by T. E. Joshua
“You know we are only sixteen, right?” James mentioned.
“I’m only fifteen,” Alope clarified.
“I’m aware, Alope and Bodaway. This could be your only chance since you haven’t seen her in three days. There is only a week left. My brother won’t be pleased if you go home without her head,” Uncle Eis said.
“So we just show up and he’ll let us in?” Aaron asked his father.
“No, son,” Uncle Eis said. Then he looked up at me again and said, “Bodaway, I have arranged for you and you only to enter the place. Lead her outside, take her around the building, and then you kids can arrange a surprise attack.”
“That could work. She shouldn’t suspect a thing, especially if she trusts Tristan enough to follow him,” James said.
“It won’t be easy,” I mentioned, in hopes that they would change their minds.
“This is tonight, right?” Alope asked Liyah.
“Yes, so if we are serious about doing it tonight, we have to move quickly before the window closes,” Liyah answered.
“Do you think we can execute this time?” Aaron asked me. “If she suspects a thing, then your efforts of a false friendship will have been for nothing.”
Regardless of the situation, I continued to flicker my lighter, trying to think of a way out of it. I couldn’t kill her tonight. Even if I did lead her outside to be slaughtered by us, I wouldn’t want to do it. I might walk away and let them deal with her.
“I … I’m just not feeling it tonight, guys.”
“What do you mean? This is our chance. She trusts you, Tristan. Think about it. If we succeed then we can leave tomorrow, get your father’s blessing to leave Red Valley for a while as he promised, and live our own lives,” James pleaded, his desire to please the Covenant clouded his mind. Who could blame him? We had been killing Reborns left and right for months on end now.
“Yeah, Tristan, we all want to go home,” Liyah muttered.
I glared at all of them. They all were looking to me to make the final call. I couldn’t disappoint them, not this time. After all, this was my hunt. But killing Natalie—tonight? Suddenly, without a prior thought or a day’s notice? I wasn’t up for it. It was not that I didn’t want to finish the job; I just didn’t want to do it tonight. I needed another day or so to work my thoughts out.
I sighed, breathing slowly, and licked my lips. “I’m fine.”
Maybe this was the right decision and the right time. Relief swept through the living room. Everyone smiled. Even Aaron had a peculiar grin on his face.
Within moments, my clan left the house, all equipped with weapons. Each of us carried a tribal dragger marked with the symbol of the Covenant: a bloody red feather. James carried his dual blades, both sharpened by the bones of Reborns. Aaron had one single blade, a katana. I didn’t carry a weapon, not even my dragger. For obvious reasons, she couldn’t suspect a thing, not to mention the presence of metal detectors at the front entrance. The Manwolf girls carried no weapons; their family never believed in the Anglo weapons and relied solely upon their dark energy and dema.
The plan was simple. First, I would find Natalie and lure her outside away from the public eye, and then, as a group, we would kill her behind the building. Uncle Eis said there wouldn’t be any light in the back; the darkness would mask the attack.
Before we left, Uncle Eis whispered into my ear, “Don’t get too close.”
I now knew what he meant. Befriending a Reborn, especially someone like Natalie, was tricky. I had explored the dangers of becoming emotionally attached. I had feared this would happen; however, I was here to do a job, not make a new friend. I had t let go of whatever petty feelings I had deep down inside and do what was right in my people’s eyes.
Alope rode with me; the others rode with James. The place was built deep into the Blackfalls woods, a few miles from any sign of civilization.
“You seem different,” Alope said, playing with her hair.
“In what way am I different?”
“You don’t have the same killer instinct you had before a few days ago.”
Oh, great—she had noticed! Of course she would. Her feelings for me had never changed since childhood. If something bothered me, she knew, as did James. But he wouldn’t say anything to me unless it was a deadly situation. Alope, the girl who cared for me most, looked wonderingly at me.
“I’m fine. I just have a lot on my mind.”
“May I ask what?”
I didn’t dare tell her about the common bond, the gift of fire, from Natalie.
“I don’t want to talk about it, Alope. No offense.”
For the rest of the car ride, she remained silent. We arrived at Leroy’s Place and parked near the tree line just outside of the parking lot. The place seemed packed even though it was only an hour before midnight. James parked in front of me. They got out first.
Alope grabbed my arm and leaned into to whisper, “You’ll get her this time. I know you will.”
“Thanks, Alope. I’m a bit nervous.”
“Don’t be afraid. She’s just a girl. You can kill her easily,” she uttered while her cute nose wiggled. I grinned for a second.
“I’m not afraid. I’m worried.”
“You’re worried about what?” She leaned in closer.
Her breath was ice cold, as was her skin. Yet my body was warm, soon to be boiling with a dark rage from my dema. Alope rubbed my forearms before I stepped out. She said, “Well, you don’t have to tell me. Everything will be fine. It’s almost over, Tristan.”
As I closed my door, James handed me another dragger. “Here, take it.”
“I already have mine,” I said as I reached for his dragger, lying about the fact that I had left mine at the house.
“Just in case, keep one well hidden and the other accessible,” he said as I took the dragger from his hand. It was his personal knife.
“Hopefully I won’t get to use it. I want to make this quick.” My clan encircled me. The light faded behind us. The music from the place roared as more college students walked inside.
“Here’s the plan. I want you four to wait in the woods for twenty minutes or until I walk behind the building with Natalie, or whichever happens first. Once you see us, rush her. If she uses her Awakened powers and I’m pinned down or knocked out cold, do whatever you can to kill her. I don’t want to draw attention to us, so make it quick and get out of there. With any luck, we’ll be leaving Blackfalls tomorrow morning with her head in a brown sack.”
Everyone agreed—even Aaron, who seemed to doubt the plan. “How sure are you that you can lead her outside without sounding suspicious?” Aaron asked.
“Not entirely sure, but I believe I can do it.”
“Okay, good enough for me. Let’s get into position,” James ordered the others. Soon they all vanished.
Then he grabbed my arm as he warned, “Don’t use too much dema.”
“I won’t go past the second pillar, maybe the third if I have to.”
“Just as long as you don’t peek into the fourth pillar, it’s dangerous. Are you sure you can do this?”
I was flustered and exhausted, biting my nails in nervousness. But maybe I could execute. Could I?
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
“You’re the Promised Child of Lucian. You will be our number one someday. Think of this as a stepping-stone to your ascension.”
I nodded. He patted me on the back and left with the others.
Alope, who stood in between James and the others, ran back over and kissed me on the lips. Her taste was sweet, her lips soft and luscious. I was taken by surprise. The kiss lasted long enough to get my pulse racing.
“That’s for good luck,” she muttered. “And this one is because I like you.” The first kiss happened so quickly; the second seemed to last longer. Her lips were cold and wet
. As she released herself from me, I glared into her hazel eyes as her light brown hair dangled over her pretty face. “Don’t keep me waiting for too long.” Then she vanished into the woods.
“I’ll try not to,” I muttered as if she was still standing in front of me.
It was time.
I turned around and saw Leroy’s Place. It had one entrance with two security burly guards posted outside. I began to walk with my dagger hidden from sight. My new lighter was in my right pants pocket.
As I approached the two large men, one black and one white, they looked down upon me. Here I was, just a child in their eyes. I stood there as they sized me up.
“What do you want, kid?”
I swallowed whatever doubt ran through my mind and answered, “I’m here to see Leroy Harjo. He’s a friend.”
“Not without an ID you’re not,” the same man said very vehemently.
Then an elderly man opened the entrance door. He stepped out dressed in a polo black shirt. He was Native—medium height, grayish hair, and a gut. He took one look at me and asked, “Bodaway?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Good, your uncle told me that you were coming by. Come on inside,” he said, escorting me past the two security guards.
“You know this kid?” the man asked Leroy.
“He’s like family. Its fine,” he uttered to them as he slammed the front door shut. He walked me past a lady who appeared to be the person taking the money from the customers. He motioned to her with a wave of his hand that it was okay for me to come in the building without identification or payment.
There we were, walking down a long hallway. The music grew louder. The sounds of hundreds of people echoed against the walls. He didn’t say much to me. He knew what my business was and didn’t want to get to involved with what we did.
“So, how’s your uncle, anyways?” he asked.
“He’s fine.”
“He told me that you kids had a job to do tonight. Unlucky for me, it involved my business.” He seemed upset with my agenda. I couldn’t blame him. Nothing good could come from me tonight.
“Look, Bodaway. I knew your father. I especially know your uncle Eis. Whatever you have to do here, I don’t want to know. I don’t care to know. All I ask is that for you to do it outside, somewhere in the woods and far from here. Understand?” Well, there went our plan for killing her behind the building. Maybe we could gut her here and lead her body away to finish the job.
“Of course,” I said respectfully. “But may I ask how you know my father?”
“I knew him when we were all teenagers, probably a little older than you. I am only doing this to help you out because I know your uncle Eis. He’s a good friend. Please don’t make a mess with a body. As far as I am concerned, you were never here, and I don’t know you once we walk into the lobby.”
“Good. I promise this won’t take long, sir.”
He nodded, walked around the corner, and disappeared. I followed and entered the lobby. There were couches and a small table that had open soda cans where a couple was sitting, talking intensely. I walked past them and into the room with the dance floor. To my right was a large room with pool tables. I could see eight, and they were all being used. To my left was a bar and sign that read Twenty-One and Up Only.
“Please,” I muttered. I detested the smell of alcohol. It disgusted me. A social problem my people currently had was getting drunk beside a dying fire after killing a Reborn; I sometimes partook in wine when a hunt was finished.
I walked into the room with the dance floor. I didn’t see her. I expected to smell her, but there was nothing. Then I walked into the room with the pool tables. I glanced around, but there was still no sign of her. I knew she was eighteen and didn’t drink, not that she could. She’s an Awakened Reborn, the strongest of their faith. I assumed she wouldn’t be caught dead with a beer in her hand.
Where was she?
After a few minutes of looking, I went to sit down—not in the small lobby near the hallway, but in the dance room, where there were small tables off to the side of the dance floor. I sat for a while; but I couldn’t tell how long. I watched as the Anglos tried to dance to the beat of the music.
Then the scent flowed into my nose. I stood and looked around in a hurry. I couldn’t see her, but I smelt her.
As the moment passed, I began to lose track of the ancient scent. I started to walk in a circle around the room. I saw Nicchole Schultz standing in a group of five people. Then I noticed another girl. She had to be Meghan Schultz, the youngest sister of the three. There were two more guys with them, but no Natalie.
Darn it. Maybe she hadn’t come tonight. Liyah told me she would be here. Perhaps the smell came from her siblings, but Nicchole wasn’t awakened. Meghan, on the other hand, I wasn’t so sure of. If she was, then we would have been ordered to behead her as well. No matter—Natalie was my only concern.
Then I realized this could be a good thing. I wasn’t entirely up for killing Natalie tonight. I kept thinking about the gift of fire. There was something about the gift that eased my conscience. She was a good person, perhaps a friend worth having if I wasn’t a killer of her religion. Yet, I knew she didn’t deserve to die. None of the Reborns deserved to die. But I obeyed my father and the Covenant. In this moment, I could care less. I just wanted it over.
I scratched my nose and took two steps back, trying to thinking of an excuse to leave the scene before Natalie showed up—if she ever did. I decided to bolt to the exit. I walked out of the dance room, passed the lobby area, and turned the corner.
“Tristan!” a girl exclaimed as I bumped into her.
It was Natalie. No! No! Why did she have to be here?
“Natalie, hey,” I said nervously.
“Tristan, I wasn’t expecting to run into you. I didn’t think of you as someone who liked to dance or go out to social gatherings,” she said, referring to my awkward external appearance. I didn’t look like the normal young adult with my suspicious demeanor.
Then the scent became intoxicating. My skin boiled and my veins popped out. My eyes shifted color, and my dark energy rose more with each passing second. My dema powers erupted as I entered the first pillar. I covered my nose. I could feel the demon within me. He said, “It’s time, Bodaway. Take her outside.”
So I did what I did best. I ran. I dashed to the bathroom, my hand covering my nose. I smashed open one of the stalls and vomited into the dirty toilet. The sickness in me came out like a spray of water.
There I rested for a moment, pondering about my next move. If I killed her tonight, then we could all go home and move on with our lives. If I didn’t and decided to let her walk, then I could be potentially taking a huge risk in our safety. I would be disgracing my clan’s honor and the Covenant.
“I—I can do this. Be strong, Bodaway. You’re better than this. You’re a Naiche. You’re a killer and you won’t change.”
After I finished vomiting, I flushed the toilet and watched the puke dive downward into the black hole. I stood and wiped my mouth. I went to wash my hands; I had some puke dripping of my right forearm.
As I cleaned my hands, I caught a glimpse of myself. There I was, dirty and homely-looking—nothing too bright, just another assassin following the orders of my masters. My skin had cooled off. My eyes had shifted back to normal. My dema had lowered. I bet the others felt the rise of my power and prepared to attack in case they saw me walking outside with Natalie.
“Who am I?” I asked the boy in the mirror—he was me, a sixteen-year-old killer of the Reborn faith. “You’re supposed to be a killer, but now look at you. First the small boy in Woodland, and now the Awakened Reborn in Blackfalls … can you do this?”
“Yes, you can,” the voice of a dark spirit said. The demon’s tone was raspy.
“But I can’t. I—”
“She me
ans nothing. Our lord god commands it,” the demon hissed. I saw the entity hovering around me through the mirror. His eyes glowed like a cat’s in the night, and his face was obscured with mist.
“She hasn’t caused any harm to anybody. She’s just a normal girl.”
“The Awakened ones must be put to death. It is our creed, my child.”
“But I …” I trailed off, thinking about the next words I would tell the demon as I wiped my forehead.
“You what?” the entity asked aggressively.
“I kind of like her. She’s a good girl. I misjudged her.”
“Stop it! Don’t let your feelings control you!”
Then another man walked into the bathroom in a hurry. I hurried outside, leaving the entity alone. I stood next to the bathroom door and considered my options. There wasn’t much time. If I allowed her to live, then it would be all on me. My clan would take action against her and me for my act of betrayal to the Covenant. If I killed her tonight, then we could all go home and put this nightmare behind us as if it had never happened.
Then I saw her. She was standing within the crowd of people, pretty as ever. Her face seemed to glow. The scent was tolerable. It was now or never. I had to choose.
Seconds passed.
“I’m killing her tonight,” I muttered. My decision had been made. I needed to be concrete and firm.
I marched over to the Awakened Reborn and tugged on her pink shirt. She turned around in surprise. “There you are. I was wondering where you went. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I grumbled. “Can I talk to you in private?”
“Why in private?”
“It’s important. I need to tell you something,” I whispered into her ear. The music was too loud to talk in the dance room. I could tell her friends were whispering odd things about me; I heard my name spoken several times—especially in reference to how creepy I was acting.
“Hmmm … are you sure?” She seemed hesitant.
“Yeah, I need to talk to you outside,” I said demandingly.
“Give me a second,” she said. Good, the plan had worked. She turned to her friends and talked for a few more seconds. They didn’t seem to trust me. Of course they wouldn’t. They knew nothing about me. One of the guys asked her if he needed to go with her, but she declined. I smiled wickedly as I followed her outside. He gave me the death stare, his lips and eyebrows curled downward. They had no idea what was about to take place.
