Collide (18 page)

“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

“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.

“It’s no problem.”

He rubbed my knee for a minute and then I felt his hand fall as he fell asleep. Blowing out a sigh, I reached across him to the floorboard for the snack bag.

He got the blueberry cereal bars.

I ate two of them, seeing as how I hadn’t eaten anything all day with all the commotion. There was bottled water too which I grabbed and down half the bottle with one pull.

I turned the radio on to help the freezing wind keep me awake. Reception was horrible off the main interstates. I finally settled on a semi-fuzzy rock station and the slogan they said every five minutes was ‘Get you fill, with Gill. The late night slamming jamming singer bringer’.

I would’ve laughed but my sleeping crew wouldn’t have heard me so I kept it to myself. Funny, how Gill probably thought that was pretty clever but the tunes were nice and loud, perfect for my current circumstances and I even sang along. They were asleep and the rip roaring wind was loud enough to cover my howling.

Driving in the dark was not my strong suite. I drove too slow, and got antsy when oncoming traffic appeared.

Kay probably was pretty annoyed with me, back behind us, but I couldn’t help it. I’d always been a day time or well-lit-highway kinda girl. My dad used to laugh at me. He called me a city girl who halted the car as soon as the city street lamps stopped.

I let Merrick sleep for about an hour and a half, then I saw it. There was an old abandoned run down motel set back off the highway. No electricity to it, dark, only lit by my oncoming headlights with bushes and grass overgrown.

I pulled in and woke Merrick. Kay pulled in behind me and killed her lights.

“Merrick? Merrick? What about this place? For the night at least,” I asked as I shook his shoulder lightly.

“Where are we?”

Merrick was incredibly cute groggy.

“The last sign I saw about twenty minutes back was Potomac. It didn’t seem like much of a busy place, but there is probably a grocery store or something.”

“Hmmm.” He rubbed his hands in his hair. “How long have I been out?”

“Almost two hours. You need more than that.”

“I feel a lot better... Ok, some better,” he recanted seeing my face, reading the lies spilling out.

“What do you think?”

“I think, I looked for hours with nothing and you take over and find the perfect place,” he said looking at me proudly.

I rolled my eyes at his silly banter as he grabbed my arm, pulling me towards his seat as he opened his door to get out. He lifted me up in an embrace that took my feet from the ground. The urge to kiss him came back to me ten fold, with his face buried in my hair and neck.

“You did good. I adore you, you know that? Thanks for letting me sleep,” he whispered in my ear as he set me to the ground. “Stay here.”

Jeff came to meet Merrick, no doubt having an internal conversation, and they walked cautiously to check the door and see if anyone else is here, though it doesn’t look like it.

Danny woke up and looked around, for Celeste I was sure. When he saw Merrick and Jeff, I decided to fill him in. He nodded his head in agreement. This was the perfect place, for tonight. It was falling apart and ragged. You could tell no one had been there in a very long time. The exact opposite of a motel I would have chosen a year ago. Funny.

Jeff came out with cobwebs in his hair from the door frame and waved us the all clear.

I left my headlights on for everyone to begin to unload our cargo. It took a few seconds to get the sticky trunk latch but eventually I got it open. I saw Celeste bend down to brush off her pants by the van.

That was the last thing I remembered before a horrible pain in my head and then I hit the hard, dusty ground.

I felt achy and incoherent, my eye hurt and I squinted to see but everything was blurry and moving in gray and dark colors. I reached up to inspect my eye and jolted at the pain that shot through my cheek. I also touched something wet. Blood. I blinked to focus and I must not have been out long because I saw them running towards us, Merrick and Jeff. The rest were behind them, horror all over their faces.

The creature, gangily hovering over me, must have thought I was alone. I couldn’t believe what was in front of my eyes.

Celeste and I had been the only ones left outside that I had seen, and I didn’t see her now nor Danny. Ah, please let her be ok.