Chapter 4

• Arius watched the others leave, then came over and stood at the end of the bed. “I will be back to take the cuff off.” His haunting grey eyes moved over my face for a moment, then he held my look with a harsh gaze. “As long as you assure me my family is safe with your abilities free.”
• I nodded. “They’re safe. I never use it to harm anyone, but as a short cut or to defend myself, yes. Never to hurt anyone.”
• He nodded slowly, the harsh look still on his face. “I’ll return shortly.” He gave Daxx an abrupt tilt of his chin and turned and walked out, closing the door behind him.
• I sat there, the silence heavy in the room.
• “Do you need anything?” Bethany sat on the end of the bed.
• I shook my head. “The tea is fine, thank you.”
• “I can get cookies.” The one in the corner said.
• Daxx grinned. “I’m sure she’s a little too shell-shocked right now for cookies, Crissy.”
• Crissy gave her an odd look. “Cookies help everything.”
• I smiled at that. She wasn’t wrong. “My throat is sore. I think I breathed more water than air.”
• “How did you know that side of the island wasn’t warded?” Daxx asked.
• I looked to her. “I didn’t.” I took another sip. “For the last week I’ve been checking in all directions, that was the only one left.” I set the cup down. “Did you say warded?”
• She nodded. “They have mages and witches that have made barriers that act as an alarm, all around the island.”
• “I don’t know about mages and witches…”
• “They have purple eyes. I don’t like purple eyes.” Crissy said.
• I’d seen a few like that. I still didn’t understand the various eye colors, but I knew enough to know they weren’t average people. “Okay. Then yes, they have those there. But these barriers actually stop anyone from crossing, or at least any of us girls.”
• “You’re taking this very well.” Bethany said. “When I started to discover things, I wasn’t nearly as calm.”
• I blew out a breath and looked at them. They knew what the red thing on my arm was, and mages and witches… I looked at my hands. “I’m not exactly an average girl, so just knowing that there are others out there that aren’t—makes me feel less like a freak.”
• Bethany nodded and held up her palm. There were sparks and streaks that looked like flames around it. She gave me a slight shrug.
• I smiled.
• “What is your ability?” Daxx asked quietly.
• That was a question that had never quite worked out for me when I answered it. “I manipulate time.” I shook my head. “Not like time travel, I can stop people, objects, slow time around me.”
• “The frozen clocks!” Crissy jumped up. She looked so excited. “You’re the frozen clocks.”
• I looked from her to the other two.
• Daxx smiled. “Crissy has visions. That’s how we knew you were in trouble.”
• I gave Crissy a wide-eyed look. “I thought you meant you saw me in the water.”
• Crissy nodded. “I did,” she tapped her head, “here, and then when we were in the boat.”
• I sat back and wrapped my arms around my waist. “I would have drowned if you hadn’t.” I shook my head. “I knew it was a long shot, but I was out of options.” I looked to Bethany then Daxx again. “A few of the girls were taken off the island and didn’t come back. I didn’t want to wait and see if I was next and if where we’d be taken was worse.”
• The soft look she’d had hardened, and in it’s place was anger.
• “We’ve been trying to find a way on the island.” She shook her head. “With no luck.”
• “You know what’s going on there? Those people on it?”
• She shook her head again. “We have an idea and have been trying to stop them.” She sighed. “It’s a lot to explain.” She waved her hand around. “All of this, and what’s going on.”
• Bethany held out a phone. “First, do you have anyone to call and let them know you’re all right?”
• I looked at the phone. “No. There’s no one.” The expressions on their faces told me they understood all too well. “I don’t even know if I still have a place to live.”
• Daxx stood up. “We’ll worry about that after you rest.”
• I nodded. “Is there a bathroom?”
• She motioned to the door.
• I stood up and walked slowly toward it. The muscles in my legs were still shaky. I went in a started to close the door.
• “Paisley.”
• I looked to Daxx.
• “There’s no windows in there to escape through, and even if there was, you’re not where you think you are.”
• I paused and gave her a confused look.
• She smirked. “I just know the look of someone about to run.”
• I didn’t say anything, just turned and closed the door.
• The bathroom was larger than my room. I didn’t know where I was, but everything here was expensive and matched. I went over and looked at the tub. It was huge, like a baby hippo could hang out kind of huge.
• Shaking my head, I paced a moment, then stopped and stared at myself in the mirror. I had definitely looked better. My short dark hair that usually fell in place was standing straight on end. Showering with strange men wandering around had been a real concern for me. I looked like a mad scientist. Stepping closer, I touched the bags under my eyes. I hadn’t slept much in the past few weeks.
• Turning away from that sad image, I spotted the shower stall in the corner. Did I want more water? I touched my dirty hair.