A Touch of Death

by J. J. Dean

  I lose track of how long it takes me to move through the entire woods, phasing in different areas hoping to confuse whoever is at the other end of my tracker. Finding somewhere to hide is a struggle in the darkness, but luck must be on my side when I find a small cave carved into a stone brick wall I've stopped next to.By the time I find the cave, it's dark out, and I can barely see my hand in front of my face. The cave is small but big enough for me to squeeze into and hide in until the sun comes up again. I shove my duffle bag into the opening, stuffing it as far back as it will go before following after it. I crouch low and shuffle into the small space, turning until my back meets a wall and sliding down until I'm sitting on the ground. I'm forced to pull my knees up since the space is so small.

  I drop my head back against the stone with a heavy sigh and close my eyes. With nothing better to do while I wait, I turn my focus onto the pull of the bond in my chest. The pull that's tethered to four men who hold a piece of my soul. The ones I left behind to keep them safe. I laugh, the sound faintly echoing off the walls. Of course, Fate would give me four men to care for at the same time they give me abilities I shouldn't have that paint a fucking target on my back.

  I already miss them.

  Zayn's shy smiles yet assertive nature, Nix's humour and warmth. I miss Spencer's laugh and the surprise on his face when he realises he broke out of his serious façade. I even miss his backwards hats. I also miss Ezra. He's been warming up to me, and it showed in the way he cared for me, the way he prioritised my health, and... well, me. Most of all, I miss having the guys with me, having conversations, hearing lame jokes or watching movies together. It's ridiculous to miss them so much already, but my heart feels like it's missing four vital pieces.

  With another deep sigh, I focus my efforts on trying to get some sleep. I'll only be able to stay here for a couple of hours before I'll need to move again, so it's best to get some shut eye before then. Won't do me any good if I'm overtired while I'm running.

  It takes a while to fall asleep, but eventually the need for rest overrules my body, and I fall into a fitful sleep with the guys on my mind.

  ****

  The snap of a twig wakes me, and a sudden sense of deja vu overcomes me. The last time I fell asleep in the woods was when I was being hunted by Davis. Fear spikes within me, and I push myself further into the cave.

  It takes a second for me to wake up entirely, but when I do, I'm on full alert and am sitting straight in the cave while doing everything in my power to keep quiet. Despite my attempts to be quiet, it almost feels as though the sound of my rapidly beating heart could be heard from the other side of the woods.

  I listen for any other sounds, but none follow.

  Not willing to take any chances, I glamour myself invisible and shuffle out of the small cave, dragging my duffle with me. I swing it over my back and keep close to the wall where the cave is carved. I walk along the wall, dragging my back across the surface, my eyes flicking in every direction.

  Still nothing.

  It's possible it could have been a passing animal or my imagination, so with that in mind, I drop my glamour, move away from the wall, and begin trekking through the woods as the sun begins its slow rise. The sky is still dark, but there are signs of first light, though I have no idea what the time is.

  Sticking to the trees, I quickly make my way through the woods, gaining pace as I go.

  Until another twig snaps close behind me.

  I freeze where I stand before coming to my senses and quickly hiding behind the nearest tree. I practically glue myself to the tree with my heart thundering painfully in my chest with panic. When a rustle of leaves sounds out closer than before, and another wretched twig snaps, I glamour my body to look like the bark I'm suctioned to.

  Careful to keep my breathing shallow and quiet, I stand still against the tree. Using my ability, I slow my heartbeat, only until it doesn't feel like it's about to crash through my rib cage. With a steadier heartbeat and a camouflage that can't be beaten, I wait while terror grips my throat with an iron fist. I listen for more noises, for the rustle of clothing, anything that would give me some indication as to how close my tracker is.

  Not even a moment later, a man walks through the trees from where I came. He wears a black baseball cap, but I spy dirty blonde curls poking out from underneath it. He's tall, with defined muscles in his shoulders and back. His steps are steady and slow, careful not to make any more noise than he already has.

  But suddenly he stops.

  I hold my breath, turning to stone where I stand. The man tilts his head to the right and then to the left. He stays that way for a moment before standing straight and dropping his arms at his sides. I spot large black and grey tattoos that wrap around his arms and sneak under his sleeves. He's weaponless, but he's dressed the same as the mercenaries Davis brought with him when he found me in the parking lot: black cargo pants, tight black t-shirt, and military boots.

  As though he has all the time in the world, the man turns his head until half of his face comes into view. From my angle, I'm able to see a blonde trimmed beard that lines his sharp jaw and upper lip. His nose is straight, the one eyebrow I can see is arched, and the part of his lips that's visible is full and turned up in an amused grin.

  And then he turns completely, facing my direction as though... he can see me. Surely not. I know my glamour is still in place, and I'm pretty certain I look more like the tree than the tree itself. But he faces me, with his lips still tilted in a grin and eyebrow raised. When my eyes reach his, they're on me. A set of deep violet eyes stare directly into mine, the colour of an amethyst jewel. I suppress a shiver, but my spine tingles, and a fluttering begins in my chest.

  "That's smart. Quick thinking. I like it," he says, crossing his arms over his chest causing his biceps to strain against his shirt. His voice is rough and gravelly, like he's smoked twenty cigarettes every day for years. The sound has goosebumps breaking out over my skin, which is a ridiculous reaction to have to someone who's here to fucking capture me.

  His mouth pulls into a bigger grin when I don't react, drop my glamour, or move away from my tree. I don't think I could if I tried, honestly. I feel paralysed with fear, and something else. Something... familiar.

  When he takes a step closer to where I stand, the panic I'd been withholding finally boils, and my paralysis snaps enough that I phase away from him in a blink. I keep phasing, throwing caution to the wind and hoping I'll have enough energy to get away from the man. I keep going further still until I reach an empty road bordered by a thicket of trees.

  I land right in the middle of the road, looking from one end to the other. Panic is clawing at me, the sharp nails of hysteria cutting through my skin relentlessly. How was I found so quickly? What the hell kind of reaction did he stir in me? Better yet, why was the feeling so familiar?

  A swift breeze has my hair billowing around my head, but I bat it out of the way as I look down one end of the road to the other. With my mind racing, I'm not quick enough to decide which way I should be heading, and further down the road the violet-eyed man appears, stepping out from the cover of the trees to stand in the middle of the road opposite me.

  My spine stiffens, and a surge of fear rushes through me. The man tilts his head to the side, very much the same way he did before, but he doesn't move closer. He watches me closely, his eyes as sharp as an eagle’s.

  My hand twitches at my side, and his eyes dart straight to them before coming back to watch my face. Slowly, another grin forms on his face. His eyes crinkle at the edges from his smile, and I'm cursing my mind for thinking he's handsome. Incredibly so. But that doesn't do anything to stave off the fear that's still pumping through my blood. The terror is so potent that my senses go into overdrive. There's a high-pitched ringing in my ears, my eyes are laser-focused, and my body is so wired that my hands are shaking too hard to appear steady.

  In a move I wasn't expecting, the stranger moves his hands until his palms are facing me as they
stay next to his hips. The move almost looks placating, like he's trying to appease a startled and frightened animal. His hands raise further, but he doesn't move from where he stands.

  What this man doesn't seem to realise is that after five years of hell, it takes a lot more than a stupid fucking hand gesture to make me trust anyone. Especially someone dressed as the enemy. Despite the strange reaction to this man, I don't let my guard down. In fact, the reaction I'm having to him alone is enough to build more distrust.

  With my body trembling, I move my hands backwards a fraction, concealing them slightly from sight. His eyes dart down again before coming back up. A frown pulls at his eyebrows, and he's faster to lift his hands until they're right in front of him.

  My fingers twitch, and without any effort, dust fills my palms, hovering just above my skin ready to use at any given moment. I don't make any outward reactions to his movement, but it almost seems like he knows exactly what I'm doing. He steps forward, and I startle, moving back as a reflex. He stops immediately, but then he approaches slower.

  Suddenly realising this could very well be a trap, and feeling utterly stupid for not thinking of it sooner, I quickly glance around, begging my eyes to take in everything at once. I don't catch any strangers lurking amongst the trees, so I focus back on the stranger before me. The stranger who's moved even closer while I wasn't looking. My heart was pounding before, but now it feels like it's seconds away from bursting right out of my chest with the distance he managed to eat up while I wasn't paying attention.

  "I'm not going to hurt you," his gravelly voice calls out, dropping his hands slowly while trying to sneak another step towards me.

  I snort like he said something funny, but my eyes narrow on him with equal amounts of fury and fear. "Sure, you won't. You'll only hand me over to the people that held me captive for five years. And that's before they murdered all of my people right before my eyes."

  I see his jaw clench, but he doesn't comment. His eyes fill with an emotion I don't recognise right away, but it's gone before I can place a finger on it. He also doesn't tell me I'm wrong and that he isn't here to hand me over the first chance he gets. Well, he's in for a surprise because he's going to have a hard time trying.

  He points to my arm where the tracker lays and says, "That's going to be a problem if you plan on getting away."

  My eyes narrow with suspicion, and my palms tickle with the dust that's built there. Fear is still flowing through my bloodstream, but it's evenly-matched with the anger and pain of what I had to endure for so long at the hands of the people this asshole works for.

  "Are you going to be a problem?" I ask, the snark unintentional but there regardless. I really shouldn't be pissing off the man that's bigger than me.

  Instead of my question making him angry like I suspected, he grins again, flashing a set of pearly white teeth. I clench my jaw tight and mentally chastise myself for thinking that smile rivals my four’s smiles.

  I make a frustrated noise at the back of my throat and shake my head. Something the man takes for granted again when he steps closer. He's only a few short feet away from me, and my panic spikes more than before. The pounding beneath my ribs grows heavier and harder, but something stops me from moving away. Once again, it's a familiar feeling to me, but the man speaks before I can make sense of it.

  "I'll only be a problem if you make me one. I can help you." He points to the tracker in my arm again, and I won't lie, that has me intrigued. Why would he help me? He's on the wrong side, sent to capture me, yet he wants to help? Am I in the twilight zone or something?

  Eyeing him slowly, my eyes narrowed with skepticism, I ask, "Why?"

  He shrugs a shoulder, but his eyes tell me it's something important. Something he wants to keep to himself. Fine. He can keep his reasons. But I won't let my guard down.

  "How can you help?" I warily ask.

  He points at my arm again and says, "Just gotta touch it."

  Before I can make any sense of those words, he dives towards me. Instinct takes over, and the ball of dust I have in my hands goes sailing towards the man in a flurry of gold sprinkles. His hand connects with my upper arm, and a warm sensation blooms from the contact. It's falling away a second later as he drops to the floor, dazed and sleepy, but not unconscious like it should have rendered him.

  I'm breathing heavily as I gaze at him lying on the floor, watching me with droopy eyes and a tired smile. He tries to talk, but it's too quiet to hear. He must see the confusion on my face because he stops talking and groggily motions me closer. He seems to be out for the count, so I risk it, walking closer and leaning down to hear him.

  With a strained whisper, he says, "Won't last long, but you've got some time. Get rid of it as soon as you can."

  My eyes widen, and I look down to my arm to see the tracker glowing orange instead of green. He... he temporarily disabled the tracker. What... why...

  I look down at the man on the road with tears in my eyes, seeing a ridiculously dopey grin on his face that does something funny to my chest. My voice is nothing but a strained whisper when I tell him, "T-thank you. So much. Thank you."

  He slowly nods, like it's taking him all of his strength to do it since he's fighting a lot of sleeper dust, and says, "Don't thank me yet, Dusty. Now get out of here."

  And then he passes out, lightly snoring while the dust finally drags him unconscious. Doing as I'm told, I move until I'm standing and back away slowly, searching the woods while I go.

  When I'm sure I'm safe, and there's no danger surrounding me, I phase out. I keep phasing until I run out of energy. Once I grow exhausted, I'm forced to find somewhere to hide for a while so I can recuperate. I'd be worried about being caught stopping so soon after the sun breaks out over the horizon, but I have some time to spare thanks to the stranger.

  Not much time, but enough.

  Chapter 26

  Novia

  I spend the entire day phasing in and out of the woods, popping up in random places before disappearing and appearing in the complete opposite direction in which it looked like I'd been going. Every now and then I'll stop to top up my energy, but I never stay in one place for too long. If there's one thing I know how to do, it’s lose a tail when I have enough of a head start. By jumping around the woods in all kinds of directions, I'm muddling any pattern whoever is looking for me would otherwise find. I'm spreading my scent everywhere, confusing any tracker who's been sent after me. With me hopping all over the forest, I'm making their jobs a lot more difficult.

  After sufficiently spreading my scent everywhere, leaving trails that lead to nothing or that simply lead back onto themselves, I stop in the middle of the woods. The sky has already darkened again, and I'm in need of a place to stay for the night. I'll be damned if I'm staying here again since that didn't work out so well for me already.

  Focusing as hard as I can, I picture the town the guys took me to when we went shopping for my room. When the picture is in my mind, I pull on my energy. Given that I've never phased more than a few feet away, I have zero idea of how much energy I'll need, so I draw enough to make sure I travel such a large distance and appear in one piece. With a deep inhale and a slow exhale, I phase out.

  When I phase back in, I land on my hands and knees outside the store I'd been standing by when I saw Davis. I'm breathless and heaving for air as my lungs scream at me, head hanging between my arms as nausea rolls through me. I keep still until the feelings pass, and stand unsteadily, using the wall beside me for balance. I'm thanking the Fates that it's late enough for the street to be empty of people because a person popping quite literally out of thin air would have had a few eyebrows raising.

  When I'm able to stand without the support, I move away from the wall and look around to work out which direction I should go. The street is deserted, the street lamps along the road lighting up the shuttered stores. It's quiet save for the sound of the howling wind bringing the threat of rain with it. Not even a minute later, the sky thunders,
and the heavens open, sheets of rain pouring down on me with unrelenting force. I'm soaked to the bone in seconds, and the need for somewhere to stay for the night grows tenfold when I begin to shiver from how cold I suddenly become. My black shirt and leggings are soaked through, and my hair lies in a tangled heap, strands sticking to my face when the wind blows harshly.

  One last look around has me heading to the right, my feet moving quickly down the street in search of somewhere to shelter myself from the weather.

  I trudge through the rain for hours, and what feels like forever later, I find a building that looks like a hotel. I walk closer to the sign that sits out front, and it reads Serene Heritage Hotel & Spa. Taking a look around before stepping towards the front door, I spot a homeless man sitting at a bus stop just further down the road, but everywhere is otherwise vacant.

  Just as I go to step inside the building, I remember that I have no money to pay for a room to stay in. Shit. I can't very well keep wandering the streets in this downpour. I'm already trembling with a chill that’s seeping into my bones, burrowing deep until my teeth begin to clatter together.

  Taking a deep breath with the realisation that I'm going to have to use my abilities some more just to have a warm place to stay for the night, I check how much energy I have left. I have enough to go incorporeal long enough to snag a room without anyone catching me.

  Deciding it's my best option, I focus on turning incorporeal. I feel my body turn colder, and the see through smoke tickles my hands and face. My vision goes completely white before my sight comes back to me. Everything around me becomes less vibrant, as though the hue of colours have been dimmed until they barely hold any colour at all. I push more energy out and look down to my hand to watch it fade until my body disappears completely. I move further into the building, noting the fancy chandeliers and polished floors. The walls are painted magnolia with dark wood accents all over, and the floor has some sort of cream and dark brown marble effect to it. This place is entirely too fancy, but I'm not complaining so long as it gives me a roof over my head for a few hours.