“No!” she whispered, staring at the empty space in front of them.
Logan’s brow creased and he turned to her, placing his hand on her shoulder. “What is it?” His voice was calm, but his eyes were intense.
Josh had a feeling it had something to do with Jade’s ability.
Jade’s face changed. The portrayal of innocent fear was gone and her mouth contorted into almost a sneer. Her eyes flashed with something vicious. It gave Josh the chills.
A moment later she’d transformed back into the fearful little girl, cowering and crying with her hands over her face. “Noo!” Suddenly, she screamed, and another scream rang out like an echo of Jade’s, sounding from far away.
“Logan!” she whispered urgently. Then she uncovered her face and stared up at him, her eyes bleary with tears. “Someone’s in trouble. We have to help her!”
Logan nodded. “Where is she?”
Jade looked around, then strode ahead, pulling Logan along with her. Chloe stared for a moment, but Josh nudged her. “Come on.” They hurried to catch up.
“Down here!” Jade gestured into a dark alley, stopping at the entrance. Logan grabbed her arm, pulled her close, and looked into her face again.
“Where? Straight down this alley?”
She nodded, then thought for a moment, then amended. “Straight down and turn right at the end. I don’t know. Maybe there’s another back alley or something. But they’re back there.”
“What do you mean by ‘they?’” Chloe asked. “Is there more than one person in trouble?”
Jade shook her head. “No. A woman’s in trouble. Two others are trying to take advantage of her—or already have. I’m not sure. I’m guessing they’re male.”
“How can you know?” Chloe asked.
A pained expression crossed Jade’s face and she hugged herself with her arms. “The nature of the emotions,” she said, frowning at Logan again. “Hurry.”
“Stay here,” Logan said to Jade, kissing her quickly on the lips. “I’ll be right back.” The dark alley swallowed him.
“Wait!” Chloe protested as he took a step into the darkened alley. “You can’t go alone!”
She was right. If there were two, Logan would need help. Josh pulled out his pocket flashlight and shined it ahead. “Wait up,” he called softly. He couldn’t tell if Logan had heard or not.
Josh jogged between the buildings, light trained on the ground so he wouldn’t trip over something. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. He was beyond nervous, but something drove him forward, propelling him toward the person in need as if he were meant for this.
He rounded the back corner and pulled up short, nearly colliding into Logan who had stooped behind a trash bin, peering into the alley. Josh craned to look around him. A single, dim lamp illuminated the back door of the building. Josh thought it was the back entrance of the bar they’d passed earlier on the way to the show. But what he saw under that light stopped him cold.
A scantily clad woman, maybe a waitress, but one who looked more like an exotic dancer, was being shoved brutally by two men, both large and both dressed in bulky clothing. One of them held her around the waist, pulling her into him roughly and kissing her, while his other hand grabbed her rear end. She fought and hit, and when she got away the other guy pinned her against the wall. He grabbed her shirt, trying to tear it off. She was crying, long black mascara tears streaking her face.
“Come on,” Logan said under his breath, touching Josh’s elbow. He leapt toward the men. “What do you think you’re doing?” The growl in his voice echoed off the buildings and gave Josh a flashback of Logan back in Carlsbad Caverns, howling with feral rage.
Josh ran up beside him, angling for the guy who had the woman in his grasp. “Yeah! Leave her alone! Get your hands—”
Crack!
Josh slammed into the pavement, his face planted on the cold, grimy street. His jaw ached and his head spun. When he tried to get up, he felt dizzy and fell back to the ground. His eyes rolled back, but he could hear Logan’s voice again.
“Like he said, leave her alone.”
One of the brutes chuckled darkly. “You going to try and stop us? And go down like your little friend here?” That brought on a fit of laughter from the other guy. “We found her first. Get lost.”
There was a thud and a crack. Josh rolled himself over to see what was happening. From his vantage point against the ground, he saw Logan pick up one of the guys by his jacket and throw him—throw him?—into a nearby dumpster. The guy landed with a thud and a crackle of trash bags. Josh blinked. Surely he wasn’t seeing what he thought he was seeing. Logan was strong, but—
The second guy just stared at Logan, and Josh couldn’t tell if he was frozen with shock or defiance. Logan walked up to that guy and gut punched him, sending him flying back into the wall where he crashed into some rubber garbage bins, shooting the lids into the air and sending a spew of papers and debris out the top. It was like a scene from a comic book.
Josh rubbed his eyes and managed to sit up.
The woman was standing petrified in the middle of the alley, shivering in the cold, one strap of her top ripped and hanging off her shoulder. She wrapped her arms around herself, and stared at Logan as if unsure whether or not he’d harm her.
Instantly Logan’s posture changed. He tugged on his coat to straighten the collar and cracked his neck, transforming back into the picturesque gentleman. “Are you all right, Miss?”
She nodded, still too shocked to speak.
“Are you sure?” A worried frown crossed his face. “You might want to have those bruises checked out—just to be safe.” He gestured to her arms and her neck where red blemishes were starting to form. Logan picked up a dirty heap off the ground and shook it, presenting her with a jacket. “Is this yours?”
She nodded. “Th-thank you.”
“It’s no problem. Now, do you have a way home, or do you want me to call you a taxi?”
She swallowed and rubbed her arms. “My car’s a block away.”
“We’ll walk you there.”
“Thanks.” She smiled up at Logan.
Josh pushed up and rose to his feet, swaying a little. Logan walked over to him with the woman following.
“This is my friend Josh. I’m Logan.”
“I’m Amelia,” she said.
“Josh, are you all right?” Logan asked, a concerned look on his face. “It sounded like you went down pretty hard.”
Josh shrugged and cleared his throat. “Yeah, I’m fine. No harm done.”
“Oh my god, if you hadn’t been here…” The woman looked Logan up and down. “That was amazing. I’ve never seen anyone that strong.”
Logan didn’t answer, but soon they reached Jade and Chloe and his focus switched to Jade. “Are you okay?”
Jade nodded and took a deep breath. “She’s safe now.” She smiled and introduced herself to Amelia.
Josh was impressed with Jade’s transformation. Six months ago when he’d first met her she’d been very shy. She was different now, like she’d gained confidence.
Logan put his arm around her shoulders, hugging her to his side and kissing the top of her head.
“He’s some catch,” Amelia said. “Don’t let him go.”
Logan cleared his throat. “So, where did you park?”
They found her car, and she thanked them again.
“Do you guys want to go out for coffee?” Chloe asked as Josh warmed up the Jeep. “You don’t have homework or anything, do you?”
“We’d love to go somewhere,” Jade said. “I have some studying, but we should make the most of tonight before you head back to Denver.”
~
They sat in the twenty-four-hour diner warming up with coffees and hot chocolates. Chloe was chatting away, keeping up most of the dialogue between herself and Jade while Josh and Logan sat quietly listening. Mostly listening, anyway. Josh had a lot on his mind.
“So you just leapt in and punched the
guy?” Chloe asked Logan, eyes wide.
“Something like that.”
“More like he threw him,” Josh said. “Into the dumpster.”
She gawked at that. “Are you serious? That’s awesome!”
Logan cleared his throat and looked across the room. “Might have been a bit much, in hindsight.”
“No way,” Chloe said. “That jerk deserved it. And then you got the other one, too. And poor Josh was lying on the ground the whole time?” Chloe reached over to touch his temple, but Josh pulled away when her ice-cold finger made contact.
“Ouch! Watch it!”
She gave him a matronly frown. “I’m sorry you got hurt.”
“I’m okay. It’s not that bad.”
“It looks bad—you’re getting a bump.”
Josh turned away, cupping his hand over his temple.
“Maybe you should get an ice pack.”
“I’m fine,” he said through his teeth. “Can we just drop it?”
Chloe shook her head. “Whatever, Josh.” She looked back at Logan. “Anyway, nice work.”
“So did you ever find out what caused your strength?” Chloe asked Logan. “I thought Jade said it had gone away after the Carlsbad stuff.”
Jade looked at Logan, putting her hand across his shoulder to touch a lock of his hair. She smiled at him, twirling it around her finger.
“It had. My hair was the key. I figured that out when I let it grow long again.”
“It must grow really fast.” Chloe said.
“You could say that, yeah.”
“So Jade, you have an amazing sense of empathy,” Chloe said, appreciation gleaming in her eyes.
“She is amazing.” Logan’s gaze was fixed on Jade, that intensity in his eyes again that made Josh feel like he shouldn’t be here. Piled on top of that feeling was his failed attempt to help earlier and everything else about tonight. He felt himself slipping away, like he was slowly merging into another reality, one that none of his friends or family knew about. Spiraling downward into its abysmal depths, he had no idea how to escape.
“Alexandria—she’s my roommate from California,” Chloe was saying. The name jarred Josh out of his moping. He sat up, looked at her, and wondered how much conversation he’d missed.
“Yeah, I remember you talking about her after your trip,” Jade said.
“She’s really cool,” Chloe told Jade. “I think you’d really like her. And did I tell you about her ability?”
Logan arched an eyebrow.
“No, what is it?” Jade asked.
“She’s super speedy. Like, she can run really fast. And she plays the drums. Her arms are crazy fast.”
“Wow,” Jade said. “It seems like I find out about more people every day who are different in some way. It’s weird. But I guess nothing is really ‘weird’ anymore, huh?”
Chloe laughed. “Weird is normal. Normal is weird.”
And where did that put Josh?
“Anyway. I’m trying to set her up with Cam,” she said with a gleam in her eye.
“Oh yeah?” Jade asked. “How’s that going?”
“Oh, a little slow, but he’ll come around. You know, the long-distance aspect doesn’t help much with the scenario.”
“Denver is only an hour and a half away, if that,” Logan said.
Chloe ignored him. “I think they’re just perfect for each other. And he really needs someone right now. You know, after…” Chloe glanced at Logan and back at Jade, letting her words trail off.
The waitress came up and asked if they needed anything.
“Can you warm up my coffee?” Logan asked, pointing to his mug on the table. The woman refilled the cups and left. It was quiet for a moment as they sipped their drinks.
“I really want Cam to find someone, you know?” Jade said. “He’s a great catch. He deserves someone special.”
“Of course he is,” Chloe said with pride. “Cam’s great. He’s just…picky. That’s all.” She sighed as if to convey that her own troubles in life would be significantly lessened if only her brother would settle down and get himself into a relationship.
Nice that she was so concerned about one of her brothers.
Josh yawned and stretched dramatically, but the hint seemed to have no effect on anyone at the table.
It was twenty more minutes before Chloe finally thought to check the time. “Wow, it’s after one o’clock already? We need to get back if I’m going to be conscious tomorrow. I have homework, too. Just let me run to the restroom real quick.”
Logan patted Jade on the arm and excused himself, too.
After the two of them had gone, Josh felt Jade’s intense scrutiny from across the table. Her eyes read every emotion on him. She was the one he could never hide from.
“You know, you’re a pretty decent guy, yourself.”
Josh blinked, shaking off the sense of nakedness. “Hmm?”
“I just mean that you deserve to find a someone nice, too. Have you dated anyone lately?”
She had to know the answer to that. Surely she could read him well enough to know the truth. “Uh, no. Not really.”
“Well, if you find someone you’re interested in, you should go for it.”
“Go for it?”
Jade smiled softly, compassion filling her eyes. “You know, ask her out.”
“Right.”
“I know what you’re thinking.”
“I thought you could just read emotions, not thoughts.”
“Yeah, but I know you, Josh.”
His eyes shifted away from her. That feeling was back, like itchy ants crawling on him.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to embarrass you.”
When he snuck a glance at her, he saw an almost guilty look flash across her face. “But I don’t want to leave you this way.”
“What way?” He asked.
“Don’t sell yourself short. You have more going for you than you think. Besides, if I can find the right person, so can you.”
Alex’s face flickered in his mind.
Jade’s brows rippled for a second, then smoothed. She reached across the table and touched Josh’s hand. “You know you’re special, don’t you? You may not know where you’re headed yet, but I know you’re going to be something amazing.”
~
It had taken long enough, but finally Nic had Alexandria Hailey’s schedule in hand with a plan formed in his mind. He entered the campus wearing a sweatshirt and some Chucks from a thrift store. Now he looked like one of the students—hands shoved into his pockets, eyes fixed on the ground.
When her class got out, he trailed behind her in the hallway, camouflaged by the crowd. But once they were out of the building, Nic spotted someone waiting for her. It was the hipster guy who had told Nic to shove off back at the movie theater. He was waiting with a skateboard, of all things. Instead of getting into a car, the two of them walked across the campus.
Nic hesitated, but watched the girl tap the seats of three bikes as the couple passed the bike rack. Three. It was a sign, and he would heed it.
He followed them, his plans changing on the fly. Why get back at just her when he could attack both of them?
Apparently their destination was one of the campus’s deserted parking lots. When they stopped, the guy started playing around on the skateboard, demonstrating techniques.
The too-cute, disgustingly sweet nature of that “date” or whatever it was nauseated Nic. He watched them from afar, and they were oblivious, distracted with that nervous-flirtatious energy that turned his stomach. His neck was suddenly warm, and his hands clenched.
The witch laughed at something the hipster kid said. What right did she have to laugh or even smile? What right did she have to be happy when she’d robbed him of his ability? Waiting until she was alone might be safer, but the fire was raging. She was going to pay, and she was going to pay now. They both were.
All he needed was a car. She’d be writhing on the pavement in her own sticky,
warm blood before he was done with her.
Josh’s stomach had tied itself into knots when he met Alex after class on Monday afternoon. There was no Chloe to rescue him if he couldn’t think of anything to say.
“So how’ve you been? How’s boarding?” she asked.
“Great. Just working on some tricks. I’ve been getting better at the half-pipes.”
“Wow, cool!” Her face lit up, and Josh’s pride surged momentarily. She seemed really into this whole thing—that was a good sign. Maybe this would go smoothly after all. He cleared his throat and threw the board down on the ground. “You ready to learn some basics?”
“Yep.”
“Okay. Why don’t you watch me first, then I’ll pass the board to you.”
“Sounds good.”
He showed her how to take off and how to brake, then he kicked the board to her.
She stopped it with her foot. Gingerly, she held one foot in the air, hesitating. “I’m afraid it’s going to go rolling out from under me, and I’ll bite it.”
“Just put one foot on, slowly at first…and watch your balance.” He mimicked the gesture with his foot. “Don’t try and go too fast the first time.”
She hesitated. “I’m more worried about the stopping than the starting.”
“Wait. I have an idea.” He walked over to a spot about ten feet in front of her and stopped, facing her. Holding out his hands in a catcher’s position, he said, “Okay, you kick off, and if you can’t stop in time, I’ll catch you.”
She took a deep breath. “Okay. I can do this.” She planted a foot and scraped the ground with her other toe a few times but didn’t go anywhere.
Josh chuckled. “Maybe a little faster than that. Just give a nice, solid kick-off.”
“Okay. Here goes again.” This time her foot met the pavement and sent her sailing away. It was a little fast for his comfort, her first time on the board, but he kept his face calm, determined to see her finish.
“Now just let your foot rest lightly on the back—”
Outsider: The Flawed Series Book Two Page 9