Finding ELE (ELE Series #2) Written By: Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels Read online

  Finding ELE

  By: Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels

  Copyright 2012 by: Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels

  Cover Photo: Copyright Valua Vitaly, Dash, Burak Çakmak, and Vitaly Krivosheev / Fotolia

  Cover Work: Marya Heiman

  http://www.eleseries.com

  http://www.facebook.com/eleseries

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  Thank you for downloading this ebook. It remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied and distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy at Smashwords.com, where they can also discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

  Table of Contents:

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Eye Colors and Their Meanings

  Acknowledgements

  Personal Acknowledgements

  About the Authors

  Connect with Us

  CHAPTER 1 (THE FIRST DAY OUTSIDE)

  "MOM!" No, this can't be happening! My mom is not bleeding out on this mountainside. Not when I just found her again!

  I sit up and examine the damage. Like ink on paper, the crimson red stain slowly grows larger and larger in diameter. I do my best to ignore the chaos of the war that is happening all around me. My mom's breaths become ragged as she gasps greedily for air.

  "No Mom, you need to hang on," I whisper. Tears blur my vision as I push her shirt away from the wound on the lower left side of her abdomen. Blood is pouring out of a small hole no larger than a dime.

  A gunshot rings out just inches away from my ear. For a second I think I was the intended target but then a new body falls down next to my mom. It lies there, splayed at an unnatural angle. I sit paralyzed for a moment looking into the lifeless red eyes of a woman my mother's age.

  The cold metal of a gun barrel presses up against my temple. "Move away from her." A man commands in a gruff voice.

  I look up to see a young man, not much older than me, kneeling down next to my mom. His coppery red hair is drenched in sweat and he's covered in the rusty dirt that coats the mountainside. His eyes are the same nuclear yellow hue as my moms were. This thought wakes me up from my stupor. No, not were! Are! She will survive; she has to!

  The man kneels down next to my mom to check her pulse with one hand while his other hand keeps the gun trained on my head. His eyes flash with a heavy sadness.

  I brush the gun away from my head as if it were a fly and lean back over my mother.

  "I said move away from her!" He orders me.

  I look up at him with the most lethal stare I can muster and his mouth drops open. "What the...? Your eyes!" He stutters.

  The last time I saw my reflection, my eyes had a multitude of colors swirling throughout them like a marble. They look otherworldly. I don't have time to assure him of my good intentions. My mom is dying as we speak!

  "Do you mind?" I push his gun out of my face once again. "I can help her but I can't do it when you are pointing that thing at me!" Not waiting for his response, I look back down at my mom. She's stopped breathing. I place both of my hands over the wound in her side, praying it’s not too late. I close my eyes to concentrate and feel the silent tears slip past my lashes. I take several deep breaths to force my heart to return to a steady rhythm. I eventually find the ability to tune everything out and that's when I feel the power go out of me.

  At first it feels like a slight tingle that moves through my body and out of my fingertips. Then it gradually increases, feeling almost like an electrical current flowing from me and into my mother. I take several deep breaths and focus all of my energy on healing her.

  I've done this before, when my boyfriend was shot in the shoulder. It didn't feel like this though. I healed him with very little effort. Then again he had his own healing abilities. He also wasn't standing on death’s doorstep like my mother is.

  My mom gasps a deep breath of air. It's the most beautiful sound I've ever heard. I open my eyes to find her staring at me with eyes the same intense yellow as the man with the gun. Her skin is still a sickly white so I push myself to the limits trying to exert all of my healing powers on her. I watch as life slowly filters more and more into her eyes and her cheeks glow pink with warmth.

  "Willow." She says in a dry throaty whisper.

  The man next to me is too enthralled to do anything more than watch in utter disbelief. For the last five minutes he was witness to the transformation of my mother coming back to life. She makes a small noise and it’s enough for him to be brought back to the present. He reaches into a pack on his side, pulls out a canteen and puts it up to my mother's mouth.

  As if someone took the television off mute, the world around me erupts with the overpowering clamor of war. My head begins to spin as a splintering headache overtakes all of my senses. White stars dance in front of my eyes as my mother sits up looking at me with concern.

  "We have to go. Now!" An urgent, all too familiar voice calls out behind me. I look back cringing as every inch of movement causes a new piercing pain to echo through my skull.

  "Mr. Leroy?" I barely finish saying his name before a powerful pain blinds me. I feel myself crashing to the ground and then my world goes black.

  CHAPTER 2 (WAKE UP CALL.)

  "SHE'S ONE OF THEM, ALICE." Mr. Leroy demands quietly.

  My brain is foggy and my body feels numb. I want to open my eyes and move but the effort seems overwhelming.

  "No Leroy. Have you ever seen one of them show any sign of compassion? She healed me! I don't know how she did it, but she did. She is not one of them!" My mom does her best to try and hush her tone but her passion can't be contained.

  "Her eyes did have red in them." Another man's voice chimes in. I vaguely recognize it.

  I try to pry my eyelids open but they feel as if they've been glued shut. I still can't move my muscles.

  "Yes, but they weren't solid red. There were a myriad of other colors too. None of the others displayed any type of symptom like that." My mom reminds them.

  "Look Alice, I know she's your daughter, but that doesn't mean we can trust her. You know yourself just how much damage they can do." Mr. Leroy whispers.

  "I know how much damage they can do. I also know that my daughter is not one of them! Yet, here you have her shackled to the bed like a criminal. She saved my life for goodness sake! Doesn’t that count for anything?"

  "I know she did. Don't worry Alice; as soon as she wakes up we’ll be able to further assess the situation." The other man says. I vaguely hear him pat my mother's back.

  "She is not a situation! She is my daughter, Anthony."

  I worry that my mom is getting too worked up. I don't know if she's completely healed but stress can't be good for her. I try harder to open my eyes. It feels as if I'm swimming through quicksand but eventually I manage to move my hand slightly. I blink my eyes until my eyelashes finally part and I can see the dim light of the room.

  "Honey!" My mom calls out.

  I watch her run to my side through blurry eyes. "Mo..." My voice cracks and I gasp for air. My throat feels like sandpaper
and merely breathing through it hurts.

  "Shh. It's okay sweety." My mom lifts a cup of water to my mouth. The soothing water slides down my throat and it feels so good. I drink greedily.

  When I try to reach up to grab the cup from her, my hands are stopped. I jerk away quickly and water runs down my chin and cheek. Looking down at my wrists I see the handcuffs holding my arms down next to my sides. I pull at them and hear the metal clink against the bedposts they are attached to. Startled, I give my mom a questioning look.

  A look of anger flashes across her face and she looks behind her. "Give me the key Leroy!"

  If I were Mr. Leroy, I would have obeyed immediately based on my mom's tone alone.

  "Not yet Alice, we need to make sure she's safe." He moves into my line of sight. The stunned look on his face tells me that he's only now noticed my eyes. He runs his hand through his shiny grey hair in confusion.

  He looks exactly the same as I remember him, apart from the yellow eyes. I first met Mr. Leroy outside of the shelter when we were waiting in line for permission to enter. He was just as ornery as he seems to be now.

  I hear the sound of metal snapping and suddenly my left arm is free. I look over to see my mom moving to the other side of my bed.

  "Stop!" Mr. Leroy yells out.

  My mom grabs the metal chain between the handcuffs that hold my right arm to the bedpost and she pulls. It didn't seem to take any effort on her part to snap the metal like it was a twig.

  I look at her surprised and then lift my hands up to take the cup of water that is sitting on a bedside table. I gulp more water down until I can get my throat comfortable enough to speak. "What's going on mom? Are you okay?" I reach forward to touch her side where the wound was but another hand stops me.

  I turn to see the man from the mountain. His hair is still as coppery red as I remembered and his neon yellow eyes assess me. I look down at his hand that is encircling my wrist. I try to yank my arm away but he doesn't budge. Either my pull was the weakest attempt ever or his grip is just that strong.

  "It's okay Anthony. She's not going to hurt me." My mom grabs my other hand and holds it up to where her wound was. "You healed me Willow. I don't even have a scar."

  The love and appreciation in her eyes opens up the waterworks. Tears run over my eyes and I shake with relief. Anthony lets go of my arm as mom sits on the bed next to me and pulls me into her arms. Dropping my head to her chest all I can do is sob, she is alive!! After all the months I am in her arms again. I still can't believe that she's alive.

  She runs her hands over my curls and rocks me back and forth repeating, "It's okay honey. You are safe. You are safe now love."

  It has been nearly four months since I lost my mom. She was supposed to go into the shelter with us but my little brother was denied entrance. Sebastian!

  I sit back and look into her eyes. "Sabby! Is he okay?" I have no idea if he survived or not. They told us that he had the virus…the same virus that has killed off millions of people and forced our government to implement Project ELE.

  She smiles really big and nods. "Yes honey. Sebastian is safe."

  "Is he sick?" I never saw anyone who got the virus but I was told that the virus caused the most excruciating pains. That's why they offered everyone a red shot when they were denied entry to the shelter. Knowing how painful the virus is, the government gave them a shot that would end the life of someone who was infected, if they chose that route.

  "No, he's as healthy as a horse. We gave him the survival shot and he never displayed any symptoms of the virus."

  The survival shot was the second shot that they gave to the people who were denied entry. The bright yellow shot was supposed to help sustain life.

  Hearing that both mom and Sabby are safe and alive is the most heart-warming news I've heard in a while. I continue to cry tears of joy.

  My mom pulls me into her arms again and comforts me until I am able to compose myself. "I love you Willow."

  I wipe away the tears and look up at her. "I love you too mom. I thought you were both gone. I still can't believe it."

  "I can't believe you're here." She rests her hands on my cheeks, looking me up and down, taking me in. Finally focusing on my eyes she whispers. "Amazing."

  A strange nervous feeling builds up as I wonder what she thinks of the new Willow. "It's kind of creepy, isn't it?"

  "If your eyes are creepy then you must think mine are out of this world. They practically glow in the dark." She jokes. "I've seen a healers eyes, but yours are a little different."

  "Different is a generous word to use for this psychedelic rainbow eye." I point up at my left eye. "The solid brown of my other eye makes it even creepier. They don't even match."

  My mom gives me a strange look. "No, your eyes match." She moves closer to examine them. "I hadn't noticed the rainbow though at first since it's so dark in here. Mostly they are a dark blue with a fleck of red. But, now that you mention it I can see a sort of rainbow prism thing going on. It's barely noticeable, yet it's quite remarkable."

  "What do you mean?" My eyes match? The colors are barely noticeable? I make a move to get off the bed but the man from the mountainside blocks me from getting up.

  "You can let my daughter up Anthony." My mom says in a scolding tone. "She's not going to hurt anyone."

  He gives me an unsure look but finally steps aside.

  Mr. Leroy interjects, "Sure, she didn't hurt you, but what will keep her from taking from us or the others? Perhaps she spared you because of your relation."

  "Come on! Have you seen any of those monsters show any compassion for a single person, let alone their own family? She is not like them." My mom looks thoroughly annoyed that she's having to go around with them again.

  "No, but we certainly can't risk allowing her to roam free." Mr. Leroy replies.

  "I was just looking for a mirror. I'm not trying to hurt anyone." I look around the room but I don't see any reflective surfaces readily available.

  Tony takes a small step towards the door and something in his expression tells me he believes my mom when she said that I'm harmless. “I’ll get you that mirror. Stay there and rest.” I'm not sure if he is really having a change of heart when it comes to me or if he just wants an excuse to leave the room. It's an odd feeling having people afraid of me. I know deep down that I couldn't hurt a fly, but obviously Mr. Leroy and Tony both seem pretty creeped out. Well, maybe Tony isn't necessarily as creeped out as he is overly protective of my mom. I can't help wondering why that is.

  "Thank you. I just wanted to see my eyes, you know?" I tell Tony. I don't know why it matters to me at all if this guy thinks I'm vain, but I still feel the need to qualify my request.

  "No problem." He says and then he does something I would never expect, he smiles. I mean, it's not a huge smile but just a slight lift in his lips. Somehow that little smile comforts me. I can't put a finger on why it comforts me, but it does. I lie back on my bed and watch as he leaves the room.

  Mr. Leroy wastes no time once the door is securely closed behind Tony. He grabs a new set of handcuffs from a drawer, which has me wondering just how many sets are in there.

  My mom darts up off the bed and moves impossibly fast, landing in front of me a millisecond later. "You are really starting to piss me off old man! I recommend you put those back where you found them and leave this instant." When he doesn't obey, she steps closer to him and whispers in a daunting voice that is completely foreign to me. "I don't think you want to test me. I can find some alternative ways to use those handcuffs on you that will not involve any sort of pleasure." Her hands clench into fists.

  I sit there completely awestruck at the situation and at how completely badass my mom has become.

  Mr. Leroy backs down and puts the handcuffs back in the drawer. "You better hope she's safe. It's not just your life you are risking here." He huffs out as he exits the room.

  My mom slams the door behind him and comes back to my bedside. "I'm sorry honey.
I don't want to make an excuse for Mr. Grumps-A-lot," I smile remembering my old nickname for Mr. Leroy. She continues. "But, things are crazy on the outside. Actually crazy is an understatement. There's a war going on outside of the shelters. Those people, no, those monsters with the red eyes, they are deadly. They take and they kill with no feeling. They show no remorse." Her eyes look haunted. "I know you're not like them. He should never have compared you to them. But, he is cautious because you do have that red in your eyes. It has to be something different though. It's obviously not like what they have."

  "What do you mean? What do they have?" The image of the red-eyed people I encountered plays across my mind.

  "Their ability is to take. They take until there is nothing left." My mom looks almost sick explaining this to me.

  A shiver runs up my spine at my mom's statement. "How do they take?"

  It's obvious she doesn't like speaking about ’those people’, or monsters as she calls them. "I don't know the science of it, but they can touch people and empty them. In the process of doing whatever it is they do, they take peoples gifts, or powers. I've only seen it done once or twice because they don't have much to take from us since they already have our abilities."

  At the confusion on my face she clarifies. "The survival shot we took had some strange side effects. Much like whatever shot you took that caused your eyes to turn blue." I want to stop and ask her what she means because my eyes are certainly not just blue but I also want to hear more about these side effects, so I let her continue. "We not only can live off little sustenance, we also have super human strength. In addition we are quite fast. The others were like us at first. They had the survival shot. Things changed though when someone took the red shot subsequently. That shot was meant to kill and in a way it did. It killed their humanity. It also brought on a strange change in those people. We didn't know the extent of this change at first. It seems like forever ago but back then there were people around that had other abilities. Amazing ones, like your healing ability. They were the ones who took the immunization because they were accepted but then refused to enter the shelter because of their loved ones being denied. Some of those people with the different gifts started dying off or having what we thought were strokes that left them brain dead. It wasn't until the red eyed people increased in number that we realized what they were doing. They were collecting their powers! We call them Reapers."