Marked

by T. L. McDonald

  “So, you’re the Hanna that had my brother out to the wee hours last night,” She says.

  I stiffen, slowly looking from Zoe to Kat—who kicks me—hard—under the table. Pain throbs in my shin bringing the sting of tears to my eyes. What the hell are her boots made of; lead? I rub at the spot as discreetly as I can.

  Kat smiles sweetly for show. “Why didn’t you tell me that Will was at your house last night?” She says through clenched teeth. Her eyes briefly flick to Will then back to me.

  “Um…” I have no idea what to say. I probably should have told her earlier, but I didn’t because when Kat likes a guy she gets territorial and if I’d told her that Will was at my house, I knew she’d read more into it than necessary and she’d get mad. I was hoping it wouldn’t come up before I got a chance to tell Will not to mention it. But it’s too late for that now and I’m sure I’m going to pay for it in someway.

  Zoe looks back and forth between Will, Kat, and me. Catching my eye she mouths ‘sorry.’

  “I need to go to the bathroom.” Kat announces, standing up. She grabs ahold of my arm squeezing it harder than necessary. “Why don’t you come with me Hanna?” She smiles brightly at Will and Zoe. “We’ll be right back.”

  Struggling not to limp, I let Kat drag me to the dingy bathroom. Once we’re inside Kat checks the two stalls making sure we’re alone. Satisfied that we are, she locks the outside door. “Why was Will at your house? You know I like him, so what was he doing there?” Without Will and Zoe around Kat lets loose her full fury.

  I rack my brain trying to think of what to say. I can’t tell her the truth and I’m horrible at having to lie on the spot.

  Kat crosses her arms over her chest, her foot tapping rhythmically against the dirty tiles that make up the bathroom floor. “I’m waiting.”

  “It’s not what you think. He just gave me a ride home and we got to talking. That’s all.”

  She shifts her weight from one side to the other, staring me down. “What did you talk about? And if it was so innocent, why didn’t you tell me about it?”

  “Um…” My mind goes blank. Obviously I can’t tell her that Will and I were talking about fallen angels, possessions, and quests from the grave. She wouldn’t believe it and it would only make her angrier.

  “First, you steal Jared, and now you’re stealing Will. What is it about you they find so appealing?” She looks me up and down, assessing my worth. “It’s not like you’re even that pretty.”

  Her words slap me across the face. “I didn’t steal anyone and I didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t even like Will like that.”

  “Whatever. Don’t bother coming back to the table.” She knocks into me with her shoulder shoving me to the side. At the door she pauses to look back. “Oh, and you better find another way home.”

  The door closes behind her and I’m left alone in a state of shock and hurt. How could she be so mean? If she liked someone I would never stand in her way or try to steal that person away. I know that having Will at my house and not being able to explain looks bad, but if I say nothing happened then she should trust me because that’s what friends do.

  Watery gray eyes stare back at me from the mirror. Her ugly comment hurts just as bad as her accusations. I know I’m not super model pretty like her, but I’ve never considered myself ugly either.

  The longer I stare at myself in the mirror trying to understand what just happened between Kat and I, the angrier I become, triggering something volatile inside of me. My hands clench at my sides as an intense energy builds in my gut. All the mirrors on the wall start to vibrate. I close my eyes trying to calm myself down because I know it’s me that’s causing it, but the more I try, the more I lose control. I crouch down covering my head with my arms as every mirror on the wall shatters. Shards of broken glass and sparkly powder rain down onto the floor to crunch under my feet as I flee.

  Sunlight blinds me as I burst through the door leaving Frank’s Pizzeria behind. Shielding my eyes I pause not sure where I should go. Kat’s car is still parked beside Will’s bike, which means that they’re still inside. Fresh anger surfaces at the thought of what she could be saying to them about me. Kat can be very vindictive when she’s angry with someone and right now she’s pretty angry with me. Energy starts to build again with more intensity than what I felt the first time in the bathroom. All the storefront windows on the street begin to quake.

  Suddenly Will is in front of me, taking my face in his hands. “Hanna, look at me. You have to calm down.” His eyes are a deep blue reminding me of the way the sky looks after the sunset. It’s oddly comforting. Some of the energy raging through me starts to ease. “That’s it. Just breath. You can control it.”

  I take a deep breath, keeping eye contact, letting everything but us fade.

  I can control this.

  “Will?”

  At the sound of Kat’s voice all the calm I’ve achieved is gone. Anger and hurt rise back to the surface with so much force I know I won’t be able to stop what’s about to happen. Will’s arms wrap around me pulling me to the ground. His body molds to mine protecting me from most of the blast.

  I force my eyes open as Will helps me to my feet. Glass liters the sidewalk going half way out into the street. Kat’s back is pressed against the heavy wooden door of Frank’s, a look of horror on her face. Both windows beside her have blown outward leaving huge gaping holes in the face of the building.

  On the outside I’m still as stone, on the inside, I’m completely falling apart at seeing what I’ve done. Will takes ahold of my hand leading me to his bike. In my state of shock I let him. Kat’s eyes weigh heavy on me with a mix of fear, confusion, and betrayal.

  “Put this on.” Will thrusts a helmet into my hands. Time drags. Everything moves in slow motion as I look from the helmet in my hands to Kat. She glares, her eyes daring me to defy her by getting on the bike. I look back to the helmet contemplating what I should do. Will’s voice echoes out slowly, “Hanna, we have to go.” I look at him and that’s when I hear the sirens wailing.

  Time speeds back up at my decision to put the helmet on. I climb on the back of the bike with one last look at Kat. Her face says it all. I will not be forgiven. Will revs the engine, the front wheel momentarily coming up off the ground and then we’re gone, leaving everything behind.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The town passes by in a blur of colors. I have no idea where Will is taking me and I don’t really care. Any place is better than where I just came from.

  How could I have done what I did busting out all the mirrors and windows like that? I could have hurt someone. I could have hurt Kat.

  I hug myself closer to Will closing my eyes. I just want to shut it all off. I don’t want to think about how much of a freak I’m becoming, or the fact that I could’ve killed one of my best friends. I don’t want to think about what her face must have looked like with all that glass flying around her, or about how scared she must have been. But hard as I try, I can’t stop, and it consumes me. And before I know it, I’m crying harder than I have in a long time. My chest heaves with every intake of air as my fingers fist around the fabric of Will’s shirt until I can’t hold onto him any tighter than I already am.

  The bike slows, veering to the left. Coming to a stop, Will shuts the engine off. I’m still crying uncontrollably and Will has to pry my fingers open to release his shirt. He takes his helmet off then removes mine. Without a word, he scoops me off the bike and into his arms, hugging me until there are no tears left.

  “Better?” His eyes search my face as he wipes away the last of my tears.

  I hiccup, a little embarrassed that he had to see that. “Yeah. I’m sorry I lost it there for a while.”

  “You don’t have to apologize Hanna. There’s no shame in crying.”

  “Where are we?” I ask looking around for the first time. The highway behind me winds around a curve disappearing into the unknown. There are no houses anywhere in sight and the only thi
ng in front of me is a forest of towering trees with a path leading into its depths marked by a large boulder. We’re utterly alone in the middle of nowhere.

  “A place I like to go to when I need to escape the world for a while.” He takes my hand in his. “You looked like you needed a place like that after what happened back there. Come on.” Leading me down the path we enter the woods where we walk in silence and I’m grateful to him for not interrogating me about what happened at Frank’s.

  Maneuvering around a section of thick trees we step out onto the edge of a cliff where the world falls over the side and the sky goes on and on as far as the eye can see. It’s breathtakingly beautiful. I keep walking until my toes have no more land to touch. I know where we are now. At least a hundred feet below me are the still waters of Lake Haven, the lake from which our little town was named after.

  Will takes a seat dangling his legs over the edge and I follow suit doing the same.

  “She hates me now,” I say softly.

  “Who hates you?”

  “Kat.”

  “Why would Kat hate you?”

  “Because she likes you.”

  One eyebrow on his confused face rises. “She hates you…because she likes me? That makes no sense.”

  Can he really be that clueless? “She hates me because you weren’t paying attention to her.”

  He’s trying not to smile. “And so she takes it out on you? My not paying attention to her.”

  “Yes, because you were paying attention to me.” I feel so stupid talking to him about this, especially when he clearly finds it all so amusing.

  Will tucks a loose strand of hair that’s fallen out of my ponytail behind my ear. “Maybe I’m paying more attention to you because you’re more interesting. Kat’s too easy to figure out, but you, you’re a mystery. And I like mysteries.”

  I can feel my face reddening. As subtly as I can, I look away so he can’t see. “I’m not mysterious, or interesting, or even pretty according to Kat.”

  “She’s wrong.” Hooking a finger under my chin he turns my face to his. “I’ve been watching you this past week Hanna, you should give yourself more credit. You are all of those things plus so much more.”

  Part of me is a little creeped out that he’s been watching me for the better part of a week when I’ve only known him two days, and the other part appreciates what he’s trying to do. “You weren’t watching all the time right?”

  He flashes a devilish grin. “No, not all the time. Just enough to know who you are.”

  “And who am I?”

  Will scoots closer, his blue eyes locked onto my gray ones. “You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met. You were marked. Your whole world pulled out from under you, yet you didn’t let it drag you down. You met it head on. You’re strong. Defiant. And I have no doubt that you’ll figure out what Sam’s trying to show you.” His eyes travel to my lips. “You’re also very beautiful, so don’t let Kat convince you otherwise.” Leaning in, his lips brush softly against mine.

  I place a hand against his chest, gently pushing him away. “I can’t.”

  “Because of Kat or Jared?”

  “Both.”

  “No worries, I’ve got time.” He smiles confidently.

  “Time for what?” I ask.

  “To win you over and steal you away of course.” He states it like it’s a fact in the making.

  “Really?”

  “Well, yeah, we’ll be spending a lot of time together.” Taking my hand he turns it over so the symbol is face up. He traces his finger over it leaving an iridescent trail. It only ever does that when he touches it. “We’ll be working together to discover who you’re supposed to find. And then there’s all the time needed to help you control all of your new abilities. Especially the telekinesis.” He winks at me with a smile. “With all that togetherness, you’re bound to fall for me.”

  I roll my eyes, but smile despite myself as I take my wrist back. “And what if I don’t?”

  “You will.” He sits up straighter, posing. “I can be very alluring.”

  I laugh. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re full of it?”

  “It’s been said a time or two.”

  “So,” I say changing the subject. “I experienced another one of Sam’s memories this morning.”

  “What did you see?” His face grows serious, getting back to business.

  “Sam was talking to Zoe about something he’d overheard his dad say, something that had to do with his mom. He didn’t say what it was, but he did mention that he talked to you about it also and that you didn’t really believe him.”

  Will looks at me with unfocused eyes, his mind drifting somewhere else. “I didn’t believe him when he told me and I hate myself for it. I keep thinking that if I had, he wouldn’t have lost trust in me, he wouldn’t have gone out alone that night, and he wouldn’t be dead right now.” Will grabs a large rock then heaves it over the edge. It hits the surface of the lake with a splash sending ripples across the once smooth surface.

  “You can’t blame yourself for what happened to Sam,” I say taking his hand. “You told me once that it wasn’t my fault when I wanted to blame myself for what happened to him and I’m telling you now that it isn’t your fault either. Sometimes bad things just happen.”

  “Sometimes bad things just happen?” Voice raised, he pulls his hand from mine. “It's not like he was killed in a mugging gone wrong Hanna. He was killed by a Fallen. A Fallen. My best friend was killed by a Fallen and I wasn’t there to save him.” He takes several deep breaths, his jaw clenching. “I should have been there.” Pain and hurt over the loss of his best friend play over his face. His voice lowers. “I should have been there. I don’t even really know why Sam was there. Hanging out at clubs like The Iron Knife was never his idea of a good time.” He covers his face with his hands. “Why couldn’t I have just have believed him?”

  “Believed him about what exactly?” I ask as gently as I can.

  “There’s this prophecy we’re all told about as kids. Most of us never give it much thought because it was prophesized so long ago with no date of when it’s supposed to happen. It basically talks about a coming battle that starts with the birth of a child born to both sides. This child, because he or she can walk in both worlds would bring about the apocalypse where he or she would either save the world or damn it. Sam was convinced that the time of the prophecy was now and that the child mentioned is his brother. I thought he was nuts when he told me his suspicions so I blew it off never giving it a second thought, but last night when I was looking at that photo of you and your brother in your room, it suddenly hit me that maybe I shouldn’t have. Because I think now, maybe he was right all along and that’s why he was killed. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

  “Sam has a brother?”

  “Yeah, or at least that’s what Sam thought he heard his dad say when he was eavesdropping outside his dad’s office. He was convinced that his dad said his mom had another child in secret before they were married and that this secret child was the one prophesized about.”

  “But for that baby to be the one in the prophecy it would mean that the father has to be Fallen? How is that possible? Wouldn’t technically the body being possessed still be human?”

  Will stares out over the lake watching as the sun dips below the tree line setting the sky ablaze with streaks of orange, red, and yellow. “No. Once the Fallen takes possession whatever was once human is pretty much gone. Any baby conceived would be half fallen angel.”

  Great. So Sam wants me to find the child of a supernatural human and a fallen angel that holds the fate of the world in his hands. How am I supposed to do that? I wouldn’t even know where to start.

  Abruptly, I get up and walk back towards the darkness of the woods now that the sun has fully set leaving Will to scurry after me. “I can’t do this,” I say once he’s caught up.

  “Yes you can. Everything you need to know to find him is in here.” He
takes my wrist in his hand indicating the symbol Sam marked me with. “Once you do, The Order will take care of the rest.” Moonlight cascades down through the treetops illuminating the angles of his face. He looks like a fierce warrior ready to take on anything, the complete opposite of me.

  “I wish I could be as confident as you, but I’m not. Truth is, I’m scared. I never asked for any of this and now all these strange things are happening to me that I can’t control and on top of that you’re telling me that I’m supposed to find a half angel half super human hybrid. How am I supposed to do that when I’m barely keeping it together? I’m just a girl, Will. I’m not like you. I wasn’t built for stuff like this.” I pull my wrist from his hand. “You were wrong when you said I was strong.”

  “Hanna…” Will trails off as he stares past me into the depths of the woods. His body stiffens on high alert. He moves around me holding me back with one arm as if to protect me from something. Reaching under the back of his shirt he unsheathes a long metal blade that was hidden underneath. It’s longer than your average knife, but shorter than a sword. Dropping it to his side, moonlight gleams off of it giving it an unearthly glow.

  I look into the woods, my body tensing against the unknown threat. “Will?”

  “Shh, we’re not alone.” Keeping me behind him he turns us in a circle gauging our surroundings. “We need to get back to the bike fast. When I tell you to, run.”

  I don’t see anything, though he’s clearly picking up on something. “What is it?”

  “Fallen.”

  My whole body freezes at the sound of that word. Fallen? Here? Now?

  “Hanna, Hanna, Hanna.” Blondie’s voice singsongs out from somewhere in the dark. “How I’ve missed you.”

  I grab a handful of Will’s shirt pulling myself against him. “It’s him. It’s Blondie.”

  A figure emerges from behind a tree lit by the moonlight. Blondie leans his shoulder casually against it crossing his ankles. Between his hands he twirls the same black blade that I stabbed myself with in my last nightmare. As before, the blade appears to pull at the light around it like it’s draining it somehow. His lips curve into a menacing grin. “I had a little trouble getting into your dreams last night, Hanna.” He points the blade at Will. “Would that be your fault Guardian?”