it’ll kill him. Why didn’t I get that ability? Death-ray eyes. Seeing the future is completely useless compared to that.
He sighs. “You do know we have Trey? You were just there. His welfare depends on how well you do here.”
“Astrid won’t let you hurt him.”
“Astrid won’t have any say in what happens to him. He’s my prisoner. If you want to keep him alive, you’ll cooperate.”
Giffen underestimates Trey. He’ll have Trey only as long as Trey is hurt. After that, Giffen won’t have crap. I only have to hold on until then. All we need is time. I relent, saying, “The ships were sent by the Alameeda Brotherhood, led by Excelsior Ensin. He intended to swing by and pick me up.”
Giffen shows little emotion. “Kyon refused to relinquish you to his father?”
“That’s right.”
Giffen glances up at me, his green eyes narrow. “How long does Kyon plan to stay here—on this island?” He walks closer to me, coming to stand beneath where I’m pinned to the wall. The shadow of the pillar on him hides the golden streaks in his hair.
I study the handsome contours of his face before I reply, “I don’t know. Kyon said he wants us to get to know each other. He thinks it’ll be too hard to do that with other people around.”
Giffen’s lips twist. He almost looks jealous. “Why? What does he want to know about you?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. Given our history, the only thing I expect from Kyon is pain.” Giffen’s frown deepens, causing me to say, “You don’t think I’m right.”
“He didn’t hand you over to Excelsior. He kept you instead.”
“Maybe Kyon wants something from Excelsior in exchange for me and is just waiting to raise the stakes.”
“Or maybe you’re what he wants,” Giffen retorts.
“You believe that,” I whisper softly.
“He could’ve demanded anything in exchange for you and it would’ve been granted by his father. He didn’t do that.”
“I think you’re wrong. They hate each other with the kind of loathing I’ve only seen in bad foster homes,” I murmur thoughtfully. “Kyon may not have given me up just because it’s Excelsior who wants me.”
He shakes his head again. “It’s more than bad blood, Kricket. Kyon has a plan in place. I need you to find out what it is.”
“You’re not taking me back with you?” Something inside me squeezes tight. I think it’s my bloodless heart, but I’m not sure because my entire chest aches.
“You’re valuable to us here—with Kyon. You can get close to him; find out what he knows about what the Brotherhood is planning. Win his trust. Stay valuable to us and you stay alive. Should that change . . .”
“What? You’ll kill me?” I ask, even knowing that his threat was implicit. “My father would let you do that?”
“This is bigger than any of us. This is the fate of Ethar. I know you don’t care about that—how could you—deep down, you still think you’re from Earth.”
“Whose fault is that?” I ask.
Giffen comes to stand just beneath me. “Be our eyes, Kricket, and you’ll survive this.” He lets me fall from the pillar, catching me in his arms. As my feet slide to the ground, he pulls me against his strong chest, holding me steady. My cheek rests briefly against the soft fabric of his uniform. I inhale his scent. A memory flashes in my mind—Chicago in autumn—my face resting against fallen leaves—an unbelievable ache in my chest—that smell—his smell—his voice saying, “You’ll be okay. I’m going to make you okay, just hang on—”
Giffen disrupts the images by saying, “I have to go. Your father wanted me to give you a message when I saw you.”
“Don’t. I don’t want to hear it.” I try to push away from him, but he won’t let me.
Giffen strokes his hand over my hair. “He told me to tell you, ‘The future is what you make it.’” I let go of Giffen entirely, but he continues to hold me to him.
“Did he steal that from a cat poster or something?” I ask scornfully.
Giffen grasps my upper arms and pulls me away from his chest so he can look into my eyes. “What? No! It was heartfelt.”
“Okay, you’ve delivered your message. Now let go of me.” He immediately turns me loose. Distancing myself from him, I stare out over the far away Sea of Stars. “You can go now.”
“Is there something you want me to tell Pan in return?” Giffen asks in a strained voice.