The Chaos of Stars

Tyler’s phone rings and she answers it, breathlessly spilling out her version of the story to Scott. When she hangs up, she tells Ry that Scott will pick her up at my house.

“I’m going to stay there tonight,” Ry answers.

“Excuse me?” I hold the side of my head like I can contain the pain if I push hard enough.

“I’m not leaving you alone.”

“First of all, you are not welcome at my house. Second of all, I have a brother and a sister-in-law there.”

“You also have a concussion.” Tyler pulls one of my hands away to try and see my eyes again. She keeps muttering something about pupils. “Also, where the crap did you get this amazing bracelet? Is it real gold?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” I mumble. I want to rip it off, but I can’t figure out how to undo the clasp. Another sneaky, underhanded move by Ry.

I hurt, everything hurts, and I am so hurt that he lied to me. That he always understood me even more than I thought he could, but he didn’t tell me that he understood. I don’t think he’s evil, not now that Anubis revealed himself, but still.

Ry’s the son of gods. It changes everything.

“No, seriously, that’s real gold, isn’t it? Maybe that’s why your crazy half brother was after you! This has to be worth serious money.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Gold is not really a commodity at my house. The name of the sun god, however . . .

Ry pulls to a stop in front of Sirus’s house. Scott’s car is already parked there and Tyler jumps out of the truck and runs to him, throwing her arms around his neck. My stone heart thumps forlornly in my chest as I watch them, and my traitor body longs for the comfort of another person.

I get out of the truck instead, and limp and stagger toward the dark house. This must be what it feels like to be drunk, I think, as the ground bucks and rolls around me.

“It doesn’t look like anyone’s home.”

I startle, so lost in my pain and my determination to call my mother that I didn’t notice Ry get out after me. “They’re probably in bed.”

“I’ll wait until you know for sure that they’re home and you’ve told Sirus what happened. I’m assuming that was Anubis. What did he really want?”

“It’s a family matter.” My teeth are clenched so hard my jaw aches and I can feel my pulse as a stabbing pain in my forehead. “Go home.”

“Sure you’re okay?” Tyler calls out from the curb. I wave dismissively. “Call me first thing in the morning, then. And I just Googled concussions. Don’t take ibuprofen, take Tylenol.”

Scott opens her door. “And next time you get in a fight, do it when I’m around. I’m good at the punching!”

I’m too tired to respond. I open the door; the entire house is dark. Sirus is a night owl. He should still be up. Maybe something is wrong here, too. Panicked that Anubis got to them, I take a deep breath.

It smells like Tide. I collapse against the doorframe in relief. Anubis hasn’t been here.

Ry steps forward like he’s going to come in with me.

“Please,” I say. It hurts to talk. “Thank you for tonight. Really. You saved my life. But I can’t—I can’t handle you right now. I’m confused, and I don’t know how this changes things, but it does. And until I know how it changes things, I just—I need you to be somewhere else.”

He swallows, then nods. I shut the door behind myself. I want him far away. I want him right here. I don’t know how I want him. But my mother. I need to talk to my mom.

Flipping lights on as I go, I find a note on the table. Sirus’s hasty scrawl is nearly illegible.

Isadora—tried your cell, Deena sick, going to the hospital, call me.

—S

No! I grab the phone and dial Sirus’s cell. It takes me three tries to get the numbers right, then it goes straight to voice mail, so I tell him to please call on this line because my cell is gone. My fluttery, panicked feeling intensifies. I don’t want anything to happen to Deena, or to their baby. They need to be okay. I need them to be okay, and to be a dorky, happy couple and raise a dorky, happy kid.

Please let her be okay.

My mother, fortunately, picks up on the second ring. “Who is this?” She sounds exhausted. I don’t remember the time difference, if it’s the middle of the night there or what.