Catalyst (Forevermore, Book Two) Read Online Free Page A

bag, along with my sketchbook and pencils. The last thing I grabbed before leaving my room was my makeup bag, the sparkling lavender eye shadow was still resting on the top of the pile of cosmetics, reminding me ofthe time before I knew I had a gif t — it somehow felt much longer ago than it really was. I hastily shoved all of it into the bag, zipped it shut, and set it with my other luggage. Not once in the years prior had I thought I would be moving out at the age of sixteen, especially not into a motel run by a witch.
    When I returned to the living room, with my hands full of bags, I saw that Eila hadn ’t moved an inch. Mitchell gathered the bags from me and went to take them out to his car. Jason was in the hall behind me, staring at the same thing I was — the woman with the honey-colored curls and round face that I was so used to seeing with a smile, not this blank, empty look. Cautiously, I knelt beside her. She didn’t move or seem to notice me, and I glanced back at Jason. His face was painted with sadness and guilt, but he wasn’t acknowledging my look — he was still focused on her.
    “ Eila? It’s me, Madison ... if you can hear me ... please blink or nod your head or something,” I said, practically begging though it seemed sort of silly.
    Nothing.
    “ Mom ,” I said, hoping that the familiarity of the title would catch her attention, but still, she didn’t reply.
    “ She’s in shock, Madison,” Jason said, having finally come down the hallway and stood beside me. “Let me see if I can get her attention ... ”
    He knelt down in front of Eila, opened his mouth to speak, and before a single word could come out, her hand swept across his face. Jason recoiled and swore, putting a hand over the reddening mark on his cheek. “I deserve that,” he muttered and straightened up.
    Eila looked at me then, her eyes watering , then turned back toward Jason. “Don’t let her leave me. Please, please, don’t let my daughter leave me.”
    “ Maybe now you can understand a fragment of what Alex was going through,” Mitchell said, surprising all of us. I hadn’t even heard him come back in.
    Eila looked as if she had been the one slapped across the face. She went to reply, but my uncle was already stalking down the hallway to retrieve Willow. He returned moments later, the white cat tucked under his arm, and strode out of the house in a furious stride. It was almost humorous, but I couldn ’t find it in me to laugh.
    I stood up and put an arm around Eila, feeling the warmth of her tears against my shoulder as it brushed across her face. “I don’t hate you, if that’s what you were thinking. I want you in my life, and I wish that things had turned out differently ... and maybe someday we’ll all get through this and things can go back to normal. Or at least as close to normal as they possibly can.”
    “ It’s too late,” she said in a hoarse tone, “I screwed everything up, and now everything is over.”
    Jason pulled me away gently and gave me a look that I took to mean ‘It’s time to go,’ and gave Eila one final glance before he picked up his own bag of stuff and headed to the front door. No one said anything, but I could hear the sound of Eila’s sobs even through the closed door as I walked down the familiar sidewalk. The sound seemed to trigger my own tears, regardless how hard I fought it. She had been my mom for sixteen years … she would always be my mom. I just hoped she understood that I had to do this. I had a purpose that was bigger than living out a nine-to-five life. Briefly, I was tempted to go back in and melt into her arms – to comfort one another, but I knew it wouldn’t be any use. She didn’t seem like she wanted to be comforted, and neither did I.
     
    Mitchell dropped me off at Haven and helped me take everything to my room while Jason remained in the car. Something about the place made him uncomfortable, and I wasn’t going to force him into going in when he