Power

by Theresa Jones

  He paused there, waiting for my reaction, I suppose, so I nodded for him to go on. There was no way I would interrupt him now. I could save my questions until the end. “If there had not been a police officer there, we would have just taken you home to recover. However, with the loss of Alex, it turned out to be a good thing he was there. All he saw was a group of friends being attacked by an apparent mugger, and he called for an ambulance. So, that is how you ended up here.” Pausing, he added, “Would you like to ask your questions now?”

  Trying to comprehend everything that had just been told to me and organize my thoughts, I started, “Apparently when you said you work with Rick, you meant that you are both the ‘good people with power’?” The sarcasm seeped into my tone much more than I meant it to.

  I guess that was not the question he was expecting because an almost worried look crossed his face. “Yes, so to speak. Is that really all he told you?”

  “Basically, yeah.” Not wanting him to start talking again before I asked all my questions, I went swiftly on, “Okay, for my next question, what did you mean when you said ‘If I had not arrived when I did, you would have suffered nearly the exact same death as Alex’?”

  Without any hesitation at all he answered, “I healed you. Or to be more precise, I healed your body from the damage done by the excess of power.”

  “Oh, is that all?” Once again, the sarcasm was very distinct, yet this time I meant it to come out as strongly as it did. “You ‘healed my body’ with, what, your ‘good power’? Because this all sounds like a load of crap to me!” I was too tired for this again. There had to be some other explanation for all the events that had occurred lately.

  Shocked, and maybe even hurt, he countered, “Is everything that happened not enough proof for you? Your fiancé is dead because you did not come with us when you were told to. Was the power flowing through you – not only yours and Rick’s, but also Damien’s – not enough proof for you? I can’t even imagine the pain that amount of power would have put you through! What will it take, Allison, to convince you? The death of your entire family – your mother and your daughter too? We may not always be around to save you. And have no doubt in your mind, Damien will return. You have not used your powers again, and we are shielding you, so he doesn’t know where you are right now, but he will. It will only be a matter of time. I wish there was some way I could impress upon you the severity of this, there is so much more at stake than you can imagine.”

  I tried to take that in. Alex was dead. I already knew that, but still, when he said it to me it felt like a slap in the face, or maybe more a blow to the gut. My Alex, the father of my daughter, the man I was going to marry, was dead. He was gone forever. I struggled to wrap my mind around it. I had never lost someone before, not really. My dad died when I was so young that it had always just been the way things were. But this was new.

  Was this even real? I momentarily hoped that I was crazy and delusional. My dreams had been so vivid; this could all be a horrible dream. But, of course, I knew it wasn’t a dream. Alex was dead, and this man thought that Damien would try to kill my mom and my baby. Dropping my head to my hands, I rubbed my face and my eyes, trying to calm myself down and comprehend everything that happened.

  Surrendering, I asked, “So what am I supposed to do now?” Whether there really was this epic battle between good and evil or not, Damien had killed Alex and would not hesitate to kill my Samantha, so if there was anything at all I could do to prevent it, I would.

  “Well…” I didn’t even look up; I couldn’t look at him. I didn’t want to. I wanted to take my daughter and run away. “You need to come with us. We can teach you how to control your power, and until you have full control, we can protect you.”

  What was he saying, just leave my family behind; leave my daughter behind? “And Sam and my mom too, right?” I sputtered, looking up sharply to find he was staring at me intently.

  At least he had the sense to look genuinely upset. “No, I am sorry; we cannot bring them where we are going. The Compound is hidden from the powerless. They could not come with you.”

  “Well then, what would be the point of me going with you? If I stay, they get murdered, if I go, they get murdered. Is there no way I can win?” I started crying. I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I was lost, hurt, and scared. I could handle being chased through a spooky forest by a scary demon man, but losing my entire family was inconceivable.

  “We can help them. We already have a shield around your house. As long as you don’t go back there, it will remain ok. But the longer you are in one place now, the easier it will be to find you because you aren’t in control of your power.”

  He walked over to me and sat down, his legs touching mine, draping his arm around my shoulders. I ignored the sparks of electricity that shot through me at his touch, and despite the fact that I did not even know this man, I fell into his chest and let the tears fall.

  “Shh…” He stroked my back tentatively, trying to calm me down.

  With red, blotchy eyes, I looked up at him. “What can we do? Tell me how I can save them and I will do it!” And I meant every word. I would do anything for them.

  He moved back, still on the bed, but no longer touching me. The space between us was a good thing; I didn’t want to think about the insatiable pull I had felt when we touched, it was too freaky and there were already too many freaky things going on.

  “We already have a shield around your house. As long as they stay there we can mask that your mother is your mother and that your daughter is your daughter. They will be safe, as long as you are not here. Damien and his men are tracking you, not them.

  The tears started flowing again, just enough to annoy me. So I would have to leave my family behind if I wanted to keep them safe and alive. Would this nightmare never end? David inched closer to me again to place his hand on my shoulder in a feeble attempt to comfort me, but this time I pushed away from him. I didn’t want to like him.

  “Why is this happening to me? What did I do so wrong that I have to lose everyone I love all at once? I don’t want this power, I want my damn life back.” After looking at me for a full three minutes, he stood up and walked back to that ugly chair. He sat there, just staring at me some more. He looked like he wanted to say something, but either did not know how, or did not want to upset me more, so he said nothing at all. I just stared back at him, hoping he would understand I meant it. I didn’t want to be a part of any of this.

  Eventually he picked up his phone, stood up again, and walked to the curtain. “Will you excuse me for a minute? I will see if there is anything at all I can do for you.” And with a nod of my head, he was gone.

  Finally I could cry freely without the unspoken judgments of people around me watching. In no time at all I was crying so hard the bed was trembling under me and my lap was starting to soak. I could no longer deny that David was right. I had seen amazing power, but more importantly, I had felt it. And I could never knowingly risk my family to that pain. But how could I ever leave my Sam behind, not knowing if she was safe or happy, sick or well? How could they ever ask a mother to leave her child?

  Chapter 5

  Goodbyes

  After waking again I gave my premeditated and memorized statement to the police. David had written out my statement for me to memorize and it was the same as both his and Rick’s.

  We had been having a friendly gathering in the park, the mugger had come and attacked us, and with Alex’s heart problems (which Alex honestly did have) he had a heart attack, and I had a panic attack that led to me passing out. The next thing I remembered was waking up in the hospital. (That part was also true.) David had not mentioned another word about leaving my family behind except to say, “Rick is going to do everything he can for you. Let him work on it. As soon as he gets back to me, I will let you know.” So that was that. But before I could go home, I had to prepare myself for the worst case scenario. If it came down to it, I would have to leave both Sam and Mom behi
nd for their own good. I had to figure out what I would say, how I would tell them good bye. Obviously, I would spend as much time with them before I had to go, and I would impress upon them as much as I could how much they meant to me.

  I considered myself a strong person, but I couldn’t imagine actually going through with this. It would be the hardest thing I would ever have to do.

  ***

  Even though Sam and Mom had come to see me in the hospital, they had always come while I was asleep, so I felt like I hadn’t seen them in years. I was finally on my way back home and it seemed like the world was falling apart.

  David had stayed with me for the rest of my time in the hospital and was kind enough to give me a ride home. Having been raised by a single mother, and now being one myself, we always had very modest accommodations. So not even in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would ride in an Audi 2015 A10, that retailed at least at $250,000. It was smooth and fast, sleek and beautiful and to say it was awe-inspiring would not even do it justice. Of course the car was a rental, and I honestly didn’t even want to like the man sitting next to me, but the ride home was intense.

  David seemed to notice my sudden change in mood, “You like the car, I see?” He said it like a question, but he already knew my answer.

  ‘Like’ did not even begin to cover the way I felt about this car. “It is amazing! I didn’t even know that people could rent out cars like this.”

  “Well, only to those who have the credit and ability to put the rather large deposit down,” he answered, a mischievous grin emerging onto his handsome face.

  It wasn’t until that moment that I realized how very attractive he was. His eyes were a light honey colored brown mixed with shades of emerald green. His warm brown hair was slightly tousled and disheveled, the lack of a decent bed and place to shower clearly showing, but complimented the shade of his eyes perfectly. He had an open and engaging smile, his white teeth peeking out from behind full pink lips. High cheek bones and a pronounced jaw brought everything together to make him look like a roman god. His was a face you could imagine being engraved in gold coins from centuries ago.

  His chiseled body topped the whole thing off. Catching myself examining him, I turned away quickly. He was about 6’3 or 6’4 and maybe 200 pounds. “Wow,” I murmured under my breath. Hopefully he would think I was still talking about the car.

  Getting my thoughts back in order, I managed to get out a question I actually feared the answer to. “How much does my mom know?” I looked at him intently, not really wanting the answer, or rather, not knowing what answer I wanted. I could never keep secrets from my mother very well, and I didn’t like to. But on the other hand I honestly didn’t want her to know the truth – that I was a freak of nature and people wanted to kill me for it. Not only me of course, but my entire family as well.

  After taking a deep breath, he answered, “She knows more than the police, but not all of it.”

  That was it? He didn’t continue, didn’t offer any more, just continued on driving. Confused, I probed, “I think I need to know what I can and cannot say to her.”

  “Yes, I suppose you do. But I did not want to be the one to tell you. I was hoping that Rick would be back by now.” And yet again, he paused, as if that was all he needed to say. As I was about to push him again, he continued, “She knows that the ‘mugger’ was there targeting you, but she doesn’t know why. We told her that there were just some things she could not have the answers to.”

  Hmmm… Perfect middle ground. What a diplomatic answer. I liked it though. It was the truth, just not the worst part of the truth. “And she was ok with that? Not having the rest of the answers?” We pulled onto my mother’s street, and I knew our conversation would be ending soon.

  “She didn’t really have much of a choice.”

  And with that, the conversation ended.

  ***Rick***

  “Rick, did you find her?” Christopher asked. Christopher was one of my oldest friends and was the third council member I had called today. Apparently he was the only one that could answer my question.

  “Of course I found her, but I was nearly too late.” I quickly explained that Damien had also found her and had killed her fiancé. “I believe she will come with me now.”

  “That’s good, though I am sorry for her loss.”

  “Christopher I am calling for a specific purpose.” I paused, not sure how to explain the rest. Though I knew I could trust him, I still feared speaking the words out loud. I feared what it could mean for us.

  “What is it, friend?” I could hear the curiosity in his voice.

  I took a deep breath, “I need to know if children can enter the Compound.” At first he didn’t understand my question. Why would a child ever need to come? We bind them when they are young, so there would be no use for them. It would also be risky and dangerous to everyone that lived there. I, more than most due to my extensive research on this subject, understood why we do not bring children, but in this case, I needed to know if it was even possible.

  “Why do you ask?”

  “She has a child, Christopher.” I paused as I heard his gasp. “You must push the Council to search her genealogy as soon as possible, but that doesn’t matter right now. She will not come without her daughter, and she must come.”

  I could almost hear the wheels turning in his head as he tried to piece together what I had told him. I heard him sigh before he answered, “If she has a child, how can she be the one?”

  This was the very question I continued to ask myself. How could she be the one? But every indication was that it was her. It had to be her. She was our last hope. Without her, Damien would succeed in his mission to open the Seals. He had already begun; the first two horsemen had been released.

  I tried to remain patient. “I do not know the answers to these questions. I just need to know if she can bring her child. We will figure everything out when we get there.”

  He sighed again and answered my question. If only he could answer all my questions…

  ***Allison***

  When we arrived home, I jumped out of the car. Somehow they must have heard us coming because before I could reach the door they were there. I could no longer contain myself and sprinted across the sidewalk to pick Sam up. I swung her around and then pulled her close. Her legs wrapped around me instinctively, and her arms went straight up around my neck, holding me tighter than I would have thought possible. It took all the strength I could muster to hold myself back from blubbering all over the place.

  Too soon for my liking she started pulling away, just to cup my face in between her fragile hands and whisper, “I missed you so much, Mommy. I love you!” Of course I could not control myself then, and the tears started streaming. She was truly my gift from God. I squeezed her tighter to whisper back that I loved her too.

  We were entering the living room, the first room through the back door, as David’s phone began ringing. Could it be Rick? Would he have good news? Was there any way I could bring my family with me? So many questions were running through my mind at once, and I wanted to shout every single one at him before he even knew who was calling.

  After he looked at his phone, he looked straight at me. It was Rick. “Please excuse me for a moment; I have to take this call.”

  I heard my mom telling him something along the lines of, “No problem, take your time,” and I tried hard not to think about what was coming from the other end of the phone. Sam and I sat curled into each other, snuggling on the couch. I had to stay focused. If Rick was telling David that I would have to leave my family behind, I had to spend what time I could with them.

  As always, Sam wanted to be read a book. As we all three went to sit on the nearest couch, I said, “Pick whichever one you like, however many you want. I’ll read them all to you if you want.” And I meant it. I would stay and read every single one of the hundreds of books she had before I left her.

  After she climbed back up beside me with five books in he
r hands, we started reading her first choice, “Ivy and Bean Break the Fossil Record”. Before we got too far I stopped and looked at her. Pulling her tighter to me I told her, “I really love you more than anything in the whole world, my Sammy girl!”

  She looked up at me and said, “I know Mommy. I’m glad you are back now.” Tears sprang into my eyes again, and I looked away so she would not see me at my weakest and continued reading. Though I was back right now, I wasn’t sure how long I would be able to stay. The thought terrified me and I shivered.

  After reading three of the five books she picked out, David walked back in, bringing reality back into focus. He sat straight across from me, looking at me as he said to my mother, “Sorry for my absence, Ms. Stevens.” Then to Sam, “Samantha, do you mind if I borrow your mother for a minute?” As he talked to everyone else, I tried to read his expression. Was he going to tell me good news?

  Samantha looked at me as if for approval, and I said to her, “I will be right back, I promise!” and I meant it.

  I walked through the house to my bedroom and he closed the door behind us, blocking me out from the rest of my life. Any other woman’s heart would have been racing from the very idea of being alone in a bedroom with this man, but my heart was racing for a much different reason.

  “Okay, I know you want to know everything. So before you ask anything, just let me tell you what I can.” I nodded once and he continued. “Rick is on his way. His plane just landed at the airport, he’ll be here in about 40 minutes. He talked to the Council,” at that he paused. Seeing my confused reaction, he explained briefly, “The people in charge of the Order. They are the most powerful force of good, and are all gathered together at the Compound.”

  I nodded once. The explanation was extremely to brief for my liking, and brought up more questions than answers, but I was more interested in the rest of what he had to say. “So, Rick talked to the Council, and you will be happy to know that you can bring Sam with you. She has the potential to be powerful, coming from you. And without her there, your training would be futile considering how much she is a part of you. Plus, Rick found out that all children can enter the Compound, because of how innocent they are. They only need to be with someone with power to enter, which shouldn’t be a problem here.” With my elated expression materializing, he quickly added, “However, your mother cannot come. I am sorry, but she is powerless and thus would not be able to enter the compound.” My happiness faded, just as fast as fast as it had appeared.