Exposing ELE (ELE Series #3) (21 page)

I wake in the middle of the night not quite sure how I got to my bed.
I sit up rubbing my eyes. Thoughts from last night haunt my memory. “Tony,” I say instinctively. I can feel it deep down inside me that his days are numbered. If only I knew exactly how many days I had left with him... or could it be just hours? The gift I have of seeing a short distance into the future isn't very helpful with that. Especially since the visions only come here and there. Unlike the other powers, I haven't been able to find a way to control that one.

I don't need to see the future though to know I need to get Tony out of here. I wish I could say that we need to leave so that these last few days can be ones of peace and tranquility for him. But the truth of the matter is, I have to get him away from all of these innocent people. I am now one of their leaders and I can't allow anything to happen to them.

I get out a pencil and paper from the nightstand next to me and write a note.

Dear Dad,

I’m going somewhere for a few days.
Please don’t worry; I’ll be okay. There are just a few things I need to take care of. Give Sabby a hug for me and I’ll see you soon.

Love Always,

Willow

It’s not much, but I hope it’ll help him not to worry while I’m gone. I gather up a few essential items from my room and cram them into a backpack. I change into a pair of cut-off shorts and a white shirt and then head out. I get out to the hallway and realize I don’t know where Tony’s room is. I grit my teeth in frustration. I have all these gifts at my disposal but I can’t find someone’s room. It seems ridiculous. I’m pretty sure he’s in this hallway, but this is a huge building. In reality, he could be anywhere!

“Where do you think you’re going?” someone questions behind me.
I turn around, startled. One of the older women, who I think must mistake me for a younger kid, stares me down with a questioning look.

“Umm,” I stammer, trying to figure out what to say to her.
Then, against my better judgment, I use my compulsion. “Tell me where Tony’s room is.” As always, her eyes glaze over and she goes into robot mode.

“Tony who?” she asks.
I didn’t realize someone could ask a question under compulsion. I guess if they don’t know the answer to something they can. I’ll play around with that later.

“Tony, the one who is my second in command.”

She looks at me as if just now realizing who I am. Then she immediately answers.
“Floor three, room 315.”

I thank her and ask another question.
“Why do our noses run and our feet smell?”

Her expression is priceless.
She just gives me a blank stare; my guess is that she's searching the far recesses of her brain to come up with an answer. “I. Don’t. Know,” she says awkwardly.

“Thank you for your help,” I tell her before I take off for the stairs.
I’m on floor two so Tony’s just one floor above me. It only takes me a few moments to find his room but when I get there, I just stop and stare at the door. What if he’s not dressed? What if he’s not alone…? I push the goofy thoughts aside and knock softly. When he doesn’t answer, I gather enough guts to enter. I find it locked so I move through the door.

His room is illuminated by the soft light of the moon and stars that trickles in through the open window. Tony's fast asleep, wearing his pajama bottoms… and no shirt.
I can feel my face go red. It just feels wrong watching him sleeping, so intimate.

I swallow the lump in my throat and give him a light shake.
“Tony,” I whisper.

He doesn’t respond so I repeat my actions.
The third time, I really shake him and his eyes flutter open. Once he realizes it’s me, he bolts upright throwing me off-guard. “Willow, what’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

I nod my head.
“Yeah, everything’s fine. I just…” Sheeze. How do I ask him this? “I just wanted to see if you’ll do me a favor.”

He rubs his eyes, looking slightly confused. My eyes wander in his silence. I try not looking at his perfectly sculpted chest but I find myself losing the battle.
He’s just so… utterly beautiful. He raises his eyebrows at me and I purse my lips.

“Like what you see?” he asks me playfully.

I turn a hundred shades of red and look away.
“Yes,” I say bashfully. “I’ll just wait outside the door.”

A minute or so goes by before he quietly opens the door and meets me in the hall.
Thankfully, this time, he’s wearing a shirt. Now at least I’ll be able to look him in the eyes without being distracted.

“You know how you said back at the cabin that you’d do anything for me?”

He gives me a look that says ‘Oh boy, what have I gotten myself into.’ “MmHm,” he mutters.

“Well, I want you to take me somewhere; away from here.”

I guess he realizes it isn't as bad as he thought.
He gives me a slight head nod. “And, how long is this little excursion going to be?”

I shrug my shoulders.
“I don’t know, a few days? We'd have to leave now though,” I say, hoping he’ll say yes.

He stares at me for quite a long time, but I don’t dare look away.
Finally, he agrees. “Let me just get a few things together. I’ll meet you at your room in ten.”

I'm surprised he's not asking more questions. Grateful, I nod my head and walk back to my room to wait.
 

When I get back to my room, I find the note my mother wrote me in the back pocket of my old jeans.
I can’t believe I almost forgot it! I’ve decided that I’m going to open it with Tony. Maybe tomorrow. It seems like every time I think about opening it, I chicken out. It just seems so final to me. Like her death is a done deal. It’s with this letter that I hold onto the last bit of her that’s still alive in my heart. I squeeze the note in my hand. “I love you, Mom,” I say , hoping that she can still hear me. I stick the letter into the back pocket of my jean shorts.

A knock raps on the door and I get up and answer it.
Tony stands at the door leaning against the frame. “So, where to?” he asks. He’s dressed in jeans that fall low on the hips and a white shirt. Yum.

“I want to go back to your place,” I answer nervously.
As soon as I say it out loud, I realize how that sounded. Tony stifles a laugh as I rush to explain myself. “No! That’s totally not what I meant!”

He can’t suppress the laugh anymore.
So he doesn’t wake up the entire hall he lets himself in my room and shuts the door. “So, you want to go back to my place, yet we haven’t actually defined our relationship.”

I punch him playfully in the chest. “You know that's not what I meant!” He grins and I bite my lip.
“Well… that’s the one place where we can forget all of this,” I say, gesturing to our surroundings with my hand. “I just need to get away for a while is all.”

He seems to ponder what I said for a second, and then he agrees.
“Did you let your dad know?”

I show him the note.
“Alright then. Your wish is my command,” he says. I smile brightly, and then pick up my backpack off the floor. “But, no funny business,” Tony adds playfully.

I stifle a laugh and off we go.

We decide to run for it. Tony holds my hand as we run and he helps me dodge the trees. It’s crazy how good his reflexes are. When I duck under a fallen branch, I realize mine aren't too shabby either.

We get to Tony’s cabin right before dawn.
He makes us some hot tea and we sit out on the porch swing with a thick quilt and watch the sun rise. Tony wraps his arm around me and I can’t help but feel unbelievably safe in his embrace. I nestle into him and sip the hot tea.

Tony kisses me on the top of my head.
“We have some unfinished business to take care of.”

I get goose bumps along my arms.
“We do?” I ask, lost. A thousand things roll through my mind.

“MmHm,” he murmurs.
“Our earlier conversation brought something to light. We haven’t defined our relationship. And… I don’t know about you, but I’m eager to do so.”

My stomach erupts in butterflies.
I really like Tony. Like, really like him. But, I know what’s about to happen to him. And I don’t know if I can handle losing somebody else right now. On the flip side, I’ve vowed to make these last, however many, days some of his best. If that includes letting him call me his girlfriend, then so be it. I lift my head upwards to face him.

He gazes down at me and gives me a smile that warms my blood and melts my heart. “Willow Mosby, will you do the honor of being my girlfriend?”

It’s either the way he phrases it so simply or the fact that he’s so cute, that causes me to giggle.

“What?” He pokes me in the ribs, causing me to squirm.

“Watch it!” I giggle, trying not to spill my tea.
I reach down, setting it on the ground.

Tony sits up, letting his yellow eyes rest on mine.
He takes my hands in his and I savor the warmth that flows from him into me. “I’m being serious, Willow. There was… is something about you that makes me want to be a better man. I was honored when your mother asked me to be your protector and I took my job seriously. Still do! It’s just—I've always wanted something more. I wanted the right to hold your hand in public, for everyone to know that you were mine and I was yours. Maybe it sounds cheesy, but I’d love to be your boyfriend. I promise I’d treat you right and always keep you safe. I’ll never mistreat you or give you any less than you deserve. You just don’t know how long I’ve waited for someone like you.”

My breath catches, realizing his profession of love for me.
He may not have said those three words, but I can feel it on his mind. My heart aches knowing what is to come. I push the thoughts of his imminent future aside and figure to live in the now. I remember the quote my mother liked to tell me. ‘It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.’ I smile up at Tony and squeeze his hand. “I’d be honored,” I answer with a sincere smile.

I can see the visible relief in his expression at my answer. He smiles and pushes the hair out of my eyes. He closes his eyes and leans in to kiss me. I close my eyes and then... I'm running! I'm taken to the night where I'm running down the dark street. Buildings blur as I run so fast that my heart is beating uncontrollably fast. He's not far behind me now and I know it's only a matter of time before I reach the point where I turn down the dead end alley. I can hear his shoes pounding against the pavement only a few feet from me. Something hot hits my legs and I feel the burn seeping across my skin.

He calls to me hauntingly just like before, “Willow!” I don't look back; I keep running. I've had this vision before. I know what happens; he will catch me. I don't know what happens after that, but it's inevitable. The ground starts shaking and I feel my body moving uncontrollably back and forth. “Willow!” My legs are burnt and the shaking makes it worse, but I feel my healing working. “Willow!”

Like a flash, I'm out of the night, out of the vision. I open my eyes to the light.

Tony stops shaking me. He stares at me with a look of concern and fear in his eyes. “What happened? What did you see?”

I look at him, taken aback. I'm still a little disoriented.

“Your eyes are copper, what did you see?” he asks me. I can't bring myself to answer him. He looks down at my legs, “Crap!” He jumps up from the swing and runs inside. In less than five seconds, he's back at my side with a damp cloth.

I look down before he places it on my leg. I must have dropped my cup of hot tea. The teacup is shattered on the ground at my feet and my leg is red and swelling from where the scolding hot water hit it.

Tony places the cloth on my skin and I grimace at the pain. I can feel myself healing, but it’s slow. The thing I hate most about burns are that it's not a singular pain, it's like your skin keeps burning after the fact. I imagine in all actuality it kind of does. I close my eyes and focus on healing to help speed up the process and usher the pain away. A minute or two later, I open my eyes and look at Tony with relief. “Thanks.”

Tony still looks concerned. “What did you see? By the way your entire pallor went ghost white, I can only assume it wasn't good.”

I can't tell him what I saw without revealing the truth. How do I? Can I take this little bit of time away from him?

“You need to be honest with me, Willow,” he tells me in the way only the two of us can communicate.

“I can't.” How would I tell him something like this? I look away from his demanding eyes.

He reaches up, places his hand under my chin, and guides my gaze back to his. “You need to tell me.” I plead with him using my eyes but he doesn't waver. “I deserve to know what the truth is. You can't hold back on me.”

I know he's right. Would I want to know ahead of time what's about to happen? I can only imagine that I would. I close my eyes for a second to muster up the courage. He drops his hand, knowing that I'm about to relent. I open my eyes and take a deep breath. “I was in the room before you awoke back at the prison.” I don't know exactly where to start, except for the beginning.