I woke up as the sun began to sneak in through the slats of the blinds on the window.

I yawned, still exhausted mentally, and rolled over to look around the room.

I shot up from the couch as soon as I remembered that I am in Wes's study, alone, where all the books hiding my true identity are. I tossed away the blankets and walked swiftly over to the shelves and began scanning the titles. I saw a ton of ones that seemed interesting, but I didn't see the one on Trysaimens that had been here before.

"Looking for this?" I heard Wes's voice behind me.

I turned around red-faced. "Busted." I muttered as I shrugged my shoulders innocently.

He chuckled and walked passed me, placing the book into its new place. "Do try to remember that I can read your thoughts, dear. I've known your plan for days."

"Whatever." I laughed. "I'm just going to have to keep my guard up around you." I stuck my tongue out at him playfully.

"You're in good spirits this morning." He commented.

"Yeah, I guess I am. I'd be even happier if you'd let me read that book." I said staring at it. "Honestly, I'd like to read all of these books."

"You've got a decision to make first." He reminded me.

Garrett walked into the room then. "Way to kill her good mood, Uncle Wes." He said jokingly as he plopped down on the couch.

Garrett wasn't wrong. I had conveniently forgotten that little fun fact for the moment.

"I don't mean to put a deadline on you, but we do need to be acting as quickly as possible though." Wes said seriously.

"I know, I know." I said with some annoyance. I wasn't ready for that yet. How on earth is a person supposed to decide? I can be a normalish girl that secretly knows that she is so much more. I could live a regular life, settle down with whoever I want, be an artist or maybe take up playing piano. Or, I could choose to be this super powerful superhuman and possibly die trying to take down whoever these corrupt people are. "I just don't know yet what I want, Wes. I need some time to figure it all out. I just want to make sure I am making the right decision."

Wes put his hand on my shoulder. "Ask them." He said.

"Who?"

"You know who, dear. It can be both a lesson and a chance for you to seek guidance from the people you trust the most." He explained. "You need to try to call out to them, just like they call out to you."

"My mom and Stephen." I said realizing what he meant. "I'm not sure I can do it. The only other times, it has been them to reach out to me."

"Your mother mentioned it taking a lot out of her to do it, so it may be a draining experience, but it is something you need to learn to do. You never know when you may need them, or someone else, depending on whether you choose to stay or go, that is."

"Wait." Garrett butted in. "Go?"

"It's none of your business." I snapped at him.

"I have offered to help Cadence, should she wish to leave and start over somewhere else where she won't be known." Wes told him, even though I clearly didn't want to tell him.

Garrett's face dropped and he walked over to us. "Cade, you can't possibly be considering this! You should be here. You just found out less than a week ago that you belong to all of this. You're too powerful to just run away from it. This is a part of you. I don't want you to leave. I need you here."

"Well, Garrett, I think I should be able to make my own decisions about how I chose to live my life. I never wanted any of this. I wasn't born into like you were. I don't belong. I don't need this all to make me special, or powerful. I can be those things all by myself, Potente, or not. That doesn't define me." I said strongly. "I don't need you either." I spat. "After what you said last night, I can't believe you would actually try to guilt me into choosing something I don't want. Again, I remind you, you're promised to Carrianne. There isn't anything you can do about it, not that it seems like you even want to. I want to be a normal girl, just like I was a week ago. I want to be with someone who chooses me, not just says over and over that they wish they could. If I were to stay, I'd get paired with someone, right? You think I want to be told who I can and cannot be with? Does that sound like the kind of girl I am? No one dictates my life but me."

Garrett turned away from me, gorgeous puppy dog eyes looking sadder than I'd ever seen them, and he left the room. I don't want to hurt him, but I don't want to be hurt either. Sometimes you just can't have both. I looked at Wes, suddenly remembering he was still standing here. I was a little embarrassed by my outburst, but he ignored it. "It sounds like you've already made your choice." He said.

I looked down the rows of books. Books that I would never learn their contents, and I frowned. "I...I guess I have."

"Very well." He said, a tiny hint of disappointment seeping into his tone. "Where shall you go?"

"Back to California?"

"No." He shook his head. "You'll need to go somewhere you've never been."

"Florida?"

"That could work." He mused. "I will begin working on the arrangements. I have some connections in high places, if you will, that can get you all of the documentation you will need. Do you have a preference on a name?"

"A name?"

"Yes, you'll need to take a new name."

"I don't guess it matters really."

"Ok, dear." He said with a pat on my back and then began to walk to the door. "Oh, I will send a person to pick up whatever things you want from your home as well. Just get me a list together, and I will get it done. Not too many things though, dear. You don't want it to look like you moved away. If they know you ran, you won't have a very good head start. What will be best is if you ease out of town, stay under the radar. It will take them longer to realize you've skipped town, and harder for them to find you once they do know."

"Ok." I told him feeling like I was in a daze. He left the room and I sat back down on the couch, leaning my head back against it and closing my eyes.

This was something I wanted to try in private anyway.

"Stephen?" I asked. "Mom? Hello?"

It was a good five minutes later before I felt a presence. It was a little easier to feel this time. The room felt colder, and the blood in my veins felt like it was tingling. "We are here, love."

"I need your help." I said.

"Tell me your worries." My mother's voice said soothingly.

"I think I should leave. Wes says he can set me up in Florida, and that I'll be safe there. I am scared to go, but I am afraid to stay too."

My dear, sweet, Cadence. I am so sorry you are going through all of this. I truly am. I wish more than any other wish that I could hold you right now, and sooth your troubled mind. I think you should listen to Wes. If there is any chance of you living normally and safely, you need to take it. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Cade?" The place in my chest began to ache again at the sound of his voice.

"Stephen?"

"Yes, Cade." He said happily. "You hadn't forgotten me already, had you?" I felt a hot tear run down my cheek. "Don't you dare cry, Cade. It was only a joke. I miss you too. As much as I love mom, and trust me, she is great, I don't agree with her. I think you can handle this. You were born for this, Cade. I don't want you backing down, or running with your tail tucked between your legs. That's not you. You are a fighter, Cade. Stand up and FIGHT....We have to go now. I love you little sister."

"You're only three minutes older Stephen!"

"Exactly. I am older." I heard his terribly wonderful laugh. The laugh I never thought I'd get a chance to hear again. "I love you, be brave."

"I love you, too!" I practically shouted at him.

Seconds later I felt the presence leave.

Like Wes had warned would happen, I felt pretty beat now. It was like I had just run a marathon.

I took a few deep calming breaths to try to get my head on straight. As much of an inconvenience all of this has been to me, I will never wish I hadn't been born this way. If I hadn't, then Stephen would be completely gone from me. I may be able to do all kinds of amazing things, but I don't give a crap about any of the other abilities. The only one that matters is being able to talk to him again.

***

Later that day Garrett came back over to Wes's house carrying a small duffle bag.

"I got all the stuff on the list." He said glumly as he placed the bag beside me on the living room couch.

I muted the TV and turned to face him. "Look, Garrett." I started. "I didn't mean to be so mean about everything, but...You've just got to try to see things from my perspective."

He looked dead into my eyes. "That's the worst part, Cade." He said. "I know exactly how you're feeling, and I know that you still have feelings for me. You are just denying them."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not denying that, Garrett. That's true, but that doesn't change the fact that I don't want to do this with you anymore. There is no future where we end up together, so why even bother trying?"

Garrett sat down beside me and turned to face me. He brought his large tan hand up and cupped my face. "You're right, Cade." He whispered. "I know that you are. Everything you've said is true. It's just so freaking hard. I want to be with you, so bad. I haven't ever wanted someone the way I want you, and it just really sucks that I can never have you. I'm sorry for putting you between me and Carrianne, and I'm sorry for trying to talk you into staying here even though you don't want to. It was selfish, and I sincerely apologize. I'm going to miss you so much, Cadence James. You deserve better than me anyway." Garrett quickly planted a kiss on my cheek, as dangerously close to my mouth as he could go, then he hopped up from the couch and left. I hadn't even had a chance to say goodbye.

I sat puzzled for a moment, then started to sort through the bag he'd brought.

These few things would be the only things from my old life I could hold onto. I shifted the sparse objects, then stopped once I found my phone. I pulled it out and went through the dozens of messages.

The only ones I cared about were from Derrek. He seemed worried since he couldn't get a hold of me, and he said that he heard from people at school that I wasn't there and that the police had been at my house. I quickly dialed his number and his soulful voice came through the phone after the second ring.

"Cade? You alright?" He asked.

I smiled. "Yeah, I'm going to be ok." I said cryptically. "What are you doing right now?"

"I just got home from school, why?"

"You feel like ditching the rest of the week?"

"You have to ask? My dad is leaving tomorrow for business and I wasn't going to tell my mom so that I could just stay here while he is gone. You want to come over here with me?"

I loved that Derrek was just the type of person who is down for any crazy idea you throw their way. "Actually, I was thinking of going surfing, maybe layout on the beach a while."

"Um, Cade, you know we are landlocked, right?"

I laughed at his confusion. "Come to Florida with me!"

"Florida? How the heck will we get there? The most money I can pull is at the very tops $500. And that would be all the money I've been saving from birthdays and Christmas for the last three years."

"It'll be worth it." I taunted.

"When do we leave?"

After I finished finalizing plans with Derrek, I went to tell Wes about it.

"That's a good idea, you going ahead and going down there. It'll give you a chance to settle in. I can pay for yours and your friends airline tickets, and I will reserve a hotel...Two very separate rooms." He added with a narrowed gaze. "It'll be good for you to get away from all of this, and to spend time with your friend before you have to tell him goodbye."

That was the first time the thought had even occurred to me. As if on top of all the craziness, and loosing Garrett, that wasn't all bad enough, I hadn't even thought of the fact that choosing to leave meant I was losing Derrek too.

I don't know how I will even deal with that part yet.

At least for right now, the horizons are bright. Tomorrow night I will be getting on a plane with one of my best friends and heading for the beach. There, is at least the one highlight in this whole mess.