Spoiler
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I seemed to have forgotten how to scream. I could see that these two men were a threat, but I couldn’t utter a sound; I just stood there. I wondered what Aunt Stephanie would do if I didn’t come home. Call the police? No. If I knew anything about my aunt, it’s that she does things herself. She wouldn’t trust the police with this kind of thing.
And what about Seth? What would he do? Surely he would help my aunt find me.
"Elizabeth," someone said, interrupting my thoughts.
I looked over to the shorter and less muscular looking one. He was looking at me; appearing to be the one who had spoken. I shivered. There was something weird about his eyes. Then it clicked; I knew those eyes.
"You!" I said accusingly, recognizing the green eyes that belonged to the man known as James. The one who had bumped into me.
He looked at me with a hint of- what was it? - shame. “You need to listen to me.”
“Um, o-okay,” I said cautiously. "What do you want?"
“Well, you see, I need you to come with me.”
Not what I had expected at all. “Come with you? What are you talking about?”
“I need you to simply get in the car so that we,” he gestured his head towards the other guy that seemed impatient, “can take you to your house.”
“Take me to my house? You know…I’m gonna have to say no on this one, but thanks anyway.” I started to back up, wishing that my simple rejection would be good enough to make them leave me alone. But I knew it wasn’t going to be.
“Please, Elizabeth,” he pleaded. “Don’t make this harder than it needs to be. Just get in the car. Please.”
I looked over at the man next to James. I assessed him; guessing that he was the same age as James, maybe younger, but looked a lot more intimidating. He had light blond hair and a very big build, with very powerful looking arms and legs. I could tell that he could outrun me and would most definitely beat me in a fist fight. There was no way that I would be getting away from these guys without them saying so, and I really doubted they would. Unless…
“Sorry, but I really can’t. You see, my aunt is very protective and wouldn’t like this whole…arrangement very much. I’m sure you can understand that, right, James?” I was using a very patronizing tone with him and I could tell that he had picked up on it. He stared at me, challenging me, but I wasn't fazed; I had regained my casual confidence.
“James…” the larger man whined. “Can’t we just grab her and go? I don’t see what the big deal is. Why can’t you, just…well, you know.” he implied.
Grab her and go? As if they could, I thought. But what was it that this guy wanted James to do?
“We’ve been over this, Jake. I don’t want to hear you bring it up again.” he retorted. “I don’t see why you’re in such a big hurry anyway.”
“Something just feels…oh, I don’t know. Just a bit off.” Jake looked around a bit uneasily.
“Right.” said James, doubtfully. “Well, we should be out of here in a bit.” he looked back over at me, expectantly.
“Ha. Not with me, you’re not.” I huffed. Jake gave him a look that said “I told you so.”
He sighed, frustrated and eventually, gave Jake a slight nod. Then, he looked at me, making direct eye contact. Now was the time. I had to do this now. I opened my mouth, conjuring up what I was going to say and focusing on that vibrant green, but that image was suddenly gone. Instead, it was replaced with another.
The inside of a building somewhere. A place I’ve never been before. But I wasn’t looking at the interior of this strange building anymore. No, my eyes found a girl. I guessed she was about two years older than me. She had the same shade of eye color that I had and a curious necklace around her neck. At the end of a black ribbon was a small vile filled with a scarlet liquid. She was too far away for me to make out the symbol on the vile, but I could definitely tell that there was something on it. I looked up to her face; she had noticed my fascination with her necklace. A menacing smile was upon her lips. Then she took a step towards me. And another. And another until she was directly in front of me. She fiddled with her necklace, with that same cold smile on her face. Then…it had all vanished as quickly as it had come.
I awoke in someone’s arms. “I’m sorry,” he said over and over again. He was gently shaking my arm. I looked up at James and noticed we weren't outside anymore. I looked past his face and all I could see was black. We were in the car that they had driven in behind me. I jerked up and away from him where we were both sitting in the backseat while Jake was driving. He was just starting to pull away from the sidewalk.
“Let me out!” I screamed. Hmm, I guess I do remember how to scream. “Let me out right now!” I tugged at the seat belt around my waist. It came undone.
“We can’t,” James said, trying to put my seat belt back around me. I resisted, pushing him away.
“Oh and why not?” I looked around. There was no way for me to get out of this two door car without folding the seat in front of me which would take too much time. They would have restrained me again by that time.
“Because we were ordered to.”
“Oh really? And who exactly ordered you to kidnap me?” I tried to keep my voice steady, but I didn’t feel very calm so it didn’t exactly sound right.
“Your aunt.”
“Ha ha! Sure she did.” I said doubtfully. “I’m sorry, but I think I need a little more than just your word.”
James pulled out his cell phone so quickly that I nearly jumped out the window, thinking it was a gun. I understood the meaning though.
“I have my own phone.” I looked around for a hint of that obnoxious yellow that contained my phone. For a second, I thought that they had left my purse along with all of my shopping bags back on the sidewalk until James said, “Your purse and your bags are in the trunk.” he offered me his cell phone again. I took it reluctantly and dialed the number. It only rang once before I heard a frantic voice on the other end.
“Have you gotten her, yet? I swear I’m going to kill you if you don’t, James.” she said.
“Aunt Stephanie,” I breathed.
“Elizabeth? Is that you?” she sounded surprisingly relieved. “Oh thank goodness! How are you? Where are James and Jake?”
“I’m guessing you know these guys, then?”
“Of course. I’m the one that sent them, aren’t I?”
“Well I guess I should feel a bit more relieved at hearing that. But first, why the heck did you send two guys to come and attack me while I was walking home?”
“Attack you?” she seemed confused, then angry. “Hand the phone over to James.”
I did so, and could immediately hear shouts emanating from the phone and saw James’ shocked expression.
“Well, what did you expect me to do?” he asked. “You told us to come and get her and she refused to come.”
After another minute of them bantering back and forth, he handed the phone back to me.
“I want you to cooperate with them. They are there because I told them to be. Please, don’t try to fight them or escape because they will just find you again. They are going to bring you back home and then I’ll explain everything to you. Okay?” Aunt Stephanie said to me out of the phone.
“Fine,” I agreed. “But, I still don’t understand why you let them attack me, or why they even came to get me in the first place.”
“Well, they weren’t supposed to force you to come,” she explained. “But you refused to listen, as always.”
“You know, normally, you would be happy that I didn’t listen to strangers that told me to get in their car. But if you would prefer that I do so from now on, then fine.”
“You’re right,” I could just tell that she was smiling on the other side of the phone. I smiled as well. “And, in answer to your second question, I will explain once you get here.”
The phone call ended. I didn't bother to look at James when he took the phone; the smile had left my face. I looked out the window, thinking things through. What had just happened? Aunt Stephanie told these guys to come get me. I really shouldn’t be surprised by that; I mean, it is Aunt Stephanie we’re talking about. But…what had happened back there on the sidewalk with James? I peaked at him from the corner of my eye and quickly looked back out the window. Who was that girl? How did I see her? What would have happened if I hadn’t woken up? If I ever was actually asleep…
“I know what you did back there.”
I jumped a bit. James had spoken. I turned to see that he was talking to me. What did he mean?
“What are you talking about?” I replied coldly.
He didn’t react to my tone. “Back at the store. Or should I say stores?” he emphasized on the last s.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I turned back to the window once again.
“Sure you do,” he persisted. “You stole a bunch of things today.”
“I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about, James. And I’m really not in the mood for you to constantly tell me that I’m lying when I’m not.”
“But you are lying.” He just doesn’t give up, does he? “I know you are.”
I turned to him again, starring at him harshly. “Oh really? Well then, by all means, enlighten me. How do you, supposedly, know I’m lying?”
“Because,” he continued. “We watched you.”
“You watched me? Watched me when?”
“After I ran into you. We saw everything.”
I gulped. I hadn’t expected him to have actually seen me stealing things. But I tried not to let it show. Too late. He had seen it in my eyes and a big grin had crossed his face.
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell your aunt, even though she’s bound to find out eventually.” James said.
My aunt. What would she do if she found out? No doubt, ban me from going to any place selling any items of value ever again. Oh well. Not like I would listen anyways. A devious smile spread across my face and I was suddenly reminded of the girl that I had seen with the necklace. A slight shiver went through me, even though it was quite warm in the car. James had noticed. His grin was gone; he seemed to know what I was thinking about.
“Y-you,” I stuttered. “You did that to me. You made me see that girl. Didn’t you?”
He didn’t respond, he just looked the other way. “Didn’t you?” I repeated.
“Yes,” he breathed.
“How?”
He looked up at me. I didn’t want to look into his eyes again. I really didn’t want to see that nameless girl again. But I couldn’t resist the temptation to look into them. Nothing happened. At least, not yet, anyway.
“I’m like you.”
“You’re like me? How?”
“Well not exactly like you, but similar,” he tried to explain. I just stared at him, blank faced. He sighed. “I have magic like you do, just not the same kind.”
