K: The Awakening (The Shadow Chronicles Book 1)

by K. R. Fajardo

  “You go ahead, I have further business to attend to in town. I’ll be back later,” the Enforcer growled, still hovering over Mikel. “And save the lady for me, I will deal with her myself when I get back.”

  “Fine,” she grumbled, turning to the guards. “Load her in the wagon with the Full-blood and take them back to the interrogation wing. We are going back to meet with the Shadows and give them our report.” And with that the guards grabbed Janil, led her out of the room, and down the hallway; chains scraping against the wood floor as she was half dragged from the clinic.

  Mikel watched her all the way out the door, hoping for a glance or signal, anything to tell him what he was supposed to do next. She was his rock, his advisor, and one of the few people he trusted … and now she was gone. He attempted to get himself to his feet to follow, hoping for even the briefest moment to talk to her, but when he tried to stand a sharp pain sent him back to the floor clutching his chest. So he sat, hands cupping his face, overwhelmed with grief and the knowledge his close friend was gone from his life forever.

  Chapter 3

  Nightmares

  Was she telling the truth? Or did she lie to protect them? He would never know. Not that it mattered. Nothing was going to change the fact that she was gone; hauled away in chains before his very eyes. Guilt was beginning to overwhelm Mikel as he tried to imagine what he could have done differently. She was his rock, the one whose shoulder he had cried on when it seemed everything he loved was slipping through his fingers. And yet he had stood by and done nothing to save her. He should have done more … something, anything. Why hadn’t he confessed, why had he let them take her?

  The inspectors had come with the intentions of taking someone, of that he was certain. Janil had confessed, or lied, to save him and Dirik, and he was angry with himself for allowing her to do so. And even if it was the truth, that she had known the tag was stolen, why had she not told him earlier? He could have just as easily gotten a tag for the man as he had the girl. Becoming overwhelmed by his emotions, Mikel buried his face into his hands to hide the tears streaming down both cheeks. He knew why. Citera. She was the reason he had kept quiet just as she was the reason why Janil had confessed. Having already been forced to deal with the trauma of his wife’s recent death, there was no way she would have been able to cope with the loss of another parent so soon.

  Mikel refocused his attention on Dirik, who remained motionless in his corner. White from fear and in a state of shock, it was more than clear why the Enforcer had insisted on keeping him here during the inspection. He had used Dirik as bait. The Enforcer knew that neither he nor Janil would allow Dirik to be taken, so he used him, dangling him out in front of the two of them like a worm on a hook until he got what he wanted, a confession.

  A slight movement near the bed caught Mikel’s attention, reminding him they were not alone in the room. He and Dirik had been so focused on losing Janil that they had both forgotten the Enforcer was still standing near the bed. Mikel watched him as he stood looming, quietly focused on the girl, seemingly no longer concerned with the two of them. With one hand clutching his chest and the other pressed against the wall, Mikel somehow managed to pull himself to his feet, not once taking his eyes off the Enforcer. Then moving with slow shaky steps and keeping his back to the wall, Mikel inched toward the corner to stand beside Dirik.

  “You okay?” he asked, placing his hand gently on the boy’s shoulder. Dirik looked at him blankly and gave a slight nod, but that was all he needed. He grabbed ahold of the boy’s coat with his free hand, and dragged him down the hallway into the front lobby.

  “Go now, get out of here,” Mikel commanded.

  Dirik, in shock, remained silent, staring through him as if he wasn’t there.

  “Dirik, snap out of it, I need you to get out of here now!” Grasping Dirik’s shoulders, Mikel shook him vigorously until the boy’s eyes finally shifted and met with his. “Please, go and check on Citera for me. I need you out of here and safe.” Dirik tilted his head to look behind Mikel toward the room where the Enforcer was standing. When he glanced back at Mikel, a concerned expression marred his features. “Dirik, I’ll be alright, I promise.”

  “But …”

  “Dirik, I’ll be fine.” Mikel reinforced, pushing the boy toward the front door.

  “Well, okay.” Dirik relented in a voice so soft Mikel could hardly hear him, “but what do you want to tell her happened? I know she will ask.”

  Pulling open the door, Mikel ran a shaky hand through his hair. He didn’t want Citera to know about Janil right now, Rigar either. It would be better if they were all together when he broke the news. “Tell her that I am fine and the inspection is over, that’s all she needs to know. Also, tell her I want her to spend the night with Rigar, just to be on the safe side. I will send for all of you tomorrow and explain the rest.”

  Dirik peered one more time at the room, then at Mikel before he silently disappeared through the door and down the steps; leaving Mikel alone with the Enforcer.

  *****

  Enforcer watched bemused as the healer pulled the errand boy out of the room and dragged him down the hall. He was fairly certain they were about to make a break for it. However, he could care less. Actually that was exactly what he wanted. He was finally being given a moment alone with the girl, who he had the distinct feeling was more than what she appeared to be.

  Pulling off one of his gloves he ran his hand delicately over her arms and down her legs. Discrepancies, only recognizable by touch, could be felt covering her bare skin. It felt as if she was covered in scars or marks, although there were none visible. And there was something else; although she appeared to be unconscious, showing no signs of life other than the shallow breathing that would have gone unnoticed by most, he had the overwhelming impression she was watching him. He tried to shake it off, blaming his own deep rooted paranoia and natural mistrust, but every fiber of his being told him something wasn’t right. Knowing better than to disregard his instincts, he decided to put her to the test. If she was really faking her condition, he knew just how to find out. Slowly he moved his hand back up to her neck, encircled it, and tightened his grip.

  He expected her to come up fighting, abandoning her deception. So he was surprised when she remained motionless, even as he tightened his grip and denied her body of air. But still he continued to squeeze. He couldn’t afford to take any chances; his gut told him she was hiding something, and if he was right about what that was, it could change everything. Her condition alone made him suspect that she could be an elder; at the very least she was a predator. No other type of Full-blood could have survived being starved to the point this girl had been. Either way, she was the first of her kind that he had seen in years, having personally assisted the Shadows in their mission to eliminate them completely. So, with his curiosity peaked, he continued to deny her air until her body surrender beneath his grasp. With pride he watched as his suspicions proved themselves true and her mask faded away, revealing to him all that she had tried so hard to hide.

  Every discrepancy that he had felt was now visible to the naked eye, including a very distinguishing scar that ran down her face and across her eye. Fascinated, he lifted her body up toward him and pulled up the back of her gown. Like the rest of her, her back was covered in the scars from past beatings and fights, but that wasn’t what he was looking for. It was a mark he hunted, and it was a mark he found.

  Perfectly centered between her shoulder blades was the very mark he had spent so many decades searching for, with its bold black lines shining against the paleness of her skin. Satisfied, he lowered her back onto the bed to check one last thing. He reached down and gently pried open her eye. The same eye that had been brown only minutes ago was now a beautiful, but haunting shade of blue.

  He smiled. Confident that he had all the proof he needed, he bent over the body of the girl and whispered into her ear very quietly, “I know who you are.” Gently brushing a piece of hair out of her face
he continued, “And I will be coming back for you.”

  *****

  Mikel stood in the lobby watching Dirik as he disappeared out the door. With the boy gone, he could refocus his attention on the Enforcer, still lurking in the exam room. Sneaking back down the hall as quietly as he could, he edged closer to get a look through the window in the door. He watched as the giant man leaned over and gently brushed a piece of hair from the girl’s face while whispering in her ear.

  What was that about?

  He didn’t have long to ponder the thought before the Enforcer turned and headed for the door. Stepping back, Mikel retreated down the hall back to the lobby. He had no desire what-so-ever to be trapped in the small confines of the hallway with the Enforcer; his aching body still hadn’t recovered from their first encounter.

  The Enforcer came down the hall, entered into the lobby, and glowered down at Mikel. “The girl down there,” he said, nodding his head toward the room, “what else do you know about her?”

  Mikel shook his head, keeping as much distance between them as he could. “I told you, we don’t know anything about her. She was brought in last night by some workers thinking she had been robbed.”

  The Enforcer’s hollow black eyes narrowed, his face void of any emotion. Mikel fidgeted nervously wondering whether or not he believed the lie he was telling him.

  “I will be back here before the end of the month,” the Enforcer said slipping his glove back on his hand, “and she had better still be here when I get back.” He stalked closer, eliminating the distance between them in two large strides. Glowering down on him, the Enforcer continued, “Because if she isn’t, then I will be forced to take in someone else in her stead. Perhaps that lovely daughter of yours, I believe her name is Citera isn’t it.”

  Every muscle in Mikel’s body failed him, shocked at hearing his daughter’s name uttered by the Shadows’ henchman. The thought of this monster laying hands on her made him both angry and sick. Miraculously, he somehow managed to push the image from his mind long enough to address him, “What do you want with the girl?”

  “That is none of your concern, just make sure she is here and alive when I get back.”

  He walked past Mikel toward the front door before stopping to add, “And clean her up, I need to get a better look at her when I return.” With that said he sauntered out the door and headed off down the street.

  Mikel watched from the doorway of the clinic until the Enforcer had disappeared into the distance. He couldn’t handle any more surprises, he had to be sure he was gone. Then the reality of what he said hit him. Back for the girl before the end of the month. But what could he possibly want with her? Did he suspect as they did that she wasn’t a normal Full-blood? And what did he whisper to her right before he left? His mind was spinning with these and many other questions as he reached up and grabbed ahold of his head with both hands, and began rubbing them up and down his face. Suddenly a voice startled him, causing him to nearly fall backwards off the stoop.

  “Mikel, did everything go okay??” It was Marta; the middle-aged woman who ran the market next door to the clinic.

  Mikel shook his head, his eyes tearing up. “They took her, Marta, she’s gone.” All the emotions came flooding back to the surface, and he no longer had the strength or desire to try and contain it as he collapsed onto the staircase.

  Marta covered her mouth with her hand. “Who, Mikel, who did they take? They didn’t take Citera, did they? Please tell me they didn’t take her.” Marta’s expression was one of pure anguish. Her market had been next door to the clinic since before Citera was born. Because of this she had always been a constant figure in the girl’s life and thought as much of Citera as she had her own daughter; who had died during a flu epidemic several years ago, the same one that had robbed Dirik of his parents.

  “No, Marta, they took Janil. Citera is safe, I sent her out of the clinic when I heard they were coming.”

  A slight look of relief crossed her face for a moment, but it was quickly replaced by sadness as the rest of what he said sank in. “What do you think they will do with her?” Marta asked solemnly.

  “What do they do with any of the people they take away? Interrogate, torture,” he paused as the thoughts of her impending fate began to overwhelm him, “execute.”

  It was more than Marta could handle and she burst into tears. “But she didn’t do anything to deserve that, all she ever wanted to do…all she ever did…was help people.”

  “It doesn’t matter, they don’t need a reason, because they make their own.” He took a deep breath and wiped away his own tears with his shirt sleeve. “Can I ask you a favor, Marta?” he prompted, looking down at her where she stood on the bottom of the stoop. “Can Citera stay with you for a week or two, until things settle? I can’t ask Rigar, I am already putting him and his family in grave danger by allowing her to stay there tonight.”

  Without a moment’s hesitation Marta agreed, “Of course she can, for as long as you need.”

  Relieved, Mikel stood to go back inside. “Thank you, thank you so much. I’ll repay you somehow, I promise.”

  “Never you mind that, just send her over and we will watch her.” Marta wiped away her tears and reached a hand out to him at the top of the stairs.

  He was more than familiar with the gesture and bent down, took her hand, and gave it a subtle kiss. Marta liked to think of herself as a genteel lady despite her rural upbringing. Many said she had married her husband only because she thought he had money, being as he owned his own market and all. If so, she must have been sorely disappointed when she arrived to find herself on the less than advantageous side of town. Regardless, she had always seemed pleasant and willing to help, and if all she was going to require for payment to keep his daughter safe was a kiss on the hand, he was more than happy to oblige.

  “Thanks again, but I had better get back in and check on the two patients we have left,” Mikel said, glancing behind him at the clinic.

  “All right, but if you need anything else, let us know. We are always here for you,” Marta replied then disappeared back into the market.

  Mikel returned inside the clinic and headed down the hall to check on the first patient, the young Full-blood who had yet to reach his prime. He adjusted his transfusion, checked his lines, and repositioned the young boy to keep him from developing sores. After he was sure the boy was as comfortable as he could get him, he headed down the hall to the girl’s room.

  Stepping through the door, his gaze was met by a pair of crystal blue eyes staring back at him from sunken sockets. The shear shock of it caused him to startle and stumble backwards into the wall. The girl was sitting straight up in the bed and staring right at him while she clutched tightly to her broken arm. And though her face was flat and expressionless, it was evident from her posturing and the glazed look in her eyes that she was suffering terribly.

  Mikel remained silent, scared to move. Her eyes, the color of the sky on a clear spring day, were both beautiful and frightening at the same time. And as she continued to stare him down, he got the distinct feeling that she was trying to decide how best to handle him. After several silent and tense moments, Mikel decide to make the first move and began to inch his way slowly into the room. “Are you hurting?” he asked. Carefully making his way around the bed, Mikel kept his hands raised to where she could see them. “Do you want me to give you something to help with the pain?”

  But the girl remained silent and motionless, watching his every move. The way she stared at him made him feel uncomfortable to say the least. It was as if she wasn’t looking at him, rather that she was looking into him, boring into his soul to determine his intentions. Mikel paused, not wanting to push his luck, and spoke again only slightly slower, “Do you understand what I am saying?”

  Ignoring his question, she broke her stare and studied the room around her. He wasn’t sure if she was trying to find a way out or just taking in her surroundings, so he waited, figuring the best thi
ng for him to do was to remain still and let her make the next move. After a while, she slowly turned her attention back to him, closed her eyes, and gently laid back into the bed. Unsure of what else to do, Mikel began to move slowly toward the bed once again.

  He had just about made it to the bedside when she suddenly reached up and grabbed her head with both hands as if in severe pain. The movement of her broken arm only compounded her agony. Her suffering was undeniable and he watched helplessly as she clutched her arm and rolled into a ball while her face contorted and twisted into the shape of someone who was screaming out in pain, yet no sound came from her.

  Mikel crossed the room quickly to one of the cabinets, pulled out a vial, then grabbing a syringe off the nearby table, began to fill it with the liquid. Once he felt he had a sufficient dose to ease her pain, he walked slowly once again toward the bed.

  “This will help,” he said, reaching to grab her uninjured arm, but she immediately pulled away. He moved in carefully, being sure not to appear aggressive in anyway. “I swear I will do nothing to hurt you, all I want is to help you with your pain.”

  She shook her head at him, and though her throat was dry she was able to mutter a raspy, but clear, “No.”

  Mikel, whose fear had all but disappeared, remained undeterred. “Please, let me help you. There is no need in allowing yourself to suffer this way.”

  Her gaze locked with his in a look that froze the blood within his veins. “Don’t touch me,” she demanded in a raspy growl.

  Unnerved, yet determined to aid in some way with her discomfort, Mikel continued to try a few more times to convince her to let him help, only to be denied each time. Finally, giving up on the idea, he put the syringe down on a nearby table and crossed his arms.

  Satisfied that he was not going to try and give her the injection, the girl struggled to reposition herself in the bed. But every movement of her frail, battered body only worsened her suffering.