Obsession 2

Chapter 12- Pure and Good

I wake up to the sound of birds chirping right outside the window. I lie still for a moment, wondering if the curse has manifested itself further. I don't feel sick anymore, but I don't necessarily feel evil either. I still have a clear head and I still know what I have to do.

I stand up and walk over to the full length mirror that sits in the corner of the room. I look exactly the same as I did yesterday. My eyes don't look the way Sammy's did the night I saw him outside the police station. His were so dark, so evil. Mine look like they always have- plain and boring.

I touch my forehead and grimace. I'm definitely hot. Not hot enough to burn flesh, but I'm also not fighting the urge to mate the way Sammy was.

Which reminds me...

I've got to start tracking him. I packed one of his hoodies when we came to California, mostly to remind me of him, the old him, when things started getting hard. It still has his scent though and I plan to waste no time finding out where he's taken Sadie.

But before I do that, I've got to start fighting the urge to mate. So far, I'm not exactly sure how I should go about that.

Sadie and I lost our virginity to each other years ago and had a pretty healthy s*x life until we decided to break up. I still think of her a lot. Even more so lately. She excites me. She makes me want things no other woman has made me want. It shouldn't be very hard to feel an attraction to her, I just hope it doesn't become dangerous. I've already put her in enough danger.

If I have any chance at facing Sammy in his current state, I've got to put this curse into full swing. So I close my eyes and think of Sadie. I think of the way it used to make me feel when she kissed me; the way she would always let her lips linger on mine, like she couldn't get enough. I think of the way her skin felt against mine, so soft and warm.

That's it...I can feel it...

The heat that begins to rise from my body is intense. So intense it causes me to become irritated almost immediately. This is what Kai was talking about. I've got to keep myself together. I won't hurt Sadie and I won't allow Sammy to hurt her. I'll be strong, for her.

When I stand up off the bed, I'm hit with a ton of energy. I feel like I could run all the way back to Texas if I wanted to.

Wow...this feels amazing. I look over my arms, my chest and my abs. I don't look any different, but I feel invincible. I can see why Sammy would be addicted to feeling this way.

I take his hoodie out of my bag and pull it on over my head. It still smells like him, and honestly, makes me miss him a lot. I wanted to be angry at him for putting Sadie in danger, but the only one to blame for Sadie being in danger is me. Which is why I'll stop at nothing to get to her.

When I step out of the bedroom into the hallway, Kai is coming up the stairs. He pauses when he notices me, giving me a once over.

"So um...you're...a fast learner..."

"What?" I ask in confusion.

"You're already transforming. I can tell by your skin tone."

"My skin tone?"

He nods. "It tends to have a shimmer to it. I didn't notice it myself at first, but after a while, as the curse became stronger, I couldn't miss it. How did you manage to manifest so quickly?"

"You told me I'd have to fight the urge to mate, so I...started..." I trail off, suddenly feeling uncomfortable talking about something like this with someone I still don't know that well.

"No need to explain," he chuckles, holding his hands up. "If you want to be strong enough to stand up to your brother, fighting off the urge to mate this the fastest way to get you there. Just be careful. If you're using Sadie as...inspiration...the next time you see her, it's going to be very difficult to resist her. Something tells me you've already been intimate with her before, so she may not feel threatened. But trust me, you will hurt her. That's why Sammy burned her. That's why he...killed those girls. It's a lot of power. And if you've seen Spiderman, then you know the phrase with great power comes great responsibility."

I smile at his choice of words. "I'm familiar with the phrase."

"I resisted the urge to take Mara like a savage animal. I knew I would kill her and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I did. So I settled for taking her away from Leo instead. I never intended to hurt her, but looking back, I did. In a lot of different ways. She doesn't remember any of that, but I do. I always will. So please, from one Rokusai brother to another, don't do anything you don't want to live with for the rest of your life."

I nod, knowing I'm a little too confident in my ability to control myself. I have no idea what I'm up against, no idea what to expect. Two of the people I love most are hanging in the balance though, so I kind of have to be confident. I have to go into this believing that I'll save the day.

Like Spiderman.

"How do I find Sammy? I mean, if he could be anywhere, where do I start?" I ask him.

"When I was tracking Mara, I would close my eyes and try to, and I know this is going to sound crazy, but I imagined myself as Mara. And when I opened my eyes, I could see what she saw, in that moment," he answered.

I look at him in surprise, not expecting that kind of answer at all. "So...I can just see what Sammy sees?"

"No, but you can see what Sadie sees."

"Oh. That makes...more sense," I chuckle to myself. "And I guess if I find Sadie, I find Sammy too."

"Right. Try it now. Close your eyes, and clear your mind of everything else," Kai instructs me.

I do as he says, blowing out a breath and closing my eyes. I clear my mind and focus only on Sadie. At first, nothing happens and I start to question everything. But just as I do, I feel something, something I can't explain; a feeling, a premonition, a connection to Sadie that feels so strong it's almost as if she's right here with me.

I open my eyes and I'm sitting on the floor in what looks like some kind of abandoned warehouse. There's windows, but they're too high up to see out of. I try to get up, but my arms are bound behind my back. I look around for something, anything that might tell me where I am.

"What do I do?!" I ask Kai, panicking.

"Go to her!" I hear his voice call out, though I can't see him.

"How?!"

He doesn't answer, leaving me on my own. How do I get to her? How do I...

Wait...

I look down at my body, which is actually Sadie's body. The connection between us intensifies and my heart begins to race. She's wearing a pair of shorts, nothing too racy, but it's enough to get my blood pumping. I think about what I could do to her if I could get my hands on her- how she would feel, and taste...

"Oh my God, Mikey?!"

I snap out of my trance and look around. I'm now standing in the warehouse in front of Sadie, in my own body. How the hell did I do that?

"Are you cursed too?" Sadie asks me.

I don't answer but instead, I hurry to her side, kneeling next to her and untying her restraints. But then I'm hit with the urge to maul her. I stop and back away, trying to pull myself together.

"What are you doing?" she asks, looking at me like I'm crazy. "Untie me!"

The bay door at the side of the warehouse begins to rattle. Sadie looks over at it in horror, which means she must be expecting Sammy.

"We have to get out of here," I tell her, taking a deep breath and going back to her restraints.

"How did you find me?" she asks. "And how did you just...appear out of nowhere?"

"I'll explain everything. For now, we've got to get out of here," I remind her.

She nods and allows me to loosen her restraints just enough that she can wiggle her wrists through them.

"Come on!" I say as soon as she's free.

We dive behind a pile of boxes just as the bay door rolls open. I peek around and watch Sammy come in, closing the door back behind him. He's holding a Happy Burger bag, so maybe he's at least feeding Sadie while he's holding her captive.

I look down and notice Sadie's wrists. They have purple bruises around them and tiny little cuts, as if she had been trying to fight her way out of her restraints for a while. I hesitantly touch her, hoping to God it doesn't burn. She looks up at me in surprise, but she doesn't seem hurt or even alarmed.

"Sadie!" Sammy growls, nearly scaring us to death.

Sadie whimpers, causing Sammy to turn around and look in our direction. I pull her into my arms and put my hand over her mouth. "Don't make a sound," I whisper against her ear.

Sammy finally turns his attention away from us and begins searching for Sadie.

"We've got to get out of here," I whisper.

"How?" she mumbles under my hand.

The only two exits are visible from pretty much anywhere in this warehouse. There's no way we'll make it to either of them without Sammy noticing. But maybe I can get Sadie out of here the same way Sammy brought her in.

I just have to close my eyes and concentrate. I think of Kai, who is far away, in California right now. I clear my mind of everything else and imagine myself as Kai. When I open my eyes, I'm sitting in front of the television in Kai's living room. Thank God. Now I've just got to figure out how to get back there with Sadie.

The last time I was able to move from one place to another, it seemed to be powered by lust. How will that work now that I'm touching her? Will I hurt her? Or...even worse?

It doesn't matter. I've got to take the risk just to get her away from Sammy.

"I'm about to do something. Something...crazy. I need you to trust me okay?" I tell her.

She nods.

"Hold onto to me tight, and whatever you do, don't let go."

"Okay," she replies, tightening her grip on me.

I'm not hurting her. Not yet. Maybe I can actually pull this off.

I close my eyes again, this time, letting myself think of Sadie. I think about our vacation to the beach a few years ago, the one when she was wearing that tiny black bikini. Man, her legs...they went on for miles. Her body is so perfect, so soft. And she always smells so good...

Suddenly, I feel the energy inside me increasing. Sadie cries out just as everything goes black. In a split second, we're in Kai's living room. Sadie and I fall to the floor, both of us a heaving mess, as if we ran all the way here.

"Oh my God, you did it. And...so fast," Kai says, reaching for Sadie's hand to help her up. "And...you didn't..." He looks from me to Sadie as if he's confused. "Are you okay, Sadie?"

"Yeah," I think so," she pants.

Kai looks back at me, staring at me as if I'm some strange, undiscovered creature. "Leo was right about you."

"He was?" I ask in confusion, standing to my feet.

"You really are Hikari..."

"He's what?" Sadie asks.

"What does that mean?" I ask.

"It means...your mother's family must come from both the Hikari and the Yami bloodlines of Rokusai warriors. There's no other explanation," Kai answers.

"Mikey...what the hell is he talking about?" Sadie asks, meeting my eyes.

When she looks at me, I can feel the curse's power creeping up my body like a swarm of ants. I look down at my hand, carefully examining it before I reach out and touch Sadie's arm.

"I can't hurt you," I whisper to her, smiling.

"What?" she asks in confusion.

"Michael is a white warrior. The curse affects him differently than Sammy, or me. Because his heart is pure and good," Kai says.

Sadie smiles at me, touching my face. "Of course he is pure and good. He saved my life."