Keeper of the Lost Cities Moonlark

Chapter Five

When Jolie woke up, the sun was already sinking into the horizon. She got out of her bed, and stumbled downstairs rubbing her eyes.

She could hear adults talking, so she stopped to listen.

"-It's just getting worse," Grady was saying.

"That's not good," Keefe said. 

"It's not," Sophie agreed. The adults were silent, making Jolie wonder if they had heard her. She had no idea what they had been talking about, but she wanted to find out.

Then they started talking again.

"Jolie will be a game changer," Edaline said. 

"Mr. Forkle seems to think so," Sophie said. "But if she's not comfortable with it, then we can't pressure her. This is a big responsibility."

"If she's anything like you, there's no chance she won't do it," Keefe said. He probably meant it as a joke, but Jolie could hear the dread in his voice.

"How's she taking it anyway?" Edaline asked. 

"She's taking it okay," Sophie said. "Probably better then I did."

"She didn't lose her family," Keefe said. 

"But she's still going to lose her life," Sophie said. "Maybe not her family, but she loves those two boys."

Part of Jolie wanted to hear more, but too many frantic thoughts were racing through her head.

She was going to lose Matio and Rett? What did that mean? Were they going to die?

Suddenly Jolie felt sick. She sunk down onto a step, and held her stomach, trying to take deep breaths as she caught the next thing they said.

"We can't tell her anything, at least not until later."

Her friends might die, and her family refused to tell her.

Jolie raced up the stairs and hid under the covers. Someone must have heard her, because a few seconds later Sophie opened the door.

"Jolie? Are you awake?"

Jolie pretended to sleep.

"You should probably get up now," Sophie said, coming closer to the bed. "We still have a lot of  things to tell you."

Jolie looked up at her, pretending to wake up, but Sophie saw her red eyes, and her cheeks that still had tears on them.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

Jolie wished she could lie, or at least hold her emotions in, but instead she started sobbing.

"Matio and Rett are going to die?" She said. It wasn't really a statement, but it wasn't really a question either.

"Of course not! Why would you think that?" Sophie asked.

Jolie sat up.

"I just thought you said I was going to lose them. What else does that mean."

Just then Keefe came in. 

Sophie sighed.

"We have to tell you something," she said. And from her tone, it was not good news. 

"What?" Jolie asked, already dreading whatever her mom was going to say.

"We're moving here, to the Lost Cities," Sophie said. "And we can't ever go back."

"I'm so sorry Jolie," Keefe said.

"I'm so sorry," Sophie repeated. 

So her friends weren't going to die.