso and heaved him upwards. Mallory hurried to Jet's other side and put an arm around his waist.
"He's heavier than he looks," Nate grumbled. "We'll take him the back way, across the garden. We don't want to start rumours."
Mallory nodded, her eyes on Jet's face. She should have unlocked his memories herself. There was no way of knowing how much damage Emilio had done, only that he had caused a lot of intentional pain. She could have done it without him knowing a thing, making the new memories as natural as the ones he already had.
She hadn't realised she and Nate had been walking forward until they reached the stairs for the rooftop garden. The Jururgan Inner Circle had made their own stairway, seeing as they spent most of their time at the Institute.
Getting Jet up into the garden was a challenge. They took the stairs one at a time, shifting Jet from one to another before making a move themselves. Eventually they reached the top. After a quick glance around, to make sure no one had found their way into the garden, they moved across the rooftops, Jet's head leaning against Mallory's neck.
The stairway outside Mallory's room was on the opposite side of he garden, so it was a good ten minutes before they reached it. When they had brought Jet inside, Mallory and Nate found Aleisha, Yasmyn and Lucien waiting for them.
"What are you doing here?" Nate hissed, moving towards Mallory's door.
"Markus said you guys would need our help," Yasmyn said, following without hesitation. "What happened to Jet?"
"We took him to the Inner Circle to get him memories unlocked, and Emilio was unnecessarily cruel."
"Ah. Which one?"
"Both."
Yasmyn raised an eyebrow.
"Wait, I think I'm missing something here," Lucien said. "What do you mean you took him to the Inner Circle?"
"Well, exactly that," said Nate. "We took him to the Inner Circle."
"So is that something you gods do? Just drop in and say hi to the Inner Circle?"
"Of course not!" Mallory exclaimed. "Markus organized the whole thing."
"Right."
They were all inside Mallory's room now. She and Nate sat Jet on the bed.
"Lux?" she asked. "Can you answer me?"
He groaned, his eyelids fluttering. Everyone else in the room held their breath as they waited for Jet to speak.
"W- what's happening, Liss? Why am I so confused?"
Mallory sat down next to him on the bed. "I don't know, Lux. What's confusing you?"
"Memories, ones that should be there. . . they aren't."
"What kind of memories?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.
Jet reached for her hand. "The ones of you and me, Liss. I know where they should be, but there's only blank spaces. I- it's like someone's been messing around with them."
Mallory's gaze fell to her lap at the same time as Nate snarled.
"I knew we couldn't trust him!"
"Calm, brother," Mallory said. "I don't think Emilio realised that Lux would actually know some of his recollections had been blocked. Much less that he would know what they are. This is much better than we expected."
"Emilio!" Jet growled. "Of course!"
"Wait one second," Yasmyn exclaimed. "You expected Emilio to do whatever he's done, yet you still let him go to the Inner Circle?"
"Do you really think I would willingly submit him to this?" muttered Mallory. "It's hurting me as much as it's hurting him. We only realised what was going on when Jayek told us Emilio would be unlocking his memories. And we couldn't do anything about it. If we had, we would have killed our entire race. When have you ever had to make a choice like that?"
Yasmyn took a step forward and opened her mouth to retort, but Lucien put a hand on her arm that froze her instantly.
"Don't fight," he said. "It's not helping anyone. Especially Jet."
Everyone looked back at Jet. He was leaning against Mallory, eyes slipping closed. She smiled then turned a glare on everybody else in the room
They all made up some excuse that meant they could leave the room, so Jet and Mallory were soon alone.
"Sleep, love," she murmured, pushing him gently so that he lay down.
He clutched her hand tighter. "You aren't going anywhere, are you?"
"Of course not."
"Good. I love you."
She kissed his forehead. "As do I, Lux. As do I."