The Wanderers Beginning: The Wanderers, Reborn, & Unforgiven

by Jessica Miller

  Tristan spun around and stood in front of me protectively. “What was –” he turned to me telling me to be quiet.

  “Stay here and lock the door behind me,” he whispered.

  “But Tristan,” I begged. I was more worried about his safety than mine.

  “Ella, I'll be right back. I'm just going to check it out. So please, just stay here.” Seeing how frightened I was he pulled me into him and kissed me so forcefully I thought my knees were going to buckle. He kissed me long and hard. He kissed me as if this was the last time we would ever kiss again.

  When he let go I stumbled back a bit and caught a glimpse of his cocky smile before it turned serious again. Then before I could protest he was out the door. I just stood there, still reeling from his amazing kiss. Once I found my bearings, I ran to the door and locked it just as Tristan had said to. Then I felt my way around until I found the bed. I carefully sat down and waited, in the dark.

  What I'm sure was only ten minutes felt like an hour had gone by. I stood up and started cautiously pacing the room, wondering what was taking so long. What happened? Why wasn't he back yet? My mind was racing with all kinds of horrible things that could happen in that small time frame that I sat idly by.

  Tired of waiting and against my better judgment, I decided to check things out for myself. I know Tristan had told me to stay put, but I wasn't one to listen. I slowly and cautiously unlocked the door. I stuck my head out into the hall and looked around, which did me no good because I couldn't see anything in the dark.

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. There's nothing to be afraid of I told myself. I braced myself and took a step into the hallway. I waited until my eyes adjusted to the darkness, but it was no use. I felt something vibrate inside my boot making me jump. I rolled my eyes when I realized it was my cell phone. Then I hit myself in the head. Duh, cell phone. I had forgotten I put it in there. I unzipped my boot to retrieve it only to find out my phone beeped as a warning to let me know it was dying.

  Crap.

  I turned on the flashlight app anyways hoping it would get me where I needed to go before it died. I shined the light down the hall. I saw and heard nothing. I proceeded in the direction of my room thinking that was probably where Billy and Josie were. I took my time looking over my shoulder at all the shadows and then chastised myself for being a big baby who was afraid of the dark.

  When I finally reached my room I pressed my ear close to the door to listen for any sounds of life.

  I heard nothing.

  I put my hand on the doorknob and turned it slowly. “Josie?” I whispered, before I pushed the door all the way open. I couldn't see anything so I shined my phone into the room only to have it die on me. Of course it would. I slipped the phone back into my boot seeing that it was no longer of use to me. Then I called out again. “Josie?”

  Nothing.

  I tried the light switch but the power was out. I noticed a tiny light shining through the blinds from the outside. I slowly made my way over to the window to open the blinds and let in some light, but I only made it halfway. I stumbled over a big lump in the middle of the floor and fell to the ground. The lump moaned. “Billy?” I turned myself over and crawled to him.

  “Ella?” he said weakly.

  With the little that I could see I noticed he had a huge gash on his head and his leg was all twisted. “Billy, what happened? Where's Josie?” I asked, panicked.

  He tried to sit up, but winced from the pain. “Careful,” I said helping him sit up. “What happened?” I asked again.

  “Jack,” he said, voice strained.

  “Jack did this?” he nodded, holding his arm tight to his chest. “Oh God, where's Josie,” I asked, shaking him.

  He grimaced from the pain I was causing him and I quickly let go. “I don't know...everything happened so fast.”

  “Think, Billy. What happened?”

  He tried to readjust himself to a more comfortable position. “He hit me from behind. I tried to fight back, I did, but he hit me so hard I had to struggle to stay conscious and before I knew it I was out.” He put his head down, ashamed. “Ella I'm so sorry. I tried to protect her, I did, I –”

  “It's okay, Billy, I know you did. We'll find her.” I needed to find a phone. I knew if I called the guardians they would be here within a few seconds to help us find her. “Do you have your phone?”

  “No,” he shook his head.

  “Okay, we need to get to a phone so I can call the guardians and get you some help. Can you walk?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, it's just my arm. I think it's broken.” I helped him up and sat him on the bed. I looked around for something to stabilize his arm. I knew we had clean sheets in the closet. If I ripped one in half I could make him a sling. “I'm gonna get a sheet from the closet to help tie up your arm, but we need to hurry because if Jack has Josie, there's no telling what he'll do. I don't even what to think about it,” I said, opening the closet door. Only when I opened the door I found something else.

  I found Josie.

  I gasped in horror and had to cover my mouth to keep from screaming out loud. Her body tumbled out onto the floor in a lifeless heap. I dropped to my knees next to her body. She was covered in blood from head to toe. Slashes all over her body and bite marks on her neck. I leaned in and put my head on her chest to see if she was still breathing, but I heard nothing. “Oh, God,” I cried out, covering my face with my hands and smearing Josie's blood all over in the process.

  Billy's head whipped around at the sound of my cries. “What...no,” he said when he saw Josie. “NO! NO! NO!” he screamed, dropping to the floor.

  “She's not breathing,” I managed to get out through all my blubbering.

  “Do you know how to do CPR?” Billy asked me. I couldn't comprehend anything at that moment. I was too shocked. I couldn't tear my eyes away from my friend’s bloody body. “Ella!” Billy shouted, shaking me. I looked up at him. “Do you know CPR?” I nodded. “Okay, get ready and I’ll tell you when to start with the chest compressions.” I nodded numbly.

  Billy tilted her head back slightly, opened her mouth and checked for any obstructions. Then he pinched her nose and blew two heavy breaths into her mouth and pointed to me. I stood on my knees, hand over hand and pushed down on her chest repeatedly, alternating while Billy tried to breathe life back into Josie. “Is it working?” I asked, worried.

  “Not yet, keep going.”

  I just kept trying but she still wasn't breathing. Billy sat back on his heels looking defeated. “What are you doing? Don't stop!” I yelled.

  “Ella,” he said softly.

  “No, she's not dead.” I pushed him out the way and continued trying to bring my friend back.

  “Ella,” Billy said again. “Ella, it's too late.”

  “No it's not! She's not dead, you can't just give up!”

  “She's lost too much blood, there's nothing we can do,” he said mournfully.

  “Can't we get a full vamp to feed her their blood and just bring her back?” I asked, desperate for anything to have my friend with me.

  “No, she has to still be alive, I'm sorry Ella,” he said, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.

  “No,” I shook my head. “Oh, God,” I cried hysterically, putting my head down on her chest. Billy stood up and knelt behind me. I looked up him. He was crying now, too. I threw my arms around his neck while he wrapped his one good arm around me to keep me from falling apart.

  We heard a scream from outside. I froze and looked at Billy. He got up and peered out through the blinds. “Just some kids goofing around,” he said. I let a sigh of relief. “Ella,” he said, looking at me with sad eyes. “We need to go. We have to find a phone to get help. I'm in no condition to fight and I couldn't live with myself if I let anything else happen.”

  “I know,” I said, looking back down at my friend. I leaned down close to her ear and whispered, “I'm so sorry, Josie,” I paused, fighting the urge to lose it again. I didn't have the t
ime grieve. “I love you,” I said, sitting up and wiping hastily at my tears.

  Billy walked over and bent down to face Josie. “I'm sorry I wasn't the hero you deserved. I love you and will never forget you,” he said, placing a soft kiss on her lips to say goodbye. Then he closed her eyes and sent up a silent prayer. When he opened his eyes they were glowing. “Let's go,” he growled. His eyes were growing angry with rage and I knew if I didn't get us out of here soon he would end up doing something that might get us both killed. He helped me up and out of the room, but not before I took one last look at my friend. Then I closed the door and followed Billy down the hall.

  He was right when he said he wasn't at full strength. He was limping slightly when we walked and had to take several breaks. “Why don't you let me help you?” I offered.

  “I can do it,” he said, letting his stubborn male pride get in the way.

  “Billy, you can barely walk let alone stand, here,” I said, throwing his good arm over my shoulder and putting mine around his waist. “Just put some of your weight on me.” Feeling exhausted, Billy gave in and let me help him the rest of the way. The steps seemed to take a lot out of him so I let him rest at the bottom. “I'm going to go to the front desk and use the phone,” I told him.

  “No Ella, it's not safe,” he said, while trying to stand but only succeeding in falling right back down.

  “Billy, you'll be able to see the front desk from here. It will be quicker if I go myself. I'll be right back.” He nodded, knowing that in his condition he wouldn't be that much help. I propped the door open with a folding chair so Billy could see me. Then I listened carefully for the sounds of someone else, but heard nothing. When I was sure it was clear, I proceeded cautiously to the front desk, looking all around for any surprises.

  When I reached the desk, I picked up the closest phone but it was dead. “Shit.” I looked around the desk for something else, another phone, radio, weapon, something, anything but I found nothing.

  I took a step back and slipped, falling to the floor and into a pile of something wet and dark. I looked down and lifted my hands to see what it was...blood. “Oh, God.” I followed the trail of blood with my eyes around the other side of the desk. I knew what I would find before I even looked. I threw myself back into the wall gasping when I saw him. It was George, the dorm's security guard. I pulled my knees up and put my hand over my mouth, turning my head, not able to look at him.

  I looked at Billy who still was waiting for me, unaware of what I just discovered. I knew he was depending on me to find a phone to call for help. I had to pull myself together. I had to get us out of here so this monster could be stopped. I just couldn't sit around and wait for more innocent people to die. I managed to construct some small amount of courage and crawled my way over to George's body. “I'm so sorry, George. You did not deserve this,” I said, closing his eyes and taking a moment to collect myself. When I was ready, as much as it pained me, I searched George for a phone or weapon of some sort. He had neither.

  “Shit.”

  I slowly stood up careful not to slip again. I turned back to Billy who was hunched over, propped up against the doorway to the stairs. I wiped the tears from my face and started to make my way back over to Billy. My head hung low at the loss of yet another friend. When I looked back up to meet Billy's eyes and tell him the bad news, I stopped, frozen in place.

  Billy followed the direction of my terrified stare. He looked over his shoulder and then back at me yelling, “Ella, RUN!” I watched Jack rip him back from the doorway and throw him into the stairwell. The door closed so fast Billy never had a chance. I could hear grunting coming from Billy and knew he wasn't giving up without a fight. I wanted to help, but I knew I would only get in the way and end up getting us both killed. So instead I did what he told me to. I ran.

  I had no idea where to go and still didn't know where Tristan was. Panic surged through me as I ran across the quad. I looked around everywhere for someone, anyone, but found no one. I ran to an open area that had the most light.

  “Eeeellllaaaa...” I heard Jack's voice in the breeze. I stopped and turned around, but he wasn't there.

  I looked around again looking for an emergency phone. I remember seeing them around campus but now I couldn't find one. “Eeeeelllaaa...” I heard him again. His voiced carried through the wind followed by a malicious laugh.

  I turned again and again spinning in circles, searching and waiting for him to appear, but he didn't show himself. Having enough of his torment I decided I was going to fight back. I was not going to just lie down and be slaughtered. I knew it wouldn't be much of a fight, but at least I would try. I would try for all the people he took from me tonight and for all the other people he killed.

  “Show yourself you coward!” I screamed into the empty air.

  He laughed and I turned in the direction of his voice. I saw the glow of his eyes in the distance and then they were gone. Those eyes, I knew them well. I was starting to piece everything together. It was all making sense now. “It was you, wasn't it? You were there that night, the night of the accident.” I waited but got no response, so I continued. “You're the reason the car flipped. You were the one standing in the middle of the road. The person Kyle swerved to avoid.”

  “Give the girl a prize,” he said, clapping. The sound came from behind me and I turned, but still couldn't see him. “Yes, poor Kyle, just another player in the game. A game that you're about to lose.”

  “I wouldn't count on that,” I spat, trying to sound confident despite the fact I was shaking in my boots. “Why'd you do it? What did you have to gain from the accident?”

  “I needed to see if you had your powers yet, but it was obvious you didn't when you couldn't help poor Kyle out of the car. I did enjoy sticking around and watching though. The look on your face was priceless. I didn't plan on showing myself, but I do enjoy a good scare,” he laughed.

  “You're sick you know that!” I clenched and unclenched my fists at my side. This was what he wanted. He wanted me to get mad. He wanted to make me weak so he could pounce on me at the right second when I was most vulnerable. Well I was on to his game and wasn't going to let him take me that easily.

  I took a breath trying to release some of my anger. Then I decided to stick it to him the best way I knew how - my sarcastic wit. “You know, this hide and seek is getting old,” I said, annoyed. “So how about you face me like a man. Or are you too scared?” I laughed, trying to show him he couldn't get to me and that I wasn't scared of him even though I thought I might pee my pants.

  I felt an icy cool breeze behind me and I knew he was there. I turned around to face him. “So, how about we just get this over with, cause frankly, I'm kind of tired of your little cat and mouse game,” I said, examining my nails like I could care less.

  He smiled maliciously at me making my heart stop cold. I reminded myself not to show fear. I crossed my arms and waited for his retort. “Oh, but we just started,” he said, taking a step away from the tree. “You see Ella, we have a few other players and I don't think they're ready to call it quits yet.” I yawned, patting my hand over my mouth pretending to be bored with this little banter. “You'll soon learn that I didn't work alone. No, no. I couldn't do this all on my own. I had a beautiful companion to help me out with our little game. I must say, she's even more vicious then I am,” he smiled and stared off in to the sky as if recalling some twisted memory of his.

  I tried hard not to show him how disgusted I was. “It was her idea to kill Skylar,” he continued. “You see. I didn't really care for her much, as you know,” he said, looking at me with a smug smile. “But I didn't plan on killing her. That was her idea, seeing how close you and Tristan were getting. She thought it would be the perfect murder to pin on him. Get you to think he was dangerous and stay away from him, but we learned you tend to lean more towards the dangerous types, don't you,” he said, looking me up and down licking his lips.

  “Please, don't flatter yourself. I only
went out with you because I felt sorry for you.”

  “Say what you will,” he said, waving his hand like it was no bother to him.

  “Or maybe you are jealous because you know Tristan is more of man than you will ever be.”

  He laughed as if I just told a funny joke. “Oh Ella, you do have a lot of growing up to do. This little crush is just a phase. He'll soon discard you like all the rest.”

  “What's the sudden interest in my love life? Why would you care if Tristan dumps me or not, unless…maybe you have a thing for him?” I teased. He narrowed his eyes at me not finding my joke amusing. “What does Tristan have to do with any of this anyways?” I asked curiously.

  “He knows too much. Can't risk him going around and tattling now can I?”

  “Is that why you killed your roommate, too? Because he discovered what kind of monster you are,” I said, finding it hard to keep the expression of disgust from my face.

  “I would have eventually, regardless. He really was a slob. But to answer your question, he was just another pawn in the plan.”

  “I hate to tell, but your little plan isn't working.”

  “Isn't it?” he said, that malicious smile returning. “I think it's working quite well. You see, Ella, plans change. Sometimes you need to change the rules a bit in the game and you did a wonderful job of helping us do that.” I looked at him not quite clear on what he was getting at. “Say Ella, where is lover boy?”

  “What did you do?” I yelled, not able to control my anger anymore.

  “Oh, darling?” Jack cooed.

  I turned to my right preparing myself for his mystery partner. When she stepped out from behind the tree I couldn't hide the surprised look on my face. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. She stood there, smiling as viciously as Jack. “Hello, Ella.”

  “Cadence?”

  She took a step closer to Jack, one arm still behind the tree holding onto something. She looked at Jack and caressed his face in a loving manner and making me want to throw up. I looked away not able to stomach watching this. “What's the matter, Ella? I would have thought you were the romantic type.”