Read Online Unspoken: The Lynburn Legacy by Sarah Rees Brennan - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Sarah Rees Brennan
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wide. It made her feel on edge just to look at him. She found all her muscles locked in sheer physical discomfort. Here he was, her oldest and closest friend, and she couldn’t help wishing him out of existence.
“See?” Jared said quietly. “You shouldn’t have come.”
“That’s not true,” said Kami. Their eyes met and they both flinched. Kami stared over Jared’s shoulder and swallowed a lump in her throat. “It’s just weird,” she whispered, her voice thin.
Jared laughed bitterly. “No. Really?”
“What I mean is it’s strange for
now
. All we have to do is get used to it,” Kami said, gathering conviction. She knew from years of listening to him that this was the kind of situation where Jared got too tangled up in his feelings to act. It meant that she had to control her own feelings and make a plan to get them through this. “We need to take this in stages,” she announced, spinning away from him. She went to stand on one side of the half-fallen wall.
“Kami?” Jared asked, sounding taken aback.
“Go stand on the other side of the wall,” she said, and peered through a chink in the wall until she could see the flash of faded blue cotton that was Jared’s T-shirt. “And now stoop, you ridiculously tall person.”
She saw him move, the glint of his hair as he sat down in the grass. She sat down too, feeling him reach out tentatively in her mind. She reached back.
His voice in her head was familiar and soothing.
You’re just tiny. It’s probably why you’re so bossy
.
“You know, Napoleon complexes are entirely misnamed,” Kami said. “Napoleon was actually average height. He just had tall bodyguards who stood behind him all the time. Also, we should probably talk out loud as part of the first stage of my plan.” She wasn’t happy about having to say that to him, not when he had talked to her in her head for the first timesince the well. Kami laid her cheek against the crumbling, sun-warmed stone of the wall.
“So, what’s going on with you, Kami?” asked Jared, with an effort she could feel. It was a subtle difference, but his voice sounded rusty now, instead of rough, as if he wasn’t used to speaking this way out loud.
Kami’s mouth curved against the stone. “I’m kind of freaking out.”
“Yeah,” said Jared. “I don’t—I hate—” He stopped.
“Talking like this is very classical of us,” Kami suggested. “Think of Pyramus and Thisbe.”
Jared spoke again, sounding helpless, but less like he wanted to hit something. “I might, if I knew who they were.”
Kami hesitated. “You do read, don’t you?”
“I haven’t lied to you,” Jared said, and his voice was angry again. “I read. I just haven’t read that.”
“They are characters in a Roman myth who had to talk through a wall. Then there was a misunderstanding about one of them being eaten by a lion.”
“I hate it when that happens,” Jared said. “Also, considering the way things have been going, I am thankful there are no lions in England.”
There was a wall between them, but the wall of silence in Jared’s head wasn’t there anymore. Kami still did not quite dare to come to the place where their minds met, for fear of being shut out again. She skirted the edge of what he was feeling, and stretched out her hand so he could see it on his side of the stone wall.
After a moment, she felt the brush of Jared’s fingers against hers. The light touch of skin on skin made electricitycrackle through her blood so that it burned and stung in her veins. She had never been so aware of anyone in her life, or so uncomfortable.
Jared’s hand closed around hers, their fingers linking. From a careful touch of fingertips, they were suddenly both clinging as if the other had fallen off a cliff and they had to keep hold or risk them slipping away. Jared’s hand was a lot bigger than Kami’s, fingers callused. It was just a boy’s hand, blood and flesh and bone, she told herself fiercely. It
“See?” Jared said quietly. “You shouldn’t have come.”
“That’s not true,” said Kami. Their eyes met and they both flinched. Kami stared over Jared’s shoulder and swallowed a lump in her throat. “It’s just weird,” she whispered, her voice thin.
Jared laughed bitterly. “No. Really?”
“What I mean is it’s strange for
now
. All we have to do is get used to it,” Kami said, gathering conviction. She knew from years of listening to him that this was the kind of situation where Jared got too tangled up in his feelings to act. It meant that she had to control her own feelings and make a plan to get them through this. “We need to take this in stages,” she announced, spinning away from him. She went to stand on one side of the half-fallen wall.
“Kami?” Jared asked, sounding taken aback.
“Go stand on the other side of the wall,” she said, and peered through a chink in the wall until she could see the flash of faded blue cotton that was Jared’s T-shirt. “And now stoop, you ridiculously tall person.”
She saw him move, the glint of his hair as he sat down in the grass. She sat down too, feeling him reach out tentatively in her mind. She reached back.
His voice in her head was familiar and soothing.
You’re just tiny. It’s probably why you’re so bossy
.
“You know, Napoleon complexes are entirely misnamed,” Kami said. “Napoleon was actually average height. He just had tall bodyguards who stood behind him all the time. Also, we should probably talk out loud as part of the first stage of my plan.” She wasn’t happy about having to say that to him, not when he had talked to her in her head for the first timesince the well. Kami laid her cheek against the crumbling, sun-warmed stone of the wall.
“So, what’s going on with you, Kami?” asked Jared, with an effort she could feel. It was a subtle difference, but his voice sounded rusty now, instead of rough, as if he wasn’t used to speaking this way out loud.
Kami’s mouth curved against the stone. “I’m kind of freaking out.”
“Yeah,” said Jared. “I don’t—I hate—” He stopped.
“Talking like this is very classical of us,” Kami suggested. “Think of Pyramus and Thisbe.”
Jared spoke again, sounding helpless, but less like he wanted to hit something. “I might, if I knew who they were.”
Kami hesitated. “You do read, don’t you?”
“I haven’t lied to you,” Jared said, and his voice was angry again. “I read. I just haven’t read that.”
“They are characters in a Roman myth who had to talk through a wall. Then there was a misunderstanding about one of them being eaten by a lion.”
“I hate it when that happens,” Jared said. “Also, considering the way things have been going, I am thankful there are no lions in England.”
There was a wall between them, but the wall of silence in Jared’s head wasn’t there anymore. Kami still did not quite dare to come to the place where their minds met, for fear of being shut out again. She skirted the edge of what he was feeling, and stretched out her hand so he could see it on his side of the stone wall.
After a moment, she felt the brush of Jared’s fingers against hers. The light touch of skin on skin made electricitycrackle through her blood so that it burned and stung in her veins. She had never been so aware of anyone in her life, or so uncomfortable.
Jared’s hand closed around hers, their fingers linking. From a careful touch of fingertips, they were suddenly both clinging as if the other had fallen off a cliff and they had to keep hold or risk them slipping away. Jared’s hand was a lot bigger than Kami’s, fingers callused. It was just a boy’s hand, blood and flesh and bone, she told herself fiercely. It
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