The Shadows in the Hills: Triple Threat

Chapter Six - Eight Weeks After Esme's Disappearance

We had travelled constantly and arrived around twenty miles from the east coast. All it meant was that it was time to turn back on ourselves and head south-west. We travelled from coast to coast, heading south as we went. It was taking forever, and we were running out of time. I was lying on top of my sleeping bag under the temporary canopy I had put up in the trees when Marcus appeared in front of me. At some point, we had built some form of trust. He didn't seem like he wanted to walk away anymore. Once I confided in him that Esme was pregnant, he seemed to be as concerned as I was.

It was probably an act, and I had already made it clear to him that he would be chained again before we got to her. I wouldn't put her at risk. I didn't put it past him to play along just to get close enough to try to take her out again. For the time being, at least we were drawing less attention when traveling. "What's up? You best not be complaining about the digs again." Apparently, he was used to living in comfort. I was used to bunking down in the woods and, to be fair, I had it better at the moment than some of the other times.

"I've found her..." I jumped to my feet and started packing up. "There's no need to rush."

"There is every need. For a start, she might disappear again."

"I know where she is now. Unless she hides from me again and moves, I'm still going to know where she is." His powers worked so differently to the way I sensed her. Mine was more like magnetism, not knowing where she was as such. Not to mention that he could sense her from anywhere in the world. I had to be close by. We had only been traveling in the hopes that the closer we were to her, the less effective the masking would be.

"That's not the only reason I need to get to her fast."

"Well, she's about a forty-minute run from here if we go at full speed."

"Tell me where I'll go. You and Tyler can meet me there. If it is just me, it won't draw as much attention." I pulled the map out of my pack and passed it to him.

"If you head here, Louth. You will sense her before you hit the town. She's in the middle of nowhere."

"Is she OK?"

"I have no idea. My powers don't tell me that much, but she's not dead, at least. If she was, I wouldn't get a signal at all." I tried to take solace in the fact that she was still alive, but that didn't mean much. There was no telling what state I would find her in.

"I've got the essentials. Could you guys manage the rest?"

"Yeah, just go. We won't be far behind you." I didn't wait around. Dumping the bag on the ground before morphing. I needed all the speed I could get and I couldn't care less about people seeing me. I gripped the bag between my teeth and headed off at a sprint. It was lucky that the surrounding area was so rural. I traveled across the fields pretty easily. Only once I had to deter into a ditch because there happened to be a farmer in his field, harvesting.

The one main road I came across was more difficult and I was forced to swap to two legs instead of four. There was a whole town on the other side, and I cursed out loud. I needed to get back into the fields as fast as possible. I ran through the town, gaining lots of looks from passersby. Stopping dead in my tracks as I felt her. I had forgotten what it felt like to have her in my mind with me. The emptiness that had been consuming me vanished, but the relief didn't last long. I could feel her pain. She was in trouble.

It had been raining for a while but the wind was really starting to pick up and the dark clouds were leaving visibility at next to nothing. It would be an advantage once I got out of the busy town, but in the meantime, it was soaking me to the skin. I hunched over and brought my bag closer to my chest. There were important things in it that needed to stay dry. I could feel her fear increasing as the lightning started. She was speaking to someone, but I couldn't quite make out the words. I just hoped it was Jackson, and he was there helping her, at least.

The second I found a field, I slipped in and wasted no time in changing and running as fast as I could. I knew it couldn't be much further. I wouldn't be able to sense her unless she was close. I followed her like a beacon, leading me home, which was exactly what she was.

I could see a house in the distance, but it looked derelict and there were no signs of life at all. Still, she was pulling me there, and I had no choice but to trust my instincts. The closer I got, the more run down it looked and I hated the idea of her living in such a place. She was talking to someone, talking about Jackson. Which dashed my hopes that he was there with her. She was terrified. Whoever it was, she thought she was in danger. I pushed even harder, faster than I even knew I could run. Wasting no time when I got to the house. Morphing back to human form as I pushed the door open.

She was there on the floor, blood staining the wooden floorboards. I didn't think I just launched myself at the person standing over her. Sending us both flying towards the fireplace.