Chapter 41- Merrick POV           Tonight, I am following Fulton and Talvin’s leads. I have no idea who Lawler truly is, only that I can trust him. Fulton said we would hug him and that we were to follow suit, so I plan on doing just that.          I have just hugged a man I have never met in my life, and surprisingly it was nice. I felt safe and at home. It wasn’t a difficult thing to do or even a forced feeling. So, in other words, nothing like trying to hug my own narcissistic father, which is forced, awkward and uncomfortable. I watch as Mom steps forward to hug Lawler. I know she is only doing it because we bet her, and she doesn’t want to lose that bet. I thought it would make me feel uncomfortable seeing her hug another man seeing as we just learned about our father a few hours ago, but something else eased me instead. She looke

Talvin POV Tonight with Lawler and Mom was beyond anything I could have dreamed of having. I never thought I would have two people who cared for me so profoundly within the same room and getting along. I also never thought I would be back here so soon, and what’s more, I want to be here with my family. Choosing my room was easy. I had always envisioned myself belonging to the last window on the right on the third floor; I just never understood why. I knew it was my room before I even looked out the window and remembered the intense feeling. “Is this your room?” Fulton’s voice flutters to the window. “It is so weird. Whenever I came here, I always felt drawn to this room. Like it was mine or something.” “You have been in this room before?” “No, it was the window when I was looking at the house from the beach. Apart deep down inside of me, I just felt like it was my room, and one day I would claim it, which was an odd

Talvin POV Turning my attention back to Leon, I ask him, “What would you want in exchange?” “I want you to join my team in training.” I am not expecting his words when he speaks, and it leaves me briefly confused. “Your team in training? Training for what?” “You need training if you are going to live in our world. I want to be sure that you have the training you will need to protect yourself. I am not asking you to join us in any work-related measures unless you choose to do so of your own free will. I want to be your trainer.” “Sounds like a fair trade. You would get the best of both worlds. Works out in your favor.” Looking into Sydney’s eyes, I can feel that her words are valid. I need training if I am to be in this world.The small amount that he has taught me previously helped me in many instances. The amount of training he offers would give me more than the training I need to live her

Chapter 47- Sydney POV Talvin asked about my younger years when I was spunky. Those years were filled with fun times until they weren’t. How do I tell him all of this? How do I say to a person I just met about how I am the reason for a law that makes you have a permit? Then it hit me. Like a bandage, just rip it off. The sooner he knows my deepest darkest secret, the sooner he will forgive me for it. “Come here,” I announce to him when he tries to apologize. Pulling him to a secluded area, I take a deep breath and send up a silent prayer to anyone god who is listening. “Oh please, whoever is listening. Would you please help him forgive me? I don’t know what you would want in return, but please let him forgive me.” I plead into the unknown.          Not knowing where to start, I allow myself to launch into it. “The law about fires and the penalty being death, that is my

Chapter 49- Elnora POV          I allowed Lawler to carry me back to the house. My fear for Sabastian has given me the shakes, and he needed the information that I hold as much as I needed the information under the floorboard.          “OK, what is going on?” Lawler asks me as we enter the sitting room. “Our room,” I call back as I take off at a run to my closet. Lawler is at my side the entire way. As we enter the room, I toss my coat onto the bed and move to the closet. “He was in my head!” I call out to Lawler. “Who?” He asks, following me into the closet. “Sabastian. He was in my head. I could hear his voice. He isn’t ok. I knew something was wrong.” I am out of breath as I pull a rack of clothing from the back corner of the wall. “What did he say?” “He said.” Stopping to look at the fl