Hidden Worlds

by Kristie Cook

  “Some scary people are there, but most seem like they’ve had a tough go of things,” I told him. “If anything, it made me appreciate you even more.”

  “Remember your worst when I wake you up tomorrow morning.”

  “Not sure my appreciation will go that far.”

  “But I can’t afford to lose another hand in the morning trying to get you up early.”

  “You know, Mark, a bus goes out there, which I could take instead. I might lose the cool factor of my daddy driving me, but I’m willing to sacrifice.”

  “No. You can’t take the bus. We wouldn’t want to lose your cool factor,” he said. “I don’t ask anything from you, like trying to get an education, or good grades, or even having some fun. All I ask from you is to be cool for my sake.”

  “I think you’ve taken all of the cool. None left for me.” I shrugged dramatically. No matter my mood, Mark could always make me feel so much lighter and happier, letting my day become a humorous memory and not an irritation.

  “Won’t riding the bus take almost an hour more than if I drove you?” Mark asked. “I don’t like the idea of you coming home in the dark.”

  “Mark, it’s staying lighter later every day. I’ll be fine.”

  “I’ll think about it.”

  “You know I’m eighteen, I can legally …” I trailed off as I caught the warning in Mark’s expression. “Shutting up now.”

  “Good choice.”

  ELEVEN

  Wanting to hear every detail of my first day at Silverwood, Ryan and Kennedy planned to meet me later in the evening at one of our favorite hangouts. It was a hipster-type cafÉ, which played cool music, and local art covered the walls. Unfortunately, as of late, it seemed to be popular with the high school “in-crowd” as well. I assumed they went there to laugh at the funky outfits, the darkly twisted artwork, and the indie music.

  When I arrived, I saw Kallie and her minions sitting at the front table by the window. I sighed deeply and kept my head up as I walked past her. There was no doubt she spotted me when I heard her say something, and the entire table turned to look and laugh.

  Kennedy and Ryan sat at our usual table in the back. “Hey, guys.” I pulled out a chair and plopped down.

  Kennedy wordlessly pushed my already ordered vanilla latte to me.

  “Thank you.”

  Kennedy had this knack for knowing exactly what you were feeling and what you needed. It was kind of strange how in-tune she was with everything around her. She was the one who had approached me on my first day of school five years earlier. I remember watching this tiny, fragile-looking girl, who was all of ninety pounds, with long, silky, brown hair and brown eyes framed by glasses come up to me at the lunch table. While the other kids seemed to stay away from me, she wordlessly took a seat next to me at lunch, acting like sitting next to me was something we did every day. Immediately, I felt comfortable around her, somehow sensing she, too, was different like me. Ryan had followed suit, and every day for a week they sat next to me without pressuring me to talk or join with them. Eventually, I let my walls down. We had been inseparable ever since.

  “Sorry about the bitch infiltration.” Ryan nodded towards the front window. “They came in after we did.”

  “Not your fault.” I shrugged.

  I started to tell them about my first day at Silverwood, when a shadow moved over the table.

  “Oh, look who it is,” Kallie mocked. “The wicked witch and her flying monkeys. How is the school for the mentally disturbed?”

  “Better than the wicked bitch academy I recently left.”

  “Why can’t you simply melt away with water?”

  “And why can’t you click your heels together and go back to Kansas?” Ryan shot at her.

  She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward. “Is all this ‘Dorothy talk’ making you hot and bothered, Ryan? I’ll bet you have a pair of ruby slippers you wear to dance around the house with Toto here.” Kallie nodded towards Kennedy.

  Like at the dance, I could handle her going after me, but my friends were off limits. My anger sprouted to elevated levels. My jaw set into a stony expression. Something came over me, and I felt a dark ferocity consuming my insides. I needed to get out of here.

  I stood, knocking over my chair. “I would back off now.”

  Ryan reached for my hand. “Em, don’t let her get to you. She’s not worth it.”

  “Shut up, purple Teletubby,” Kallie sneered at Ryan.

  ***

  The lights in cafe flickered and buzzed over my head. A calm power oozed inside me. The lighting whined in protest as energy flooded through the wiring. A spark shot from one of the lights, breaking the dam holding them back. Tiny balls of fire rained down on the customers below.

  Another burst of sparks exploded from the hanging lights. People screamed and scrambled to hide under the tables. I continued to stand there, a force building in me. I felt a connection to the bursts of energy. It wasn’t electricity I felt in my veins but sparks of fire. Flames seared through my veins like it did in the wiring. One by one the lights blew, plunging the cafÉ into darkness.

  “She’s the one who’s doing this,” Kallie’s shrill voice shot through the room, breaking the shocked silence. “It’s her! She’s a freak!”

  It was dark with all the lights out, but I could sense dozens of eyes watching me, scared and suspicious. I did the only thing I could think of—I ran. It may not have been the wisest thing to do, but logic left me, and I reacted purely on instinct.

  Within a few minutes, I was on the road in Mark’s truck, stewing in my shocked, scared, and angry thoughts. Kallie was right. I was doing it—first at the dance and now at the cafÉ. There was no denying it; I was a freak.

  It seemed I could cause things to explode when I got upset. Such a thing wasn’t normal or even possible, was it? So—what did that make me? Was I some hybrid X-man, or was it simpler? Something was wrong with me. You’d hear about these people who could make things happen, and later you found out they had a tumor pressing on their brain. Whatever it was, I had the power to blow things up. I bit back the tears, alternating between mumbling to myself and screaming profanity as I drove along the highway.

  I turned down the dark, winding, country road leading me home. My phone buzzed relentlessly with calls from Ryan and Kennedy. I needed to come up with some explanation before I called them back—if there was one. In my state, I found it hard to concentrate on the curvy route. Rounding the corner right before my turnoff, the headlights reflected off something in front of me. I squinted as a flash of light assaulted my eyes.

  A polished Harley pulled onto the road, the metal of the bike reflecting my headlights. Something gripped my nerves as I recognized both the person and the black bike. His was followed by six more pristine Harleys of various models. The rumble of the engines hummed in my chest as the riders revved them to gain speed. I knew it was the same group who had circled Mark and me a few nights earlier. My heart pounded faster at the thought of Eli being only yards away. They quickly picked up speed, leaving my truck in the dust.

  My road came and went, but I continued after the bikes. The impulse to follow Eli was too strong to deny. Why was he near my house? Was it a coincidence? Did he live out here, or was he watching me? There was no way he knew I was behind them and seeing where they went might give me a clue about who Eli was. I had to find out what was going on. I hit the gas, not wanting to lose them. The truck swerved and weaved through the twisty roads. I had barely got their taillights in sight, when red and blue lights flickered in my rearview mirror.

  “Dammit!” I hit the steering wheel, pulling to the side of the road. I watched through my side mirror as a cop got out of the car and strode toward me. I recognized the officer instantly. “Oh, you’ve GOT to be kidding me!” I exclaimed, leaning my head back on my headrest, before taking it forward and banging it on the steering wheel. I swore that man was hiding in the bushes, waiting for me to cross his path. Reluctan
tly, I rolled down the window.

  “License and reg …” Sheriff Weiss trailed off as he looked inside the window.

  I would have found Sheriff Weiss’ expression humorous if it weren’t for the fact his shock turned into complete and utter joy.

  “Well, well, if it isn’t Ms. Brycin.” His eyes danced. “We keep running into each other, don’t we? You must really enjoy making my day.”

  “I really do,” I retorted as sarcasm came flooding out.

  “Do you know how fast you were going, Ms. Brycin?”

  Keeping my head facing forward, I had a “let’s get this over with” expression on my face. I didn’t trust myself not to say something snarky, but he remained silent, waiting for my answer. Finally, I sighed. “I’m sure you are about to tell me.”

  “Sixty-five in a fifty mile-per-hour zone,” he stated.

  “See, you didn’t need to ask me after all.”

  His lips pinched together in a thin, white line as he stared at me. “Have you been drinking, Ms. Brycin?”

  “Does a bottle of tequila laced with heroin count? I also had some battery fluid … was that not a good thing?”

  “Get out of the car.”

  I really needed to learn to keep my mouth shut. I sighed heavily, unsnapping my seatbelt. I opened the door and slid off the driver’s seat to the ground. My eyes widened as he unhooked the handcuffs from his belt.

  “Aren’t you going to give me a breathalyzer test or something first?” I demanded. Even if I had been drinking, I knew I would have passed it. For some reason alcohol didn’t affect me the same way it affected others. My tolerance had always been extremely high, especially compared to others my age.

  “You see, I only need to suspect you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol to take you in.” His smug expression was begging to be slapped off his face.

  “So you’re taking me in for having a caffeine-high?” I asked. “I confess … I’m a junkie. Lock me up.”

  “I plan to.”

  Something in his determined expression made my shoulders sag. I was tired of this man. He was making my life miserable, adding to the tremendous stress and exhaustion I felt already.

  Abruptly, a motorcycle raced around the corner, heading straight for us. Like a deer caught in the headlights, I stood motionless and wide-eyed as the biker got within several yards of us before skidding to a stop. He flipped off the sheriff, then tore back in the direction from where he had come. Sheriff Weiss didn’t think twice: he raced back to the cop car, turned on the siren and lights, and sped after the biker.

  I stood in shock before a sly smile came over my face. In the darkness, I couldn’t make out who was on the bike, but I had no doubt it was Eli or someone in his group who came back to distract Weiss’ attention. Hurriedly, I climbed into the truck and drove away before Weiss lost them and decided to return for me.

  Sighing with relief and happiness, I pulled into my driveway, jumped out of, and ran to the door. I slammed it behind me, feeling I was safely away from the fiasco that might have been tonight’s ending. The one thing I kept thinking about was how Eli knew I needed help. When Sheriff Weiss pulled me over, I was behind the motorcycles and in Mark’s truck. I didn’t even have a car, so how would he have known it was me? It didn’t make sense, although I knew in my gut it had been Eli who saved my butt.

  TWELVE

  Eventually I called Ryan and Kennedy back and mumbled some excuse about being freaked out that the cops would show up, and I desperately needed to get away. They accepted my pathetic excuse, but I knew they didn’t believe it. They weren’t stupid or blind. They could see something was off, and it left me feeling even crazier and more alone.

  I spent most of the night squinting at lamps, willing them to explode. When I wasn’t trying to blow up lights, I was doing Internet research about how someone could cause electrical equipment to blow up. I did find lots of crazy-sounding people claiming they could control stoplights and turn on various appliances without touching them. They called it technopathy, the ability to control and manipulate electronics with the mind. Unfortunately there were no scientific facts included, merely a lot of people declaring they could affect electronics. The result: an incredibly horrendous headache. It was past three in the morning before I crawled into bed to catch a measly few hours of sleep.

  I could barely keep my eyes open during school the next morning. At least I had Josh. At lunch, we sat together again. We seemed to find easy companionship with each other. In group therapy that day, it was his turn to share. I learned about his home life, and it made me feel sick inside. Being constantly beaten up and told you were nothing by people who were supposed to protect and love you was not an easy thing to get over. Most didn’t. I hoped he’d be different. I already was protective of him, and, ironically, I felt like beating up anyone who would hurt him in any way. Josh made me happier when he was around; he was like my Ryan here at Silverwood, although a younger, taller, gawkier model.

  When two o’clock came around, I wasn’t sure if I was dreading or looking forward to O.A.R.

  “Em, wait up,” Josh called after me, his gangly body catching up. He was growing too fast for his motor skills to keep pace, leaving him awkward, clumsy, and self-conscious of his body. I smiled warmly at his approach. He was kind of a “dufus” but such a friendly, good-hearted guy.

  “So do you think Mr. Attitude is going to give you anymore crap today?” he asked.

  “I hope not. The last thing I need is another asshole on my back.”

  We arrived at the O.A.R. meeting point, and I felt a strange tingling sensation on my skin. Eli came from behind and brushed his arm against my shoulder; it was only a graze, but it sent a hot shockwave down my arm. I winced.

  “You okay?” Josh asked.

  I rubbed my shoulder. “Yeah, a spasm or something. This old lady’s body is already creaking and complaining.”

  “Oh, come on, you’re only, like, two and a half years older than me.”

  “Then you have two and a half years before you’re creaking and moaning like this old, brittle biddy.”

  “Whatever you say, Miss Daisy,” he said. He chuckled, causing me to giggle along with him.

  Eli shot a cool gaze at us, his icy voice cutting through our laughter. “If you two are done, maybe we can get some work done today.”

  Samantha walked close to us, seeming to catch the tension in Eli’s body. She followed his gaze to me. Something flashed in her eyes too quickly for me to really grasp before she pivoted and briskly departed for the garden.

  ***

  Four o’clock came too soon again. Josh and I had laughed as we raced to see who could fill a wheelbarrow with soil and dump it the fastest. Once, we crashed into each other and ended in a heap covered in dirt. We giggled until our stomachs hurt. Eli didn’t say anything, but he watched us with a permanent frown on his face, which only made us chuckle more. I would never want to admit it, but I was having fun and wished O.A.R. lasted longer.

  I stood and brushed off my jeans. Everyone was putting away supplies and getting stuff together. Eli leaned against the garden shed, pulling his sweatshirt back on. He hitched up his t-shirt, exposing some of his toned, well-built torso. He had a man’s body; nothing about him was undefined or still growing. A warm buzz danced through my own as I watched his muscles ripple and move under his skin. His entire left side was covered with a giant, looping Celtic tattoo. My eyes followed the thick, curving line all the way down to where it was cut off by his jeans. I longed to see more, to see how far down it went.

  As if my wish had been granted, he stretched again, making the top of his jeans dip lower. My gaze greedily slid lower, following the muscular indention of his V-line. I gasped as a hint of hair captured my attention even more, locking my gaze on his raw, powerful body.

  Eli’s voice sliced through my reverie like a hot poker. “See something you like?”

  I jerked my head up, briefly meeting his eyes and confirming, yes, he did i
n fact catch me checking him out.

  I flushed so hot I could already feel the sweat coating my skin underneath my clothes. I glanced around to see if anyone else, especially Sam, was a witness to this. Thankfully, everyone seemed to be doing his or her own thing. I looked back at Eli. A smirk played on his lips as his electric green eyes moved over me, making me blush more.

  “No,” I declared. “I was looking at your tattoo.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Whatever … think what you want.” My embarrassment turned to anger quickly. “Seems your ego needs no help in believing what it wants.”

  He shoved off the wall. “And I thought you had a sense of humor.”

  In a blink, he moved so close to me I could feel his warm breath on my face. I froze. He looked back and forth to each of my eyes, his brows furrowing, as if he were trying to understand something. The glint in his stare turned my body to liquid. I was afraid if I moved, my bones would turn to mush, and I would be left in a puddle at his feet. We stayed like this for a few seconds as I tried desperately to gather my willpower. His eyes moved down my body, blanketing me in a wave of heat and desire.

  Fear finally made words crawl from my throat. “See something you like?”

  A small grin pulled at the side of his face as he stepped back. TouchÉ, his eyes said.

  I halted, realizing something amazing and unsettling had happened between us.

  “Hey, Em, you ready?” Josh yelled from where our bags were.

  “Yeah,” I replied, my gaze never leaving Eli’s. I felt something change as we stared at each other. It was as if I now understood the language his eyes spoke.

  You want to challenge me? Eli’s lips curled into a half smile.

  My heart picked up speed, but I tried to keep the cool, nonchalant appearance on my face. Bring it on.

  I had no doubt he understood because an eyebrow cocked in surprise. I could have sworn, for a brief second, shock and alarm flew over his face.

  This wasn’t the same as what I experienced with Torin. Torin could communicate without looking at me. I couldn’t hear Eli’s voice speak directly into my head like I had with Torin. This was more as if Eli’s eyes were conveying to me what he was thinking. I couldn’t really explain it. It wasn’t even humanly possible. But it was only the logical part of my brain freaking out; otherwise, I found it strangely normal and natural.