Dawn (Hero Society Book 1)

by Jessica Florence

  “You feeling okay?” Draco was suddenly before me, wrapping his arms around me to lift me up and sit his body under mine. Instead of resisting, I just snuggled into his chest.

  “I’m okay.” I kissed his hard pecs and smushed my cheek against him like a happy cat.

  “Did you know that we hold hands when we sleep?” he asked and I looked up at him in question.

  “We do?”

  “Yes. We don’t cuddle, but we hold hands. You keep my nightmares away, and it appears you need my touch as well.” He smiled and I couldn’t help but grin right along with him. I’d never been with anyone like him, and this whole being intimate thing was new for me but he was making it a flawless venture.

  “Falling hopelessly.” I leaned my head in for a kiss, and he pressed a gentle one to my waiting lips.

  “Hopelessly fallen,” he replied against them before giving me another peck.

  A groan echoed from the other side of the room.

  “You don’t have to watch,” I told whoever groaned and kept kissing Draco.

  I heard Phillip crack up in laughter, so the groan must have been from AJ. Poor kid. I vaguely heard Phillip talking to AJ about heading up to the tech room, but when Draco’s tongue was doing delicious motions in my mouth I wasn’t sure what was happening outside of him.

  We sat in the chair and made out like teenagers until Draco declared we should slow down and let me rest. That was one thought of his I was trying to change, but he had made up his mind. He put on a movie for us and then we intertwined on the couch together. The warmth of his body around me and his evenly calm breaths lulled me to sleep shortly after the movie got started. I guess I was more exhausted than I thought. Draco pressed a kiss to my forehead and told me to dream of him. I sighed and did as he requested.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Draco

  Later that afternoon, once Rose woke up from her nap, Phillip, AJ, Rose, and I all drove out to my cabin to see if anything was salvageable.

  Pretty much everything was destroyed.

  The fire had eaten through everything so quickly by the time the fire trucks had gotten here. My animals had been picked up by my contact and after giving them a call earlier I felt like they were okay. No one was truly hurt, and I was now homeless, but in the grand scheme that was nothing. I would rebuild like I always do. Keep moving on, because there is no use getting upset about something I couldn’t change.

  Rose felt awful as she walked around and looked at everything, especially when she saw my darkroom was gone. Fire and chemicals don’t mix, there was nothing left in there but melted plastic and shriveled-up metal.

  AJ was trying to look for clues as to the bomb that was used, but he hadn’t been able to find anything near the kitchen area. Phillip was walking around, and for what he was looking for I didn’t have a clue.

  Cops came by the hospital earlier while Rose was getting an X-ray and took my statement. They wanted one from her but Phillip talked them out of it. A gas explosion was the suspected reason behind the fire. Call it a hunch but I had the feeling that was not the case. I took good care of my possessions, and that would be almost impossible.

  I joined AJ by the area that was hit first. There was nothing that screamed bomb, but it had to have been something.

  AJ and I leaned down to try and exam the area better when I caught a hint of an uncommon smell.

  “Sulfur.”

  “Sulfur?” AJ questions and I nodded. It was a very small scent hidden amongst the ashes but I knew that smell, and what it meant.

  “This was done by our bad guy and he either has a person with the power of flames, or he stole them himself.” I stood and walked toward Rose, feeling unsafe being out in the open so far away from her. Phillip sensed my urgency and called AJ over toward the car. Rose looked around like she was expecting an attack, and though one might not be coming right away the feeling that one was just around the corner was very strong.

  “What did you find?” she whispered as I placed my hand on her lower back and guided her back to the SUV.

  “We’ll talk later.” I looked around at the trees and knew we were being watched. I’d been alive long enough and those senses were waking up quickly.

  Once we gained distance from my property, I felt my breath release. Something was very wrong.

  “Okay, care to enlighten the rest of us on what is going on?” Phillip opened up but before he answered, he looked ahead of the empty road and slammed on the breaks. My hand reached out to protect Rose, while I kept my vision dead ahead.

  “Draco, this is your area of expertise,” Phillip said cautiously. I didn’t know what he was talking about but then I saw a figure in the distance walking toward us on the road. A fight.

  Out of everyone in the car, this would be my thing. I leaned over to Rose and gave her a kiss. She didn’t need to worry about me, especially when she and the rest of the crew were what I was protecting. Nothing would stop me.

  I thought I would feel nervousness from her but instead she was trying to push calm energy into me. Focused energy. In that moment, if I could fall in love with her all over again, I would have. She knew me and didn’t try to cage the man inside. Instead she pushed me in the direction of danger and metaphorically slapped my ass.

  By the time I got out of the SUV the figure was only twenty yards in front of us.

  It was male, and he looked like a shithead. Black skinny jeans, black shirt with a skull, and a studded belt gleaming in the sunlight. His black hair peeked out from a beanie on his head, and his dark eyes were narrowed at me.

  Someone has anger issues.

  “Let me guess, you’re the guy who burned down my cabin.” He stopped about ten yards away and stared at me while I asked, connecting the dots. I could see his twitchy hand, and knew the tick. It belonged to fire starters. Hephaestus’s gene. I’d met a woman back in the seventeen thirties with the power. She was afraid to use it, and eventually it burned her from the inside out. These gifts cannot be contained, if they choose their host, then they need to be set free every once in a while. It’s their destiny. Denying them can mean lots of issues.

  “Yeah, I did.” His wrists twisted and fire grew in his palm. He smiled at me like he knew he had me. Fire was a very powerful weapon, but I would not be the one going down today.

  “You didn’t do a good job. I’m pretty sure my teddy bears are alive and well. Along with your main marks.” He didn’t like me mocking him. His temper showed as his hands lifted and threw a fire ball in my direction. This guy was untrained to say the least. I dodged his attack easily. Then took off for him, bringing the battle to his space. He smiled, like I was the dumb ass.

  His whole body became engulfed in flames as I neared. Meh, little burns didn’t bother me. I punched him right in his face and he looked shocked that I attacked fire. My hand was toasty, but right before his eyes it started to heal. Adrenaline in my system helped me heal faster, which was perfect for battle.

  He tried to use his gift to overpower me but I’ve had to put down two of his kind in my lifetime, and I was no novice.

  I healed, then fought him again, then healed, then fought. The process was wearing him down, and I knew he wouldn’t be able to hold onto his fiery form for much longer.

  Then his flames were completely doused and he looked up at me and the person behind me with wide eyes.

  “I thought this would be easier.” Phillip held a now emptied fire extinguisher in his hand. I looked at him with a what the hell look on my face. If he’d known that this guy would be attacking and was a fire starter we could have used that from the beginning.

  Phillip just shrugged.

  “I didn’t know if this one was going to happen, and considering their new pattern of creating the smallest one at the last minute I thought I’d be prepared.”

  I turned to our guest and grabbed the veins in his neck, cutting off blood circulation, knocking him out for the moment. We now had use for that special room at HQ. Even though
I was not going to be happy going back in there.

  “Nicely done,” Phillip commented and together we carried him back to the SUV.

  The ride back reeked of sulfur and I hated that smell. Rose looked slightly pale having the same man in the car that tried to kill us this morning, so I wrapped my hand around hers in comfort. She was safe.

  He was still out when we got him down and locked in the chair. Phillip would talk to him, and if he didn’t give up any info then I would go in.

  I was the only one in this group that could do bad without it eating my soul. I would get him to talk.

  Turns out all he had to do was see my face and he sang all he knew, which wasn’t very much at all. He was recently recruited under the Raven and this was his second mission. The first was finding a person with gifts in the apartments that just recently caught aflame. He was responsible for a lot of deaths.

  He didn’t know much about the Raven except that he was a bad dude, but he promised to be part of something bigger than anything they’ve ever seen. Much like our Hero Society, there was another society in the future as well. One he would literally kill for. A society of power. The powerful ruled over those who deserved to be slaves. Meaning normal humans. I’d heard this idea many times, many tried but they always failed. Until I stopped fighting them that is. Maybe my time of giving up to just exist in the world created the space for someone to rise without rebellion.

  The thought tasted sour in my mouth as I left the room and told Phillip what he’d said.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Draco

  That night, Rose invited me to stay in her apartment and I accepted. Wanting to be close to her, but that night I did not sleep peacefully. My mind kept wondering over and over what those with powers had been going through while I took my long break from my gifted purpose. Obviously, brewing over the wrong things. I knew I shouldn’t let it eat me up, but it was a nagging feeling I couldn’t escape. Could I have stopped this from happening if I had continued to search for them, educate them, protect them, or in some cases exterminate the evil doers?

  People like Rose could have continued on, never knowing their purpose and feeling fear and anger with the cards they were unwillingly dealt. Resentment was more powerful than anger. Anger would eventually die, but resentment would consume your soul until it was all you had left. I was thankful for Phillip and Rose dragging me out of my sad existence. All I wanted was to right my wrong, and stop those who were too far gone to be saved.

  The fire starter, whose name was Jason, was turned over to authorities and placed in a special jail cell. Apparently Phillip had initiated between select high officials that there should be something like that for criminals with more than the average skills. It was high security, and completely under the radar. Everyone was paid high money to do their job and not ask questions. At least no one would be hurt by his belief in the society of power.

  I stood on her balcony, feeling the wind against my bare chest while listening to the city around us. I’d been so used to the quiet noise of the cabin that the constant sound was distracting.

  “Where are you, Raven?” I asked into the breeze, as if it would carry the message from me to his ears.

  Knowing I wasn’t doing any good standing out here, beating myself up over something I had no control over now, I pulled myself away from the balcony and walked to the woman whose hand was waiting for me in bed. It was like she knew in her sleep that right now I needed her comfort.

  A light smile grew on her lips when I placed her hand in mine, and in that moment I let my guard down. I wanted to bask in her power and feel the calm. I’d only let myself feel a little bit until now.

  I was deep in sleep when a dream entered my mind. Not a nightmare, but more like a memory.

  Alan Tombs was a man with extraordinary gifts. He was able to borrow powers from another. Only for a short time, but he was a man of honor. He stayed by my side for a year, helping me train those we found, and helping those who didn’t understand their own power by showing them himself. He understood everyone’s gifts as if they were his own. He was truly a remarkable man, until he used his power to protect, and it killed him. A troubled young boy had internalized his powers and was dying. Alan took the child’s power in hopes that he could make it stable, and it destroyed him.

  “Alan.” I sat up saying his name. Rose’s sleepy eyes opened to see what was happening.

  “I need to get to AJ right now; you should rest until the alarm rings.” We were starting her power training today. So she would need all the energy she could get. She nodded and went back to sleep quickly.

  I was dressed in a hurry with the clothes I had to buy late last night, and grabbed the keys to a car Phillip had lent me until I wanted to go get my truck.

  I knocked on AJ’s apartment above the restaurant, and he came to the door after a few sluggish minutes.

  “I need you to find out everything you can about a name,” I told him and he nodded while grabbing his keycard, and stepping out into the hall with me.

  He yawned, but didn’t complain that I was dragging him out of bed in the early morning hours.

  “Okay, what’s the name?” he asked.

  “Alan Tombs.” I looked at the screens with complete interest. He put the name in and about one hundred Alan Tombs were found in the system.

  “This man isn’t alive anymore. Maybe we need to search older records. Newspapers?” I was not good with computers but I knew all of this was possible.

  Together we scrolled through two hours’ worth of newspapers, and hadn’t found anything. It was like he didn’t exist, except my memory proved that wrong. He had been alive, and a remarkable man.

  “I think I’m gonna get some coffee, want some?” he asked sleepily and stood up. I shook my head no and looked at how to continue scanning through without him in the room.

  “Keep pressing this button and stop when you find something. I’ll be back in a few.” He left and I started pressing the button. A minute passed with nothing, and then I spotted something that rang a bell.

  Local butcher Alan Tombs and wife, Mildred Tombs, welcome healthy baby boy. The bold lettering caught my eye and I knew that this was it. Alan had spoken of a wife and a son. But he said they died. He wouldn’t go into more information, and would always change the subject if I pushed for him to get it out.

  AJ came walking back in shortly after I finished reading the small article mentioning the family.

  “I think I found him. He said his wife and son died.” The wheels in my head were turning and whether it was the right direction or a wild goose chase, it was still worth looking into.

  “What if they didn’t die, or at least his son didn’t die? I need you to find out. Do everything you can to trace that child. A specific gene can be in multiple people that aren’t related sometimes but it’s not very common. They usually are passed down through the family.”

  The Raven could be Alan’s son. They looked similar if my memory served me right. AJ sipped on his coffee and went right to work on searching for Alan’s son. He might have died like what was said, but there was also a tiny chance he lied. That tiny chance was what I was betting on. It was all too coincidental. Two people having the same gift, looking alike, and the timing behind that particular memory surfacing.

  I looked at the time and knew Rose would be here soon, so I told AJ I was going to go work with her in the training room. He nodded and kept doing his work. I’ll give the kid props; he was a hunter when it came to his job. Very determined.

  I thought about how the memory came to be, and it reminded me of other times certain memories I hadn’t thought of in a very long time would show up right when they were needed to. It was if the gods’ power flowing through me was giving me the answers I needed in a time of desperation. At least that was the conclusion I was coming to anyways.

  About five minutes after I sat on the mat, Rose walked out of the elevator dressed comfortably.

  “Everything okay?�
�� she asked and plopped herself in front of me.

  “Yeah, just think I’ve found a lead. Got AJ on it now. He’ll let us know if he finds anything on the goose chase I’ve sent him on.”

  She wanted more information, but I didn’t want to get her hopes up just in case it didn’t pan out the way I was thinking it would.

  “So your powers. We need to work on them.” Just as I finished saying the last word, Phillip entered the room. Since I wasn’t always susceptible to her power, I needed someone else around.

  “You need to be able to block yourself from unwanted emotions. When the Raven touched you, you felt everything you didn’t want to. In any situation that can be used against you.” She nodded, fully understanding what I was saying and agreeing to it.

  Phillip sat next to us and held out his hand for her to take.

  “Give her happy,” I told him as she grasped onto his.

  I could tell she was feeling his happy when a smile grew on her sweet mouth. He looked at me, and I nodded, time to change it up.

  “Fear and sadness.” She pursed her lips in dislike.

  “Focus on your emotions, not his. Use yours to influence him out of that sadness,” I told her and watched as she closed her eyes to stay focused. Phillip nodded that she was doing it then praised her for a good job on the first try. She’d stated that she could do this before and this part was more of a controlled scenario.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Rose

  The next few times were really hard. I understood why all of this was necessary, but I did not like it one bit.

  Both Draco and Phillip touched my hands and pushed their emotions into me. Good and bad were distorting my thought process. It overwhelmed me, and I kept trying to listen to Draco telling me to close my mind, to put up a shield and protect myself. But in the end all I managed to do was soothe Phillip’s distress for a few minutes but then was knocked back as soon as Draco thought of something really sad.