Eliot Strange and the Prince of the Resistance

19) Punched

I want to hit my cousin Carli so bad right now. She is a selfish, lying, man-stealing flirt who saw and talked to my dad, and who knows when she planned on telling me. She saw my mom captured by the army of baby killers and said nothing. I don't care if she is beautiful and usually sweet to me, and I missed her like hell and thought she was probably dead, and her parents are gone, gone for sure, and she is an orphan, but I want to plant my right fist, right in the middle of her nose. 

There will be blood. Maybe not a lot, but enough to ruin that perfect face. Bonk. Hit so hard, she falls down and cries.

There is a long pause after Carli points to my burning town, where my mom and dad are in trouble, because I mentally stop long enough to punch her in my imagination. And boy does it feel good.

Jack Taylor is a leader who is perceptive, and he knows when the shit is getting ready to ht the fan. He is a leader who knows what to do in an emergency, and the first thing you do is you try to get control of your troops. He seems to take my side.

"Carli, you didn't tell me this information. What is going on in town? What do you mean their army is pinned down?" His tone is brief and the questions are rapid fire, so I believe he is on my side until Carli works her charm. Her lip quivers just a little, only a close cousin or a man in love would even notice it, and just like that allegiances change. Jack takes Carli's hand again and kisses it. "Now my love, I can tell you are upset. Take your time. Tell us what happened."

Carli takes a deep breath and tells her story to Jack Taylor and only to him. She never once looks at me or Steven. "He saved me," she begins. And then she tells the story of how my dad was there at the stadium fight. How my dad was the sniper on our side, not Sorenson or Jim Newsome who were already dead. How he saved her life and others too, including mine. She tells of how they ran as fast as she could run until she was out of breath and gasping for air and only able to say "Eliot?" to him. He pulled her along until they were standing on top of a building downtown, and they spent the night there. Carli was exhausted, but the sounds of men woke her up, and she could see a few soldiers from the One Nation Army approaching.

"I'd know those bastards anywhere," she says. "Even the ones without uniforms. They are the only ones left who are not afraid. They act like they own it all. Us all. I was afraid. It was like before. I was scared."

I can tell she was scared because she looks afraid now, even as she is telling what happened next. "I wanted to warn everyone. Warn everyone that they were here. Warn you that the baby killers, the rapists, the men who love fire. They are here."

Carli turns to me with a face that looks beautiful even when she is crying. "I'm not brave, Elie. I was acting, just like Cindy at the football field. I tried to be brave for her. But after that, I lost it when I saw them coming, sneaking into town. There was an army of them. I saw your mom, Elie.  I was afraid for her. I know what those men can do. I ran. I ran as fast as I could run to find you. To warn you." She looks at me, and I can tell she is not acting. She is afraid. "I got lost, but I tried to help you. I did."

Carli turns back to Jack. "I got lost, but you found me."

"Yes, I found you." Jack Taylor embraces her like a father embraces his child. He kisses her forehead then wipes her eyes with his dirty T-shirt. I feel like me and Steven are intruding.

"There, there my love. No more crying about this, remember, you are safe with me. I won't let anyone hurt you. Not ever," says Jack Taylor.

Jack Taylor picks Carli up and carries her up the hill the rest of the way. Steven and I are a few steps back.

"She is terrified," says Steven. "I wonder what happened to her?"

"I think she met One Nation before," I say. "Saw what they were capable of herself. With her own eyes."

"Oh my God, Elie. Do you think?"

"Yeah, I do." 

And that's all we say the rest of the way because we have heard all the stories. All the horrible stories. We have heard the rumors, but my cousin, my beautiful cousin, has lived them.

I feel all punched myself now. All black and blued by something invisible.

We follow along behind a beautiful man who is carrying a beautiful princess and singing. Jack Taylor is singing quietly what must be a lullaby - a British lullaby because I don't know it.

When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little horses. Black and Bay, dapple and grays. Coach and a little six horses. Hush a bye, don't you cry. Go to sleep little baby.

Carli is soon asleep. As I watch them, I realize that this tender, dear man, who could kill a man six different ways with his pinkie, could never hurt my prince.

I completely understand why Carli is in love with Jack Taylor.