Vindicate (Insight #5)(91)

I told myself it hadn’t happened yet. We were going to stop i t; we were going to save them.

When I reached Landen, I found hi m in the center of the street. The street that was in the vision. There were no cars. No people. The coffee shop was closed.

I watched as his breathless body walked to the spot where we had seen their bodies in that vision. I moved my head from side to side as I fought the nausea. I forc ed myself to look at the ground. To look for evide nce that it hadn’t happened yet …but that’s not the evidence I found…the street was marked – outlined with X’s. I could swear I could see the stains of blood – where someone had tried to wash it away.

I held my breath, and with all the force I could manage, I shoved my emotions deep down; I could not le t them out, not now, not here. There would be nothing left of this town if I did.

Landen was bracing himself on his knees, breathing in and out rapidly.

“We just saw them,” I said breath lessly as I reached his side. I wanted to give him a calm emotion so he c ould think for the both of us. So we could understand, but I coul dn’t because I didn’t have it. I didn’t know how I was going to tell Dane’s mom he was gone. Her only son. I didn’t know how I was going to look into Aubrey’s eyes ever again. Why did they just sit there? Why did Monro e – even Preston, not tell us? Why did we have to almost beg them to show us?!

Then echoes came into my mind. I remembered picking up Dane and Clarissa ’s charts from Perodine’s desk. Her telling me that we must give our bodies back, but we never die. I remembered Winston’s odd remark that Dane and Clarissa didn ’t know how to ‘rest in peace.’ I rememb ered how odd they were acting. How upset they seemed to be.

All at onc e, a numbing calm came over me. It was near paralyzing. I t was a spiritual level that I had only tapped into a few times in my life. Landen felt it, too, and he stood up, looking at me with terrified eyes, wondering how I had the stre ngth to do that. I moved my head from side to side telling him it wasn’t me. Then his fierce blue eyes moved behind me.

On an empty street corner, Silas was standing . Staring at us. A wind picked up, and the newspape r stand next to him flew open. A paper literally flew into Landen’s hands, but Landen refused to break his stare with Silas.

I took the paper from his hands. It wasn’t a normal newspaper; it was one for tourists that come to this city to explore the supernatural. The image on the front was of the bus crash I’d seen. The title was “Black or White Magic – Who Knows.” I skimmed the article. ‘A tragic bus accident that occurred two days ago at 7 AM took the lives of a young couple… I read on…the mystery is not only who this couple was, but also where their bodie s went. A t least where most of their bodies went. An inside informant of ours stated that when they went to photograph the couple for identification the following day, all that remained was ash, but not nearly enough ash for a body to remain. Our questions, like always, remain unanswered.’

I heard Charlie in my mind. I heard her tell me that Silas was undead. That he was not alive, but he was not dead; that he could appear and disappear. That he spent his time in cities just like this.

“They’re undead,” I said as I reached for Landen’s arm. I remembered – I remembered everythin g Perodine said – Charlie said. What I read in the paper that I just let fall to the ground .

Landen’s filled with rage , then he stepped toward Silas, but Silas vanished, taking his peace with him. In its wake, our grief – o u r horror - came back.

Landen screamed his name. Demanded that he show himself. That he explain himself . He demanded that he was told where his sister was, but his questions went unanswered. I felt him falling apart. He was so furious . So scar ed. He didn’t know what to do. What to say.

I reached for his arm and made him turn and face me. His eyes were so frantic – his body was stiff. I pulled him to me and reached my arms around his shoulders and let the love I had for him flow through me: confidence that we would be fine , t hat they were fine rush though my touch . That though they may not be what we call human…they were still our family…we still loved them, and didn’t have to say goodbye, not now.

I felt his hesitance. He didn’t want to give in to that emotion. He didn’t want to believe that somehow his sister had stepped into a supernatural realm that he could not perceive.

I pulled his face to me. “Look at me.”

His eyes focused on mine. “They’re fine. They’re right here in a house that Austin travels to. Let’s go. You and me. Let’s go figure this out.”

Landen’s hands moved to my face. “I remember,” he said as his eyes frantically moved across my face and his emotions soared in ev ery direction. “I remember now. I watched this before now. I watched it, Willow. She guarded me. She guarded me from Bianca. She saved me before you ever came. I didn ’t understand how she was there. I didn’t understand.”

“What else do you remember?” I asked, reaching for his face, feeling how his skin was on fire, so hot that there was no denying the hum. I felt his emot ions racing in every direction. I t was like that medicine my father had given him had opened doors in his mind. Ones that I was not sure nee ded to be opened this quickly. Not after an emotional shock like this.

“Everything,” he said as he pulled me to him.