Kind of Dramatic

 

Chapter Eighteen

 

It rained on the day of my parent’s funeral. It was kind of dramatic, really. I was standing in front of their two black caskets, which both had red roses on the top of them, when big, fat drops of water started to splash my arms. I didn’t move. I stood there, staring at the caskets—and the picture of them together, smiling—until I felt a tug on my arm. I didn’t even realize everybody else had run for cover. There was now a large crowd of people in black running into the dry church, hands covering their heads.

It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered.

The person who had tugged my arm had left to run for cover too. I heard someone yell about a supposed storm. Like I said, it didn’t matter.

I had thought I was the only one left outside, but I was wrong. A figure wearing all black—of course—stood beside me, his head lowered and his eyes on the ground. I took a breath of the damp air.

“Go inside.” I had told Chase, not moving my eyes from the caskets. Rain splashed off of them, falling into puddles at their sides.

“I’m not leaving you.” Chase told me, and I could feel his eyes on me. I blinked once.

“You will eventually.” I had whispered numbly. Everybody leaves, right? No matter how strong, how important, how powerful. It didn’t matter who you were—eventually you would leave. Hell, I would leave.

I couldn’t hear Chase sigh—the rain was too loud—but I could feel it. He went to reach for my hand, but then pulled his hand back before it reached mine.

“I’m not leaving you.” He repeated. It hadn’t made me feel any better. They were just words; words said to make me feel better. Broken, hollow promises.

Chase and I stood there, next to the caskets, until the rain stopped. Which ended up being close to an hour.

When the rain cleared, the people dressed in black with painted-on sorrow, returned to funeral. And so it continued, with its meaningless words, its nonsensical people, and its tuneless music.

My first funeral ended with a bang, of course.

The Company showed up.

 

After the funeral goers left, and it was just me, the Davenports—Margaret, Logan, Brody, Chase—and Demetri and Elena, I finally look away from the spot where my parents are buried.

My eyes lock with a man all too familiar to me. The doctor from my earlier visions—the one that had killed that little girl, and then later my mother.

The one that had killed me in my visions. The one that had killed Chase.

I felt the first emotion other than pain that I’ve felt in days. Anger. Red-hot, boiling anger.

I clench my teeth and start walking towards the man. When I get to him I look directly into his eye and say in a voice that scares even me,

“Reuben Scurry, right?” That was, after all, his name. I had seen it in my visions.

The man looks surprised that I know who he is. So do the ten or so men behind him, all dressed in black—but for reasons I assume are different than attending a funeral.

Chase and his family, plus Demetri and Elena, arrive behind me and stare in hate at the people from the Company.

“Been doing your homework?” A man behind Reuben asks me, sneering. I look at Reuben and his salt-and-pepper hair, scraggly and disheveled, his perfectly calm face, his dark, hateful eyes.

“So you are Reuben Scurry then.” I say, shooting a fleeting glare at the man who had asked me about the homework. What a stupid question. Like I have time for that.

“Yes, Skye, I am.” Reuben says, his voice gravelly and okay, a little intimidating. But this is the man that killed my parents—killed God knows how many other people—and this is my chance to confront him. Damn Skippy I’d be scared.

“Guess I’m not the only one whose been doing my homework.” I remark, staring coldly at Reuben. He shrugs, looking unconcerned.

“We’ve finally tracked you down, Skye. Somehow I knew that we could find you at your parent’s funeral.” He says coldly, looking down at me. I flinch.

Margaret clears her throat and steps forward.

“After you’ve finished paying your respects, I expect you to leave.” She says in a voice so full of authority that I can’t help but to feel impressed. Reuben glances over to her.

“Ah, Margaret Davenport. How sweet to see you’ve left the Company for them.” He says, sneering at “them”. Which was, ahem, us.

“Family first.” Margaret says, with a twinkle in her eye that I can’t say I understand. Reuben looks momentarily pissed off. Go, Margaret.

“And is Skye your daughter?” Reuben says in a voice that makes it clear that he knows the answer. Margaret doesn’t look deterred.

“I’ve come to think of her as my daughter.” She responds. Reuben smiles slightly.

“It’s too bad we’ll have to be taking her to the Company now, isn’t it?” He asks, his eyes trailing over to me. I shiver as a new splash of rain hits my arm.

Chase steps in front of me, blocking me from Reuben and his men, that are starting to look strangely like an army line.

Brody takes a step so that he’s beside me on my right, and Logan is then on my left.

They’ve created a human shield around me. I shake my head.

“Let them take me.” I say, loud enough for all three of the brothers to hear.

Brody glances down at me. “What, are you joking? If you go with them, you’re not coming back.”

I look up at Brody. “Maybe that’s what needs to happen.”

I hear Chase curse. “That is not what needs to happen.” He says, his back facing me, still blocking me.

I sigh. “It’s not worth the fight.”

Now its Logan’s turn to curse. He looks over at me. “Skye, snap out of it. I realize what a hard time this is for you, but suicide is not at all the answer.”

I roll my eyes. “How do you know they would kill me?”

“Oh, they wouldn’t kill you. They’d torture you until they got your DNA for the formula they’re using on the Nontalents. And then you would die from whatever testing they did on you. Or you know what? Maybe they would kill you. Being that your Talent is MIA at the moment.”

I shiver. “God, be a little harsher why don’t you?”

Logan frowns. “I’m sorry, Skye. But you’re not going with them. That would be suicide.”

I look forward at Chase’s back, at the muscles underneath his rain-drenched shirt. I press my hand to his shoulder, and his muscles flinch under my hand.

I get on my tip-toes to whisper in his ear. “Please let me go, Chase.”

I feel his muscles flex, I see his muscles flex. “I’m not going to step aside and let them take you, Skye. Sorry.” His voice is strained, rough. I sigh again.

“Just let me go.” I whisper.

I can see Chase grind his teeth. “That’s enough.” He says harshly. I flinch at his tone.

I take a step back, and automatically the three brothers’ take a step back too. It’d be comical if it wasn’t so irritating. Hello, this is my life.

Margaret and Reuben are still talking when I hear Reuben start to yell. Margaret takes a step back and motions for Demetri and Elena to follow her. I don’t understand what is going on.

And then I hear what Reuben is saying. “WHERE DID THEY GO? WE HAD THEM RIGHT IN FRONT OF US AND THEY JUST DISAPPEAR? WHERE THE HELL ARE THEY? JACKSON, GET YOUR MEN AND FIND THEM!”

His previously calm face is contorted in rage. Margaret, Demetri and Elena come closer to us. I then realize what has happened when I look over at Brody and remember he’s a Protector. And then I remember that he had shielded their house from outsider’s eyes. So that it was invisible.

I look at Logan. “Is Brody making us invisible?” Logan nods.

“Yeah, he’s shielding us from their eyes. So they can’t see or hear us.” He explains.

But then something happens.

“S**t!” I hear Brody curse. He’s holding his head with his hands as if he’s in pain. Suddenly, it’s very clear that Reuben can see us.

“Get them!” He yells, and his men start running towards us. Elena pops her gum and looks at the ten or so men.

Suddenly, they’re all knocked down as if some…force had hit them. They struggle to get up and when they can’t they finally give up and just lay there. We take our opportunity and run from the Company.

“Brody, what just happened?” Chase asks his older brother. Brody shakes his head.

“One of them threw some kind of force at me that diminished my shield. I have no idea what it was.” Brody says, looking around predatorily.

Logan grabs my hand and I realize that I’m shaking. “It’ll be fine.” He tells me, and I smile weakly at him. Chase and Brody continue to talk with Margaret. Elena and Demetri talk to each other, all smiles from the excitement.

Chase looks over and sees me, frightened.

He leaves his mother and Brody and walks over to Logan and I. He says something to Logan and Logan nods, giving my hand a squeeze before walking over to his mother and brother.

Chase takes my hand and pulls me over to a tree, not far from where everyone else is. It’s on a hill that overlooks the cemetery. I look down, sadly at all the tombstones.

We sit down under the large tree. “Chase, I’m sorry about befo—“I start to say.

Chase cuts me off. “Don’t even think about apologizing to me, Skye. Not today.” He says.

I look at him, his smoldering eyes and tousled hair, and sigh. “I don’t know who I am right now. That wasn’t me before. I would never…I’d never kill myself. And it was suicide trying to go with the Company.” I pause and cover my face with my hands. “I’m so screwed up right now.”

And then I’m crying again, against my trying to hold back tears. It’s not sobbing though, thank God. I’ve had enough of that lately.

Hot tears run down my face and I’m thankful that I’ve covered my face with my hands.

Chase tugs my hands free from my face and takes them in his, looking me in the eye.

“You’re going to get through this, Skye. I promise you that.” He tells me. I sigh.

“I know I will…eventually. But sometimes I don’t even want to try.” I admit, biting my lip. He’s beautiful, I think to myself, staring at Chase.

“I need you to try.” Chase says, his blue eyes drawing me in. He wants me to try, I think again to myself. He wants to me to try and so I’ll try. I’ll try to get through this. For him.

“I’ll try.” I say softly, getting lost in Chase’s eyes, as cliché as that sounds. Chase leans forward, capturing my mouth with his, and lifts his hands to cup my face. I close my eyes.

For him, I’d try to get through this phase in my life. For him, I’d never go with the Company. For him I’d do anything.

Reviews

[Rusty]

I like the way you write, it's different from most formats, but I'm really enjoying it, keep it up, can't wait for more.

[Anya]

awww poor Skye. The last paragraph was beautiful :)

Another wonderful chapter!