Emotionally Charged Page 4

  I peeked around the corner.

  Under a flickering street light, two guys were beating on a third. They had him pressed to a wall between them, taking turns slugging him in the stomach. They called him names—homo, trailer trash—disgusting, offensive names. The guy they beat didn’t struggle and I worried they’d already done serious damage.

  I tried to tap into their emotions, get some strength, speed, something I could use.

  A cold emptiness crept over me instead.

  Maybe I wasn’t close enough? Damn it, how did this work? Their victim looked in a bad state and they showed no signs of slowing down. I had to do something fast.

  Stepping into the alley, I took a position hidden in the shadows and yelled, “Police. Stop what you’re doing.”

  All three jumped at my voice, and the emptiness cleared. A wave of anger, excitement and fear flowed off the attackers, and power built inside me. Oh yes, I can do this.

  The two holding the third guy down blocked most of my view of him, but they all seemed about my age. The pair of bullies wore beanies, one blue, one red, probably from sports teams, but what would I know. My family was more likely to attend an art gallery opening than watch a football match. They muttered between themselves, then one of them called out, “You’re no cop. Just get gone. You seen nothing here.”

  I flexed an arm, feeling the strength in it. I reveled in that power. Part of me wanted to use it, fly in like a superhero and show those bullies how it felt to get a beating. But I tried to stay smart. The power was my safety net only. Also, I really didn’t want to nearly rip someone’s hand off like I had last time. “Come on, guys, just leave him alone. I’m not going anywhere, and I don’t think you want a witness here.”

  The beanie twins did that chin-lift thing guys do when communicating without words. One kept a hold of their prey and the other stalked toward me.

  I took a step back out onto the main street to see if there was anyone else around, but it was empty. Up to me then.

  I stepped forward and squared off against blue-beanie-boy. He twitched and swayed slightly. He had a badly grown goatee and up close, he stunk of alcohol.

  “She’s just some skinny chick!” he called back to his mate. He laughed and turned away. “Get lost!”

  He spat out a swear word and headed back to his friend.

  I followed at his heels. “I’m not going to let you keep beating that guy.”

  “Don’t.” The grunt of opposition came from the guy against the wall. He slouched, as though he’d fall if red-beanie-boy’s hand on his shoulder didn’t pin him in place. Stringy hair fell over his face. His effort to talk earned him another fist in the stomach.

  “See? No one wants you around.” Blue-beanie-boy spun back at me and thrust out an arm to push me away.

  I sidestepped easily and he lost balance. His whole body fell forward after his arm and he landed hard on the pavement near the overflowing trash cans.

  As he hit the ground I felt the force of his anger burst around him, accompanied by his loud swearing. I made an effort to absorb it all, like soaking in sunshine through my skin. My body responded, every cell working at perfect efficiency. I pulsed with strength.

  He pushed himself back off the ground and dusted off his knees. “You’re going to get it!”

  He came at me swinging.

  I maneuvered around a street sign and his fist cracked on the metal instead. More swearing. I had no problem keeping away from him, drunk and uncoordinated as he was, but I was only making him angrier. I wanted them to back off and leave without having to hurt anyone. Brilliantly, all I’d done was prove for a second time that me on my own wasn’t intimidating enough to scare off angry guys.

  After another bout of swearing, his friend let his victim go and came to join in. He didn’t stumble around like drunken blue-beanie. The two of them advanced together. I stepped away, not wanting an all-in brawl. They backed me into a urine-scented corner of the alley. Their expressions were vicious. I lifted my fists, ready to fight back.

  Down the street, a siren wailed. Perfect timing.

  I shrugged innocently. “Did I forget to mention I already called the cops? Time to run, kiddies.”

  Their anger shed from them, replaced instantly with fear. After a quick glance at each other, and more swearing, they finally took my advice and bolted off into the night.

  I took a few deep breaths and the siren passed by the other end of the alley, revealing the red of a fire truck. Close one. The bullies were well on their way though, and didn’t notice my trick. It was over.

  I just saved someone. All on my own. I let out a whoop and punched the air, grinning like a fool.

  The guy they’d beaten had slumped down against the wall, his knees against his chest. He seemed to be catching his breath as well.

  I held out my hand to help the guy up. “Are you okay?”

  He ignored me and pushed himself to his feet with one shoulder against the wall. A breath hissed out through his clenched teeth. “What were you thinking? You shouldn’t have gotten involved. You could have been hurt.”

  I froze with my hand still outstretched but my smile slipped right off my face. Not exactly the response I’d expected. “I... I just wanted to help.”

  He turned and faced me fully. Average build, baggy clothing, dusty brown hair, pasty skin—nothing special at all. But his eyes transfixed me. Gray like wet concrete, they held me like a trap and the coldness I felt earlier crept back in.

  “I didn’t need your help. This happens all the time.”

  “A playful rumble, huh? What if they went too far?”

  He just shrugged like he didn’t even care. He winced as if each small movement hurt him, even talking. He was in pain but his face was blank, and I couldn’t read a single emotion from him. It irritated me more than his criticisms of my rescue effort.

  He glanced at me again with those eyes, looking me over as though checking for damage. “You were lucky they didn’t mess you up.”

  “I wasn’t lucky, I was...” I couldn’t tell him what I really was, that I had superpowers. But even if I didn’t. “I was clever, and capable, and I saved you!”

  I found myself yelling. I couldn’t read him at all and it threw me. Why wasn’t he happy I helped him? Happy to be saved?

  Blood dripped from his nose onto his light gray T-shirt. He zipped his jacket up over it and pulled the hood over his head. “Whatever.”

  He walked away.

  All energy was drained from me. I spent my last cash to get a taxi back up to the mansion. I found it empty. Confused, frustrated, and alone, I crawled into bed.

  I couldn’t sleep. Gray eyes kept haunting me. Stupid, unappreciative eyes.

  Chapter Seven

  Jake and the team returned mid-morning.

  Seeing him again knocked my dull mood away. It also felt better having clean clothes. Ms. Penny had washed and dried what I’d been wearing while I had breakfast in bed in a robe and slippers. Pretty people and decadence took the edge off real quick.

  We all sat in a lounge room. I wasn’t sure which one or what its exact designation was, but a different one to yesterday. The white leather couches were immaculate and the rug so dense and fluffy, I almost wanted to sit on it more than the couch.

  The guys relaxed from whatever their secret overnight mission had been, yawning and checking their phones amid a pile of empty energy drink cans and coffee mugs.

  I didn’t want to disturb them, but I had to deal with contacting my parents. I felt lame bringing it up, but none of that could match how upset my parents probably were.

  I mustered up the will to speak. Jake smiled at me, and I almost lost it. Concentrating on something other than his perfect features proved difficult.

  “Is there a way I can get my phone charged? I need to call my parents.”

  Jake sat next to me with his feet up on the glass coffee table and his head back. He straightened up to look at the powerless phone I exhibited in my hand. �
�Don’t worry about it. We’ll get you a new phone.”

  “Oh, I just need a charger, really. I don’t need—”

  “Ems, you taking our new girl out shopping today?” Jake spoke over me.

  Emma had draped herself full-length down the opposite couch, leaving Donny and Jamie in designer egg-shaped armchairs, which looked more fancy than comfortable, at least for guys of their size.

  Emma moaned and pouted, lifting her head with exaggerated effort. “Yeah, sure. I could probably stay awake for shopping. Let me chill out for a bit first though, K?”

  The longer this waited, the more the knot in my stomach tightened. What would my parents be thinking? They probably thought I was buried under a collapsed building somewhere. “It’s just, I really need to call my parents, like, yesterday. Maybe could I borrow someone’s phone to let them know where I am?”

  Jake shuffled across the lounge and put his arm around my shoulders.

  The knot vanished. A warm glow replaced it and I tried not to purr.

  “You’re worried about your folks, about them worrying about you? I forget sometimes what that’s like. Me and Jamie have been on our own for so long. Do you want me to take you home?”

  He sounded so disappointed, like I was a child who’d had enough of a birthday party. Yesterday I might have said yes to leaving, but not now the team were all back here with me. I didn’t want to be anywhere else. “Oh, no, I can just call them. I’m sure they’ll be angry, but I need—”

  Jake gave my shoulders a squeeze. “Do you want me to sort it out for you? Look, I’m great with parents, and it’s always better to deal with things face-to-face, right? I’ve got to head back to your town tomorrow anyway, so I’ll stop by and smooth things over. Save you from bearing the parental brunt.”

  I tilted my head and winced, working up to say no, which was hard. But seriously, my parents could have called me in as a missing person by now. I had to fix this.

  Jake took my chin in his hand, leaning so close I almost thought he was going to kiss me. “Let me do this for you.”

  Warmth washed over me. I exhaled over wobbly lips. I smiled and gave my okay. My parents could wait another day if it meant getting an in-person explanation instead of dodgy phone call, and I just knew Jake could make them understand. He made everything better just by being there. He would explain everything, and everything would be okay. I could feel it.

  “I could go with you, if you’d like. See my parents too and—”

  “Livvy, we want you right here this week so at first sign of an event nearby we can take you with us. It’s time to get to know you better and see how your powers manage,” Donny said.

  Emma sat up with far more energy than she’d shown before. She clapped her hands together. “Then you can be part of the team for real!”

  I glowed, and wondered if it was visible to them all.

  “What do you want me to tell your folks?” Jake asked.

  I thought for a moment. “Tell them I’m following my dreams.”

  Emma did take me shopping that afternoon, but we didn’t get a new phone. We mostly bought new clothes for Emma. She held nothing back, snapping up every designer item taking her fancy, paying cash for everything. And everything wasn’t cheap. She tried to encourage me to do the same, but I only managed to humbly request a new pair of jeans, two tops, some PJs and some underwear. At least I had some clothes to change into now. I was sure that soon I’d feel more comfortable taking what I wanted like Emma did.

  Soon, I’d be part of the team for real.

  During the week each of the team members ducked out individually for this or that. They weren’t much for explaining what they were doing or where they were going, and I didn’t want to seem naggy with my questions. Maybe they had day jobs? I somehow doubted it, unless it was just as cover for their secret identities. No way did they need the money.

  No one did any empath power training, which disappointed me. There was so much I wanted to know, but they didn’t even seem as interested in it as I did. The only training done was daily body-sculpting workouts. I joined in and they encouraged me, even though I was pathetic.

  Jake returned from Bellscroft with a new phone for me, already programmed with the team’s numbers, and a report on my parents.

  “They were worried, of course, but my top-notch empath skills had them feeling better in no time. Here, check this out.” Jake opened the photo gallery of the new phone and showed me a ten-second video of him sitting on my couch with my parents, all three smiling and waving.

  “What did you tell them?” I had run through that discussion so often in my own head. Of course I wanted to be a good daughter and be honest, but the truth in this case was kind of wild, and not just my secret to keep.

  “I told them we were friends from school, that we picked you up and let you stay at ours instead of the shelter. Made a few other excuses about flat phones, extra volunteer work together, following your dreams, yadda yadda, and they’re happy to let you stay with us as long as you like.”

  I wondered if forever was included.

  It felt sort of wrong to have not told them the whole truth, and there was something weird about seeing them so cheerful in that video. Was I upset that they weren’t more worried? Maybe, but I was happy too. I needed to go back home myself for a visit sometime soon, and I reminded myself to give my parents super-hugs for letting me do this.

  I knew Mom would understand. Mom ran away from a backwater slum when she was fourteen and lived on her own for years, waitressing in cafes during the days and working nights and weekends building her own business. She met the man of her dreams and now ran her own shop. My mom was amazing and always encouraged me to follow my dreams too. Not that I could compare my little adventure with what she’d done.

  I thanked Jake for the new phone, and tried it out by taking a photo of us together. I spent most of my free hours for the rest of the week staring at that photo.

  On Sunday night, Donny and Jamie called in from the industrial district across the city. A warehouse had gone up in flames. They said it looked like a good first event for me.

  It was time for me to prove myself, although the idea of a whole burning building intimidated me. I’d never witnessed a real fire before. What would I be expected to do?

  I felt too embarrassed to ask and appear dumb to the others. I just agreed to go.

  This was my chance to use my powers as a part of the team.

  Maybe I could save someone’s life.

  Chapter Eight

  Jake drove the Maserati there faster than I thought was safe.

  Emma took the front seat and I squeezed into the pocket-sized back with Emma’s reasoning that I had the shortest legs.

  Maybe Jake sensed my anxiety, because he explained the situation more as we stopped down the road from the pillar of black smoke marking the fire.

  “Don’t stress. There’s no one in the buildings. The whole industrial park has been evacuated. Nothing but stock and structures at risk.” Ever the gentleman, he popped his front seat forward and helped extract me from the back of the two-door sports car.

  I noticed Donny’s black Jeep parked a little farther down the street. He and Jamie loaded something into the back. We wandered down to meet them.

  “So, what will I be doing?” I tried to sound brave and eager.

  Jake nodded to the other guys before coming back to my question. “Just watching. The firefighters are working hard to get the fire under control before it spreads. There’s some serious adrenaline and emotion involved in that, so just feel out the situation and see what you can use. Then show us what you’ve got.”

  We were still a building or two away and I already felt the heat. I wondered if it was from the fire or the emotions of those fighting it. Or maybe just the warmth I always felt from being near Jake.

  We ducked through a hole in a chain-link fence, sneaking closer between the warehouses. We found a viewpoint nearby and hid behind a stack of wooden pallets so t
he officials wouldn’t send us away.

  “What would you guys normally be doing, if I weren’t learning?”

  “For a fire? Not really a lot. Empath powers don’t really make us more effective at putting out flames. We don’t suddenly get super flame-retardant breath or anything. But If someone was inside, I’d rush in for the save, of course.” Jake smiled and winked.

  Could I rush into a burning building to save someone? Mouthing off at punks seemed altogether different to that level of heroism.

  But I wanted to be someone who would do that. And I wanted to be with someone who would do that.

  I stared happily at Jake for a moment too long before the fire drew my attention.

  The two-story warehouse glowed like a jack-o’-lantern. I gaped in awe at such destructive, beautiful power. Flames painted the walls and the heat dried my unprotected skin even from this distance. The smell was off, like bad eggs and car burn-outs. Fortunately, most of the smoke blew the other way.

  We watched the fire fighters doing their thing, calling orders back and forth, dragging hoses, working pumps on the truck. All knew their roles. They worked as a team. I’d be part of a team like that soon, but even better. I looked sidelong at Jake, his hair and skin glowing golden in the firelight. Part of his team.

  Excess emotions flowed off the firefighters and I made myself a magnet, letting the power soak in through my pores.

  Jake bumped my shoulder with his. “How are you feeling? Got the mojo yet?”

  “Yeah, feeling good. Awesome even.”

  Jake held up his palm flat in front of me. “Give me your best shot.”

  “Really?”

  Jake rolled his eyes. “And don’t be holding back. We don’t take wimps.”

  I raised my eyebrows and lifted my fist to the challenge. I could feel my muscles tense and coil. The sensation and awareness, the pure power, made me feel giddy.

  I smacked my fist into his palm. The sound echoed like a log smashing the ground.

  Jake whistled, shaking off the hurt dramatically. “Nice, some real potential there. Let’s see how fast you are. How about a race?”