Part 4: Bolt

Jack woke with a start, eyes darting around the unfamiliar room. Where was he? He remembered something about the park, a storm, voices. It was all fuzzy. He’d been tired, so tired. Physically, mentally, and emotionally running on empty. He’d also been sick for about a week. Hunger, sporadic sleep, exposure—no wonder he’d virtually collapsed onto that park bench. But how did he get here? He was in a comfortable bed, wearing dry pajamas. And he actually felt pretty good. Sure he was starving, but other than that…and his dreams had been quiet. Not the usual nightmares and taunts from his pursuer.

He got out of bed and went over to the window. The sun was just coming up. In the distance he could see dark clouds. A storm was brewing out there. Jack couldn’t stay, no matter how nice this place was. The Lord of Storms would just find him anyway and kill whoever had helped him. He rifled through the dresser drawers looking for something to wear. He came across some clothes that seemed about his size, maybe a bit larger. He quickly changed. Jack looked at himself in the mirror, his face lined and drawn. He almost didn't recognize himself. Unnerved, he quickly looked away.

Practical matters came first. Jack scanned the room. He decided to take a pillowcase off the bed—it would be handy for carrying stuff. Quietly, he opened the door and peeked into the hallway. No one there. He couldn’t hear anything, either. The owners must still be asleep. He sneaked down the stairs, listening for any small sound.

Once on the ground floor, he carefully tiptoed through the living room where some of the guys were sleeping. He finally found the kitchen. He didn’t like stealing clothes or food, but he rationalized it by convincing himself that anyone who lived in such a big house had enough money to replace the little things easily. Jack filled the pillowcase with fruits and vegetables, a hand-can opener, canned goods, and a loaf of bread. He hadn’t had that much food in quite a while. He slung the pillowcase over his shoulder, accidentally hitting a vase. It shattered like an explosion on the hard tile floor. Jack frantically ran out the door with his supplies.

Since Zoe, Astarte, Gilgamesh, and Anubis were living with Mia on a permanent basis, they’d recently turned the large, barrack-type room upstairs into smaller rooms. Mia then started an extension on the back of the house that would have more rooms for guests, but it wasn’t done yet. In the meantime, the rest of the guys were camping out on cots in the den and living room. Anubis and White Blaze had gotten home from their walk after everyone else had gone to bed. White Blaze had lain down next to Ryo. Anubis had quietly gone up to his own room.

Sai jolted awake at the sound of glass breaking. He looked over to see that Rowen was also up. He whispered to him. “What the heck was that?”

“I’m not sure, but it came from the kitchen. Let’s check it out before we wake the others.” But Ryo, White Blaze, and Sage had already come into the room and were listening in. Kento and Zane were just opening their eyes. Trace wasn’t in his cot. They all went to the kitchen, ready for anything. They could tell right away that someone had been there. Cabinet doors were ajar, things were moved around, the flower vase was broken on the floor.

Ryo turned around and ran out. He went up the stairs, taking them two at a time. White Blaze was hard on his heels. Bursting into the room where their visitor had stayed, his suspicions were confirmed. The guys were right behind them.

Sage saw the empty dresser drawer hanging open. He angrily slammed it shut. “We rescue the guy from that crazy storm, give him a warm place to stay for the night, make him well, and loan him some dry clothes. And this is how he repays us? He stole my favorite shirt! Who knows what else he took?”

Mia, Anubis, Astarte, and Gilgamesh came in. “What’s wrong?” She saw the empty bed. “What happened?”

“He’s gone, that’s what. Stole from us and then snuck out like a lousy thief! But he’s not going to get away with it. He can’t be too far away. Let’s track him down.” They all ran down the stairs.

They shot out the kitchen door. Anubis followed them, even though he wasn’t sure what was going on. They managed to track the young man’s prints in the mud, but they came to a rough patch and couldn’t pick up his trail again. White Blaze was sniffing around to catch his scent.

“White Blaze is a great tracker, but we’d have to wait for him to follow the trail through the woods. I know exactly where our mystery guest is right now. We can go straight to him.” They all looked up to see Trace sitting in a tree. “I’ve been keeping an eye on him until you got here. This was a good place to hide while I waited.” He swung down from the branches like a monkey.

“Shouldn’t you stay up there to watch him?”

“Not necessary. He’s stopped to rest. Anyway, we’ve got White Blaze in case he moves any time soon. And I’m at home in the woods, remember? There’s nowhere he can hide from me here.” Trace led them through the trees.

Kento smirked. “Oh, yeah. That’s right. The plants will tell you where he is.”

Deadly serious, Trace replied, “You’re absolutely correct, Kento. And while you’re at it, please don’t step on that bush. It fragile and doesn’t like having its buds crushed.”

Kento jumped off the bush. “You’re just kidding, right? Just joking? Come on. You’re not serious…are you?”

A ghost of a smile touched Trace’s lips. “Of course not. Bushes don’t talk.”

Kento let out a relieved breath.

Trace continued. “That’s because they’re so shy. Now trees on the other hand talk too much. You can’t get them to shut up.”

“But…”

“Shhh. He’s just up ahead.” They could see the young man sitting on a rock. He was munching on his second apple.

Jack knew he shouldn’t stop so soon, but he was hungry. Besides, he didn’t think anyone could’ve tracked him this far into the woods. The apples tasted pretty good, but they would’ve tasted even better if he’d paid for them. It’s kind of hard to pay without money, though. Jack sighed. Was this what he had to look forward to? Was this going to be the way he lived the rest of his life? How do you fight an unseen enemy who can find you anywhere? Jack had asked himself that for the last year. His only response had been to run--never stay in one place long enough to get caught. He stood up, brushing off his pants. His pants? Yeah, right. He sighed and picked up the pillowcase and turned to go.

He came face to face with a wall of angry people. “You’re not going anywhere, pal. Not until we get some answers.” A guy with wild sandy hair stepped towards him. Jack turned to run, but was surrounded by others. A white tiger growled menacing at him. An intense looking guy with blue eyes and dark hair stood ready to fight.

“Come on! I still owe you a sore jaw!”

A clap of thunder startled them all. Jack started to run. He only got a few feet before being tackled by a big guy with scars on his face. The beautiful woman with him approached, her eyes sparking green.

Mia shook her head ‘no’ at Astarte. She didn’t want Astarte to take control of him. He was obviously scared and on the run--she didn’t want to add to his confusion and fear. Mia thought they should try to earn his trust, not force him to do their bidding.

Anubis walked over to the stranger struggling futilely against the massive Gilgamesh. “We mean you no harm. I’m not entirely sure what is going on here, but perhaps we can talk about it back at the house.”

The boy stopped fighting, a bleak look came over his face. “Do what you want. It doesn’t matter.”

Ryo looked in the bag, sure that the guy had stolen valuables and money. When he saw it was only food supplies, he quietly showed it to Mia. Mia had Gilgamesh escort their guest back to the house. He didn’t struggle anymore, just walked silently as if he were going to his own hanging.