Page 58 of Crossing Between
"Zoey," Kenji took my hands in his, his expression serious. "Whatever's happening with Ryan, with the Essencefeaster, with your powers, we'll face it together. You and me, Elias and Varon. We're stronger together than apart."
I nodded, squeezing his hands. "I know."
Chapter 35: Zoey
Several hours later, I heard a knock at the door. Kenji had gone to take a shower, leaving me curled up on the couch with a mug of tea and my thoughts. The strange reaction my magic had to Ryan still troubled me, but I pushed it aside as I went to answer.
Elias and Varon stood on my porch, Varon holding up a massive bag of Chinese takeout containers that made my stomach growl instantly.
"We come bearing gifts," Varon's usual stoic expression softened by the slight upturn at the corner of his mouth. "Figured you might be hungry."
"Starving, actually," I stepped back to let them in, feeling a flutter in my chest at the sight of them both. The red string of fate that Kenji had shown me seemed to hum between us, invisible but undeniably present now that I knew about it.
Elias followed behind, his gray eyes scanning me from head to toe as if checking for injuries. "You look better," he brushed a strand of hair from my face.
The simple touch sent electricity racing down my spine, and I had to resist the urge to lean into his hand. "I feel better.More myself."
Kenji emerged from the bathroom, hair damp and wearing only a pair of sweatpants that hung dangerously low on his hips. "I smell food," he grinned, water droplets still clinging to his broad shoulders.
"Put a shirt on, you heathen," Varon grumbled, though his eyes lingered appreciatively on Kenji's muscled torso.
"Why? Am I distracting you?" Kenji winked, grabbing plates from my kitchen cabinets with the familiarity of someone who'd been in my home for years rather than days.
We settled around my small coffee table, boxes of food spread between us. For a while, we ate in comfortable silence, the normalcy of sharing a meal together a balm to my frayed nerves. It felt right, the four of us together like this, even with the shadow of the Essencefeaster hanging over us.
"So," Varon broke the silence, his chopsticks paused midair. "Kenji tells me your brother was acting strange."
And just like that, the peaceful bubble burst."Yeah," I pushed a piece of broccoli around my plate. "He was different. Too polished, too perfect. And my magic," I stopped, unsure how to explain the visceral reaction I'd had.
"Your magic what?" Elias prompted gently.
"It recoiled from him," I admitted, the words tasting bitter. "Like he was something wrong. Something my power recognized as a threat."
The three men exchanged glances, a silent communication passing between them.
"Has that ever happened before?" Varon's voice was carefully neutral.
I shook my head. "Never. My magic has never reacted to Ryan like that. He's my brother." I looked up, meeting their eyes one by one. "I'm scared. What if...what if something'shappened to him?"
Elias reached out, his hand covering mine. "We'll figure it out. If something's wrong with Ryan, we'll help him."
"And if it's not Ryan anymore?" The question I'd been dreading slipped out before I could stop it.
A heavy silence fell over the room. None of them wanted to voice what we were all thinking. That the Essencefeaster might have taken my brother like he'd taken the infected people.
"Then we'll deal with that too," Varon's tone leaving no room for doubt. "But we need more information before we jump to conclusions."
Elias nodded in agreement. "Quilith should be back in two days. They might have insights we don't."
"Two days feels like forever," I whispered, staring down at my half-eaten food.
"Hey," Elias squeezed my hand. "We're right here with you. You're not alone in this."
Their support warmed me, but couldn't completely banish the cold fear that had settled in my stomach. If the Essencefeaster had somehow taken Ryan, how would we get him back? And what would be left of my brother when we did?
After dinner, Kenji cleared away the containers while Elias and Varon discussed the latest updates on the case in low voices.
"The cleanup at the station is almost complete," Varon was saying. "Most of the infected have been quarantined and are recovering, though they don't remember anything."
