by Kristie Cook
“Don’t do anything foolish,” Mason said to the strangers. “She has special bullets.”
“Do you even know each other?” Alena continued. “Let me speed up the introductions. The blond one is Noah, and the one with the short hair is Tim. Aren’t they the cutest?”
“Just shut up and let my family go,” Mason demanded. With a look of fury, he tightened his fist into a ball. Dim light glowed, seeping out between his knuckles. “I’m giving you one last warning. I’ve told you we just want to live in peace, to be left alone. Let them go, and you can walk out of here.”
“You want me gone, then Skylar comes with me.” Without waiting for a response from Mason, Alena gestured her head. Understanding her nod, the guy standing to her left placed his hand on Everett’s head. Light flicked from his fingertips, sending electricity through Everett’s body. Everett cried out, a loud painful sound, and shuddered as if he was having a seizure.
“Stop it!” Amanda yelled.
Alena raised her hand and the guy pulled away.
Everett slumped over, apparently unconscious.
“Poor big guy.” Alena bent low to see his flaccid face. “It was just a little shock. Oh, by the way, these are my new friends. They have special abilities like you. Now we can play fair.”
“Lure them out,” Noah whispered to Skylar, standing behind her.
“No whispering sweet nothings in her ear, Noah. Don’t make me jealous now. Maybe we can kiss and make up,” Alena remarked with a sinister laugh.
Noah rolled his eyes.
“Don’t tell me you dated her,” Skylar grimaced.
“It was like, a year ago, and I didn’t know who or what she was. Never mind. Skylar, do it.”
Skylar understood. They could only manipulate water, and there was no water inside. She didn’t know where this courage came from, but she knew she had to do something. Guessing that Mason, Noah, and Tim would protect her, she knew she had a shot at her plan.
“Alena, I’m the one you want. Let them go. I’m coming to you right now.”
“Sky.” Mason pulled her back. “What are you doing?”
She turned to him and winked, hoping he would get the message. “I have a plan,” she mouthed.
“No.” He pulled her back again, but as she pulled against him, he finally seemed to realize he had no choice. Mason let go, and growled when Noah placed his hand on his shoulder.
Lifting her hands in surrender, Skylar carefully paced to Alena. Triumphantly, Alena grabbed Skylar by her arm. Inching backward, Alena pointed the revolver to Skylar’s back. “Don’t even think about following,” she sneered, as her men stood protectively by her side. They stepped outside and the door closed behind them.
Outside, the rain started to pick up again. Without another option, Skylar ran with Alena about half way to the gate, and abruptly halted when Alena turned to face the front of the house. “Stop! Don’t move. I told you not to follow.”
With a swift motion, Noah guided the rain droplets. They swirled in an endless circular cycle, forming into one enormous sphere of water. Alena pulled the trigger. The bullet went right through and headed for Noah. He lost control of the water ball when he ducked for cover. Just before the impact, Tim twirled his hand and created a water wall. The bullet bounced and landed on the ground.
Alena’s men protectively stood in front of her, but not for long, more vultures appeared at the gate. Now, clearly, Skylar and the others were outnumbered, and terror emanated from her core.
With a mischievous grin, still holding onto Skylar, Alena stepped from behind her protection. “Go get them, boys,” she gestured with a swing of her arm. Growling, the vultures charged in full force with deadly looks on their faces.
Extending his arm to the sky, flashes of lightning not only shot outward from the tips of Mason’s fingers, they bolted from the sky as well, as if he had called on them. Simultaneously, the wind howled fiercely, as the rain cascaded in the direction of the wind, making it difficult to stand.
The clouds rolled in with incredible speed. Thunder echoed repeatedly, seeming to mimic Mason’s anger as more lightning burst out of the clouds. He carried that energy and directed it toward the vultures. Once hit, some of the vultures blistered in flames, convulsed, and sizzled to their deaths from the single blow.
Still captive by Alena and drenched from the rain, Skylar witnessed all of this with her mouth open. She already knew what he was capable of, but never would she have imagined this. He was not the showoff type to begin with, but being able to call upon the lightning from above as if he was a God himself, she was in awe.
Noah and Tim continuously shot icicle-like spears, but Alena’s men used their power and broke them into pieces before they could do any damage. It was hot against cold, as they zapped each other with their special abilities. Continuing to fight the vultures, Mason ducked a blow from one and leapt over its head, then obliterated it from behind. Quickly he turned and dodged a swing, then ducked to avoid another.
One of Alena’s men broke away and shot out silvery light at Mason. It nicked him across his shoulder, cutting through. Crimson liquid stained his sweater and marked the ground where he stood. When another volt came at him, he sidestepped and twisted his hips to avoid it. While flashing his power at the vulture on his left, Mason fired back with his right. The brilliant lights from each of them met half way, crackling and fizzling. The energy and light was building, intensifying, radiating like great fireworks, and blinding everyone around. It was beautiful and deadly at the same time.
Mason looked up and called on the lightning from above again. Suddenly, the shimmering flash shot through him, causing his body to illuminate just as bright as the lightning, blinding everyone around him once more. He projected that energy out from his hand, and the immense power traveled through his light to the opponent’s light, blasting him as if a cannon shot him. Then Mason slumped over, as if the power had drained out of him.
As more vultures continued toward them, Noah extended his arms and swung them around, over his head, calling upon the powers of water. The water from the fountain ascended skyward, creating a continuous waterfall behind him. It cascaded to the ground, flowing like a stream, before turning into a vast sea of ice. Unable to run on ice, the vultures slipped and landed flat on their backs.
Tim extended both of his arms into the air, causing the ice to liquefy. The body of water rose and covered the vultures like a blanket, trapping them inside with nowhere to run. Mason then shot his electricity through the water. The remaining vultures and Alena’s men were promptly electrocuted.
“Let her go, Alena,” Mason bellowed. “You can’t win. This is your final warning.”
Mason, Noah, and Tim slowly trudged forward to close the space between them. Sliding her feet on the wet ground, Alena tugged Skylar toward the open gate while keeping one eye on the boys.
“Stop. I have one bullet left, and I’m not afraid to pull the trigger on your precious Skylar.”
Mason stopped, gestured Noah and Tim to do the same, and raised his hands to surrender. “Okay.”
Pointing the revolver to Skylar’s head, Alena spoke. “Sorry guys, I’m tired of playing around. Say goodbye to your girlfriend.” Alena pulled the trigger.
“Noooo!” Mason ran as fast as he could, but even with his incredible speed, he wasn’t fast enough. The bullet shot out, but just before it did, Skylar jabbed her elbow into Alena’s chest and fell to the ground, trying to dodge the bullet. Mason’s body continued to soar, carrying Alena with him. Slamming her body against the gate, Mason sent electricity through her. The “Danger! High Voltage” sign was an understatement. Like rockets, silver lights exploded. Convulsing, her body seared, turning the color of onyx, and she went limp. When Mason finally released his hold, Alena’s scorched remains dropped to the wet, muddy ground.
THIRTY-FOUR
Though Noah had already helped Skylar up, Mason wearily stumbled to her, looking worn out and soaked from the downpour. The rain f
inally stopped and the sun peeked through the puffy clouds, creating a rainbow. It was a beautiful sight in contrast to what they had just been through.
“Are you hurt?” Mason asked, still out of breath, pulling Skylar into his embrace. As he always seemed to do once she was safe from having her life threatened, he pulled her back, cupped her face, and looked at her with a sigh of relief. Then he ran his hands through her hair and down her arms, looking for wounds.
Speechless, Skylar nodded her head. Having witnessed this surreal, magical moment, she was simply stunned. Now that it was over, she wanted to cry with relief. It took every ounce of effort to hold back the tears at bay. Seeing something red, she rooted her eyes to Mason’s wound. “You’re hurt.”
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me. I’m going to go back in to check on Amanda and Everett,” he replied tersely. Then he turned to Noah and Tim. “If you have time, I have a few questions.”
Inside, Amanda and Everett were still tied up. Softly moaning, Everett shook his head, trying to get himself together. The color came back to his face and the movement from his body showed he would be fine; however, Amanda looked like she was pissed as hell.
“Did you forget about us?” Amanda huffed, narrowing her angry eyes at Mason. “You could’ve untied me first. It only takes one second to zap your rays at the damn rope. You had all the fun and left me out. Everett was knocked out, not me. Just because I’m a girl and just because I don’t have powers like you doesn’t mean I can’t kick ass.”
Rolling his eyes without a word, Mason jetted light out of his fingertips, cutting through the thick ropes that were tightly binding Amanda’s and Everett’s wrists. Strangely, even with god-like strength, neither Amanda nor Everett had been able to free themselves, which led Skylar to wonder whether the rope Alena used had been “special.”
Amanda stood up briskly, setting her eyes on the bloodstain on Mason’s sweater. “What happened to you? Never mind. Since you’ll live, you deserved it for deserting me.” Then she turned on her heel.
Everyone else followed Mason to the family room. The room had leather sofas, an oak coffee table, and a huge plasma television. With a high ceiling and a few oil paintings hung on the walls, it looked elegant, like the rest of the house. Mason walked out and returned with towels in his hands.
“Thanks,” Noah and Tim said in accord, draping them around their shoulders and finding their spots on the sofa.
Instead of tossing one to Skylar, Mason wrapped it around her, never taking his eyes off her. His face held no expression, but there was profound meaning behind those striking eyes. So much emotions were bottled deep within—pain, relief, and even happiness. Skylar tried to identify what he was thinking, but he let go all too soon.
Everett plunked himself on the other sofa, looking dismayed, rubbing his temples as if he had a headache, and Mason found a spot next to him.
“That hurt like hell. I don’t wish that kind of pain even on my worst enemies. Looks like you’ve made some friends,” Everett groaned.
“This is Noah and Tim,” Mason introduced. “They are Poseidon’s descendants.”
“We knew your kind existed, but we’ve never took the time to look for other half-bloods,” Everett explained. “Are there more of you?”
“Yes. There is a group of us,” Noah answered.
Skylar noted how Amanda was admiring Noah and Tim.
“Do you live around here?” Amanda asked. Suddenly her demeanor and tone became more ladylike.
“No, but if you don’t mind, we like to keep our whereabouts to ourselves. Just in case,” Tim winked at Amanda. Amanda lit a flirtatious smile.
“Well, I can certainly understand,” Everett supported. “We were trying to keep to ourselves, too, but Alena found us. Do you know anything about her?”
“About a year ago, Alena took an interest in Noah during our senior year in high school. She was new to our school,” Tim explained. “They dated until we found out who she really was; meaning, she tried to kill us. She escaped and we lost track of her. I guess she went into hiding. Then suddenly she appeared again.”
“Apparently, she was after my body, too,” Noah joked, twitching his brows.
“I can see why,” Amanda murmured.
Skylar let out a small giggle, her mood lightened by his humor, and especially seeing Amanda act so flirtatiously, which she’d never seen her do before. “Both of you were at the mall,” Skylar said to Noah and Tim.
Noah ran his hair back with his fingers while letting out a nervous laugh. “Yeah, about that. I was told to keep an eye on you … sort of.” Noah looked uneasy.
“Keep an eye on me?” Skylar questioned with a sharp tone. Her pitch elevated. “And was that you spying on me through my bedroom window from next door?”
Mason glared at Noah. If looks could kill, Noah would have been a dead man. “You watched her?”
“Look, I’m not authorized to say much, but it isn’t what you think,” Noah continued. “I saw her naked, but that’s all.”
“What?” Mason stood up, looking like he was ready to give it to him with his fist.
Noah raised both of his hands. “Relax, dude. I was just kidding, okay?”
After Mason sat back down, Noah continued. “I was instructed to keep an eye on Skylar, making sure she was safe. We know what type of blood runs through her veins. Unlike Alena, her blood is poison, but at the same time, we know she’s not evil. We were told not to harm her. We were also instructed to find information about your family. Obviously, we knew where you lived. Our boss doesn’t want us saying much. We wanted to make sure you were on the right team.”
“You have a leader? Who is he or she?” Skylar asked.
“Sorry. I can’t disclose that information.”
Skylar released a heavy irritated sigh. She had hoped for an answer
“Does your leader want anything from us?” Everett asked.
“No. Our mission was to keep Skylar safe from Alena, and only interfere if it was absolutely necessary.”
“Why does your leader care if Skylar lives or dies?” Mason jumped in with his question.
“Like I said before, I’m not at liberty to say much.”
Mason stood up again, his fingers sparking with anger. “What are you at liberty to say?”
Tim stood up, ostensibly to protect Noah. Seeing Tim get up, Everett stood up too.
“Whoa....” Noah raised his hands again. “Everyone, just calm down. We’re not the enemy, we had the same goal. We were trying to keep Skylar safe from Alena.”
Amanda jolted up, looking like she’d had enough. “Boys, sit.”
Taken in by Amanda’s words, there was an awkward stretch of silence. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they all sat back down, albeit guardedly.
“Speaking of Alena, where is she?” Amanda asked, breaking the silence.
Surprisingly, no one said a word. The room was quiet for a long few seconds until Tim spoke. “Mason zapped her. It was pretty nasty. Her hair looked like Ms. Frankenstein, and her eyes popped out and—”
“That’s enough,” Mason interrupted, standing up. “She’s dead. Death is nothing to celebrate, even if she was evil. She was someone’s daughter, someone’s friend.”
Amanda gave Mason an ‘are you kidding’ look.
“Okay, maybe she didn’t have any friends. Regardless, I took a life.” Mason’s tone was low and soft. “It’s nothing to be proud of. She was our kind. I’m almost positive she wasn’t born evil. Something must have triggered it, or someone influenced her. Maybe her dead mom, like she said. We are all born with a clean slate, and what happens afterward depends on people that surround us. I’m not sticking up for her. I just wish … I … she was at least a little human, after all. A life is a life. I … .” He turned to Noah and Tim without finishing his words. “Thank you for your assistance. If there is anything you need, we will return the favor. We can exchange our contact information just in case. If you’ll all excuse me, I nee
d to find Nick.” Mason headed out of the room.
“Our dear Nick is with Kayla,” Amanda informed. “He has no idea what’s going on. I’m sure he’ll be upset he missed our reunion.”
Mason turned to face Skylar, looking impassive. “Amanda will take you home. You have an early class in the morning. As promised, since there is no current threat to your life, you can go home now.”
“I can take her home,” Noah said. “I’m on my way out anyway.”
Mason paused. “Whatever she wants. I’ll be in my room.” With that, he sauntered toward the stairs, leaving Skylar confused.
Something in the pit of Skylar’s stomach told her Mason’s wall could not be broken. She only wanted to chisel a piece at a time, but now, it felt like the little piece she’d chipped away had sealed itself back up. She couldn’t help but feel as if Mason had just broken up with her, even though they weren’t officially going out.
Nothing was clear between them. Maybe he never cared about her the way she thought he did. Perhaps he had decided she was too dangerous for him. After all, she could kill him by accident. Feeling like there was no hope, she decided at that moment to accept the fact that Mason would never care for her in that special way.
Skylar wanted to run, fast and far away from there, but no matter how far she ran, Mason was already etched on her heart, like a tattoo that would be too painful to remove.
“Noah, would you mind taking me home?” She said it nice and loud, purposely wanting Mason to hear. She didn’t know if it was her tone or that she asked Noah instead of Amanda, but it froze Mason in his place momentarily. Then without a word, he continued into the hallway, up the stairs, and out of view.
After the exchange of phone numbers, they headed out the door. Skylar didn’t know whether to go back inside and confront Mason or let him be. Afraid of rejection, she got in the car with Noah and Tim. Just before passing the gate to exit, she turned and looked toward the upper windows.
