"When is she going to wake up? It's been hours."

My head is swimming.

I'm trapped in the darkness.

"Just relax." I recognize that high voice...Carrianne?

"I can't relax while she's like this." My sweet Garrett's voice sounds so strained. "Why hasn't she woke up yet? You said it wouldn't take this long." Who is he talking to? Why can't I move?

I'm trudging through an eternal night. I feel bodiless, like a spirit. Did I die? What happened?

"I can't say for sure how long. We don't even know what caused this. We will have to wait until she's ready." I think its Scarlett's mom, Mary, but it's hard to tell.

I hear a noise. Something that sounds like a fist on a wall or a table.

"Cade, get up."

"Stephen?"

"You've got to get up. You don't have time to be wasting, you've gotten plenty of beauty sleep, now get up princess."

"Don't call me that." I snapped. He knows I hate that.

"There she is." He laughs and I think I smile.

"What happened?"

"You were too stubborn for your own good. You're not invincible, Cade. You've got to be more careful. You need your strength more now than ever. Now get up."

"I'm trying to!"

"She's moving!" I hear Carrianne cry out.

I hear a lot of movement going on around me. I'm fighting the blackness. Fighting the motionless fog that surrounds me. I push hard against it and suddenly I'm jolting upright in a bed with a large gasp.

All around me are pairs of cautious eyes. I search them until I find the sweet soulful blue eyes I needed. "Cade!" He said my name like a prayer and rushed to my side. He sat beside me on the bed, wrapping his arms around me tightly. I breathed him in. I missed him in the darkness.

"What happened?" I asked with a hoarse voice. I held my hand up to my throat. Why was it so sore?

"You don't remember?" He asked worried, turning my face in his hands to inspect me. "You went back into the room at the hotel to make sure we had all of our stuff and you were in there a few minutes when suddenly we all heard you screaming. You were yelling at the top of your lungs, Cade. I walked in and you were lying on the ground and your nose was bleeding so much." He shook his head like he was trying to shake the mental image out of his mind. "You scared the crap out of me, baby." He whispered then kissed my forehead.

I tried to make sense of what he was saying. I was having a hard time concentrating though when I looked around the room. I have no idea where we are, but this is not the hotel we were at earlier. So many people were staring at me, waiting for me to say something. A woman with long grey hair braided down to her waist stepped forward and smiled kindly at me. "Hello, love." She said with a deep Irish accent. "What were you doing in the room? Were you using your abilities?"

"Who are you?" I asked ignoring her question.

"Evena." She answered. "I was a friend of your mother's."

That's right. she eyed me again, waiting for me to answer her question. I walked back through what I had been doing. I remember saying I was going into the room. I remember I searched it and went to go back out to the car. I gasped loudly and turned to Garrett. "The voices." I whispered in horror. How could I have possibly forgotten that? Just thinking it made me want to cover my ears. I began to breathe heavily and Garrett rubbed his hand up and down my back.

Carrianne came to sit on my other side and she tucked the hair that had fallen out of my bun behind my ear. "What voices?"

"I was coming back out to you guys when the man's voice...I could hear him in my head."

"Who?" Garrett asked.

I tried to ignore the way everyone was looking at me like I was crazy. "I don't know him, but he is the one who was in my house that one night, and he's part of The Order. I'm not sure how he got to me. He just kept whispering things to me...I know how crazy that sounds, but it's true. So I called out to Stephen."

"You opened a line of communication?" Evena asked quickly. I nodded my head. "How often do you do that?"

"I've only opened it twice before."

"How does it make you feel?"

"Drained. I feel like it takes everything in me to be able to do it, but I needed to do it. I had to find out who this guy is, and how he was getting into my head. First I called to Stephen, but then he couldn't tell me yet and the guy just kept taunting me so I called to my mother and then that's the last I remember."

Evena nodded her head with narrowed eyes. "So you opened two communications at the same time as having someone contact you?" I nodded feeling that unmistakable sheepishness roll in when you know you're about to get into trouble. "Love, hasn't anyone told you how careful you need to be?"

Garrett came to my defense. "She's only known about all of this for such a short time and she hasn't exactly gotten to learn it all the conventional way. Give her a break."

"I don't mean to offend." She said with an apologetic smile. "The stronger you are, the more careful you must be. Especially with a gift such as yours. We are all human after all. Most of us don't have to worry about over exertion of our abilities. You do. You were doing too much all at once. You must learn to know your body. You're so young still."

I looked down at my hands in my lap. "What will happen if I do too much?"

"You don't need to worry, love. Just be careful. The nose bleed was a sign, you need to know yourself well enough to know when you're reaching your limit. Don't keep pushing it. You need your strength." She evaded the question.

"What will happen?" I repeated more firmly.

She sighed. "Someone as powerful as you has never existed before, but there were others with strong powers. When pushed over the limits, the skill can be lost, and in some very extreme cases the Potente was overcome."

"Lost?" I asked confused. "How can that happen?"

"That's one of the big questions. Just like the one of where we came from. I don't know why or how. I only know what I've studied."

I didn't know what to say to that. "You've studied?"

She smiled. "I have been a keeper of our histories for some time now." She said proudly. "Now don't go getting afraid to use your powers to the fullest. Some things are just going to take more from you than others. You'll have to be more aware of yourself."

"I'm sorry, Cade." My brother whispered. "I didn't know about that. You were afraid, I shouldn't have left you."

"Always the protector." I smiled.

"I'm doing a pretty crappy job."

"I'm here, aren't I?"

I heard his warm laugh echo through me. "I'll be more careful." I said aloud, looking around. "So what have I missed?"

Carrianne leaned around me so that she was in my face. "Well, let's see." She laughed laying down on the bed, putting her head in my lap. "We left the roach motel, thank god. Even though, I will say, I might miss Billy's." We both laughed. "We are now staying at this fabulous hotel, and your mom's three friends are here. You've already met Evena. She's a historian and she's got a lie detector built into her head, so that's pretty cool."

I looked over to Evena questioningly. "Not a conventional ability, but a fun one." She grinned. "I can sense if a person is lying or not." She shrugged.

"Anyway," Carrianne called back my attention. "That's Taylor." She said pointing to the man sitting on the dresser across the room. His skin was as black as night and he was dressed in a high dollar suit that looked to have been tailor made for him. "He's another runner, but he also has strength, but like even stronger than Dalton, so that's awesome. Then there's Joey." She pointed to the short girl sitting on the foot of the second bed. She stood up fluidly and came to shake my hand. "She can talk to animals!" Carrianne cheered.

"Really?" I asked her.

Joey smiled, tossing her bleach blonde hair over her shoulder. "I know it's not the most glamorous, but it's pretty fun."

"She's a regular Disney princess." Carrianne giggled.

"I can't talk to them so much as I can control them. We don't have a sweet little conversation, I just will them to do something and they do it." Joey grinned.

I looked around the room again at all the smiling faces. Between our collective abilities, and our determination we should be able to do this. I couldn't stop the thoughts from creeping in. Thoughts that wondered whether or not I had gathered up all of these people for their slaughter.

Everyone got ready and we went to a nice restaurant. Conversation between us flowed so easily, and I found that I really do like all of these people. They were easily the type of people I'd want to surround myself with. Laid back, funny, kind people. Even Scarlett proved to be super sweet and she had a sense of humor that reminded me so much of Derrek. I felt silly, but sitting at the table with everyone, watching them all I wondered if this is how it feels to be a part of a real family.

The more I watched them, the heavier my heart grew.

As we pulled up to hotel that night an idea was already begging to brew within me.

"Can we get our own room?" I asked Garrett through my mind.

He turned to smiled at me from the seat beside me. He pointed down to his pocket and I watched as he slowly pulled a key from his pocket and winked.

"I love you." I whispered.

Garrett grabbed my hand and squeezed it tightly. We walked up the stairs to the joint rooms that the others would all be sharing and we laughed and cut up until well into the night.

Too many times tonight I had forgotten about the impending doom because I was so genuinely enjoying myself and the company so much.

After Carrianne got into such a bad laughing fit that she shot diet coke out of her nose I had to excuse myself from the room I was laughing so hard and terrified that the same thing would happen to me. I went into the bathroom, closing the door behind me, and leaned against the counter trying to gain control of my hysterics. I had tears falling from my eyes from laughing so hard.

I glanced up at my face in the mirror and I stopped laughing instantly.

I felt strange. I stared into my hazel eyes in my reflection. I couldn't take my eyes away like I was entranced. I forced myself to blink, but when I did I didn't see darkness.

I was standing in a big open room. It smelled like mildew and I could hear water dripping from somewhere nearby. The area was dimly lit, but I think it's a warehouse. I hear a voice and I turn around and see all of my captured loved ones.

They are sitting in a line of folding chairs. All of them are bound and gagged, heads hanging down exhaustedly. I try to run to them, but my feet won't take me any closer.

I hear footsteps again.

Then there's a man.

I don't recognize his face, but I do recognize his voice. "Hello, Cadey Cadey." He smiles wickedly. He's tall, not quite six foot, but close. His body is very lean, not muscular, but it still gives off a look of strength. He was dressed in all black, right down to the gloves on his hands. "So glad you could join me." He taunts.

I reach my hands out but they touch something cold and smooth. It feels like the bathroom counter. I know I must still be there, but I don't know how I am seeing this either. No one has mentioned this being possible.

I look at his hands again, that's when I see the knife.

He begins a slow walk down the line of people. Dragging the knife across the backs of every chair until he comes to a stop behind Wes.

"No!" I scream, but he doesn't seem to hear me and no one looks up to me.

"You alright in there, Cade?" I hear Garrett call.

"I'm fine!" I yell back. "Be out in a minute."

I watch in horror as the man smiles in my direction and grabs Wes by the hair, extending his neck back. Wes groans out in pain. The man raises his knife over Wes's neck and then drops it.

The knife clatters to the floor and he throws his head back laughing.

Lightning fast he's in my face. "I wouldn't do that." He smiles.

Just when I am about to relax he jerks his hand into the air and behind him Wes's body jolts in his chair and a sickening snap fills my ears. Wes's body limps back to the chair lifelessly.

I scream without a sound. My heart feels like it's shattering in my chest and I feel the heavy sobs. Suddenly the mirror is back in front of me and I am left staring at my own shocked pale white face.

I sink down to the floor and pulls my knees up to my chest and begin to rock.

"This is what happens when you fight us." His voice fills me head.

I concentrate on keeping my mind guarded. I can't have him in my mind like this. I'll go mad. I may go mad anyway if the sound of Wes's neck snapping doesn't stop ringing in my ears. I've never seen someone die before. I've never even seen a dead body. I crawl quickly to the toilet and empty my stomach over and over until all that's left is dry heaves.

I can't help thinking this is all my fault.

I loved Wes.

Garrett loved Wes.

I can't even think of Garrett finding out. It's going to kill him.

I can't be responsible for any more damage. Enough is enough, and I'm the one they want.

I won't lead this group of happy, loving people into that place to meet the same fate as Wes. I won't do it. I sat in the floor a while longer, mustering up all of the strength I have left within me to wipe away my tears, steady my breathing, and go back into the other room like nothing has happened.

I splash water on my face from the sink, rinse my mouth out with some Listerine, and open the door and walk back in, a smile on my face.

"I wondered if you fell in." Carrianne joked.

I laughed. "Oh, shut out!" I yelled at her. "I'm super tired, I'm ready to go to bed." I announced. I crossed the room and gave Carrianne a quick hug. She looked up to me questioningly. "I just wanted to hug my sister, don't make it weird." I laughed.

Garrett said his goodnights to everyone and waited for me at the door. I looked back in one last time, trying to memorize this moment, then closed the door behind me.

I'll probably never see any of them again.