With devious grins, Alex, fifteen, and Billy, seventeen, headed straight for Amanda. Billy had been in several fights in his short stay at this shelter and looked ready for one more. You could not overlook Alex, well over six feet tall and I guessed close to two hundred pounds. He made for a dangerous and rather intimidating sidekick to Billy.
“Hey, Snob,” Billy hissed. “I heard you came from the Terrance Party. It must suck to be here with no maid to serve you.”
“I bet you think you’re better than everyone here, right?” said Alex.
The boys inched closer to us.
“Well, you know what?” Billy said, leaning in. “You guys didn’t put up much of a fight when we took over your homeland. Our Southern Alliance made quick work of your fancy little party group.”
The Southern Alliance was a sector group that controlled most of the southern region of the former United States. The group didn’t like the idea of “political elites of the past,” as they called them, forcing their way of life on their people. The rigid alliance saw it necessary to take out Amanda’s Terrance Party.
“When we took over your homes and ended your new government fantasy,” Alex said, “you guys stood there helpless, holding on to your stupid books and fancy clothes while your town burned.”
Amanda’s jaw locked, grinding her teeth, then she lashed out at the brothers. “Your alliance is nothing more than a bunch of hicks with pitchforks who are afraid of the outside world,” she said. “Besides, it looks like they didn’t care too much for you two idiots since your parents threw you out like the rotten food the shelter dumps out for the dogs.”
Blood brightened the brothers’ faces. With one swipe of his hand, Billy knocked over our table. It crashed against the wall, quickly drawing the attention of the other kids in the room. Amanda and I scuttled back to the cool cement wall at the rear of the mess hall and huddled together.
With spit flying out of their mouths, the brothers snarled as they edged closer, cornering us. The hatred that clouded the air was something I had never felt before. Amanda placed an arm across my midsection in a futile attempt to protect me. These boys could’ve snapped our necks in seconds.
Alex grabbed Amanda by the shoulders and lifted her off the ground. Amanda was a head shorter than him, and easily outweighed by a hundred pounds. Her body scraped against the rough surface of the backing. Failing to find a concerned face in the crowd, I wondered why none of the shelter staff had stepped in. Then I remembered who sponsored the shelter: the Southern Alliance. Amanda had been struggling with the recent sponsorship change for the last few weeks. One trait those people were known for above all else was their unyielding loyalty to anyone associated with their sector group. At that moment, I knew we were alone and hope was fading fast.
Amanda’s legs hung about two feet off the ground as Alex pushed her higher up the wall. Fear and anger grew as I watched my only friend in excruciating pain.
“Stop, leave her alone!” I shouted. Not even a quick glance made it my way. I was as insignificant as the ants on the floor.
My fingernails dug deep into my thighs. I looked into the faces of the kids in the mess hall and prayed someone would step in to protect us. Their faces ranged from scared to excited to indifferent. I was a rat trapped in a corner. My heart felt like it was going to rip out of my chest as I searched for help. None came.
Seconds later, I felt an inner shift and my mind focused as it never had before. Surrounding sounds became softer and diluted. Details sharpened and reality narrowed into a funnel before my eyes. The entire room became an accessible focal point. I heard the kids’ jumbled thoughts racing around my head. The chaos would not last. It wasn’t long before their disjointed inner dialogue was sucked out of my head and our minds became unified and quiet. Captivated by what was going on, I connected with the onlookers in the room. We were one mind, one stream of thought. An incredible sense of unity and clarity filled the mess hall. No longer did I feel like an individual. I had a lock on their minds. I could see it in their eyes; their attention had completely shifted to the brothers.
Slipping out of the heightened state, I turned my attention to Amanda. With her fragile body pinned high up on the wall in Alex’s fierce grip, Billy continued to hurl disgusting slurs at her. Doubt about my so-called mental powers entered my thoughts when a jarring, loud whack echoed off the wall. A metal serving tray fell to the ground, narrowly missing Billy’s head. The brothers snapped out of their intense lock on Amanda only to turn and find at least twenty motivated youth ready to attack. Alex dropped Amanda as the brothers faced the unexpected, angry mob.
“What are you fools looking at?” Billy said.
Amanda sat still as she caught her breath, then turned to find me. She retreated to where I sat crouched up against a trash can near the rear wall. Then, with little warning, the shelter kids attacked.
Serving trays and utensils acted like weapons as the boys and girls lunged at the brothers. Forks and knives sliced the brothers’ limbs; trays pelted them from all sides. Only the cries and screams of the boys could be heard. No longer did they sound like the hulking figures who had been about to hurt Amanda. Brought to their knees, battered and bloody, the crowd overran the brothers. Only when the threat ended did the mob snap out of their rage.
They staggered out of the mess hall as though not sure what had happened. Toppled over on the filthy floor, the brothers were swollen and almost unrecognizable. I watched them barely breathing and became horrified at what I apparently caused. Amanda, still in a state of adrenaline-filled panic, grabbed my arm and forced me out of the mess hall, then out of the shelter completely.
After what felt like miles, she finally ran out of steam. We found ourselves at an abandoned restaurant where we stopped to regroup. We made our way into the broken-down kitchen and collapsed against a metal workstation. After several minutes of catching our breath, Amanda turned to me.
“It was you, wasn’t it?”
“Yes,” I said without thinking. “I don’t know what to say—it just happened, I guess. One minute I’m watching you about to be killed and the next I’m creating some sort of mental link with the kids in the room. It happened so fast. It was horrible.”
Amanda’s former Terrance Party had been taken down with the help of what she called Influencers. Never having any experience with this crazy phenomenon, I never really understood what she was talking about. I just knew she resented them and partially blamed them for the loss of her parents.
Amanda’s hatred for Influencers made it hard for me to look into her eyes. Was I really one of them? Would she hate me now as well?
Instead, Amanda took my hand in hers. “Thank you, Kaylin. Thank you.”
Right then, I knew things between us would be okay. Amanda has always been able to make me feel like everything would be all right.
“We can’t ever go back there, or to any shelter again,” Amanda continued. “They’re aware of you for sure and I know word of the powerful push you did will bring in recruiters from all the nearby sectors.”
“Push? What do you mean?”
“From what I’ve witnessed, no one has ever had a push happen that quickly and never that directly. It always takes time and outside planning for the push to force change. I’ve never heard of anyone able to change the focus of a group of people so quickly and with such direct intention. Those kids just freaked out on Alex and Billy.”
“I know, it was awful.” I sighed.
“We can’t talk about this with others. They will take you and make you do horrible things,” she insisted. “Those evil sector groups are crawling all over this area.”
Filled with uncertainty, my mind shifted to what had just happened. No matter how horrible they were, I always had empathy for life in whatever form it came. I melted into Amanda’s arms and cried for what would be the last time in years. Life had changed. I had changed.
I was now an Influencer.
3
PUSHED INTO A CORNER
I WAVE MY hand up at the crimson-tinted horizon in hopes of manipulating the setting of the sun. Please stay up for a little longer. The excessive heat has given way to a more bearable temperature; still hot, but bearable. Right now I would take the baking sun over the perceived dangers that hide in the night. But, this is not the only worry Amanda and I face as we are one slip-up from putting ourselves squarely in the sights of the self-serving Magnus Order. Running from Farren is not an option. If we travel with him, we increase our chances of making it safely to the town of Bullhead. Our only choice is to continue to play it cool, for now.
Farren has recovered fairly well in the short twenty minutes of traveling we have done together. The water and hydro-bars have given him the strength to maintain the faster pace Amanda and I have set. Even knowing what he is and where he comes from, I’m still glad we did not leave him to die.
“You never told me your name,” Farren says as he trails a step or two behind me.
“I’m Kaylin,” I say as Amanda shoots me more disapproving looks.
Farren notices her continual disdain and edges closer to both of us as he matches our pace.
“You know, you guys can trust me.” He puts a hand on both of our shoulders. “I’m from Lost Souls like you. I grew up here.”
“Well, life has taken you on a different path, hasn’t it, Magnus Man,” Amanda says as she shrugs her shoulder away from Farren’s hand.
His hand still remains on my shoulder. Even though it makes me uneasy, his touch doesn’t feel like the grip of a ruthless hunter. It’s gentle, somehow kind.
“Wouldn’t you do anything you could to protect your family?” he asks. “You don’t know anything about me, Amanda.”
She edges closer to Farren and says, “It was sector groups like yours who destroyed my home and killed my family. Why should we trust you?”
“I’m sorry about that, but my job has nothing to do with either of you.” His hand leaves my shoulder. “I have a job to do. If I don’t do it, they will come into Lost Souls and hurt my family. Again, it’s that simple.”
“Look, it’s getting dark and we have to stay together if we want to make it to Bullhead, so let’s put all that behind us,” I say while shooting Amanda one of my own looks.
Several minutes pass with no one saying a word. Only the setting sun reflecting on a few wispy clouds on the horizon remains. Luckily for us, the moon gives off some faint and cool light that helps guide our steps as we travel. My mind jumps from what I’ve gotten us into, to how our chances of making it to Bullhead become worse with every passing minute.
The silence is broken as I stumble on a rock, letting out an awkward screech.
“Stupid darkness!” I shout while blood flushes my cheeks. Luckily, this same darkness hides my embarrassment from sight.
Farren offers me a hand. “Are you alright, Kaylin?”
I don’t accept his help, pushing myself off the ground on my own.
“Thanks, I’m fine.” I force out a smile.
Once we’re moving again, my curiosity gets the best of me. Though I know I should not be making an effort to learn more, I can’t help myself.
“So, Farren…” I tug at my ponytail to tighten the band, “have you recruited anyone against their will?”
His head jerks up. “That is not who I am,” he says. “I find people who are looking for something new and have the certain ability Magnus wants. I don’t hide what I do.”
“A certain ability, huh?” I will probably regret what I say next. “You mean Influencers who get used to manipulate people?”
He stiffens and his mouth cracks open in surprise. I don’t think he was expecting me to know so much about Influencers. Amanda steps in to cover my careless mistake.
“If it wasn’t for those recruited Influencers I would still have my home and family,” Amanda says, the words laced with venom.
“Not everyone has been negatively affected by Magnus,” he says. “Some people are simply starving and want a more stable life. One of the few good things about these sector groups is they do provide for their citizens and to some, ignorance is bliss. I’m not saying that’s right, but desperation makes people do things.”
To me, there is nothing a sector group can provide other than corruption, control, and fear. Why anyone would be willing to fall into the manipulative fold of one of these groups is beyond me.
“Ignorance is not bliss when your family is killed by these evil groups,” Amanda says, walking a few steps ahead.
“Why don’t you just pretend to not find anyone when you go out on your recruiting missions?” I suggest. “You could pretend to be bad at it.”
“I wish it was that simple, but they forced me to join them for a reason.” He adjusts his pack. “I was trained by my father to be a tracker since the age of seven. Our family became well known in the area because of our abundance of wild game. The Magnus Order has a way of finding people with desirable skillsets.”
He opens one of the metallic buttons on his shirt. It shimmers in the moonlight as his fingers free it from its proper position. “Two years ago, just shy of my sixteenth birthday, they forced me to join them. Because of my talents, they set benchmarks for my so-called hunting. If I go too long without bringing in some new recruits, they will take it out on my family.”
The nearly full moon overhead is all the light that now remains. The only sounds we hear are our footsteps and heavy breathing as we push on through. We estimate we have less than an hour to go before we see the dim lights from the town of Bullhead. The temperature has dropped quite a bit and we are able to move faster now.
“So what is your story, Kaylin? Do you have family close?”
“Amanda is all I have,” I say while watching her kick rocks several yards in front of us.
“Can I ask what happened to your family?”
I can see in his face that he is genuinely interested. His eyes have a way of gently squinting when he concentrates on me. It’s like he’s trying to fix a problem that he doesn’t fully understand.
“There really isn’t much to tell,” I say, shrugging. “I was told that someone dropped me off at a shelter door when I was three years old.”
I exclude the part about the necklace that I had wrapped around my waist at the time. Only Amanda and my initial shelter caregiver know about this. And Lilly, who took care of me for a little over a year but died before I turned five. It’s the only piece of whatever past there was that I have. I have kept it tucked under my shirt for safekeeping since I was four years old. Even though gold is worthless today, the pendant is unique enough to kill for. The fine strand of interlocking chain has held up over the years. I never understood what the design of the pendant is supposed to represent, if anything at all. It has three linked pieces with bars that spread out from three points in a circular pattern. It’s beautiful, and I hold out hope that I might one day understand its significance.
“Being in shelters your whole life must have been hard. I am sorry,” he says.
Opening up to him is not the smartest thing I could do, but it takes my mind off whoever might be lurking out there. Amanda and I have heard bad things about this stretch of road at night.
“So you don’t know anything about your family? No last name, nothing?”
“Nope, and with how the world is, who really needs a last name?”
“Well, I am glad you at least have Amanda in your life, even if she does hate me,” he says.
I look ahead and realize this conversation has slowed our pace. Amanda is quite a bit ahead of us now.
“She is not usually this rough around the edges,” I say.
The three of us push on with the moon overhead and our packs empty of food and water. We need to get to this town and need to get there now. Our bellies are grumbling and our mouths are dry. Amanda has been quiet for some time now; that’s usually because she’s hungry, but with Farren around I don’t know for sure. Or maybe she is finally tired of giving me those looks that say a thou
sand words.
We’re scanning the horizon for any sign that we are getting close to Bullhead when a dim light far up the road grabs our attention.
“Finally,” Amanda shouts up ahead. “The sweet lights of a town full of food!”
Farren grabs my shoulder and stops. “Hold on,” he says as his eyes study the horizon.
The dim lights flicker, and don’t resemble the steady glow of a town in the distance.
“Why are you two stopping?” Amanda says while eagerly waving us on. “Let’s move and get our reward!”
“Be quiet, Amanda,” Farren says in a subtle voice. “Those are not the lights of Bullhead.”
I look at the concern on his face and quickly turn to Amanda and notice her jogging ahead of us.
“Harvesters,” he says as he grips my shoulder and pulls me back a few steps. “We need to hide, now!”
I’ve never actually encountered so-called Harvesters before, but these merciless thugs are the reason we need to get to Bullhead before nightfall. My mind races as fear spirals through my thoughts. We have put ourselves right in the path of the most ruthless delinquents that roam the darkened roads of Lost Souls. They earned the name simply because these people scavenge at night looking for resources to harvest from the foolish who travel after the sun has set. It looks like we’re the fools tonight.
“Wait… Amanda!” I yell as Farren guides me off the road and into the cover of the brush.
Amanda races ahead before she realizes what’s on the horizon. Now, I watch as she comes to a dead stop, paralyzed. She looks back toward the spot where Farren and I had been just seconds before, and I can see her confusion when she realizes we’re gone.
Farren has led us to an overgrown patch of dead brush several yards off the road. I can’t take my eyes off Amanda, still frozen in the middle of the road. The Harvesters are getting closer—I can hear the sound of an electric vehicle humming toward her. I try to mentally push her to find cover, but I can’t break through her panic.
A rusty, dented pickup comes up over the hill. It stops a few feet past Amanda. A gust of wind from the vehicle tosses her long hair over her face. She jolts back into motion.
Influence (Influence Series Book 1) Page 2