“Guilt?” Todd asked, his gaze plastered to the cup.
“Guilt because he feels that he caused his son’s death. Why? I don’t know. I’m not privy to the details of his son’s death. You, Shaney, were Silas’ attempt to regain what he’d lost.”
Shaney didn’t care about the man’s reasoning. Just because Silas brought life to Shaney didn’t mean he owned him. “I refuse to use the power, refuse to allow him to use me as a tool for whatever crap he has to deal with. Hasn’t he ever heard of psychotherapy?”
“You got the psycho part right,” Hudson murmured.
“You’re talking about a man who dedicated ten years to studying and achieve procreation through occult practices. A man who has remained in the background for twenty years, waiting and possibly watching, until you matured. He then set a trap, somehow knowing you’d step into that circle at a remote camp. Shaney, you were meant to be in that circle. It wasn’t an accident.” Caleb shook his head, the awe coloring his voice. “He’s the most dangerous type of person.”
“Psychotic?” Todd asked with a shudder in his voice.
“Someone with nothing to lose. He’ll keep coming for you until he gets what he wants.”
The metric tons of pressure weighing on Shaney tripled, threatening to crush him. Even if he wasn’t the major screw up he’d thought he was this was Superman, Clint Eastwood, Captain Kirk territory. Not Shaney fucking Mills. His heart raced, the muscles in his gut tightened, adrenaline flooded his system, stealing his feelings of safety in Hudson’s arms. Panic was imminent, unavoidable. Fuck, he couldn’t breathe. Silas was going to use him to fuck with the world, make him do shit he’d never do under normal circumstances; possibly kill other people, possibly kill people Shaney loved, if he refused. A jolt of energy rushed from his arm. The cup jumped on the shelf, skittering toward the edge.
“Shaney, calm down. Pull it back,” Caleb warned.
Shaney shook his head. He was a deer in the headlights and was about to become road kill. The energy formed a tight knot beneath his sternum, a big scary ball of fear and anger, and he hated it. He was tired of being fucked around, tired of being the puppet on the string, used and then tossed into the corner until the next person pulled up his strings and took a turn. No, he was through.
Hudson stiffened behind him. “Shaney, baby, stop.”
Caleb stepped in front of the cup and faced Shaney. “You need stop.” Caleb raised his hand in which he gripped an ornate, carved staff. A pulse of energy shot up Shaney’s arm.
“Fuck, Caleb. What’re you doing?” Mr. Anderson’s gaze frantically searched the room as a rumbling filled the air like some subterranean menace working its way to the surface.
“Neutralizing his energy.” Caleb grunted the words, the force of whatever power he wielded, apparent. He placed two hands on the staff, holding tight as his arms shook to keep the staff in place.
“Shaney. Come on. Knock it off!” Todd’s head whipped between Shaney and Caleb.
“Caleb!” Maximus boomed, rushing toward him.
Caleb pushed against an invisible wall, straining to keep his ground. Caleb stumbled back and fought to regain his footing. “Got...it...Max. No...prob-lem.”
The cup jumped and hopped. Shaney ignored it, along with the voices, and dropped his hand as the blue streams increased in speed, crashing into one another, caught in the frenzy of his anger-fueled mind. He had to stop this endless shit of being used, being the one to lose, being the one to get the short end of that shitty stick. No one was going to use him or and violate his body! He didn’t care if that loser was responsible for his creation or not. He was a person, and he deserved to live his life as he wanted. If he didn’t want to cooperate with a mad, psychopathic scientist, then he wouldn’t!
An invisible wall broke and a flash of energy engulfed Shaney’s body, throwing Hudson backwards. Shaney heard him crash into the cabinets. Caleb stumbled forward, as the force broke, and he hit the floor on his knees. Swirling blue streams encircled Shaney, spinning and crashing into one another, showering firework-like sparks with each collision. A massive core emanated from some prehistoric center deep within Shaney’s body, swelling rapidly. The crackle and pop of the energy amplified and engulfed the room.
“Shaney!” Hudson barked, as the sphere encompassing Shaney expanded. The energy within was only limited by the confines of his skin. Oh, God, the energy was going to rip his skin apart to escape! Instinctively, Shaney lifted his hand with the symbol and gritted his teeth. Every cell worked to try to contain the extraneous force he’d absorbed.