POWERS OF NATURE Book 1 - Into the Storm

Chapter 20

Stephanie's eyes flew open as she gasped for breath, the sunlight surrounding her contradicting the darkness she still felt. The world seemed to have turned upside down over night, and there was distant smell of smoke or burning material. A person was speaking urgently in the distance, and Stephanie felt a warm hand slip around her neck. No, no around, under her neck. That was when she realised she was hanging off the bed, her head inches from the floor. Looking down the bridge of her nose , she noticed Matt's face above her, worry creasing his forehead and shadowing his eyes.

"Steph, are you okay?" He asked, the urgency she had vaguely heard now loud and evident in his voice. He gently pulled her up until she was seated on the bed, and she leaned against the window, the cold glass cooling her overheated skin. Her fingers were still tightly wound into the bedspread and Matt's shirt and, when she let go of both, she found the source of the smoke she had smelt. Her fingers had left small charred holes in the material, and she quickly bunched her hands into her sides.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered, rocking herself as she realised how close she'd come to hurting Matt.

"Hey," Matt said softly, brushing hair off of her wet forehead, "its okay. You didnt hurt me. This is from when I grabbed you to stop you from falling of the bed. It's nothing serious. Was it another dream or memory?" He asked, trying to stop her from focusing on his destroyed shirt.

Stephanie shook her head, her mind going back to the scene and shivers racing down her spine. "No, it wasn't. You were there, and Aiden, and me." She swallowed, Matt still trying to dry her sweat covered face, "and Michael."

His hand stilled on her face, tension rippling through his body. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm sure, Matt. It was definitely the real us." She leant her head back against the window, watching the dust flakes dance in the morning sunlight. "It wasn't a nightmare either. I think it was a warning. He's coming, Matt."

Matt pulled her to lie next to him, wrapping his arms around her. "Well, if it was a warning, did you learn anything from it? Anything that can help us?"

Stephanie fell silent, remembering every detail she could, even the parts where Matt had been on the floor. She remembered Michael's scream of anger after she had hit him...

Sitting upright, she turned to look at Matt. "I can hurt him, with the current. It hurt him in my dream or whatever."

Matt looked at her in confusion. "Steph, the current does hurt us."

"No, not like that. This was full on hurt, if I had used a stronger current, Matt, it would have worked. I saw how much effort and power he had to put into using his current." Her voice trailed off and Matt caught the look of pure terror that flashed in her eyes. Instead of continuing, she shakily climbed off the bed. "I better get ready for school."

Matt's eyes widened. "You sure you want to?" He asked, taking in her wild eyes and flushed cheeks. That dream, or warning, had scared her more than she was admitting.

"I have to, Matt." She sighed as she got clothes out the cupboard. "Graduation is next week. My mom will kill me if I skip school now." She turned away from him, composing herself as the imagination o Aiden being tortured replayed itself in her mind.

"I suppose I better get to the restaurant then. If I don't open there, carry on like normal, my dad will probably suspect something." Matt got off the bed and began gathering his things.

"I'll see you later." Stephanie said as she planted a soft kiss on his cheek, before leaving the room for he bathroom.

Matt stood for a minute, hearing the sound of the shower. He believed her when she said it wasn't another dream or memory, but that worried him more. None of the books and records he had been forced to study in his earlier years had ever mentioned a Kairós having memories of their past lives, never mind premonitions or warnings. The fact that it had taken her literally a weekend to control her talent proved she was incredibly strong, an different from the others. Her sometimes black eyes worried him too, as they were only black when she was angry or scared and this morning had been no different.