part0018

He turned to his brothers for an answer but was met with blank stares from them all. Sierra's mind had been a mes,s full of her panic and the one track thought that she needed to get home. Looking there had gotten him nothing, and his eyes instantly met those of his twin to see what emotions he had gathered. He was surprised at how pale Theo looked, and something about his expression made Leo feel like there was a lead ball dropping into his stomach.

"That fear,” he whispered. “It was so...heavy, I can't shake it. When she was here, it was like someone was hammering at my chest, flooding me with it.”

Leo stared at his brother, knowing his concern would be leaking through to him but unable to stop it. He wanted to comfort his twin, but he also wanted to go after Sierra and make sure she was alright. He was caught between the two, and it wasn't until Theo met his eyes again and gave a reassuring smile that he knew which he could focus on first.

"Do you think it's because we took her from school?" Josh asked quietly, worry etched into the lines of his face.

“We had no choice,” Nik snapped out. “If we hadn't, who knows what would have happened. Being there, the risk of being exposed, it only made her worse. We had to take her out.”

Josh shook his head, still staring at the door as he rubbed his hand up and down his arm- over the same place where Sierra's bruise would have been, Leo realised.

"I think we just got her into a lot of trouble."

Logan sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose with his forefingers, his frustration clear. He lowered his hand to pin them all in a stare, and when he spoke his voice was grim.

"I can't believe I've got to say this, but we need to leave her alone right now. "

He raised a hand to silence the onslaught of shouts, looking each of them in the eye one by one as he spoke.

"I know it's hard, but if we don't go back to school right now then they will start asking questions, and I have no story to explain why all five of us and Sierra suddenly vanished from the grounds. Nik, give me your phone."

Nik passed his phone over and Logan quickly tapped away on it. A moment later a round of buzzes sounded around the room. Leo pulled out his phone and saw the Logan had created a new group chat, with a message already sent out to Sierra, instructing her to let them know she was alright. Knowing he could contact her relieved the tight ball in Leo's chest slightly, but he couldn't help the dissatisfaction at Logan's order to leave her alone.

“What if she needs our help?” he asked, his mind still heavy from the weight of her panic .

“Then she will reach out to us,” Logan reassured him, clasping a hand on Leo's shoulder and giving a tight squeeze. “Until then, we go back to school and continue as normal- the last thing we need is unwanted attention, especially if it puts Sierra at risk. Understood?”

Leo, Theo and Josh nodded reluctantly, but Nik stared at his feet with his shoulders heaving with his deep breaths. Leo knew Nik had been struggling with being back at school; it was not something he had ever enjoyed, and being taken from his position as Logan's second in command had certainly made him more frustrated than usual. But coupling that with his worry over Sierra was like putting a match to a tank of gasoline, and Leo was sure his brother was about to blow.

Logan took a step towards him, his pace calm and measured as he slowly reached out a hand to lay gently on Nik's shoulder. The movement caused him to look up, and Leo was surprised at how dark his green eyes had gone. Logan seemed to see it to, for he set his free hand on Nik's other shoulder and stared him right in the eye .

“Nik, you can't hold onto it, you need to let it out. You won't help Sierra like this.”

The words were a choked gasp, and Leo cut a quick glance at his already pale brother, who looked at Nik in resignation.

“He can't, Nik.” Leo said for him. “He's already wiped from Sierra. He'll need a little time to regroup. Can you let it go yourself?”

Nik gave a jerky nod, his hands trembling at his sides as he closed his eyes, his breaths coming in shallow and fast.

That was the problem with Nik's ability; his anger fuelled it better than anything else, making him a force unknown to mankind which was handy if he couldn't draw on other peoples strength when he needed it. But, if he didn't release the extra strength, it would liquefy him- mind, body and soul.

Leo guessed they all had their limits, but Nik's was definitely easier to reach .

Logan stayed in front of Nik, talking to him softly whilst Nik tried to control his breathing and release the anger he had built up. Theo was usually their best bet at this, but at the same time it had made it harder for Nik to manage himself.

“You need to be calm, Nik.” Logan said softly. “So we can get back to school and check on Sierra. You can't do that with all the extra strength you have. Let it go, you don't need it right now. We will make sure she's safe, alright?”

Nik released a bellowing breath of air, his chest seeming to deflate momentarily, making him look smaller and thinner than he ever had, before he puffed back up to his normal size again. Leo knew that was the extra strength running from him, which meant Nik was back in control.

“I'm good,” he muttered. “I've got it.”

Logan nodded as he stepped back, his eyes still on Nik as he addressed the group as one.

“Alright, let's get back to school. We need to keep up appearances if we want to transfer out of this town with Sierra like planned. ”

They tromped out of the door, leaving Logan to lock up as they all climbed into one car. Logan gave them a wave as he headed towards his own just as Leo felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out to see Nik had already sent a message to Sierra, asking her to get in touch as soon as she could. Nik pulled the car away from the house and Leo sat back in his seat, his phone gripped tightly in his hand as he waited on their girls reply. His worry began to overtake him, knocking down his natural defences and allowing the thoughts of the others to filter easily into his mind.

'She was so scared, how can I help her when she's that scared. I'm suffocating, I can't handle it. I can't breath. It hurts, god it hurts. I'm going to die-'

Leo barked out his brothers name as the final thought intensified, gaining a desperate magnitude as Theo began to writhe in the seat next to him. He turned to look at his twin to see him staring ahead, panic written across his face as he gripped his throat and his chest heaved.

"What's going on?" Nik demanded as Josh twisted in the front passenger seat, his own eyes going wide as he stared at Theo's struggling form.

“What's happening to him?”

Leo shook his head as Theo finally turned to look at him, his bulging eyes pleading with him for help. Leo reached out his hand instantly, knowing what his twin was after, and made a connection as he gripped his brothers wrist. He pushed his way into Theo's mind, weaving his way through the mesh of confused thoughts and panic to find a darkness that was like a black hole, sucking away at Theo's sanity with each passing second. It had crept into every crevice, ever corner, and Theo truly believed he was being strangled.

'Theo, what's happening?'

His answering thought was strangled, gasped out and desperate to Leo's mind.

'Sierra, I feel Sierra. It's her, help her. "

Leo snapped back with a jolt as panic seized him and barked his words out at Nik.

"We need to get to Sierra. Now!"

Without a word, Nik flung the vehicle around in a violent U-turn and raced back down the road, away from the school and towards Sierra's house. Logan blared his car horn at them as they passed and Leo just saw his shouting face through the window. In seconds Josh's phone was ringing. He answered it and spoke before Logan had the chance.

"We're getting Sierra, she's in trouble. Theo-he's feeling something from her." He peered over his shoulder at Theo in the back seat who's eyes were beginning to roll back in his head. His voice was grim when he spoke again.

"Theo's connected to her Logan, I don't know how but he's going through what she is and it doesn't look good."

There was a loud curse followed by muttered words from the other end of the phone before Josh ended the call and turned to Leo who was watching his brother in horror.

"Logan's following."

"What do I do Josh?" Leo begged. "How do I help him? "

Josh shook his head, his own eyes desperate as he watched Theo flail in the seat as he slowly suffocated.

"I don't know Leo. I can't sense the injury, only his pain. If it's really coming from Sierra then I don't think it will stop until we save her."

At that moment Theo slumped in his seat, his body relaxed as he sucked in gulps of air and tears streamed down his cheeks. Leo reached over and grasped his shoulders, turning him to look at him roughly. Theo held up a hand and tapped it gently on Leo's arm.

"I'm okay." He rasped. "It's stopped. I don't- I don't know what happened, but I felt it, I felt everything."

"Do you think that means she's unconscious?" Nik asked worriedly.

Theo shook his head, confusion on his face before he doubled over with a shout of pain. The shout came again before he arched his back, his face screwed up in pain as he convulsed as though he were being beaten.

Josh dove towards the back of the car and reached out to grab hold of Theo at the same time as Leo, just as the latter began to scream, his words chilling Leo to the bone as he realised what they meant.

"No Dad, no! Please, please!"

Theo's screams filled the car as Nik raced it towards Sierra's house. Leo gripped his brothers arm as he listened to him scream and hopelessness overwhelmed him and he felt a sob choke his throat.

“How is this even possible?” he demanded, turning wide eyes on Josh who stared back at him. “How can he feel her like this?”

“I've no idea.” Josh shook his head, his gaze fixed on Theo who had stopped screaming and settled in the fetal position as he rocked back and forth on the back seat. “This level of bonding shouldn't be possible yet, it takes-”

Nik's barked words slammed their conversation to a halt as he parked the car in front of the large house, its perfectly manicured garden giving the impression of a well kept home despite the horrors that they were becoming aware of happening inside. Nik and Josh jumped from the car as Leo turned to Theo, his eyes searching his face which was contorted in pain as sweat dripped on his forehead.

"Go," Theo gasped out as he curled up, clutching his stomach. "She needs you, just go, go!"

With a short nod Leo fled the car, racing through the garden as Logan dumped his own car and followed hot on his heels.