Chapter 14 The Price of the Pulse
Elena’s POV
I wake up with a headache so violent it feels like my skull is trying to evict my brain. My vision is a blurred mess of gray shadows and sharp, stinging light. I try to move my head, but the pain spikes like a needle. It takes several long seconds for the room to stop spinning. I finally recognize Liam and his Grandma hovering over me.
They are bombarding me with questions. Are you okay? Do you need a doctor? What happened? I hear the panic in Grandma’s voice, but it feels distant. My throat feels like I have been swallowing hot glass and sand. I just manage to squeeze out a single, raspy word."Water."
Grandma nods quickly and hurries out of the room to get it. The second the door clicks shut, the atmosphere in the room shifts. Liam leans in, and the softness in his eyes disappears. He looks dark and serious. His eyes are searching for the lie he knows is coming.
"Tell me what happened in that alley, Elena," he whispers. His voice is low and dangerous. "Normal girls don't do what you did back there. And what makes you fainted there, because if not because of Daniel I don't know what could have happened to you.
I looked away from him. The truth was, I didn’t even understand it myself. The thoughts were all over my head, and I couldn’t make sense of anything that had just happened. I glanced back at Liam and forced out an answer I knew wasn’t true. “I don’t know, it just happened. My vision started to change, and I couldn’t think straight. Then everything went black.”
Liam stares at me for a long time. His jaw is tight. Grandma returns with a glass of water and hands it to me. I drink it fast.
She turns to Liam and tells him to follow her to the kitchen to cook a meal for me.
They both leave the room and close the door. I finally let out the breath I was holding. i need to find Malakor because he was the only person that can give me an answer I want.
The air in the corner of the room shifted, like heat rising off the ground. Malakor stepped out of the shadows, his golden eyes glowing faintly. “I felt that an Angel is in trouble,” he said, his voice low, but it carried through me. “I never know it was you but I just decided to look for you first.”
I sit up slightly in the bed. "I was about to look for you. I don't know what happened, but I felt this surge. The second that boy was in danger, everything changed. It was like I wasn't even me anymore. Something else took over."
Malakor’s eyes widen. He looks rattled. He paces near the foot of my bed. "You felt your power activate? Tell me exactly how it happened. What did it feel like in your veins when the energy moved?"
I shake my head. "I don't know. It felt like something incredibly heavy was inside my body. It was desperate to break out.
My vision spun and my blood felt like it was boiling. Then I woke up here."
Malakor steps closer. His shadow falls over me. "Do not use that power again. It is unstable. We do not know what it will take from you to keep it running." He stops and looks at me with pure dread.
"But there is something more you must know."
"What is it?" I ask. My heart begins to race.
You have broken the sacred rules twice now," Malakor says. His voice is a low whisper. "First, you stopped a death that was written in the book. Now, you have used celestial power to protect a human. The balance of the universe is screaming."
I feel a chill.
"What are you saying? What does that mean for me?"
"I am saying that strange things will start happening to you now," he explains. "I did not know how or what will happen, but the universe does not let these things go. You should be expecting anything now. A punishment is coming for what you have done."
The weight of his words feels heavier than my headache. I want to argue, but Malakor is already starting to flicker. Before he vanishes, I grab the edge of the bedsheet. "What about the Black Book? Any clues?"
He looks at me with deep regret. "Nothing yet. Stay patient and stay hidden, you should know that they cannot know that you are not with your power now, if they know there will be a disaster."
I was about to reply when the door handle rattles. Liam bursts back in. He is walking straight toward the spot where Malakor is still shimmering. My heart stops. Liam is about to walk right into a celestial being.
"No! Avoid him!" I scream. I point my finger at the empty air.
Liam freezes mid-step. His face turns pale as he looks around the empty room. Malakor casts one final look at Liam and then vanishes completely.
"Who?" Liam asks. His voice is trembling.
"Who am I supposed to avoid, Elena? There is nobody here."
I grip the blankets tight. I have to fix this. "Nobody," I lie. "I am just delirious. My mind is playing tricks on me because of the pain. I thought I saw a shadow."
He does not believe me. But he does not push it. He steps to the bed and places a cool hand on my forehead. He pauses and looks confused. "Your temperature is completely normal now. A minute ago, you were burning up."
He sits on the edge of the bed. He picks up a bowl of soup and blows on it. He is being so gentle. And then it happens.
Something deep inside my chest starts screaming with happiness. It is a warm, golden feeling. It spreads through my arms and legs. My headache starts to fade away. I want to be serious, but looking at him makes me lose control.
A real smile grows on my face. For a second, the darkness and the punishment feel far away. I just need to enjoy this moment for awhile before looking for solution.