• T H I R T E E N •

This chapter starts on the same day as the chapter before, Saturday and then switches to show Gage's POV too.

• • •

"Sorry. A machine can't forgive your mistakes."

• • •

Nekoda's POV

• • •

Home.

Home is where the heart is, right?

Well, then this is most definitely not my home. It is the house I've grown up in. I left it... How long ago was it now? A year? Two years?

I shrug and finish tying my silver tie. Looking in the mirror, I make sure that my white hair is in place perfectly. Everything about my appearance is precise and gleaming. The silk button-up shirt, the silver tie, the diamond tie pin, the grey suit with silver threads running up and down in certain areas.

My family is not ashamed of our ice powers. No, we are proud. Our father, Dation Keene, is a businessman of the slightly shadier sort with unregistered ice powers. Everyone assumes that we are registered, though, because of our wealth and status. Surely, we would be registered, right? Wrong.

A knock sounds at my door and I instantly know that it is my younger brother, Ream. Mother and Father never knock and the servants normally wait outside my door while I am getting ready.

"Come in," I call softly to him.

I look in the mirror. A picture of perfection stares back at me. White hair, incredibly pale skin, light blue eyes, and an expressionless face. Ream opens the door. He is a couple years younger than me and a couple inches shorter than me. We are almost identical, though. We are both albinoes, devoid of any emotion, and dressed to mimic Father to a tee.

"Breakfast commences in exactly three minutes," Ream warns me.

I nod slightly. "Understood."

As Ream leaves, I survey my room to make sure that it is clean. I smooth a small wrinkle in my blanket and adjust the angle of a pillow.

This room is nothing like my apartment. At my apartment, comic books, posters, and video games are littered everywhere. Here, it is like a hotel. I guess it is, really. I only come home when my parents have a guest over. My parents pay me and Ream to stay away from the house and come back at their command. My three older brothers are old enough to refuse and never have to be here.

Ream doesn't go to school with me. Instead, he goes to a fancy private school. Tanya decided that I am too much of a screw up to waste money on continuing to send me to a private school. They discussed the idea of sending me to military school, but they decided instead to send me to public school. My parents wanted to show me what kind of life I was headed towards. They figured that if I spent a week slumming it with the poor people, then I would come running back repentant.

A tiny smirk appears on my face at the thought. I certainly proved them wrong. In fact, public school is much better than any of the "high class" schools my parents shipped me off to.

I close the door silently behind me and head down the spiral staircase as quietly as possible. I keep my gaze blank and straight ahead.

I take my spot at the enormous dining table at exactly 6:00 and place my napkin the same way Father does. I take small bites of the lavish food. The table is filled with enough food to feed a family for nearly a year. I have to watch how much I eat though. My mother, Tanya, is always watching and always judging. If I do not eat the exact amount to match my calorie intake, she will get angry with me.

After half an hour of slowly eating while my parents speak with an official, I am finally addressed.

"You're name is Nekoda, correct?" He asks.

I shift my icy stare to him and nod slowly.

He smiles and nods to himself. "My name is Vincent Vinet."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Senator Vinet," I tell him emotionless.

A pleased smile replaces his trademark smirk as if he is surprised that I know who he is. My parents aren't impressed, though. After all, they are the ones who ordered one of the butlers to pump me with information on him.

"How rare," Vincent remarks. "To see a teenager who knows the names of the people who rule their country."

I glance at Dation who nods. Looking back at Vincent, I remark coldly, "I know a lot more than merely your name, Senator. I know that your daughter is depressed and suicidal. Your son is developing a stutter that you yourself have yet to discover. Your wife is cheating on you with your head of security. I know that you have a severe peanut allergy, but you refuse to tell anyone because you believe that it will be taken as a sign of weakness. You're correct."

Vincent is now much paler than he was. His permanent smug smirk has somehow vanished and his brown eyes are wide with shock.

My father gives me a small nod. Vincent looks to Father who turns and tells me, "Nekoda, you are excused. Make sure you are here for dinner."

Nodding, I stand and rebutton my suit jacket. I head out to my apartment where I can change out of this ridiculous outfit.

"Shall I drive you back to your apartment?" Henri asks me.

Hesitating for a second, I nod and hop into the car. After all, it would take a while to walk there and I don't exactly want to be seen dressed like this.

Stepping out of the car, I don't thank Henri. Henri works for my parents and they insist that we never thank the help. It is below us.

I keep my posture perfect as I take even steps into my place. As soon as I close the door behind me, I slump and toss of my suit jacket. It falls in a heap in the pile of other dirty clothes. Quickly, I change into my favorite t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Flopping on my bed, I kill time watching television.

A buzz draws me out of my binge and I check my phone. Apparently, William and Asher are looking for Rage. I reply, informing them that I have no clue where she would be. I send the text to William, knowing that Asher will be able to read it. Asher's parents are strict and won't let him buy a phone yet.

Groaning, I turn off my television after the episode finishes and pull on a pair of shoes. I shoot a text out to William and head to where they are now, at our cabin.

I jog out of the house to go meet them there.

• • •

Gage's POV

• • •

I look up from my copy of War and Peace—the Latin edition—and move my queen.

"Checkmate."

My father studies the board before looking at me with a proud smile. "Good job, Gage." He chuckles, "I remember the days when I would win and you would throw the board against the wall in frustration. You always had to win, didn't you?"

I smile at Dad and quietly put away the pieces.

"That was ages ago, Dad," I reply.

"Are you calling me old, now?!" He exclaims in mock horror.

"Positively ancient," I say with a gentle smile.

Dad is probably the only one who can get such a smile out of me. I don't know what I would do without him, truly.

The smile disappears quickly, though. He had developed a new sore. He might have to lose his leg.

I hear my gaze from him to his monitors and make sure he is alright. Well, he'll never truly be alright. He's paralyzed from the neck down. To Dad, the ability to breathe is a blessing.

I slide the chess box into its place on the shelf as my phone starts to chime, letting me know that someone is calling. Checking the caller ID, I see that it is William.

"Speak," I command, the same way I always answer a phone call.

"Hey, do you know where we can find Rage?" William asks, thankfully getting straight to the point.

"No clue. How would I know? Oh, and pick me up lunch from the restaurant if you're going to be out and about looking for her," I say.

I pull the phone away from my ear and end the call right as William replies, "Sure."

"Gage," Dad groans. "You can't talk to friends like that if you want them to stay friends. At least go with them for lunch."

I sigh. "Sure, Dad. Let me straighten up first, though. I don't know how long I'll be and I don't want the house to be a wreck when Mom gets back."

"What do you mean?" Dad chuckles. "As far as I can see, the house is always clean."

I have to refrain from rolling my eyes.

"This house is filthy. I'm going to go clean."

"I'll be here," Dad replies with a grin, but there is a sad, tired look in his hazel eyes.

The house isn't really that bad, especially since there are only three of us living here. I clean quickly and find it doesn't take me long.

Sighing, I begin to put away the supplies. I don't like cleaning, but someone has to do it. Mom spends enough time working as it is. She doesn't need to come home to have to work.

I send a quick text to William, asking him where he is.

He replies quickly, letting me know that him, Asher, and Rage are headed to the cabin for some training. He lets me know that I can get the lunch from him or he can make a quick stop by the house.

Thinking quickly, I text Nurse Loretta and let her know I'll be leaving as soon as she can arrive. Then, I let William know that I can meet them in the woods and suggest somewhat forcefully that he makes sure everyone gets there.

I slide my phone into my pocket and pull on a pair of shoes.

"How are you today?" Nurse Loretta asks kindly.

"I'm fine, thank you," I tell her with a forced smile. "Fiona will be home in a couple of hours. I might come back before then, might not. I'm sorry I can't give you an exact time table."

Nurse Loretta laughs, "Don't worry about it, Gage. After all, I'm paid to be on standby for whenever you guys need to leave. I'll take care of your dad; you go have fun."

Nodding slightly, I quickly head out the door and hurry to the cabin.

Upon my arrival, I notice that everyone but Darkon is here.

"Where's Darkon?" I ask, stepping in through the door.

"He won't be able to come until later," William explains, tracing the scar on his forearm.

I nod my understanding and take a seat.

"Any reason in particular why you there decided to have training today?" I ask, my gaze shifting between Rage, William, and Asher.

"Do you want to be okay or incredible with your powers?" Rage asks, looking at me with those intense yellow eyes that are so bright and unusual that they are clearly contacts.

"Incredible..." I answer slowly.

"Then training needs to happen a lot more," Rage states.

Asher inserts quietly, "I also have a theory to test out."

"Do tell," I instruct, curiosity filling me quickly.

"I can communicate with animals telepathically," Asher reminds us. "And Rage can communicate with animals telepathically, right?"

Rage says, "Yeah, I can."

"You think you could communicate with her?" I infer, leaning forward with eagerness.

"I do," Asher responds, a smile on his face.

"Huh. I've never even thought of that," Rage admits.

I smile at that. I'm glad that we can teach her things as well. I'm also glad that she is not too cocky to be open to new ideas. At times, she comes across as incredibly cocky. Then again, the difference between cockiness and confidence is the level of achievements. She might just be incredibly confident in herself and her skills.

"Would you want to try?" Asher asks, his ears bright red.

I roll my eyes at the way he is behaving. Though, I can somewhat understand his behavior.

"Definitely," Rage agrees with a predatory grin.

• • •

Q: Which boy do you want to hear from next?

A: I don't know yet, but it will either be Darkon, Gage, Kolton, or Boaz. Choose whichever one you want to know more about!