| |
Whenever I got too exhausted from practicing, my need to know that Alex was fine pulled me to the shelter. The fact that I couldn’t see inside the firehouse and the gym of our school was disheartening. I heard his heartbeat alright but to feel him so close and never be able to see him was frustrating. Nevertheless, during every break, I had to go back. It was like an addiction. Perhaps, this time, he’d be out on the square. I observed the people who were out and about within the fenced outdoor area. Some of the VCP were patrolling, pistols fastened to their belts. Order and nobody acting out were PaNacea’s priority with so many people in one place.
Alex’s heartbeat let me know he was somewhere in the building like on the previous days. However, some blond boys kicking around a soccer ball caught my attention. Their short blond curls shone like small suns in the grey square. The resemblance between my friend Sam and his little brothers was unmistakable. If Sam’s brothers were there, the chance was big he’d be somewhere close as well. I scanned their faces while restlessly moving along the fence in Siren speed, in order not to be discovered. With a small jump of joy between my steps, I spotted my friend who had been my confidant during high school. He was skinnier than I remembered but all in all, he looked good. The shelters were not only bad. Nobody had died of a sickness or a riot inside a shelter. There were the executions but exclusively of magical creatures. Not that the humans were aware of that though.
I was relieved to see Sam was safe and longed to speak to him. Hopefully, soon, he and all the other people in the shelters could return to their homes since I was getting quicker and securer with the singing. Nothing justified that all these people, including my friends, were kept like animals and it was my duty to get them out if I could.
Why didn’t Alex show himself outside though? He must know that I would come looking for him and the least he could do after disappearing was making it easier for me to see him. Didn’t he miss me as well? By not showing himself, he only managed to ensure that my worry about him grew with each passing day. Had they already imprisoned him for something? This uncertainty mixed with the hard singing practice made my body ache for new adrenaline sooner than normal. Great timing to desire more hearts than usual, now that they were so hard to find. Before going on my quest for new adrenaline, I set the TV on recording, so I could check the deaths and execution announcements when I got back. I couldn’t afford to miss if Alex got himself into trouble.
I left a note for Luke and Melissa that I was out hunting. I didn’t know how far I’d have to travel this time and how long it would take me until I got back.
Luckily, I didn’t have to enter China this time. Or, I shouldn’t say lucky, as the scene I found was a heartbreaking one. A sailboat had turned over in the South Pacific Ocean. Several people must have been on the boat, but I could only feel one remaining heartbeat. A woman had managed to pull herself onto the bottom of the turned boat and was lying there like a wet packet of newspapers.
“Christie,” she whispered over and over in a feverish dream, when I approached her. It was difficult to balance on the boat because it was slippery, and the waves pushed it around like a play ball. The woman was too weak to balance on the surface and was about to fall off and drown or die of dehydration. I caught her just before the next wave washed over us and put her out of her misery by extracting her adrenaline and shot it inside my heart. Afterward, I closed her eyes and watched her glide into the water which swallowed her like a mouth. “Goodbye.” I whispered and then took off quickly, to make sure I wouldn’t sink as well. I could only hope the ocean would bury her with her friend or family which she’d lost in this accident and that they’d rest in peace. With every step I ran away from the accident and closer to Cape Cod I could shake the bad feelings of having witnessed how yet another person died. Besides, the adrenaline was a boost of strength. I clenched my fists. I was ready to present a little show for Monica.
At home, I found Melissa who was watching the death show on TV.
“Anything interesting?” I held my breath.
“Not to us anyway”, she replied, taking my tension away for now.
“Where is Luke?”
“On the way here with two magicians from the ministry. Samantha is actually the minister of magic and a powerful wizard.” Melissa gave me a meaningful look. “It’s an honor that they even talk to us with their busy schedule, but they did not only talk to us, they even think your singing will work.” Melissa smiled.
Great, two more important people I didn’t want to disappoint.
“They can take over afterward or be there as a safety measure. In case something goes wrong they’ll try to stun Monica.” Melissa pursed her lips.
Her last words only added to the pressure I already felt weighing down on my shoulders. “And if it goes right?”
“Gregory is the head of the department of hypnosis and spirituality. He will take over Dr. Palmer and Samantha will erase and restore people’s memories in case it gets too crazy for the human witnesses.”
I puffed my cheeks and nodded approvingly. Melissa and Luke have found the support we needed. Now, we had to work on the details of our attack. “So, how are they coming here?” The Library was all the way down in New York City. I imagined them riding on broomsticks.
“Walking and bicycles.” Melissa frowned. “Since it’s too dangerous to use magic until it’s time for the hypnosis and cars make too much noise, they have no other choice.”
I chewed my lower lip. Something felt odd about this. Then, it dawned on me. “But what is the point of having them here if we need to get to Monica? We’d better have some magicians in London.”
“Yes.” Melissa nodded. “However, we concluded that London is her home base where she will be most protected. Even if she travels with her complete entourage, we have the moment of surprise more in our favor when they aren’t in their familiar surroundings.”
“So, we should meet her somewhere else.” That sounded reasonable.
“Yes, or...”, she trailed off and I knew I wasn’t going to like what she wanted to say.
“Or what?” I crossed my arms in front of me.
“Perhaps Alex’s idea wasn’t as reckless as we thought. If we stir up enough trouble in Orleans’ shelter, they might travel here.” She smiled encouragingly.
For her sake, I gave it a moment of sincere consideration but then I decided this was a horrendous idea. “No.” I decisively shook my head. “My High School friends are in that shelter. Not to mention Alex. Directly challenging Monica can’t be safe either way and to get her here would mean a much higher likelihood to die for everyone in the Orleans shelter. We can’t take the responsibility for that.”
Melissa sighed. “Yes, it will be dangerous. It doesn’t have to be Orleans but at least a place away from England. And now that we’ve found qualified wizards here, we should try to get her somewhere within their reach.”
“How did you even select them?” I leaned against the wall next to the kitchen counter. “If they can’t demonstrate their powers, how do you know they are good enough?”
“They were well known among the wizards and even the ghosts in the Library. Samantha excelled all the exams you have to do to work for the ministry. Nobody ever had such high scores as her. Gregory, on the other hand, wrote several books about hypnosis, including Flying donkeys: How to be the master of your ride. Other wizards said it’s an honor being hypnotized by him and that he manages to hypnotize a whole classroom of people at once.”
“You don’t say.” Was there anything that didn’t exist in the wizarding world? I swallowed. “So, I will find a shelter close to here which we could use as a decoy.”
“I can do that.” Melissa hesitated. “How’s the singing coming along?”
“Alright.” I exhaled. “When I’m on my own I’m down to six to eight minutes.” I knew that was still too slow. I had to be ready within seconds when it came down to it and probably, there would be many distractions around me as well.
“That’s good.” She slowly nodded, both of us being aware of how urgent it was that I improved even further. “Do you want to try now, with me here?”
“I should, shouldn’t I?” I shook my limbs, trying to loosen up but feeling the pressure of her expectation. The first five minutes, I wasted by being worried by the thought that I was a failure. I felt Melissa standing in front of me and each passing second turned into a small eternity. Then, I managed to block out all of that. After twelve minutes the first chords of my song broke free. Melissa folded her hands over her heart and smiled.
Once I stopped, she sighed. “Listening to you is like a massage for my soul. Wonderful.”
“It’s like pulling myself including a whole rollercoaster cart up the highest slope and then dropping down again,” I replied and then plumped down onto the couch. “Plus, I wonder what effect it would have had on you if you were human.”
Melissa frowned. “True, it would be nice to know the effect your singing actually has on humans before we try it on Monica.”
“Speaking of humans. I need to go check on how Alex is doing.” I got up and once more returned to the fire station in search for Alex. One thing was sure, we had to attack Monica somewhere else than in Orleans.
Before I even reached the town center, I felt it would be my lucky day and sped up a little. Finally, Alex was out on the square as well. I spotted him, talking to a group of people. Nothing that looked suspicious and as if he was behaving utterly stupid.
It was good to see him. I wondered if he missed me as well and blew him a kiss. At that moment, he glanced to the spot where I had been standing a moment before and narrowed his eyes. That couldn’t have been a coincidence either. I wanted to cry out his name, tear through the fence and jump into his strong and familiar arms. The glance from before confirmed that we did have a special connection. Unfortunately, he dedicated his attention to his group again. Painfully, I forced myself to run away from the shelter. I wished I could have stayed there and watched but now that I saw Alex was okay, that would have been a waste of my resources.
I explored our area and the state toward New York a bit more. If we had to get Monica here, where would be a good place? Anywhere where I didn’t know anybody sounded good to me. I know that wasn’t fair to the innocents who were there either. Getting Dr. Palmer to come to a shelter usually meant that someone needed to die. But I had to make my choices as well and nobody could blame me for wanting to keep the ones dearest to me safe.