by Lizzie Rose
‘I bet her parents won’t be happy about that,’ I said, wondering what Brock and Esther would say if that happened to me.
‘Well, she’s not going to be living there any more. Gwen’s going to take her in for the time being. She doesn’t really have the space but they don’t want her running away or getting into any more trouble, not with the way things are at the moment. She’ll be safe at the farm.’
‘I hope so. So what’s your power then?’ I asked Noah. He lowered his voice so that only we could hear it.
‘We’re not really supposed to discuss it in public but I’m getting beyond caring. I can move things with my mind like Brogan. Like you it seems too.’
‘Are those the only powers then? Telepaths, moving things and making things explode?’
‘No, there are lots of others. Lissa can make balls of fire out of nothing so, as you can imagine, they keep a tight check on her pretty much all the time. I’ve seen people jump from one end of a room to the other, and one of my mates can make people do stuff. It doesn’t last very long but usually long enough for them to make a complete idiot out of themselves.’ He snorted with laughter. ‘You’re the first person we’ve come across who has lots of powers. I mean, you can do everything.’
‘No, not everything,’ I contradicted. ‘I can’t hear people’s thoughts or make balls of fire. And I’ve never tried jumping across rooms.’
‘Well, you can do more than the rest of us. Anyway, we’d best shut up about it now; we’re nearly there. Just be careful not to talk about it near the guards. They think we’re plotting to overthrow the government, you know.’
I regarded him carefully. ‘And are you?’
‘Not that I know of,’ he laughed, ‘but sometimes I wish we were.’
Chapter Eleven
In the end I decided not to mention the Oscar situation to Beth. There just never seemed to be an appropriate time. As the weeks passed by the atmosphere thawed a little at home. Although Oscar was still a little aloof, he did at least converse with me again.
The temperatures outside, however, continued to plummet, and about halfway through January it started snowing heavily once more. The bus stopped coming into the village for a while so, as soon as we were able, the few of us who usually caught it piled into Gwen’s 4x4 and were driven to and from college by whomever was free. By the end of the month I was sick and tired of the weather.
On Friday, I was determined to spend the entire weekend sitting in front of the fire, doing as little as possible. Oscar was picking me up after college and had agreed to drop Beth off home on the way back. Once we got inside I headed for the girl’s bathroom and spent a good ten minutes sticking my head under the hand dryer to try and dry out my hair.
The bell sounded, signalling the start of classes. I gave my hair one last blast and glanced at myself in the mirror. I’d never really paid much attention to my appearance. It always amazed me that I looked just like the other teenagers, even though I was so different from them.
My hair was long, thick and black and my skin was a pale, ivory colour. The features that stood out the most were my eyes. They were a very light silver colour – a shade I had never seen in any other person. Right now they were surrounded by puffy red skin, which was irritated by the cold. Sighing, I rushed out of the door, straight into Connor.
He moved so quickly that I cried out in shock. As he pushed me up against the wall, he stood with his arms either side of me, his lips almost touching the skin on my face.
‘Finally you’re on your own,’ he murmured.
‘Get off me, Connor! What do you want?’
‘I want you to admit that you fancy me.’ He took a long sniff of my hair.
‘You can’t be serious.’ I laughed humourlessly. ‘I’m late for class, get out of the way.’
He tightened the muscles in his arms, keeping me penned in. ‘I know you want me,’ he whispered in my ear. ‘If you get off on playing hard to get that’s fine, but I’m running out of patience. I always get what I want, you know.’
‘I wouldn’t touch you with a barge pole if you were the last man on this wretched planet.’ I looked up the corridor, desperately hoping that someone would appear but it was empty. Quick as a flash, Connor wrenched my head around and rammed his lips down on to mine. A wave of revulsion coursed through me and he sprang backwards, his eyes wide open.
‘What the . . . ?’
‘Don’t you ever touch me again,’ I yelled, wiping my mouth on the back of my hand. ‘You stay away from me, do you hear me?’
Footsteps sounded and Mr Johnston came puffing around the corner. He surveyed the scene and turned to me.
‘Why are you not in class, Ava?’
‘I . . . he . . .’ I stuttered. He ignored me and turned to Connor.
‘Is everything all right?’
‘She used her powers against me, sir.’ He pointed at me and my mouth dropped open.
‘No I didn’t,’ I protested. ‘He tried to . . .’
‘That’s quite enough, thank you,’ Mr Johnston interrupted. ‘On the basis that there were no witnesses I will let this go, however be warned that I’m watching you, young lady. Now, please make your way straight to class.’
My blood was boiling with the injustice of it all but Mr Johnston had turned his back on me and was stalking away. Determined not to be left alone with Connor again I ran all the way to the classroom, dropped down in my seat and spent the entire session with my head resting on the table top.
The day didn’t get any better. By lunchtime the rumours had spread and pretty much everyone except for the group sitting at my table were shooting me nasty looks. My friends rallied round but even they seemed wary of me. When the final bell sounded, I grabbed my bag and joined the flood of students heading out of the main doors and into the car park. Oscar was nowhere to be seen. I was about to turn around and say so to Beth when a voice spoke in my ear.
‘Ava? There you are! How are you, sweetie?’
A man was standing right behind me. It was the same man who had been driving the strange 4x4 all those months ago. My stepfather, Gareth.
‘Come here and give your ol’ man a hug.’ He pulled me towards him and wrapped his arms tightly around me. He moved his face so that he could speak into my ear without anyone else hearing. ‘You see that van over there? The black one?’ I looked up and saw a large transit van parked across two spaces in the corner of the car park. ‘Any fuss an’ I’ll set my mates loose on your little friends here, you understand?’
I swallowed hard and nodded. He let go of me but kept his arm around my waist and began to steer me down the steps. Beth made to follow so I gave her the tiniest shake of my head. She froze on the spot and watched as I disappeared into the crowd of people below. The van’s engine was running. My stepfather led me around to the back where one of the doors stood ajar and as soon as we were out of sight, something hit me hard on the back of the head.
*
‘Be careful, will you?’ Gareth snapped.
‘Shut up,’ a voice retorted. ‘Whose stupid idea was it to come after her in this weather anyway?’
Someone near me grunted.
‘An’ you can shut up an’ all, Pete.’
‘Just watch where you’re going,’ Pete replied in a deep voice.
I was lying on my side in the back of the van. My arms had been tied behind my back. This was bad.
Brock? Tommy? Anybody? I have no idea if you can hear me. I’m in the back of a black transit van. I don’t know where we are but . . . hang on a sec . . .
I remembered what Noah had said about his friend being able to make people do things with his power. It was worth a try.
I need to know where we are.
No sooner had the words formed in my mind than the driver began talking loudly.
‘Not far now anyway. We’re about eight miles out of that town. Another couple of miles and we’ll be on the main road again.’
‘What the hell are you on abou
t? We know where we are, you idiot. Now, stop talking crap and watch the road,’ Gareth growled.
Ok, we’re about eight miles out of town, headed towards a main road. Actually, that’s probably not much help, is it? Hang on again . . .
I felt really stupid talking to myself but it did seem to be helping me focus a little better.
I need more detail. Tell me exactly where we are and which direction we’re heading in.
There was a long pause and my heart sank as I began to think that the driver had in fact, just been talking for the sake of it.
‘We’re approaching that really steep hill. Just hope we can get up it in all this damned snow. Anyway, we’re close to the big opening we passed on the way here. You know, where the road drops away at one side but there’s all that space on the other.’
‘What are you on about now?’ Pete demanded.
‘Due south,’ the driver continued, ‘once we get on the main road.’
I repeated the information in my thoughts, having no clue as to whether they were getting through to anyone. Either way, there wasn’t much time to act.
‘We’re about three minutes away from the clearing,’ the driver announced helpfully.
I needed to get out of the van now.
‘Two minutes.’
‘What the hell? Pete, check her, will you?’
‘She’s still out for the count, boss.’
‘You sure?’
Pete kicked me hard in the ribs and I gritted my teeth as I forced my body not to move in response.
‘Yeah, I’m sure.’
The hill was steep and we were travelling fast. I could feel the back end slipping and sliding all over the place. This was it; this was my chance.
‘Snow,’ I whispered.
‘Bloody hell, would you look at this? I can’t see a thing!’
‘Slow down, will you?’
‘I can’t!’
‘Slow down!’
‘I can’t!’ he screamed. ‘The accelerator’s stuck. I can’t stop it.’
‘You!’ Gareth’s voice sounded from somewhere above me. The van suddenly lurched sideways and a foot flew past my head, narrowly missing my nose. We were spinning fast and then we were falling. My body bounced against walls, ceilings and doors.
Unable to protect my head, I cried out as it connected with each hard surface. The van came to a stop with a sickening crunch. The engine had cut out and there was a strange, acrid smell in the air. It took a moment to work out that I was sitting on the van’s roof and the floor was above my head.
A large gnarled tree trunk stood in the place where the driver had been and the entire windscreen was missing. Pete lay close by me. His eyes were open but he wasn’t breathing.
Behind me the doors had sprung open. Shuffling towards them I paused next to a piece of twisted metal and used it to free my hands. The movement made the van wobble. Trembling, I inched my way to the door and climbed out. The hill above was slippery and wet. By the time I reached the top, a layer of mud covered my entire body. Freshly falling snow was already filling up the tyre tracks left by the van. A twig snapped behind me and I twisted round just as a fist connected with the side of my face, knocking me to the ground.
Gareth stood over me, his eyes glinting with malice and his enormous muscles bulging out from underneath the thick jacket he wore. In his hand he held a large branch which looked as though it had been freshly ripped from a tree. He regarded me, his lips twisting into a sneer. ‘Clever little trick that was.’ He jerked his head towards the van. ‘You killed my mates.’
‘You killed my mother!’ I spat back, flexing my fingers and willing my powers to come. But, just as they had never responded in all the time Gareth had hurt me, nothing happened. I was that frightened little girl again, staring wide-eyed at the giant of a man who was supposed to be a parent to me. The best I could do was to scramble on all fours and crawl away from him.
‘Where are you going, Ava? There’s nowhere to run to. No little friends to hide you.’
I struggled to my feet and jogged into the clearing. Something hard hit my back and I stumbled forwards on to my knees. ‘I’m supposed to take you to a holding place for the time being,’ he snarled, ‘but we have a score to settle first.’
The branch connected with my side. From somewhere in the distance the screech of tyres echoed around the clearing. A group of people were running up the hill towards me. One of them pushed in front of the others and as he drew closer I recognised the long blond hair flying out behind him and the brilliant blue eyes that blazed with fury.
‘No! Oscar, stop!’
As the words left my mouth, a streak of black thundered up the hill, its teeth bared. Gareth paused, the piece of wood held high above his head as he watched the big cat bypass Oscar and close the gap between us.
Mesmerised, I watched as it bunched its muscles up and took an enormous leap. Something clicked inside me and I flung myself forwards on to the ground as it soared through the air above me, its jaws wide open. Gareth screamed.
The panther’s teeth fastened around his face, digging deep into his flesh. The weight and momentum of the cat knocked him backwards to the ground. There, it transferred its grip to Gareth’s throat, squeezing tightly as the man thrashed beneath him. An ear-splitting bang echoed through the clearing.
‘No!’ I screamed, launching myself forwards. Someone grabbed me and held me back as another shot rang out. This time it hit the cat in the side and it released its grip, letting out a screech that made my blood run cold.
‘Stop shooting! Leave him alone!’
Another shot brought the animal to the ground. Wrenching my arms free, I ran to him, sinking down into the snow and pulling his head on to my lap. As his breathing slowed, the beautiful creature turned his yellow eyes up to mine. I stroked his head, tears spilling down my cheeks and dripping on to his fur. He nuzzled against my arm and sighed. And then he lay still.
Someone was kneeling next to Gareth and there were others standing at the edge of the road, looking down at the broken van. Very gently, I moved the panther’s head off my knee and lay it back down in the snow.
‘. . . by the time I got here they’d all arrived. That thing was attacking the man. It took three shots to bring it down . . .’
It was the same guard who’d been at the farmhouse on my first night in the village. She was standing with Marcus now, a look of smug pride on her face.
‘You had no right!’ I yelled, jumping to my feet. ‘He was protecting me.’
The woman squared up to me. ‘I had every right. That animal was chewing the guy’s face off. It killed him!’
‘Good! I’m glad he’s dead!’
Brock appeared at my side and put a hand on my arm but I shook it off. The woman smirked.
‘Might chop off its head and stick it on my office wall. It’s the weirdest thing I’ve ever caught.’
‘You’ll do no such thing!’ The ground beneath my feet shook.
‘Ava, come on. Let’s get you home.’
‘Good idea,’ Marcus nodded. ‘The animal’s body will be disposed of as per regulations and we’ll arrange for the van to be recovered and the bodies moved. I’ll need to take a statement from you when you’re feeling up to it.’ He glanced at me. ‘But that can wait a few days,’ he added quickly, seeing the expression on my face.
I turned to walk away.
‘Crazy bitch,’ the woman muttered. ‘All this fuss over a stupid cat . . .’
With a shriek of rage, the powers exploded out of my body. Balls of fire sprang out of the palms of my hands and I threw them with all my might. They flew up in the air in a perfect arc, dropping down out of sight into the trees.
The people at the edge of the road ran back to the clearing as an almighty boom shook the ground and fire erupted from the battered van then died away almost instantly. I met the security woman’s eye and was pleased to see shock registered on her face. Then I turned and walked away.
Chapter Tw
elve
‘What on earth were you thinking?’
We were standing in the cottage kitchen. The others had left, leaving just Brock, Esther, Oscar, Tommy and myself. I’d never seen Brock look so angry but it was nothing compared to how I felt.
‘She had no right to shoot him. He hadn’t done anything wrong.’
‘Nothing wrong? Ava, he attacked and killed a man.’
‘Gareth deserved it.’ I spat the words.
‘No one deserves that,’ he shouted back. ‘Surely you can see that?’
‘If you had any idea of what I’ve been through with that man you’d understand.’
‘Come on then, tell us. Tell us what he could possibly have done that would warrant having his throat bitten off by a wild animal.’
‘He murdered my mother!’
Brock exchanged a glance with Tommy.
‘What?’ I snapped, my blood boiling.
‘Ava, we’ve been making enquiries. Marcus has too,’ Tommy explained quietly. ‘There’s no trace of your mother anywhere.’
‘Well there won’t be, will there? I set fire to the house.’
‘You did what?’
‘I set fire to the house when I escaped so that there wouldn’t be any trace of her. She told me to do it before she died.’
No one spoke. Brock pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingertips and closed his eyes.
‘Don’t you believe me?’ I looked at each one of them in turn, my anger rapidly replaced by a feeling of overwhelming hurt.
‘To be honest with you, I don’t know what to believe any more.’ Brock sat down heavily on one of the chairs and looked up at me with sad eyes. ‘But what I do know is that we’re now facing a £2000 fine because you used your powers in public, and that is money we can ill afford. And it’s not going to go down very well with my bosses. Now, Marcus has said that under the circumstances you won’t be excluded from college but he has made it very clear that any further breaches of the rules will be dealt with severely. So please, stay out of trouble and don’t lose your temper like that again, ok? People could have been killed.’