Chapter 35: Chapter 35

London wasn’t exactly what Ru had imagined it would be. In her mind, it was the hauntingly beautiful, foggy world of Dickens and Peter Pan. In reality, it was a lot like every other noisy, crowded city she’d ever visited, although some of the architecture was unlike anything she’d ever imagined. Perhaps if she’d had more time to actually visit some of the touristy places, she’d have come away with a different impression, but for now, she would rather read about the capital of Great Britain than actually visit.

She had plenty of time to reflect on the city as Rider steered their rented van down winding rural roads leading out of the congestion toward the serene Holy Island. It would be a seven-hour drive, and a glance at the time on her phone told Ru they weren’t even halfway there.

They’d had to plan their trip carefully because of the tides that covered the causeway every day. She’d left all the planning to other team members, but a glance at the detailed schedule of the tide schedule let her know the authorities took the idea of stranded motorists very seriously. Rider had mentioned it could take a couple of thousand bucks to rescue someone who hadn’t timed their trip very well. Ru was all for avoiding a ride in a helicopter, so when he insisted they leave at 4:00 in the morning, she was fine with that. She’d slept most of the time they were on the plane anyway since Cutter had convinced someone to let them fly first class.

Despite her nap on the flight and catching a few winks at the hotel, she found herself nodding off now. The rest of the team was pretty quiet. Occasionally, Rider or Cutter would make a comment from the front seat, but Lyric had her headphones on and Ivy was reading a book on her Kindle Fire. They were both in the middle seat and Ru had the whole backseat to herself, which would’ve been perfect for stretching out if her stomach didn’t have her feeling like she should curl into a ball. It wasn’t the same sharp pains she’d felt the other night when she’d ended up shooting the black smoke out of her hand. This time, it was just nerves. She might be on the brink of actually meeting her birth mom for the first time, if they were headed in the right direction. Either that, or they’d traveled across the ocean in chase of a loose end. Either her world was about to unravel again or Ru would finally have the largest mystery in her riddle of a life solved. Either way, she was on the edge of a precipice. She would soon find out if she would crumble back into the darkness below or float away.

She was resting her head against the window, half awake, half asleep, when a noise caught her attention. At first, she thought it might be something new happening with the van on unfamiliar roads, but as the hum went from a barely audible vibration to a clear murmur, she sat up and looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from.

“Everything okay, Ru?” Cutter called to her, catching her eyes in the rear-view mirror, not for the first time.

“Yeah,” she replied, still confused. “What’s that sound?”

“What sound?” Cutter asked, puzzled.

“It’s the engine. En-gin,” Rider replied. “It makes the van go.”

Even though she couldn’t see his face, she knew he was joking. He’d apologized before they got on the flight the day before, saying he knew he overreacted, and he was just angry because he’d never seen anyone have the opportunity to get Nat the way she had, and he wished he’d been there sooner. Ru didn’t bother to mention that Cutter had actually been in a similar position with her not too long ago and he had valued her conversation with Nat over nabbing him. She was just happy they were back on good terms. Having less conflict with her friends and family was one plus about leaving Upstate New York behind.

“I’m not talking about the engine, silly,” Ru replied, playing along with his game. “I mean that humming sound.”

“What humming sound?” Cutter asked, turning to look at her. She could see his brow was still knit together.

“You don’t hear it?” she asked. Even while she was talking, it seemed to be getting a bit louder, though it still wasn’t overpowering. It was a pleasant hum, consistently the same note, but she didn’t think she could replicate it. The tone was too high.

“I hear the same thing I’ve been hearing for the last four hours—the call of the open road. And that damn whine coming from this window that won’t quite roll all the way up.”

The van was probably just as old as she was and not in the best condition, so Ru had to laugh. “It’s weird that you can’t hear it,” she said. “Maybe it’s just coming from back here.”

“I don’t hear anything either,” Ivy replied, setting her book down and leaning her head back until she was almost even with Ru. “Nope. Just Rider’s stomach growling.”

“I’m starving,” Rider muttered.

“You ate two proper English breakfasts,” Ivy reminded him, laughing. “I have a granola bar.”

“Hand it up.” He stuck his large hand back between the seats, waiting as patiently as he could while Ivy rummaged around in her bag and found the promised sustenance, which she handed over.

While the noise still had her confused, Ru couldn’t see any reason to dwell on it. The idea that it might just be in her own head would’ve alarmed her a few weeks ago. Now, it was par for the course. Just as she was about to close her eyes again, Lyric pulled her headphones off and looked around.

“What’s up, Lyric?” Ivy asked, her tablet back in her hand.

“What is that sound?” Lyric asked, clearly annoyed. “Don’t you hear it?”

“Yes!” Ru replied, leaning forward and patting her friend’s arm. “It’s a high-pitched hum, right?”

“Yeah,” Lyric agreed. “At first, I thought it was just coming from my music, but it just doesn’t stop. I can hear it without my headphones on. And it’s getting louder.”

“I think that’s the sound people hear right before they go crazy,” Rider replied.

Like a child, Lyric kicked his seat, which was right in front of her. “It’s a high, high A flat,” she explained, not giving him any more attention. “Not high A, but the A above that.”

“Oh, so like Mariah Carey high?” Rider asked.

“Higher,” Lyric nodded. “Right, Ru?”

“Well, I have no idea what note it is,” she began, “but it’s definitely high.” Ru loved music, but she was not much of a singer.

“Man, it is enough to drive you nuts,” Lyric exclaimed, looking around outside like maybe a screaming banshee was following them. Ru imagined a little witch flying along beside them, warding them off, preventing them from finding her mother.

“I’ll get the white jackets.” Rider didn’t actually move his hands from the steering wheel, but he definitely seemed to think the girls were losing it.

“It’s so weird that you can hear it and we can’t,” Cutter mumbled.

“Yeah. Aren’t we lucky?” Lyric’s sarcastic comment faded out as she picked her headphones back up and shoved them on her head. It appeared as if she was turning the volume up on her phone, possibly in an attempt to drown out the hum.

Ru settled her head back against the window. The countryside was beautiful, and she imagined what it would be like to grow up here, running across the moors, or whatever those fields of tall, golden grass were called. She imagined how beautiful it would be in the spring, when it was green and full of life. The humming continued, but Ru no longer found it annoying. It was almost like a lullaby, soothing her mind, comforting her spirit, and as it continued to lull her, Ru gave in and fell asleep.

“Ru!”

She opened her eyes to see they were surrounded by water on both sides of the van, though thankfully, the road was clear ahead of them. Blinking a few times against the bright morning sun, Ru brushed her hair back off her forehead.

“We’re almost there.” Rider’s voice sounded much calmer than it had a second ago when he’d been yelling at her to wake up, but then, she had to wonder how many times he’d called her name and she hadn’t moved.

“Okay,” she managed, reaching for her water bottle. The humming was still there. In fact, it was much louder, and she thought perhaps that’s why she didn’t hear Rider at first. Maybe it was so loud she couldn’t hear his voice over it.

She took a long drink of water and put the cap back on. It really was beautiful here, but she was more than a little concerned about where they would end up. How fitting that they had to cross another ocean to reach her mother. Of course, she had no idea if this body of water was actually considered part of the ocean, but she was certain it must connect to the Atlantic somewhere, so maybe she was just crossing the same ocean twice.

She caught Cutter’s blue eyes in the mirror, and he smiled at her. No matter how nervous she was, he always had a way of calming her with just a look. She wondered if her hair was a mess or if her makeup had smeared for a second and then caught herself and redirected those thoughts. He wouldn’t care.

Glancing down at her outfit, she saw that she’d managed to keep from getting too wrinkly. She had on jeans and boots, which she’d been advised would be a good idea considering the terrain. A white button-down shirt and a black sweater on top, with her black leather jacket, which was currently tossed on the seat next to her, completed the outfit. She wondered if her mother would be sitting there in a few hours when they left. It wasn’t a thought she let linger. The idea that she might not be there still hung heavy in her heart.