Fluorescence: The Complete Tetralogy

by P. Anastasia

  I’d felt it once before.

  Before David.

  Before my pacemaker…

  I choked. More blood.

  “What’s the matter, Brian?” David hissed, forcing all of his weight against my spine, smothering my face against concrete. “Something wrong with your heart?”

  Light faded. My eyelids pulled down.

  Alice.

  I had to stay conscious.

  Allowing my eyes to close for only a second, I mustered up what little strength remained and reeled to the side.

  David tumbled off me. I wiped blood from my mouth and coughed again, propping myself up on flattened hands against the hot asphalt. The heat burned my palms, stimulating me just as the warmth of my fluorescence kicked in.

  “Get off me!” David yelled.

  I looked up, my vision creeping back into focus.

  Alice! She had leapt onto him and clasped onto his neck, hanging from his back like a warrior dangling from a titan. He struggled to pull her off, but she held on tight.

  His fluorescence grew brighter and a sick feeling bubbled up in my stomach.

  “Alice!” I tried to cry, but my voice wouldn’t manifest.

  She clung on, squeezing his neck until he fell to his knees near the edge of the street.

  I watched in horror. Weak. Helpless to take a stand with her. The blue light in me only now starting to undo the massive hemorrhaging inside me.

  Fluorescent light sparked alive in Alice’s shoulder and a bright flash of green blasted through David, extinguishing the amber light in his chest.

  He tumbled forward, sending Alice rolling off, nearly into a lamppost.

  I dragged myself over to her and forced my aching arms to reach out. She took my hands and crawled closer.

  David grunted and came to his knees.

  “You!” Lust for revenge glistened in his fierce gaze. “I’ll…”

  Then he froze in place, and his eyes widened.

  Kareena had come up from behind and clamped her hands onto the sides of his head.

  “Jesus Christ! What are you…” he stammered. “The… hell…”

  Kareena held tight, focused on him, anger I’d never seen before igniting in her gaze. Violent, bright fuchsia light coursed through one side of her face, emanating from beneath her skin, casting an eerie pink glow inside her right eye.

  David cried out, reaching up to cup his face in his palms. Pink light flickered through his skin like liquid lightning, tinting the deep olive an unnatural, sickening burnt orange.

  I’d learned last year about the Seeker’s brain-melting headache.

  Debilitating. Overwhelming. Blinding.

  I’d even felt it once.

  Once would last me a lifetime.

  Chapter 26

  A pounding migraine thumped between my temples. I came to my feet, leaning some of my weight against Alice’s shoulders. My knees trembled. Pins and needles all over.

  Blue light surged through my body, healing me. Slowly.

  So slowly.

  I swallowed, my throat dry as paper. The taste of iron still tainted my tongue, and a deep, shuddering inhale made my lungs ache.

  David screamed, wrenching in pain while Kareena held on tight, possessed by some newfound bravery. Her hands were locked around his head like a vice, her fingers driving hot-pink light through his body.

  The power horrified me. It was something I hadn’t even known she could do.

  I coughed and wiped my mouth again. Blood smeared across the back of my hand. God knew how much blood had spilled into places it didn’t belong inside me.

  “Brian, we should go.” Alice tugged my arm. “While he’s still down.”

  “But, what about…” I wheezed and shot a glance at Kareena while taking a step in the opposite direction. My foot came down onto nothing.

  I fell.

  My eyes adjusted to the darkness after a few moments. A long steel counter stretched out before me. Clattering dishes sounded all around me. A sudden surge of scents hit me—warm, freshly baked bread. Italian spices. Roasting meats and open flame.

  “Hey!” Jacob stumbled into me, nearly dropping an entire tray of drinks over my head. A wine glass teetered on its foot, white wine splashing up over the rim.

  I toppled forward, slamming into the condiment table, and latched onto the side to stop from falling. I caught my balance, swerved around and tucked my glowing left arm behind me. The fluorescence hadn’t faded yet.

  “Jesus, man. What happened to you?” He wrinkled his lips with disgust and looked me up and down quickly. “You look… sick.”

  Stains from the blood I had coughed up earlier flecked my white shirt.

  “It’s nothing… I…”

  Fell? No. Ugh.

  “Spilled a drink. It’s nothing.”

  “You look like shit, man. You really should…”

  “Brian?”

  Damn it.

  “Yes, sir?” I veered toward the voice. Jacob ducked his head down and scuttled off in a hurry.

  The restaurant owner, Jacques himself, approached. He took one look at me and grimaced.

  “Pardon my French,” he said, “but what in the hell happened to you? And where have you been for the past hour and a half?”

  “I…” My chest burned.

  Think.

  “I was… um…”

  “And what are you hiding behind your back? Brian?”

  I froze.

  “You were a really good server when I first hired you. I liked you. A lot.”

  “I can explain. Please give me another chance!” I pulled my arm out from behind me, hoping the color had faded. It had.

  “I can’t keep letting you off the hook when you come in late… or not at all, for that matter. You’ve been slipping for a while now, Brian. This is a real job and I’m trying to treat you like a real adult, but you can’t be having your mother call in sick for you when something happens.”

  “She’s not my mother, she’s… Never mind. Please, just—”

  “I can’t. I’m sorry, Brian.” He looked away from me and sighed. “There are people who value their jobs so much more than you seem to these days.”

  “Sir, I…”

  “Please take your things and go.”

  “No,” I hissed, dropping my head down. Hating myself for something I couldn’t have prevented. “Shit!”

  “Watch your language around our customers, Brian.” Jacques shook his head with disdain and walked past me, avoiding eye contact.

  “Well, damn. He didn’t look happy,” muttered Jacob, lumbering back into the kitchen with a stack of dirty plates piled up to his chin. “Sorry, man.”

  “Life sucks, you know that?” I rested my hands on the edge of a nearby counter and hung my head low. “Things start getting better and then you get punched with some shit you can’t begin to understand, let alone handle.”

  “Uh… yeah. I guess.” Jacob dropped the pile of dishes onto a tray and swerved around to grab a stack of to-go containers from a shelf to the right. “You take care of yourself, okay? Good luck out there with whatever’s been eating you.”

  “Thanks.”

  I dragged myself to the back room and took out my cell phone to call Jane.

  Two missed a calls and a text. Alice and Jane were already on their way to pick me up.

  I crossed my arms and closed my eyes, dropping my head back against the seat of the car. Alice took my hand and pulled it into her lap.

  “I’m sorry, Brian,” she said, pressing her shoulder into mine in the back of Jane’s car. “I’m really sorry.”

  I heaved a sigh.

  Alice leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

  “I love you,” she whispered, close to my ear, and then nuzzled my neck with her nose.

  I tried to smile.

  I really tried.

  . . .

  I ruffled a towel through my wet h
air, relieved to not be festering in my own blood and sweat anymore.

  The long, hot shower had me thinking about a lot of things—mostly about how we weren’t safe.

  We just weren’t. No excuses or arguments would change that fact.

  I tugged on a clean pair of jeans, pulled a fresh-smelling t-shirt over my head and grabbed my phone and wallet. I’d have to take a walk after dinner. I needed the air—the space. My mind buzzed with fears and I knew restlessness and insomnia were creeping up on me again.

  “Jane?” I quietly closed the basement door behind me.

  She stood in front of the oven, stirring a pot of soup.

  “Yes? How are you feeling?” She set the long wooden spoon down onto the spoon rest and looked me over sympathetically. “Alice told me about everything. God, I’m so sorry. I wish I could do something. I’m sick of feeling powerless.”

  “It’s okay. We got out of there alive, at least.” I pulled up a seat and sat down on the other side of the kitchen island.

  “Who is this David guy? And why is he so determined to hurt you?” Jane pulled a box of pasta out of the cupboard behind her and set it beside the pot.

  “I don’t know.” I shrugged. “I tried to ask, but he didn’t want to talk about it. I think he’s following orders because he’s scared like the rest of us. At least, that’s what I’m hoping his case is—that he’s not being a murderous ass for the fun of it.”

  “Me, too.” She cut a glance at the soup. It was bubbling up to the sides of the pot and she snatched up the spoon to stir it back into submission. “Maybe this isn’t the best suggestion, but, do you think the police can help at all? Since you know what this guy looks like?”

  I scoffed and rolled my eyes. Seriously?

  “What?” Jane asked, looking away from me and at the roiling soup as she dumped half a box of dry egg noodles in. “Do you have any better ideas at this point? What do you want me to say?” She gave it a quick stir.

  “Really, Jane? The police? You really think they’ll be able to do something?” I got off my seat and leaned on the counter. “We get ripped out of thin air and dropped into different cities in the blink of an eye. Our cell phones never work when we do, and this bastard, David, can pretty much explode our insides by giving us a dirty look. And the police are going to help us how?”

  She shook her head and shrugged. “I-I don’t know.”

  “Exactly!” I raised my voice more than I’d meant to. “You don’t know. They can’t help us and neither can you at this point. Not anymore.”

  “Brian!” She stared at me threateningly. “How dare you speak to me like that after everything I’ve done for you!”

  “And I’m grateful.” I lowered my voice. “I really am.”

  “Then act like it!”

  “Is… everything okay in here?” Alice asked, creeping into the kitchen with her hands nervously tangled together. She bit her lip and glanced at me, then at her mother.

  “I have it under control,” Jane replied, speaking through gritted teeth. “This isn’t something you need to worry about, Alice.”

  “Oh, okay.” She slouched a little and turned to leave.

  “No! Wait, Alice. You should be involved with this.” I motioned for her to come over to me. “It matters to us both.”

  “Brian!” Jane’s lips pressed thin together. “You’re getting on my last nerve with this. Drop it already, please!”

  “I mean it, Jane. No one can protect us at this point. No one. And you need to start facing the truth. Alice and I are in danger as long as we keep living life like nothing has changed. We can’t go to school and just pray and hope we aren’t jerked out of class. I lost my job because of this. It’s only a matter of time before people start asking questions.”

  Jane shrunk back and heaved a breath. “Well, maybe… I,” she stammered. “I can get you two out of school. Homeschool you or—”

  “You can’t quit your job to baby-sit us.” I shook my head. “Besides, that won’t be enough and you know it.”

  Alice slunk behind me, her fingers still clinging to my hand.

  “Alice. Come here.” Jane flashed a demanding glare. “Alice!” She slammed the wooden spoon down onto the stove and pointed a finger to the floor beside her. “You come over here right now.”

  Alice stepped to my side. “I-I think he’s right, Mom,” she murmured beneath her breath.

  “What? Like hell, he is! You go to your room while we settle this.”

  Alice’s grasp on my hand tightened. I squeezed back reassuringly.

  “No,” she said, looking up from her feet, rolling her shoulders back. “No, Mom. I can’t. I won’t. He’s right.”

  “Jesus, Alice. What has he done to you? You used to listen to me and now—”

  “He almost died today, Mom!” Alice slammed her hands onto the counter, rattling the dish rack.

  My eyes widened. I’d never seen her this angry before.

  “He… almost… died. It’s not about what he’s done to me. It’s about what they’ve done to us.”

  Jane’s mouth hung open. Speechless. Appalled. Her eyes huge, frightened, and brimming with disbelief.

  I backed away.

  “Wh-where are you going?” Jane flipped off the stove and stared at us, horrified. “Brian! I’ve done everything I possibly could for you. I fought for you in court, gave you a home. I… for some idiotic reason, let you sleep with my daughter, for God’s sake, and now… What are you thinking?”

  I snaked my arm around Alice’s and adjusted my grip on her hand. She trembled in my grasp.

  “Please, listen to me!” Jane stepped closer. “I care about you, Brian. I do. But if you don’t listen to me, I’ll… I’ll…” She stamped her foot. “I’ll call the police, damn it! Then you’ll have your own explaining to do.”

  “Go ahead.” I turned away and left the kitchen. Alice followed.

  “Come back!” Jane shouted as we approached the front door. “You can’t run away from this!”

  I swerved back around and stared Jane in the face at the threshold.

  She gasped and held her breath.

  “I’m not running away from anyone anymore,” I said and pulled the door shut behind us.

  “Where are we going, Brian?” Alice asked, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to look up at me. Trusting me. Hoping I had an answer that could stifle her building fears.

  “I don’t know, Alice. I’m sorry. I just had to get out of there and I wasn’t leaving you behind. I’m glad you followed me.”

  “Mom’s gonna kill us if we don’t go back right now.” Her worried eyes glistened in the amber light of dusk.

  “They’re going to kill us if we do, Alice,” I said, gazing down at her. “The Saviors are going to kill us if we don’t find a way to fight them—to stop them from playing with us. We can’t keep pretending we have normal lives. We don’t!”

  “But I’m scared, Brian! I don’t want to run away from home!” She tightened her grasp on my arm.

  “I don’t either. And I didn’t mean for the conversation to get so heated. I just… freaked the hell out and…” I let go of her and drove my fingers through my hair, groaning out loud to let off steam. “Damn it!” I took in a deep breath of hot, salty summer air.

  What the hell was I thinking?

  We couldn’t survive a night on our own.

  Not without help.

  “I have an idea.” I pulled my phone out of my pocket and started typing a text.

  While awaiting a reply, I eyed the bus stop in the distance.

  “Let’s catch a bus to Central and then I’ll come up with something.”

  “Central? That’s like a half-hour ride.” Alice held her stomach. “I’m really hungry.”

  “Me, too, Alice. We’ll get something to eat when we get there. I promise.”

  . . .

  “Happy Birthday, Brian,” said Kareena with a fake grin as she slid
a shiny hotel key card across the table.

  I scoffed.

  “There’s nothing happy about it,” I grumbled, snatching up the card and shoving it into my jeans pocket before anyone noticed. “And you know it, Kareena.”

  The twenty-four hour diner was relatively empty.

  “Yeah. Okay.” She shrugged. “Sorry.”

  Alice cupped her hands together on the tabletop and twiddled her thumbs.

  The waitress swung back around to bring our drinks. Hot teas for us. Diet soda for Kareena.

  “Thanks,” I said beneath my breath. The waitress tipped her head.

  “You’re welcome, dear.” She smiled. “I’ll get your food out to you in just a few.”

  I ripped open a little foil package and tossed the tea bag into the cup of steaming hot water. A few tugs of the string had dark brown liquid spiraling in the cup.

  Alice poured a sugar packet into hers and stirred it with a spoon. The dinking sound of metal against porcelain made my head twinge.

  “Thanks,” I said to Kareena, looking briefly into her eyes. “For everything and… for what you did for me earlier. I… never thought…”

  “Shut up. You’re welcome.” She looked out the window beside us and took a sip of her drink through the straw. “My parents will be totally pissed if they know I helped you guys with all of this. Let’s forget about it for now, please.”

  “We can’t.” I put out my hand and stopped Alice mid-stir. She finally put the spoon down beside her cup.

  I lowered my voice and leaned over the table. “We can’t forget. There’s just too much…”

  Our waitress came back with a tray of food.

  A burger and fries. Waffles and scrambled eggs. Chicken salad. Finally, something besides coffee saturated my nostrils. My mouth watered.

  “Anyway,” I continued, almost whispering. “We’re taking too many risks being out in public. Even now, really.” I plucked a French fry from my plate and dunked it into a pile of ketchup. I shoved the fry into my mouth and sighed. Salty. Hot. Deliciously greasy. “I think I speak for all of us when I say today has officially been the worst day ever.”