Redemption (Night Marchers #2) Written by: Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels Read online

  I suck in a quick breath. “No!” Nausea wells up in my stomach as feelings of despair set in. "Adam? What do you mean he has Adam?"

  "Iii ddonnt knooww. I meeaan heee hass hiimm." Paul is shaking so hard that I fear he may fall down and begin seizing or something.

  "Okay Paul, it's going to be okay. You’re safe now. Here, sit down." I gesture him to a patio chair. He sits down but it doesn't seem to be helping. I jump when I hear someone walking up the steps to my patio behind us. Looking around for some sort of weapon to defend off any ‘would be attacker’ I grab a broom that's perched against the railing and turn around. Relief washes through me when I find two Menehune's ascending towards us. I recognize them, but I don't believe we have formally met. Their faces are filled with concern and uncertainty as they brush past me hastily towards their friend.

  "Paul! Oh my goodness, Paul, what happened?" One of the Menehunes with reddish brown hair exclaims. The other Menehune with bright white hair just stands there staring at Paul wide eyed. I'm sure they are not used to seeing any Menehune's hurt. The Menehune's seem like such peaceful people.

  I can see that Paul is having a hard time trying to communicate so I speak for him. "He's hurt pretty badly. He said that someone has Adam and I think whoever that someone is, hurt Paul."

  "What do you mean someone has Adam?" The Menehune that had been silent up until now spoke up.

  "I think he said it was Kai, or someone who looked like Kai. I believe it may be his twin brother. I don't know." I reply. Kai's twin brother Kao is the Night Marcher who tried to kill me. Kao may look nearly identical to Kai but he's nothing like him. He's pure evil through and through.

  "I know who you speak of. Kai has told me the story of his brother. He is a very dangerous man, not one to be taken lightly. We must get Paul back immediately and bring this to the attention of the Elders." The white haired Menehune says. Without waiting for my response they both pull Paul to his feet. Paul puts his arms around each of their shoulders ready to head home. He looks so frail and small as he starts hobbling off towards the exit from my patio to the beach.

  "Wait!" I yell at them. The white haired Menehune turns his head towards me. While I have his attention I ask, "Aren't you going to go after Adam? We can't wait, we need to go now." I say insistently.

  His look is mixed with understanding and sadness. "I wish I could go in search of Adam, we just don’t have a definitive location as of now. I must consult with the others. You see that we are a small race. It wouldn’t do any good for us to go up against a man such as Kao alone, if we were even able to find him that is. Kai has told us that he was a mighty warrior as a human, but now, as a Night Marcher, he will be even more powerful. We need a plan of attack. We would be of no help to Adam if we ended up like Paul or worse yet, dead."

  I don't correct him and tell him that Kao is not a Night Marcher anymore. Or that Kai switched places with him, becoming a Night Marcher himself. Instead I nod, understanding that what the Menehune says is wise and makes sense. Even though I don't totally agree, I think time is of the essence and we must go after Adam now, wherever he might be. After all we don't even know if it is Kao that we are dealing with. Paul might mean that the person who has Adam is a human like Kai, as opposed to a Menehune. Who knows, with how distraught Paul seems. I hear him moan loudly and instead of arguing with the Menehunes I allow them to carry their injured friend home while I remain helplessly and silently behind.

  I watch them hobble across the beach and into the forest. It only takes me a few minutes to make my decision. If they can't go after him now, then why can’t I? I know it's reckless, but I don't care. I need to do something!

  It doesn’t take long for me to pack a small backpack with basic essentials: a flashlight, a bottle of water, a few snacks, and a pocketknife. I quietly move through my room changing out of my pajamas and into jeans and a t-shirt. I press my ear to the door to verify that my dad isn't awake to hear my exit. Putting my backpack over my shoulder I take a deep breath and step over the threshold of my patio door into the pitch-black night.

  Following the footpath down the short trail to the beach I stop just short of the sand. What am I doing? I don’t even have the slightest clue where Adam is, but I have an idea of where to look, Kai’s tree house. Adam helped him build it and maybe if he got away from his captor somehow, he might be hiding out there. I might, or might not be right but I can’t simply sit here and watch on the sidelines. If the least I can do for Kai is help his best friend Adam, then I have to try. The tree house is where Kai took me on that fateful night when I first looked into the eyes of the Night Marcher. I'm not certain as to where the tree house is located though. The only recollection that I remember is the dense forest and how close it is to the beach. I also remember Kai pointing to the woods beyond this beach when he told me he lived nearby the first time we met. I take a deep breath of salty ocean air and steady myself to do the impossible.

  Looking ahead at the murky tree line, I pull the straps of my backpack up and set off down the long stretch of beach. It's eerily quiet tonight and I try to keep myself from getting freaked out as I near the tree line. I don’t get too far when all of a sudden two hands wrap securely around my mouth! I let out a muzzled scream while my heart starts racing painfully in my chest. As I ready myself to fight back I hear a familiar voice whisper in my ear. “Shh, Emma, it’s just me. Calm down. It’s me, Tristan.” He slowly releases his hands from my mouth and I turn to stare at him wide-eyed. Reaching my hands up I touch his face. It is very dark out here and for my sake I need to make sure it really is Tristan. I’ve made that mistake before and I don’t plan on making it again, especially under these circumstances.

  Tristan brings his hand up to his face and places it over mine. “Emma, what are you doing out here?” He whispers furiously to me.

  I quickly withdraw my hand and gawk at him. I know he can’t see me very well in the dark, but a look of utter shock splays across my face. “What am I doing out here? I think the question is what are you doing out here?” I place my hands firmly on my hips. I don’t know why I am reacting this way to his presence, but to me it feels like he’s been spying on me, and that is an invasion of my privacy. Ever since I got back after those three days that I was missing I have been under a microscope. It’s like I can’t even go to the bathroom without a chaperone!

  “I’m so sorry Emma, I just can’t help it. I have this deep pain in the pit of my stomach when I try and lay in bed at night. I feel like I failed at protecting you the first time and I don’t want to make the same mistake twice. I’ll admit, ever since you came home, I have been checking on you each night. I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I didn’t. Then when I saw you leave with the backpack on your back, I couldn't let you go without finding out why you were running away. I just have this eerie feeling that you are going to leave and never return.”

  I see his face drop in the dark shadows displayed by the moon. All the anger and animosity that I had felt just a few moments earlier subsides and in its place a feeling of peace and sincerity fills me. "You watch me every night?" It’s the only words I can get out of my mouth. We both stand there for a few moments as the silence fills the air. I don’t know what else to say.

  Breaking the silence he says, "Yes Emma, I do watch you every night and obviously, rightfully so. I just can't let you go. You can't run away." He steps in front of me blocking my path towards the woods.

  “Tristan, you have to let me go. My friend is in trouble and he needs me. I’m the only one that can help him now. You need to let me leave.” I say the last words barely above a whisper. I don’t want to leave Tristan but I know deep down I have an obligation to at least attempt to help Adam, and nothing is going to change that.

  “Then I’m going with you!” A look of determination is set in his expression.

  I stand there at a loss for words. “What?” I ask.

  “I’m going with you Emma; I can’t let you go alone. Not this time, not ever. Whatev
er you need, I’ll be there.” He doesn’t wait for an answer as he steps to the side and grabs hold of my hand. “Lead the way.”

  I don’t argue, I don’t even think about what just took place; I can't waste valuable time. I just allow myself to lead Tristan down the beach, hoping I am going the right way.

  When the light of the moon can no longer guide us, I shuffle through my bag for the flashlight. Turning it on I display the beam before us looking for some sort of pathway or trail that we can follow. I know enough to not venture into the woods without some sort of guiding path, or someway to establish directional guidance. I shine the flashlight towards Tristan and find him just a foot behind me with worry lining his eyes. I give him a grim smile, since it is all I can muster at the moment. I wonder if Tristan knows the secrets these woods hold, especially in the dead of night.

  After wandering around aimlessly for a few minutes I spot a small trodden path that leads away from the ocean. Since it’s the only footpath I have found thus far I go with my gut and we begin our trek upwards through the woods.

  Off in the distance I hear rolling thunder and upon looking up I confirm that the dark sky is filling with churning storm clouds. It's amazing how fast a storm can brew on this Island. I look over to see that Tristan has noticed the storm as well. Not allowing his worry to faze me, I continue trekking ahead.

  It seems like we follow the same trail for over an hour or so and still I catch no sight of Kai's tree house. Doubt starts filling my mind as I realize this probably isn't the right way. Sounds are amplified all around from the storm that has continued to blow in and from the night wandering creatures. Shuffles of feet, and scurries are haunting to my ears. I try not to let my imagination wander as I focus on Adam and how much he needs me. It doesn’t occur to me until now, that I have no clue what I am going to do once I find him, that's if I find him. If he is being held hostage, we still aren’t sure by whom. Paul said the person looked just like Kai, so it's most likely Kao, but there is no guarantee. Whoever it is, Is that person going to be there when we arrive to try and rescue Adam? I try and settle my mind’s thoughts by looking back at Tristan. He hasn’t uttered a word since we spoke on the beach and the uncomfortable silence puts me more on edge.

  Suddenly, as we reach the top of the hill my foot gets caught under a root and I fall hard on my face as the flashlight rolls down the opposite side of the hill and comes to a stop about twenty feet in front of me. Tristan rushes over to my side and helps me sit up. My foot is still deeply buried under the root and I can’t seem to wiggle out of its hold. But, I soon realize my foot is the least of my worries. The faint sound of drums begins radiating through my ears! Fear rips through me as I look to Tristan. We catch each other’s eyes for a moment before we are hurriedly trying to free me. The sound draws nearer as we both aggressively tug at my foot. We even try to remove my shoe, but to no avail. Boom-boom; boom-boom. The drum’s rhythm nearly matches my pounding heartbeat. Closer and closer still the drums are coming. I feel as if we are in one of those horrible scary movies where the girl is stuck on a railroad track and a train is barreling towards her at maximum speed.

  Fire! I see fire through the dense vegetation and in my desperation I jerk my foot so hard that it comes barreling out of my shoe, the force driving me straight back into Tristan. I grab my shoe and slip it back on quickly before the first flame appears. Without a second’s hesitation, Tristan whisks me into his arms and starts running in the opposite direction. Kai! The thought of him rips through me as I begin flailing my arms and kicking my feet trying to get Tristan to release his grip on me. I fight with all I’m worth to get out of Tristan’s grasp. All the while Tristan repeats, “Emma, calm down! What on earth are you doing? We need to get out of here!” But, he doesn’t understand and I have no time to explain. I finally rip out of Tristan’s grasp and land with a hard thump on the ground. There is no time for pain as I grab the earth with my fingernails and haul myself up taking off in a sprint towards the steady drumming.

  I don’t get more than five feet before Tristan tackles me from behind. He wraps his legs and arms around my entire body and holds on tight as I try to implement everything I ever learned about fighting. In this position though, my efforts seem fruitless. I begin to scream at Tristan to let me go, but he isn’t listening. The drums are growing more distant as I see the flickers of flames moving off towards the West. My heart sinks to know that Kai is so close, yet so far. I still flail every limb not wanting to give into the total exhaustion my body is demanding. I feel Tristan’s grip loosening as my strength begins to falter. Tears are streaming down my face. I begin sobbing as my body goes limp. I feel so helpless, confused, and beaten. Tristan rearranges himself so he cradles me in his arms like a small child. Small droplets of rain begin falling from the sky. So it is not only I who mourns, but perhaps God himself as well. It doesn’t take long for the rain to become increasingly intense soaking us through. Tristan lifts me from the ground and hurriedly sweeps me away. I can tell that the rain is making the climb very hard on him now that it has moistened the soil. With no strength left of my own I just sink into Tristan’s arms, close my eyes and let God’s tears cover me from head to toe.

  It isn't until several minutes later that Tristan sets me down softly on the hard ground. I am soaking wet but the ground I lay on is dry. There is only a small sliver of light from the cloud-covered moon that casts a small ray across the stone floor. It doesn’t take me long to see that Tristan has brought me into a cave. I watch Tristan’s shadow as he walks around the cave picking up what looks to be different sizes of sticks and pieces of wood.

  My eyes struggle to adjust in this dim light, but soon I see sparks of ember igniting. The cave slowly comes into focus as a fire begins to burn. Flaming shadows dance on the cave walls sending an eerie chill down my spine. Tristan feeds the fire more wood and then comes and takes my hand. Without a word he helps me up and leads me near the fire.

  The wind whistles loudly outside as the rain pounds harder and harder against the rocks. Brief flashes of lightening streak across the sky followed by the deep bellow of thunder that shakes the ground beneath us. As if my body finally realizes it’s cold, I begin shivering as Tristan sits me down next to the fire, my back to the cave wall. Instinctively I reach my hands out towards the warm heat. I rub my hands together and watch as they change from a cold purple back to their normal pinkish color.

  It feels like I will never be able to stop shivering. I'm unable to warm up in these rain-drenched clothes. My face hasn’t dried either, and I can’t tell if it’s the tears I cried or rain falling softly down my cheeks from my hair, or maybe a little of both. Tristan wraps his arms around me in a comforting hug. He rubs my arms trying to warm my skin with the friction from his hands. I'm not sure how I should feel, should I feel anger for him holding me back from seeing Kai? Or, should I be relieved that he saved me from a possible nightmare? I don't even know what I would have done if I had found Kai. I watch the rain fall down in thick sheets over the cave opening. I feel utterly defeated. I have no energy to figure out my feelings or what to do, so I let my head fall into the curve of his neck. We sit there for what seems like hours. No talking. No moving. Words aren’t needed now, not needed at all.

  My body may be limp, but my mind is still running at full speed, trying to sort itself out and make sense of things. It gives me the dreaded time to think about everything that has gone on these past few weeks. All of the emotional baggage I now carry makes the burden all that more difficult to bear. I inhale deeply trying to regain composure before I completely lose it. I feel numb, unable to process everything, unable to give it reason, or understanding. I snuggle deeper into Tristan, yearning for the comfort he so willingly provides.

  "Six months ago, I lost my best friend.” Tristan combs his fingers gently through my hair. Through his voice I can hear old pain that was once buried deep skimming to the surface. I stare blankly at the fire hoping my silence will encourage him to continue. I rest
my head in his lap as Tristan leans his back against the wall. Still caressing the strands of my hair he continues. “We had been friends for as long as I can remember. We had a knack for running into trouble instead of away. Not like law trouble, more like we sought out risky adventures each time daring to do more than the last. One Friday night, with nothing to do, we met down by the beach with plans to go on a late night hike. It was a cool night, an eerie moon had risen up in the distance; I will never forget the way it looked. Deep down I knew something just wasn’t right, but I couldn’t put a finger on it. The two of us were experienced hikers and had all of the correct gear so I just wrote it off as we headed further and further into the woods. Looking back I wonder if the feeling was a premonition or a foreshadowing of what was to come that night. I usually check my flashlight for batteries before leaving on any type of night trip so I'm not sure what happened that evening. The next thing we knew we were smack dab in the middle of the woods when the bulb of my flashlight went out. It was a pitch-black night, like tonight, and neither of us had any extra batteries or a secondary light source. It's dangerous to hike at night without light; we would be too susceptible to injury so we decided it would be best to find a place to set up tent. We had survival gear on us so we knew if needed, we could find a place to spend the night out there. It was about that time that we began hearing drumming in the distance. We honestly didn't understand where it was coming from. We thought that perhaps there was another camper out there or maybe even a Boy Scout troop or something. Curious, we began to shuffle through the forest towards the noise. As we got closer and closer we were able to see several lights shining through the trees. My friend took the lead as we rounded over the hill. What we saw next made my stomach churn. It was a procession of Night Marchers headed straight for us. I grabbed his arm and began pulling in the opposite direction but he wouldn’t move. It was as if his eyes were locked in on what was ahead of him grounding his body as well. I pulled with all I was worth but it was of no use. I ran behind a tree and covered my face with my hands. I prayed and prayed hoping God would hear my pleas. I felt guilty for having left him there, but I had no other choice. My mother had told me legends of the Night Marchers since before I could walk and I knew I was running out of time. I just—I didn’t know what to do. I kept hearing screaming—someone was screaming over and over and over. I couldn’t look up, because I knew what would happen.”