The Link Pt. 02: The Hunted

"Maybe," Caleb replied, "or I could pick a cheaper school."

"Or we could win the lottery," I added. At least we could share a laugh. "My parents would help," I said.

"Not with my school," Caleb said, shaking his head. We turned at the information kiosk and headed toward Zane. "My parents had some money set aside for school, but they were pushing the scholarship angle." He chuckled, "I think Dad is planning on retiring early."

"Then we just have to grow up," I said. "I'll work, you'll go to school, and then we'll live the high life after your first album goes platinum." Caleb's images of success ran through his mind and mixed with mine. They were pleasant thoughts that raised our smiles and made us feel closer as if that were possible. His dream was now my dream. It was so much better than no dream.

"Teegs," Zane called. He was carrying a package that I was sure had the newest must-have zombie shooter game available. I nodded and waved him over.

"The tux place is holding our stuff," I said as Zane caught up with us.

"How was the movie?" Zane asked.

"Terrible," Caleb answered, "but the company was good." Zane rolled his eyes, not interested in anything remotely mushy. We retrieved the plastic wrapped dress and tux and headed toward the car. All-in-all, it had been a pretty good day.

Chapter 29 - Levi

Damn truck. I only needed another second or two for a clean shot. It would have been a long one, but then I wouldn't have had to sit atop the damn fabric store any longer. The wind kept shifting, making my calculations difficult and I was feeling exposed. I preferred being at ground level where escape routes were plentiful, but the cars in the parking lot and the lack of cover made that impossible. For fifty grand, I would sit on the roof all night if that's what it took.

A smile crept onto my face as I remembered my time in Iraq. Before that war, I was a nobody with no idea of where my life was headed. Sure, I was a crack shot, but that's because I spent my youth hunting small animals in the woods behind my house. I could still remember the rush of watching my first target drop from branch. The squirrel did a couple of flips as it tumbled through the air and landed almost soundless on the forest floor. I didn't even know they could make sounds, but it emitted what sounded like a reverse groan repeatedly. I marveled at how it struggled to move, its hind legs useless. My first kill and I was only ten. I even liked the sound when its bones snapped as I crushed its skull with my foot. It was the first time I felt true power. The intoxicating sense of being a god.

All of that was nothing compared to the first time I put a bullet into a man. I watched the side of his face collapse then spray out the other side as the bullet traveled through his brain. It was perfect, and they paid me to do it. In fact, they gave me a medal for my sixteen confirmed kills. I chuckled to myself. The term confirmed was such a silly one. There were so many more. In war, you can pretty much shoot anyone that strikes your fancy. And shoot I did.

My favorite was the face of the camel-jockey kid. He had been between what looked like his parents, holding the hand of each. I dropped first the mother, then a round in the father before his wife hit the ground. I never pulled the trigger on the child. His face, covered in blood, was more than satisfactory. There were no tears, just uncontrollable shaking, unable to decide who to help as if that were possible. At that moment, I knew I was a god.

I looked through the scope and lined up on the car that the girl would have to return to eventually. Had I known that was where she would park, I would have had her on the way in. Instead, I had to recon from my car, circling until I found the vehicle. Luckily, it had only taken an hour before I spotted them entering the mall. Another five minutes to find the license plate.

I was less than pleased that the target decided to see a movie. I barely noticed them crossing into the theater and hoped I'd get her coming out. She kept swinging around that boyfriend of hers and then that truck swept by, directly in my line of fire. I couldn't re-establish before the building got in the way. I almost took a risky shot, but a miss would have warned the target, making it more difficult in the future.

The girl was fairly cute, not that that affected my desire to end her life. I wondered who she pissed off so much to award me double my usual fee. It never ceased to amaze me what idiots think they can get away with. She probably stuck her nose where it didn't belong, or maybe a family member borrowed money from the wrong people. I chuckled, thinking about a father or mother hearing about their daughter's brains splattered across a mall parking lot. It would be a joy to be there to see their reactions. The facial expressions are as exciting as the deaths themselves.

I slowed my breathing, not wanting the impending excitement to raise my heart rate too much. A strong pulse makes for a more difficult shot. I needed a clean head, even though the shot would be under 300 meters. I had plenty of time to enjoy myself after I pull the trigger.

They came out the same doors they entered. Her boyfriend and another younger boy. I smiled, thinking I would get a good look at the two boys when they watched the girl's head explode. As forecast, they carried new clothes with them. It was better intel than I usually received.

My scope zeroed in on a bouncing head that I knew would still as they neared the car. I could probably make the shot while she was moving, but patience would guarantee a better result. I started my breathing exercises, slow and steady. The tip of my finger graced the hair trigger as if it was born there, waiting for the instruction to squeeze.

The target was laughing as she neared the car. I tried not to smile at the irony, mixing happiness with death was my purview, and now I was about to share it with her. She stilled as her boyfriend moved forward to open the car door. The crosshairs stilled near her left eye, accounting for the crosswind. My finger squeezed, and my god-like power screamed from the barrel.

Chapter 30 - Teegan

The hanger slipped from my fingers as I brought it off my shoulder and my heart nearly stopped as my new dress floated to the ground. I bent quickly to pick it up. Something streaked over my head, and I heard Zane's air forcible leave his lungs. Red warmth splattered on my skin and all over the clear plastic on my dress. Zane fell, Caleb tackled me, and through the link, I felt Mom scream.

"Zane!" I yelled, crawling over my dress trying to get to him. He was on his back, blood pouring from the left side of his chest. Caleb pulled me back to the car, then grabbed Zane's arm and dragged him across the asphalt. There was so much pain and fear in Zane's link.

"Stay low, near the car," Caleb demanded. His desire to keep me safe was foremost in his mind. I crawled to Zane and put my hand over the hole in his chest, trying to stop the blood. Zane was trying to speak, but nothing but gasps were coming out. Something broke in my mind as tears filled my eyes. I found Zane's music in the ether of my thoughts and followed the link. I screamed again as I took the pain from him. Caleb grabbed me, and I heard him groan as the pain left me and traveled to him.

Caleb put his hand over mine, with the other he pulled out his phone.

"Help!" I yelled to the parking lot, hoping someone would see what was going one. Caleb somehow dialed 911 with one hand, the other now coated with my brother's blood. Zane's eyes closed and I felt his mind fading. Something awful filled my mind. Anger, like had never known, uncontrolled and vicious flew like daggers outward. Caleb recoiled inside at the emotion, his hand trembling as he held his phone.

Parts of me went wide, searching blindly in ever widening circles like a rabid dog searching with hatred in its heart. Caleb was yelling into the phone words I barely understood. Across the street, high on a roof, I found a mind that filled me with sickening malice. I seized the mind in a death grip. I stood, my bloody hand leaving Zane. Caleb was screaming for me to get down. It mattered not, the threat was no longer in control.

It was strange, seeing myself through a rifle scope as my anger grew. With a mere thought, I severed the shooter's link to his hands. I relished the man's fear as his weakness became apparent. My link to Caleb and my family faded as I directed everything I had into the man's brain. I broke his mind's connections one at a time, enjoying his shame as he lost control of his bladder and bowels. My brother was worth a thousand of him. I found names, his and another, then dug deeper. His experiences sickened me. I heard him scream as I washed the memories from his mind. It wasn't enough, not enough pain for what he had done.

"Stop!" Caleb yelled. I looked down at my brother, Caleb's hand hopelessly trying to keep the life in him. I dropped to my knees, and Caleb flooded me with love. My body heaved as the anger was pushed aside. Another man was running over, followed by a slower woman. I could feel Caleb's panic at feeling useless as Zane's life leaked away. Blood was slowly rising from Zane's lips. I opened my mind and silently screamed. Knowledge answered, and Caleb listened.

"Help me turn him on his side," Caleb demanded of the older man that had come to our aid. "His lung is filling with blood. We need to use gravity, so the other doesn't fill." They rolled him to his side as the woman, probably the man's wife approached me slowly. She didn't have the confidence of her husband.

"Tear off that plastic," Caleb told the man as he pointed at his tux. Caleb was busy removing Zane's shirt as my eyes began to lose focus. I reached out for Zane in my mind and found only a trickle of what he once was. He was dying, and I knew it was because of me. I forced myself into him, calming his body, trying to slow everything down as Caleb began covering the gunshot wound with plastic.

"Daniel," the woman said, pointing at me, "her eyes are bleeding." Zane was fading, so I gave him the rest of me. Everything went black.

Chapter 31 - Teegan

Panic invaded when reality returned. I felt outward, begging God to sense my brother. Caleb smiled into me, and Zane's link, steady and warm, resided exactly where it had always been. It was subtle, like a calm sleep. It was then I realized I wasn't in a parking lot.

"You're awake," Dad pointed out the obvious. He was sitting in a brown leather chair with a bare wood frame. I was on an elevated bed, white sheets and blankets. A quick look around verified I was in a hospital, alone with my father. Caleb confirmed my observations. "You've been out for over 12 hours," Dad added, his smile showed his relief.

"Zane's okay," I said, the words dry and raspy.

"He is," Dad verified, "your Mom is with him now." The memory of the man's mind, the one who pulled the triggered came back to me.

"That guy was hunting me," I said. I couldn't stop the tears. "It's my fault Zane was shot."

"Shhh," Dad said, moving from the chair to the bed. "Nothing's your fault. It's never been your fault. The world if full of crazies."

"I was in his mind," I cried, "he liked doing it. He's killed so many people, and it made him feel good." Dad pulled me into his arms and smoothed out my hair like I was ten. I wished I was ten again.

"He'll never do it again," Dad said quietly. I pulled my Dad closer and felt Caleb ending an argument with his parents. He was in the lobby and headed my way. Grace and Jack were no longer on my side, not with bullets flying.

"Caleb's coming," I said, and Dad released me. "I've ruined him too," I realized out loud. Caleb disagreed with a pulse of demanding love. I wanted to drive it out, save him from being around me but I was weak. I drew it into me and let it grow. His song was my song. My song was death.

"I think Caleb has a different opinion," Dad said, humor behind his words. "The doctor said it was Caleb's quick thinking that saved Zane. I've always liked that man." It wasn't lost on me that Dad called him a man. I tried to smile, but it was because of me that Zane needed saving in the first place.

"Your Uncle Hank has been calling," Dad said. "He sounds frazzled, and I suspect he wants to hear your voice, make sure you're okay." Caleb walked in, some blood still on his clothes. He had been here the whole time waiting for me to wake up. His smile brought out mine. I was his curse, and he was my hope. "I'll check on your brother and let your mother know you're awake," Dad added, kissing my forehead before he left Caleb and me alone.

"I thought I lost you," Caleb said. "You were swimming in the psycho's mind and..." I pulled him close and shut him up with a kiss. He was my strength as well.

"Thank you for saving Zane," I said, my lips a hair's width from his.

"That was you," Caleb said, crawling onto the bed with me. "I suddenly knew all about sucking chest wounds." All that had happened and he was trying to get closer, lifting the sheets and ducking under with me. We wrapped our arms around each other and merged with the music.

"Dr. McGuire," I commented, stroking Caleb's lovely face. He still hadn't cut his hair, and now I didn't want him too. It was him, floppy on the outside and strong on the inside. His hands quickly found that I was naked under my gown. I felt his smile grow inside as his perceived beauty of me became apparent. The truth of me was camouflaged in his love.

"Ma'am, I believe you're in need of a thorough examination," Caleb joked, his hands finding skin no one else ever touches. I tried to remain serious, but his emotions were too strong. If he had his way, we would lock the door and grow old in bed together. I gave in, my body defying my mind's need to assess recent events. All I could think of was Caleb.

A cough broke our intimacy. I covered my laugh with my hand as Caleb moved with incredible speed, out of the bed as if nothing was going on. His face was beet red, and his look of innocence would never win him an Oscar.

"I see you've recovered," Mom said, standing by the door with hands on hips. I could tell she was struggling to remain straight-faced for Caleb's benefit.

"Mrs. Fuller, I was just..." Caleb started.

"Save it," Mom said quickly, waving away his feeble excuse. A smile took over her face as she moved toward Caleb. "Thank you again, for saving my boy," she said and hugged him close. I could feel Caleb's confusion. He wasn't sure what to do with his hands that were just caught in the cookie jar. It was cute, him being a little off balance. It reminded me of our first days together.

"He wouldn't have had to save him if I wasn't here," I said, reminding everyone of the reason he was shot. Mom moved from Caleb to me.

"Zane wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for you," Mom said as she sat on the bed. Her eyes were looking directly at mine. "I wouldn't have him or your father. Just as important, I wouldn't have you." Logic had no place in my argument. Caleb was silently trying to convince me of her words. All I saw was the danger I was putting everyone in. Mom saw and probably felt my apprehension and decided a hug was needed. It was.

"Zane's surgery was a complete success," Mom added. "It scared us, but we survived. We'll move somewhere else, where no one can find us." The thought of uprooting my family, destroying jobs, and Zane's friendships was not a pleasant one. I was the only freak that needed to hide. My family would be safer if I disappeared. Caleb emphatically disagreed with my thoughts.

Caleb fished his vibrating phone out of his pocket. After looking at the screen, he handed it to me. Hank Gunderson was displayed.

"He knows your number?" I asked.

"He's been calling every hour or so." Caleb said while nodding.

"You don't have to answer," Mom said, misjudging my apprehension. Hank deserved an answer. He was pivotal in handling the military and my friend.

"Hi, Uncle," I spoke into the phone as calmly as I could.

"Thank God," Hank said. "I've been trying to reach you half the night."

"I'm fine," I said, wondering why I deserved so many people worrying about me.

"I knew that," Hank said, "we have other problems. After our talks, I felt discussing it with others wasn't what you wanted." Great, more problems.

"What now?"

"A Colonel Davidson wants a meeting with you," Hank said. "He's most insistent. There were security cameras at the mall, and you were seen standing, looking toward your assailant. The shooter was ex-Sergeant Levi Travis, bronze star, and honorable discharge after two tours in Iraq."

"He's a horrible human being," I said in disgust.

"I won't disagree," Hank continued. "That's not the point. He had a massive seizure while you were staring at him. The army knows him, knows his capabilities. They don't believe what the local police seem to accept."

"Some guy named Anthony paid him fifty thousand to kill me," I said. "He shot Zane, and I got angry. It wasn't like I could control it."

"It's not your fault," Mom interjected. "I would have done much worse."

"Nevertheless," Hank said, "they are putting two and two together. There are reports of your father going combat professional. Add Caleb and now you turning a grown man into a drooling imbecile with a look, well, they no longer trust my opinion."

"I don't want to talk to the Army," I said.

"It may not be an option," Hank said. "They are playing the national security card. I'm supposed to bring you in quietly."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then, I fear, it won't be quietly," Hank said. I looked at Mom, who only heard half the conversation. She looked concerned but was waiting for my response. Caleb's mind was working at breakneck speed. I saw visions of the both of us running, together.

"I'm not meeting with them," I decided. I heard Hank sigh deeply.

"You'll have to run," Hank said. "I can stall for a day at most."

"It may be for the best," I said. I looked at my mother, her loving eyes forgiving me for Zane's bullet. "I don't want anyone else hurt." Mom was starting to get a picture of what was being discussed. She took my free hand tightly in hers.

"If you need me," Hank said, "call me from a phone that can't be traced back to you. Use the name Rose," he chuckled, referencing the grandmother I didn't remember, "and I'll do whatever I can."

"I love you, Uncle," I said as a way of a goodbye.

"And I, you," Hank said, his words choking. I hung up.

"What was that about?" Mom asked nervously.

"We are running," Caleb said, understanding everything through the link. Mom looked at him, then back at me. There was no option of me leaving without him. I smiled inside.

"What does that mean?"

"The Army is coming for me," I said. "They know what I did to the guy that shot Zane. Now I'm a national security issue."

"The family stays together," Mom demanded.

"Zane can't be moved," I said. "Hank thinks he can stall for 24 hours."

"There's no way I'm letting them take you," Caleb said. The strength of his feelings made me fear what would happen to anyone who tried.

"Don't move," Mom said. "I'm getting your father." She moved to the door and turned back. "Stay," She added in her non-negotiable mother tone.

"Where should we go?" Caleb asked. His mind was in planning mode.

"I have a name," I said, "and a location. I saw what Anthony looks like, though I have no idea who he is or why he wants me dead."

"It's a start," Caleb said.

"I don't like being hunted," I said, Caleb's determination mixing with mine, strengthening it.