Reborn from the embers, p.12
Reborn from the Embers, page 12
“Good things, I hope?” Salem asks with a nervous laugh; Stacey nods her head as she leans towards him slightly. I reassess Salem, and again wonder why girls seem to do that to him. They’re so gravitated to him. Do I act like that without realising it? I hope not.
“You’ve been a great friend to her Salem. I feel like I already know you.” She gushes. I look at my friend, who is acting more strange than usual. Erratic. I notice her hands flailing slightly as she teeters, and I wonder if she was leaning towards Salem or just losing her balance.
“Are you okay?” I ask as her eyes roll back into her head and Salem catches her before she slams her face into the side of a desk. Salem’s eyes widen as he cradles her looking at us bewildered. Craig steps into action, pulling her into his arms. I step towards her, but Craig shakes his head slightly before quickly looking at Salem. Right. Valkyries. Secrets.
“I’ll take her to nurses office.” Craig murmurs, as he looks down at the magically drained girl. He cradles her before taking off- he gives me a pointed look conveying the truth. This was magic related, and I need to do damage control. I look at Salem, shocked at the turn of events.
“Should we follow them?” He asks, his voice shaking ever so slightly. I shake my head after a minute. I almost feel bad for lying to Salem, because after all, Craig has no intention of taking Stacey to the nurse’s office.
“The nurse would probably kick us out anyway. Want to go for a walk?” I ask. He eagerly nods his head before we out into the blusterous weather. I’m briefly aware that we leave out the back exit, and the detail on me wouldn’t see me leaving from the front of the building. I’ll send them a message to let them know, at least I’m with Salem. Two against one are better odds than one.
“I didn’t know you were into meditating.” Salem jokes as he zips his coat up against the wind. I shrug my shoulders before smirking. I’m really not that into the meditating side of things.
“It’s a relatively new thing. My friends are into it more than me, I think.” He nods his head as he dives his hands into his deep pockets. “You really have a way with girls. I never really noticed it before, but Grace was obsessed with you, those girls at the movies almost mobbed you and then Stacey got all flirty to. You might have to teach me your ways, master.” Salem throws his head back and chortles.
“Master, I think I like that.” He jokes as he elbows me in the side. He grins at me and I roll my eyes.
“Of course, you would like that. Ego boost much?” He smiles serenely and we keep walking for a few more minutes in comfortable silence.
“Does Stacey faint often?” He asks, the picture of concern. I shake my head frowning Stacey had said she learnt the mediating trick in Beaumont. I hope they aren’t teaching her dangerous habits. Maybe, I would have to check this town out and make sure my friends are safe there. Sofia and Thomas’s arranged marriage still doesn’t sit right, regardless of what they say.
“No. I hope she’s okay.” I sigh, lost in my thoughts of whether I can trust Beaumont. I feel Salem grasp my arm and he looks into my eyes, with so much sincerity that I want to hug his kind nature. I’ve never known someone to have such dark eyes, not like Salem. They look unnatural.
“It’ll be okay.” He murmurs as his chocolate brown hair sways in the wind. I freeze. That hair. It’s so familiar. I pull my arm away from Salem and his eyebrows raise in surprise. I stare at him intently, not hearing whatever he is asking. Could it be? The images come crashing down around me and even without seeing his face, I know I need to get out of here. The guy smoking beside Linc. The one standing off in the distance watching us at the beach. I’d bumped into him once getting coffee at my old university. Somehow, he’d been following me all along and not once had I noticed. Slowly, I’d let him into my life.
“Thanks, Salem. I’ll catch up with you later, I better call Sofia and let her know.” I dash off before Salem responds but I’m sure I see the cold flash in his eyes. As soon as he’s out of sight, I break into a run and call Jace.
“Meet me at Marci’s make sure everyone is in groups. It’s Salem. He’s the killer. Pass it along. Now!” I hang up and call Marci. Even running I’m minutes away from her and the FBI. My heart is pounding, fear that Salem is chasing behind me pushing my mind into overdrive. “His name is Salem.” I yell into the phone, starting to lose my breath.
“Ali, what’s going on. Where are you?” Marci asks in a rush; I hear the concern in her voice and no doubt she can hear my heavy breathing. My minds a jumble as I try to tell her what’s going on. It comes out in fragments.
“I’m running to you. I’ll be there soon. I was with him. He’s here.” I gasp out and I start to wonder if I was ever as fit as I thought. I never got this puffed out in Thomas’s class and he has a hard on for running.
“You’re alone? Should have never trusted a group of kids,” She gripes. I’m too winded to answer right now, I think she realises that when I don’t answer. I’m too focused on running. “Stay on the phone. I’ve got people coming towards you too. Keep running.” I almost scoff. There is no way I’m hanging up the phone and there’s no way I’d stop running. I don’t look back, maybe I should, but I can’t. Fear propels me further and I barely notice the students shooting me strange looks. I make it to Marci’s office safely. I fall into her arms, as I try and catch my breath. I tell her that I recognise Salem from the funeral. From the hospital, the day I couldn’t find Linc. I recognise him hanging around campus at my old school. Jace and all my friends arrive to the office safely too. Marci smiles as Jace pulls me into his arms, wrapping them around me tightly. A gruff ahem sounds behind me and we turn to see who it is. A smile lights up across my face.
“Brandon!” I squeak before launching myself from the group and to the front door where I throw my arms around him.
“How’d you get here so fast?”
“Jacinda and I suspected a breach, so we decided to come up. Are you okay?” He steps back and gives me a once over.
“Brandon?” Thomas’ uncertain voice sounds behind me. Brandon flushes red and a guilty look dances across his face. “Where the hell have you been, brother?” Thomas falters, before storming up the steps and grasping Brandon tightly.
“The council saw a need for me elsewhere. Top secret.” I step back, watching the two conversing quietly before his words catch up.
“You’re like them?” I whisper, shocked, as I put two and two together. Brandon is a Valkyrie too. When I look at them together, I can see it, brothers. I’d never connected the two last names.
“I promise, Aleera, I’ll explain everything.” He breaks off as he sees another familiar face and squeezes my shoulder tightly. “Ah, there is my future sister-in-law. Glad to see you two aren’t fighting it anymore!” He pulls Sofia into a hug, which she returns fiercely.
“So, it’s weird you and Brandon know each other, right?” Jace asks with a small laugh. I look back at Jace, who looks a little lost among all the FBI agents.
“He was the detective on my parent’s case, back home.” I explain. Jace nods his head and I squeeze his hand. “Stacey and Craig, have you heard from them?” I ask. Jace quickly shows me the messages between him and Craig. Craig has Stacey, lying on him in one of the communal rooms watching a movie. It looks like she just fell asleep and they’re safer with a bunch of kids around them. I nod my head happily. I hear Marci barking out orders from behind me. The entire FBI and local police station have arrived and are combing the campus to find Salem. We’re so close. I can feel it. I’m giddy that we might finally get answers, and terrified. Had I even had a chance to process that he’d wormed his way into my life and became a friend? I shove that down. I can’t handle that shit right now. I can’t think about how all along this had been a sick game. I let the others know I need a minute and walk through Marci’s house to the spare room I had crashed in after the attack. I look out the window, over the campus before looking down surprised. Marci never leaves her windows unlocked. The curtains blowing slightly in the breeze is the last thing I see before my world goes black.
Chapter Twelve
"You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honour.” - Aristotle
Fear. I’m dreaming and all I can see is fear. A hesitation that costs someone everything. Screams. Shaking. Every version of fear is darting around in my head. It’s trying to consume me, tear me to pieces before I can even figure out the game. I think it might win, I think everything is truly over and then I open my eyes. You see dreadful things don’t just happen in dreadful places. Dreadful things happen when the light cannot keep the darkness at bay and souls that once could be beautiful are twisted into something they were not created for. We don’t have the control we think we do. We are just puppets in a game of the gods. Evident in the fact that my hands are tied above my head and my head is pounding. This is not of my doing. This is not because of my decisions. This is because of the careless acts of gods who do not see us for what we are. We are creation. We are life. Yet, here right now, I can almost see death. The first thing I notice, other than that I’m restrained is that I’m lying on a white bed. I try, weakly, to pull at the restraints. They hold tight. Darkness begins to pull at me again before I can formulate a plan. My last thought is I don’t want to go back to that dream.
When my eyes blink open again the room is dark, but I can see a figure in the corner. Standing. Watching me. Salem. I can’t pinpoint my exact emotion. Fear. Anger. Betrayal. Hope?
“Salem, what’s going on?” I whisper, as goose bumps prickle at my skin. I’m so cold. Why am I so cold when I should be warm in my thick clothing? He steps forward, gracefully as if stalking prey. I dimly remember that that’s what I am, prey. He’s going to kill me. My mind darts back to that day I almost jumped out the window. What had I been thinking? I don’t want to die. I close my eyes, knowing the panic won’t do anything. I saw that panic on my parent’s faces. At the very least I hope he makes it quick. No. I don’t want to die. How do I get out of this? How do I live? I can’t even keep up with my own thoughts.
“Oh Ali, finally. How’re you feeling?” He coos. I still, confused by his behaviour. Why is he being so nice? I shake my head, who cares? Play his game!
“My head hurts, Salem. I don’t know what’s going on.” I whimper, before looking at him with wide eyes. Would this work?
“Here, why don’t you have some water?” He offers me a drink through a straw and pets my hair. My ability to grasp thoughts begins to falter and then I slip away again. What’s wrong with me?
Sun streams through a window ask I blink my eyes open. I groan as I realise that I’ve left my curtains open again. No wonder I never sleep in. I flinch as the memories come hurtling back to me. I’m trapped, a prisoner. I look around frantically before my eyes land on something terrorising. I’m no longer in my jeans and parka but a pale pink dress instead. Bile rises as I quickly assess if my body hurts. I wiggle a bit and breathe a sigh of relief; it all feels fine. Which means Salem… he dressed me. My hands are no longer tied so I jump of the bed and storm to the door only to stop dead a metre away.
“No!” I gasp, mixed with frustration and anger, as I see he’s chained me to the bed. “Salem!” I scream, my sense of self-preservation diminishing greatly as my emotions surge. The door cracks open and he walks in with a smirk. I want to claw that smirk off his face. My fists ball and I hear a distinctive crack behind him. He laughs as he tilts his head.
“Hello, my little Seer.” Anger bubbles up inside me and I guess I lose my sense of self-preservation entirely as the words come hurtling out of me. Like a sea of wasps from their nest, my words spray with venom.
“What the fuck is wrong with you? You chained me to the bed, you sicko!” His eyes flash black with unsuppressed anger as he growls at me, stepping forward menacingly. I try not to cower, but I’m tied to a bed and vulnerable.
“I’m doing it for your own good. You’ll just hurt yourself otherwise. Now behave or you’ll go to sleep again!” He storms out of the room, slamming the door shut. I kick the bed before slumping down. How do I get out of this? I look around for an escape. The room is bland. I’m sitting on a double wrought iron bed with white covers. There is an old mahogany wardrobe in the corner of the room. A large window overlooking the beach. Oh god, I recognise the beach. I’m still nearby. Thank god. Well, I’ve got to eat and use the bathroom so he’s either going to leave me here to starve or come back eventually. If he can play a long-term game, then so can I. First, I need to figure out what he’s planning to do with me.
I have no way to track time but when Salem returns it feels like hours. He’s holding a tray of food and a large bottle of water. He smiles proudly when he sees me sitting quietly on the bed. I want to growl at him but think better, he is sort of treating me like a pet to be trained and I don’t want to encourage that.
“Are you planning on killing me?” I ask watching him. He places the food in front of me gently and leans against the wall. He watches me curiously, openly. I never thought of myself as violent before, but I’ve never wanted to attack someone quite so badly.
“No, my little darling. Of course not. I’m keeping you safe. Protecting you, like I should, like you need to be protected.” He tsks at me as if I’m a stupid young child.
“What’re you protecting me from? Murderers? Stalkers? Rapists?” I scoff.
“Eat.” He orders.
“Did you drug it?” I ask.
“Eat or starve. I’m happy to force feed you. Your choice.” I huff and eat the spaghetti bolognaise he’s brought me. It doesn’t taste drugged.
“Okay I’ve eaten. Are you going to keep me locked up here forever?” I ask and he smiles.
“No, my sweet Seer. Once you’ve acclimated, you’ll not want to leave me and then you’ll be allowed off the chain. Soon you’ll come to depend on me and then I’ll have what I want.”
“So, Stockholm syndrome?” I scoff and roll my eyes. His eyes flash and he steps forward.
“Bathroom time. Behave or you’ll get a pan from now on.” I shudder at the crudeness. He produces a key from his pocket and unlocks me. I can’t run away yet. I have to figure out this place. Plus, I want him caught. He walks me down the hallway, firmly gripping my arm and I can see now we’re in some sort of apartment. He shoves me into the bathroom which only has a tiny skylight as a means of window. “There is a change of clothes for you on the bench. Shower.” He orders. Play the game. Play the game. So, I quickly shower, use the toilet and change into the clean underwear and pale white dress sitting on the basin. I walk out of the room and find him standing there waiting. “The dress is pretty, thank you.” I say sweetly. He smiles and holds my arm less severely as he guides me back to the room. I pout when he locks my leg to the bed again, but he bops my nose and strolls out. Sighing, I grab the water and take a swig before passing out again. Mother fucker.
Ali! Listen!! I blink and look around groggily for the voice calling out to me. I’m sitting on a bench at my old college. Ali! There is that voice again. TJ? Suddenly TJ sits across from me and grasps my hand in relief.
“You’re okay!” He exclaims and I shake my head in confusion. I’m not okay, am I?
“Alright, Ali, I need you to think! Where are you? Where is that monster keeping you?” TJ asks as my dream echoes around me.
“Is this real, TJ?” I murmur. He nods his head.
“I’m a dream walker. I can interact with anyone in their sleep. Control their dreams, make nightmares. Now focus! Where are you?” Memories roll around me.
“I’m nearby, for now. The room I’m in overlooks the ocean but I’m a few levels up! He’s not hurting me, just drugging me.”
“Okay there are a lot of buildings overlooking the beach. Can you narrow it down?” I shake my head and TJ starts to fade away.
“Don’t leave me!” I scream and then I flinch awake.
Salem looms over me as he grasps my shoulder.
“Dinner time!” He announces happily. My stomach rolls and I shake my head.
“I’m not hungry. I feel sick.” I whisper as tears scorch my eyes. He pats my head gently.
“Eating will help, it’s the drugs making you feel ill. You won’t have to be on them forever.” He promises as I sigh into the pain wracking through my body. “I’ve brought soup. Just a few mouthfuls then you can sleep again, okay?” I nod my head and he helps me sit up. I eat half the soup before my eyes start to fall closed again. TJ doesn’t return to my dreams and I can only hope it wasn’t a dream.
Three days later
I’m fed up. I’m scared but I’ve been here for a few days and all Salem has done is feed me and dress me when I’m knocked out. My dream with TJ is but a distant memory. Desperation is the only thing feeding my soul. My flame is flickering and it’s begging for action. It’s time to poke the bear. I’m anxious for anything other than this nothing to happen. I’d been trying to make a weapon out of the only thing in my reach for the last few days. My hands ache from the wriggling of the wire on the bottom of the bedframe. Once it’s free I’ll unlock myself, or at least try. They welcome the break as I quickly dive back onto the bed when Salem enters, offering me lunch.
“I know who you really are, Salem.” I throw at him as he watches me eating the sandwich that he’s prepared for me. He raises his eyebrows at my words. Regardless of the ache in my hand I feel the pressure to get out of here as quickly as possible. I have to get him out of here so that I can continue with my task. If I make him angry it’ll give me some time alone to break myself out, anger him enough that he gives me some more information, or kills me. Let’s hope it’s first two.
“Pray tell. Do go on,” he laughs at himself. I’d been seeing a slightly more insane version of the Salem I had known this past semester.
“You were kidnapped when you were four years old. Your parents died trying to rescue you.” Salem scoffs but I see it. The anger in his eyes, the extra blinks of his eyes. He knows what I’m saying but it means something else to him.
