by Leesa Birch
“About tonight, Ivy,” his voice deepened, “I don’t want you spending the night alone after what happened at the lake.”
I was about to agree with him when someone dropped a glass and it shattered nearby. I pulled out of Kane’s arms and shook my head to clear my thoughts.
“It’s just one night, I’ll be fine. And you’ll be fine, which is my main concern.” I felt sleepy, maybe I was tired from earlier. “I really need to get some sleep, Kane, and I can’t do that worrying about hurting you. I’ll drink the rest of Grogan’s tea, I promise.” He looked like he was about to argue, so I leant in and kissed him goodnight.
I said goodnight to Agatha and left the lodge before I could change my mind again.
The walk back to the cabin was a cold and lonely one.
I woke in the darkness, panting and scared. I reached for the lamp and surveyed the room for burst pipes. Grogan’s tea may have helped keep my water weaving in check, but it didn’t stop the nightmares.
Pictures of Kane’s arms reaching out to me, as he sank further into the water, made my stomach turn. I think I preferred the one from the motel. After rinsing my face in the bathroom sink, I decided to sleep with the light on.
Morning came too quickly. A knock at the door woke me.
“What?” I yelled, annoyed at the interruption. The door swung open letting in a cold draught. Gary stood in the doorway, waiting.
“Already? Give me ten minutes.” As I threw off the covers, Gary closed the door.
“I need a favour, Ivy. A discreet favour, understand?” He raised his eyebrows. I understood - a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ kind of favour.
“Okay,” I said as I stepped towards him. He seemed a little embarrassed. I altered my eyes and took his hands in mine. I didn’t know what her name was but she was a scratcher. Deep too. I healed Gary’s back and arms then stepped away. I just shook my head at him trying not to grin. It wouldn’t have been professional.
“I wouldn’t have asked, Ivy, but it’s a long drive today and I don’t think I’d have been able to sit comfortably in the van for that long.” He straightened his suit. “Ten minutes then,” Gary agreed over his shoulder as he headed out the door.
As I left my cabin, Kane stepped out of the van. He walked over to me, sliding his hands around my waist.
“Morning sweetheart, sleep okay?” He looked different this morning; his eyes seemed slightly bluer with his hair tied back. I cupped his face with my hands.
“I missed you this morning,” I whispered as I kissed him. Gary honked his horn at us. “ONE MINUTE!” I yelled at him. My heart skipped a beat as I looked back at Kane; his eyes were no longer blue.
“I missed you too darlin’,” his tongue lingering over the ‘r’. He tenderly pressed his lips against mine. Tightening his embrace, I let out a small moan as the kiss intensified. Gary honked his horn again. Frowning, Kane let go of me.
“C’mon man. Can’t a guy kiss his girl good morning?” Frustrated, he helped me into the van and we set off.
Gary and Barrett sat up front. We sat in the back with two guys I hadn’t seen before. It wasn’t a long journey to the airport, just quiet. No one really spoke much on the plane either - they all seemed a little preoccupied. Gary still felt guilty for leaving me at the lab before. Barrett had been quiet since he shifted in front of me and Kane still had something on his mind, other than staying at Agatha’s last night – as for the other two, I didn’t know them to speak to.
Even in autumn, Arizona was too hot for me. We disembarked into the heat and climbed into the already water-stocked van. I was nervous as we drove out of the airfield.
“If somebody doesn’t start talking soon, I’m going to start singing - and you really don’t want that.” Kane tried not to laugh and squeezed me playfully.
“So, what’s the plan, Gary?” he asked. Gary briefly glanced over his shoulder.
“Oh, no plan. We go in there. Beat a confession out of the lab geek. That pretty much sums up what I had planned.” The testosterone in the van was nauseating. I wished that I hadn’t said anything.
The lab came into focus quicker than I’d hoped; my stomach turned at the very sight of it. Dust flew up, surrounding the van, as Gary hit the brakes. Kane stared at me with concern.
“You ready, Ivy? ‘Cos you can wait in the van if you want.” Gary opened the rear doors.
“Actually, we might need her,” he said to Kane.
The building seemed as quiet as before. The foyer was abandoned, the corridors empty. Kane walked by my side as Gary led in front. Barrett and the other two guards split up to check the rest of the facility. The strong smell of bleach filled the corridors, and a lot of the rooms we passed by were no longer lit.
Something clattered near the end of the far room. A small man in a white coat stepped out into the corridor carrying a box of papers. He stopped suddenly as he noticed us and took a step backwards. “It’s him!” was all I said.
Kane pushed past me and ran into the room where Ryan had gone. As Gary and I caught up, Kane punched the technician square in the face, knocking him to the floor. Before Ryan had time to react, he was unceremoniously dragged to his feet and pinned to the wall. I had never seen Kane this angry before. It frightened me a little. Now I knew why he’d insisted on coming along.
“Torturing her was a big mistake!” Kane growled at him. Ryan nervously looked across the room towards me. I didn’t know what to do. Kane’s temper flared. He dragged Ryan onto the nearby examination table. I shuddered, remembering my last visit here. Strapping him down tightly, Kane hit him again just for good measure. Ryan was barely conscious. Kane hit hard, I could feel Ryan’s pain from where I was stood.
“Stop! We need information from him. He can’t talk if he’s out cold.” I protested too late - Ryan had passed out. Kane knocked over a tray of instruments in frustration. I don’t think he’d finished.
I looked at Gary who was smiling. “Saves me doing it,” he said. I frowned at him. This place made me feel uneasy; I didn’t want to be here any longer than was necessary.
“Fine,” Gary mumbled and walked over to talk to Kane. The discussion got pretty heated for a moment, but Kane reluctantly agreed to wait outside while Ryan was questioned. I wasn’t sure whether to wait with him - I didn’t like seeing him this way.
I gave him a reassuring look as he stormed past me out of the room; he didn’t see it. I felt how sore his knuckles were as he brushed by me though. Barrett and the two guards waited for Kane to leave then closed the door behind them. I was going to feel most of this.
“Okay, Ivy, bring him round.” I looked at Gary in horror. Was that my part in this? Bring him round in case he passed out before answering more questions?
I gingerly approached the beaten lab tech. Opening his coat and shirt, I placed my hands on his skin. My eyes shifted immediately at the damage Kane had inflicted with just a few blows. Barrett watched with interest as I healed some swelling on his brain and Ryan’s fractured jaw. I stepped away from the table, knowing what was going to happen next.
“He’s all yours,” I quietly stated to Gary.
Ryan woke up as cold water was thrown over him. He panicked and struggled against his restraints. I backed myself against the cold wall, not wanting to be here. I brought Ryan around maybe three times before he started giving answers. I felt every punch.
“Not your thing, Ivy?” asked Barrett as he leant against the wall next to me. I shook my head whilst concentrating on a spot on the floor. I couldn’t take the screaming much longer. Barrett mentioned that he thought my eyes suited me better black, but I know he was just trying to distract me from the interrogation.
“It was Senator Wells,” Ryan cried out. Gary’s fist stopped mid-air in surprise.
“Explain,” Gary threatened.
“He was pissed that Ivy wouldn’t heal his prize fighter, Ty, between rounds. He’s mad! He told me to find out how she works; use her blood or DNA, then give the ability to one of his
men.” Ryan had trouble breathing and spat blood out on to the floor.
“Enough! He’s had enough, Gary.” I stepped towards the table to check Ryan’s lungs. Barrett grabbed my arms and pulled me back.
“Let go of me, what’s the matter with you!” I struggled under his hold.
“Take her out of here, Barrett - we’ll finish off in here,” Gary said. Barrett pulled me towards the door as Gary asked Ryan where my samples were.
Barrett walked quickly as the screaming started again. He only let go of me when we reached outside. Straightening his protective gloves, he looked up at me.
“It’s council business, you don’t need to see that, Ivy.” He nodded towards Kane and went back inside.
“But…” I was so angry, I wanted to scream or break something. Kane handed me some water and herded me towards the air-conditioned van.
“Have a seat, Ivy,” Kane said calmly. I looked at him then sat down, exhausted. He climbed into the van and sat next to me, rubbing my neck while he hummed. He had such a beautiful voice.
“Feel better?” he asked. I did; the rubbing always helped. I finished off my water and asked to see his hands. He looked at them as if he’d forgotten.
“Please,” I said. He held them out to me, smiling as my eyes shifted from green to black. I reduced the swelling and took his pain. He had fractured one of his knuckles too.
As I finished the heal, Kane turned over my hand and brought it up to his lips. He breathed ever so lightly on my wrist which made me stiffen in my seat. The door to the front of the van swung open loudly, startling me. I pulled my hand away from Kane and hoped my eyes would revert quickly.
“I think this is yours,” Gary held out a green stone dangling on a lace.
“You found my sea stone! Thank you, Gary, I mean that.” Relieved, I took it from him and placed it back around my neck.
“You might want to do something with that before the others get back.” Gary pointed at my face. “Can’t leave you two alone for a minute, can I?” he laughed and turned to face the front as the others returned to the van. The guards tried not to stare at me on the way back to the airport. I relaxed into Kane’s arms for the first time in a while. I didn’t care about my eyes.
Kane moved his things back in the moment we got back. After watching TV and eating a horrendous amount of pizza I felt safe to be around. Grogan had dropped by with some tea for my nightmares. He tried to explain why the council did what they had done with Ryan. I still wasn’t happy about it.
He told us that the very crooked Senator Wells had my samples stashed somewhere safe and they were looking into it. More samples from the lake had been taken, ready to go to another lab. Grogan wanted to know if I was up to going. I told him no - I think he understood. He wanted me to do some training instead.
Just when I thought we had two minutes to ourselves there was another knock at the door.
“I’ll get it,” I told Kane as I peeled myself off the couch. I opened the door to find Sylvia hugging herself in the night air.
“About time, she said, laughing. “I thought I’d interrupted something.” I frowned at her, ushering her inside.
Sylvia stood in the centre of the room looking at the pizza carnage. “I haven’t seen you for a while, Sylvia, I thought you were avoiding me or something,” I smiled, touching my necklace. I wouldn’t have blamed her, I was a disaster without this thing.
“Oh, wow, you got it back! That’s great. And no, I wasn’t avoiding you, I was..” She looked at Kane. “Busy, that’s all.” Kane rose off the sofa and grabbed a jacket.
“I get it. Girl talk. I’ll be back later, sweetheart.” He kissed me on the side of my head and left.
“What was that about, Sylvia? Because I’m starting to get a little paranoid.” She made herself comfortable in Kane’s warm spot and casually grabbed a cold slice of pizza.
“Has he said anything to you?” I sat down next to her.
“Like what? What’s going on, Sylvia, I thought you could tell me anything.” She looked sad as I said it.
“Look, Ivy, it’s not my place to say; I just thought he would have said something by now, that’s all.” I really wanted someone to make some sense.
“I know something’s bothering him, Sylvia. Is it bad? Because I thought he was going to dump me last week. You would tell me if it was bad, wouldn’t you? And why do you know what’s wrong with him? Did Blake say something?” I had so many questions.
“Look, Ivy, I’m sure he’ll tell you when he’s ready. Yes, Blake mentioned something and no, it’s not bad.”
We didn’t say much after that; I wanted to know and she wasn’t saying. There was no point in trying to ask Kane straight out. He’d only get by me with those blue eyes, sing to me or cheat and take off his ever-so tight jumper. Patience was never my friend.
I was half asleep by the time Kane returned. I felt the quilt move as he slid into bed. He gasped as he snuggled up behind me.
“Ivy, you’re freezing.” I didn’t realise I was that cold until his body touched mine. I shuddered as he pulled me in close. His thighs were hot against the back of my legs. He wrapped the quilt around me tightly as he kissed the back of my neck.
“Night, sweetheart,” he whispered, “I love you.” I pulled his arm up around me.
“I love you too.” I think it was the first time I had said it out loud, for fear of jinxing what we had. It didn’t go unnoticed.
The frost was thick on the ground. Autumn was here and fog covered the lake. The frozen ground crunched as I approached the lake. I couldn’t see anyone out in the water; I had the lake to myself. The morning light had difficulty cutting its way through the clouds today.
A branch snapped behind me. I turned to see someone running towards me. I stepped backwards into the water. The man became more focused the nearer he got. There was something wrong with his face. He was cut. I’m not sure why I was afraid but I stepped further and further into the water. As the man reached the shore, I recognised him.
“NO! STAY OUT OF THE LAKE, IVY!” Kane shouted. Blood ran down the side of his face. I gasped and tried to help him. I couldn’t move. Searing pain shot up my legs and the water turned red around me. Panicking, I reached out to Kane as something pulled me forcibly backwards into the water.
I woke up kicking. “NO!” I shouted. Two hands were holding me down.
“Ivy, you’re awake, calm down, everything’s fine.” I stopped kicking and looked at him. I checked his face for lacerations. Satisfied that he wasn’t hurt, I let out the breath I was holding and grabbed him tightly.
“Ivy,” he laughed. “It’s okay. It’s early, but it’s alright.” After calming down slightly, I lay back down in frustration. “I guess the tea doesn’t work anymore then.” Kane slid his hand under my vest. “We have about an hour before you go to meet Grogan; we could go back to sleep…” His hand movements were suggesting otherwise. I stretched beneath his hard, naked body as his hair fell across my stomach. I told him not to leave a mark.
On the way to Grogan’s I was wondering what kind of training he had in mind. The morning was so cold that I could see my breath in front of me. I didn’t fancy standing in the middle of the stream in this weather. Kane had wanted to come and watch me today; I had trouble explaining that he was too much of a distraction and that I needed to concentrate on the task at hand.
I stopped suddenly in a clearing. I hadn’t been paying attention and didn’t recognise where I was. It resembled the right way, but not exactly. Maybe it was just the change in season, but some of the surrounding plant life, trees, bushes, etc, looked petrified. I shuddered in the cold morning air.
“Ivy,” the voice startled me. It was Gary. “What are you doing? You’re going the wrong way.” I turned to see him grinning at my confusion.
“How did you creep up so quietly? The ground didn’t crunch under your feet and you didn’t step on any twigs. You’re just too sneaky, that’s what it is.”
He laughed and p
ointed the right way. “It’s my job to be sneaky, Ivy.”
As we approached the right clearing, Grogan was nowhere to be seen. The nearby stream looked fierce and it looked like it was going to rain.
“Maybe we should wait inside?” Gary suggested. Pulling open the flap to the Bedouin style tent, heat and a strange smell hit us. The red and gold throws and the floor cushions were positioned closer to the central fire. I was hoping that whatever Grogan had planned would take place in here, but then again, why was Gary here?
I stumbled over some of the cushions to take a look at what was emitting the strange smell. On Grogan’s little stove was an old iron pot. I lifted the lid to take a peek.
“Don’t touch that!” yelled Grogan as he entered the tent. “It’s not ready yet, Ivy.” I almost dropped the lid with surprise. Grogan spoke quietly to Gary, who then stood and left us alone.