Ending ELE (ELE Series) (19 page)

“
We will,” he tells me.

Claire gives me a hug.
“You be safe too, Willow.”

“
Always.” I give her a wry grin. I look over at Michael and consider sending him with the others, but I don’t. I can’t tell if I trust this man just yet and I’d rather have him close to me and not with my little brother.

As Connor, Claire, Carrie and the kids run off, I begin
frantically calling for Tony again in my head.
“Tony!”
I need him to hear me.

Please let the vision be true
, I think to myself.
He has to be okay. He’s going to ask me to marry him…
My thoughts trail off as I try to make a connection with Tony.

Alec, Marya, Michael
, and my dad stand with me, not sure about what to do next. I cock my head to the side and they follow me into the brush. At least this way we won’t be in the middle of a field and vulnerable to an attack.

Think Willow, think.
Alec, Marya, and my dad start leaning in towards me. It’s kind of creepy and they’re definitely invading my personal space. I raise my hand at them. “Give me a little room, please,” I whisper. It’s like they didn’t even realize they were leaning towards me as they blush and look away.
Okay, that was weird.
Michael crouches about two yards in front of us, looking at us all huddled together awkwardly.

I give him a stare that says
,
You better not start too
. Thankfully, he obliges and keeps his distance.

We stay huddled together for what seems like forever, Michael taking point.
As the minutes tick by and with no sign of Tony, nervousness courses through my veins like tiny steam engines. I try to fight the anxiety but find it hard to just sit here and do nothing.

“
Psst,” I say, trying to get Michael’s attention. He stealthily bridges the gap between us. Alec, Marya, and my dad have again allowed themselves to become plastered against my side. I kindly try to push them away so I can get some air again. Thankfully, Michael doesn’t mention it.

“
I can’t stand to wait here any longer,” I whisper to the group. I feel like ants are crawling all over my skin. I’m about to come unglued. Not being able to communicate with Tony or know if he’s okay has my stomach in knots. Michael nods in understanding.

Michael pipes up into the silence.
“We have to be smart about this. We can’t let our emotions get the better of us.”

I nod my head.
The simple act of standing and running in the direction of the house full force wouldn’t be a good idea for any of us. Still… don’t think that thought hasn’t crossed my mind. I rub my chin, trying to think.

“
I think we need to split up,” I say. “We’ll cover more ground that way. I know it isn’t ideal but I can’t just sit here and hope Tony crosses our path.”

“
I agree,” my dad says. The others nod their heads in affirmation.

“
I’ll take Michael with me and you three stay together.” I can’t mention that even though Michael saved Tony’s life, I still don’t trust him completely… Well, at least not enough to leave him alone with one of my friends or family. His intentions are about as clear as muddy water to me. Thankfully, the others agree.

“
We’ll go to the left, as far as the river, and stake out that area. You three go to the right. With any luck, one of us will find Tony along the way. We can meet back at the river below the cave that we stayed in before we found the Hastings’ house.” I shiver at the name but continue. “We need to be especially careful as we stake out the house. There’s no doubt that these guys will have left a surveillance team in the hopes that we decide to come back.”

I look over at Michael and see the agreement in his eyes.
Marya is almost in my lap and I not so kindly push her away arm’s length. She begins to lean towards Michael, making Alec slightly irritated. Removing Michael from the equation might be a good idea, considering the murderous look on Alec’s face right now.

I pull my dad in for a hug.
“Please be careful,” I whisper, hugging him tight.

He pats my back, a soothing and comforting gesture.
“I will,” he whispers back. He pulls me back at an arm’s length and looks me in the eyes. “Don’t do anything to risk your life, Willow. And I mean it. I know you love him, but we need you too,” he says in his stern, fatherly voice.

I nod my head that I heard him…
I just can’t make that kind of promise though. I would do anything to keep Tony safe. But, right now, my dad doesn’t need to know that.

We all say our goodbyes and part ways.
I watch as their figures fade into the early dawn light before Michael and I leave. We comb the area, looking for Tony. I bite my nails as we walk, a gesture of nervousness I thought I had outgrown.

“
You know, biting your nails is not a very good habit,” Michael says, pointing out the obvious.

I give him a look that says
,
Leave me alone.
He chuckles and shakes his head but keeps his comments to himself.

“
He’s obviously not around here. We are going to need to get closer to the house,” I tell him, feeling frustrated after walking circles around the perimeter of Dr. Hastings’s secret exit for over twenty minutes.

“
I guess we have no choice then.” He doesn’t look happy about it, but he straightens his shoulders and nods his head in a ‘move out’ kind of way.

We don
’t talk much throughout the mile walk there. Mostly because we don’t want to give away our position but also because we have nothing to say to each other.

The knots in my stomach begin tightening as
we near the house slowly and carefully. I try not to think about all that is at stake here.

Michael starts moving to higher ground above the house and I follow his lead. We
’d have a better vantage point of the area from up there. We make our way to the top of a small hill and look down. We can see the home about a quarter mile away.

“
We should go invisible and make our way closer to the house,” I say to Michael, breaking our silence. “My only worry is they have someone stationed at the house with light blue eyes, able to see through my abilities.”

Michael scratches his chin, contemplating this.
He nods and I grab his hand, noticing how
not
like Tony’s his hand is. We take one last look down the hill and then we go invisible.

Stealthily
, we make our way down towards the house. I notice Michael looking down every now and again, obviously surprised to not see the rest of his body. It looks somewhat silly for someone like me, who can see him clear as day. He examines his other hand, turning it this way and that.

The sweat in our hands meld together and I can only hope that if Tony sees us first that he understands why I
’m holding onto Michael’s hand. With the house about a hundred yards ahead of us, we crouch down behind a fallen tree.

I bite my
lip, trying to sense if someone is near us. I let go of Michael’s hand now that we are safely out of view.

“
I don’t see anyone,” I whisper to him. I want to try to make my way back inside the house. Perhaps Tony is still in there.

Michael pulls out a pair of
binoculars from his backpack. He scans the area, looking for anything suspicious. I do the same minus the binoculars. I find a small raccoon wandering over by the house and I watch as it leads her babies over the forest floor, foraging for food.

Michael taps me on my arm, hands me the
binoculars, and points towards something. I put them up to my eyes and it doesn’t take me long to register a man. I am shocked that Michael even found him.

The man i
s covered from head to toe in a Ghillie suit. The only way I can notice him is when he goes to move the suit aside to take a sip of his water. I refocus the binoculars so I can see him better. I want to see what color his eyes are. After his large swig of water, the man sets the bottle down next to him on the floor. He takes a rag and uses it to wipe the sweat off his brow. That’s when I catch a glimpse of his eyes.

“
Light blue,” I whisper to Michael as I keep a close watch on his actions.

I zoom back out and watch the man
readjust the Ghillie suit back into place. I zoom out a bit when I see his suit shake as he gets up off the ground.

The raccoon had gotten closer to the man and must have not sensed him stationed near the house.
The raccoon stops as the man stands up. Her babies have stopped as well and are clustered around their mother. The man reaches his hand out, trying to shoo away the raccoon, frantically waving his hands around.

It looks
strange though. I know there is a man there, but all it looks like is leaves fluttering in the wind. One of the babies, I guess not sensing any danger, starts walking in the direction of the man. The man seems to be trying to get out of the suit as he wildly waves his arms and legs around. The little baby raccoon trips over something. I can’t find the source of what it must have tripped over, guessing it must have stumbled on a branch along the forest floor. The mama raccoon rears up on her back legs, ready to protect her baby. The man, not caring that he’s still in the suit, begins running wildly away from the house and the raccoon.

“
What the...?” I whisper but am cut off when Michael slams me to the ground, knocking the binoculars from my hands. I opened my mouth to protest when an explosion rings out through the trees. Starbursts shoot across my closed eyelids, my head is pounding against a deafened silence, and I can feel the heat immediately lick at my skin. I lie in the same position, seemingly unable to move. After what seems to be several minutes, in a mess of confusion, I turn my head toward the direction of the house. All I can see is a massive ball of flames as the house burns wildly in the cold, morning air.

I do
n’t register Michael’s absence when I first I sit up. My mind is still working to focus beyond the disorientation and confusion that the explosion caused. The ringing in my ears intensifies as my hearing ability increases. The remaining snow around me is melting, quickly turning to water and soaking into the ground. I begin to sweat underneath my clothes, the heat from the flames becoming overwhelming. I need to get out of here. I look around at my surroundings and can’t spot Michael anywhere.

Without
warning, someone behind me puts their hand over my mouth. I go to scream but nothing comes out. I writhe and thrash around, trying to escape for my life. There is no doubt in my mind that the man in the Ghillie suit has found me. Did they set off the explosion to throw me off guard? Fighting with all I am worth, using every last ounce of strength, I try to struggle loose, but to no avail.

A
small voice begins to speak inside my head.
“Willow, Willow!”
I recognize Tony’s voice filter through my mind.

“
Tony!”
I scream back. He can help me. I just need to fight this man off until Tony can get to me. I continue to fight harder against my assailant, promising myself to never give up. I’m flipped over with an ease that comes from someone with a good deal of strength. It gives me a new advantage to fight face to face with my attacker. I finally get a good look at his face and my hands stop hitting and fighting back.

I wrap
my arms around Tony. I was so scared I hadn’t even considered it was him behind me. Tears spill down my cheeks as I draw in his comforting embrace. My mind does not want to believe it is really him. I pull him back so I can see his face… that beautiful face. I put my hand to his cheek, running it down his stubble.

“
It’s really you…”
I say to him in my mind.

He nods
. “
I’m fine, Willow. Everything is going to be okay.”

Still
relishing the fact that Tony is okay, a thought strikes my mind.
Michael. Where is Michael?
I have no idea where he would have disappeared.

Tony, having sensed my thoughts
, pulls me at arm’s length, looking around the area. The flames still lick the sides of the house but have diminished in intensity.

“
We can’t wait for Michael,”
Tony says to me. “
He’ll be fine. I have to get you out of here though… somewhere safe. We’re completely exposed out here.”

I
feel guilty leaving without Michael but Tony has a point. I don’t know Michael that well, but if I had to bet, he’ll be fine out in the woods by himself. His survival skills are more than ample. Also, he knows where to meet us since all five of us set up the location at the cave to meet back up at. That thought comforts me a little.
“Okay then, we need to meet my dad, Alec, and Marya by the river. That’s our rally point.”

Tony nods in agreement. I wobble a bit
when we get moving again, but Tony’s healing ability filters through me, helping to steady me. He takes the lead as usual and I follow him quietly away from the burning remains of the Hastings’s house.