Winter's Scars: The Forsaken (Winter's Saga 5) (9 page)

Cole’s attention was on the road but he listened to Evan and wondered where he was going with this conversation.

“How so?” she asked as she turned around in her seat as far as her seat belt would allow.

“Well, when you could tell my phone was going to ring and that it was ‘an anxious male’ calling.  That is definitely new.”

Meg shrugged.  “What did I used to do?  Maybe we should start there.”  She was having a hard time keeping the fatigue from her voice.

“Prior to Kentucky, you were a powerful empath, able to read emotions of those around you and even channel people far from you.   You could reach inside them and somehow lift away their emotional pain.  You were a healer of hearts, essentially.  More recently, you could push your influence on some people, under certain conditions, to get them to do what you wanted.”

“That feels about right,” she said softly, deep in thought.

Evan looked up and to the left, chewing on the inside of his cheek for a moment.  “Maybe it’s like people who lose their sight or hearing.  The remaining senses become more acute to make up for the loss.  It’s God’s way of righting the scales.”

“So I lose my memory and gain even more psychic skill?”  Meg mulled the idea over. “Interesting theory.”  She nodded slowly.  “Do all metahumans have gifts like mine?” she asked.

“No,” Cole answered.  “I don’t.”

“He’s right, Meg.  You, Alik and I were the original three metahumans.  Something about the serum we were given created more than just metahumans.  We evolve into more—with individualized heightened abilities.”

“What is yours?”

“I don’t know.  My evolution hasn’t happened yet.  But if the pattern continues, it will springboard from part of my current abilities.  You were always highly emotional, sensitive to those around you.  You turned into an empath.  Alik…”

“Yes, what about Alik?”

“He was always the strongest and had this amazing eidetic memory.  Now he hulks out when he gets his adrenaline pumping and can rip a tree from the ground.”

“Seriously, he can.  We’ve seen him do it.  It’s pretty awesome—well, not for the tree, but you know.” Cole smiled at the memory.

“Right, well, his perfect memory turned into an ability to see back in time.  It’s how he could track us to Kentucky.  He calls it ‘retro-cognition’ or ‘retro-cogging’,” Evan explained.

“And you?  What do you predict your evolution will bring you?” Meg asked, truly curious.

“I don’t know.  I’ve always been a problem solver: puzzles, codes, medicine, mechanics, engineering—that’s all right up my alley.”

“At what age does the evolution take place?”

“It seems different for everyone—kinda like puberty.  You evolved after being shot with a malarial virus in Hawaii.”

Meg’s eyes got wide.  “What?” 

“Wow, that’s a long story,” Cole whistled.

“Okay, for another day,” Meg conceded.

“Yeah, well, you were sixteen.  Alik was fifteen.  I’m only thirteen.” He shrugged with obvious frustration.

“It still could happen at any time though, right?  What are the signs it’s starting?”  Meg asked.

“Sickness.  A very high fever, chills—you get the idea.  It lasted two or three days before you and Alik started to come out of it.”

“Interesting,” Meg mused.  “So how do you feel?”  She asked with a soft smile.

“Fine, unfortunately,” Evan sighed.

“Okay guys, that’s enough Metahumans 101.  It’s time to go see your mom, Meg,” Cole urged.

“I am still astounded that she’s regained some sensation.  This I really cannot wait to see
.” Evan’s eyes lit up at the thought.

“Do you think Maze is okay?” Meg asked as they piled out of the SUV.

“I think we left him in very capable hands.  One thing at a time, Meg.  Let’s go introduce you to the woman who has given up her life for you.”  Evan put his hand protectively on his sister’s elbow as he’d seen Creed do.  It seemed like the gentlemanly thing. 

Meg turned to look at up at her little brother.  He stood just over six feet tall and weighed two-hundred pounds.  The only thing youthful about the way he looked was the fuzz on his upper lip.  Evan’s intelligent hazel eyes framed in long lashes were a striking feature.  His lashes started dark brown at the base but changed color to light blonde at the nearly invisible tips.  Lashes any girl would be envious of. 

Meg cocked her head and looked at him.  “It’s coming, little brother.” She said ominously.

“What?”

“Your evolution.  I think I can sense a shift near in your future.”

Evan blushed deeply at his sister’s words.  “I hope you’re right, Meg.  We could use all the gifts we can get next time we face Williams and Arkdone.”

Meg stared off into space for a moment, sensing something dark but every time she reached to decipher the vibration, it slipped further away.

“What is it, Meg?”  Cole asked, worriedly.

“I don’t know.  Something about your evolution, Evan, but I can’t quite feel what it is.”  She shook her head and blinked several times, forcing herself back in the here and now.

“Well, do you need more time or are you ready to go inside?” Cole asked
, tactfully motioning toward the hospital.  They’d been standing on the front steps of the well-manicured hospital. 

Meg took a deep breath and stepped toward the building as her answer.  Her lithe body was hidden beneath the baggy jeans and shirt, but Cole couldn’t help watching the sway of her slim hips as she walked across
the lobby toward the elevators. 

Don’t get your hopes up,
he warned himself. 
You were just getting over her.  Don’t read into anything she says or does right now.  Heck, she has no memory of who or what she really is. Besides, it’s not like loving her has brought you anything but pain and heartache.

He forced himself to look away from the way her curls escaped her pony holder beautifully at the nape of her long, slender neck. 

Oh, who am I kidding?
he moaned inwardly. 
If she crooks her finger at me, I would trip over my own feet to run to her.  What a sap. 
He shook his head and let his eyes crawl back across her profile as they waited for the elevator. 

She turned and looked at Cole over her shoulder.

His face turned three shades of red as he realized she was completely aware of the way he felt for her. 
Damn it!  He couldn’t be the strong, silent type around a girl who could dissect your feelings with surgical precision.
  He moaned inwardly. 

The perfect corner of her mouth curled a fraction of an inch.  Her eyes never left his.

I’m so screwed.
He rubbed the stubble he hadn’t bothered shaving off his face and tried to change the subject.

“What floor did they say she’s on?” he asked.  He was trying to force himself to change his thoughts.

“Third,” Evan said, completely oblivious of the entire exchange between his sister and his friend.  “She’s in room 301.” 

They stepped into the
elevator and stood watching the numbers climb with them. 

“Are you nervous, Meg?” Evan asked.

“No.  Should I be?”

“No, no.”

The doors opened and the boys followed Meg as she walked confidently to the room labeled 301.  Sitting in the waiting room right across the way was Alik plopped on the floor with a little boy in his lap.  Beside him sat Farrow, grinning from ear to ear at something Alik was saying.  Creed was flipping through a men’s health magazine but looked up the moment the elevator chimed open. 

Meg locked eyes with Creed and stared for a moment before a squeal of excitement forced her to look for its source.  The sweetest smile was plastered over the face of an angelic little boy running to her.  Meg caught him in midleap.

“Well, hello little monkey,” Meg laughed at the way the little boy wrapped his arms and legs around her, giving her a full-body hug.

He clung to her for a moment before pulling back and looking deeply into her dark eyes. A worried expression swept across his small brow.   His two little hands reached up and held her cheeks softly.  He leaned in and rested his soft forehead against hers.  Instinctively, Meg closed her eyes and listened to her gift.

The little boy was pure love.  He showed her how much he missed her.  Images crisp and clear flashed before her mind’s eye of a middle-aged woman in a wheelchair crying quietly.  She saw a man lift her frail body lovingly from her chair, lay her in bed and curl up beside her to warm her dead legs with his heat.

Meg saw from the little boy’s vantage the fear and worry the couple had for the children who had been gone for too long.

Then the little boy did something that completely surprised her.  He reached behind her and touched the back of her head.  Meg felt a warm glow right where her cold, still-wet hair clung. 

“Danny?” She asked softly, not wanting to break his concentration, but still so curious about what he was doing to make her feel
warmth with his small hand.

The little boy murmured something incoherent, but didn’t let go for a full minute.  By the time he did, he pulled away and yawned deeply. 
Then he draped himself over her boney shoulder in an act of complete trust and love.

Then she heard him whisper exactly what she felt emanating from him.  “I missed you so much, Meggie.”

“I’m back, little one.  I’m back,” she cooed.  Instinctively she held his small, toasty warm back and rocked his sleepy body back and forth.  The rest of the room watched in amazement at the instant connection between the little boy and the damaged girl.  But what made jaws drop was hearing the previously mute toddler speak English perfectly—not a hint of baby talk as he spoke his complete sentence.

Meg was so engrossed in the kindred spirit in her arms, she didn’t distinguish the other hospital sounds including that of Margo’s door opening.  Her mother was doggedly working to wheel the chair out of her room but stopped in her tracks at the sight of her eldest child cradling her youngest, as if they were always meant to be. 

Meg realized she was crying only when she felt Danny pull back and wipe her face dry with his little pudgy fingers.  For the first time since her memory had been stolen, she felt as if she was where she belonged.

Chapter 17 Coydogs and Dark Dreams

They’d received a call from the vet who explained the surgical procedure he had to conduct to save Maze’s life.  Apparently, there was a lot of internal bleeding he had to go in and clean up.  Maze wasn’t out of the woods yet, but he was beginning to recover.  That was the most they could have prayed for after all he’d been put through.

“Just keep this sweet
animal away from whatever monster did this to him.  I’m serious.  He cannot take another beating like that.  He’s not getting any younger and he already seems to have had a hard life with all the scars I’ve found on him.”

“Yes, sir.” Evan’s demeanor was serious.

“Have you studied coyotes, son?”

“Oh, yes sir.”

“How about German Shepherds?”

“No, not really.”

“You should.  I grew up with a Shepard—love those dogs, but they have a highly developed need to protect.  They are loyal to a fault to those they consider their own, and aloof with outsiders.  The best way to keep this hybrid safe is to keep those he considers his family safe. He will run right up to danger fearlessly and attack if he believes his people are threatened.” 

“Thank you doctor,” Evan said, looking over at Meg and hearing the truth in the vet’s thoughtful words.  “We appreciate everything you’ve done for Maze.”

“All animals are worth saving, but this one…this one really needed another chance.  I’m glad I could give him that.”

“When will he be ready to come home?”

“I’d like to keep him for at least one night, possibly two.  I need to monitor his heart while I keep him sedated for pain management.  We have to keep him still so his body can heal.”

“I understand.”

“Tell that tired little dark-eyed girl to come visit him.  He seems to have a special connection with her.” 

“Yes, sir.  When she wakes, I’m sure she’ll be insisting on heading to your office.”

“Good, they both need their rest for now.”

“Thanks again, doctor.”

“Goodbye for now, son.”

Chapter  18 Thrashing the Bushes

Senator Arkdone retrieved a Cuban cigar from his humidor and ran it under his nose.  “Deliciously sweet with a hint of nut and cedar,” he mused to himself before clipping the end with cigar cutters.

“You have always had excellent taste in cigars, Senator.  Excellent.”  Adrian Roth gave Arkdone a mock bow and reached out with a lighter.  Absently, the Senator leaned forward to accept the light, puffed several times, rolling the tobacco in his fingers to allow the flame to work its way evenly across the tip.

“Let’s get right to it, Roth.  Where is she?”