Caleb still held Sikes in the air and I stopped another one by flicking my fingers to crash the couch against him and smash him to the wall. The rest of them that were left just stared as if they had no idea what to do now.
I answered their internal questions.
“I suggest you run.”
One did run. Marcus ran right out the front door like the coward he was, but the couple of others that were left seemed torn.
Sikes’s choking and gagging noises were beginning to be annoying in the silence of the aftermath. Caleb lowered him slowly to the ground as we all surrounded them.
I wasn’t the only one wondering what we were going to do with them, especially Sikes, the leader of my lynch mob. It was one thing to use self defense but to outright just kill them…
Out of nowhere, the absolute last thing I ever expected happened.
One of Sikes’s men jumped forward from behind him and shoved one of the silver long sleek knives that Rachel had thrown at them into Sikes’s back. His eyes went wide in surprise and then he fell, lifeless to the expensive tile floor in a very anticlimactic end.
Everyone was more than shocked when the man threw his knife down and fell to his knees, looking right at me.
“I’m sorry, Visionary. He was my family, my clan, my Champion. I felt like I was obligated to follow him but I… He was wrong,” he said firmly and his thoughts were of a tree; a big leafy old tree that’s branches had grown and intertwined into a wrought iron filigree fence. It didn’t make sense to me but I listened. “Please forgive me and take this,” he motioned to Sikes’s lifeless body, “as retribution. Let me go. I’ll go far away. Please.”He bowed his head low and kept thinking about this strangely mangled and beautiful old tree. I figured it was from his home and he missed it and was ready to go back.
I nodded to him and watched as he got up and walked slowly out, my family parting to let him pass. I nodded to the other two as well that just stood there, waiting for punishment. They ran to catch up to the other one and I turned Caleb to me.
“I told you,” I said I relief and hugged him tightly. “I knew it would work.”
“What happened?” Peter asked Caleb and came to the center. “How did you do that?”
“I still don’t know,” Caleb said and leaned back. His took my wrist in his hands and ran his thumb over my tattoo. “Maybe it has something to do with this.”
He turned and showed them and they gasped and came closer. He showed them his wrist too and the reaction was the same.
“What is that?” Uncle Max asked.
“Infinity,” Caleb answered.
“I’ve never seen that before,” Max continued. “And Sikes’s was right. A human getting the family tattoo had never happened before.”
“And,” Peter asked, “when did you…um…how long have you had…” Peter was having trouble getting his question out.
“Oh for goodness sakes,” Gran cut in. “When did you do the deed.”
“Gran!” Rachel said appalled.
“What? We all see the tattoos. We know that they Mutualized, it’s not a secret. It’s natural isn’t it? I remember when you and Peter came over after the first time you Mutualized-”
“Gran, please, no,” she begged.
“Oh, whatever. Anyway, what your extremely old fashioned parents are trying to ask you is when you Mutualized.”
“Last night,” Caleb answered softly and tried not to laugh but failed when Kyle and Uncle Max chuckled. Even I found myself trying to stop laughing. This whole thing was just ridiculous as we stood in the debris and talked about intimate events. “What does that matter, though?” Caleb finally asked.
“I’m trying to pinpoint when the change happened in you,” Peter explained.
“It’s not that,” I told them and I looked at Caleb. “Yesterday at your house you, you didn’t have the tattoo then, and before, when that guy grabbed me at the club. You held that big guy down with no effort at all.”
“I don’t get it,” Caleb said hopeful and intrigued.
“Ok. Peter’s ability is to detect earth elements. Go ahead. Try to focus on something in this room and see if you can find anything.”
“I still don’t get it.”
“Trust me,” I whispered and smiled.
He closed his eyes immediately and cocked his head to the side. Peter watched spellbound as Caleb’s eyes scrunched and he moved his head around. When he opened his eyes and looked dead at the ring on Gran’s finger, Peter clapped his hands once and laughed.
“Incredible,” he said in wonder.
“What is it?” Caleb asked. “I can…see something. Like a sparkle.”
“Yes,” Peter concurred. “Gran’s ring is sapphire. Wow.” He grinned ear to ear. “What does this mean?” he asked me.
“It means,” I explained, “Caleb can borrow our abilities.” I turned to Caleb and spouted my revelation proudly. “You were doing it this whole time with me. You just thought you were reading everything through me because I’m your significant but really, you were borrowing my ability when you were around me.”
“So I’m a…poacher?” Caleb asked but he was happy. So happy.
Everyone laughed and clapped him on the back and hugged us.
“That’s why you never felt the urgency we feel for our ability. Wow,” Peter continued. “I’m so proud of you, both of you. You saved our lives, I hope you know that.”
We looked around at the mess and I apologized for starting the demolition. Uncle Max waved me off and said it was fine. He was just glad everyone was alright. We also had to go soon. Our flight left in two hours. I tried to come up with an idea on how to fix their house. And we still had Watsons to dispose of.
“Go,” he told me. “Me and the wife will deal with all this and leave tomorrow. You need to be there now.”
“If you’re sure…” I inched.
“We are.”
“I’m really sorry.”
“Not another word about it,” he commanded and hugged me. “Now, you all get going or you’ll miss your flight.”
~ Thirty One ~
After the guys got the luggage from upstairs and we loaded down the cars, we convoyed our way to the airport. Peter handed me my passport right before we got out. I started blankly at it. I’d never even thought about my needing one before that but he apparently had. And he’d somehow had connections to get one for me. Hmm.
They must have bought every seat on the plane to fit so many people flying at once. And that was exactly what they did. We rode a huge Boeing all the way to London, a straight shot, with a plane full of Jacobsons. I shook my head at them, the uncles bantering with the stewardesses and Gran yelling about her orange juice being powdered and they were trying to kill her.
I laughed as I turned back to my seat.
“What’s so funny?” Caleb asked me beside him.
“Nothing, I’m just happy.”
“Good.”
“Hey, love birds,” Kyle said as him and Lynne took the seats beside us. “We sure know how to party, huh?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Lynne, you ok? That’s not a very good way to be introduced in to the family is it?”“I’m ok,” she said softly. “It was pretty scary though. It’s not always like this is it?”
“Lately, yeah,” Kyle said but soothed her by rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. She sighed deep and I bit my lip, remembering how drugged and calm I felt at Caleb’s touch those first few days of being with him. Caleb read my mind and rubbed his thumb over my knuckles too, winking. “But don’t worry. We’re going to London. The reunificantion is just a big party really, and with us coming with our significants to show off, it’s gonna be even better. Nothing bad ever happens at these things.”
She smiled at him and they put their heads together to take a nap. We had a long flight so I leaned into Caleb and did the same.
When we landed, we were met by another convoy, but this time it was a row of sleek black Range Rovers. We all piled in and Peter led the way. Caleb drove behind him and the rest followed us. We drove for about an hour and a half before we reached a small road that took us up into the green hills. It was absolutely gorgeous. There were huge rocks and boulders everywhere and green vines and the greenest grass. We went up and up and just when I was about to ask Caleb how much further, we pulled into a stone driveway and into a big yard with a little cottage.
Peter didn’t stop though and was headed straight for a big long wall of bushes. I figured he’d turn at a driveway or something near it, but no. And when he went through I heard my little shriek and then it was our turn.
“Caleb!”
I squeezed his arm and braced for…something, but instead we went straight through it, like a big curtain that swayed around us and into a big garage looking thing. It went down and around like a parking garage and there were some other cars there too already nestled into spots along the back wall. We pulled into a spot beside Peter and I heard Caleb and Kyle chuckling.
“You could have told me,” I said.
“What would have been fun about that?” Kyle asked and got out, pulling Lynne out his side with him.
“I’m sorry,” Caleb said with a smile that said he wasn’t. “Forgive me.”