Scratchy ferns
brushed against my face as I strained for a better look. I shuddered as three
menacing figures, two guys and one girl, stepped into view only about 15 yards
away from Jason. Why did they want him? And what had they meant about him being
lunch?
“Don’t you know
it’s not safe to wander the woods on your own these days? You really should
listen to the news out of B.C.,” taunted a shirtless guy whose long black hair
was pulled back in a braid. His dark olive skin and massive upper chest seemed
disproportionate to the rest of his body. Some sort of tribal tattoo, with
simplistic but bold designs, covered exactly one half of his chest and all of
one arm.
At that moment,
memories came flooding back in a snarled mass of images: the thunderstorm, the
Mastiff, and the tall guy with a ponytail. My heart froze over as I realized
this bare-chested guy was none other than the psycho-maniac from the dark
alley. And he was connected to the B.C. killings?
“Andrew asked
you a question. I suggest you answer,” said the shorter muscular guy, who had
an Adam Levine buzz cut and a black goatee. D-rings hung from the belt loops of
his punk-looking bondage pants. Each one came equipped with a long, dangling
rope chain.
When Jason still
didn’t say anything, the tall skinny girl said snidely, “Maybe he’s deaf and
dumb.”
“He’s obviously
dumb,” Andrew jeered, baring his teeth, “Otherwise, he wouldn’t be out here by
himself with no protection.” As he shook his head, his long braid whipped
around.
I was startled
when Jason responded in a smooth, confident voice, “I might be alone now, but
my friends are due to arrive any time. We will have you outnumbered, so I
suggest you consider leaving before they show up, or things are going to get
ugly for you.”
Andrew laughed
loudly. The girl joined in, but the short guy continued to stare at Jason with
a bored expression. I glanced around nervously expecting to find the Mastiff
hiding in the trees. Abruptly, Andrew stopped laughing and twisted his face
into a massive frown. Kicking the dirt, he said in a whiny voice, “Kieran, I
want permission to take him out. He’s a liar. And you know what, I plain don’t
like the cocky son of a—”
“His Essence
belongs to me, Andrew,” Kieran said in a dangerously sharp tone. Without moving
an inch he added, “But, I will give you first shot at him. If you succeed, I
will share some of his Essence. If not,
I’ll
step in and finish him off,
at which point his Essence is
all
mine. Understood?”
I couldn’t tell
if Andrew was satisfied with that answer or not. He nodded curtly, balled one
hand into a fist, and smacked it into the palm of his other hand. “I got it,”
he said roughly. Kieran and the black-haired girl took a few steps back, out of
my line of vision. Jason took up a defensive stance with his arms out and his
knees bent.
What were they
talking about? Could they really take Jason’s Essence from him? I waited with
anticipation and worry as Andrew dug one foot deep into the ground and let out
a snarl. I wasn’t at all prepared for his method of attack. With his palms
facing out, he flicked his wrists and sent some kind of blast flying through
the air. The clear, blue-fringed, two-foot sphere was almost invisible and
traveled rapidly, about four feet off the ground, straight for Jason.
Right before the
sphere reached him, Jason dodged to his left – moving so quickly his body blurred
before my eyes. He stopped about 20 feet from where he’d been standing and
remained in a crouched position.
Hitting the
ground with enormous force and emitting a loud “boom,” the obscure ball sent
pine needles and dirt blasting through the air. Instantly, a dust plume
materialized. When the cloudy haze lifted, a huge crater remained in the
ground. It looked like a mini-meteorite had just struck the earth.
Momentarily
stunned by the blast, I hugged myself and slid across the hard earth. My heart
pounded in my chest as I sat with my back against the tree trunk. I held my arm
over my mouth, trying to suppress the cries threatening to escape. Mentally, I
questioned what I’d just witnessed. Clearly, Andrew had some sort of crazy
blasting ability. Splintering wood cracked through the air, and I swung around
for another look.
A huge branch
hurtled downwards and crashed to the ground. On the move again, Jason’s body
flashed through the forest, darting quickly left and right. He took me by
surprise when he raised his hands the same way Andrew had done and loosed
several small energy spheres of his own. Enraptured, I watched the action with
sick fascination. Andrew dodged in and out of the trees to avoid being struck,
all while throwing multiple blasts back at Jason.
The once quiet
forest was total havoc. Small craters erupted across the ground like a string
of explosions. Entire tree tops rained down from above. Covering my ears, I
squirmed in my hiding spot and pressed my cheek against the rough bark. A rouge
blast hurtled towards my tree, so I grabbed my knees and curled into a tight
ball. The shrubbery on my left blew to smithereens as sticks and mossy chunks
pelted my body.
Peeking under my
arm, I gasped at the gaping, 10-foot-wide hole that stretched almost to the
base of my tree. The earth had been obliterated, along with the surrounding
brush that had been my camouflage. My fingers dug into the crevices of the old
growth. I had a hard time keeping my eyes on Jason as he darted to avoid
Andrew’s explosive assault.
Two simultaneous
booms, accompanied by loud wails and a couple of dull thuds, brought me to my
feet. The forest took on a spectral silence. The haze cleared and revealed both
Jason and his rival lying a good distance apart, flat on their backs. Neither
one of them was moving. Without a second thought, and forgetting my original
promise, I sprang from my hiding spot and rushed towards Jason. Jumping over
broken branches, I ran at full speed, dashing around craters. When I reached
him, he looked unconscious, but he didn’t appear to be bleeding.
Once I placed my
hands on his forehead, I instantly yanked them away. His restricted flow of
Essence startled me, but maybe that was normal after using his extraordinary
abilities. Calmly, I touched his face again. I drew from my own energy and
directed it into him with confidence. As a familiar tingling reached my
fingertips, I could feel the strength of my Essence fortifying his, returning
the energy to his body.
His eyes popped
open, and he sat up immediately. “Damn it, Alex!” he said furiously. “I
specifically told you to stay hidden. You didn’t listen to a thing I said.” He
bounced to his feet, grabbed my arm, and shoved me behind him. Turning his
head, he gazed at me with hard eyes. “Now stand behind me, and keep your hands
on my back.” Stunned at his hostility, I nodded.
“Well now, isn’t
this interesting,” a voice drawled from across the desolated forest. Peering
over Jason’s shoulder, I saw it was Kieran who had spoken. He was standing next
to the girl, and she was kneeling beside Andrew, who was still on the ground.
Kieran’s eyes bored through to the core of my being, burning me with malicious
intent. Then he looked back at Jason with an amused expression. “Looks like you
were trying to hide something from us after all. Got yourself an
Innocent,
and
you’re not too anxious to share, are you?” His laugh rattled my bones.
“Told ya he
wasn’t very smart.” Andrew seethed with anger.
“I’ll make a
deal with you,” Jason said in a clear voice. “You let her go, and I will
surrender to you willingly. She’s hardly of any use to you. Once I’m sure she’s
safe, I will yield and allow you to take my Essence freely.”
“What?” I huffed
and gave him a shove. “I’m not leaving you,” I said angrily.
“Alex, shut up!
You’ll do as I say,” Jason said in his dagger-like tone.
Completely
bewildered, I shut my mouth. But I wanted to whack him over the head.
“How very
touching,” Kieran uttered. Looking down, he spoke quietly to the girl, ignoring
us for the moment.
That’s when I
heard something that took me completely off guard.
“Jason?
Jason? What’s happening now? We’re probably 20 minutes away. Are you okay?
Please answer me.”
Okay, that
freaked me out! That sounded like Madison. Was I imagining voices now?
“Madison. I
need you guys now! Alex ran out and now they’ve seen her, but they don’t know
she’s an Amethyst; they think she’s an Innocent. I’m trying to make a deal
that…”
I let go of
Jason’s back so fast, I almost fell backwards. Shaking my head, I slapped my
hands against my face. The voices disappeared.
In a low, barely
audible voice Jason said, “Alex, put your hands on my back and don’t move
again.” Following his command, I stepped closer. Only this time, I placed my
hands on his shoulders and pressed my trembling body into his. He didn’t give
me any more orders. In fact, he basically ignored me, so I stayed that way –
close to him, where I felt a little bit safer. His Essence felt strong again,
flowing with forceful vigor. My heart leapt. I’d been responsible for his quick
recovery. No matter how mad he was at me, I’d been right to act.
Madison’s angry
voice started up again.
“I can’t believe you’re in this mess. You never
should have gone so far into the woods without us. How stupid!”
“Madison, I don’t
have time for this right now. Just tell Max to hurry. The tall guy with the
braid is Andrew; he’s an Energy Handler. The short guy, Kieran, I don’t know
what his ability is. They have a girl with them who’s not linked, so I don’t
know her status. But listen, I’ll do what I can to keep Alex’s identity safe.
They have no idea that her Essence is responsible for my quick recovery. I’m
trying to convince them into letting her go in exchange for me.”
“No, Jason!
She’s not worth it.”
“Madison, you
know she is – a hundred times over, so hurry up.”
“What do you
say? Do you accept my offer?” Jason shouted to Kieran.
In that instant,
everything clicked. Jason had been speaking telepathically with Madison. But
why I could hear their conversation was a mystery. They were probably…of
course, they were linked. That was the connection between them. This…this was
the complicated working relationship nobody wanted to talk about. And now, for
some reason, he thought because I was an Amethyst, my life was more valuable than
his?
“Here’s the
deal,” Kieran shouted with a bemused expression. “And I’m only gonna offer it
once, so listen up. Melanie here,” he nodded in the girl’s direction and
grinned ruthlessly, “would like to get in some much needed exercise. As you can
tell, she’s not linked, so the playing field would be even between her and your
Innocent
,” he chuckled. “Melanie is willing to give your girl a head
start. Say 30 seconds or so. And then…well, I guess we’ll have to wait and see
who’s still standing in the end. Meanwhile, I deal with you one on one. None of
this surrendering stuff. I like to work for my kill, and ya never know, maybe
you’ll take me down.”
“Not a chance,”
Andrew sneered.
Kieran shrugged
and continued, “It’s either that or the three of us go for your girl right here
in front of you. You’ll try to protect her, but we have the advantage, and I
can guarantee it won’t be pretty.” He unhooked one of his chains and whipped it
around in wide circular motions. “So…what do
you
say?” Folding the chain
in half, he smacked it hard against his hand.
Jason’s next
breath was as sharp and instantaneous as mine. His body shuddered, and despair
seeped into my bones. If he was feeling defeated, we were surely sunk. Melanie
rubbed her hands together, her eyes large with anticipation. Andrew, who’d
finally made it to his feet, was leaning against her for support. Kieran
watched us with undeniable interest.
“One second,”
Jason mumbled and held up his hand. Turning slightly, so he could talk to me
but still keep them in sight, he said, “Alex, you have to do this.” He sounded
determined, but I detected the anxiety in his tone. “It’s our only chance.”
“No!” I
breathed, shaking my head adamantly.
“Yes!” he said
angrily. “You’ll have a much better shot. She has no special abilities for you
to worry about. You’re tough and you’re a fighter; I know you can take her
down. When you do, I want you to run to the creek, get in the water, and stay
hidden until Max or Madison finds you.”
In a shrilly
voice, Melanie sang out, “Will she stay or will she run now?” The melody was
that of the classic Clash song.
I glanced at her
nervously and then back at Jason. “I don’t think I can,” my voice wavered. “I
don’t want to leave you. Besides,” I pointed, “I’m sure that long-haired dude
has a big-ass Mastiff around here somewhere.”
Jason’s mouth
dropped open at that comment. “I don’t have time to ask why you think that. I
need you to go. I’ll have a much better chance if you’re not here to distract
me. If nothing else, do this for
me
,” he said impatiently, his face
rigid. He squeezed my arm once and shoved me towards the creek. “Now run!” He
bellowed.
Involuntarily,
my legs started moving, and I found myself running at full speed. My feet
ignored my brain, which was commanding them to stop. Fear propelled me forward.
Covering ground quickly, I dodged around trees, hopped over shrubs, and
scrambled over fallen logs. In time, the relentless laughter faded away, and
all I could hear was rushing water.
I stopped behind
a huge tree stump and caught my breath. I needed to be prepared for Melanie.
But how? She might not be linked or whatever, but if she’d ever been in a fight
before, and by the company she kept, I’d say she’d been in many, she was more
than capable of kicking my butt up and down the ravine. I didn’t have time to
think about that, because it was imperative I get back to Jason. Once Kieran
knocked him around, he might need my Essence again. And if Andrew joined the
fight…well, I didn’t want to think about Jason’s chances then.