My mouth is dry and tastes disgusting. Not surprising really- I never did get to rinse my mouth out after puking. My head aches and when I lift it, it feels like a heavy bowling ball is rolling around in there. Thankfully the shack is pretty dim inside. The only light in the room is coming from in between the wooden boards covering the one window in the building. My neck and shoulders ache; probably because I am now tied up to something. I look behind me as best I can. It's a table leg. Probably not the most secure thing to tie a captive to, but looking around the rest of the room, it is his best option. There is a small rusted cot across from me, and a tipped over and broken chair not far from my table. There is also a lot of dust and cobwebs. That's it. My kidnapper is not even in the room.
I test the weight of the table. I am able to press back into and move it. It is pretty light, but the knots tying me to it are tight, and there is no wiggle room to try to shimmy the rope down the leg. I start wiggling my hands and arms as much as I can to try to create some space there. I have never been tied up though so I don't really know what I am doing. I seem to only be rubbing skin off. I really hope that the guys are on the way to me. I hope they can find me. Did Owen get the images I tried to send? Is it enough information for them to find me? Are they even on their way here? I need to try my best to rescue myself.
The door swinging open and then violently hitting the wall startles me out of my thoughts. Edwards stomps in glaring at me.
"Awake are you? You weren't out very long. I was hoping maybe you would just stay knocked out. Took me longer than I thought it would to find you guys. All the digging I had to do to find you was starting to raise suspicion."
He grabs my chin to force me to look up in his face.
"A chalice huh? You guys are a pretty rare delicacy for those bastard demons you know. You were supposed to guarantee my safety and favor with them."
He lets go of my face and then takes a few steps over to the cot on the opposite wall. He kicks it hard into the wall causing me to flinch in surprise. He stills for a moment and lets out short, desperate laugh.
"I'm not an evil man you know. I am sure you think I am. I'm just realistic. Planning for my future." He seemed to be talking to the wall more than to me at the moment.
"Change is coming. We have been able to stay ahead of the asshole demons for so long because they were unorganized. Like animals, it was every demon for itself. Not anymore. They got themselves a leader." He turns to face me.
" A leader who decided he wanted you."
I thought the bad guys only explained their motives and plans like this in books and on movies.....
"He caught me off guard one night. I should be dead, but he needed me. All I had to do was cause some chaos in the Academy- give him some inside info, spread some bad intel to our people, and then deliver you to him. In return I would be safe after the take over and live the rest of my days out in luxury. But the bastard went and got himself killed by his right hand man."
I decide to risk a question, "Then you can let me go now right?"
Edwards laughs at me, " No. The new leader in charge wants you too. He thinks I should just hand you over with no reward though. That ain't going to happen. We will just hide out until he decides it will be easier to reward me with what I want than it is to hunt us down. "
He rights the cot and sits down on it. I don't see how his plan is going to work for him. Even if the new leader agrees to his terms, he has already proven that he can't be trusted- I mean, he killed his boss and all.... Edwards ignores me as he makes several calls. It sounds like he is trying to find people willing to help him "lay low for a little bit with his niece". Judging by his growing frustration, he doesn't seem to be getting very far. Meanwhile, I am trying to put together a plan to get myself out of this mess. I will not be able to wiggle my way out of these ropes anytime soon, especially not with Mr. Edwards sitting in the same room as me the whole time.
"Um, I really need to pee....". He doesn't even look at me.
"Tough luck girlie."
Well, that didn't work. I look around the room again to see if maybe I missed something that may help me. A glint of silver shines dully in a small beam of sunlight. It's a screw. Bram would probably like it. Bram... he had hinted that I could use other peoples' powers- not just my guys'. What is Edwards' gift? How does it work? He had lured me out of the house with only his mind. Could I do something similar to him? I used my extra 'sense' to reach towards him and touch his power. Is it like persuasion? I try pushing a thought at him..
-nose itches-
My eyes widen as he rubs his nose. I should be cautious at first. Eventually I was able to fight his control over me, so I need to assume he will be able to fight me if he realizes what I am doing. I need to stick to the types of thoughts he is likely to have on his own.
-she is such a puny thing really-
-We are in the middle of no where, where would she go?-
-God, it would start to smell if she pissed her pants-
I send the thoughts slowly and over a span of about 10 minutes. He keeps grumbling to himself as he works with his phone. Finally he looks at me and then stands.
"Fine, you can pee, but no funny business. There is no where you can go girl. If you try to run, I will knock you silly."
I nod that I understand and then hold my breath as he unties me. I'm free! Well, my hands are anyway. He grabs my bicep painfully and roughly pulls me to my feet, then drags me out the shack.
"Pick a spot," he says sternly as he gives me a shove. I start to walk around the side of the shack.
"Nope. I got to be able to see ya," he says. I look at him in shock.
"I'm not that stupid. You either pee where I can see you, or you piss your pants. You choose."
I face away from him and yank my shorts and underwear down. Luckily my shirt will cover most of my bum. I quickly squat and do my business, then cover myself again. How embarrassing.
"Come on!" As soon as I am close enough again, he drags me back into the shack. He pushes me in and I stumble to my knees. Edwards closes the doors and then sits against it.
"I'll leave you untied as long as you don't start any trouble," he grumbles.
I nod my head again and try to look scared. Not hard to do really-I really am scared.
Step one: Get my Hands Free- is done.
Now what do I do?
I should try to reach Owen again. I close my eyes and rub at my pounding head. I reach for Owen. I feel myself almost black out. I must have held the connection way too long last time. If I can boost the power of other people by feeding them energy from the earth, I should be able to do the same for myself, right? I find a little trickle of power below me in the earth and let it soak into me. It may just be my imagination, but it seems my headache eases just a bit. No, I am feeling better for sure. I take my time and let more slowly trickle into me. In just moments, I feel 'full'. I break off the connection and take a few deep breaths to center myself. I curl myself into a tight ball and hide my face in my knees. I don't know if I make strange faces while I am doing this- I don't want to run the risk that Edwards will know I am up to something. I reach for Owen again. This time I find him. He is so close! I can feel his relief when he notices my presence.
*Are you at the shack still?* he asks. His voice sounds so far away and like it is coming to me from in a tunnel.
*Yes* I answer. There is no response. I 'shout' it again and try adding a little more power to it. A shadowy figure starts to materialize in my mind's eye. I strain to see it better. It is an image of Owen. I can't see all the details, but I can tell his eyes are closed. I gasp. This is new but cool. He must have heard my gasp. His eyes open in surprise and then widen in shock. He can see me too!
*How can we see each other?* I ask.
*I don't know... I have never heard of anyone being able to do this... Maybe a mental connection grows stronger the more it is used. We are coming to get you Selene. Are you ok?*
* Yes, I am fine. I can tell you are close now. This time was a lot easier... * I stop talking all at once. I suddenly can feel the overwhelming sick feeling of demon.
*Selene! What is that?!* Owen sounds panicked. He is looking a little unwell too.
*It's a Demon*, I answer in a shaky voice.
*Good God, is that what they feel like to you? Can you tell how many?* he asks.
I break the connection between us for a moment to concentrate better. 3. There are three. I quickly reach for Owen again to tell him. *3! And they are almost here!* There is no hiding my panic from him, not with this kind of connection. I can feel his horror too.
He collects himself and looks me straight in the eye, * We are coming for you. We will get to you in time. I promise!*
Then Mr. Edwards is yanking at my arm and the precious connection to my guys is shattered.
"What are you doing girl? You are shaking and acting freaked out. Are you up to something?" His grip on me is punishing and his face is way to close to mine.
"Demons!" I choke out. "Demons are coming!"
Shout out to stellieB777 for staying on me to get an update going. Sorry it took so long. I hope you guys like it. Comments are always appreciated- even if they are just to tell me something is wrong somewhere :)