Exposing ELE (ELE Series #3) (20 page)

He pulls me into him tightly, holding onto me for dear life. I can hear his heart still beating fast from the adrenaline. “Willow, I was so scared,” he says to me in a shaky whisper.
I rub his back to comfort him, not caring that Tony is probably glaring behind me. A handful more seconds pass and he finally lets out a deep breath. He holds me at arm’s length. “If anything were to happen to you…” He shakes his head in disbelief, not being able to finish the sentence.

Claire and Connor, who have been standing next to us, join in on the hug. The relief is apparent in their tear-filled eyes. We hold onto each other in one large bear hug on this tall pile of rubble.

“I told you to go to the perimeter. It wasn't safe here,” I say to Claire and Connor.

“Yeah, we know what you told us but there was no way we were leaving you three to deal with Zack alone,” Connor states.

“We dropped the boy off and then we heard the screaming. Connor just pulled me through the maze walls. Then we saw Alec and Candy and the building falling in on itself.” She hits me in the arm. “Don't ever do that to me again!” she yells at me while wiping the tears off her cheeks.

I rub my arm even though it didn't really hurt. “I certainly wasn't trying to do anything!” With her hand on her tiny hip and that mama bear expression of hers, I can't help but smile. “Okay, I promise that I will never do that to you again... intentionally.” I have to add the last part because there's no way for me to truly promise that I won't run into danger in the future. I can't sit on the sidelines and let things happen; it's just not in my nature.

She raises one eyebrow and then pulls me into another quick hug. “Fair enough.”

We both laugh at that. I look over Claire's shoulder and notice that Candy is sitting by herself, hugging her legs tightly to her chest. She looks small and scared. Jake is standing behind her looking like he wants to help her but he can't. She must have told him to leave her alone or something.
I excuse myself from my friends.

I walk over to Candy and crouch down at her side.
“Hey,” I say simply.

Her head lifts up a few inches. She stares at the rubble behind me. Her blue eyes are rimmed with unshed tears. “Do you think he's dead?”

I look back at the mess that was once a building. If he's not dead, then I have no idea how he would have gotten out. There doesn't seem to be a beam standing in the place. “I don't know. We can look if you'd like.”

She shakes her head much to my relief. “No, we need to get these people out of here.”

I nod my head, not really sure what to say. I can't imagine the internal struggle that declaration must cause her. I can only guess that part of her justification is that if she doesn't find him then at least she can hope that the last of her family isn't dead.

She forces herself to look away from the wreckage and into my eyes. “Hey…” she hesitates a few seconds.
“Willow, I just want to tell you how sorry I am. I’m just… so sorry I didn’t believe you. I really thought he had changed… that he hadn’t fallen under our dad’s spell.” Her eyes are rimmed in red and I can tell it’s tearing her up inside. Having not only lost her father but now losing her brother in a matter of days… even if he’s still alive, he’s lost to her.

I put my arm around her, comforting her.
“He’s your blood, Candy. You had every right to think the best of him. That’s what families do,” I say, trying to give her peace of mind. “No one will hold it against you or tell you, ‘I told you so’.”

She sniffles.
“Thanks,” she says simply. “I guess I just don’t know what to do from here. I feel so isolated… like I’ve lost everything important to me. Who am I supposed to be if I'm all alone?”

I listen with an open heart.
I can feel her loss and pain. “You’ll always have us,” I tell her. “And no matter what, you will always be you. Family doesn't define who you are. They mold and shape you when you are young and pliable but eventually it is up to us all to define ourselves. You have already grown so much on your own without the help of your dad or brother. You’ll continue along that path to become the amazing woman you are supposed to be. I believe in you, Candy.” I watch her eyes light up a little. I don't know where those words came from. Part of me wants to think that my mother somehow spoke through me because it's definitely something she would say.

Candy gives me a small smile and nods in understanding.
“You're right, I am amazing.” I can't contain the laugh that comes from that. She laughs lightly in return before her expression turns somber again. She holds her hand over her heart and clenches the fabric of her shirt. “No, seriously. I don't know how I'm going to get through this. My heart is aching so badly that I wish I could just turn it off and not feel. I do know though, that you guys are here for me. I know I will make it past all of this pain. I just have to keep going.”

I can understand the way she feels, so completely that it brings back the ache in my chest from my own loss. I nod my head, “Yes, just keep going. That's all any of us could expect or ask of you. It will get better. I'm not sure how soon, but it will.” I help her to her feet and together we join the others. I smile as she allows Jake to pull her into his arms. I know he will be an integral part in this healing process.

Tony comes to my side and he and Alec share one of those macho handshakes. A smile flitters on my face, thankful they’ve put their differences and jealousy aside... at least for now.

“Alright,” I say.
“We still have a lot of work ahead of us. We need to go help find the others,” I say, hoping there are other’s to be saved.

We spend the next several hours walking the maze.
We run into the other groups along the way who have found a few of the prisoners. When we find Mr. Leroy, he tells us that they've already found the group of prisoners that had been stashed in one of the buildings like John said. It seems like that is where most of them were hidden. We find nearly a hundred people in all. It’s not as many as we had hoped for, but it’s better than none. I groan in frustration as I realize there are more out there somewhere. In our best estimate, we believe that at least fifty more people from the shelter are still missing.

We don't have any luck finding Alec's dad. On the flip side, we do find Connor’s parents. It is quite surprising that they are here since they weren't in the shelter or with my mom's people. I wouldn't have guessed that they would have been on the mountainside that day since they weren't accepted into the shelter to begin with. I put the idea aside for now.

Their neon yellow eyes are bright and tearful as they cling to Connor. He assures them that Lily is safe and sound. Their reunion is a tearful one. I’ll admit I let more than one tear fall watching them together.

We find out that Connor’s parents had been keeping a close eye on the shelter and when they saw the attack, they ran out in hopes of saving Connor and Lily. Before that, they had been hiding out in the cellar of a house not far from there. Apparently, the previous owners of the home, who we assume had been accepted into the shelter, had stocked it with several months of rations and everything they needed to survive. I had heard about dooms day shelters in the past, I just didn't know any still existed. We allow them a few minutes to reconnect before we get moving again.

We make it out of the Maze Ruins without losing anyone. We convene with everyone else and do a quick debriefing before we head back to the safe house. We arrive back late at night. As always, the adults have held off on dinner until our return. They come piling out when our mighty big group walks up. It’s a happy reunion, full of joy. We lost no one and brought back nearly a hundred more. I can't help but smile as many families are reunited.

As tradition goes, after dinner someone starts a bonfire and pulls out the S'mores. The music begins playing and we take the time to forget all of our hardship and just have fun. I find my dad and Sabby in the throng of people. They are standing in line to get marshmallows. “Hey there guys,” I call to them.

My dad turns around and smiles at me. “Hey honey,” he says.

“Look, Wello!” Sabby turns to me with his skewer filled to the brim with four large marshmallows.

“Wow, Sabby!” I point to the girl standing at the table handing out the sugary treats. “That girl over there must have thought you were the most handsome man here to have given you that many marshmallows,” I kid with him.

He shrugs his shoulders and grins. “I am hansome, Wello!”

We all giggle. My dad turns his attention to me and repeats what he's been saying repeatedly since I returned. “I’m so proud of you, Willow.”

“Ize proud of you too!” Sabby hugs my leg and nearly pokes my dad in the stomach with his marshmallow skewer.

“Thanks guys.” I smile. Looking at my dad and my baby brother, something tells me that things may turn out okay after all. I still have family left on this Earth and I plan on making the most of this life I've been blessed with. I plan to make my mother proud.

We laugh as we toast marshmallows and listen to Sabby tell us a new joke he learned today that makes absolutely no sense. The smiles and laughter aren't exactly what they'd been in the past, but they are a start towards the long journey of healing.

Alec comes to my side and asks me for a dance. I accept and allow him to pull me out to the dance floor.

“Are we okay?” Alec asks me.

I look up at him. “Yes, why do you ask?”

He shakes his head. “I just want to make sure. Today has really left me thinking. I can't imagine my life without you in it.” My mouth drops slightly and I get ready to say something but he continues before I can. “I just want to be in it, Willow. If that's as your friend, we will have to make it work.”

“I know,” I tell him. “We will.” I smile up at him.

His face turns serious as he asks me, “Are you falling for him?”

I look up at him like a deer caught in headlights. “I...”

He holds his hand out. “Wait, don't answer that. Not yet at least. I'm sorry I asked.”

I sigh and lean my forehead against his chest. “Okay,” I say, not sure where to go from here. I can feel it in every ounce of my being what Alec wanted me to say. He wanted me to tell him no, I'm not falling for Tony, but that would have been a lie.

We finish dancing to the song in silence and then Claire pulls me away from Alec. “My turn!” she says mischievously.

I mouth, “thank you,” to Claire. A fast song is playing and we dance to it. Candy walks by and Claire pulls her into our circle. We laugh and twirl around to a few more songs while singing the ones we know. We kick off our shoes and dance barefoot after a while. For those few songs, we pretend like life isn't the crazy tilt-o-whirl that it's become. We pretend that we are just teenage girls who haven't a care in the world.

When a slow song begins to play, I step away to catch my breath. I push my sweaty hair from out of my eyes and lean up against the courtyard wall.

A few seconds later, Tony is at my side.
“May I have this dance?” he asks, holding out his hand. I give him an embarrassed smile, what with him catching me completely off guard. I hadn't seen him all night. I put my hand in his and he leads me to the center of the party where other couples have gathered to dance.

I spy Connor and Claire a few yards away, dancing and gazing in each other’s eyes sweetly. Tony twirls me around, then places one arm on the small of my back and the other in my hand.
I rest my head on his shoulder and sway with the music. He twirls me a few times intermittently and I smile in delight.

“I’d say things went pretty well today, wouldn’t you?” I ask Tony.

He gives me his manly half smile.
“I’d say you’re right.”

I place my head back on his shoulder and let him lead me in the dance.
My hand begins cramping and I try letting go but can’t. I lift my head from his shoulder and look at him worriedly. “Tony, can you let my hand go? It’s starting to hurt.” He's squeezing it tightly.

He's looking away. From this point of view, I can see that his gaze is distant, focused on nothing in particular.
“Tony,” I say a little more forcefully, while trying to jerk my hand away.

He finally looks back at me, red eyes in tow.
I suck in a breath, being taken completely off guard. I panic, not wanting everyone around me to know what’s happening. Before I can begin healing him, he speaks. “You think you’ve won now… I’ve only just begun. Your precious Tony is about to become my little puppet. I’d take this time to say goodbye if I were you, because there’s nothing you can do about this, sugar.”

I involuntarily shutter at Zack’s pet name for me.
I don’t waste any more time before I go into full-blown healing mode. I heal like I’ve never healed before. The only other time I let myself go this far was when I healed my mom at the side of the mountain.   

A few minutes pass before I finally feel my hand release from his grip. I look up at Tony with droopy eyes. He looks confused. He must not remember any of these episodes.

“Sorry, I’m tired all the sudden.
Do you mind walking me back to my room?” I ask. His confusion doesn’t waver but he agrees. I say goodbye to my friends, who happen to be in the path between where I was standing and the door. I’m so weak my legs can barely carry me.