Star Gods, стр. 45
“Why do you think that is?” he asks calmly.
“I don’t know, Cesar. I’m taking abilities from Assassins, ones that’ve already earned their staff. I’m assuming that’s why.”
“You’re not a killer, Zeke. Neither are your brothers, your father, or your sister. It’s how you choose to use these abilities you’re gaining that makes you who you are.”
I look to the man who’s been a second father to me, feeling grateful to have him here. “I’m going to have to gain control, Cesar, or the Luminaries will take me out.”
“Oh, you don’t really think that, do you?”
“If I don’t, I’m no better than an Assassin. I’ll become a killer. Maybe they’ll make me an Assassin. Maybe they’ll kill me. Either way it will be their choice, and more than anything I want it to be my choice.”
“Zeke, you and Sage were chosen. Why would they punish you for something you were born to do?”
“Maybe I’m not doing it right?”
“This didn’t come with an instructional manual, did it?”
“No.”
“They can’t punish you for something you’re meant to do.” Cesar pats my knee. “You’re going to need to accept things you can’t change, and change things you can. Then, we get your parents back.”
I touch his arm as he stands making him stop. “Do you know anything about our parents, Cesar?”
He looks at me sympathetically. “No, only the same as you and your brothers.” He touches his chest. “It’s how I feel in here.”
“He’s right, you know.” Maliki stands outside my doorway with his thumbs hanging from his front pockets.
“I’ll let you two talk,” Cesar says, patting my shoulder before slipping out the door and down the hall.
“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop,” Maliki explains. “I was heading to the bathroom and heard you two talking.”
“Okay.”
He enters my room and leans back against the wall, crossing his feet at the ankles. “I can only imagine that what you’ve been going through isn’t all that different from what I’ve been going through without my family. Now that I know they could be alive, it makes me want to fight harder to get back to them, and that means I’m going to need to fight alongside you and you’re family. The legend about you and your sister has been passed down through generations. The gist of it, you were chosen before you were born to eliminate the Assassin race. What that means, no one seems to know exactly. But, I may have some information to bring to your attention if you’re interested.”
“Go ahead.”
“Have you met the Luminesce?”
“You mean the one in charge now?”
Maliki snickers. “Yeah, that one.”
“No. I’ve never met him personally.”
“Do you know he’s in charge of all Star Gods, on planet and off?”
“Yeah, I’m familiar.”
“Did you know the Luminesce is also in charge of the Assassins?”
My interest piques. “Because you’re a Star God, or were.”
“I’m classified as an Assassin now. It’s said once an Assassin, always an Assassin.” He surprises me by pushing off from the wall and coming to sit next to me. “You’re lucky, being Earth bound. Half-breeds aren’t considered worthy of being recruited as Assassins.”
I scoff. “Not that I want to be one, but I bet they’d think otherwise if they knew what I can do.”
He nods. “Abram, the former Head Assassin, didn’t agree with Levi’s plan about you and your sister, but he went along with it because of his rank and of who Levi is.”
“Does Abram have a scar across his face?”
“Yeah, that’s him. You’ve met?”
I shake my head. “No. Levi came as him and tried to kill Abby.”
“Levi likes to shapeshift into other people and use it for his benefit.”
“Besides being labeled the Satan twins, what hold does Levi have over everyone?”
“Satan twins, that’s the hold he has. Levi, he’s crazy.”
“And Levia?”
“Not as crazy as her brother, but she goes along with whatever he does.”
“He’s the alpha.”
“Exactly. She won’t admit it, but she doesn’t always agree.” He reaches back and lifts my sketchpad. “May I?”
“Go ahead.”
He sets it in his lap and flips open the cover. “Wow. This is talent. You draw all of these?”
“Yeah. It’s kind of my thing.” I wonder briefly how Maliki will react when he gets deeper into my drawings. “Is the current Luminesce afraid of Levi?”
“Because he hasn’t taken him out?”
“Yeah.”
“Originally he wasn’t.” He glances toward me. “My dad works for the Luminesce so I know him personally. When I was recruited, he tried to step in and stop it from happening, saying I was too young. Levi got in his face and Luminesce backed off. I’ve never seen him back off from anyone.”
“Levi took you from your family right in front of the Luminesce?”
He nods. “Luminesce and his wife were at our house when the Assassins came. Levi made Assassins remove him from our house, grabbed me and took me outside, then that’s when I heard what was happening to my family.” He stares straight ahead. “Assassins left my house covered in blood.” He looks to me, his eyes glazed over. “I don’t know if they’re alive or not, Zeke. They made it look real. I can be hopeful, right?”
“I think you need to be hopeful.”
“So I have something to fight for.”
“No, so you have something to look forward to when we beat this thing.”
He nods. “Good way to put it.” He resumes looking through my drawings.
I watch his expression. He turns page after page. One minute he’s scowling, the next he’s scared or worried, then he turns to the page of the battle and his gaze turns intense. He looks toward the corner and I swear he pales.
Maliki lifts a shaking finger and places it onto the page. “This is my dad and brother. When did you meet my dad and brother? Where is this?”
“I haven’t met them.” I turn my book my direction. I don’t even remember drawing them. The man is younger than my dad, and Maliki’s