However, Fairhaven’s intelligence officials had unraveled Red Knight’s treasonous plot to generate social unrest and arrested the perpetrators just hours ago, thereby restoring order to all of our citizens both mortal and preter. Counselor Griffen along with the other members of the High Council was scheduled to make an address to the citizens later this evening and a holiday was planned for next Monday to celebrate Fairhaven’s diversity and unity.
It didn’t click right away but then I understood what Penny was talking about. Griffen was heading this entire operation with Aerial, hence the acquittal, the arrests and the day of unity. Griffen had unilaterally selected scapegoats who would mysteriously disappear before coming to trial. He and Aerial were in league with each other selling unsuspecting preter kids with promising abilities to the Marked in return for Elsyn. The announcement this evening meant that they were returning to the status quo.
And what about Noah? Had he just been acting on his father’s orders or did he genuinely have feelings for me? It wasn’t lost on me that he never expressed any interest in me until after I had seen Ophelia in the video footage at work. Oh, how could I have been such a fool?
In that moment Penny’s words came sailing back, we were in danger. Thinking of my family, I hurried back into the main corridor colliding with a TUG linen delivery robot before sprinting through distracted visitors and robotic medtechs towards Ophelia’s room. Reaching the doorway, I discovered the chaos that had recently ensued, monitors were screeching, the room was trashed and mom and Weylin were on the ground unconscious. Kneeling beside Weylin, I checked to make sure that he was all right and screamed for help. Crawling over to mom, I checked for a pulse and tried to wake her but she was out cold. Panicked I rushed towards the window but saw nothing going on outside. My body was shaking with nervousness when the onslaught of nurses hurried into the room yelling medical terms and calling for security. Jumping to my feet, I knew exactly where Aerial had taken Ophelia; it was where they took the preters kids to be sold for Elsyn, the Northern Shore.
Running out the door, I sprinted for the stairs and looked down the stairwell but I saw nothing. Hurriedly I reached the bottom of the stairs before kicking open the emergency exit with the heel of my boot and frantically checking outside. They were gone but I spotted a taxi and jumped inside. Using the voice commands, I instructed the vehicle where to go and anxiously awaited arrival at my destination. I hadn’t a clue what I was going to do or how I was going to stop them from taking her but I had to try.
Luckily, the Northern Shore was only a fifteen minutes ride from the hospital. Jumping out of the car, I slammed the door behind me and ran through the woods to the place where it all began. As I grew closer, I saw Ophelia and Aerial in the distance just before they disappeared into thin air at the entrance to Bramy Cave. I continued to search but they had vanished. After examining the perimeter, I had to conclude that they were gone. The muddy footprints simply ended and I hesitated before doing the unthinkable.
I wasn’t sure what was on the other side but I couldn’t stop now. Reaching the spot where Ophelia and Aerial had disappeared, I got down on my hands and knees and stuck my hand into the wet sand. Within seconds, the wet sand pulled me in and propelled me through a thick plasma membrane by a series of pulses that resembled stop frame animation. As I emerged on the other side, the sandy residue was rinsed away with the purest water I had ever felt, completely washing away the filth and instantly drying me with a refreshing steam.
Lying on the foreign landscape, I looked around. The sky was orange and purple and the trees lime green with tall grey grass brushing against my feet. I saw red mountains in the distance with a crystal blue lake lying at their base. I had seen this place before. I recognized it from the photo on my bureau of Meadow. It was my most valued possession and up until now, I mistakenly believed it had been taken in a carnival photo booth. Could she have been here before?
My first few gasps of air were unusually light but after a few more breaths, it was intoxicating. Rising to my feet, I saw Aerial and Ophelia waiting under one of the crazy colored trees. Ophelia still wearing her hospital gown was leaning against a tree with her face badly bruised and Aerial was standing over her. Aerial was dressed in designer jeans and a baby blue cotton sweater with black leather boots that stopped just below her knees.
Aerial approached me and Ophelia followed submissively behind her, “You’re just like your mother, a stupid bitch who couldn’t keep her nose where it belonged.”
I didn’t care about Aerial’s insults. My mind was too consumed with what was happening to me, “What is this place?”
“Amazing isn’t it?” Aerial said, looking over her shoulder at Ophelia, “Your sister never appreciated this place.”
I avoided looking at Ophelia because it broke my heart to see her like this. If I was going to deal with Aerial, I had to remain focused. Glancing up at the sky, “It’s like we’re breathing in Elsyn.”
“That’s because we are,” Aerial responded. “Here in the Kingdom, Elsyn can be found anywhere and everywhere.” Aerial pressed her finger to her lip, “I have a suggestion before things get out of hand. One I think you might actually like.”
It was difficult to believe anything Aerial said but I figured it didn’t hurt to listen, “My sister isn’t going anywhere with you. I don’t care how great this place is.”
Annoyed I could see Aerial squinting, “What is it with you children these days never letting me finish a god damn sentence? I digress. What if I said that your sister could go back to living her life in the Domain?”
“In exchange for what exactly?” I glanced around.
“In exchange for you. What else? You need to take her place. Your sister has a unique gift but you are different from most of the preters that I have sent here in the past. With your bloodline and your untapped potential, I believe that I would be greatly rewarded for recruiting you. Preter abilities are gifts even if you don’t see them that way yet.”
For half a second, I considered what she had offered. Staying here in place of Ophelia would mean that my adoptive family would get to live unbothered and be together where they belonged. Perhaps this was fate and my life’s purpose was to bring Ophelia home safely. It had become glaringly obvious that I didn’t belong in the Domain. My boss, Patrick had set me up to take the fall for destroying surveillance tape and most likely fired me. My jealousy had managed to alienate the only real friend I had in the Domain and I suspected that Noah’s sudden romantic interest in me was part of a plot to keep an eye on me for his father, Griffen.
There was nothing left for me there and this place could represent the next phase of my life even if it did mean dealing with people like Aerial. Maybe I could take them down from the inside or help to change their ways but before I had the chance to give an answer, Penny emerged from behind a tree. Standing there ready to fight, her gun was pointed at Aerial.
“Don’t listen to anything that witch has to say, Violet. She won’t keep her word. Do you think that your mother and Weylin are still alive because Aerial is a good person? No, she was under strict orders from Griffen not to kill them.” Holding her stomach, I noticed the dark blood leaking from her torn shirt and her shaking hand as she defiantly continued to aim the gun at Aerial.
I surmised that Penny had followed Ophelia and Aerial to Bramy Cave and like me, located the entrance to the Kingdom but somehow during the pursuit, she had sustained a serious injury. Penny was sweating and her breathing was labored I was unsure if her breathlessness was from her injury or from breathing Elsyn but she was obviously in great pain. I wanted to help her but I doubted that I could make it passed Aerial.
Aerial rolled her eyes, annoyed that Penny was still alive, “So you’re still here, you cockroach. You people are getting on my last nerve. When are all of you going to get it? None of you matter. You are nothing but a headache for me because I’m stuck dealing with those damn people up there on their ivory hilltop. The problem is I’m ju
st too nice. You don’t see people like Hector or Priya having these problems. Well, I’m taking a page from their book.”
Turning to face me, she continued, “The deal is off although the cockroach over there was right, you would have ended up being my bitch one way or another. Now I’m going to kill the two of you and be done with the Domain. Because of you, I’m no longer welcome in my own home. I’ve been advised by the almighty Griffen that my part in the mission is over.”
“Because you destroyed Griff Glass?” Penny asked.
Aerial dismissingly waved her hand, “He was annoyed but he didn’t care about my blowing off some steam. It was your report on my role in the preter-Elsyn trade that worried him. That could have been serious and the Marked didn’t want him to take any chances so here I am, exiled from my own home.”
“If you were working with Griffen, why did you destroy Griff Glass? Penny asked.
“While Griffen lived in his penthouse, I was on the ground doing all of the actual work. Once his crowning achievement was completed, it was too much so I blew it up,” Aerial laughed.
“What about all of those people that you killed or injured?” Penny’s voice was getting weaker as she leaned against the tree for support without relaxing her grip on the gun.
“Like I would care about any of them. Look mortal; I don’t have time for your stupidly insignificant questions. Besides I’m not sure you will be around long enough to get the answers anyway. That knife one of my crew put inside you looks very deep.” Aerial gave a fake smile. “Why don’t I come over and take a look at it.”
Penny doubled over in pain, “Stay away from me. Run, Violet! Get out of here.”
Aerial sprinted towards Penny; it was as though everything was moving in slow motion. I saw my chance to grab Ophelia and get out of there but watching Aerial charging Penny I knew she would die. Penny tried to fire a shot but with the tremor in her hand, she missed badly and caused Aerial to pause. I thought about all the times I ran away hoping and wishing my problems would go away but I wasn’t going to run anymore. Rushing over I stepped between the two of them.
Aerial shook her head, “What do you think is going to happen here? You’ve lost everything. Even if you kill me, your lives are over.”
“Maybe you’re right but at least I will know that you won’t get your happy ending. I’m warning you if you try to hurt or touch either one of them I will retaliate and I’m not sure what will happen but it won’t be good,” I responded.
“That’s the problem with the Domain. It guides us away from our true purpose. We are weapons to be honed and sharpened as a tool for the Marked. There is a war on our doorsteps and if we aren’t prepared, then none of this will matter.” Aerial spoke with a sincerity that I almost believed as she slowly walked towards me.
“Please don’t do this,” I pleaded.
“You’re not a killer. You don’t have what it takes, but I do,” Aerial fired back.
Closing my eyes, I could feel the pins and needles stabbing the skin on my left palm as I exhaled. Opening my eyes, a dark purple cloud had gathered at my feet causing the grass around me to wither and die instantly. The cloud grew stronger; I could sense it spreading further away from me heading towards Aerial. Uncertain, she took one step back and then another. She could see that I didn’t have control. The hatred inside of me wanted her to pay; I wanted revenge but I didn’t want to kill her. I just wanted her to leave us alone. Why wouldn’t she leave us be? The dark purple cloud flashed and began to dissipate as I walked towards Aerial through the now blacken decay of land.
Standing there amid curls of purple smoke drifting upward from the black earth, I said in a tone so stern that it surprised me, “You should leave now and live out your days harassing someone else.”
“You think that I am afraid of you. I’ve dealt with Griffen, Aiden Rose and even the almighty Hector. Do you honestly believe that you’re the one that will defeat me? You, an orphan from a forgotten crusader that never amounted to anything. You’re nothing.” Lunging towards me Aerial hit me square in the face and caught Ophelia with her backhand. I quickly pulled away before blowing a stray wisp of the purple cloud into her face. She tried to swat it away but I saw it softly brush her hair before burrowing into her cheek.
Frantically shouting, “God damn you. They’re all going to come for you. They’re going to kill every one of you.” Her words turned into screaming and her skin blackened from the inside out. Watching her beauty disintegrate as her skin, hair and bone crumbled into grey dust was horrifying. I wasn’t sure anyone deserved what I did to her. It was violent and inhumane. It shook me to my core and I finally understood what mom meant about using our abilities and how sometimes certain preter skills were more of a curse than a tool.
Exhausted from exerting such destruction, I saw that Ophelia was unconscious but appeared unharmed. A few feet away lay Penny, mortally injured and close to death. Kneeling over her, I tried to heal her wounds but I couldn’t get my hands to stop shaking. My head grew heavy and my eyes burned with tears as I tried to control my breathing, realizing that I couldn’t save her.
Collapsing beside her, I spotted a figure headed towards us through the forest. His face was blurry but those black flames were undeniable. Unsure if I was dreaming or awake, the figure looked like the images I had seen of Aiden Rose. My eyes widened in disbelief but fatigue overwhelmed me forcing them to shut.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
When I woke up, my mom was standing there, looking down at me. She brushed my face with the back of her hand and I glanced to the left where Ophelia and Weylin were standing. Although she was still incredibly thin, Ophelia looked better than she had a few hours ago. She had showered and pulled back her hair and mom had brought her fresh clothes. Wearing a simple black dress, which I assumed was one of Penny’s, she looked more like her old self than she had in a long time. Sitting up in the bed, I peered around at a rather plain room with brick walls, an enormous skylight and three floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the harbor.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“It’s all right. You need your rest,” mom responded.
“Where are we? Please tell me what’s happening,” my heart raced. I felt confused and unsure of the events over the last few hours.
Penny hobbled into the room with a crutch under her arm, “Don’t worry, you’re safe. This is my apartment.”
“How did we get here?” I asked.
“Don’t you remember?” Penny asked, “You saved me. You saved everybody and because of you, we now have the proof we need to start the eventual takedown of Griffen’s empire.”
“I’m sorry.” Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, “I’m missing chunks of time. I saved you?”
Penny smiled, “You don’t remember, do you? You carried Ophelia and me back through the portal to the edge of the Northern Shore. When I woke up, I called your mother for help.”
Shaking my head, “I didn’t do that,” I said recalling the image of black flames that was seared into my brain. “Aiden Rose was there. He saved us.” Looking around at the others, I could see they thought I was crazy or hallucinating but I knew what I saw. He was there. I didn’t understand it but either way, I was grateful to him.
“Honey, don’t worry about that now,” mom interjected. “You’re just incredibly tired. You know that in an extremely stressful environment, our minds can play tricks on us but I can assure you, he wasn’t there. He has been dead for nearly a century. I’m so proud of you but as soon as you feel better, I’m going to beat the stuffing out of you for doing something so dangerous. I could have lost both of you. I love all of you so much.” My mom hugged the three of us together for the first time in as long as I could remember.
Turning towards Penny and swinging my feet onto the floor, I asked, “What did you mean when you said that you got the evidence to take down Griffen?”
Penny sat at the desk chair adjacent my bed and tapping her band the footage from the fight displa
yed on the wall. She had captured the whole incident on camera. Reliving the incident was more difficult than I remembered and when the end came and I again watched Aerial’s painful death, I felt like a murderer for the first time since this entire ordeal began. It didn’t matter to me whether or not killing her was justified, all I could think about was the terror in those blackened eyes and her horrific screams.
Sensing my discomfort as Penny tapped her A2B band off, “Obviously we don’t need to show the whole incident but just the part where she admits her guilt and Griffen’s involvement with the disappearance and sale of preter children.”
Weylin appeared happy that those terrible people were getting what they deserved and for the first time since her return, Ophelia was smiling but I couldn’t celebrate, not yet. My mom could always sense when something was wrong and this was no exception, “Could everyone give us a second?” she asked as she waved the others into the next room.
After Penny, Weylin and Ophelia had closed the door behind them, I pushed my hands against my temples, “Mom, I’m scared. Aerial may have been a liar but she wasn’t making this up; there’s something out there and it’s coming for us. They’re never going to leave us alone. Even if we are able to take down Griffen, the Marked will come after us. What should we do?”
Mom hesitated before she answered, “I don’t know. You started something by fighting back but the most important thing is that we are all together as a family now and I won’t let them hurt any of you ever again. I promise you that.” She squeezed my hand before standing, opening the door and going into the next room where Penny was putting together the video with a message to be sent out to the world.
Following mom, I passed the table where Weylin and Ophelia were sitting and strolled over to the window. I looked out beyond the restless boats tethered to their slips and docks strung with cheerful lights to the calm, inviting waters of the harbor. I wondered if my parents, Meadow and Parker, had sailed to exotic places from these docks and if those trips were exciting adventures or leisurely holidays.
The Wilted Flower District Page 11
