Forbidden (The Seeker Saga, #2) (40 page)

That gave me hope.  I directed even more energy at him. I threw everything I could there.  The effort left my mind raw and bleeding.  Everything I had left in me, everything I could draw through the crystal, I directed at Chris – at his
voliar
.  The device sucked it all in. The pain inside Chris’s head grew and grew and grew.  It was quickly becoming unbearable.  And then… it hit the breaking point.

A blinding burst of light exploded before my eyes.  The crystal flew from my hand.  Pain from my leg crashed into me like an avalanche the second I lost the crystal.  I cried out, but the sound was stifled by a shockwave that slammed into me from the explosion.  My entire leg was afire in the worst kind of pain.  I tried to push it aside.  It was somebody else’s pain, somebody else’s bo—I couldn’t do it.  I couldn’t ignore the agony.  My eyes popped open.  Time was back in line with reality.

Through gritted teeth, I surveyed the scene before me.  Chris was writhing on the ground.  His tortured screams filled the air.  He clutched at his face. Thin tendrils of smoke rose from his head.  I could sense the sickening smell of charred, burned skin drift from him.  He screamed and screamed and screamed on the ground. The sound grated at my bones.  He thrashed back and forth, as if he were being burned alive.  But there was no visible flame, no fire near him.  His greed had finally gotten the better of him.  He had tried to draw more power from me than he could manage. And it backfired horribly.

My eyes went to Rob.  He was on the ground, far away. He lay completely still.  There was no way to tell how badly he was hurt.  But I could not focus on him now.  Not yet.  There was still another threat. 

Beyond Chris, the girls were picking themselves up from the explosion.  I searched the barn for Chris’s dad, but did not see him.  He was the remaining threat. He was still very dangerous.

Arthur was the first on his feet.  I called out his name, and he ran to me.  The willow had completely burned off, but I was driven by adrenaline, now.  “Paul Rosenberg,” I said quickly.  “Where is he?”

“He ran,” Arthur said, “after the explosion.”

“Ran? 
No!
  We can’t let him get away!”  Desperately, I motioned for Arthur to help me up.  He scooped me by the shoulders.  Chris’s screams had faded in the background. He was lying on the ground as still as Rob. 
Oh God, Rob!
  “Get the crystal,” I told Arthur.  “We have to go after Paul!  Now!”

Arthur nodded, determination plain on his face.  He scanned the ground for the red crystal, found it, and helped me over to it.  Glancing back, I saw John kneeling by Rob.  The girls were busy untying the bonds of the seekers. 

Arthur picked the crystal up and placed it in my hand.  My entire arm was trembling.  Pain continued to shoot up and down my leg.  And my mind whirled with horrible thoughts about Rob’s wellbeing.  But I couldn’t focus on him now.  I would
not
let Chris’s dad get away.

“Come on!  We have to go!,” I urged.  Arthur nodded grimly and started for the exit as I leaned on him for support.  At least I could control my arms, and my one good leg, with the effects of the willow gone. 

As we left the barnyard, I spared one last, longing look at Rob.  John was still with him, and some of the councilors had run up to them as well.  Commotion spread across the remaining villagers.  Things were not quiet there anymore.

“Where did Paul go?” I demanded.

“I don’t know.  He still has his gun.  That makes him dangerous.”

“No.  He doesn’t.”  In the split second before the explosion, I had managed to direct a tiny stream of heat into the weapon, just enough to melt the barrel.  Arthur crooked an eyebrow at me, but did not ask how I knew that.

“In that case,” he said, “he’ll probably be headed for his plane.”

“Right.  Let’s go!”

We struggled through the village.  Every step I took sent a shooting wave of agony through my entire body.  Arthur knew how bad my condition was, and did his best to help, but it didn’t take long for the pain to become overwhelming.  Tears formed in my eyes, making it hard to see, but I gritted my teeth and kept going.  I would not let Chris’s dad get away.

As we reached the village wall, I saw the figure of a man topping the rise in the distance.  He was running straight for the lake.  “That’s him!” I said.  “Hurry!”  Arthur grunted, and together we hobbled after the disgraced professor as fast as we could.

Just as we reached the top of the hill, the sound of an engine kicked in.  “No!” I cried out desperately.  “No!”  We topped the crest. To my horror, the second plane was already moving on the water.  He could not get away like that.  Not without paying for what he had done.  He had shot Rob and wreaked havoc on an entire village.  He had made me fear for my life. 
No!
  I would
not
let him escape!

I gripped the crystal in my hand.  The power it gave me would be enough to make the plane burst into flames.  It was a fitting ending for a horrible man.  I concentrated on the crystal, pushing aside the pain I felt and all the despairing thoughts to link to it.  I opened my mind to the fire, and… the link evaded me.  It wasn’t being
blocked
anymore.  I simply did not have the strength left.

The plane started taking off.  I was breathing hard.  Paul Rosenberg could
not
just get away!  I tried using the crystal again.  It would not work.  “No!” I cried out.  “No!”  I tightened my grip on the rock, and desperately tried to access it, but it was beyond me.  The plane lifted into the sky and leveled out.  I watched helplessly as it flew farther and farther away.  Arthur and I stood there until the plane was just a dot in the sky.

“He… he got away,” I whispered finally.  The words stumbled out of my mouth.  I felt defeated.  I had failed again in the most critical moment.

“And he left his own son to die,” Arthur mulled.  “What kind of man would do something like that?”

“This was my chance,” I whispered under my breath.  Tears formed in my eyes.  Not from pain, but from disappointment.  Bitter disappointment.  “I could have ended it here!”  I wanted to scream, to shout, to curse at the world and at my failure.  I wanted to fall down and cry.  The man responsible for so many horrible things was within my grasp, and I had… I had let him get away.

“Come,” Arthur said.  “Let’s get back to the others.  They’ll still need our help.”

My eyes widened with the realization. 
Rob! 
I had been so wrapped up in chasing after Paul
that I had forgotten all about Rob.  Shame swelled within me. 

We turned back, and a fierce determination gripped me.  I would
not
allow Rob to die on me!  We headed for the barn. Halfway there, my strength failed me.  I stumbled forward pathetically, but Arthur caught me before I hit the ground.  I had to be helped by him the rest of the way.

The whole walk was a terrible struggle.  My entire body felt like it was on fire, and I had no sensation below the ankle of my bad leg – nothing other than pain.  Everything I had managed to avoid noticing before was coming back in full force.  The hole in my stomach from a lack of food.  The exhaustion behind my eyes from too little sleep.  The pain in my temples from drawing on the crystal so strongly.  We shuffled to the barn. Every step I took was an exercise in agony. 

About two streets away I became aware of the sounds coming from inside the barn.  There was some a commotion going on.

We came to the door of the barn. Nobody noticed us at first.  I was leaning heavily on Arthur.  My eyes shot to where Rob had been. He wasn’t there anymore!  The dirt was stained with blood.  An all-encompassing despair took hold of me.  The seekers formed a tight circle around where Chris had been, and the girls were with them.  John was there too. He looked back and saw us first.

“Tracy, Arthur!” he exclaimed.  He got up and ran over.  “You won’t believe what happened!”

“Rob,” I said, my mind focused solely on him.  “Where is Rob?”

“That’s what I’m talking about!” John exclaimed.  “The seekers! They
healed
him!  It’s like he never took the bullet!”

“You mean…” I sucked in an anxious breath, “…he’s
alive
?”

“Yes!” John exclaimed.  Liz noticed us just then, and broke from the group to come over. 

“They can…
heal
, Tracy,” she said in awe.  “Your foot!  They will fix it completely!”

“They… will?” I asked.  I wasn’t sure exactly what Liz and John were talking about, but I did not care.  Rob was safe?  That was all that mattered.  I allowed myself to feel a little dizzy.

“They used our crystals in a way I could never imagine,” Liz said, still awe-struck.  “They know
so much
.”

“They’re the real deal, huh?” Arthur chuckled.  “Good.  That’s good.”

I blinked, and nearly lost my balance.  All the ailments that troubled me were sweeping in to take over.  I couldn’t resist them much longer.  I felt like I should be lying down, going to sleep…

Suddenly Madison appeared beside me.  “Tracy, come quick!” she exclaimed, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the huddle of the seekers.  “Quick!”

Liz positioned herself under my other shoulder for support, and together she and Arthur helped me over.  My eyes were droopy.  I could barely keep them open any longer.  As we walked, I noticed the group of villagers, all pressed back against the far wall.  They were watching us carefully, and murmured in respect as we passed. 

We made our way to the cluster. A space opened up for us in the middle.  Arthur and Liz helped me there… and I saw the most horrendous sight of my life. 

Chris was lying there, on his back, and… his entire face was
gone
.  The skin was completely melted off.  Burns scarred his arms, his neck, and extended beneath his clothes, but his face was simply… gone.  Like a melted wax figurine.  Without warning, I turned to the side and violently heaved up the contents of my stomach.

 A woman who was kneeling beside Chris looked up.  “You are Tracy?” she asked.  She had an odd accent, and hair as dark as Ashley’s. It was hard to put an age to her face.  She was older than me, yet a lot younger than my mother.  At the same time, her eyes held a deep wisdom that was far beyond her years.

“Yes,” I said weakly.  I couldn’t look at the body. 
I
had caused that.  Chris was like that because of
me
.  I had…
killed
someone—in the most terrifying way possible.  I felt myself getting dizzy, and sucked in a deep breath.  That was a mistake!  The smell of charred skin wafted up my nose and made me feel even closer to fainting.

“This boy still lives,” the woman told me.  “He is hanging on by a thread, but the force of life is still within him.  Tracy, it is up to you.  He is the one who attacked you.  If you tell me to, I can bring him back.”

It took a few moments for her words to register.  Chris might still
live
?  I could not wish death on him—no matter what he had done.  I had known him, once.  I had shared a kiss with him once!  Even more, I felt a great pity for him.  Nobody deserved to die like that.

“How?” I asked weakly.

“If you wish, I can pull him back from the brink.  He will live.  But I cannot do anything about the skin.  Not the disfigurement.  It will not be a pleasant way to live. Some may say he deserves what he got.  But the choice is yours.  What do you say?”

“Yes!” I said quickly, bobbing my head up and down.  “Of course, yes!”

“Very well.”  The woman paused, and looked up at me.  “And what about you?  You have taken an injury as well.  Would you like it healed?”

“Yes,
please
!” I said, but the words trailed off my tongue.  I was very lightheaded.  And the pain from my leg had become overwhelming.  I leaned on Liz drunkenly.  Too much had happened in too short a time.  Too much stress – emotional, physical, mental, everything.  Even if there was nothing left in my stomach, I wanted to hurl again at the sight of Chris’s charred skin.  My eyes rolled to the back of my head, and the world faded from view.

Chapter Twenty One – What the Seekers Know

I came to on a soft bed.  I lifted my head, and found I was surrounded by white sheets.  There was an open window at my feet. Light streamed into the room from the morning sun.  I felt weary, but… clean.  Without thinking, I swept my legs over the side of the bed to get up – and marveled in fascination when both of them responded.  The toes of each foot peeked out from the bottom of a white gown.  I wiggled them and couldn’t help but let out an excited squeal.  My foot – my injured foot – was completely healed!  There was no bruising, no pain, no sign that anything had been wrong with it at all!

“It’s fascinating, isn’t it?” John said from behind me.  My breath caught and I spun on the spot.  I had no idea he was in the room!  He rose from a chair and strode to me.  The limp that plagued him before was gone.  “Truly unbelievable.  The best outcome I could have imagined for you was an amputated foot, followed by a modern prosthetic.  But these women… these
seekers
… they used the crystals to heal.  And now you’re walking on your own two legs!”