Unknown Touch

by Gina Marie Long

  Situated a few feet back from us stood Cassius, watching to see how Stephen was going to handle this. Cassius. This one was pure evil. He had turned to the dark side. He was purposely encouraging and deviously swaying Stephen to fully come to the dark side with him. To be his comrade. I looked over at Stephen's shoulder where Zac had shot him and was amazed to see that it was no longer bleeding. It still needed a little more time to completely heal, but it wasn't slowing him down much, as when he was initially shot and limped off into the woods back at his cabin.

  Stephen saw me look at his shoulder and roughly said, "Yeah, good thing I heal fast, isn't it? And lucky for me, my buddy, Cassius, wasn't too far away at the time one of you shot me. He heard the gun go off, then my howl for help and came to my aid. We effortlessly tracked you back here to the campground. As we were planning on what action to take next, here you come walking in our direction to use the restroom. All alone. Three seconds more and we would have been in there with you. Fortunately for us, but plain stupidity on your part, you walk out the back door, right into our hands."

  I tried to sweet talk my way out of this, "Stephen, we don't want to hurt you. The only reason you were shot is because you made an attempt to attack Daniel. We want to help you turn your life around." This was difficult to have a conversation with Cassius looming so closely over us.

  "The Liaison. You are humans. You are outsiders and strangers and have no business getting involved. I can't believe Daniel contacted that doctor, Eli, and asked for help. You're a psychic, aren't you? I know I sensed that. You want to mess with my mind," Stephen spat the words out.

  Even as he said that, I was eerily feeling a bit more of a mental breakthrough with Stephen. I don't think he was aware of it. It dawned on me that not only was I up close and personal, and we were talking directly to each other, but I now had that physical contact with him that I so desperately needed in order to gain full access to his mind. That didn't necessarily mean I could do so instantly. I wasn't feeling that ability kick in for me, although there was progress. He still had a psychic block against everyone but perhaps Cassius. It was ironic that this one thing he was trying to prevent, which was my using thought manipulation on him, just backfired, without him having a clue. Although he should have realized the closer he got to me, the physical contact in capturing me, the more he jeopardized his ability to keep up that mental barrier.

  Unless, of course, Stephen and Cassius had planned on killing me. Then I'd be out of the picture. A thorn in his side, their sides, removed.

  He had me pushed up against the wall, holding me there with his brutally powerful arms. I knew I was going to be bruised from this abuse. The rain was coming down harder now. I was getting drenched and feeling the effects from having been out in the cold too long. But the weather didn't bother the werewolves at all.

  I returned to his last question. "Yes, I am psychic. I was brought into this group very recently. Stephen, I can help you if you'll let me."

  This time, Cassius stepped up to me and spoke for the first time, "What makes you think he needs help? I see nothing wrong with his way of living."

  I knew the situation was getting dangerous. I should have already alerted Daniel or any of The Liaison to my predicament. I was so caught up in my own confrontation with Stephen, trying to learn more, still trying to de-fuse his volatile behavior. And on top of it, a rogue werewolf that none of us knew about, had entered the picture. I was assuming Daniel or Zac would try to kill Cassius. He was too much of a threat. He was bad and I could no longer help him.

  I decided I better connect mentally with Daniel while I had the chance. It had to be fast or else Stephen or Cassius would catch on to what I was doing. And one of them would likely kill me on the spot, probably Cassius, unless Stephen wanted to show his allegiance to Cassius by killing me himself. I wasn't convinced that Stephen had completely turned evil. He was bordering on it, but the emotions and senses I absorbed from him told me we might be able to save him. If it came right down to it, I don't think he could kill me, even though he sure was acting the bad boy part in front of Cassius. Since no one had arrived yet in my defense, they assumed they had the upper hand. Perhaps they thought I was so shocked and terrified, I couldn't focus to make a mental connection to call for help. In reality, I was creating that link at that exact moment.

  Daniel, help me! Stephen and Cassius are holding me at the back of the building, I sent out the mental communication. Short, simple, to the point.

  Daniel responded, I'm coming.

  Cassius looked at Stephen and prompted, "What are you waiting for? She needs to die. She's a bigger threat to you than our own kind. The longer she stays around, the more of a nuisance she becomes."

  Stephen was torn between his options. Kill me or not. Here was his chance, as I stood in front of him. Helpless. No one around to save me. At least not yet. In a mere second, he could slash my throat and escape the scene of the crime. But he hesitated. I was picking up his emotions, flashes in my head. He was a terribly tormented being. And to have Cassius in on the action, putting peer pressure on him, made the situation worse. To Stephen, killing me would be a way of bonding the friendship between Cassius and himself. It was a way of proving himself, of showing his loyalty.

  Cassius was getting irritated. Restless. Tired of playing this waiting game. He knew the longer Stephen wavered, the chances increased tenfold of being discovered by the humans. My friends would start to wonder what was taking me so long and come looking for me. Cassius was a cold-blooded killer. Another person's life meant absolutely nothing to him. He seemed perplexed as to why Stephen wasn't taking advantage of this prime opportunity to rid themselves of me. He decided to take matters into his own hands and pushed Stephen aside, which allowed him to have full access to me.

  Cassius's eyes were blazing with pent up rage. He spat out, "We don't have time for this anymore. Say goodbye, sweetie."

  His hands flew up to seize my throat, and just at that moment, Daniel made a spectacular entrance. Finally! I had started to wonder what was taking him so long. He must have alerted the rest of the team to my predicament and they went into combat mode, coming to my rescue. Daniel, with his super speed, had reached me first. The sight of him charging around the corner of the building distracted Cassius long enough for Daniel to shove him backwards, away from me.

  Daniel had his knife drawn, ready for the fight to ensue. I expected Cassius and Daniel to transform into their animal bodies, but neither changed. I imagined with the surprise attack, it didn't allow enough time to go through a complete transformation, without inadvertently giving the enemy a chance to strike during that change. And Daniel was up against two werewolves at once, not very good odds. I expected Zac or one of the others to arrive any second, so they could aid Daniel in the fight. Since we did have guns, and the wolves did not, I chalked that up as an extra point in our favor.

  "You will not be laying your filthy paws on her again," Daniel was trying to delay until the others arrived. He directed his speaking to Cassius. "And you are not welcome in this territory. You have stirred things up enough around here and that chaos will end today."

  Cassius was not one to back down. Stephen appeared to hang back a bit, as his emotions were conflicted in what to do. With Daniel and Cassius circling one another, Stephen acted as if he would step in if needed, otherwise would let the two fight it out, especially since he was still recovering from being shot in the shoulder earlier.

  "Try to stop me," Cassius taunted. "I follow my own rules. I go wherever I want and do what I choose."

  Cassius's next move was smooth, quick. He dropped to the ground, swung out his right leg, which caught Daniel's legs, knocking him off his feet. Daniel hit the ground, landing on his back. Cassius was on top of him in a blink of an eye. The knife Daniel wielded made contact with Cassius's arm, slicing a deep, bleeding wound. He had aimed for Cassius's neck, but during the struggle, it didn't make it to that destination, which should have been the lethal blow.
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br />   I noticed a partial transforming of Cassius's hands. His fingers lengthened, his nails had grown an inch longer into sharp, dagger-like claws. Some ragged, black fur had sprouted on the top of his hands. He took a swipe at Daniel and the claws connected with his chest. There were four distinct rips through his shirt, which instantly revealed the damage done to him as blood soaked into the material. I gasped and held my breath, fearful of what might happen next.

  Just then, I noticed Zac creep around the corner of the restroom. He squatted into a controlled position, giving himself the best shot at Cassius. The gun rang out with all its glory as he fired at his target. Cassius had no idea what hit him. Zac, with all of his military training, years of practice, disciplined behavior, and precision with his skills, delivered the deadly shot to Cassius's head, as if it was nothing. Cassius fell to the ground, dead. He would not recover from that injury.

  Stephen stood off to the side, looking at the scene in shock. The one being that had encouraged Stephen to release his emotions, to be wild, untamed, aggressive, was now lying on the ground, lifeless. Gone from Stephen's life. Taken away from him in a heartbeat. Cassius had been overbearing, domineering, but he had given Stephen that rush of adrenaline, an excitement in taking risks. Power.

  Dom and Tessa had arrived behind Zac and had seen the shooting take place. Everyone was staring at Stephen, waiting for his next move. He knew he was outnumbered. I merged with Daniel's mind and told him, He held back when Cassius told him to kill me. He easily could have taken my life, and he didn't. He's really confused.

  Daniel said, Tell Zac and Tessa, without speaking aloud, not to kill him.

  I put that information into their minds. Zac questioned holding back, but agreed to follow Daniel's orders. It was unlikely that Stephen would attempt anything further that day. An invisible line divided the five of us from Stephen, standing alone as a single, rogue, werewolf. No one on his side. No one to back him. His pack, who had left Daniel's circle of protection, wasn't even behind him on his actions. Maybe David could be influenced by Stephen to run wild with him, but we hadn't confirmed that yet. And that was something we had to keep our eyes open for.

  Suddenly, Stephen transformed into a werewolf. He looked so desolate, miserable, desperate in what to do next. He paced back and forth, on the edge of the woods. I felt pity and sorrow for him. I tried again to connect with his mind and all I got was those flashes of emotions and a few images of running through the woods. Nothing that was solid for me to work with. He definitely had a mental block against me. He sensed what I was attempting to do with connecting our minds, and violently shook his head. I did feel confident that I was actually getting closer to opening that little door into his mind.

  He didn't like the fact that I kept persisting to gain access to his mind. Stephen took a few steps towards us, I believe towards me, in retaliation. Dominic decided this would be a good time to make use of one of his skills. As Stephen took another step, Dom stopped him in his tracks with his mind. Stephen could not move forward at all. It was strange to see him try again and again and not get anywhere. It reminded me of someone placing their hand on my forehead and then I would try to walk towards them, and couldn't. Dominic was doing a great job keeping Stephen at bay.

  After about five tries, Stephen looked totally defeated, turned on his haunches, and launched himself into the woods.

  Daniel stated, "He's gone. Zac, Dom - good job. Now we need to burn Cassius's body. We don't need anyone to come across another dead body in the area."

  I went running to Daniel, almost in hysterics, "Daniel, you're slashed up and bleeding. What can we do?"

  He lifted up his ripped, bloody shirt to show proof that he would be perfectly fine. The four slice marks in his skin were still visible, but the bleeding had basically stopped. His heightened healing ability had kicked in and saved his life. I was so relieved and let out a big sigh.

  Eli popped his head around the building. Everyone had forgotten that he was sitting in the truck this whole time. When I made my mental call for help to Daniel, they decided to leave Eli in the safety of the truck and come to my rescue.

  "What's going on back here? Did I miss out on something?" Eli asked. Daniel pointed to Cassius's body. Eli's jaw dropped to his knees in astonishment. He also took note of the blood all down the front of Daniel's shirt.

  Zac replied to Eli, "Go get the gas can. It's time for a bonfire."

  Chapter 15

  Regroup

  The cold, drizzling rain was not easing up. The only one who seemed unaffected by the weather was Daniel. The rest of us were chilled to the bone, damp and tired. Within an hour, the sun would set, and we'd be in the dark. Daniel had encouraged everyone to inspect the grounds for any telltale signs that there had been a fight resulting in someone or some thing being killed. Daniel and Zac had carried Cassius's body further away from the restroom facility. They located a fire pit, placed his body in it and proceeded to ignite him. Tessa was sweeping over the ground with a rake where all the blood had pooled and remnants of body tissue had splattered. Since Cassius had been shot in the head, it was a rather disgusting mess. A few times, I had the urge to throw up. I kept reminding myself to be strong and to get through this so we could leave and go back to the comfort of Daniel's resort. Hopefully, very soon.

  The immediate threat from Stephen had passed. None of us felt or sensed he would return or try anything else today. We won this battle and Stephen knew he had been defeated. But that didn't mean he would give up his reckless behavior. I was worried the loss of Cassius could actually fuel the fire, the loneliness and rage he felt. Thankfully, there were no other visitors around to have witnessed this nightmare. Eli was keeping a watchful eye out for any people who might decide to drive through the campground. He was standing by the truck and would alert us if someone approached.

  Finally, our cover-up of the incident was complete. We briskly walked back to the truck and climbed into the nice, dry, warm interior. Daniel was trying to decide whether he should change from his bloody, torn shirt into a new one.

  I said, "Why don't you wait till we get back to the resort. Then you can take a shower, tend to your injury and put on a new shirt. There's no point in putting a clean shirt over your filthy body and ruining it."

  "Gee, thanks for the compliment," Daniel gave me a crooked smile. "But you're absolutely right. Soon enough, we'll be back and I'll take care of it then. I'm sure Abigail has started to wonder why we haven't returned yet. Knowing her, she's got supper ready, trying to keep it warm for us. She's a great niece. I don't know what I would do without her."

  All of us chimed in with similar compliments for her: "She is so sweet." "Man, can she cook up a storm and enough for an army." "She has a charming personality." "She's so at ease with us and has a good sense of humor." These honest, positive statements made Daniel break out into a huge smile.

  "I am starving," Zac admitted, hungry as usual.

  Tessa shook her head at him and replied, "How can you possibly be hungry after what we just went through? Ugh!"

  He answered simply, "All that action burns up the calories, my dear. And it is that time of the day to eat anyway."

  The drive back to the resort didn't take long and by that time, the sleet had stopped. The roads were still in good shape, as the ground temperature was too warm for anything to stick or get icy. We arrived at the resort with Abigail standing at the main door, arms crossed in anticipation, a look of worry on her face. One of us should have called her on a cell phone and given her an estimated time of arrival.

  She saw Daniel's shirt, the blood had almost dried on it by now. It was a dead giveaway that we had encountered a problem with our day.

  Abigail exclaimed, "Oh my lord, Daniel. Are you okay? You've been gone so long; I knew something bad must have happened. Let's go inside and you can tell me all the details."

  The Liaison team decided to go to our cabin and freshen up a bit. Our clothes were damp and dirty as were our bodies. Daniel
recommended using an additional cabin's bathroom since we all needed to take a shower at the same time. This would speed things along so we weren't waiting as long on one another to get out of the bathroom. Abigail retrieved a key to a cabin situated next to our original one.

  I mentally connected with Daniel, I'll see you in an hour. Get cleaned up.

  He answered, I'll fill Abigail in on today's events. You get yourself dry and warm.

  Everyone divided up, going to their designated locations to get clean before settling down for supper. Since women take longer than men in the bathroom, Tessa and I decided that if speed was of the essence, then we would each go to separate cabins. Eli, Tessa and Zac were in one cabin, Dominic and me in the new cabin. We wanted to return to the dining room as soon as possible.

  Dom and I were done first since there were only two of us. We walked over to the other cabin to fetch the remaining team members. Eli was questioning me about any new developments with reading Stephen's mind. He wondered if the closeness I had with Stephen finally made a difference in my ability to psychically connect with him.

  I suggested, "Eli, let's wait till we can include Daniel, and even Abigail, in on this conversation. I will say, though, to hold you off, I am making some progress in that direction."

  Dom touched at my mind, Kara, I can read you, don't forget. You still aren't able to completely access Stephen's mind in order to influence his behavior yet. To manipulate his emotional state.

  I'm closer than before, Dom. Tomorrow, I want to practice my abilities, as long as we don't have something else to do, I stated.