I’m not sure if he’s talking to the wall or talking to me.
But I know that Seth is wrong. Because no matter what Cal did, or whatever he does in the future, the past stands as it is. All this will remain, even when every last stick of furniture disappears.
Seth had it all. He had a childhood that I’ve only read about in books. When I buried my head under the covers of my metal bunk bed so nobody in the Tabula Rasa dorms would hear me cry, Seth was here in this room, getting tucked in every night by a mom and dad who loved him. No matter what he thinks, Seth had a great childhood.
Little League, guitar lessons, smiling pictures. A mom who decorated his room, a dad who still cares about him. Why can’t Seth see any of that? Why does he have to be such a jerk?
Cal wants Seth in his life for some reason, so that’s what I’m going to accomplish. Cal said to do whatever it takes to keep Seth coming back. I’ll do whatever it takes, all right.
In the meantime, I’m going to teach Seth a lesson.
Someone needs to cut this Virus down.
Controlling people is easier than you’d think, Barbelo Nemo wrote. All you need to do is make somebody feel important. A little appreciation goes a long way. People love to talk about themselves. Speak their name softly, melodically.
Then you’re halfway there.
Next you make them think that what you want is what they want, and that it was their idea in the first place.
Appeal to their nobler motives. And when all else fails, smile.
That placid smile of Charming Corina’s works in almost every situation. So I decide to play this by the book. Seth is so upset right now that he’ll be easy to work with. “Seth,” I whisper, lying down on the bed next him. “It’s a big deal, you coming here. I bet that wasn’t easy.”
“No, it wasn’t.” Seth rolls over to look at me, so that we’re nose to nose. “But it was worth it.”
“Just to see me? But you’re so busy. I bet you have a million things to do for Veritas Rex. I didn’t understand how famous it was until Cal told me.”
“My dad talked about me?”
“A little bit. I know he’s proud of you.” I run my hand down Seth’s arm, and we link fingertips. “So what was it like growing up in McNeal Manor?”
“Ordinary,” Seth answers.
Like I’m supposed to understand what “ordinary” means. But it’s a good opportunity to keep Seth talking.
“From those pictures it seems like you had the perfect family,” I say.
“Until he ruined it.”
“But you’re better than that,” I whisper. “You’re a man who moves on, who fights for the truth.” I lean in for a kiss.
I never thought I’d be this involved with a Virus. Seth slides his hand down my back and pulls me snugly against his body. I let him, because that might be what it takes to hook him.
But first I need to get Seth talking. He needs to remember the good things about Cal and start thinking about making things right, all on his own.
I put some space between us by tracing one of his tattoos. “What’s this one for?” I touch a Celtic knot.
“Family trip to Scotland when I was fifteen.” Seth breathes hard. “I snuck out when my parents were at a pub. Boy, did my mom roar when I came back after midnight. You should have heard her.” Seth smiles a bit, but then the happiness fades from his expression. “That was our last big trip together before her diagnosis.”
I slide my gaze down his chest. Another tattoo peeks out from under Seth’s shirt.
“What’s this one?” I point to something that looks Egyptian. “Is that … is that an aardvark?” I’ll never understand tattoos, ever. Blank skin makes me feel safe from bad decisions. Why would Seth want to spend the next eighty years with an aardvark?
But Seth’s not embarrassed at all. He pulls his shirt off so I can see it better—or maybe to see him better. And I have to admit, Seth has a fine physique to display. “That’s the Egyptian god Seth. He’s always shown with the head of an animal.”
“So you think you’re a god, do you?” I say, teasing. I rub my hands across a wall of pectoral muscles and ignore the fluttering in my stomach.
“What do you think?”
My hands freeze. “I think you took a totally perfect body