Finding ELE (ELE Series #2) Written By: Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels

by Nuckels, Courtney

  "The people that you see, they only have my color eyes, right?" My mom asks.

  My dad nods his head but realizing my mom can't see him he says aloud, "Yes."

  We round the bend in silence and there waiting for us at the rally point are my mother's fighters.

  "Wow." I say at the same time as my mom. How in the world did my dad call that?

  Claire and I let go of our invisibility and the group notices us at once.

  Immediately one of the head guys comes up to my mom and whispers to her. I can barely make out the words he’s saying. He’s telling her that the coast is clear but we need to head out ASAP.

  My mom turns to my dad and gasps upon seeing his eyes for the first time. He looks taken aback so she quickly tells him. "Sorry honey. I just didn't expect the change to happen so quickly. Your eyes have already turned."

  He touches the area under his eyes. A worry line forms between his brows. "What, what color are they?" I've never heard my dad sound nervous like that.

  My mom puts her hand up to his cheek. "They are the most handsome shade of copper I've ever seen." She kisses him on the lips.

  A few months ago I would have been grossed out by their PDA but not now. Not after all we've been through. No, that kiss makes something in me melt. It tells me that things are becoming right again. I mean, there are still some thoroughly freakish things going on, but the family part...yes that is right again.

  My mom, dad, Tony and the others convene for a few minutes. Alec, Connor, Claire, Candy and I take a seat on the ground. Connor uncaps a canteen of water that someone handed him. He takes a swig and we pass it around our little circle. None of us say much. I can't help but notice that Candy looks really freaked out. She keeps picking at her nails and staring at the ground. I feel kind of bad for her. I try to pat her leg in a comforting gesture but she flinches so badly that I decide to keep my distance.

  Claire sits across from me weaving wild flowers together to form a daisy chain. I’ve always wondered how to do that. Before long she’s made a beautiful crown out of multi-colored wild flowers. Without a word she reaches over and places it upon Candy’s head, fitting it perfectly within her blond locks. At first Candy seems startled but then softens, reaching up and gently touching the woven daisy chain. She politely mutters thanks to Claire and gives her a small sincere smile. I grin at the gesture. What a big thing for Claire to do…to give a peace offering to the girl who once made her life miserable. She truly is a beautiful example of humility.

  Alec must sense my emotions because he takes my hand in his. I smile and give it a gentle squeeze. The next thing I know he takes one of the wild flowers and threads it around my ring finger making a flower ring. I bring it up to my nose and inhale the floral scent, closing my eyes and reveling in the sweet smell. I nestle into Alec and enjoy the sunshine for a few more minutes while we wait.

  When everyone is ready to go, my mom comes to give us direction with my dad at her side. "Just like before, you six will be heavily guarded. I know it will be hard, but you need to keep your eyes at your feet the entire time. We don't need any rogue Reapers catching sight of those colors."

  "We could just keep everyone invisible while we walk if that will help." Claire suggests to my mom.

  Tony answers for her. "It's quite a long walk and that would take a lot of your energy." He looks over to me. If I were to listen in on his thoughts, I know he'd be thinking about how much it took out of me just taking that many people a short distance inside the mountain.

  "Okay." Claire says.

  "Are you ready?" My mom asks us. We all agree and immediately a group of ten, which includes the fantastic four, Tony and my mom, flank our sides forming a strong perimeter of neon yellow eyes. Tony of course stands next to me and Alec stands on the other side.

  Tony's gaze drifts down to the flower ring on my finger and he looks away with a surly expression. I can't help but wonder if Alec chose to walk on my other side for just that reason. I give a little snort realizing his attempt to mark his territory.

  My father walks directly behind my mom. I hear him whisper to her, “I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to the fact you’re the protector now.”

  She lovingly pats the hand that he has placed on her hip. The six of us keep our eyes to the ground as we walk. Once again, we don't run into any of the Reapers out in the open. We make our way into the forest without a hitch.

  After an hour of walking next to Tony I start having trouble blocking out his turmoil of emotions. I can sense that he's feeling extremely torn and there is an escalating amount of jealousy building within him. I look down at my hand that is encasing Alec's. I hate that this is tearing Tony up inside but still, I don't let go of Alec's hand. I know it's completely unreasonable but I have an underlying fear that if I part too far from Alec, we may be separated. I don't want to go through that again.

  We stop halfway to our destination to take a break. Keeping my eyes to the ground I accept the canteen from my mom.

  "Close your eyes as you drink." She says softly.

  I shut my eyes as I lift my head and take a drink. The water feels amazing sliding down my parched throat. I rub the back of my neck with my hand. It's sore from hanging my head down for so long.

  Someone bumps into me from behind causing me to spill the water down the side of my face. I make the mistake of opening my eyes but quickly right myself and hang my head down again.

  "Sorry, Willow." My dad tells me quickly before he hurries over to my mom. I watch as best I can by looking down at my parent’s feet as they move about and talk.

  "It's happening again Alice. I saw them. They’re coming." My dad tells my mom quickly. The edge in his voice sends a shiver down my spine and it takes everything in me not to look up.

  "What do you mean? Who's coming?" My mom asks, fully alert now.

  "The people with the red eyes." He tells her. "It's like a deja vu. I remember walking a little ways down and running into them. I look up on accident and they charge us." I can hear the fear in his voice.

  "Okay, okay." My mom paces a few steps back and forth. "Last time you said you recalled a deja vu, it came true. I haven't met anyone that was clairvoyant but then again, I haven't met anyone who had copper eyes. That may be your ability. Either way, we are going to treat this like it's real. You will be okay, but no matter what, you must keep your head down if this happens. You can't look up." My mom tells him.

  He agrees and she walks over to me next. "I know you just heard that Willow."

  I do my best to nod my head even though my head is bowed down.

  "If anything happens, I want you to go invisible. Tell Claire, and you both grab a hold of the others. If things go bad, you get out of there fast. Do you understand?" She asks me.

  Goosebumps rise up on my arms and I respond, "Yes." A sick feeling starts twirling around in my stomach and adrenaline pulses through my body.

  "Good. I need to go tell the others. Tell your friends okay?"

  "I will." I hug her quickly. "I love you."

  "Love you too." She says and then quickly walks away.

  I relay the instructions to Claire and the others. When our group decides to get moving again, the six of us walk even closer to each other than before. I'm prepared to grab ahold of them quickly if need be. We walk slowly for several minutes and for a second I start thinking that maybe nothing is going to happen. Perhaps my dad was wrong. That's when I hear the gunshot.

  I feel Alec's hand squeeze and I quickly grab ahold of my dad. I turn us invisible and spin around to see that Claire has taken care of Candy and Connor. Turning my attention back to the source of the noise, I see a group of six Reapers blocking our path. The seventh one, a male, is lying on the ground with a gunshot wound to the head. One of our people must have fired the shot.

  Of the six Reapers four are men and two are women. Other than their beet red eyes, their clothing and appearance seems normal. Their bodies are tense and ready to attack. One of the women, a tall s
lender red head seems to be staring in my direction. She has a hungry look in her eyes and I have to remind myself that she can't see us.

  The stand-still only lasts for less than thirty seconds before all hell breaks loose. Our people start attacking the Reapers. Gunshots ring out. Grunts and screams fill the forest along with a metallic copper scent of blood that drifts about in the air. Tony and the fab four remain around us along with my mom who is hovering directly in front of my dad even though she can't physically see him.

  It’s over in less than a minute. Two of the Reapers, one of them the tall red head, escaped. The other four lay lifeless on the ground. I do my best not to look in their direction. I can't help but notice that two of ours lay still near them. My heart starts accelerating with shock and I end up letting go of the invisibility. I look in horror in their direction. They can't be dead! They were here to help us, they can't be dead!

  I look over to Tony. "I can help them." I say and start moving forward having let go of Alec's hand.

  Tony stops me by putting his hands on my shoulders. I try to fight him by dodging to the right and he just scoops me back with ease with one fail swoop. The next second my face is in his chest as I try to break free again. "I can help them!" I cry out, tears start to fall as I struggle against him. I pound at his chest with my fists but to no avail. His grip never falters.

  "You can't Willow! They are gone." Tony whispers to me, trying to get me to see the obvious.

  "No," I sob. This horrible feeling of despair and sorrow overtakes me. "They can't be." I say. "It was my fault," I cry. Something in me knows that I am not the cause of this attack but a completely illogical part of me tells me that I should have had their back. I could have protected them. I cry harder feeling immense guilt overtake me.

  "Willow, you need to stop this. We have to get going." He tells me continuing to stroke my hair. "You couldn't have prevented this. They are in a better place now." I know I shouldn't look up but I do. I look into his eyes. I see a second of hesitation in his and then he turns to look over his shoulder but doesn't let me move.

  A second later he looks back at me and steadies me with both hands on my upper arms. He looks into my eyes and says, "Your eyes are black."

  I shake my head not understanding what he meant, tears continue to flow down my cheeks as the feeling of grief ripples through me. Then it finally hits me. I look around Tony to see a man weeping next to one of our dead. When I look closer I notice that it's a woman that lies there still as night. I push my head back into Tony's chest and cry for them. I cry for the grief and sadness that is overwhelming that man so much that it has spilled over into me. I realize now that my feelings are not my own but his.

  I allow myself to lose it for only a minute. Then I quickly straighten up, wipe my eyes and focus everything on blocking out the emotions. I take a few deep breaths and back away from Tony.

  I don't look at him again. Instead I wipe my hands on my dress and turn to see Alec looking at me. His face is filled with concern and his posture is rigid. His expression seems to be a mix between worry and jealousy. I notice my dad's hand cupping his shoulder. I'm guessing my dad held Alec back from coming to my side for whatever reason. My dad releases him and I meet Alec halfway and jump into his arms.

  Alec hugs me and whispers in my ear. "I'm so sorry babe. Are you okay?"

  "Yes." I tell him a moment later. I do my best to not break down again. "I could feel his pain, you know?" I tell Alec.

  He looks into my eyes and nods his head. "Another gift?" He says reaching up and caressing my cheek near my eyes, wiping the tears away.

  I nod and we stand in silence, I stay in Alec's arms as we watch a few of the others build two make shift stretchers to carry the ones we lost back to the hotel. I have to work hard to not hone in on everyone's emotions. I already have enough turmoil inside my own heart.

  When everyone is ready, we start moving again. The rest of the journey is taken in silence. My dad doesn't have any more premonitions on the way back and we don't run into any more Reapers.

  When we reach the Holiday Inn after a few hours of walking, several people come spilling out. I hear the cries of a few and we watch in silence as they gather around the lost ones.

  ***

  The funeral and burial was quick with no way to preserve the bodies. Afterwards we get everyone settled into their rooms, reunite Sabby with his dad and eat dinner. Back in my room I crash hard, falling asleep to the soft snoring coming from Claire who's sharing my room with me.

  I wake in the middle of the night to someone tapping softly on my arm. I blink trying to adjust my eyes in the dark. A soft voice calms me pushing my hair away from my eyes. I look up to see Alec kneeling beside my bed.

  “You know,” I say with a sleepy whisper. “My dad would probably have you shot if he found you in here.” I crack a smile as Alec lets out a small grunt. I quickly place my finger over his lips shushing him so he doesn’t wake Claire.

  He kisses my finger softly; then kisses my lips. I run my fingers through his hair reveling in the simplicity of the moment. Alec pulls away and says, “I just wanted to come check on you. We had a pretty rough day and I wasn’t sure how you’d be feeling or if you’d even be able to sleep.”

  I rub the sleep from my eyes. “Thanks, but I’m okay. I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.”

  He gives me a small grin. “Good, I’m glad.”

  I run my fingers through his hair. “Thanks for checking on me though. We haven’t had much time to be alone lately. Hopefully that will change now that we’re back together again.”

  He takes my hand in his. “Willow, I'll make you the promise right now, I will never leave you again. The last time we were apart I couldn’t function. It’s like you’re the thing that grounds me to this earth and without you, I feel lost.”

  My heart soars hearing his declaration to me. I know he never really left me the first time but still, it feels good to hear.

  Alec kisses me softly on the forehead. “Well, I’ll let you get some sleep. See you in the morning, okay?”

  I nod my head at him and yawn. “See you in the morning,” I manage to say as my eyelids become heavy again.

  “Goodnight,” I hear Claire say from the other side of the room.

  I unsuccessfully stifle a laugh, biting my lip.

  Alec smiles and shakes his head, getting up off the floor. “Goodnight to you too, Claire,” Alec jests. I listen as he walks to the door and closes it behind him gently.

  “That was sweet,” Claire says between yawns. She rolls over and goes back to sleep.

  I fall back to sleep easily with a smile splayed upon my lips.

  CHAPTER 10 (SAFE AND SOUND):

  “Willow,” someone softly shakes my arm whispering my name. Fighting out of a groggy sleep, I roll over to see who woke me. My mother stands hovering over me. “Time to wake up sleepy head. If you sleep any longer, you’ll miss breakfast.”

  I groan softly but manage to sit up after a little more of my mother's coaxing. I rub the sleep out of my eyes and look beside me and see that Claire is not in her bed.

  My mom answers my question before I even get a chance to ask it. "She's already downstairs. Connor and her seem pretty…inseparable."

  Stretching my arms up overhead, I yawn and talk at the same time. "Yeah, they are kind of adorable in that way." I can't help but notice that my mom seems to almost be glowing. I haven't seen anyone in my family this happy in a long while. It's nice.

  "So, I didn't really come here on my own accord honey. There is a hunky boy outside the door waiting to escort you to breakfast." She tries to straighten out some of my bed head by running her hand through my hair. Of course it gets caught in the mess of curls, but a little hair pulling isn't going to get me down. My boyfriend's outside! My mom coos over my beaming smile. "Yeah, he seems like a good one Willow."

  "Are you sure you can't read minds too mom?" She's doing an amazing job of reading me this morning.
>
  "Nope, you are the only one that can do that." She adds, "I'm glad too! I would hate to know what everyone else is thinking. Some things we think should never be heard."

  "Tell me about it." I hop out of bed. That's the exact reason I've avoided using that gift. Plus, a part of me is worried that once I start listening into other people’s minds, I wouldn’t be able to turn it off again. I shiver recalling when I first realized I had that gift. I was a hot mess until I learned how to shut it off.

  "Alright, well, go get dolled up or at least change your dress or something." My mom shoos me towards the bathroom.

  I look down at my tattered dress from yesterday. Yeah, that's not flattering in any way. My mom pulls a pair of cut off jeans and a tank top from a drawer and brings them to me before I shut the door. "Thanks for replenishing the stock. Hopefully I won't be stuck with anymore dresses." I laugh.

  "You used to love dresses!"

  "I still do. I just don't want to go on rescue missions in them." I give my mom a quick hug then I start my cold shower. I don't waste time and within fifteen minutes I'm dressed and ready to go. I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror on the way out. That same glowing light I saw in my mom's eyes is in mine too.

  My eyes are still a deep black but the other colors can be seen through a prism effect when the light bounces off them. The red fleck is prominent, as always, but today it looks less menacing. Perhaps it's because for the first time in a while, I look happy. I take a deep breath and allow the fact that my family is safe and sound to soak in. Then I run my brush through my wet hair and skip to the door. Pinching my cheeks a few times I open it and find Alec standing against the wall.

  I don’t waste any time running to him. He gathers me up in his arms and spins me around once before he sets me down. I hug him tightly, well not too tight but just enough. With my head in his chest I take a moment to commit this moment in my memory. The amazing smell of fresh soap and shaving cream coming off his skin, the secure feeling I get when he holds me in his strong arms and the way he whispers that he loves me in my ear. I will remember it all. I lean my head back just enough to see his eyes and tell him, "I love you too." We both beam at each other like fools in love for a few more seconds and then hand in hand we head down to breakfast.