Chasing The Whirlwind (Dragon Within Book 2) Page 4

  “It’ll get better. Don’t you worry. In the meantime,” she clapped her hands together, “let’s get started with your training.”

  I nodded, my attention drawn to a fold up table lined with red, plastic cups. “What are we doing, exactly?”

  “A concentration exercise.” Alice turned toward the table. “All you have to do is float the cups one by one and form them into a pyramid. Simple.”

  Yeah, simple. Easy for her to say. “Okay.” I drew in a deep breath and let it out, telling myself I could totally do this. I had levitated pop cans. I had made the wind blow. I had even moved two eighteen wheelers. Okay, so I did the last two by accident, but it was still impressive, right? So how hard could it be to make a pyramid out of cups? Answer: really, really hard.

  It started out okay. I manipulated the air around the first cup and lifted it with no problem. A second quickly joined it. Lifting the third cup while still keeping the first two in the air was a little more difficult. It wobbled as I pulled it into line with the others. A dull throb began at the back of my head.

  “Keep going, Abigail,” Alice said. “You’re doing fine. Focus. Concentrate. You must learn to control your powers.”

  Sweat beaded my upper lip. The fourth cup shivered as it lifted off the table. It started toward the others, then froze midair when the throb became a pressure pushing against the back of my eyes. I tried to focus, as Alice had said, but it was too hard to concentrate on anything else when my eyes felt like they were about to pop out of my skull.

  The cups tumbled to the ground. I caught Zack’s scowl from the corner of my eye. Bad enough I should fail at something so simple, but to do so in front of him was unbearable. I wished the ground would open up and swallow me whole I was so embarrassed. But at least the pressure eased up, which was a relief.

  Alice patted my arm. “Remember what I told you at The Oasis?”

  I nodded. “I can’t learn a lifetime’s worth of training in an hour.”

  “Or a day. Or even a month.” She smiled. “It takes time, you know?”

  “Yeah. I know.” And I did, I only wished Zack wasn’t around to see me fail. I rubbed the spot between my eyes. “Should I try again?”

  “Yes.” Alice gathered up the cups and placed them back on the table.

  We went on like that for two hours. I could get the first three cups in line with almost no trouble, but as soon as I reached for the fourth the pressure would build up in my head again and I would lose it.

  “Stupid cups,” I muttered, as I watched them fall for what felt like the thousandth time. I was getting really irritated and a lingering headache wasn’t improving my mood any. Glaring at the cups still stacked on the table, I wanted them to blow away. All of them. As soon as the thought entered my mind, a big wind whooshed from behind me and sent the cups blowing across the grass.

  A smile started to form on my lips, but it quickly died when I saw the tense expression on Alice’s face. “What?” I asked.

  “The destructive capabilities of our power is astounding,” she said with unusual solemnity. “You have no idea of the things you can do without even meaning to. You’re frustrated now, with these cups? What if you get frustrated with a person? How would you feel if you threw someone up against a wall or out a window? Stressful emotions are a trigger for your powers. If you can’t control them, someone could get hurt.”

  My momentary elation quickly faded. I thought of the waitress at the truck stop, covered in glass and blood, her dead eyes staring into mine. I never wanted to be responsible for doing something so horrible. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m trying.”

  “I know you are.” She looked at the cups. “I think that’s enough for today. We don’t want to push you too hard. Go home and get some rest.”

  “Okay.”

  Zack abruptly got up and stalked across the field. I followed him first with my eyes and then, after a moment’s hesitation, with my body. “Hey, wait up,” I called out as I jogged after him.

  “What do you want?” he asked without even bothering to slow down.

  His surly tone caught me by surprise, causing me to falter. “I...I haven’t seen you around.” I know. I know. Super lame. But I was confused by the way he was acting. It was like he was mad at me, but I couldn’t figure what for. Unless it was about Derek, which really was not a fair thing to hold against me.

  “Why should you have?”

  “I don’t know. I thought you might like to see how I was settling in, or something.” Heat flooded my face. This was not going well at all.

  “I don’t care how you’re settling in,” he said. “I did my job bringing you here and now I’m done.”

  “So why did you come to watch me train?”

  “Because I was told to. Spending two hours watching you drop cups is not exactly my idea of a good time.”

  I stopped, my mouth falling open. That was mean. Way mean. Since I met Zack I had seen him be a number of things. He was blunt when he told me I was adopted. He was surly, hot headed, and snappish on more than one occasion. He was even reckless, using his powers against me in a controlled attack. But not once was he mean.

  I hurried forward and came around in front of him, forcing him to stop. “Don’t you think you’re being a little harsh? I’m having a hard time here, okay? You don’t have to be a jerk about it. You might try to be... I don’t know, a little supportive or something.”

  “Do you think we’re friends? Because we aren’t.” He crossed his arms and scowled at me. “You’re a kid. You should hang out with people your own age. I’m a busy guy and I don’t have time to hold your hand while you adjust to your new life. It’s not my job.”

  Hurt was quickly being replaced with anger. “I don’t need you to hold my hand. And I didn’t ask you to be my friend either.”

  “Then why are you chasing me?”

  My face flooded with heat. I hated how easily he could make me blush. “I was not chasing you.” I totally was, you caught that, right? “I was following you because....” My mind whirled as I tried to come up with a plausible lie. I’ve never been good at lying. “Because I wanted to ask you a question.”

  “Oh yeah? What question?”

  What question indeed. I said the first thing that popped into my head. “Have you seen Derek?”

  On hearing my half-brother’s name, Zack’s expression turned to stone. “No, I haven’t. And I don’t want to.”

  “Well, I do.” I took a step closer to him. “But they won’t let me. Why?”

  “Ask Alastair.”

  “He won’t talk about it.” My anger melted into worry. “They didn’t send him back to his clan, did they? Alastair promised me they wouldn’t.”

  “He’s still here. But Alastair has a good reason for not wanting you to see him. The guy is unstable. Dangerous.”

  “Why do you say that? What do you know about him I don’t?”

  His scowl deepened. “I know enough to tell you it’s better if you stay away from him.”

  “That’s not an answer.”

  “Too bad,” he snapped. “It’s all you’re going to get.”

  I drew a breath in through my teeth. “Why are you being so mean to me?”

  Zack shook his head. “I have to go. And don’t ‘follow’ me, okay? Whatever you were thinking about you and me, you can stop thinking it. Not going to happen.”

  “Oh my god, conceited much?” I was mortified he had picked up on my feelings toward him, feelings he obviously did not share, and so I was looking for some way to gather up the shards of my dignity and maybe hurt him a little as well.

  “What do you just assume every girl you meet is going to swoon at your feet?” I asked. “You aren’t so cute. And besides, you’re surly and rude and... and... and you’re a big fat jerk.” Yeah, I know. Don’t say it.

  “Great. I’m glad you got that all off your chest. Can I go now?”

  “Yeah, go. I don’t care.” I looked away so he wouldn’t see the tears in my eyes. His
rejection hurt much worse than I thought it would.

  I was about half hoping he would apologize. But he didn’t. He walked away and left me standing there all alone.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  The following three months went by in a kind of haze. I shut myself down, thinking it was the best way to deal with all the shocks I’d received. I saw Hannah and Zack almost every day, but I didn’t talk to either of them. I didn’t confront Alastair with what Hannah had told me and I didn’t ask him about Derek. I was running on autopilot, going through the motions of life without really living.

  When I wasn’t at school or in training, I hung around the house doing nothing. Alastair didn’t seem to notice, but then he was rarely there. Mi Mi tried to pull me out of my funk, asking about school and friends and did I like my room and what were my favorite foods, even taking me into the city again. It didn’t help. I was sleepwalking through my new life, telling myself it was the only way to deal with everything. Until the day I woke up.

  It started out as a normal day, a shower, breakfast, school, and then off to training. But as I neared the field, I heard Alice and Zack arguing about something. Even though I couldn’t make out the words, I could tell they were angry.

  They fell silent when they saw me. “What’s going on?” I asked.

  Zack, wearing his default scowl, made a disgusted noise and spun away to stand before the bleachers with his back to us. Alice sighed. “Two renegade dragons have been spotted in the nearby woods and Alastair wants us to deal with them.”

  “You and Zack? Why?”

  “Because we’re trackers,” Alice said. “It’s our job. And you’re coming with us.”

  “Me?” I squeaked. “But I haven’t been battle trained. I can’t even float cups into a pyramid. What am I supposed to do with two renegade dragons?”

  “Oh, don’t worry, we don’t expect you to fight.” She squeezed my arm and smiled. “Alastair wants you to tag along to see how these things work, that’s all. You’ll be staying in the helicopter with Rick. Perfectly safe.”

  “Well, okay, I guess.” I glanced at Zack’s rigid back. Being in a confined space with him was not something I was looking forward to. Not after the way he’d been treating me like I didn’t exist all this time.

  “Great,” Alice said. “This will be a good experience for you. Don’t you agree Zack?”

  He snorted. “Whatever. Can we just go and get it over with?”

  A thin frown line appeared between Alice’s eyes. “Yes, let’s go. Rick is waiting for us at the landing strip.”

  Rick was the compound’s resident pilot. He was also Alice’s husband and a more mismatched pair I’ve never seen. Rick was a solid six four, with enough muscles to be on the cover of one of those bodybuilder magazines. With movie star good looks and a slow southern drawl, he was the kind of guy most girls would drool over. As for myself, I only had eyes for Zack which is probably mildly pathetic, but it is what it is.

  “Hi there, Abigail.” Rick smiled as we walked up to the helicopter. “Ready to go for a ride?”

  I made a face. My first time on a helicopter I came close to throwing up. Close, I didn’t actually do it, thankfully, since Zack happened to be standing right beside me at the time. I did, however, get a little weak kneed, but Zack was right there to catch me. Looking at the helicopter and remembering his arms around me brought a flush to my cheeks.

  “Couldn’t we take a car instead?” I asked.

  “No roads where we're going.” Rick opened the side door. “Hop on in. It gets easier every time.”

  “Yeah. Right,” I grumbled as I climbed inside. Zack came in after me and sat on the bench seat opposite mine, sliding over as far as he could away from me. He crossed his arms and glared out the window.

  Alice settled in next to me. The heavy thump and whir of the rotor blades filled the cabin as we rose into the air. Gripping my seat tight, I leaned back, closed my eyes, and focused on taking deep, steady breaths.

  “You okay, sweetie?” Alice asked.

  “Uh huh. I’m great.” I wasn’t, of course, but what could she do about it? Besides, I felt wimpy enough sitting there on the verge of panic. I didn’t want Alice comforting me like a kid afraid of the monster under the bed. Not in front of Zack.

  I forced my eyes open and loosened my death grip on the seat. “So, uh, what’s with these renegade dragons?”

  “They’re names are Lance Patton and Crystal Lockheart,” Alice said. “He’s a fire dragon and she’s a spirit dragon. They went renegade from their clan in Texas a little over eleven months ago. They’ve managed to stay under the radar, until now. They made a mistake coming onto our turf.”

  “Why did they go renegade in the first place?” I asked.

  Alice shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter. When a dragon goes renegade they have to be dealt with, no matter their reasons. It’s our law and it’s an important one. Keeping tabs on the dragons who don’t live inside a compound is how we make sure we keep our people safe. When someone goes renegade they don’t only endanger their own clan, they endanger all dragons, everywhere. We have to take such actions seriously.”

  My mind flashed to the busted front window of Trudy’s house. The destruction of her living room. The scorch mark on the wall. And Derek wasn’t even trying to hurt anyone. We were going after a fire dragon who had broken the law and was probably desperate to stay free. I didn’t even realize my hands were shaking until Alice grasped them.

  “Hey,” she smiled, “it’s going to be fine. Rick has a gun and he’s a good shot, not that it even matters. Zack and I will take care of the renegades long before they get anywhere near the helicopter. Fire dragons can be problematic, but the girl has no active powers, remember?”

  I nodded. Unlike those dragons who can control the elements, spirit dragons can only do three things: detect what kind of dragon a newborn baby will grow to be, sense when a dragon has turned sixteen and come into their powers, and know when a dragon with powers has died. So unless the girl, Crystal, was armed with some kind of more conventional weapon, she should be no trouble for Alice and Zack.

  We passed over a thickly wooded forest as Rick searched out a clearing large enough to land the helicopter in. Once we were safely on the ground, Rick cut the motor and then twisted in his seat to look back at us. “You be careful out there.”

  Alice leaned over the seat to give him a peck on the cheek. “I’m always careful.”

  “I wasn’t talking to you.” He gave Zack a pointed look.

  Zack’s scowl deepened as he yanked open the door and hopped out of the helicopter before the blades had even finished spinning.

  Alice sighed. “I wish you wouldn’t antagonize him.”

  “And I wish you had somebody to watch your back besides that kid.”

  “I’ll be fine. Take care of Abigail.”

  He nodded. “You know I will.” He watched her slide out the door and trot after Zack’s retreating form. “I don’t know why she trusts him.”

  “Why shouldn’t she?” Even though I was in a potentially dangerous situation, I couldn’t help but be curious to hear something about Zack from someone who knew him much better than I did.

  “Because he acts without thinking,” Rick said. “He’s rash and hotheaded, and he’s more apt to get the people around him killed than he is to protect them. I don’t know, maybe Alice is right and I’m too hard on the kid. She says he was different, you know, before.”

  “No, I don’t know.” I scooted to the edge of my seat. “I’m new here, remember?”

  “Oh, right.” He hesitated a moment as if he was trying to decide whether or not he should tell me Zack’s business. “Well, I don’t know about any of it firsthand because I only married Alice and came to live at the compound three years ago, but I’ve heard things.”

  “What things?” I leaned forward. “Come on, Rick, don’t dance around it, tell me.”

  He gazed out through the windshield. “Zack’s mom died when he w
as fourteen. Alice says it really messed him up. So I guess I kind of feel sorry for him, but that doesn’t mean I like the idea of him out there hunting renegades with my wife.”

  “Wait a minute. What messed him up? What happened to his mom?” Something about the way Rick had spoken those words made me think it was more than she got sick or had an accident.

  “Have you seen the brick building with the tin roof up near the compound’s front gate?” he asked.

  I frowned at what seemed to me to be an abrupt switch in the conversation. “Yeah. Mi Mi and I drive right past it every time we go to the city. Why?”

  “They call it the auditorium,” he said. “They hold meetings there and have parties and stuff. The building is pretty new, the old one was made of wood. Five years ago a fire dragon burned the old auditorium to the ground. A bunch of people were hurt, but only one died.”

  I leaned back in my seat. “Zack’s mom?”

  Rick nodded.

  “Oh, god, poor Zack.” No wonder he hated Derek. My brother must have reminded him of the fire dragon who killed his mom. I could certainly understand, or at least I thought I did. After what Megara had done, I might have hated hybrids if I wasn’t one.

  A muffled thump drew me out of my thoughts and set my heart to racing. I looked out through the open door toward the woods, but I couldn’t see anything. “What was that?”

  “Sounds like trouble.” Rick reached under his seat and pulled out a small handgun. “Wait here while I check it out.”

  “What?” Sick panic flooded my stomach. “No. You can’t leave me here alone.”

  “You’ll be fine.” He opened the cockpit door and got out. “Stay inside. I won’t go far.” He pushed the door shut, then trotted around the nose of the helicopter and into the woods.

  “Rick,” I called after him. But my voice was weak with sudden fear and he was already gone. I stared at the tree line, barely daring to breath as I clutched the seat. Silence filled the clearing, broken only by the light rustling of leaves in a gentle breeze. My heart felt as if it was pounding inside my head rather than my chest. Never in my life had I felt so alone.