I kept my foot light on the pedal, staying at least two miles per hour under the limit. Having peoples lives in my hands instead of breathing life into them wasn’t as much fun. If anything were to happen...
As we drove I thought about my life, flashbacks from when Danny was born. Trying to process how many embarrassing memories Merrick must have seen of mine over the years. Prom night red-punch-spill-on-white-dress-by-date disaster. Slipping on the slide at the public pool in front of no less than fifty people, all laughing, at a ninth grade pool party. Getting caught picking my nose in third grade by the teacher and her calling me out in front of the class on it. Martin Spikes telling me no to a date I asked him on because he said I looked like an eighth grader, I was in the eleventh however and it was the one time I’d talked myself up to ask someone. I never did it again.
That sent my thoughts to what possibly could Danny do that would make a difference in the world. It had to be big, the world was in danger of ending. No small gesture would do now. I was already beginning to beam with pride for him, still not knowing when or what his big act could be but proud none the less.
Our parents were gone and I doubted we’d ever see them again. It saddened me but also frustrated and upset me. They had a choice and they chose, and it wasn’t us, it was an empty field on the ridge and aliens. What a shame looking back now, knowing the truth.
They were followers. They had no idea what they were welcoming into our world, but they followed their friends and politicians in the ‘peace and love’ route and look where we were now.
I almost missed my exit and Jeff asked if I’m ok. I nodded, not even looking his way. Merrick and Bobby sat in the middle back seat, not a word between them. I wondered if Merrick knew that Bobby hated him. I guess not. How could he? Bobby had no right though. He actually thought I had already considered his little proposal in my head and was on board with saving the planet...with our babies. Geesh.
Once we reached the store, I parked in our usual spot off to the side. Merrick took the list from his shirt pocket before we headed in and tore it in half suggesting we split up to save time. My heart leapt but then fell when Bobby grabbed my arm, claiming me as his partner. Merrick gave a suspicious glance to that arm but I sent a small smile to tell him it was ok. I wasn’t in the mood for any arguments.
Are you sure? Don’t let him bully you around. It’s ok if you don’t wanna go with him.
No point in talking about it here. I just shrugged and smiled and took our list as Bobby grabbed a cart. Merrick looked disappointed and I hated to have put that look on his face but I was so tired of conflict.
Remember to be careful. Don’t talk to anyone and let’s hurry, ok? Please be careful. Stay on your guard, no thinking of Danny or other Specials, ok?
I nodded and glanced back at him quickly, sending him a little smile which he returned to me and shook his head. As we walked away from our Keepers Bobby began to lecture me once again on the Lighters and how they were right. How I should come along and join him, that was when it hit me.
“Are you leaving, Bobby?”
“Yep. I’m not telling Jeff. I’m just going. That’s why I wanted to wait til we were out and could be alone today. Now you can leave with me and Merrick won’t be able to stop you.”
“You think I told you no because Merrick is controlling me?”
“What other reason is there?” he asked skeptically.
“Uh. Well, I believe them.”
“Come on, Sherry. You can’t believe them.”
“Bobby. Listen. Just come talk to Merrick, let him explain-”
“I’ve heard it all and I’m done. The Lighters are the ones who are going to save us from all this and you’ll wish you had listened to me. They have a plan in place already. They are gonna win this thing. I’m leaving, now. I wish you would’ve changed your mind. We could’ve been really good together. ”
Was I hearing things? He sounded like he was ready to drink the Kool-Aid. What was going on?
“I don’t and I do believe them. I’ve always been able to tell the difference of lies for truth. They are telling the truth. Bobby, please don’t do this. Don’t leave. Stay.”
“I’m leaving. In fact, I’m leaving right now and I’m gonna have to turn all your little friends over to them. They are just a band of rebels that must be taken care of. If not, this kind of hatred and untruth will spread everywhere.”
Bobby was sounding like some kind of robot now, programmed responses. As I turned to go I felt him grab my arm with excessive force. He was angry at me for not wanting to come with him.
“Ow! Bobby! Let go.”
“I can’t. You know what...you have to come with me. You’re important. I need you and the sooner you get away from them, the sooner you’ll realize I’m right. You won’t be affected by them anymore.”
“Ow! Stop it! Let go!”
I could feel the fiery pulse under his grasp.
“I ought to just drag you out of here by your hair, ya know. You don’t know what you’re doing. Can’t you see I care about you?” he said getting right in my face.
“Yes...I see that, ok,” I answered softly, “but I can also see the truth. I’m not in danger and neither are you, yet. Please stay and let us talk about this.”
“NO!” he yelled starting pulling me from my cart, not even stopping to see the prying eyes watching our little encounter.
No one came to my aid either, just stared. I was suddenly very disappointed in the males of the human race. I yanked my arm free quickly and turned to run but he grabbed my shirt and turned me, holding me to him to keep me from leaving. I imagined this would look like an embrace to someone looking now. He tried to kiss me and I squirmed to evade his lips.
“Sherry! Snap out of it! I know if I can just make you see the truth that you’ll come with me.”
“I would say the same to you! Let me go, now!”
He let me go but pushed me at the same time in frustration and I tripped backwards to the floor. In one swift movement I rolled and got up to keep going, running full speed. I had the vans keys still in my pocket.
I ran barely slowing down as I reached the aisle end. Everyone and everything seemed slow motion and I bumped into a lady as I crossed the aisles.
“Oh! Excuse me. Sorry,” I yelled back across my shoulder.
Looking, looking, where could they be? Aisle after aisle as I descended down towards the food court, nothing. Wait. I saw him. Them.
Oh no. What would happen to Jeff now that his Special was gone?
As I approached they were in the middle of shopping cart traffic jam, waiting their turn to enter the aisle. Jeff saw me running, tells Merrick in his mind, his head jerking up quickly to search for me. Once I reached them, I grabbed Merrick’s arm.
“There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you two. I’m done. Got everything I needed. Ready?”
I saw the worry in his eyes as he glanced quickly at Jeff. I hoped he could just trust me and he must because we were moving, him towing me away from our cart by my hand, Jeff following.
Once in the van, I fiddled with my shaking hands and the keys, trying to get the van started. I blurted out the whole story of last night and just now, all of Bobby’s bizarre behavior as I drove.
“He asked you to leave with him?” Jeff asked and I saw Merrick watching my face in the mirror as I answered.
“Yes.”
“What did he say?”
“Does it matter?”
“Yes. He’s already been in contact with the Lighters. He may have slipped up and said something.”
“He said I was under Merrick’s control and he thought getting me away would break the spell.” I heard Merrick grunt unhappily but kept going. “He said, he cared about me and I didn’t know what I was doing. That we needed to...repopulate the earth and I was important.” A quick glance at them and I saw something wasn’t right.
“Was that it?”
“Pretty much. I was trying to get a
way, he may have said more.”
“Trying?” Merrick asked.
“He grabbed me and held me there so I couldn’t run while he tried to talk me into it.”
“Keep driving,” Jeff said as he began looking my arms, pulling up my shirt to look at my back and stomach. Searching for something.
“Jeff, that’s not necessary,” Merrick barked.
“We gotta make sure, Merrick! You know how they work.”
“Jeff?” I questioned trying to stay on the road.
“Just checking something, it’s fine. Just keep driving.”
“What’s gonna happen to you now, Jeff?”
Seeing is Believing
Chapter 10
“Well, I don’t know. This is all new to me as I’ve never had a Special refuse a task, or leave my protection before,” Jeff said blankly as he leaned back over to his seat, satisfied with his search.
I looked at Merrick, he looked at me.
“We gotta get out, now. We may be too late already. He said he was ‘turning us in’, whatever that means,” I said, worry setting into my voice.
“Yes. We have to leave the warehouse,” Merrick agreed looking straight forward.
It would take a while to return and grab our belongings and explain to everyone and then get back out.
“Where will we go?” I asked, not sure if they’d even have an answer.
“We’ll have to split up,” Merrick said.
“Yes. We will and we aren’t going to find another place like the warehouse. We’re going to have to run. There are a lot of us out there, we just have to find them,” Jeff agreed.
“Split up?” I asked, my voice cracking.
“Yeah. I’ll take Kay and Ryan, and you, Jeff. Piper, Kathy and Lavonne can take Mitchell and the others. That’ll keep the one’s who have gotten close to each other together. We can’t be out searching around with a group our size. It’ll draw too much attention and be hard to find a place to fit everyone.”
They weren’t talking to me anymore but trying to work out a plan with each other. I drifted in and out of recognition. I heard key words, ‘rendezvous point’, ‘hotel’, ‘supplies’. I finally saw the warehouse in the wavy horizon, like a mirage. Nothing looked out of the ordinary.
We hopped out and cautiously ran looking around for signs of trouble as we stepped in the elevator. If only we had a way to reach them by phone, they could be getting ready now.
Merrick, reached out and grabbed my hand in the dark, swinging me around, pulling me to him with a hand on the small of my back. I was startled but didn’t stop him. In fact, I felt guilty. Even though we might all be meeting our doom very soon, my heart skipped and my skin tingled where Merrick touched me, even in this soothing desperate embrace.
Did he hurt you?...I could just- I’m so sorry I didn’t go with you.
I just shook my head no. I didn’t want to speak, but I knew he could see me in the dark.
There was a tingling electricity everywhere as he leaned his forehead against mine, his breath on my face was intoxicating and as his arm squeezed around my waist, I was bombarded with one thought.
How did I not see this before? This was what he was feeling with me and I thought he thought I had the plague.
My hands were on the sides of his gray pocket t-shirt, gripping it in my fist. He picked up the charm around my neck and twiddled it between his fingers, like I have often. Where his fingers touched my collar began to tingle with more intensity than the rest.
I’ve worn this necklace every day for five years and no one ever asked me what it meant, or who gave it to me. Of course, Merrick probably knows. In fact, I’m certain he does. Surely he would watch us on birthdays.
My dad gave it to me, a small silver heart within a heart. Perfect for a daughter’s birthday. The only perfect and normal gift I ever got from my parents. That was why I loved it so much.
It’s wasn’t a book on the ancient arts of chi tea remedies. No wooden bracelets to ward off evil spirits with it’s mother nature essence. No ornately framed pictures of the goddess of fertility. Just a normal gift.
I wanted to kiss him as he rubbed my necklace, though I wasn’t sure how he would react. Plus the fact that we had an audience. It was loud and dark but still, an audience that can see in the dark none the less.
We’d never kissed, and he never tried the whole month we’d been down this hole. He didn’t touch me all the time either. I thought he was testing me, seeing how far I wanted to go. That was what it seemed to me and right then, it seemed desperate, like he was saying a preemptive goodbye. Like we might not make it.
But I want to kiss him. For some reason, the impending death hanging over us, the way his fingers were gliding across my collar bone. Something. I just needed to kiss him.
I work up the nerve and lean just a little but before we touch, we jolt to the bottom. I bite my bottom lip in frustration.
He waited to release me, Jeff bolted out quickly with work to do, not phased by us as he saw us touching and talking often, as most of them did those days. They don’t really understand. Some don’t condone it either but give us space.
Danny was thrilled by the new development. His exact words were, “What better guy for my sister to have than a frigging guardian angel?”
Slowly and reluctantly, Merrick let me go and we walked, swiftly to gather Danny, Celeste, Calvin and the rest of our half of the gang.
I packed some of the food, what little was left, after my clothes. Not too much, we may have to run, literally run, and we didn’t need to be loaded down.
Calvin signed to his mom as Merrick explained and they were ready to go more quickly than anyone. As we headed out we told the last group, Mitchell’s group, that we’d send the elevator back down for them.
I hugged Lillian and Susan, both upset and crying, scared. I tried really hard not to and mostly succeed but only because Merrick was urging us along.
Mitchell turned to Merrick.
“Brother, watch over them. Guard you in all your ways.”
“And you in yours brother,” Merrick said as they hugged and patted each others backs and then he jumped on the elevator with us.
I had a sinking feeling I’d never see them again. Lillian waved and clutched Michael’s arm as the door slid closed. Calvin talked and asked questions non stop the entire ride up to ground level. He must be scared. I squeezed his shoulder to comfort him.
As the doors opened Merrick grabbed my waist and extended an arm around to block the others. He held me back and peeked out, listening and looking before releasing me.
We unloaded out of the box and he sent the elevator back down as promised. Calvin held my hand, I felt kind of bad. Didn’t he want to hold his mother’s hand?
Danny, Merrick and I took my car and Kay drove the rest of them in Bobby’s van. He wouldn’t be needing it. Celeste wanted so badly to ride with us but her Keeper, and mother wouldn’t allow that one. I understood that but Danny was a little puffed.
We have no idea where we were going. Merrick drove and seemed to be scoping out the land as we moved along the back roads. His shifting had really improved, he only stalled once and I punched Danny’s arm for laughing. I thought I overheard him say something about camping. Ugh. Better get used to roughing it again.
I fully expected an ambush or a raid of some kind but there was no flashing lights, no sirens, no spotlights from helicopters. If Bobby told them and they knew of a group our size why not jump on it? I voiced those concerns to Merrick but he had no answer.
It was freezing again so without asking or waiting for an invitation I pulled up Merrick’s arm and placed myself under. I heard a chuckle from the back seat but Merrick just tightened his grip on me and kissed my forehead, which is the only kiss I’d ever received from him.
It felt wonderful, warm and protective, leaving a tingle behind. I couldn’t help but smile into Merrick’s arm.
We must have driven for quite a while because, I wake up with my head
on Merrick’s lap.
It was dark and we were still driving. I pulled myself back upright into the seat and it was even more cold than before. I peeked back and Danny was conked in the backseat, leaning on our luggage and boxes piled in the other seat.
“Feel better?” Merrick asked me, his eyes never leaving the road but I could tell he was tired.
“Yeah, I guess. Sorry. I was more tired than I thought. Bobby’s pleas for me to run away with him kept me up last night.” I laughed half heartedly.
“You’ve been out for a while. We stopped and filled up the gas tanks. We’re just gonna drive until we find somewhere we think we can all stop safely for the night. I also grabbed a bag of food while I was there. Hungry?” he said, looking over at me quickly.
“Yeah. Did you eat?”
“Yeah,” he said through a yawn.
“Let me drive. I know you’ve got to be exhausted.”
“I’m fine.”
“Liar.”
He smiled and chuckled groggily. I stood up on my knees in the seat and motioned for him to scoot over.
“You don’t like to drive in the dark, Sherry.”
Merrick knowing everything about me was kinda nice actually.
“I’ll be ok.”
“I’ll wake Danny.”
“It takes forever to wake him up, you know that. You can’t keep going forever without any rest and I’ve got mine so...but I appreciate you thinking about me.”
After a wary look, he slid over and I got behind him, taking the pedal from his foot, then the steering wheel.
“There. Now get some sleep,” I said, patting his knee.
I was elated when he obeyed without a fuss, laying his head in my lap as I had done with him.
Keep driving down this road and wake me if anything seems strange or out of place, ok. Watch the speed limit. Kay will stay right behind you. Eat something...and thank you. I know you hate this, you’re sweet to do it for me anyway.