by J. J. Melvin
I laid there thinking about things that I did that weren’t exactly normal. I remembered a game I used to play with my sister when we were little. Alyssa and I shared a room and a big queen-sized bed. We had an extra room so we could have had our own bedrooms if we wanted, but my sister and I chose to share.
I would start the game by saying, “Alyssa, think of something in the room and I will tell you what you’re thinking.”
A hundred out of a hundred times I would guess right, and ten out of a hundred Alyssa would guess right. She hated playing that game with me, but I would always plead for her to continue. It didn’t matter how hard she made it; I guessed right every time.
One particular night my mom had asked me and my sister to stand guard. Our bedroom faced the front yard, and we were to tell my mom when Nick—my mom’s nineteen-year-old boyfriend—was coming up the walk. Nick was ten years younger than my mom. We stayed up for hours straining to stay awake, playing the guessing game. Around three a.m., we were awakened by my mom’s screams. Nick was on top of her in the living room, strangling her. My sister called 911 and I jumped on Nick’s back, throwing him off my mom. He smashed against the armoire that held my mom’s glass figurines. The figurines fell and shattered on the ground as Nick put his hands on top of his head to shield himself from the breaking glass. He looked at me, startled. Getting up, he stormed out.
My sister and I were still crying as my mom caught her breath. She looked straight at me, still laying on the floor with tears in her eyes, and said, “You were supposed to stay awake. You were supposed to warn me when he was coming.”
I was eight years old.
I had completely forgotten about that day. I had often wondered where my strength came from and how a tiny, frightened little eight-year-old was able to throw a full-grown man across a room.
My reminiscing was interrupted by a knock at the door. I asked who it was, but there was no answer.
“Who is it?” I said again, louder.
“Ma’am, I’m going door to door collecting money for the poor,” a male voice answered.
“I’m sorry, my mom’s not here. You’re going to have to come back.”
“It’s raining hard; do you think I can come in to use your phone?”
I paused. Every bone in my body told me to run. This was not a good Samaritan, and I’d just told him that my mom was not home.
The door. I didn’t lock the door. The man turned the knob and tried to come in. Luckily, I had the chain on.
“Go away! I’m going to call the police if you don’t go away.” I tried to sound stern and brave, but my voice trembled.
“Come on, Erika, I just want to talk to you. Let me in. I’m coming in either way.” The man stuck his hand through the opening of the door.
“Go away! I am calling the police.” I ran for the phone.
“Hello, hello?” The phone was dead. My cell phone— where did I put it? I frantically looked for my phone.
The stranger was ramming the door, trying to get the chain to break.
I ran to the kitchen and grabbed the largest knife I could find. The man broke the hinges on the chain. The door went flying open.
A burly man stood before me wearing a dark green raincoat. Rain dripped from his large nose. “So you’re Riverton’s hero. I am going to have fun with you. I don’t like heroes.”
He started towards me. I backed up until I felt the cold kitchen countertop on my spine signaling that I was trapped. I took a stance, one foot in front of the other, knife in hand. I prepared to fight.
“Erika, put down the knife. Don’t be scared, I promise I will be gentle, I promise you’ll love every minute of it. I’m here to be your hero.” He inched towards me.
I held the knife up. “If you come any closer, I promise I will hurt you.”
“Oh Erika, can’t we be friends? I’ve been thinking of this moment ever since I saw you on TV. Your sweet innocent face, your beautiful slender young body. I can’t wait to feel you; I know you are going to feel so good. You are going to be my greatest prize.”
I stared at the man, unable to scream. Do I attack first, or do I wait until he gets closer?
I was gazing into the eyes of evil. I was frantically deciding the best tactic for my survival when Liam suddenly ran in.
“Erika, are you okay?”
The man turned around to face Liam. Liam looked so small compared to the intruder. The large man advanced on Liam, pulling a knife from under his raincoat. Liam kicked the knife from the man’s hands. The man rushed towards him. Liam grabbed the burly man by the throat, lifting him off the ground with one hand. The man gasped for air. His legs kicked frantically. His large hands kept trying to unclench Liam’s hold, but it was useless; Liam was too strong.
“Erika, are you okay?” Liam was holding the man in the air effortlessly, as if he weighed five pounds.
“I think so.”
I could hear the stranger gasping for air. His face was turning purple, and his legs were flailing less and less. He was dying.
“Liam, let go, you’re killing him. He’s going to die.”
“He doesn’t deserve to breathe, Erika. He is a very, very bad man.”
“Liam, please put him down, let the police deal with him,” I begged.
Liam threw the man to the floor. The man landed on one of the wooden kitchen chairs, breaking it into pieces. He lay on the floor, breathless and panting.
Mr. Blithe and a police officer walked in as the intruder tried to crawl his way out the door.
“I told you we’d be watching you,” Mr. Blithe said to me with a smile as he stepped over the crawling man.
The officer handcuffed the man on the floor and called for backup. His familiar dark brown eyes met mine as I heard the same question I was getting accustomed to: “Erika, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think I’m fine.”
“I’m going to bring this piece of trash down to the car.” The officer lifted the man to his feet and pushed him out the door.
“Was that guy a… a Collector?” I said, turning to Liam.
“No Erika, just a crazy guy your celebrity status conjured. The Collectors will not be that easy to defeat. But I’m glad you’ve been reading the book. Don’t worry, Erika, he will be in jail for a long, long time. He just broke his probation.”
Liam grabbed the knife out of my hand and placed it on the counter before leading me out of the kitchen. I guess I must have frozen; I didn’t even realize I was still holding the knife and still standing with my back pressed against the kitchen counter.
“Erika, we don’t have much time before the Riverton police arrive. I’m sorry that this happened tonight, but thank God that the man who broke in here today wasn’t a Collector. I can’t make this easier or tell you at a more suitable time, but two more Diamonds were killed today, bringing the total to twenty-two. We need to stop the Collectors, and the only ones who can are the Four Points. You, Liam, Jayson, and Sofia.” Mr. Blithe sat next to me on the couch.
“What? What do you mean, two more people were killed?” I asked, changing his reference from Diamonds to people.
“Yes Erika, that makes twenty-two dead out of a hundred. We are running out of time. I know this is fast, but we have to bring you back to England. We have assembled most of the other Diamonds there. We are better suited to protect you in England. Plus, you’re not as well-known there, so you wouldn’t have to worry about stalkers like the one tonight.” Mr. Blithe’s tone was desperate.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Blithe, Liam, but I don’t know what to believe. All of this seems too impossible to be real… but then Liam, you do things that are unreal. You know when things are going to happen. You picked that man up like he was a feather; you saved my life.”
“Erika, I know it all seems strange, but believe me, all of it is real. Everything in the book, it’s all true—and you could have easily taken on that guy today, you just need training. When I first heard all of this Diamond stuff, it was hard for me
to believe too. Look, Erika.” Liam lifted the sleeve of his t-shirt again to show me the diamond birthmark on his shoulder. “We are linked. You have to believe me. Your safety and a lot of others’ depends on it.”
“What’s in England?” I asked, believing now in the man who had just saved my life.
Liam smiled and my heart melted. “My house, the other two Points, most of the Diamonds, and our training facilities.”
Just as Liam finished his sentence the familiar police officer came back up the stairs to warn us that the rest of the police were arriving. “I don’t think I introduced myself to you at the school Erika. My name is Officer Fuentes—or you can call me Frank.” Officer Fuentes turned out to be a real police officer, even though he could have easily passed for an athletic teenager.
“You’re the same cop that carried me to the nurse’s office.” I held his hand and examined the symbol on his sleeve.
“Yes Erika, that symbol means that I am one of your Watchers. I am sworn to protect you. You can always trust anyone who wears this symbol.”
It only took about five minutes before the Riverton police arrived. My apartment was crawling with police officers. I refused medical treatment and asked not to be brought down to the station. The police agreed to take my statement in the apartment. I began giving my recollection of the story to a detective, but was interrupted when I got to the part where Liam came in.
“That’s when I came in and subdued the suspect.” Mr. Fuentes smiled at me.
“Is that what happened, Erika?” the questioning detective asked.
“Yes, Officer Fuentes got here just in time.”
“And Officer Fuentes, what brought you to Ms. Martin’s residence?” The detective flipped the page of his little notebook.
“I came to visit a friend that lives in this complex and I heard Erika screaming.” Officer Fuentes pointed out the window at a building across from mine.
“Okay, well that does it here for us. Looks like you were in the right place at the right time, Officer.” The plainclothes detective shook Officer Fuentes’ hand and turned his attention back to me.
“Erika, we are assigning a police officer to guard your home for the next week – just as a precaution.”
“Thank you. It makes me feel better to know that my family will be guarded.”
The police officers began leaving, but Mr. Blithe, Liam, and Mr. Fuentes stayed behind. My mom arrived just as the police officers left the apartment.
“Erika, Erika!” my mom screamed hysterically as she climbed the stairs holding Kai in her arms.
“Mom!” I yelled back.
The relief showed on my mom’s face as she walked in and saw me sitting at the kitchen table. She shifted her gaze to the pieces of the broken kitchen chair. “Oh my God, what happened?”
Mr. Fuentes, Mr. Blithe, and Liam introduced themselves as they sat my mom down and explained to her the circumstances of the night.
“But I don’t understand why an Oxford professor would be here… and how are you involved?” my mom asked as she picked up a piece of the broken chair.
“We are here to recruit Erika. We didn’t know this was going to happen tonight when we showed up, but I’d have to say it was perfect timing. And it further demonstrates that Erika needs to get out of Riverton.”
“I don’t understand. Out of Riverton? What do you mean?”
“We were on our way here tonight to recruit Erika and get your permission to allow her to come to Oxford. At Oxford we have people who can help Erika cope with her new found fame, her possible feelings of guilt, and to help guide her towards her future. We have a one-of-a-kind, world-class program that admits high-school-aged students who have extraordinary potential and have experienced something traumatic that can interfere with that potential—like the Riverton school shooting. Studies show that after an incident of that magnitude students become distraught, drop out of school, and begin a life-long battle with severe depression if their situation is not addressed immediately and aggressively. We want to make sure that doesn’t happen to Erika. Sometimes a new beginning, a fresh start, can make all the difference.”
“Oxford is in England, Mr. Blithe. England is far. Erika is only sixteen.”
“Yes ma’am, but after tonight, wouldn’t you say Erika needs to get out of Riverton to be safe? She’s turning seventeen soon, and will be eighteen—an adult—next year.”
“Ms. Martin, if you don’t mind me saying, it is a very lucky coincidence that these men came here today. It seems like a sign to me. Unfortunately, Erika is a target because of her notoriety, her fame. It would be my advice that you send her to Oxford, a place where she will be less known and well-attended to. In my opinion as a law enforcement agent, she will be much safer.” Office Fuentes wasn’t in uniform, but he still held the same authoritative tone and stance.
“Officer Fuentes, Mr. Blithe, Liam, I can’t thank you enough for what you did for Erika. You saved her life, but I think she should be closer to home, closer to her family, and go to school closer to home.”
“Ms. Martin, there is no other program like this in the world. Oxford University is unique in what it offers someone like Erika,” Mr. Blithe continued with his relentless campaigning. “Liam, can you please get the brochures from my car to show to Ms. Martin?” Mr. Blithe turned towards Liam, handing him the keys.
“Sure. Erika, do you want to come with me?” Liam was smiling in my direction.
“I want to go! I want to go!” Kai exclaimed as he jumped up and down.
“Kai, please stay inside. You can watch TV in your room.”
“Mom, pllllleeeeaaaase!”
“Kai, what did I say?”
“Oh, fine.” Kai stomped away to his room.
“Erika, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Okay. Make sure to take an umbrella.”
I couldn’t help but notice how surreal the situation was. I just had a maniac try to kill me, my mom was worried I would get wet by the rain, and I had a superhuman standing next to me. I grinned to myself.
Liam and I walked down the steps.
“Can I share your umbrella?” Liam asked.
“Sure, I guess.”
Liam grabbed the handle, brushing my hand. He held the umbrella over both of our heads.
I was trying to come up with something to say. “I love the rain,” I said, wondering if it had sounded forced.
“Me too.” Liam stuck his hand out from under the umbrella, catching the rain in his hands. “See, we already have a ton in common,” he said as he wiped his hands on his jeans.
“Liam, thank you for tonight.”
“Well Erika, you definitely don’t seem shaken up. You know you just had a guy in your house who, well, wanted to… well, it doesn’t matter now.”
“I think I’m getting used to people trying to kill me.”
We both laughed. Liam’s blue eyes seemed brighter today. He was by far the most handsome man I had ever seen in my life. You would think he would make me feel intimidated, nervous, but he didn’t. I was comfortable around him.
“What brochures are Mr. Blithe talking about? I am sure he’s not going to give my mom a brochure on The Four Points.”
“No. He wants the standard admissions brochure. When you come to England, believe me, he will make sure you attend all of your classes at Oxford. You will be a full-fledged Oxford student, just like me.”
“Wait, you mean this is real? I’ll be admitted to Oxford? I don’t have the grades for that.”
“Erika, first of all, you have an almost perfect SAT score and your IQ is off the chart. Plus, you don’t have to worry about being accepted. Mr. Blithe will take care of that. It’s a little different when you’re admitted as a high school Diamond.”
“Hey, how do you know my IQ and SAT scores?” I was slightly annoyed at the invasion of privacy.
“I’ve made it a point to know as much about you as possible.” Liam smirked while he unloc
ked the car door. He handed me the umbrella and sat in the front seat, reaching for the brochures in the glove compartment.
“Hey, wanna see something fun?” Liam got up and shut the car door.
I watched as Liam walked in the rain towards the back of the car.
“What are you doing?” I asked guardedly.
“I am proving to you who I am, who you are.”
He stood behind the car, placing his hand under the bumper. He then lifted the back wheels off the ground. He held the car as if it were a sweater dangling over his shoulder. He started walking. He walked the car down five spaces, easily rolling it as if it were a wagon. It was almost completely in an upright position. I gasped as he slowly put the car down.
Did this guy really just pick up a car?
“Mr. Blithe hates when I do stuff like this.” Liam’s laugh brought me out of my stupor.
“Hey, how’d you do that?” I was amazed.
“You can do it too, you know.”
“No, there’s no way. I can’t.”
“Try it. Put Mr. Blithe’s car back,” Liam challenged.
“You’re crazy. I can’t.”
“You sure like that word crazy. Do you realize how many times you’ve called me and the Professor crazy? Some less secure people would be offended.”
I was embarrassed. After witnessing Liam’s display, I thought maybe I had been wrong about Mr. Blithe and Liam. I was excited to be wrong. A wave of electricity tingled through my body. I felt exhilarated. I wanted to jump up and down and scream, but I tried to contain my enthusiasm.
“Just try,” Liam urged in anticipation.
“If this is a trick and you just want me to look silly and I can’t do it, do I get to hit you for making me try?”
“Deal. You can hit me as hard as you can—but you have to really try and believe you have the strength.”