Page 69 of Lust

“It’s definitely the safest way to go about it,” Seth concedes. “And I’ll feel better once I know he’s had his Moment. It’ll convince me he has some control over this.”

“Yeah…” Cody drags out. “But we need a backup plan, in case it doesn’t happen in say, the next week or so.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“The vision suggests someone will be dead by the week of the twenty-first. We don’t have a lot of time. And considering the first vision changed…” He trails off, clearly unwilling to state what we already know—that someone could die at any moment.

“We can burn that bridge later,” Seth says. “Right now, let’s show Luke how to perform the ritual to connect to the Rift. And hope for the best.”

Hardly anything in the way of a plan, but it’s something.

Luke’s quiet, his expression tense. This is a lot of pressure on him.

“How do you feel, Luke?” I ask, since he should get a say in all this.

“What choice do we have, right?”

Fuck.

This must’ve been a lot to hear, but I have to believe, given everything we’ve already seen he’s capable of, that the Moment will come easier to him than it did any of us.

At least, I have to hope.

19

LUKE

“In…and out…” Bradsays.

With my eyes shut, my legs crossed in a meditation pose, I focus on my breathing.

After the meeting, Seth and Cody headed out, leaving Brad and me alone in the cellar. Considering the shit we’ve done throughout the weekend—moving objects with my mind, levitating, though not as impressively as I did the first time we fucked—I was expecting the next task to be something a little more interesting than a guided meditation.

“In and out…”

How does he think I’m supposed to concentrate on my breathing when I have so much on my mind? And it’s not just the meeting and the chatter about the Moment and the changing visions that are spinning around in my head, but everything I’ve learned I can now do by messing around with Brad.

As he starts to prompt me again, I open my eyes. He’s sitting cross-legged between me and the mirror. “Brad…please tell me there’s more to this than concentrating on my breaths.”

“You want me to lie?”

“That’s what causes this big moment? Some dumb meditation?”

“You seem skeptical, but it really does work. It’s how all of us were able to quiet enough to have the experience.”

“Can you stop acting likethe Momentis an actual thing?”

“Okay, this was why I thought we shouldn’t jump right into it.”

I hate that he’s reminding me I was the one who pushed.

“You’re upset, Luke. I get it. You have a lot to think about. Now you know what you need to do, so let’s take a break.”

“Take a break? I have to try and stop people from getting murdered. I need to figure this out ASAP.”

“You won’t be able to as long as you’re frustrated. I promise you that. And considering we were able to get there with a fraction of your power, you’re gonna be fine. I promise you that too.”

I grunt. Fuck him for being right.

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