After Flux (The Flux Series Book 2)

by Marissa Farrar

  “This way,” said Kit, walking away from the buildings.

  We left the main part of the fort and rounded the side where the narrow track of road led off to the main road and eventually the bridge.

  Kit stopped at the foot of the cliff. “We can climb here. There are plenty of hand and footholds. And you can always use your ability to create a hold for yourself.”

  I snorted. “Or bring the whole cliff face down on us all.”

  “You won’t,” said Hunter. “You’re getting better at controlling it all the time.”

  My lips twisted. I wasn’t so sure. I’d deliberately avoided using my abilities, other than in the training room with Zane, and even then, I hadn’t completely trusted myself not to do something completely insane. Maybe I was getting better at not allowing my emotions to take over and affect what was going on around me, but I still couldn’t be sure of what would happen if I released them.

  Kit stood at the bottom of the cliff and hooked his hands and feet into the first nooks. “Just follow me up. Put your hands and feet in the same spots I am, and you’ll be fine.”

  I tried to reassure myself that Kit was probably twice my body weight, and if a rock was going to hold him, it would easily hold me, but that didn’t quell my nerves. I took a breath. I wasn’t going to quit now.

  Kit started to climb. Small stones and dirt trickled down in his wake.

  “Good luck, Ari,” said Dixie.

  “Thanks. I’m going to need it.” I looked over my shoulder and gave her a small smile.

  I twisted back around, reached out to the rock face, and started to climb.

  I focused on where Kit was placing his hands and feet, on taking the next moves, neither thinking about how high we still needed to climb, nor on how far below everyone was who waited. Loose rocks made my heart race, moving beneath my palms, or sent skittering by a misplaced foot. I knew we’d be climbing higher than the two-story building—that was the whole point of doing this—but even so, it felt impossibly high.

  Strangely, as I continued to climb, my confidence increased. The trembling fell from my legs, and I started to choose my next handholds with assurance.

  “Not much further, Ari,” Kit called down to me.

  “Okay.”

  Then came the hard part—jumping instead of climbing back down.

  I pushed up with my feet and reached for the next rock—

  The atmosphere suddenly changed around me, all the hairs of my body rising, my skin prickling in goose bumps. It was like being in an area right before a lightning strike. But it was a clear night with no sign of thunderclouds, or an electrical storm.

  “Kit?” I called, fresh nerves making my heart race.

  “Are you—” he called down, but he didn’t get the chance to finish.

  As clearly as though someone had emerged from the cliff face and placed two hands against my shoulders, I felt someone shove me.

  My fingers scrambled for a hold, but they met only with air.

  Then I was falling, backward, leaving the cliff and Kit high above me.

  People screamed my name, but it all happened too fast for any of the others to do anything to save me.

  I hit the ground with a massive crack, the back of my head, my spine, butt, and backs of my legs all smacking against the ground with bone breaking impact. I lay, staring up at the star-spotted sky, blinking, unable to piece together what had happened and wondering if I might have broken my neck. It was the only explanation for the reason I felt no pain at such a massive fall. Something must be seriously wrong.

  Still lying on my back, my friends gathered around me, their faces eclipsing my view of the night sky.

  “Oh, God, Ari!” Dixie’s choked voice.

  “Don’t move.” Hunter, assertive but filled with emotion.

  Nearby, something thudded against the earth, and I realized Kit had jumped. Automatically, I turned my head toward the sound. That was good. I could move my neck. That had to be a good sign.

  “This is your fault,” Hunter growled at Kit.

  “What happened up there, Ari?” Kit strode over. “You were doing great.”

  “Who cares what happened!” Hunter said. “She’s hurt. We need to call the paramedics.”

  “Are you hurt, Ari? Can you speak?”

  I tried to move, gave my fingers a tentative wiggle, and then did the same to my toes. All digits responded accordingly. I tried to sit up, but a hand pressed me back down.

  “You don’t know what injuries you have,” said Hunter. “You shouldn’t move until the paramedics get here, or you might do yourself more damage.”

  “No,” I said, finding my voice. “I’m okay. I really think I’m okay.”

  Kit smirked. “Told you so.”

  Hunter rounded on him. “Don’t say a God-damned word!”

  “Stop it, both of you.” I pushed myself to sitting. I reached to the back of my head, pressing my fingers to my skull where it had made impact with the ground. I should at the very least have split my skull. But there was no blood. No pain. No nothing. It was as though it hadn’t happened.

  That fall should have killed me. If not, then at least given me a good, long hospital stay which I most likely would have never recovered from.

  “Well, I guess we proved what we came here to prove.” Sledge stepped back with his arms folded.

  Hunter helped me to my feet, frowning at me in concern.

  I nodded. “Yeah, that should have killed me, but I’m fine. Thing is, something happened up there, and I don’t really know how to explain it.”

  “You lost your hold?” asked Kit. “You were looking strong.”

  I frowned. “No, that’s the thing. I didn’t lose my hold. If I’d had my eyes closed, I’d have sworn I was pushed.”

  Dixie’s eyes widened. “Pushed?”

  “Yeah, it felt just like someone put two hands against my shoulders and gave me a shove. I was climbing fine, and then it was like I was surrounded by static electricity, and something I couldn’t see pushed me, and then I fell.”

  The others all exchanged glances.

  “Am I going crazy?” I asked them.

  Hunter lifted his eyebrows. “Considering what we can do, I would have thought you’d gotten over the feeling like you’re crazy thing.”

  I looked at him anxiously. “So, you don’t think I was imagining it, then?”

  “I’d say that’s unlikely.”

  I didn’t know how I felt. Better that my fears had been verified, but also hating the idea that someone would deliberately want to hurt me. Unless they hadn’t been trying to hurt me, of course. Unless they’d actually been trying to prove once and for all that I was incapable of being injured. Just like Sledge said. Just like Kit wanted.

  “Hey, what’s that?” Sledge suddenly shouted.

  Everyone turned in his direction. It was dark, only moonlight showing the way, but I narrowed my eyes, sure I could see something. Hear something, too. The crunch of running footsteps.

  “Someone’s there!”

  We all lurched into movement. I was surprised to be able to give chase after what I’d just been through, but I could move as well as ever.

  “There!” Hunter yelled, pointing at a dart of movement down the narrow road. Everyone aimed their flashlights at the retreating figure. I caught a glimpse of blond hair, right before the person vanished around the corner.

  There was nothing around to use to stop the person running. I considered bringing down some of the rocks on the cliff, but I didn’t want to hurt whoever had been watching us, or risk hurting any of my friends either.

  We rounded the corner, each of us gasping for breath.

  The person was nowhere to be seen.

  Chapter Eleven

  We stood together, unsure of what to do next.

  “Anyone get a good look at them?” asked Hunter.

  I didn’t like the emotion boiling up inside of me. Had the person who’d run from us been the same one who’d mentally
pushed me from the cliff? It had to be. Why else would they have run?

  “It was a man,” I said from between clenched teeth, “with blond hair.”

  Hunter looked to me. “You’re sure.”

  I nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure.” Their build had certainly appeared bigger than a woman’s, even though from a distance their height was hard to tell. There was only one person who sprang to mind, and the possibility caused conflicted anger to clutch at my heart.

  Zane.

  Was it possible Zane had taken such a disliking to me that he would do such a thing? Had he been holding back, and actually he knew exactly what his abilities were? Or was I falling into exactly the same trap the others had when the central console had been destroyed, and I was blaming him because he was simply an unknown entity in all of this? For all we knew, whoever we’d spotted watching us might not even be someone we knew of. In fact, they might have been a hiker who happened to stumble upon us, and had nothing to do with the feeling someone had pushed me at all. Yes, they had run, but wouldn’t anyone have run if they’d witnessed what they must have, and then we’d all shouted and gone chasing after them? Plus, I couldn’t be sure the hair color had been blond, simply lighter in color. In the poor light, it could just as easily have been red or white. All I really knew was that it wasn’t dark like Hunter’s.

  Despite my own admissions that I couldn’t be sure of the identity of the person we’d chased, the thought had lodged in my head. I wanted the truth, and I’d ask him face to face, if I had to.

  I started walking at a brisk pace, away from the fort and back down toward the bridge, its long line of traffic heading in both directions still appearing like pinpricks of lights from this high up.

  “Where are you going, Ari?” Kit called.

  I turned to speak over my shoulder as I continued with a determined stride. “Back to the Cavern. We found out what we needed, didn’t we?”

  Hunter’s voice chased me. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “I’m fine,” I shouted back.

  The others hurried after me. I moved faster now, losing some of my caution. I’d fallen from a cliff face and got right up, not a mark on me. I didn’t need to worry about skidding or slipping. Hell, I could probably jump the rest of the way down and I’d survive.

  The journey back down to the cove went far quicker than the hike up to the fort. I didn’t know if that was because we were on a downward incline now, or simply because I was seriously pissed at the person who I believed might have been responsible for pushing me off the side of a cliff. Before I’d barely registered where I was, I found myself hunched over and storming through the tunnel, not even caring that I no longer had a flashlight of my own. As I passed through, each of the candles attached to the tunnel walls burst into flame, lighting the way, but I didn’t know—or even care at that moment—if I was the one responsible for lighting them, or Kit.

  I reached the Cavern with determination on my mind.

  “Where’s Zane?” I demanded of the first person I saw, Franklin.

  He shrugged, looking between us, obviously curious about why we’d all suddenly arrived, out of breath and harried. “The new guy? No idea.”

  I spotted Ashley and asked her, too, but she simply pushed the thick, black-rimmed glasses she wore higher up her nose and shook her head.

  “Dammit,” I swore, stalking off to try to track him down. I headed straight to the common room, thinking how Zane had been playing chess with my father before we’d left. At the rate my dad made his chess moves, there was a good chance Zane would still be there, waiting to make a move of his own. But though there were a number of people hanging out in the common room, I couldn’t see either Zane or Bryce among them.

  I cast my gaze around. “Has anyone seen Zane?”

  Russell looked up, his jaw working on the gum he was always chewing. “I think he’s in his room. He’s barely been out of it all night.”

  “So, no one has been with him?”

  Everyone shook their heads.

  “Anyone see him leave the Cavern?”

  Russell frowned “No, he’s still here, as far as I know.”

  I spun on my heels, knowing exactly where I was going next.

  The others were chasing along behind me. I wasn’t sure if they were trying to support me, stop me, or were simply worried about what I was going to do when I found him.

  Hunter caught up with me and touched my arm. “Relax, Ari. You’ve had a shock, even if you’re not physically hurt. Take a break for a minute.”

  “I can’t. I need to know.”

  I reached the room Zane shared with some of the other guys. Without bothering to knock, I pushed open the door.

  Zane was lying on his bed. He wore headphones which were attached to a cell phone, and I could hear the tinny thump of music coming through them. He didn’t look flustered, or as though he’d been running. I wished we’d done more to stop the person we’d seen, had injured them in some way, or thrown them to the ground. If he was physically marked, there would be no doubt it had been him.

  I stood in the open doorway, my hands on my hips. My emotions were bubbling over, and I knew I had to be careful, but I didn’t seem to be able to get a grip on them this time. Was it because I’d stuck up for him before? Was that why I felt so angry? So betrayed.

  Above our heads, the lights started to flicker, and I forced myself to take a couple of deep breaths, not wanting to unintentionally blow the bulbs.

  Zane looked up from the cell phone and pulled one of the buds out of his ear. He frowned. “What’s going on?”

  “Where have you been for the last hour, Zane?”

  His frown deepened. “Right here. Chilling and staying out of everyone’s way. Why?”

  “Can anyone else confirm that? Did you see or speak to anyone else?”

  He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. It’s just been me. Why?”

  I glanced over my shoulder to look at Hunter, who shook his head at me. No, don’t tell Zane what happened, the look told me. Keep it to ourselves.

  I backed out of the room. “It’s nothing. Forget I was here.”

  We moved down the corridor, hopefully out of earshot.

  “He didn’t look like he’d just been chased a couple of miles,” said Dixie. “He looked like he’d been chilling, exactly like he said he’d been doing.”

  “Dixie’s right,” said Sledge. “I believe him.”

  I gave a sigh of exasperation and rubbed my hands over my face. “Yeah, you’re right. It was the blond hair. I saw it, and he was the first person to jump to mind.”

  “Should I be worried that he’s the first guy on your mind?” Hunter teased.

  I elbowed him in the ribs. “You know what I mean.”

  “Okay,” he said, “but if someone mentally pushed you, they had to have our abilities. Was it one of the Kin? Did anyone else leave?” He looked toward Kit as though our leader would have the answer.

  Kit shook his head, his lips pressed together with concern. “I don’t know. It’s not as though we have cameras in this place, or anyone is forbidden to leave. People can come and go as they like. This isn’t a prison. Everyone is here because they want to be.”

  “Is it possible there are others with our abilities on the outside?” I asked. “People we don’t know about?”

  “Sure,” said Kit. “We’ve had people come to the Cavern who’ve either chosen to leave, or else they’ve simply gone and never come back. We always thought the men in black—the Myriad Group—had something to do with their disappearances, but it could also have been that they simply didn’t want to be found for some reason. We never make people stay.”

  “None of those people would want to come back and hurt the Kin, though?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Not that I can think of.”

  “Damn,” Hunter swore. “So, where does this leave us? Someone out to hurt Ari? Someone trying to destroy our communication system? Did someone mentally push A
ri because they wanted to hurt her, or because they were playing along with what we were doing and wanted to see what she was made of?”

  All eyes turned to Kit.

  He lifted both hands. “Hey. I would never do that. Besides, I knew Ari would have jumped it. I didn’t need to push her, mentally or otherwise.”

  “But now we know Ari can’t be harmed,” said Dixie.

  “Hang on a minute,” I said. “We know that fall didn’t kill me, or even hurt me. We don’t know what would happen if I was shot, or stabbed, or run over by a truck.”

  “We’re not testing that out,” Hunter interjected.

  “Ari survived a bombing with barely a scratch,” Kit pointed out. “I think we can all agree that she is definitely harder to kill than regular people.”

  I turned to him. “What about you? How far have you tested yourself?”

  “I know I’m not invincible,” he said. “I can be cut. Blunt force doesn’t seem to matter too much, but I don’t hold up to well against a blade.”

  “What about a bullet?”

  His lips twisted. “After the experiment with the knife failed, I didn’t want to take that risk.” Kit held up his forearm. Running from his elbow halfway up to his wrist was the thin track of a scar, like a snail trail in the moonlight.

  I winced at the sight. “Ouch.”

  “Yep.”

  “So, does that need to be my next step? Seeing if my skin can withstand a knife.”

  Hunter shook his head. “And what happens after that? Do we line you up against a wall at get people to start firing bullets at you? I want to support you, Ari, but I can’t pretend I like this.”

  I shrugged. I didn’t know.

  “Learning if Ari can withstand bullets would be massively important to what we could achieve,” said Kit. “Imagine if she could walk into a dangerous situation and have people shooting and for the bullets to bounce right off her.”

  “Plus, that would be freaking cool,” Sledge interjected.