Awakening

by Long, Samantha

  “I’m notifying the students tomorrow that the school will be closed until we figure out what is going on.”

  Sophie snapped to attention. Her senses told her that would be the worst thing to happen. “You shouldn’t shut us down, Dean West. This isn’t your fault. Besides, the students need to stick together right now.”

  “It happened on my campus to my students. That is fault enough.” Dean West saw the detective eyeing Sophie. “It looks like the police are ready to question you. Are you feeling up to it?”

  “Yes.” Sophie’s stomach clenched.

  Dean West nodded the woman over. “She’s ready. Be easy on her, she’s just had a traumatic event.”

  “I know how to do my job, ma’am.” The detective’s warm brown eyes filled with sympathy when she saw Sophie’s trembling hands. “I’ll go easy.”

  Dean West dipped her head crisply and left them.

  Sophie didn’t know if she’d be able to lie. It wasn’t a habit, and she certainly didn’t have enough practice. Hopefully the detective would chalk it up to distress.

  “I’m Detective Ashley Roland.” She took a seat in the chair nearest Sophie and pulled a pen and small notebook from her brown bomber jacket. Pen poised to write, she looked up at Sophie.

  Her patience didn’t make it any easier for Sophie to describe the evening as Whittaker told her to. More than once she paused. Roland seemed to believe Sophie was holding off a nervous breakdown, and for that she was grateful.

  “Did the man say why he attacked?” Roland showed no sign that she thought Sophie lied.

  “No.” Sophie moistened her dry lips. “He was crazy, talking about getting a prize for kidnapping the six of us.” She caught that much from the thousands of images that flitted through his mind before his death.

  Roland cocked her head to the side. “Anything specific?”

  “No.” Flashes of the other victims rose in her mind, and she shut her eyes to try to block them out.

  “Did he say anything else? About the other students? If they were alive? Where they were being kept?”

  “No. Sorry.” Sophie rubbed her temples where a small headache started to form. All she wanted to do was crawl into her bed and pretend none of this ever happened.

  Roland took her cue. “Thank you for your time.”

  The moment she left, Tristan crossed the room. His worried eyes scanned her face. “You look tired. Are you okay?”

  “I’m not the one who was shot,” Sophie whispered through her teeth. She had no idea why she was so angry.

  “I’m fine.” He rubbed the back of his neck, and Sophie watched the play of his muscles. His gaze met hers briefly, but she couldn’t mistake the intensity. “Thanks to Lilli.”

  She nodded, not able to think of anything to say, and immediately searched her friend out. The others were still being questioned.

  “Dean West wants to send us home for a while.”

  “No!” Sophie objected. She turned to him. “We shouldn’t be separated right now.”

  “My thoughts exactly.”

  “That’s crazy.” Sophie shoved the hair out of her face. Whatever that creature was, it wanted them pretty badly. Who knew if there weren’t more searching for them at this very moment? If they were separated, they would be easier targets.

  Tristan placed a hand on the small of Sophie’s back. “Let’s go see the others.”

  Lilli threw her arms around Sophie as she approached. “God, I was so scared.”

  Sophie hugged her friend back. She tried to block out the terror and shock Lilli felt. “Me, too.”

  Jackson stood behind Lilli. He glanced around at the officers, his chocolate eyes narrowing. “Let’s go somewhere we can talk.”

  “We can go to our dorm,” Sophie offered. Lilli pulled back to stand next to Jackson. Sophie felt his burning need for privacy. “We just need to wait on Morgan and Aidan.”

  “I’m here.” Aidan walked up. “I’ll go get Morgan.” The cut on his forehead had a small, square bandage taped over it. Drops of dried blood covered the front of his shirt. “I’ll need to change.”

  “We all do.” Tristan glanced at everyone’s clothes.

  Aidan agreed absently, his attention caught by Morgan. “I’ll be right back.”

  Morgan sat on a bench, alone, on the far side of the room. She reminded Sophie of a wilting flower, all of her energy drained out by the darkness surrounding them. Morgan shook her head, and Sophie watched Aidan’s face fall.

  He trudged back to them. Sophie placed a hand on his shoulder.

  After a few minutes, Detective Roland told them it was okay to leave. “Just remember to be careful. Always lock your dorm rooms, and never go anywhere alone. If you’re going to leave town, please give me a call. We may need to speak with you again.”

  Sophie silently prayed this would be the end of it. She didn’t want to ever see another creature like that.

  Chapter Four

  ONCE THEY WERE FAR enough away from the library, they huddled together to discuss their plans.

  “We can shower and then meet at the girls’ dorm.” Jackson sniffed at his clothes. “I smell like smoke and sulfur.”

  “Us, too.” Tristan looked down at Sophie. His eyes held a teasing light.

  Her lips twitched. It surprised her that he could make her want to smile despite the fact that she felt like her mind was breaking into a million pieces. “The only problem is how late it is. It’s after co-ed hours.”

  “Yeah, how are we going to get past the dorm supervisor?” Aidan asked. “She probably won’t let us in.”

  Sophie bit her lip. They needed to talk about what happened, but they didn’t have anywhere else to go.

  “Is your dorm near the front or the back? Does it have a window?” Jackson’s smile was wicked.

  “Back and yes.” Lilli shivered against a cold wind that blew past them.

  “I have an idea. Guys, meet me at the back of their dorm in half an hour. Lilli, open the window when you hear us knocking.”

  “Jackson, we’re on the fifth floor,” Sophie couldn’t help but point out. She shook her head at his wide smile.

  “Don’t worry. I got this.”

  After explaining to the dorm supervisor why they were late, the girls took turns showering and making sure no trace of their night remained. When they were done, they met in the living room and waited.

  Sophie sat on the couch and glanced at the window every few moments. “This is so weird. We’ve finally met people who are like us. I knew when we met them in class that there was something about them. It hit me hard that we were connected, but I didn’t realize they had gifts, too.”

  “I know.” Lilli’s smile spread across her face like sunshine. “Isn’t it awesome? How do you think we all have these gifts? Is it from God? Were we just born this way?”

  “I don’t know. Professor Whittaker seems to know enough about us. Maybe she can answer that question.” Sophie wrapped her arms around her knees and set her chin on top of them. She wasn’t shaking anymore, and the echoes from the creature had dissipated, leaving a sharp headache behind.

  Something pinged against the window. There was a pause, and then pebbles rained against the glass.

  Lilli stood, crossed the room, and peeked outside. “It’s them.” She unlocked the window, slid it open, and came back to sit next to Sophie. “I don’t want to be in the way for whatever is about to happen.”

  A second later, a brown and white speckled bird flew through the window. It circled above their heads and headed into the bedroom.

  “Ouch!”

  Sophie looked to the window.

  Aidan hit his head on the sill. “Jackson!” He floated into the room. His body hovered before whatever invisible force held him disconnected. He hit the floor face down and groaned.

  “Sorry. I’ve never used it on another person before.” Jackson came gracefully through the window and landed on his feet. He helped Aidan up.

  “I never let
him do it to me.” Tristan strolled in from the bedroom. He stopped at the doorway and stood with his hands on his hips. “It’s too dangerous.”

  “You could have warned me. I thought we were friends.” Aidan sighed. “I’m hungry.”

  Sophie blinked at the abrupt change of subject. “We can order a pizza or two.”

  “I know just the place.” Aidan took a poll of what they liked on their pizza and then grabbed the phone.

  Sophie settled onto the couch and wrapped her sweater tighter around her. This whole situation made her edgy. She almost felt like Alice, diving into that hole, traveling to Wonderland.

  Tristan and Jackson took the chairs situated on either side of the room and Aidan sat on the floor. Everyone stared at each other and tried to figure out what to say.

  “That’s it, I can’t be quiet anymore.” Aidan jumped up and began to pace. “I have finally found people who have gifts like I do. I’m not alone.”

  “Were you the only one you knew with a gift?” Sophie asked. She glanced at Lilli and was grateful that she knew her. She couldn’t imagine growing up with this gift alone. Thankfully she had Lilli and her brother, Todd. Both had been rock steady support.

  “Yes. There wasn’t anyone else.” Aidan ran a hand through his hair.

  “Tristan and I grew up together,” Jackson said. “We discovered our gifts at the same time.”

  “When was that?” Lilli asked.

  “We were both five, I think, and were playing in the woods at the hunting camp,” Tristan answered. “There were coyote cubs splashing in the river. I had this unbelievably strong urge to join them, and the next thing I knew, I was a coyote puppy.”

  “I was jealous.” Jackson grinned at Tristan. “I wanted to turn into a puppy, too.”

  “Then the mother coyote returned. She didn’t like Jackson standing so close. She went to attack, and that’s when Jackson discovered his telekinesis. It was like the coyote hit an invisible wall.”

  “Sophie and I were also five when we discovered ours,” Lilli said. “It was over my pet cat. I was heartbroken that Suki disappeared.”

  “I had a dream that Suki was attacked by a dog but was still alive underneath a neighbor’s shed. I told Lilli the next morning, and we went straight to the shed.” Sophie smiled. “Lilli was so upset that her cat was hurt, she started glowing. Like she had sunshine in her body.”

  “That’s what you told me.” Lilli laughed. “And I healed little Suki. It wasn’t until a few years later I realized that I could heal humans, too.”

  They turned to Aidan. “It’s your turn. How did you discover your gift?”

  “I had a nightmare and burned down our house.”

  “What?” Sophie put a hand over her heart. Aidan’s guilt still swallowed him from that incident. “It was a nightmare. You had no control over that.”

  “Was everyone okay?”

  Aidan nodded. “It was just me and my mom. My dad left right after I was born.”

  Jackson’s mental walls were a fortress in his mind. Sophie bit her lip to keep from questioning him about it.

  “We all have these gifts, and I feel like it’s connected,” Sophie told them.

  “Do you think we should listen to Professor Whitaker?” Tristan asked. Jackson stared out the window. Sophie knew he was halfway lost in a painful memory.

  “Should we? I mean, what if it’s a ploy to give us over to the government?”

  They each looked at Aidan. He put his hands up, palms out. “We’ll worry about that if it happens.”

  “We should be careful in any case. What happened tonight isn’t over.” Pressure weighed on Sophie’s mind.

  “That is so creepy how you said that,” Aidan said. Someone knocked on the door. “Your body and voice went into dead mode.”

  “Thanks, Aidan.” Sophie laughed. She couldn’t help it when she saw Aidan’s sheepish face. After grabbing the pizza from the delivery guy, she brought it into the living room. Lilli had already grabbed Cokes and paper plates.

  “Hungry, Aidan?” Tristan asked as Aidan reached over and grabbed four slices.

  “Always,” Aidan said around a mouthful of bread and sauce.

  Chapter Five

  SOPHIE ATE SLOWLY. She picked at the pepperonis on her plate and watched the group. What did that creature want with six students? She looked over the group again. She was far from a warrior. A little taller than Lilli, she was still shorter than most girls. With her gentle and petite form, Lilli reminded people of a pixie. Her green eyes never lied.

  Aidan definitely had a fiery nature, but that and his punk rock look belied his caring soul.

  Tristan and Jackson were jocks. They both had muscular bodies and golden-boy looks. With their gifts, they could’ve fought that creature off.

  She sighed and bit into a pepperoni.

  “What did that thing want?” Lilli set her plate down. “Why did it come after us?”

  “Our gifts.” Sophie pushed her plate away.

  “Can I have that?”

  Sophie smiled. “Yeah, I’m not going to eat it, Aidan.”

  He swiped the food and put it in his mouth.

  “How did it know about our gifts?” Tristan leaned forward.

  Sophie’s mouth went dry. The fact that he could shape shift only enhanced his attractiveness to her. She licked her lips. “Um, I don’t know that much. But when he was yanking my hair, I was connected to him.”

  “Connected to him?” Jackson frowned.

  “He was behind the kidnappings of the students, and they’re all dead. I’ve been turning in anonymous letters to the police with clues, but they never followed them.” Tears formed in her eyes. She could see their mangled bodies. “They were used in some sort of ritual.”

  The symbols carved into their flesh were seared into her brain. She forced the tears back. “He didn’t want us for a ritual, though. He wanted to turn us in.”

  Lilli wrapped her arm around Sophie. “To who?”

  “I didn’t get that far. An evil woman.”

  “Maybe the professor knows who that woman is. I think it would be best if we met with her and the security guard. Figure this out. In the meantime, I think we should get some rest. We’ve had a long night.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Jackson agreed. As he and Lilli cleaned up, Sophie passed Tristan his jacket.

  “Thanks.” Tristan’s fingertips brushed hers, and a shaft of heat traveled up her arm. His eyes darkened. Music rang in her ears, and a vision of Tristan in black battle armor danced in front of her eyes. She blinked it away.

  He pulled his hand back and slid the jacket on. Sophie watched for any sign that he’d seen the vision with her. She relaxed when all he said was goodnight.

  Aidan hugged her before he followed Tristan to the window.

  Sophie smiled at Lilli and Jackson and headed into the kitchen. She put the empty pizza boxes in the garbage and heard Jackson speaking to Lilli, then a curse from Aidan as Jackson lowered him out the window. A few minutes later, Lilli called her back into the living room.

  “He’s so cute with that auburn hair and those dark eyes,” Lilli said. “Aidan’s cute, too, especially the way he looks at Morgan. And I see the way you look at Tristan. He’s so intense.”

  Sophie slumped down onto the couch and held her head in her hands. “Do you think they’re only being friendly because they have gifts like ours? And Jackson’s so quiet. Why is that?”

  “If there’s a reason, I’m sure he’ll tell us once he gets to know us better.” Lilli sat next to her. “You don’t look so good.”

  “My head is killing me.” Sophie rubbed her temples. “It’s been like this ever since…you know…the thing attacked us.”

  “Hmm.” Lilli shrank into the couch. “You don’t think there are more, do you?”

  Sophie shook her head and lied, “No. What are the chances of that?” She prayed Lilli would believe her. Her friend didn’t need to stay up all night worrying that something else would a
ttack them. “Besides, you saw that security guard. He took that thing out.”

  Lilli twirled her ponytail around her fingers. “Yeah.” She sat up. “Let me heal your headache.”

  “No. You used your gift to the point of exhaustion earlier. I’ll just take something to relieve it.” Sophie summoned up a small smile. “We should get some sleep.”

  “Okay.” Lilli stood and stretched, letting out a yawn. “But if the meds don’t work, promise you’ll let me help.”

  “Promise.” Sophie waited until Lilli went to bed before she walked into the kitchen and reached for the nighttime cold medicine. She poured the green liquid onto a spoon. As soon as the medicine touched her tongue, her stomach roiled. She rushed to the bathroom and heaved.

  After brushing her teeth, Sophie crawled into bed. Never had she been this worn out. Being attacked by a scaly man-thing might do that to you, she thought. She pulled the covers up to her shoulders.

  Adrenaline still coursed through Sophie’s body. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw that thing pouncing, ready to devour her. Sophie breathed slowly in through her mouth. After a second, she exhaled. Bit by bit her muscles relaxed.

  Slowly a vision formed.

  This time it seemed like more than just a vision. It was a memory.

  ***

  Sophie’s green medieval dress flowed around her brown riding boots. Somehow she knew she was in the tombs beneath a temple. Shadows bounced off the stone walls, and as she watched them, she also recognized the emotions this place evoked.

  Terror. Grief.

  Despite the heavy cloth of her dress, she was cold. Not just goose bumps cold…bone-chilling, teeth-chattering cold. It wasn’t the temperature of the air but the atmosphere around her.

  “Sofrina, there you are.”

  Sophie whirled around, one hand at her throat. Her other self—Sofrina—recognized the man standing there. Her cheeks grew warm as memories surfaced of just how well she knew him. Sophie faded into the background of their shared consciousness.

  Sofrina sighed. “Thane.”