The Ending Series: The Complete Series

by Lindsey Fairleigh

  ~~~~~

  “So…what should we do?” an indistinct female voice asked.

  Angrily, a man replied, “I don’t fucking know!”

  “They’re not going to hurt her…at least I don’t think they are. Jack wouldn’t just stand there if he thought she was in danger,” another man said.

  “I still think we should shoot ‘em. They’re obviously dangerous. Look what they did to that guy! They tore him apart!” a shrill voice said.

  “Shut up, Holly! You’re not helping!” the first speaker ordered. She continued in a softer volume, “I think they’re protecting her.”

  “I agree,” said a new voice. “I think we should wait until she wakes up.”

  “And if she doesn’t? What then? We just leave her behind this…this…wall of animals?” the angry man asked.

  What the hell is going on? Who are they talking about? Why am I so hot? What’s poking me? Wait…where’s the Crazy? Did I kill him?

  “Look! I think she’s moving!” one of the voices claimed.

  Me? Are they talking about me?

  Suddenly, my eyes popped open, and I gaped in astonishment at what I saw in the darkness around me. I was surrounded by a barrier of pacing creatures, including several coyotes, foxes, bobcats, and a gigantic cougar. And, of course, faithful Jack was among the animals protecting me from the people I’d overheard. I felt like a planet being orbited by a deadly belt of fur, teeth, and claws.

  Beyond the fierce predators, a small crowd of familiar people with flashlights watched with a variety of expressions. Ky and Ben were sharing a look of wonder. Holly was scowling at Dalton and Hunter, whose faces were blank. Chris was smiling. But it was Jason who captured my attention. The look in his eyes made him appear slightly more savage than the wild creatures circling me.

  I sat up slowly and immediately felt dozens of small, furry bodies wiggle and readjust themselves around me. Instead of panicking, which would’ve been normal, and frankly, would’ve made me feel less like a mutant-ninja-animal-whisperer, I smiled at the mass of rabbits, mink, and cats curled up on and around me. Without them, I would have frozen to death, having passed out on the cement floor of an unheated building in the dead of winter. The animals had kept me warm—the wonders of a living blanket.

  As Jason took a step closer, my protective guard abruptly stilled, forming a solid, threatening shield intent on one thing—keeping him away from me. Jason paused with one foot forward, his muscles twitching with the need to keep moving.

  “Let him pass!” I ordered. A narrow, Jason-sized gap opened between the cougar and a pair of foxes. The three animals separated and sat patiently, looking like stone lions guarding the entryway to a castle.

  “No way! Did you guys see that?” Holly blurted.

  But everyone ignored her, instead staring in shock at the obedient animals…everyone except Jason. He lurched forward through the makeshift gateway and dislodged a handful of the smaller creatures huddled around me as he crouched at my side. The common cats were the most displeased, hissing and groaning in feline irritation.

  “Are you hurt?” he implored, scanning me from head to toe and back again before his eyes met mine. His desperation stole my breath. I wished I had Zoe’s Ability so I could understand what he was desperate for.

  “I…I don’t think so. Jason, I—NO!” I shouted suddenly, snapping my head to the right. Holly had raised her pistol and was aiming it at the cougar, whose muscles were tensed to pounce. Everyone froze, animals included.

  “Ow,” Ky said, shaking his head. “Was it really necessary to shout so loud in our heads too?”

  I hunched, leaning away from Jason, away from everyone. “Sorry. I guess I got a little excited…” At least Holly had lowered her gun.

  Before the situation spiraled out of control and someone—or something—got hurt, I dismissed my furry defenders. To my surprise, each nuzzled part of my body before leaving, even the cougar. I felt like a piece of land claimed by dozens of property owners. Delightful…

  After the last undomesticated animal had left the stable, Chris rushed to my side, displacing Jason, who stood and began pacing.

  “What the hell just happened?” Holly screeched. “You guys saw that right? That was, like…a cougar or something! What if she sicks it on one of us next?”

  Jason halted and spun to face her. “Shut the fuck up, Holly,” he ordered harshly. “Ky, find the lights in this place,” he added before he gathered everyone but Chris around him and began giving hushed, emphatic orders.

  Chris and I both squinted when the overhead lights came on, and she continued patting and prodding me everywhere in her search for injuries. She was very thorough.

  “Hey!” I exclaimed as she pressed against my ribs beneath my breasts. “I like you Chris but not that much.”

  “Calm down, hon. I’m just making sure nothing’s broken.”

  “Well you don’t need to feel me up in the process. I’m okay. I promise.”

  She puckered her mouth, trying not to laugh. “You’ve got a pretty nasty cut on your heel…how’d that happen?”

  I thought for a moment, recalling all that had happened after the Crazy had broken in. Part of me couldn’t believe I was still alive. “I stepped on the glass from a broken picture frame…it was when he, um, attacked me in the house,” I explained, my voice trembling a little.

  Chris gently squeezed my shoulder. “Worst decision he ever made, huh?,” she said, but it was her touch more than her words that soothed me. Damn…I love her Ability. “Just give me a few minutes to get you patched up, and then I think you and Jason should have a little chat…clear the air…”

  I groaned. “Is he mad?” I asked tentatively, watching Jason pace up and down the stable aisle. He reminded me of the cougar who’d watched over me so closely during my loss of consciousness.

  Chris barked a laugh and said, “Hon, mad doesn’t come close. The email from his sister telling him why you left…that didn’t really go over so well…”

  “Oh.” I looked down at my hands, feeling miserable.

  Chris left my side momentarily to retrieve a first aid kit from her pack. I flinched when she cleaned the stinging cut on my heel, but felt lucky that it wasn’t deep enough to need stitches. After dropping some antibiotics in my palm and handing me a water bottle, she said, “So, I’m gonna clear everyone outta here…start setting up in the house. Can you and Jason please try not to kill each other?”

  I gave her a flat look.

  “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’,” she said, rising. She walked away without a backward glance.

  I sighed, trying—and failing—not to look at the glistening skeleton about a dozen feet away. The Crazy’s corpse had been picked clean…mostly. There were still pieces of bloody clothing and globs of hair. I struggled to make my mind reconcile the horrific sight with the man who’d attacked me only hours before. With unexpected pity, I hoped it had been the blow from the shovel that had killed him, not the animals tearing him apart alive. It was too horrible a fate to wish on anyone…well, except Cece, maybe…

  Picking myself up off the freezing floor, I hurried away from both the ghastly scene and my vengeful thoughts, ignoring the throb in my heel. Unfortunately, I was instead approaching Jason and a confrontation I was nearly as eager to avoid as my attacker’s decimated remains.

  I fell in step behind Jason as he strode away. “Jason?” I asked meekly. He halted abruptly, and I bumped into his back with an “Oomph!”

  While I regained my balance and some modicum of decorum, Jason turned to face me. I took several hasty steps backward. Everything about him was stiff—his clenched fists, his taut neck muscles, and his unusually thin lips. Silently, he stared at me, though it felt more like getting a full-body MRI.

  “Jason, I—”

  “You what?” he exploded, stalking toward me.

  I backed up, my pace increasing with his, my sore heel forgotten. Though my mouth opened, no words came out. I was struck dumb by th
e waves of sheer fury emanating from him. It was how I imagined I had looked when I’d confronted him about moving Cam’s body, just a hell of a lot smaller.

  “You left without a word. You came to my room. You said goodnight. And you knew you were leaving,” he said coldly, his tone like a thin layer of ice encapsulating an inferno. “Zoe didn’t give me your message until the next fucking night. I spent a whole day not knowing what’d happened to you, not knowing if you were dead. And then my sister tells me about Cece’s goddamn note. You didn’t tell me!” he yelled, still pushing me back with the force of his anger. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me? I could’ve helped you.”

  “You could’ve died!” I screamed back. “I was trying to protect you!”

  “I can protect myself!”

  I scoffed. “Sure, like you protected yourself at Grams’s house?” As soon as the words were out, I wished I could catch them and stuff them back down my throat.

  “How’d you…you were there! I knew it!” After a brief pause he lowered his voice and added, “You made her leave, didn’t you? What’d you do?” Each word was pronounced precisely, making his quietness more ominous than his earlier yelling.

  Gulping in the suddenly scarce air, I explained, “I spoke in…her mind. I…threatened her…if she didn’t…” Backing into the rusty door, I whispered, “I couldn’t let her do it, Jason. I couldn’t lose you.”

  He stopped inches from me, his toes nearly touching mine. “I almost killed her. Multiple times. Fuck Dani, I should have! But Chris and Ky might’ve…If I’d screwed up, Cece and the others would’ve gone after them, maybe killed them.” He turned and walked several steps away, hiding whatever unwanted emotions plagued him.

  “Jason, I’m—”

  When he faced me, his outward composure had returned. He was, once again, the emotionless statue I’d come to know so well. Quietly, he said, “You should have told me about the note when you first read it. We could have figured it out together.”

  “I know.” It was simple, but true. The realization may have come slowly, but I knew that whatever happened, whatever threat loomed ahead, Jason and I would face it together. The meaning of together was still a great unknown. Friends? More? But he needed to know that—to know I believed in him…depended on him…trusted him. “I’m so sorry, Jason. I won’t leave you again.”

  His momentary composure abruptly disintegrated, revealing frustration and anger, as well as hope and joy. In two purposeful strides he was on me, his hands forcing my shoulders against the door as his lips devoured mine. He was relentless, stroking my tongue with his as soon as our bodies met. It was unlike any kiss I’d ever experienced—devoid of thought or reason, purely based on mutual need. If Jason had continued kissing me forever, I would’ve gladly obliged. But, of course, he didn’t.

  Seconds after restraining me, he pulled back and spun away. “FUCK!” he shouted, punching the wooden slats between two empty stalls before striding off.

  35

  ZOE

  “You’re not focusing!” Sanchez’s voice rang in my head. She was sitting only inches from me on one of the picnic benches in the quad. She’d caught me glaring at the barracks; I’d spent too much time within its walls and was grateful to finally be outside.

  “Really? Do you have to yell?” “Well, pay attention,” Sanchez said. “Your turn

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to remove myself from the present. I tried to block out the beautiful sunset I wanted to watch and the bullfrogs croaking loudly down at the pond. I tried to ignore the fact that I yearned, as usual, for an early spring.

  Finally pushing all distractions from my mind, I pictured Sanchez sitting in front of me. I thought of her mind, her face, and the way she tended to glare at me impatiently. But nothing came.

  “Let me try something else,” I thought out loud.

  Erasing the image of Sanchez from my head, I thought of the universe. I thought of blackness and infinity, of all the stars and planets and galaxies, and how insignificant I was in relation to it all.

  Again, nothing came.

  Taking another approach, I opened my eyes and reached out to touch her. Her impatience was heavy, burdening my senses, so I let go.

  “Well, we know touch works without fail,” I said in exasperation. I wish I knew how the hell to control this…thing.

  “And your mind?”

  “I’m still working on that one.”

  Taking a deep breath, I again attempted to reach out to her with my mind. “I have no idea what I’m doing,” I muttered. I couldn’t help but laugh at the bizarreness of the situation. “I can’t believe I’m trying to read your mind.”

  “Just concentrate—I’m sure you’re more in tune with your unique talent than you think.”

  I focused all my attention on seeking the surges and tingles of energy I felt floating around the periphery of my consciousness. They would come and go as they pleased, meowing and pawing at the back door of my mind like stray cats. I was able to ignore them most of the time, but once I was seeking them out, they’d scurried away.

  Trying to concentrate on the unknown was a challenge, but I must’ve done something right. I felt a tug on my consciousness. Opening myself up to it, I felt a sense of impatience and frustration dancing around me, two emotions I easily identified as Sanchez’s. Pulling them closer with my mind, I reached further in.

  I saw myself through Sanchez’s eyes, sitting in front of her with my legs crossed. I barely recognized myself, and I wasn’t sure if it was because I was looking at myself through someone else’s eyes or because I’d changed so much. A lot had happened over the past few weeks. I’d lost weight, making my cheekbones more prominent, and I looked weak, even though I felt stronger than I ever had before. Defensively, I sat up straighter.

  Losing myself in Sanchez’s mind, I watched a montage of memories parade through my awareness, a tornado of emotions swirling around them.

  Sanchez was worried about us. Our group was in the mess hall eating dinner, and she anxiously watched us from afar. Her mind was bombarded by the pressure of being our leader and trying to protect us against the unknown.

  Sanchez was looking in a mirror, her face wet from crying. She pushed her emotions away with fierce determination and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Refocusing on her reflection, she made sure she appeared perfectly composed. She sighed before straightening her outfit and walking out her barracks room door.

  Sanchez stared down at her fallen squad members—slaughtered and strewn on the snow-covered ground.

  Sanchez and Harper were lying in bed together, younger and uncertain, different than I knew them.

  Sanchez was driving through the desert, looking out at the barren land around her with a gleeful smile on her face.

  Sanchez was peering between her childish fingers as she hid her face. She was cringing as her father’s hand came down across her mother’s cheek. Her mother was crying and running after him as he drove away.

  I’d seen too much, and with a jolt, I pulled myself away from Sanchez’s mind. Sitting in front of her, I saw a different woman than I had before—instead of austere and distant, I now saw her as strong, protective, and guarded. She was a true survivor, an independent woman forged from suffering and loss. For the first time, thinking of never seeing her again once I left for Colorado made me feel sad.

  “Are you alright?” Her hand brushed my arm. “Zoe, are you okay? You’re really pale.”

  “Yeah, thanks. That was just…” I knew she wouldn’t appreciate that I’d seen the memories of her past, felt her deepest fears and emotions. “That was more difficult than I thought.”

  “What’s it like? What did you see?” she asked anxiously.

  “It was a rush of images I couldn’t really piece together, but at least now I think I know how to access them,” I said, giving her half the truth.

  She smiled hopefully. “But it worked?”

  “Yeah.” I nodded as she watched me intently
. I wasn’t sure what other private memories I would uncover if we continued, so I said, “But it took a lot of energy…I’m sort of zapped. I’m gonna call it a day, okay?”

  “Sure,” she said, but there was a hint of skepticism in her voice.

  To avoid any further questions, I stood abruptly. “Sorry, I’m getting antsy. I need to move around. Must be all that time in bed.” I stretched my back dramatically and said the first thing that came to my mind. “I think I’ll go for a walk. I’ll see you at dinner.”

  Sanchez nodded, and I strolled away.

  Folding my arms, I pretended to be lost in thought as I scuffed my feet along the pathway.

  “We’ll talk more later,” I heard Sanchez say in my head. Without turning, I waved to her and continued toward the barracks. Walking inside, I meandered, unsure of what to do. Dave, Stacey, and Sarah were deep in conversation in the common room, and the others weren’t around, so I was on my own.

  Realizing that what I’d said to Sanchez was true—I’d done enough sitting around—I snatched my sketchbook and a few pencils from my room and headed back out to capture the final rays of the sunset.

  In an attempt to avoid Sanchez, I moved between vacant buildings toward the gym. I hadn’t done much exploring, especially not after what we’d found at the hospital off-base. Walking around alone was intimidating, but I welcomed the fresh air. Maybe I’ll find Harper and Biggs in the gym.

  As I continued on, I soaked in the landscape around me. Dead leaves lined the gutters of the well-worn roads, and withered weeds poked through jagged cracks in the sidewalk. I wondered if Fort Knox always looked so desolate. I tried to imagine red and orange leaves on the trees in autumn, and green grass and blooming flowers along the pathways in the spring. But I’d only known it as a barren, abandoned base, and I couldn’t picture it as anything else.