The Secret (Book 1 of the Secret Series)

Chapter 34.

MAX

Katara stayed awake the whole drive to the airport. She stayed quiet as they waited for their plane tickets for a plane that wouldn't be leaving, until tomorrow. She changed in the Ladies room after they each got new clothes, and she drew in silence when she sat down on her own.

When she came out of the bathroom, she had looked terrified and no matter how many times Max had tried to get her to speak, she wouldn't, and for a while, before she started drawing, she just stared at nothing. That got Kyle and Sam trying to get her to talk, but nothing changed the silence. It just made her start moving again.

That wasn't enough for any of them, because she was starting to scare them all. She drew page after page, in silence, and never would let anyone see what she was drawing...

And then she just threw the book down and stood. Max followed instantly.

"Katara." he grabbed her arm, and she spun around and pushed him into the wall. She looked at him a minute as he stared at her. Her eyes almost seemed distant, like she was thinking, or just too out of it, that she didn't know what she was doing. Max didn't like either idea, because it was scaring him. She let go of him, and looked down. He lifted his hand to her cheek before she could move and she swatted his hand away. She backed up and turned away.

"Katara, what is going on?" he asked her, as he stood up strait again. She didn't say anything, just stood there, silent, staring strait ahead. Slowly, she lifted a shaky hand to her head, and fell to her knees. "Katara?" he went to her, suddenly scared that she was about to do something very bad. She was breathing hard as she swayed some. "Katara." he wrapped his arms around her, and she leaned into him for support.

"W-where are we?" she breathed as Sam and Kyle walked up.

"We are at the airport Baby." Sam said softly. Katara shivered and Max looked at her. "We got here about an hour ago." Sam was unnervingly calm about this. His sister didn't remember where she was, and they were acting like it was a scrape on a knee. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I-I was in the bathroom changing, and then..." she paused a second, a little quiver in her voice. "and then everything just went... dark. Sammie, what happened?" she was breathing hard and starting to shake harder.

"Shh, Baby, you'll be okay." Kyle said. "You'll be okay." she shook even harder. "No, stop, you don't want an episode here. Baby, you blacked out. It's okay. It happened ever once in a while when you were little. I promise, you will be okay." he touched her cheek. "I promise." she nodded, and started to settle down. She curled up in Max's arms and looked up at him.

"Did I hurt anyone?" she asked. Max scowled again.

"No Baby, you didn't hurt anyone." Sam said. "Not this time." she breathed shakily and closed her eyes. She nodded and sighed. She looked exhausted now. "Get as much sleep as you can, because we'll be leaving in a few hours." she nodded again, and then she sat up, and stood. She went back over to the others, and curled up by Jessie. He closed her sketchbook and pulled the blanket that some attendants had brought around for those staying the night, over her body. She was asleep within minutes.

"What just happened?" Max asked as he turned back to Sam and Kyle.

"She blacked out." sighed Kyle. "It was kind of a normal thing when she was little. I don't think she did it any when we were at the unit, but I know she did it a few times with Jessie and them. I mean, she had too. They were way too calm about it." he glanced up at them and then he looked at Max again. "She will be okay when she wakes up." Max nodded, but he was still insanely worried. What had done this to her? What could possibly do this to her. "The last time I saw her do that, was after the episode in the rain... the last time any of us saw Jordan."

"What did he do to her?" Max asked there was no accusation. He just wanted to know what had happened.

"It wasn't him." Sam shook his head. "Actually, Jordan saved her life, when no one else could do it." Max looked back at her. "One of the girls that didn't like her, pushed her down the steps, while it was raining, and she started freaking out. It was so bad, that she stopped breathing, because she was having flashbacks about almost drowning in the rain when she was four."

"She almost drown in the rain?"

"She was drowning in a pond while it was raining." Sam sighed. "Kyle found her, but he couldn't get to her, so he came and got me. By the time I got there, she'd gone under, and I had to go in. That was the first time that I was ever scared. I mean... I had been scared before, but that was the first time that I had ever been that scared." he paused.

"When I got to Katara, she was laying at the bottom of the pond, still trying to get up. She was still moving, fighting, but the current was too strong. I barely got her up it was so strong. When I got her onto land, she was unconscious, she wasn't breathing..." he shivered as he looked over at her. Max nodded. He wasn't going to have it easy as he told Max the story, so he wouldn't make him. He understood what he was saying and that was all that mattered.

"So this happened because of the rain?"

"That's part... probably most of the reason that it happened." Kyle nodded. "But it could have something to do with her getting attacked while she was out there. She said that there was someone out there and Jessie said that there was blood all over her head when he got to her." he scowled. "But I don't know why she is so... mobile. She was shot, and a few hours ago, she could barely sit up, now, she's moving around, like it never even happened. I don't understand why." Max didn't either, but she was.

"We should probably get back over there." Max whispered and slowly stood as they nodded. They stood and then they all walked over to the others.