At First Sight: Special Edition

by Heather Todd

  “You can’t do this! You aren’t in control! Somebody stop him!” shouted Matthew.

  Leo wiped away the guards at the door with a swipe of his hands, causing them to bang against the wall. “I am in complete control.”

  Matthew grabbed his arm and turned him around. “You’re letting the imprint control you, Leo. Don’t let it win.”

  Leo shook his head and smiled. He lifted up his right hand and clenched his fist. Matthew’s throat was suddenly constricted as he struggled to breathe. He was lifted into the air as Leo raised his fist higher and higher.

  “I’ve always let it control me, brother. I’ve never had any trouble with that.” He tossed his brother against the wall, listening as he coughed erratically. “You think you were able to make me better? You won’t win.”

  Matthew looked up at his brother angrily. “She doesn’t know what you can do.”

  Leo smirked. “Oh, I believe she does now.”

  He walked towards the double doors at the end of the hall, snapping his fingers and disappearing into thin air.

  “You left him?!” exclaimed Jessica, walking into Lola’s house as she opened the door that night.

  Lola had been in bed after leaving Dean by himself. When she had heard the incessant knocking, she had thought it was Dean. Instead, she found her best friend with an incredulous look on her face.

  “How did you find out?” asked Lola.

  “Freddie told me.” She held up her finger. “By the way, I have taken the drastic step with Freddie. We are now a couple.”

  Lola shrugged and smiled. “Great.”

  “I want to know what happened with you and Dean. I heard you got your imprint,” said Jessica. “The lightning bolt?”

  Lola nodded and showed Jessica her hand. “Just like Leo. I had an illusion where I saw my parents and I was taken back to the memory of when I nearly drowned. Then, I nearly drowned myself.”

  “Dean saved you, though. Why would you break up with him?” she asked, clearly confused.

  Lola threw her hands in the air, frustrated. “I don’t belong in his world! I can’t be with him, especially if I have this imprint. It’s going to be utter destruction! I may as well save them a bunch of trouble and let the gift go away. Then, my imprint will go away. They’d kill me anyway if they found out I have the damn thing.”

  Jessica stared at her best friend as if she was looking at a stranger. Normally, Lola was telling Jessica the right thing to do. This was completely out of the ordinary, though.

  “Lola, you can’t let your past define you. Remember? Your parents don’t control you. They aren’t here anymore,” explained Jessica.

  “It’s not that simple,” said Lola. She honestly felt like she couldn’t deal with anybody right now. “Just leave, Jessica. Please.”

  “Lola…”

  “Jessica!” shouted Lola. She watched as Jessica stepped back at her tone and sighed. “I’m sorry. I just…”

  Jessica shook her head. “No, I get it. I just don’t want you to be afraid to take a chance. Even if it is as crazy as believing in magic.”

  Lola watched her friend leave and collapsed on the couch, letting the tears fall down her cheeks.

  14

  It felt like a huge elephant was sitting on her. She struggled to open her eyes, blinking back as dull colors came to life. There were pipes all over the ceiling and a dozen empty boxes piled on top of each other. She smelled something old and musty. She was lying on something cold and hard and she couldn’t move her legs or arms. Whenever she strained to move her limbs, a jolt of nausea flew through her body. She felt weak and sick.

  “How are you feeling?” Leo came into view from the shadows with a nasty smirk.

  She didn’t even have the strength to scream. “Leo.”

  “Do you like those straps around your body? They are weakening your system until you become nothing more than rat food. It’s slow, but quicker than the loss of the touch from your soul mate.”

  Soul mate. “Dean. Where is he?” murmured Lola.

  Leo waved his hand in the air pathetically. “Who cares? I have you now. And, you’re quite the interesting girl. It’s too bad I still have to kill you.”

  “I’m dreaming,” she murmured. She continuously blinked her eyes, hoping to be anywhere else but here. “This isn’t real.”

  Leo chuckled. “Oh, this is real. Surprised?” He hummed lightly. “I’ve been planning this for quite some time. A human brings back the gift? My, that’s such a shame.”

  “What do you want? I don’t understand.” Lola was starting to feel weaker.

  Leo held out his hands. “I assume you have heard of us Readers.”

  “You’re… you’re a Reader? But, how?” Lola struggled against the straps and groaned at the pain.

  “My parents were different. Can you imagine a Manifester and a Reader procreating? Nasty business. I have a brother. You know about Matthew? The speaker of you Manifesters?” Leo sneered at the sound of his brother’s name.

  Lola was too stunned and too exhausted to speak.

  “Oh, getting tired? I expected that,” he said. He glanced down at her hand and smirked. “Well, it appears we are twins.”

  “What are you… talking about?” Lola felt her eyelids droop.

  Leo held up her palm just enough so she could see her imprint. The lightning bolt was purely black with red around the edges. It didn’t have color on the inside, but the red around the edges made it seem like the skin around it was on fire. But, it didn’t hurt. It just felt numb.

  “You’re like my protégé. How exciting.” He grinned. He then sighed, pretending to be disappointed. “But, I still have to kill you. Manifesters have taken away everything from us. Forget about the war. I’m having my own party.”

  “No.” Lola’s eyelids began to close as she fought the urge to pass out again. She had to stop him.

  “Sleep tight.”

  The last thing she heard was a menacing snicker before darkness welcomed her back with open arms.

  Dean knew something was wrong. He could feel it. Lola had rejected him for good this time, but instead of feeling pain throughout his body, he felt nothing. The gift had to still be present, though. It was impossible for it to go away so quickly.

  “Dude, what’s wrong with you?” asked Freddie, coming into the living room with Jessica by his side.

  Dean looked up from his fidgeting fingers and shook his head. “Something is wrong. I can’t feel anything from Lola. I can’t even hear her thoughts.”

  Freddie sighed sadly. “Dean, the gift is probably gone. She left, remember?”

  “I know she fucking left!” he shouted. He stood up and put his shoes on. “I’m going to find her.”

  “She’s at home. She’s probably asleep,” said Jessica.

  “No. Something is wrong. I can feel it in my soul.” Dean looked at them. “Freddie, if you were in my shoes, you’d be thinking the same thing.”

  Freddie looked at Jessica and put his arm around her. He looked back at Dean and nodded. “Go find her.”

  Dean nodded quickly and rushed out of the house, determined to find his soul mate and when her heart back for good.

  Even if it killed him.

  Lola opened her eyes and groaned, feeling such extreme pain throughout her body. She could barely move her arms and legs. She couldn’t even move her hands.

  “You won’t feel a thing,” muttered Leo, standing over her. “Quicker than falling asleep.”

  Lola watched as he held the glowing orb in his hands. As it glowed brighter, it began to crackle with electricity around its edges. It got closer to her, sending heat to her face. She shook her head and groaned at the pain.

  “Stop, please…”

  15

  He needed Lola. He was beginning to feel weak now. Something was wrong. He had managed to perform a tracking spell, leading him directly to an abandoned warehouse in downtown Los Angeles. She was there. God knows what Leo had already done to her. He gra
bbed the doorknob, but it was locked.

  “Damn it,” he cursed, trying to think of another way to get in.

  He sighed and stared at the wall, placing his hand on the door. But, instead of his hand touching wood, his hand went through the wood. He jumped back, startled at what he had just done. He looked at his palm and was surprised to see his imprint, a wave. He smiled, knowing he had gotten the imprint he had wanted. He had admired it for so long and he only wanted Lola by his side so he could enjoy it even more.

  “I’ll mess with it later. Lola comes first,” he told himself.

  He cautiously put one leg through the door until he was all the way on the other side. He stared at the door, feeling the dampness and cold of the atmosphere. He peered around a corner and felt his heart break. Thick, unforgiving straps pinned Lola to a steel, cold table. Her eyes were closed, but she was breathing.

  Hovering over her was Leo, poised with a glowing orb in his hands. The orb was sparking electricity over her face as she lay there motionless.

  “Hey!” he shouted. “Let her go.”

  Leo turned to him and grimaced. “Dean Baker. I see you found us.”

  “You’re damn right I did. Let her go right now, Leo.” Dean slowly walked towards him.

  “I can’t do that,” said Leo, letting the orb hover in mid air. He looked at Dean with a smirk. “You don’t know, do you?”

  “Know what?” he asked cautiously, glancing at Lola’s limp form.

  “Leader versus leader. Manifester versus Reader,” said Leo, his voice taking on a dark tone.

  Dean stopped in his tracks and caught his breath. “You’re a Reader?”

  “It’s amazing what can happen when a Manifester and a Reader procreates. Unlike yours, my mother kept all of her powers. They transferred to me while my father’s powers transferred to Matthew,” he explained.

  Dean furrowed his brows. “Matthew is your brother?”

  “Yes. He believed that he had taught me to control my imprint. But, he now knows that he can’t beat me.” He looked over at Lola. “I’m ending this war by killing every last one of you. And, I’m starting with her.”

  “Over my dead body,” growled Dean.

  “That can definitely be arranged.”

  Leo’s imprint unleashed a light, knocking Dean to the ground. He groaned in pain but stood up. He stared at his imprint, trying to remember what he had learned from the imprint book. He suddenly remembered that he had fists and punched Leo straight in the jaw, sending him to the other side of the room. The punch had much more force than normal and Dean wondered if it was his imprint that gave him this strength.

  He raced over to Lola and immediately fell to the floor as a blast of power nearly knocked him out. The power, instead, cut through the straps that held Lola captive. He heard Leo cry out in frustration as he struggled to stand.

  Dean immediately placed his hands on her cheeks and his forehead against hers. “Baby, wake up.”

  He watched and waited until Lola’s eyes finally opened. He stroked her cheek gently as she slowly breathed in and out. Their eyes met and their bodies immediately began to feel energized.

  “Dean…” she whispered. She swung her legs over and put her hands on his cheeks. She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  “No, don’t be sorry. We’re going to get out of here.” He put his arms around her waist, prepared to carry her out of the warehouse.

  “No!”

  Lola allowed Dean to help her stand. She could feel her strength coming back to her as she glared at Leo, watching him stand and face her. She was about to walk away from Dean when he stopped her.

  “What are you doing?” he asked.

  Lola looked at him. “Dean, he wants me. He wants to kill me. But, he is going to have to fight me first. I’m not going to let him win.”

  She no longer felt like the scared girl she used to be. She wasn’t the girl who had no parents. She wasn’t the girl that only wanted a life at Harvard. She wasn’t some teenager. She wasn’t some human.

  She was a Manifester. She wasn’t going to let anybody control her anymore.

  She walked toward Leo slowly. “I’m right here.”

  “I see that.” He chuckled darkly. “You really plan on beating me? How naïve are you?”

  “You have no idea who I am,” she started. “You have tortured me for much too long. I want to kill you right now, but I am not that kind of person. I just want you to go away.”

  “It’s too bad you aren’t a killer,” he muttered darkly before flipping his hand to the side, sending Lola to the wall.

  She collided and grunted as she hit the floor. She gasped at the pain as she slowly stood up. She could feel Dean’s protectiveness as he ran over to help her.

  “No, no, no.” Leo kept a smirk on his face as he twirled his fingers toward Dean.

  Dean was thrust back against the wall as an invisible force kept him pinned back. He grunted, struggling to get free. “Lola…”

  Lola’s protectiveness took over as she prepared herself to rescue Dean. However, her bare feet skidded to a stop on the cold floor as an invisible grip slowly brought her back to Leo. She clawed at her throat until Leo’s arm went around her neck. He held out his palm, showing off the glowing orb.

  “This has been really fun. But, I always win.” He began laughing. “Lola, I am going to destroy you.” He glanced at Dean, who continued to struggle. “Dean, you get to enjoy the pain of knowing you never saved your precious soul mate.”

  Dean watched with anger as Leo’s orb inched closer to Lola’s face. She struggled to fight him off, but he was too strong. Her imprint was still new and she didn’t know how to embrace her own strength yet. But, Dean could. He had more knowledge than she did. He gritted his teeth and shouted as he embraced his imprint and its strength. One by one, he freed his limbs until he was back on the ground. He stormed over to Leo and used his power to destroy the orb before punching him in the face again. He caught Lola in his arms as Leo fell to the ground in shock.

  Lola wrapped her hands around his neck and exhaled heavily. “You’re strong.”

  He chuckled lightly. “Yeah. You can be, too. We just need to teach you.”

  They both turned around to see Leo standing up, touching his jaw to feel blood dripping from his skin. He glared at the couple angrily. “You think you two have won? You will never win. I will always come back! This is only the beginning.”

  “Hold my hand,” she murmured to Dean.

  She held out her palm toward Leo, who was beginning to stand. As Lola’s imprint began to illuminate with a yellow glow, Dean felt some unknown power consume him. He glanced at his palm and noticed his imprint shone the same color. He looked at her and smiled, feeling proud of her. She was using her imprint well. He outstretched his palm along with hers as they fired their power at Leo.

  The amount of the power literally threw them back on the ground. Dean rubbed his forehead and looked up, leaning on his elbows. He gasped as he stared at the spot where Leo had been, now only a tendril of smoke spiraling toward the ceiling.

  “Lola,” said Dean, glancing at her. She was sitting up and staring at the spot, too.

  “I can’t believe it. He got away. How could he…?” She scoffed in exasperation.

  “He’ll be back, but we’re safe right now. Everything’s okay. We now have time to plan for the next attack.” Dean helped her stand and held her by her waist. “I’m so proud of you.”

  “For what?” she asked, confused.

  “You used your imprint for good. You’re going to be wonderful with it,” he said, smiling at her and stroking her cheek.

  Lola leaned into his touch, sighing softly. “God, I missed that. I missed you. I thought for sure that I was going to die.”

  “Not when you’re with me,” promised Dean, holding her.

  After rescuing Lola, Dean immediately took her back to his home so they could talk with his parents. They had explained in detail what Leo had pl
anned to do and that he had plans to come back. Frankie immediately knew he had to contact Matthew. He moved his laptop into the living room and hooked it up to the television so everyone could be a part of the conversation.

  “Did you know he would do this?” asked Katherine, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared at Matthew on the screen.

  “Of course not. I honestly thought he had it under control,” said Matthew. He sighed and used a handkerchief to dab at his sweaty forehead. “He overpowered me.”

  “Lola could have died!” exclaimed Dean, glaring at the screen.

  “Dean…” warned Freddie, holding him back.

  Jessica looked at Lola as she stood close to her. “You’re okay, right?”

  Lola nodded, refusing to take her eyes off of the screen. “Yeah.” She was reeling from the fact that Matthew was related to Leo. Something just didn’t feel right.

  “We need to take immediate action. You know that,” said Frankie.

  Matthew chewed on his lip. “We are trying to locate Leo right now. But, we are still planning to go to war against the Readers. Dean will still lead us to victory.”

  Dean rolled his eyes. “Great.”

  “We need to gather everybody as soon as possible,” said Matthew. “Our entire race depends on it.”

  Frankie ended the call, leaving the entire room in silence. He looked at his children and their soul mates. “We’re in this together.”

  Dean looked at everyone before keeping his eyes trained on Lola. “I need to speak to Lola alone for a minute.”

  He held her hand and led her outside on the back porch. He leaned against the railing and sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?” asked Lola, furrowing her brows.

  “Ever since you met me, I’ve put you through hell. I now understand why you have rejected me,” he said.

  Lola stood in front of him and held his hands, causing his eyes to meet hers. “I’m not rejecting you. Like your father said, we are in this together.”

  Dean rested his forehead against hers and sighed softly. “I’m scared.”

  “Of what?”