Guardian (The Guardian Trilogy) by Sara Mack Read Free Book Online

rest.”
    I
shrug.  “Maybe.  I’m going to get something to eat.  That will probably help.”
    “There’s
Chinese in the refrigerator.  Your dad got take out.”
    I nod
and head to the kitchen.  Inside the fridge I find a carton of almond chicken
and a carton of fried rice.  I set about plating it then place it in the
microwave.
    My mom
enters the kitchen.  “So…”
    I look
at her.  “So?”
    “We
need to talk.”  She takes a seat on a stool at the island.
    I
return my attention to the microwave, enter the time, and press start. 
“About?”
    “Well,
for starters, I talked to Shel.”
    I turn
around and lean against the stove.
    “Your
dad and I think you need someone around who you can talk to, a friend to hang
out with,” she says.  “It might make you feel better.”
    “Haven’t
I released enough emotion?” I ask sarcastically, referring to my recent
meltdown.  I never thought I was capable of screaming the way I did at the
funeral home.
    She
shrugs.  “Maybe, maybe not.”
    I take
in her pensive expression.  “Listen, I’m sorry.  I’m sorry for breaking down at
the funeral and for yelling at you the other night.  I didn’t mean it.”
    “You
don’t have to apologize,” she leans one arm against the granite countertop.  “I
can’t tell you how angry I am with that witch Carol Davis for making you feel
like you should be ashamed.  What she said was uncalled for.  You can erupt
anyway you please.”
    Am I a
volcano?   I could be Mt. Vesuvius.  I think of my bloody dream and
fighting off my mother.  Nothing like that has ever happened before. 
    “You
need to release your feelings; it’s not healthy to keep them trapped inside,”
my mom says.  “I’ve only seen you cry twice since this happened.”
    I study
the floor next to the stove and direct my words to the wood instead of her
compassionate face.  “I’ve cried more than you know.”
    My mom sighs. 
“Your father and I don’t want you to feel like you can’t express your feelings. 
You don’t have to hide them.  That might be why you had that nightmare.  Shel
agrees with me.”
    “So
Shel is a psychologist now?” I smirk.  “What happened to becoming an M.D.?”
    “Look,”
my mother sets her palms against the counter.  “Your father and I are worried. 
We know things will get better with time, but recent events…” she trails off.  
“We’re concerned as any parents would be.  You sleep all the time.  You haven’t
left the house.  You haven’t talked to your friends.  You’re not eating…”
    I point
toward the microwave.  “I’m eating.”
    Her
eyes soften. “Not regularly.”  She hesitates.  “You haven’t unpacked anything we
brought home from school except your computer.  Em, when’s the last time you
said James’ name?”
    Where
is she going with this?  “It’s only been two weeks,” I whisper.
    “Honey,
it’s been a month.”
    The
realization startles me.  The microwave beeps, but I don’t move to collect my
food.  What little appetite I had is gone.  Has that much time really passed?
    “You’re
becoming a shell of yourself,” she says and stands.  She walks around the
island and stops in front of me.  “That’s why Shel is coming to stay for a few
weeks.  Longer if necessary.”
          I
snap to.  “No!  Mom.  I think she’s taking spring classes.  I don’t want to
inconvenience her.”
    “It’s
been worked out,” she says and rubs my arm.  “There is no inconvenience. 
Besides, Shel wants to help.”
    I stare
at her.  The last thing I want to do is expose Shel to my depression, if that’s
what this is.  Am I depressed?  Or going nuts?  A month of my life has
disappeared, and I just heard James’ voice in the shower.
    My
mother places her hands on my shoulders.  “I want you to know this is the first
step.  If we don’t see some of the old Emma back by the end of the summer, your
dad and I will look into