The Perfect Outcast

by Melissa O. Hansen

  Not a moment too soon, she slipped her hands one by one from the rope as the first smelly man trampled through the bushes toward her. He wasted no time but put his face an inch from hers and reached for her waist.

  “Hello, you pretty—”

  Her hands clamped around his throat. He shoved her away, and with her ankles tied, she fell, bringing him with her. She tightened her grip as he clawed, kicked, then seized her hair, attempting to rip the strands out. When his panicked hands tried to pry hers from his neck, she leaned forward and sank her teeth hard into his fingers. His scream was lost in his closed throat.

  When he went limp, Alina hastened to untie the knots at her ankles. The rope didn’t budge.

  The men at camp cheered and whistled at the rustling in the bushes. “You only got ten more minutes, Hank, y’hear?” Gerard called out.

  Ten minutes! Alina hunted through Hank’s pockets until she found a small pocketknife. She cut the rope and fled into the forest. As she picked up speed, she began to laugh. Ten minutes at this pace, and they’d never catch her.

  Alina had paid careful attention as they traveled throughout the day, but the thickness of the trees and the night disoriented her. She ran in the direction she believed to be east, knowing that for now, building distance between her and Gerard’s men was the safest path to take. They expected her to travel to Millflower, so she must find Rex, Jade, and Baylor before Gerard found them again. She thought of the nightstalks hunting them and quickened her pace.

  Immortality felt strange—still fresh and new to her. As a child in Pria, she possessed instincts others did not. She knew falling off her bike or slamming her fingers in the door would hurt. She avoided trying new things but rarely had to since Jade didn’t encourage her. She never went near a swimming pool, and after the incident with Pierce never climbed a tree again. But immortals didn’t have this apprehension. They mastered everything on their first try. They didn’t crash their bikes or slip from the trees they climbed—they jumped!

  And now she was the one who succeeded without effort, whose eyes could see clearly in the darkness. She soared through the woods, dodging branches and leaping over fallen logs. The invincibility was intoxicating.

  After a few hours of running, the fear hit.

  Recognizing the feeling at once, she climbed a tree with heavy limbs and hid in the leaves. If the fear paralyzed her, at least she couldn’t be seen.

  Her body stiffened like the branches around her as she glimpsed a nightstalk creeping through the wide trunks, its beady red eyes scanning the trees, aware of her presence.

  They sense fear, she reminded herself. She closed her eyes and thought of Jade, Rex, Baylor, and the people back in Stormport. She began to relax. As courage warmed her limbs, the nightstalk’s eyes blinked, puzzled. It whirled around and scanned the trees, as if its prey had just escaped from under its nose.

  This encouraged Alina, and as her eyes stalked the creature, she remembered how defenseless she was. Gerard had confiscated all her weapons when he took her. She had Hank’s pocketknife, which didn’t seem sufficient. But facing the nightstalk without weapons didn’t worry her; it just required more thought.

  She stood up on the branch and watched the confused creature for a moment, then hurled herself into the air. She twisted and flipped until she landed firmly on the soil, thirty feet from where it stood.

  They stared at each other. She almost faltered at the nightstalk’s eerie red eyes but held its glare. The moonlight shone on its sickly complexion, making it almost transparent. Purple veins throbbed under its gray skin. She did not flinch until something in its face stopped her with a gasp.

  The creature bore a resemblance to the immortals of Pria: graceful, swift, and symmetrical but as hideous as they were beautiful. Its skin looked decayed and putrid, the whites around its red pupils sunken—as if everything good had been sucked out.

  The nightstalk intrigued her more than it frightened her, and as she examined it with both repulsion and fascination, it lifted its head and released a bone-chilling howl. She darted behind a tree, her fear returning like ice in her veins.

  In the distance several howls answered. Others were coming to its aid to destroy the enemy that killed one of their own. She panicked, until she realized they were moving away from Rex, and Jade, and Baylor, to her.

  Alina set her jaw as she stepped out from the tree. They’re frightening to my eyes, but they can’t hurt me. She repeated this in her mind as the sight grew more terrifying.

  Over a dozen nightstalks walked into the moonlight from the dark trees, their skin glowing with their pupils. Alina could sense the fear thick and heavy around her, but with focus, she stayed above it.

  I can’t die. I can’t die. I can’t die.

  She walked forward to meet them, and they surrounded her. How quickly she could take them out with a dart gun. She pulled out Hank’s pocketknife and released the short blade. Each of them raised their hands, their long fingernails shining in the moonlight, and pointed them right at her heart.

  She examined each one as they approached, trying to decide which was easiest to overcome. She crouched and glared at the one drawing nearest, until it gave a blank smile and pointed to something over her shoulder.

  She spun around to find a nightstalk right behind her, flooded in moonlight, creating a mirror out of its transparent body. Alina screamed at her reflection, which instead of a flawless, immortal figure showed a plain, awkward girl from Pria—with plump legs, stringy hair and blemishes spotting her face. Her hands flew to her mouth in a startled gasp and the reflection followed.

  She looked down at her body but saw nothing in the darkness—she’d lost her immortal vision. Dread closed around her and filled her lungs. Had she become mortal somehow? She cowered in a fetal position as the nightstalks approached, her muscles too rigid to move.

  They raised their sharp nails above their heads and plunged them at her heart, and her chest relaxed long enough to release a desperate, blood-curdling scream.

  The pain didn’t come. She heard a clean rip of fabric and felt nails scratching her throat, followed by angry snarls and footsteps fleeing on soft earth. The fear released her like fingers loosening from her neck. She opened her eyes and looked around. She was alone.

  She got to her feet and broke into a run, shaking with fear. Gerard would be searching for her by now, and if she was mortal—

  She stopped and touched her face. Her skin was smooth. She ran her fingers through her hair and met no tangles. She could see the outline of every tree and stick on the ground, though no moonlight penetrated the woods.

  If she was still immortal, what had she seen in the nightstalk’s reflection? Was it a trick of the eye to weaken her?

  If so, it had worked. But in the end, they couldn’t harm her, and that angered them. She shook her head in disbelief. Why had she fallen for the illusion? The nightstalks were more cunning than she expected. She took off again, her graceful legs running more swiftly than before. She must find the others before it was too late.

  The forest thinned and opened into thick prairie grass, and the sky to her left grew pink with the rising sun. She squealed and clapped her hands. She had come the right way! A slight breeze ruffled her clothes, and she looked down and gave a startled cry. In her haste, she’d forgotten the nightstalks had ripped her shirt. She clasped the fabric together, then pulled her arms into the sleeves, twisted the shirt around her neck, and slipped it on backward. The tear now dipped low on her back.

  A rustling nearby startled her, and she dropped into the tall stalks of grass. As the sound drew closer, a dark, curly head bobbed into view. She frowned. The person wasn’t Rex or Jade and didn’t seem to be one of Gerard’s men. She lay on her stomach and tried to disappear in the weeds.

  Alina gasped as a small, wasted man came into view. His clothes hung in tatters around his bony frame, and dark circles framed his eyes. His bare chest sunk with each breath, and his skin stretched over his ribs like ti
ssue paper. Alina had never seen such a wretched-looking being, and as pity overwhelmed her, she stood up and started toward him.

  With a screechy cry, he flung himself at her, kicking her legs and punching at her face. He teetered backwards and collapsed on the ground.

  “I’m sorry,” Alina said. “I didn’t mean to startle you—”

  The man jumped to his feet and snarled. She kept her distance as he surveyed her. He seemed to be considering whether to attack again or not. With a dramatic shriek, he turned and fled into the grass.

  Alina’s heart raced, reminding her that while her body was invulnerable, her emotions were not. She grieved for the man and his haunting, distrustful eyes and felt certain he came from Pria. Her eyes widened as she made the connection.

  Sampson tortured this man until he went mad, then sent him into Pria to search for a lost loved one. Someone out there would be heartbroken to see him so miserable. Alina swallowed and pushed the thought of Zaiden from her mind.

  In the distance she heard the sound of an engine revving, and her heart leaped. The rescue party must be close by now. She scanned the horizon until she spotted a brown vehicle bouncing over the hills in the distance. She dashed toward it.

  As she drew near, she noticed the vehicle had no roof. A middle-aged man sat behind the wheel, craning his neck and scanning the grass. Alina waved her arms as she ran, and when he saw her, he stopped the car and jumped out.

  “You must be Alina!” he called, pulling off his hat.

  “Yes!” she exclaimed.

  “I’m so glad I found you! I’m from Millflower. My name’s Maxwell Gardel.”

  Alina beamed. “How did you know to look for me?”

  “Lance called me. He made contact with Baylor, who said you’d been separated from the group.”

  “Do you know if Baylor and the others are okay?”

  “Oh, yes, they’re fine. They’re in Millflower, being treated for wounds, but nothing too serious.”

  Alina blinked back happy tears as Maxwell motioned for her to get in the car. After they settled in the front seat, he slapped his hat on his head and jerked the car into motion.

  “When did they arrive in Millflower?” Alina asked.

  “This morning. About midnight I received a call from Tim, another of the search crew, confirming he’d found them. He called again this morning after they arrived safely in Millflower. Lance called yesterday afternoon and told me you’d been taken. Eight of us have been searching since then. You aren’t easy to find! How did you get this far out?”

  “I traveled for a long time with Gerard and his men. They headed north.”

  At the mention of Gerard’s name, Maxwell darkened. “Vile brute,” he muttered under his breath. “I’d love to hear how you outwitted him. We expected a fight to get you back, after all.” He gestured to a stockpile of guns and explosives in the back of the car.

  He looked at her expectantly, and she realized he was waiting for the story. “Oh! Well—” she flushed. She didn’t want to explain what Gerard’s men almost did to her. “Once they made camp, they tied me to a tree a short distance away. While they ate dinner, I worked hard at the ropes around my wrists, and since I feel no pain, I could stretch them loose. Then I freed my ankles and ran into the woods. I’m sure they’re searching for me, but I can run forever and not get tired, so the escape was pretty easy.”

  Maxwell threw back his head and laughed. “What idiots, thinking they could contain an immortal!”

  “Are we far from Millflower?”

  “Not too far. We should arrive by evening.” He picked up his radio and called the others in the search party, and Alina smiled at the cheers that followed. A short time later, other vehicles appeared in the distance, all traveling parallel in the same direction.

  Maxwell whistled cheerfully as they bounced through the grass, and Alina smiled. He didn’t seem bothered that he’d spent over twenty-four hours looking for her. He looked tired but pleasant. His wide-brimmed hat covered the ear shields and his thin, red hair. She noticed his freckled arms and calloused hands and concluded he spent a lot of time working outdoors. Alina felt safe with him. He respected her personal space and took no notice of her beauty.

  “How long have you lived in Millflower?” she asked.

  “Thirteen years,” he answered. “I took my family there when the wilderness got too dangerous. I have a wife and three daughters, and I didn’t want them threatened by nightstalks or forced to wear ear shields every day of their lives.” His friendly tone encouraged her questions.

  “Millflower produces most of Carthem’s food, right?”

  “Yup. Carthem would starve without us. A large wall surrounds our town and farmland. Only those cleared by Lance can enter.”

  “But if Millflower is so important, shouldn’t it have the same security as Stormport and Jaden?”

  Maxwell shrugged. “Perhaps, but we’re not set up for it. The town is too small—the cost to maintain that security isn’t worth it. It would require more workers to move in, which would strain our resources. Besides, our isolated location provides some natural protection.”

  “But how do you get the food to the cities?”

  “We have trucks that transport the supplies, and drivers make a trip to Jaden and Stormport monthly. This is dangerous, but the vehicle keeps them safe, and they have the best-paid job in Millflower. Those are the only cities we supply food to. People who live outside of them have to sustain themselves.”

  Alina chewed on her lip. “Do you think my presence will bring danger to your town?”

  Maxwell reflected for a moment, then shook his head. “No. Animals can’t get in, so all we have to fear are human enemies, and we’re good at keeping them away. There’s one trying to get in now. We’re shocked he’s eluded the brainwastes this long.”

  Alina thought of the wild man in the grass. “Who is he?”

  “One of the Sad Cases.” Maxwell looked at her. “That’s what we call those who suffer insanity by Sampson’s hands. This one’s obsessed with entering Millflower to find a woman there. She’s lived there for about ten years, though I don’t know how long she’s been in Carthem. I don’t know her history. She doesn’t talk much but seems sad when she hears of him. We make sure she never sees him because that could be the end of her. Fortunately, she’s never tried. Some people are driven to meet their old lovers, and that usually results in miserable deaths for both.”

  “Do any seek them out, thinking they can cure them?” Alina asked.

  “Yes, sometimes. They want to beg forgiveness or find closure. It’s one of Sampson’s tricks. He likes to do this when two people become attached to each other. Loyalty threatens his rule, you know. He usually expels one under false notions that he—or she—betrayed the other. Then he takes the one left behind, imprisons him until insane, and sends him into Carthem to kill. It’s heart-wrenching to see.”

  “How do you know so much? Did you once live in Pria?”

  “No. But Sampson’s ways are no secret here. I’m a town official and close confidant of Lance. It’s important I understand all of Sampson’s tactics and the motivation behind them. Millflower has been targeted many times and is never fully safe. After the safety and well-being of my family and city, Sampson’s downfall is my top priority.”

  Alina nodded, respecting the power in his words. “Do you know what happened to Baylor and the others? You said they were wounded.”

  “I don’t know. Tim didn’t say. I’m sure they’ll fill you in once you get there. You’ve got a great story for them as well.” He looked at her and grinned.

  One by one, the other vehicles met up with them, the drivers raising their fists and cheering. They drove up close and gaped at Alina. She blushed, feeling uncomfortable in her ripped shirt.

  She leaned in toward Maxwell. “Do you have an extra shirt, or a blanket or anything?”

  Without turning his head, Maxwell reached into the back of the car and tossed her a large, heavy sw
eatshirt. She slipped it on and rolled up the sleeves.

  As the men stared at her, she felt relieved Maxwell had found her. Some of them smiled or winked, while others looked away when she met their eyes. All of them glared at Maxwell. A competition appeared to be driving them as to who would find her and take her back. Maxwell ignored their jealous stares, and Alina smiled, realizing the one man who hadn’t played the game had won it.

  She made light conversation with Maxwell for the rest of the drive; he talked about the farm he ran and how his daughters worked the land with him. His oldest daughter was her same age. Alina knew their stay in Millflower would be short, but she hoped for a friend. She missed Trinee.

  By late afternoon, the brick wall of Millflower came into sight. Maxwell called on his radio as they approached, gave a code, and the tall metal gate opened for them.

  Alina surveyed the town as they drove inside. Small shops lined the main street: a bakery, a butcher’s store, a deli, and a small doctor’s office. Rich, green land separated the homes in the distance. On the breeze, Alina caught whiffs of manure and sweat, but she liked the town right away.

  She appreciated her worn clothes and dirty face, as she hoped to blend into the modest culture. As they drove through town, a crowd lined the street to congratulate the search party. She soon realized they came to catch a glimpse of her.

  Their eyes widened when they saw her, followed by loud gasps and exclamations of her beauty. Few had seen an immortal before. Alina shifted in her seat.

  “You’re quite a celebrity here, Alina. You could wave and smile if you like,” Maxwell suggested.

  Alina realized she must look snobbish, so she forced a smile and waved. Her heart sank as a group of teenage girls sneered at her, then huddled and whispered to each other. Somehow, she knew their words would sting if she heard them.

  She was relieved when Maxwell turned onto a dirt road and left the crowd behind. As they approached a large house on the end of the street, Jade hurried toward them, arms flailing with excitement. Maxwell slammed on the brakes to keep Alina from leaping from the moving vehicle.