Star Gods, стр. 3
My brothers stop at the foot of my bed, Ashe’s work clothes greasy from the cars in the shop. The current look on his face I haven’t seen since our parents disappeared.
He inhales and speaks on the exhale. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“You don’t look okay.” Tyce sits on the corner of my bed and runs a hand through his unruly hair we each inherited. “Who did this?”
“I don’t think we should discuss that here.”
Ashe’s eyes flash a brighter violet with specks of silver—he’s training to become a first-level Luminary, and the silver will be more noticeable once he becomes one. Tyce lifts a hand, and I feel the momentary pressurization in the air that only we can feel, as he places a ward up across the door. It’s an ability both of my brothers have; it’s like a personal security system. It also prevents anyone on the other side from hearing us.
“Are you crazy?” I demand through gritted teeth making my head pulsate in my ears. “What if someone tries to walk in and they can’t?”
“I’m listening,” Tyce responds with a shrug.
Ashe looks peeved. “Tell us. Now.”
I shake my head and hiss through my teeth. The pounding inside my skull is like a jackhammer, and my stomach churns. “You’re going to get us caught.”
“No, we’re not.” Ashe crosses his arms over his chest, his concerned face gone. “Tell us now, and no one will know.”
“I was sent a message.”
Ashe squints at me. “What does getting assaulted have to do with receiving a message?”
“I…um…I defied them a month ago.” I point to the ceiling.
“How exactly did you defy them?”
“Remember when Kevin Nelson got beat up?” I explain and Ashe’s eyebrows lift. “I didn’t stop it from happening.”
“You…” Ashe drops his arms and Tyce stands. “Why?”
“I…I had a date with Adrianna Jackson.”
“Kevin Nelson probably deserved it anyway. He’s an ass,” Tyce remarks with a smirk.
Ashe elbows him in the side. “The Star Gods don’t promote violence.”
I shrug. “Like Tyce said, Kevin’s an ass.”
“And they can keep you from becoming a Luminary,” Ashe points out.
I shrug again. “I can live with that.”
He draws his hand down his face and breathes out slowly before speaking. “So, you’re saying the Star Gods did this to you?”
“Yeah,” I answer sarcastically. “Maybe they’ve changed their rules.”
Ashe swears, Tyce lifts his hand, and I feel the ward drop.
“Maybe they thought they’d teach me a lesson by throwing me down and giving me nine stitches and a concussion.”
Ashe looks at me in disbelief as the curtain draws back, and two police officers, along with Mr. Hansen, walk in.
“They threw you down?” one asks, pulling a small notebook and pen from his breast pocket. “So there’s more than one?”
I glance at Ashe, and he returns it with a glare. “No, I never saw them.”
A nurse skirts around everyone and pushes a button, the blood pressure cuff on my left arm begins to squeeze. Why do they have to make it so tight?
“Did you hear anything? Did either of them say anything?” the other officer asks, and Mr. Hansen looks concerned.
I sigh. I hate lying. “I’m not sure. Everything happened too fast.” The nurse places two fingers on my wrist, and I look up at the ceiling when my stomach churns. “I don’t know who they were.” I swallow bile as it creeps into my throat. “Can we talk about this later, please?” I really don’t want to throw up in front of everybody.
“Zeke?” Ashe says just before I gag.
There’s a lot of movement around me, and someone bumps into the gurney sending shooting pain through my skull. The nurse shoves a throw-up pan under my chin just as my stomach decides to let loose.
“Oh, man. Give a guy some warning next time,” Tyce complains.
“Your questioning will have to wait,” the nurse states, and the blood pressure cuff tightens again. “I need to ask all of you to step out.”
“No,” Ashe disagrees. “We’re his guardians, and we’re not going anywhere.”
“Speak for yourself.” Tyce hooks a thumb behind him, his face a little green. “I’ll be in the hall.”
Mr. Hansen places a hand on Ashe’s shoulder, and my oldest brother’s eyes flash more silver than they should. Thankfully, no one but me saw it. “Ashe, let’s step out for a minute and let your brother get taken care of. I’m sure you can come right back in.”
The nurse pushes a button on her mini two-way radio she wears around her neck, requesting a doctor. She places a hand on my arm and smiles at me. “Feeling any better?”
“No.”
She hands me a different throw-up pan. I close my eyes, inhaling through my nose in hopes of settling my stomach. This day officially sucks.
“How’s it going in here, Ann?”
I peek to see an Asian doctor rubbing sanitizer into his hands. He smiles at me and comes to stand on the other side of my bed.
“He vomited, and his pulse and blood pressure are elevated.”
“Hi, Zeke.” He pats my arm with a warm hand. “I’m Doctor Xiong. I assessed you when you first came in and stitched you up.”
“Couldn’t make it an even ten?”
He smiles. “There wasn’t room for another stitch.” The blood pressure cuff tightens again, and his attention goes toward the machine. “Are your parents here, Zeke?”
I swallow hard. “My brother Ashe is my guardian. He’s out in the hall.”
“Ann, we’re going to need him back in here.”
She hands him the clipboard, and he scans it, returning his attention to me. “Is there anything you need to share with me while your brother is out in the hall?”
“No, why?”
“Anything happen between the two of you?”
I glare at him as his question hits home. “My brothers didn’t do this. I was walking home from school, and someone came from behind, pushing me down. I hit my head on the pavement.” I inhale through my nose as my stomach painfully clenches.
“Still nauseous?”
“Mm-hmm,” I mumble, too