Drawing Bloodlines (8 page)

“So, if not for the beady red eyes …” said Jonathan, “then why did you want to see me? What was the reason for the text?”

“I had another dream,” said Nathan, pausing to swallow. The music from the band continued to blare but he tried not to speak too loudly. “And I’m pretty sure it starred the other Fallen Ones.”

“The other Fallen Ones!” blurted Malick. He had a ske
ptical, but confused look on his face. “I thought you said it was just Lucas and Lauren?”

“That’s because you won’t let me finish!” snapped N
athan. He paused to glare at him. “But yes, the Fallen Ones — plural.”

With a suspicious smirk, Malick glared at Nathan and then pursed his lips. “But how do you know?” he interrup
ted, before Nathan could continue. “I mean — it’s not like you’ve actually met a Fallen One.”

“Umm, have you forgotten about my wonderful run in with Lucas?” said Nathan, pointing at the faint scar on his for
ehead. “In my dream, there was Lucas and Lauren and they were sitting on the steps to the memorial plaza at Grimm Cemetery….”

“Over there?” asked Jonathan, sounding alarmed as he pointed in th
e direction of Grimm Cemetery.

“Yes,” said Nathan, but then he paused.
“But in the Space-In-Between.”

A look of relief washed over Jonathan’s face. “It has to be strange for Jonas,” he said, continuing to look in the d
irection of the cemetery.

“Umm — Jonas, how come?” as
ked Nathan, sounding confused.

Jonathan’s eyes were bright and he seemed surprised. “Because his father’s body was found not too far from here — along Route 7,” he said. “It has to be weird for Leah too.” Nathan and Jonathan both drew quiet and began to peruse the faces in the crowd. “Having a concert in the same vicin
ity they found your roommate’s body has to feel weird.”

“Well, I think everyone is doing the best they can to
try to move on,” said Nathan.

“But how do you
know it was in the Space-In-Between?” interrupted Malick.

Nathan gave Malick a cold stare. “Because besides them, everything else was washed in gray — or bla
ck and white!” Nathan snapped.

“Oh,” said Malick.

“Anyway,” said Nathan, appearing annoyed. “The other two were wearing the same red cloak that Lucas wore when we rescued Leah and the others….”

“T
he other two?” asked Jonathan.

“Yes,” said Nathan, confidently. “One of them was really tall and had big muscular arms — and he seemed to get along well with
the one with….”

“Amethyst-c
olored eyes?” finished Malick.

Nathan paused. He suddenly had a surprised look on his face. “Yes,” he said slowly. “And there was another one, the one in charge. He was the one who punished Lucas and La
uren for losing….”

“Lo
sing what?” asked Malick.

“The medallion,” continued Nathan. “He punished them for losing the medallion and for not finding the one they seek.” Nathan shivered. “He was more powerful than the others. I can still hear their blood-curdling screams in my he
ad.”

There was a brief silence between the three of them as the sound of music and laughter echoed in the background. “Did he have a crescent-shaped scar? Right below
his right eye?” asked Malick.

“Yes,” said Nathan, sounding surprised. “Like a bac
kward letter C.”

“Lucius,” said Malick slowly and Nathan nodded. “The o
ther two were Laban and Luke.”

“Well, it sounds like to me that you know a lot about the Fallen Ones,” sneered Jon
athan. “And I wonder why that is? Perhaps your grandmother … or maybe your father can explain it to us....”

Malick’s face suddenly went rigid and his lips snarled. “Did your little computer or raggedy little books tell you that?” he asked, condescendingly. “Because my grandmot
her, nor my father, would have anything to do with the Fallen Ones.”

“And what about the
Order?” snapped back Jonathan.

Suddenly, Nathan’s eyes pleaded with Malick. “You told me your grandmother used to be a member of the Ord
er — but what about your dad?”

Malick stood quiet and his eyes drifted out
toward the crowd.

Nathan and Jonathan both sighed in response and shook their heads. “So what’s all this talk about a missing meda
llion?” asked Jonathan.

“The gold and silver crescent-shaped medallion that Sca
rlet Priest was wearing the night we saved everyone,” explained Nathan. “And they think we have it; they need it to find the one they seek.”

“The one that was around Pius’s neck before I toasted him?” asked Malick.

“More like killed him,” sneered Jonathan.

“Hmm, I wonder who has the medallion then?” asked Malick, sarcastically. “Maybe wolf boy here — you were doing a lot of sniffing around
the memorial steps that night.”

“You guys!” yelled Nathan. “We don’t have time for this, we were all there that night, and they are coming for us.” Nathan paused; he caught a glimpse of Leah making her way toward them through the crowd. “We need to find that m
edallion and fast, before one of us gets hurt.”

5

CONCERT OVER!

Malick and Jonathan looked at each other in silence. A
fter a brief moment, Malick diverted his eyes and Jonathan looked down, but he had to keep repositioning his glasses. Nathan looked out toward the stage and noticed how the surrounding trees looked like dark and thin elongated fingers stretched out toward the moonlit sky. The incoming fog had completing engulfed Lynn Field and combined with the different colored strobe lights from the stage, cast strange shadows amongst the concertgoers. Nathan’s stomach twisted in knots as he noticed the different faces peering back at him through the darkness. Among the many faces, Nathan spotted Leah’s as she continued toward them.

“Okay,” said Nathan, returning his attention back to Malick and Jonathan. He tried to a
djust the volume of his voice in an attempt to project over the loud music. “Let’s not all speak at once!”

Jonathan and Malick both turned to look at each other; both hesitant to speak. Slowly, Nathan shook his head before drawing a deep breath. “Whatever is going on,” he said. “I’m going to need both of you to get it together.”

Malick looked a little adverse to Nathan’s statement and frowned.

“Ugh,” sighed Nathan. “Yes, Malick — both of you!” Nathan turned to glare at Jonathan and then at Malick. “I can’t do this all by myself!”

“Can’t do what by yourself?” asked Leah. Her shoulder-length, mousy brown hair was tucked behind her ears. She wore a Justin Bloomer T-shirt very similar to the one Jonathan wore.

“Angela?” he asked, smiling weakly at her.

Leah paused and for a moment looked confused. “Oh, yeah,” she said, looking down and repositioning the strap to her knitted bag that lay across her shirt. She held up her wrist and chuckled. “With matching glow in the dark wristband.”

Nathan shook his head and smiled. “Don’t you go an
ywhere without that bag?”

Leah chucked lightly.
“You don’t miss anything do you…?” she said. “But seriously, I know you’re like the master of dodging questions. What’s going on? What can’t you do by yourself?”

“What is
he
doing out here?” asked Nathan, abruptly.

“What?” asked Leah. She attempted to follow Nathan’s gaze into the crowd. “Are you trying
to ignore my question again?”

“No, no,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m just surprised to see Argus out here and on top of it, talking to Chief Rosales….”

“Argus?” interrupted Malick. “The crazy guy that runs the lake?” He turned to search the crowd and quickly spotted him. “What is he doing out here?”

“That’s what I said,” responded Nathan. “And talking to the Chief of Police.”

“Hopefully it has nothing to do with the Order or ratting us out for our abilities,” said Malick.

“The Order?” asked Leah, appearing confused. “What’s the Order?”

She paused; the crowd of people dancing and watching the concert had grown and had finally reached them. “What does the tourist and recreation manager for Lake Charleston have to do with this Order?”

“Nathan didn’t tell you?” said Malick, before Nathan could respond. “He has a tattoo of the Firewalker symbol on his forearm. I’m thinking it’s a good guess he’s a member of the Order.”

“Firewalker symbol?” uttered Leah. “The same one Jonathan and Dr. Helmsley found in the caves?” She turned to look at Nathan. “I thought this was something new — the reason for Jonathan’s research? How is it on some guy’s arm?”

Malick raised his eyebrows and grinned, while Leah stared at Nathan, waiting for a response.

“Ugh,” sighed Nathan. His eyes pleaded with Jonathan’s for help. “It’s complicated.”

“Complicated?” blurted Leah.

“Yes,” whispered Nathan. Even though the music was loud, he paused to see if anyone around them tried to listen. “It’s complicated and we shouldn’t talk about it here.”

“Who else knows about this, Nathan?” she asked, fe
rvently. “Does Lafonda know?” She paused. Several people behind them danced erratically and she took a step forward to stop from being elbowed. “What else haven’t you told me?”

“Umm — and speaking of the Order,” said Jonathan, chiming in. He paused to repos
ition his glasses after being shoved forward. “I have an update from Dr. Colvers; it’s about the prophecy.”

“Prophecy?” asked Leah, with a deep sigh. She turned to look at Jonathan and then at Nathan. “What’s going on, N
athan?”

A few frown lines appeared on Nathan’s forehead as he gawked at Jonathan. “Jon
athan, really — are you serious? Now is not the time!” he shouted. Abruptly, Nathan was shoved forward and after he caught his footing, he rolled his eyes at Malick, who continued to smile. “Ugh, and if someone elbows me one more time — Jonas!”

Disgruntled, Nathan turned around to find Jonas dancing erratically; he was almost on top of him. Jonas’s shaggy dark hair was moist, and several curls lay stuck to his for
ehead. Nathan groaned as the tall and slender teenager smiled back at him.

“Isn’t this great!” yelled Jonas. He continued to bop up and down while nodding his head. “Justin Bloomer is the best!”

“Jonas!” yelled Nathan.

“Don’t stop movin’. Don’t stop groovin’ — feel your heart beat!” Jonas sang, aloud. “I love this song!”

Leah continued to stare at Nathan with raised eyebrows and Nathan smiled weakly. “Ugh,” he said, as Jonas bumped into him again. “I didn’t know you were this much into pop music.”

Jonas nodded and continued to dance.

“Nathan?” called Leah. “Are you going to tell me or what?”

“Hey, guys!” yelled Samantha, joining them. She stood in between Nathan and Leah and tried not to be elbowed by Jonas. “Why are you guys still standing around? My party isn’t that boring, is it?”

“No, not at all,” smiled Malick. “In fact….” He paused to look out into the crowd. “I was just about to ask Lafonda to dance — and I’m sure she’s saving a dance for me.”

Surprised, Samantha quickly turned to look at him and then frowned. “Well, speaking of dancing,” she said, shaking her head. “That’s why I came back over. She turned to look at Nathan. “I wanted to see if you wouldn’t mind d
ancing with the birthday girl.”

Nathan smiled wide and Samantha smiled back at him. He could feel his cheeks and ears burn red, but his smile soon faded when he noticed Leah glaring at him. “Umm, Leah,” he stuttered. “You’ve met Sam, right?”

“Yes, Nathan,” responded Leah. “This summer, remember? At the banquet.”

“Awkward,” said Malick with a grin.

“Right, right,” said Nathan. “At the closing ceremony for camp.”

“Well, don’t let me keep you, Nathan,” continued Leah. “I know you have more i
mportant things to do. You don’t want to keep the birthday girl waiting.”

“Leah,” said Nathan, sympathetically.

“Is this a bad time?” asked Samantha. “I can come back later….”

“No, no, perfect timing,” said Malick with a grin and N
athan frowned.

“Nope, I was just leaving,” said Leah, while rumbling i
nside her bag. “I just need to grab my cell phone and then I’ll be out of Nathan’s hair.”

“Leah,” said Nathan, again.

Leah looked up at him. She was suddenly pushed forward. “Ugh!” she cried out, dropping her bag.

“Sorry, Leah,” stuttered Jonas. “I was dancing. I didn’t mean to!”

A look of horror crept upon Leah’s face as the contents of her bag spewed across the ground. All around her people kept dancing as she frantically tried to pick up items amongst the kicking feet and the rolling fog.

“Jonas!” Nathan wailed.

“Here, let me help you,” said Samantha sympathetically, as she bent to assist.

“I got it,” said Leah, swiftly placing the last few items i
nto her bag and springing to her feet.

“Did you lose this too?” asked Samantha. She stood up, revealing the gold and silver object in her hand.

Instantly, Nathan’s eyes grew wide. Malick and Jonathan responded the same. Soon, the gold and silver object burned a bright blue, revealing its crescent shape in the darkness.

“Uh — Sam?” uttered Nathan.

“I said I got it!” cried Leah, and before she could take the object from Samantha’s hand, a blinding bright light appeared in front of them … forming a white doorway.

The entire section of Lynn Field on which they stood lit up. For a split second, it was as if daylight had made an i
mpromptu appearance in the darkness. Leah snatched the object from Samantha’s hand and the light and doorway disappeared.

“Leah!” shouted Nathan. “What are you d
oing with that medallion?”

Several people around them had stopped dancing and had confused looks on their faces. “Okay, okay, Bloomer grou
pies … nothing to see here!” said Malick aloud. “Turn back around — just a part of the show.” Slowly, people started dancing again, but one guy continued to stare. “What buddy? Haven’t you seen a light show?”

“It’s nothing, Nathan,” said Leah, clutching the medallion tightly in her hand. “It b
elonged to Pius. I took it the night you rescued us from Grimm Cemetery.”

“The hell it’s nothing!” shouted Nathan, and Malick looked surprised. “Do you know how much danger you’re in — the danger you’ve put us all in?”

“Calm down there, cowboy,” said Malick. “Before you give yourself a heart attack.” He placed himself between them. “And you don’t need to draw more attention to yourself.”

Nathan stopped to give Malick a stern look. “And what the heck was that?” he asked, dramatically, pointing in the direction the white doorway had appeared. “What was all that bright light? You can’t tell me that was nothing. That definitely was not nothing!”

“I don’t know, Nathan,” said Leah, shaking her head. “It’s never done that before. It hasn’t done anything until today.”

Suddenly, the music stopped and the noise from the over-zealous crowd decreased to inaudible chattering. “Give me the meda
llion,” said Nathan.

“Guys…” said Jonas, faintly.

Leah frowned. “I’m not giving you the medallion, Nathan.”

“Guys,” said Jonas, again.

“Give — me — the medallion, Leah!” demanded Nathan.

“You guys!” shouted
Jonas.

“What?” they both screamed.

“I think something’s happening,” he said, pointing toward the stage.

Quickly, Nathan turned around. He immediately noticed that everyone had stopped dancing, and all eyes were on the stage. One by one, all the musicians on stage backed up from the grayish white mist that spill
ed out from the scaffolding. It appeared to have originated from the supported curtains on its’ right side. Nathan thought it looked like one big gray mass because every object it passed was washed in gray. Only the people remained in color. Justin Bloomer, who was still standing center stage, had finally abandoned his microphone.

“I’ve seen that before…,” said Leah, tre
mbling.

“I know,” said Nathan. “I’ve seen it before too — in my dreams — when they were co
ming after you.”

Just then, Lauren stepped out from out of the dark stage corner, which was surroun
ded by the grayish mist. She had a wide grin and her sparking green eyes soon blazed a fiery red. From the shadows, Luke and Laban also appeared, followed by two Scarlet Priests. Both priests remained hooded, marked by the black crescent-shaped medallions around their necks.

Two security guards immediately rushed the stage. Laban had subdued one of them and he was soon docile after La
uren stroked his face. Swiftly, Laban had moved to restrain the other guard, but Luke had already tossed him off the stage.

The security guard shot through the crisp night air like a rocket, only to hit the ground in a thunderous thud. Several women screamed and the crowd started to panic as people tried to maneuver past his lifeless body.

“Oh, shit!” grumbled a tiny elderly woman as she attempted to scurry past Nathan.

Frantically, the crowd fled the stage. Nathan took Leah’s hand and together, along with the others, tried to move to the side before they were trampled. Droves of people e
scaped to their cars. “Okay, this is crazy!” yelled Nathan.

“What is Lauren doing here?” stammered Leah. “I know she had posters of Justin Bloomer in our dorm room when she was pretending to be Amanda — but this is ta
king crazed fan to a new level.”

“Nathan!” called Jonas, with trepidation in his voice. “Did they just kill that security guard?”

The two Scarlet Priests that accompanied them were now center stage; their black crescent-shaped medallions glowing green against their ruby red cloaks. Behind them, Lauren paced obsessively, but her face gave way to a wide maniacal smile after they pointed in Nathan’s direction. It was as if her fiery red eyes burned right through him as she beamed in delight.

“What
do they want?” bellowed Leah.

“Well … you,” said Malick mockingly and Nathan frowned. With raised eyebrows, Malick shrugged his shou
lders. “What … it’s true?”