Surviving ELE (ELE Series #4) (6 page)

“Don’t worry, if he tries to hurt you, Alec and I will be right there to defend you.” Connor slaps me on the shoulder lightly.

His words don’t comfort me in the least. The thought of someone hurting Tony brings out the protective instincts within me. I don’t want anything bad to happen to him. Well, at least nothing worse than what has already occurred. “I don’t want anyone hurting Tony. You can subdue him if need be, but please don’t hurt him. He’s still good. He hasn’t lost complete touch with reality.” I fail to mention the fact that Tony is much stronger than the two of them combined, so good luck with that.

“How can you possibly know that, Willow? Didn’t he try to kill you?” I hadn’t realized that Alec had entered in on our quiet conversation until now. Last I saw, he was in the back of the group making sure everyone was keeping pace.
We lock eyes and I can see the anger in them as well as the protective instincts he feels towards me.

I answer him assuredly. “I know because we talked last night.”

“What?” Alec says all too loudly, drawing unwanted attention.

I shush him and look back at the people behind us. They look at us with interest. I make my voice even quieter now that they’re aware of our conversation. “I could hear him from the woods. I stayed in my room. He didn’t come any closer than the tree line and he only stayed for a few minutes. He apologized for chasing me. He has no control of himself when Zack takes over.”

“What do you mean you could hear him?” Claire asks. I cringe, realizing I’m now going to have to divulge our secret.

I can’t help looking at Alec when I answer. He doesn’t look happy at all. “We don’t fully understand the why of it, but for some reason, Tony and I can speak to each other through our minds.”

Alec does a horrible job of trying to mask his hurt.

“I’m sorry,”
I try to say in my mind to him. Of course, he doesn’t hear me. Would it be easier if he did? If what Tony and I share is something that I can share with anyone I wish...if it wasn’t special?

Connor looks intrigued and says, “That is so cool. Can you do it with me?” He closes his mouth and gives me an intense look, that borderlines a creepy, serial-killer glare. When I don’t answer him, he moves his face closer to me, leaving only two inches between us.

I reach my hand up between us and gently push his face away with the palm of my hand. “Um, no. I don’t think it works that way. In fact, I’ve never been able to speak to someone and have them hear me. I can hear your thoughts, if I want to of course, since that’s my original gift, but I can’t send my thoughts to you. I don’t know why I am able to do that with Tony.”

Claire senses the tension between Alec and me, so she politely changes the subject. “Do you think that Erik and his people will be able to help us?”

“I hope so, since we’re almost there. If not, at least they can provide us shelter for a day or two,” I answer.

We see a break in the woods not far ahead. I motion for everyone to stay quiet as we come upon the paved road. Just like the last time, it’s eerily quiet.

We follow the road, sticking close to the tree line, ready to take shelter if need be. Soon, we make out the grouping of scattered log cabins up ahead. We walk under the arch that holds the sign declaring this place: Camp Cheley.

From what I can see, there is no sign of life. That’s not much to go on though, since the first time we came everyone did a great job of hiding. I wonder though, if they abandoned this place after everything went down at the shelter.

We walk up to the main building that they call: The Commons. I put my hands up in the air and motion for everyone else to do the same. “Erik?” I call out. “We mean no harm.” A minute passes with no sign at all that this camp is still occupied.

“Nobody’s home,” Connor says.

I turn and glare at him. “Quiet.”

We wait in silence and allow another two minutes or so to pass. That’s when I hear the distinct sound of ammo being chambered into a shotgun behind us.

I turn, keeping my hands in the air, to find that we’ve been completely surrounded. I look at the intimidating number of people that hold a wide variety of weapons. Thankfully, I don’t see any red eyes among the crowd.

“What do you want?” demands a dark-haired, intimidating man in the middle of the group, who towers over six feet in height. Back in the day when sports were popular, he would have made a great basketball player. The most notable thing about him is the awesome pair of blacked-out aviator sunglasses he’s sporting. With the overcast sky today, it’s hardly needed, but they definitely make him look like a boss. When I breathe a sharp intake of air, he points his gun right at me, causing my palms to become a clammy mess.

I open my mouth to ask for Erik but Alec steps in front of me. “Hey, Morgan!”

Morgan turns his ear towards Alec. The hard set of his facial features seems to lighten just a tad.

“Alec, my man, long time no see.” He gives off a short laugh, as does Alec. He seems to relax slightly but he doesn’t drop his weapon. His voice is still intimidating as he asks, “What exactly are you doing here?”

“We’re looking for some help. Did you hear about what happened at the shelter?” Alec is smart enough not to move forward or drop his hands while he talks to Morgan.

I can see the posture of those holding weapons stiffen at the mention of the incident. Morgan answers somberly. “Yes. We heard of it. Many of the refugees are still with us. We heard about the number of people who were killed as well. That
they
took their bodies.” He shakes his head in disgust.

“Yes, some were killed. But, there is a lot more to the story than meets the eye. The people who were shot were not automatically killed. They were shot with tranquilizers to subdue them. We fear that there is a greater conspiracy at work here than our group is prepared to take on alone. We would like to meet with Erik about this matter as soon as possible,” Alec says.

Alec has the natural qualities of a leader. He used to be my boss after all, so he doesn’t lack experience. The tone of voice he uses can calm any situation and put the most anxious of people at ease. I wonder if things were different, would he be the one leading our people instead of me?

Morgan speaks to one of his men in a volume meant to keep us from listening. We allow him a few seconds before he answers. “We will take you to Erik, but the rest of the group must stay here under our watch until Erik says otherwise.”

I open my mouth to make an objection, but Alec does it for me. “I will come with you but I also request that you allow me to bring our leader with us to meet with Erik.”

Morgan looks at Alec. “Are you not their leader?”

Alec shakes his head and smiles. “No.”

“Then who is?” Morgan asks.

Alec gestures to me. “This is Willow Mosby, the leader of our team.”

A man to his left whispers in his ear. Then, both he and Morgan laugh. Not just a normal laugh either, a bountiful, belly-shaking laugh. The rest of their group joins in as if they all heard this inside joke. “She’s a babe,” Morgan says with humor.

Embarrassed and a bit peeved, I drop my hands and place them on my hips. “Excuse me?” Some of the men tense at my sudden movement, so I put my hands in the air again. “I don’t see what my looks have to do with my ability to effectively lead these people.”

Morgan laughs again. My cheeks heat and I give him a heated, fiery glare as he takes such obvious amusement in me. I wish he would take off those stupid glasses so we can meet eye to eye. I have to force myself not to unleash the wrath of my powers on him to show just how capable I am. Don’t think the thought of uprooting a tree or snatching those sunglasses off his face hasn’t crossed my mind.

He holds up his hands as if to keep me from getting more upset. “Don’t get me wrong, they say you are cute and all but...” He has to stifle another fit of laughter. “I meant that you are young, like a baby...babe...” He holds his side with his free hand as if his fit of laughter caused him pain.

“Oh,” I say. Understanding his meaning doesn’t make it any less mortifying. “Well, I am sixteen years old and I fully expect that you will allow me to accompany Alec to speak with Erik. He knows of me and would not be happy if you kept me from meeting with him.” I stand up as tall as I can, lengthening my spine.

The man next to him whispers in his ear again. I really wish I could hear what they are saying. I try to read their minds but it’s to no avail. A hint of amusement flashes across Morgan’s face. He waves his hand at us. “Very well then. You two, come with me.”

I roll my eyes and take the lead in front of Alec, heading towards Morgan. His men take special care not to point their guns directly at us as we approach.

Alec immediately holds his hand out and he and Morgan do that manly handshake-half hug thing that guys do. Is this what they rehearse on a guy’s night out? Alec steps aside and gives me a look that I can’t quite interpret.

Morgan holds his hand out towards me. I shake his hand and the instant our hands touch, he audibly takes a breath. The men next to him tense. I look at Morgan with surprise. I can’t see anything past the black lenses of his glasses. They are so opaquely dark that I have no idea how he can actually see through them. He holds on to my hand a little too long, making me feel uncomfortable. Finally, he lets go of my hand and smiles at me. “It’s nice to meet you, Willow.”

“Nice to meet you too.” I have to force myself not to wipe my hand on my pants. It’s not that his hands were sweaty or gross by any means, it’s just that the whole greeting has me a bit weirded out. I hate that my hands get clammy, that’s no quality for a leader to have.

With the introductions out of the way, Morgan turns around. Someone hands him a small, black, stick-looking thing. With a flick of a wrist, he turns it into a long cane. I look at Alec and then back to Morgan as we begin walking around our group, towards the entrance to The Commons. Morgan uses the cane to guide himself.

Is he blind?

Morgan’s men don’t follow us. They stay behind to keep an eye on our group. When we reach the door to The Commons, it opens automatically. Like before, I see the invisible man with purple eyes standing behind it. I wonder if he’s their permanent doorman, seeing as how he was here the last time we came.

“We’ll wait in our meeting room for Erik.” Morgan directs us to the same room I waited in last time. I take a seat in one of the swivel chairs. I can’t help but feel the weight that comes with seeing the empty chairs to my left. The ones that my mom and Tony sat in the last time we were here. I take a deep breath, exhaling through the painful memories.

As if reading my feelings, Alec sits to my right and puts his hand gently on my knee. I give him a weak smile.

Morgan calls to someone in the hall. “Please have Erik meet us in here at his earliest convenience.”

“Yes sir.” I hear a woman call back.

Morgan enters the room and closes the door behind him. He takes a seat on the other side of the table across from me. Using both of his hands, he pushes the cane in on itself, making it only about six inches long. He sets it on top of the table to his right and places both of his hands above the table in a steeple position. “You are a very special woman, Willow.”

I look at him strangely and then look to Alec, who has an amused expression on his face. “Thank you,” I say to Morgan.

He removes his sunglasses. He keeps his eyes closed for a second before he slowly opens them.

I gasp in shock as I look into his eyes. Alec gently squeezes my knee as if saying it’s okay. Morgan’s eyes lack almost all pigmentation. His black pupils stand out in stark contrast to his white irises. Only when I look closely enough can I tell that there is a slight difference between the iris and the sclera. I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m stunned speechless.

Morgan puts his sunglasses on again. I hate to admit that it makes me feel a little more at ease with him. I chide myself because different is not bad. I’m just not used to seeing anyone with eyes like that. I shiver as I wonder what in the world that color can mean.

“I’m a reader,” he says as if reading the question that floats in the air. “From what I’ve seen in you, it won’t be long before you’re one too.”

I blink a few times but have a hard time finding the right words. I have so many questions about this new ability. “Will I be blind too?” I instantly feel guilty that this was the first question that came blubbering from my mouth.

Not seeming bothered by it, he shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know. From what I’ve seen of your other abilities, I think that the loss of sight will affect you only when you use the gift.”

“Were you blind before?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “No, it came on as suddenly as the gift did. I guess it was good that we left the shelter lines at nighttime.”

“Huh?” I ask, not understanding what that has to do with anything.

He leans back in his chair and crosses his legs. “I guess since you will be able to read me soon anyway, I might as well tell you the whole story.” He gives me an amused smile. “It will be nice having someone around with my same gift. I haven’t run into any others yet... Anyhow, I digress... My brothers are the only family I have left. Much like you, it wasn’t until I took the immunization that I realized that one of my brothers was declined.”