DYNAMITE ► DUSTIN HENDERSON [2]

TWELVE

BRADLEY'S BIG BUY SAT IDLY AND UNTOUCHED in the dark parking lot, unsuspecting of the two cars that suddenly swerved to a stop in front of the entrance glass doors. Everyone piled in, Jasper leaning on Bobby for support, thinking vaguely at the back of her mind of how awkward it would've been if she had been this close to Bobby a few days ago.

Everyone dispersed after a brief meeting, agreeing to get the proper supplies to bandage up El's leg and find some painkillers for Jasper's head (if they could do anything, that is). Ruby and Jasper were hunched together in the frozen meats section, leaving El after it became clear Mike had wanted to speak to the girl alone. Jasper knew it was probably about their dying relationship, but she was too exhausted to even think about it.

"Hey," Ruby murmured, and Jasper stirred slightly but didn't lift her head from the crook of Ruby's shoulder. "Thanks for saving me back there. And I'm sorry for hurting you."

Jasper shook her head slightly, her eyes somehow trickling down to the ugly scars on her arms. The same scars that had been momentarily shielded by a much darker image: black veins flaring up her skin like wild weeds. "That wasn't you, Ruby. But I'm sorry too, for hurting you in the process."

"If you're talking about our fight, I hope you know I'm not mad about that anymore. That part was honest," Ruby replied.

"No," Jasper answered feebly. "I know. I'm not mad either. I meant literally throwing your body like a football," she commented drily, but a small bubble of laughter fell from her sister's lips.

"Yeah, but that was pretty badass."

Jasper finally lifted her head off of Ruby, gazing up at her sister's pine-colored eyes. "The others are probably going to ask, but I don't even know how I did it. And even if I did, I'm not sure I should. You saw how bad I was back there. I still feel like shit."

"No, you're right," Ruby agreed sternly, nodding her head vigorously. "It could kill you. I'm not gonna let them use your powers to try and solve all of this."

Jasper groaned in pain once again, letting her hands fidget with the fabric on her shorts. "I haven't even used my powers in months before today, and I've already discovered two new things about them."

"Wait, two? You can karate chop the Mind Flayer out of someone, sure, but what's the other one?"

"Mind control. I realized I could do it while I was at the Russian base." Jasper frowned, her mind taking her back to those gray metal walls and harsh white lights, and then to Dustin. Her heart crumbled thinking about the boy she loved, who could still be trapped down there, and maybe even dead. The possibility made her entire chest light with flames again. "We have to find Dustin and the others."

Then, almost on cue, Mike rounded the corner with huge eyes gawking at the two sisters. "Jas, there you are! Dustin radioed," he announced, and the redhead was already stumbling to her feet and following him.

"What did he say?" She demanded anxiously, walking alongside the raven-haired boy, presumably back to El and the others.

"I don't know. I couldn't really make it out. He said something about the gate, though," he responded.

"He knows," Jasper uttered in realization, earning a confirming nod from the Wheeler boy. The two Marrow sisters followed Mike into the clearing, joining the others as they surrounded El, who was perched stiffly near the freezers as she searched the Void for Dustin.