After the Storm (Gifted and Special Adolescents Hospital Book 1)

by Cheryllynn Dyess

  He laid his hand softly on her shoulder, “I would never force-”

  “I know. It’s not that. I just want you to know that I want this. Really bad. But you need to know it will be my first time, first time doing it on my terms.”

  He was by her side holding her in an instant, “I would be honored if you would do me the same honor?” She looked up at him in shock just before she smiled and started pulling her shirt over her head. The rest of the early morning was a blur to the two young lovers as they melted into one in a swirl of pleasure that both finally wanted.

  Hours later, Bec woke with a jerk. Her eyes saw the wall, but her body felt the warmth of another body. It took her several seconds to realize it was Jake who laid behind her with a firm hold on her with one arm around her waist. His soft breaths could be felt through her short hair, a smile made its way onto her. She gently pulled his arm off her and she slid out of the bed. Running a hand through her hair as she stood looking at the man lying in her bed, Bec’s anxiety skyrocketed. She jumped when a knock came at her door. “Um, I’m not dressed. Wait a minute,” She called out which woke Jake.

  He sat up confused at first where he was when he saw the young woman; he loved standing there staring back at him. Fear is what he saw in her eyes. Another knock at the door. He jumped up, pulling on his pants. Quickly grabbing his shirt, he stood before Bec, “Don’t worry. I can get out of here without being seen,” he gave her a wink, then leaned in for a passionate kiss, “We got this. I love you Bec.”

  She stood staring at him, her hand slowly going to her lips as she heard herself reply, “I love you too Jake.” He smiled then ran towards the wall as he phased through it. She quickly pulled on her clothes. She turned to the door, “Come in,” she called out as she jumped on her bed.

  “Good morning,” the orderly spoke cheerfully. He was a tall, wiry man with bright red hair and ice-blue eyes so light they almost looked white. “Where you want it?” With one brow raised, Bec stared at the man. He was obviously new because he spoke to her like they were friends and that immediately put her on edge. She glanced at the table then back to the man. “Okay, I can put it there.” He did and walked over to her holding out a hand for her shake, “My name is Geo.” Bec glanced at his hand and then back at him. She eased herself back on her bed to give more distance between them. “Oh, well okay. I just wanted to introduce myself. I’ll be your new guard so we will be seeing lots more of each other.”

  Bec’s expression scrunched. She knew Jake was her guard, so why would this guy say this? She looked up at the camera in her room and realized the red light was on. Shit, they saw everything. He always turns that off. Her pulse raced. Her breath quickened. Her adrenaline soared. She had to get to Jake before they did, but she had no way of doing so. Then a thought struck her, Kyle! She needed to get to Kyle. As soon as Geo left her room, Bec cleaned up and got ready for class. She followed the new guard to her classroom and immediately began to seek out Kyle.

  Wale was waiting for her at their station. She nodded to him that she was coming but turned towards Kyle and screamed inside her head. He his head jerked. His dreadlocks swinging around wildly. I need your help. Its Jake. They found out. Kyle’s expression dropped. He knew that the girl he had fallen for was in love deep with a guard but getting caught, that was deadly. In the past guards who were caught with residents were never seen nor heard from again.

  For the rest of class, Kyle did all he could to find Jake telepathically while avoiding Bec. Three hours later and he got an answer. The guard was found dead in the woods outside of GASAH. His partner froze the instant Kyle got the news. Both young men went pale, Kyle told his partner, Do not tell her in here! I’ll tell her in the yard later! She will destroy this place.

  Chapter 24

  The holidays were never a huge love of Bec’s. As a child it meant torturous moments at home when school was out. While at the hospital she began to enjoy them a bit more with the companionship of one or two special individuals. Now that she has been living on her own and owning the shop, Bec has found a new love for a few of the holidays, especially the New Year.

  The holidays were the only time of the year that most people got to see a softer side of Bec, when she would let down her walls just a bit and enjoy life and this year was no different. Hanging decorations, Bec was smiling and joking around with the staff and clients. Her spirits were high and stayed that way till the end of the workday where things turned more serious for her.

  “Charlie, I’m going out to handle some business tonight. Tiff still at your place?”

  The woman shot her a quick worried glance, “Yeah, why?”

  “I’m going to fix some things and wanted to make sure she was safe,” Bec replied with a devious smirk.

  “Need me to close the shop?”

  “Ya know what,” Bec stood from her chair, “that actually would be good. I’ve got to check on a few things and that would give me plenty of time to do so. Thanks.” Grabbing her phone and keys, the woman walked out the back door to her car.

  Sitting in her car, Bec took a few deep breaths and mentally went through her checklist. She had hacked Tiffany’s husbands accounts and discovered he had been hoarding money and had a side chick. After watching the man for a week, she was confident she had his routine down and planned to make a surprise visit. Plugging in her phone, she hit the car play and chose some hard rock music just before turning the radio up to an absurd level.

  It took the woman less than ten minutes to find Tiffany’s house. Pulling up into the driveway, Bec scanned the house. The only lights on were in the kitchen and there was one car in the drive which left only one car to be in the garage. Turning the car off, Bec stepped out of her car and stretched just a little before going to the knock.

  Three hard knocks and the voice inside started yelling. The woman smiled. In a rush the door flew open, “Who the hell are you knocking on my house?” A gruff voice yelled at her. That voice belonged to a tall, muscular man, who stood six foot easily, had tons of tattoos and roughly grown beard.

  “Jack?” Bec asked innocently.

  The man looked her up and down greedily before responding, “Yeah.”

  Bec pushed her way in and walked into the living area. “I thought we could talk,” she turned to him.

  Narrowing his eyes, his suspicion grew. “I don’t know you lady and you need to leave. It could be dangerous to be here.” He closed in on her with each work until he was looking straight down on her.

  Bec played the submissive yet flirtatious role she knew he’d fall for. Running her finger down his check while batting her eyes up at him, she teased, “Now, you wouldn’t turn away a beautiful woman who just came to talk and have some fun. Would you?”

  He took the bait and put his arms on her hips. Bec cringed as he wreaked of stale beer and cigarettes. “Fun I can do.” As he leaned in to nip at her neck, Bec head butted him causing him to stagger back. “What the actual f-” Bec slammed the palm up into his nose, cutting off his words.

  He hollered out as he grabbed his face and. Blood pouring out of his fingers. The tiny woman, compared to his size, walked up under him leaning down to look him in the eyes, “Ready to talk now?”

  “You bitch. I’m going to kill you!” He roared as he flew a hand back to hit her, but she was across the room already. He looked over at her in confusion, “how the hell?”

  He stomped across the room towards her and her eyes twinkled in anticipation. She rocked back and forth on her heals like a cat ready to pounce on its prey. When he was close enough that he could reach her, she threw out her hand and her telekinetic abilities threw the man backwards against the wall. Pictures fell and crashed around him as the shelves shook under the pressure of his weight. He stumbled to get up and came roaring at her again.

  Bec was ready, of course. That devious smile from earlier made another appearance, “You like to fight women? Well, I fight back!” She flicked her left wrist upward while flicking the right downward, c
ausing the furniture in the room to turn into a whirlwind. Standing with her feet planted, Bec watched the man panic as his living room turned into a mass chaos. After a few moments, Bec let the furniture fall and waited to see what the man would do.

  “No woman is going to beat me! Just wait -” he began to holler just as Bec held her hands out and raised her chin just a bit. Everything in the room began to vibrate. A loud hum overwhelmed Jack to the point he covered his ears with his hands and ended up in the fetal position.

  Bec slowed the vibration down, “do you submit?”

  “Never!” he growled.

  She chuckled, “I was hoping you’d say that. She calmed the room and lifted him into the air. He flailed, trying to grab at anything. Bec watched his pain grow. Holding her left hand out, she pointed at him and directed his body to the kitchen where she laid him on the table and held him there. With her right hand, she mentally grabbed the kitchen knives and held them in the air waiting their instructions. Pulling the table on its end, Bec made the table spin and mentally began throwing the knives at the scared man.

  After two struck his leg, he began to beg, “I give. I give.”

  Dropping the table on its end, Bec walked up to the man. Looking at each of the knives, she pulled one out that was near his throat and held it down below the belt line, “You will never touch Tiffany again. You will sign over this house, your car, and transfer the money from your hidden account to her.”

  “Yes, yes. Of course. Anything. Just let me go.”

  Twisting her mouth with thought, “fine but you will do all that now.” As she spoke the word now, the table dropped, the knives removed themselves from him and made a loud exploding sound. The air swooshed around the room. The man stood up staggering, trying to catch his breath. “Get the paperwork,” the woman dressed in all leather demanded. Jack moved to leave the room, “don’t try to do anything you will regret,” the woman warned.

  “Oh. No. Of course not.” He walked down the hall as Bec followed him at what she hoped was a safe distance. When he turned into the bedroom, he was waiting for Bec as he threw and landed a punch in her gut. Bent over gasping, she was now in a compromising position. “You weird ass bitch. No woman ever beats me.”

  Bec started laughing. He may be strong, but she had gifts he couldn’t control. Throwing out both hands, he flew backwards and was pinned to the wall. She spread out her left hand, causing his legs and arms pull outward. She nudged her hand forward putting more pressure on his body. Walking up close enough to whisper in his ear, she spoke softly, “You will regret touching me.”

  The woman stepped back three feet and began punching in the air at the man’s body, but not once did she touch him. Her telekinetic abilities, however, struck hard and rapidly. Nearly five minutes later, the man had broken ribs, a swollen face, and a broken jaw.

  An hour later, Bec knocked on Charlie's door. Opening the door, Charlie stood back to let the woman in. “All good?”

  “Yeah,” she held up a folder before asking, “Where is Tiff?”

  Tiffany came out of the bathroom at that moment, “I’m here. What’s this?” She asked when Bec handed the folder to her.

  “It’s… everything. The house, car and money. Do what you want with it but Jack will not be a problem for you ever again!”

  Tiffany thumbed through the papers and looked between the two women staring back at her, “Thank you.” She began to cry and surprised both women by giving them a group hug.

  Bec returned the hug and whispered, “Happy New Year.”

  Chapter 25

  Early on Monday morning, Bec sat in the middle of her bed hashing over the memories of the last few weeks. It’s been a week since she has seen or heard from Jake. Everyone ignores her questions or changes the subject, everyone except Kyle. Last night before they went to their rooms, Kyle told her he had news about Jake and would talk to her in the yard to explain things. Immediately a weight in the pit of her stomach formed. Startled out of her thought from a hard knock on the door, Bec stood as the door handle turned. Geo’s head peeped in, “Good morning sunshine. Time to go.”

  Bec glared at the man. She still hadn’t spoken a word to him. Not finding it in herself to trust him yet, Bec pushed past him as she walked into and down the hall leaving the guard to catch up. Geo never stood too close to her, but today he did. Leaning in he whispered, “I hear you have missed old Jakie dear.” His voice full of darkness and animosity.

  Bec froze. He was close enough to touch her. She waited, glaring straight ahead. Geo did the one thing everyone was warned not to do. He put a hand on her shoulder. He touched her. She flew around with the force of her speed and threw him back against the wall with her telekinetic powers, never once raising a hand. She slowly walked up to him, leaned in and whispered, “Never touch me.” Bec straightened, turned and walked to the cafeteria to have her breakfast. The guard jogged to catch up but walked several feet behind her making sure to stay a safe distance, as he rubbed the back of his head. Geo had no desire to get thrown around again.

  When she walked crossed the threshold of the cafeteria, everyone went silent as heads turned towards her. She froze for the second time that morning. By the time Bec had made her way inside, all the students already knew the news about Jake. Kyle sat with his back to the wall as he watched her walk by the students and make her way to the buffet counter. Slowly everyone turned back to their own trays and whispers grew. Bec’s brow twitched as she came to realize that normally it is completely silent in the cafeteria, so what made today different? Tray in hand, she turned to go sit by Kyle. Other residents would glance her way and then whisper amongst themselves. She was no mind reader, but even she knew when she was the topic at hand.

  Sliding onto the bench seat, Kyle nodded to her then glanced at Geo. Mentally, Geo was screaming at himself for what he had done and that let the young man know that Bec was already on edge. Under the table, Kyle slowly slid a hand onto her knee and gently squeezed as he spoke to her and her alone, rough morning I see. Bec only nodded as she cleared her mind and kept Kyle out of it. He removed his hand and went back to his food. He just needed to make sure no one told Bec that Jake was not only gone but dead before he was in a safe area, before she was in a safe area.

  Another student, Jailin, sat down across from Kyle and the temperamental teen. Standing six foot two, the young man with white eyes winked at Bec before speaking, “Good morning. Sorry for your loss.”

  Bec’s fork, mid-air, stopped its progression. “My loss?” Kyle kicked Jailin under the table and shook his head no, but it was too late. Bec had caught on that something had happened and she was not in the loop. Jailin’s dark complexion paled. He had made the dangerous mistake that Kyle had been working to control. Bec’s voice softened, “What loss Jailin?”

  Trying to regain his composure he stuttered, “Well, you obviously have a new guard! So, Jake must have been moved to another wing or something. I know how well you had gotten along with him.” The students who could hear the panic in his voice scooted away from him, from her.

  “Hmm, is that so.” Bec calmly put her fork down and leaned forward, “and what do you know of what happened to Jake?”

  By this time, Geo had moved back several feet and all the students had cleared a significant area from around the three teens sitting at the table. Kyle glared at Jailin and sent him mental threats to not say a word. Jailin swallowed hard. He had heard the girl had a temper, but he wasn’t sure how true the stories were. He was newer to the hospital as he arrived just after the holidays. What he was about to say would tell him he should have headed the warning. “Everyone knows. Don’t you?”

  “Apparently not!” The teen glared, “so tell me Jailin. What happened to Jake?” Bec turned to look at Kyle when she spoke. He had a hand over his face knowing that he had a made a vital mistake of not telling her sooner.

  “They found his body by or in the woods over a week ago. Don’t know why they didn’t tell you,” he shrugged. His whi
te eyes narrowed as he looked at Kyle, not understanding the relationship that Bec and Jake had. The first person that Bec allowed to be so close to her. Kyle could barely touch her without her flipping out but Jake, she had made love to.

  Bec sat still processing the words the teen had spoken. Turning to Kyle, she calmly asked, “Is this true?”

  Kyle didn’t reply. He didn’t turn to look at her. He did glance her way, but that was all he could manage. He was trying to mentally prepare for the chaos that was about to ensue. He glanced at Jailin and shook his head but didn’t attempt to move away. He would stay there for her and not for the last time in his life.

  “You knew and didn’t tell me? This is what you were going to tell me in the yard? You’ve known the whole time?” Bec’s questions continued as her anger grew. It was her last question that he finally spoke up, “Who did it?”

  “I don’t know. Honestly. I wanted us to be alone when I told you,” his hands on his legs as he turned to her to speak but it was too late.

  Her eyes raged. Her jaw flinched. As she stood, she threw out her arms and everything that was not nailed down flew outward, including some students. Time slowed for her as she saw the forks and spoons twisting in the air. The food flew from the trays as they flipped in the air. Students that had been standing were thrown with the force of a small tornado against the walls, tables, buffet stand, and each other. Guards that were standing outside the cafeteria rushed in only to be thrown back with everything else, even a few tables were upended.

  Bec held her arms out, making everything to freeze in mid-air. Heavy breaths made her chest rise and fall as if she were out of breath, but she was just getting started. Slamming her hands down, everything dropped. The mistake that was made was the guards thought she was done and stormed towards her. Looking down at her hands on the tables, the emotionally devastated teen could see them rushing towards her out of her periphery. She let them close in on her. When they were about five feet from her, she smiled and looked up at them. Flicking her left wrist outward, the guards were thrown backward. Two sustained major injuries and the other's just bruises. Bec didn’t care.