Fate Foretold (Gifted Anomalies Book 1)

by Jaliza A. Burwell

  DJ laughs. “The world would be jealous if I were the princess. Come on, Lyn.”

  Jackson leads the way up to the suite. We’re on the fourteenth floor, in what amounts to an apartment within a hotel. There are three bedrooms, a full bathroom, a half bath, and a kitchenette. The living room is massive and off to the side is a conference-sized table with chairs. Colton is already there, spreading papers around on the table, getting organized.

  “Go freshen up,” DJ says and kisses my forehead. He nudges me to the master bedroom, which is connected to the full bathroom. I make quick work changing and freshening up, not wanting to miss anything. When I go back into the main area, the four of them are leaning over the table, whispering.

  “So, how are we doing this?” I ask, sidling up between Jackson and Eli, their large frames pressing into me. They barely shift to give me more room, forcing me to have to ignore the way our shoulders brush against each other and the snapping of energy as our forearms bump together.

  Colton pushes what looks like a list at me. “We’re trying to narrow down the place you’ve seen in your visions. We agree that they have to be in the same location. That means you’re somewhere underground. It doesn’t narrow it down much, unfortunately. There are a lot of old tunnels in this city and a person just needs to take down the right wall in their basement to discover them.”

  The list is extensive. Holsen has a lot of property in the city.

  “What else do you remember?” Jackson asks.

  I recap everything, trying to share every last detail, but it just isn’t enough.

  “I’m sorry,” I say, squeezing my hands together, hating I can’t give them more information.

  “Don’t worry about it,” Colton says. “We’ll figure this out. It’s what we do.”

  They go back to discussing options, and I try to keep up. Instead, I find myself dozing in one of the chairs, eyelids heavy.

  If only I can share my visions.

  I jerk straight up in the chair, a weird noise of excitement coming out of me. The guys stop and stare, giving me bemused looks.

  Grinning, I focus on DJ.

  “We’re getting stronger, right?” I ask desperately. “That’s the idea, right?”

  “Yes?” DJ tries to follow my logic, but is still confused.

  “What if you show them what I Saw?” My excitement becomes hard to contain as I talk out the theory. “Like I connect to you and you use your gift to refabricate my vision. Do you think that’s possible?”

  “Damn,” DJ whispers, eyes wide. “That’s brilliant.”

  He moves over to my side, taking the chair next to mine and wheeling close.

  “How do we do this?” I ask, now feeling unsure.

  The other guys all sit down and get comfortable.

  “We take a nap,” Colton says.

  DJ nods. “We’ll go to one of my dream realms first while we wait for everyone to join up, once there, I’ll connect with you, and we should be able to recreate it that way.”

  “You make this sound too easy,” I say.

  DJ shrugs. “For now, sleep. I’m sure you’re exhausted anyway. I know I am.” He doesn’t wait for my reply and closes his eyes. In moments, his breathing is even and deep.

  I gape and snap my fingers by his ears. Nothing.

  Jackson chuckles. “A side effect of being a dreamweaver is that he’s able to fall asleep at the drop of a hat. He’s done it in middle of assignments before.”

  “I’m a little jealous,” I admit. I’ve never been able to fall asleep like that. Not even as a child. I was a fussy kid.

  “Close your eyes, Lyn,” Eli says. “Let’s join him before he gets impatient.”

  I get comfortable and close my eyes. Expecting to have trouble dozing off, I fall asleep in only a few minutes to the sound of the deep snoring of the others. I almost laugh when Jackson makes a snorting noise before going back into a rhythmic breathing. It lulls me and the next moment, I’m in the dream world, fenced in by the others. We’re in a clearing, surrounded by tall trees and clear blue skies. I’m beginning to think DJ loves the outdoors.

  “Took you long enough,” DJ says.

  “Sorry.” I manage to make myself look apologetic. Colton smiles in a knowing way.

  “Okay. So not to sound like a creep, but I’m going to hold your hand,” DJ explains and does just that, weaving his fingers between mine. The intimacy in that simple touch has me focusing on the feel of his hand in mine. The dream realm is still the same, making everything more vibrant and intense. That includes his touch.

  “Just let down your walls,” DJ whispers. “Feel this?”

  It’s a brush of energy against my mind.

  “Yes.”

  “Good. That’s me. I need you to let me in. Let me see how that beautiful mind of yours works.”

  I do as he says and drop my barriers. His energy slips inside of me. Other people have tried this before with me and it always felt like sludge and intrusive. DJ feels like he belongs there and it’s easy to welcome him in.

  “Good,” he whispers, closer now. My eyes are closed, but I can feel the heat of his body against mine. “Got it.”

  The ground rumbles, and my feet feel like they’re moving, but I’m not. The sunlight disappears until we’re encompassed by complete darkness. The grass melts into hard concrete, the black walls turn into old brick.

  My wrists and ankles feel heavy and the sound of chains clinking triples my heart rate.

  “You’re okay,” Eli says, stepping in front of me and cupping my face. “We’re here. We are right here.” My eyes pop open to meet his. His eyes are earnest as he runs his thumb over my cheek. “We got you.”

  “Fuck, this is what she saw?” DJ says.

  I can hear them moving around and when I shift to see them, the chains move again, reminding me I’m still wearing them, I whimper. Eli moves so he remains in front of me, not allowing me to see what the others see. Something scrapes along the floor.

  “Just focus on me. They’ll take a look, try to see if anything jumps out at them so we can narrow it down. You’ve seen this place once before, you don’t need to see it again.”

  This is probably the moment I tell them I don’t want their protection, that I’m strong, but the fear I felt the first time is clawing at my chest, trying to come out in a scream. Goosebumps work their way across my body and the back of my neck itches, like someone is watching.

  My ears strain to hear the footsteps, and the moment I do, I go still, sharing a pleading look with Eli.

  “He’s coming,” I whisper, but the acoustics in this room are amazing and the others hear me too. They all stop what they’re doing and turn toward the door. The footsteps grow louder, matching the sound of my breaths. Keys jingle. There’s a metal against metal sound, and then the creaking as the door opens.

  I go on my tiptoes to see over Eli’s shoulder. The shadowed figure stands there, and when he doesn’t do anything, the others move closer.

  “No good,” Colton says. “He’s all shadows.”

  “That’s because this is the version that Adalyn Saw.” DJ moves closer and pokes at the figure before stepping away with a deep frown. The figure just stands there, frozen.

  “I don’t understand,” I say. Shouldn’t the figure be doing something, anything other than standing there?

  “I’m preventing the scene from moving forward,” DJ says. “Let’s go to the one in the tunnels, maybe we’ll get more out of that. Colton, mimic my power. I’ll need the extra help. As soon as the scene forms, we’ll have to freeze it since we’ll be under attack and I don’t want to risk it.”

  Colton nods and touches DJ. His eyebrow twitches, and then he steps back.

  “Ready.”

  Eli moves and DJ grabs my hand again. I wince when the chains clank.

  “It’s okay,” DJ says. “This is just your vision. You’re fine. I promise. And we’re getting you out right now.”

  “Okay,” I reply in a small v
oice.

  “Close your eyes and do what you did the first time.”

  This time, the process is faster. The moment I feel his energy, I’m yanking it inside of me, needing the comfort of him. It works as my body relaxes and I can feel the room around me shift.

  “Whoa,” Eli says from behind me. Colton and Jackson are in front of me in the dark tunnel, and DJ is at my side.

  “Shit, you’re bleeding,” Eli says, moving closer to check me. I look down at my side. The shirt is covered in blood, but I don’t feel anything.

  “I’m fine,” I say. “I was bleeding in my vision. This must be how it translated over. I never Saw the actual wound or knew how I got it.” I glance around the dark tunnel. “I think I’m grateful for that.”

  I stop talking when I spot the dark shadows of people, some closer than others. The people attacking us.

  “Walls are brick again,” Jackson says, running his hands over the walls.

  “These guys have more features, but not enough to ID them.” Eli pokes at one of the shadowy figures.

  “I’m sorry,” I speak up “For not being able to make it clearer for you.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” DJ gives my arm a squeeze before moving away. We step around the shadowy figures and walk down the tunnel for a little bit before coming to a stop.

  Black inkiness stretches before us and Colton knocks on it. Solid.

  “All right, let’s wake up now,” Colton says. “We have a lot to discuss.”

  I don’t think there’s much to say. There isn’t a lot to go off of here, but we still have to come up with a plan. DJ nods and waves his arm. The scene falls away, my skin tingles, and then I’m waking up in my chair, a knot in my neck from sleeping in a weird position.

  “Ugh, that hurts,” DJ says, standing up and stretching, joints cracking. We all follow, needing to relieve our muscles.

  “That narrowed it down quite a bit,” Colton says.

  I frown. “What do you mean? There wasn’t much to see.”

  He grabs a pin and leans over the table as he begins crossing locations off, narrowing it down to three locations.

  The others seem to agree with his assessment.

  “Okay, I’m confused. What is going on?”

  “Cross this one off,” Eli says. “Too small.”

  “Good point,” Colton mumbles.

  “Guys!” I snap, annoyed with them for ignoring me.

  Their heads snap up, and they blink at me, almost owlishly.

  “What is going on?” I ask.

  Colton ends up being the one to answer. “Oh. NYC is full of tunnels dating as far back as the eighteen hundreds. We were just narrowing it down. We have two possible locations, but I have a feeling it’s the old brewery.”

  “Brewery?”

  “In the 1850s, it was built in Brooklyn,” Eli explains. “It’s right on an intersection. An ice-house was added later and they built a tunnel to connect the two. It’s currently abandoned now, but guess who owns it.”

  “Holsen.” Bitterness turns his name into a twisted nightmare of anger.

  “Yeah.” Eli moves over the maps laid out. “He purchased it years ago and left it there. It’s a historical spot, so tours were allowed for a while, but he stopped those about three years ago. Now it’s just abandoned. Here.” He points to a spot on the map. “I’ll find the maps that will show the underground routes.”

  “So, are you thinking I’ll end up held in a room in either of the buildings?” I ask.

  “No, we won’t let that happen,” Jackson growls out.

  I bite my lip and stare at the map. “But you think my dad is there?”

  “Most definitely. If the man in the vision was Holsen, he’d bring you near your father, make it easier to control you. Maybe give you a live show of what they can do to him.”

  Dread crawls down my spine at that speculation. I didn’t think of that, but it makes sense. If I can see my father in the flesh, especially if they hurt him, then I’d do anything they want to stop them. They’d use my dad to control me.

  30

  Even without my seer ability, I know that throwing up in the near future is a very high possibility. We’re three blocks from the old brewery and Eli doesn’t want us getting closer in fear of being seen. The fear has long since turned into painful knots in my stomach. Colton finally gave up trying to get me to eat something and if I’m not careful, my fingernails are going to be bitten down to the skin. I’m not even a nail biter, but the idea that Holsen is only a few blocks away is putting me on edge. He’s too close.

  For now, we claim a table at a small cafe and Eli fills us in on what he scouted as he walked around our target destination.

  Apparently, Holsen is being extra cautious and put scouts around the area. Eli thinks he was able to find them all so now it’s just determining the rest of our plan. I don’t think we have much of one in the first place. As far as I’m aware, we get into the building, and we look for my dad. That’s it.

  “How are we supposed to get closer?” I ask.

  DJ grins. “The amazing thing about preserving history is that the buildings around it aren’t held to the same standards and have gone through multiple renovations.”

  I try to connect the dots and only come up blank.

  Jumping in, Colton explains more thoroughly. “The buildings around the brewery are taller. We’re going to travel across rooftops.”

  “You’re kidding, right?” The idea of having to hop from one building to another sounds like I’m searching for death instead of trying to avoid it. Especially if they’re all tall buildings. “I should just sign my death certificate now.”

  “You have nothing to fear,” Eli says and even puffs out his chest. When I just give him an incredulous look, he deflates a little and clears his throat. “I’m going to use my gift to carry you from building to building. Colton is going to carry DJ and Jackson can get across on his own. We’ll be fine.”

  Even with his explanation, I’m wary and show it as they bring me inside an apartment building. Eli uses some kind of device to unlock the door instead of having to use a key fob or wait for someone to come out.

  Once we get to the rooftop, the guys act like they’re on a normal stroll as they move from one building to another. Eli holds me close to his chest as he runs and jumps. His jumps are powerful enough to send us to the middle of the next rooftop. The others follow closely behind and we pause often to make sure people aren’t watching.

  The wind whips my hair around my face when we’re in the air. If I close my eyes, I can almost pretend that I’m flying. Mix that feeling with the scent of Eli and I lose myself to fantasies, to a future that could be possible. Even with all four of them.

  I never thought I’d be in a relationship, not when I’ve been on the run for so long. Emotional ties fell very low on my to do list when faced with the danger of getting them killed. But now Colton, Eli, Jackson, and DJ are here, and they have no intention of going anywhere. Without having to ask, I also know they have no intention of letting me leave. Frankly, since they found me outside of the dream realms, I couldn’t see myself leaving.

  They became a part of me and they didn’t even ask. It’s unfair, but I’m not complaining. Definitely not while I’m snuggling close to Eli as he runs and jumps, runs and jumps.

  With their speed and coordination, it doesn’t take us long to get to the building next to where the ice-house was built. The brewery is across the road, and no doubt, underneath the intersection is the tunnel connecting the two.

  “The ice-house is now a storage building,” Eli says. He points to a building next to the ice-house. “There are two people in the cafe in there.” He gestures to the building next to the brewery. “One of the apartments there is more of a campsite. There are two in there, and they get rotated out. I don’t know the time frame. Just so happens they were trading off when I came by earlier.”

  “Any in the ice-house?” Colton asks.

  “No,” Eli sa
ys. “But I think it’s part of a trap. Most likely, once we go in, they’ll flood the building from the tunnels and outside to surround us.”

  “And the brewery?” I ask.

  Eli is silent for a moment. “Seven. And I have a feeling Noah and Holsen are both in there.”

  My fear skyrockets being so close to the two people I wish were halfway across the world. DJ moves next to me and wraps an arm around my shoulders.

  “We’re here too,” DJ whispers. “He won’t even get a chance to touch you.”

  I try to find reassurance in his words

  “I wish I could See,” I mumble.

  “Noah will be on us the moment you do,” Colton reminds me.

  Glaring at him, I say, “I know. Trust me, I know. I just feel useless. How are we going to find my dad?”

  “He has to be in the tunnels,” Eli says. “I’m not able to sense him, but I did sense someone powerful here.”

  “Ijnan?” Jackson asks.

  Eli nods, his lips pressed together, eyes simmering with anger. “Can’t believe he’s doing this.”

  “If Holsen captured him, he doesn’t necessarily have a choice,” I say. “Holsen’s dangerous. And even more so because he isn’t gifted. At least I don’t think so.”

  “Wait, what?” DJ pulls away, and I miss feeling his warmth. “That bastard doesn’t have a gift?”

  I shake my head. “He’s a manipulator, but all records say he’s a human. He has so much power no one is willing to fight against him. He promises them the one thing they want the most and so they follow him.”

  “Well, we’re more than willing to beat the shit out of him,” Jackson says in a low voice, eyes narrowed.

  “Someone is coming out of the brewery,” Colton points out, and we all turn our attention to the figure.

  He’s tall with broad shoulders, and the way he moves is stiff, but with purpose. His head tilts upward, and I gasp.

  “No,” I say.

  “What?” The guys parrot each other, asking that one worded question.

  “That’s… I know him. No way.” I shake my head.

  “Adalyn, what’s going on?” Colton asks.

  “It’s Trent.” I bite my lip as he crosses the street. We move closer to the edge to get a better look as he enters the old ice-house.