Fallen

Chapter Thirty

Ashton

I woke up on the couch in the Hawes' house.  I try to roll over onto my back, but all I feel is a sharp, dull pain, and then I remember what happened.  I reach my hand and try to touch the wounds on my back, but all I feel are bandages.  Ryder must have stitched me up. 

I throw my legs over the side of the bed, wincing through the pain.  I look around the room too see people passed out in various places.  Mia lay on the floor with her mother, Ryder in the chair next to me, and in the chair in the corner was Jess.  I smiled at how peaceful she looked.  She reminded me of my younger sister Katie, who was a year or two younger than her.  Her curly hair was falling in her face and it didn't even seem to bother her.

I slowly make my way over to Ryder and shake him awake.

"You shouldn't be moving," he says groggily.

"I'm fine." I say as I help him to a standing position, ignoring the dull throbbing of my back. There was something different about the way Ryder was holding himself right now than he was just a few days ago.  He seemed on edge, when normally he was so relaxed.

"Dude, what's up?"  I ask him.

"Why was I there? Why were we arrested?"

"We thought the Council would help us, but they didn't."

"Help you with what?"

"Help us find Hayden."  I really didn't understand why he kept asking me this.   I assumed Mia had explained everything to him.

"Where is she?"

"The Fallen took her."

Ryder runs his hand through his chocolate colored hair.  Then he sighs.

"The day you stole my laptop I went into my moms room to watch tv, because her room has the biggest television.  But when I got in there I tripped and fell on the hardwood floor.  My elbow hit a panel extremely hard and caused it to flip up.  I remember I began to panic because I thought I broke the house, but hidden inside there was a wooden box, and being the teenage boy I am I was curious so I opened it.  Inside the box was so many pieces of paper, there were lists with names and maps of what looked like castles.  It was definitely insane.  But I don't think my mom knew about it.  I think my Dad put it there before he passed."  He strained out the last word.

"And while you were gone," he continued, "I snuck back up to room to look at it again.  And I remembered what you told me, your theory, and then I remembered what Kyra had told us, and it all started to make a little bit more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Let me show you."

Ryder lead me up the stairs and into his mother's room, where he then continues to pull up a hardwood panel and quite literally pulls out a large wooden box. He then dumps it on the bed and spreads it out for me to see. The first few things were lists, lists, and lists of names. All of them ranging from Fiona Blake to Nate McAndrew. Two names stood out to me though, Colton Perry and Jessica Kline. I now knew why Ryder was on edge, why was Jess's name on the list?

"She came up to me last night asking if I needed anything, which I didn't, so I asked what Jess was short for. When she told me I couldn't help but think of the list," he admits. 

I nod in agreement.  "I think I know what if means, I just don't understand how she was on it so soon.  It's like it was guessed, predicted."

"What does it mean?"

"They're workers for the Fallen.  That's where Jess was being sent before we got her out."

I could see the disbelief and confusion on his face.  I'm sure it mirrored my own.  Why did Ryder and Mia's father have this?  Where did he find this? Was there more to the story?

"That's not all," Ryder says pulling out something that was in the bottom.  He gently unfolds a giant map of what looks like a castle. 

"Ryder, are you aware of what you just found?"  I stare at it in amazement.

He shakes his head no.

"I think you may have just found a map of the Fallen's headquarters."

-

After we have shoved everything back into the box, we take it downstairs.  Quickly, we shake everyone awake.  We needed to tell them what Ryder had found. 

Everyone gathered around the coffee table as we explained.  I watch Jess's face go pale as we mentioned her part.

"How would they have known?  It was a rash decision, I did it on a whim."  She bit her lip nervously.  Was it bad she was already so comfortable with us?

"Are you sure it was your decision?  Ashton mentioned that your friend told you about this world.  What was her name?"  Ryder seemed determined, in control.

"Elle Jacobs, why?"

Ryder quickly searched through the papers before stopping and showing her something.  It was a named sprawled out in messy cursive, Elle Jacobs. 

"Are we one hundred percent sure that the fate of these people on these lists aren't already decided?  Because I believe the Fallen and the Council have certain things in play so certain people end up in there control."  He says all of this looking straight at Jess.

"I say with our new found knowledge, we attack to rescue Hayden tonight.  Yeah, there may be only a few of us, but a surprise attack and rescue has a better chance of working than a planned out attack.  Especially if there are people watching us."  I speak up.

"How do we know that we aren't playing right into their hands?"  Mia asks.

"Because, I don't know about you all, but I have been very selective with who I trust.  And right now it's only the five of us who know about this."

No body looked sure.

"Look, the longer we wait the worse it will get.  We have everything we need, why not?"  I pause seeing if anyone will react.  No one does.  "Well, I'm going tonight.  Rather I am alone or not is your option."

"Ashton, this isn't smart," Mrs. Olivia says.

"But it's our only option."

"I'll go with you bro," Ryder says. "We're a team," he adds with a smile.

We both turn to look at Mia, who is pursing her lips in concentration.

"Fine, I'm in."  She finally gives in.

I share a grin with Ryder. 

Three against hundreds weren't horrible odds.