Journey for the Gem

Journey for the Gem- Chapter 6

*~* JADE'S THOUGHTS

Jade tried to sit up, but the pain in her side made her lie back down again. At first she felt funny, like it was hard to think of how she had hurt her chest.

Then the few minutes ago (or hours, or days, Jade had no idea) came flooding back to her.

Yes, she had blown up at her mother and Kaman had rammed her into that counter. It wouldn't have hurt very much as a human, but Kaman had tapped into a different power somehow...

Jade moaned as a jolting pain shot through her chest. Ruby appeared over her, looking as if she had seen a ghost. "W-what's the matter?" asked Jade, feeling pain come to her chest again.

Something warm was trickling out of her mouth. Ruby said in a hollow voice, "Missy. She sacrificed herself to save you. You were dead." Jade blinked.

"I... was dead?" she asked. Not many people told you that everyday.

"Yes. I'm sorry, Jade," said Ruby. Jade started to cry, and so did Ruby.

Ruby fell next to her and sobbed into her shoulder. Jade wrapped her arms around Ruby. "I wish Opal and Jasper were here," Jade sobbed to Ruby. "Me, too."

*** OPAL'S THOUGHTS

Opal stopped walking beside Jasper. "Did you hear that?" she asked him. He stopped also.

"Hear what?" he looked around, a deep frown etching his handsome face. "I heard somebody crying!" Opal insisted, frowning not out of curiosity, but of anger.

Usually Jasper was easy to get along with, not hurtful but instead funny and amiable, but sometimes he could get on Opal's nerves.

"Wait, I do hear it. It's coming from the alleyway next to Jade's house, the one right next to this one," Jasper said. "Well, let's go now!" exclaimed Opal. They jogged about ten minutes before they found Jade's house. As they passed by the open doorway, Opal stopped yet again.

"Wait," she said. Opal could tell that now she was getting on Jasper's nerves, but she didn't care now. "I hear someone crying in there," said Jasper as he boldly (and stupidly) strode through the doorway.

He stopped so abruptly that Opal slammed into him. "What is it?" asked Opal, annoyed.

"Someone's bleeding. I don't know who it is," was the reply from Jasper as he continued forward and knelt by a bloody woman of about forty.

The woman was crying and had large spots of blood stains on her expensive-looking coat and skirt. She opened her eyes and Opal was surprised of how blue they were. It was like looking into the ocean itself.

"If you are more of Jade's friends, go away!" the lady said. "I am Jade's mother and I am not responsible for whatever criminal acts my daughter commits."

Opal and Jasper looked at each other, puzzled. "Jade wouldn't do anything harmful," said Jasper, staring at the woman's angry eyes without hesitation. "Oh, so you do know Jade!" Jade's mom cackled, which turned into a hacking cough.

"O-okay, so we do. W-what happened t-t-to her?" Opal asked, her voice quivering. She hated when it did that.

"W-w-w-well, I-it started w-when she b-brought up her real f-father, instead of R-randy! So I-I hurt her," Jade's mother (whom Opal was seriously starting to not like) said, mocking Opal's stutter and laughing gleefully.

"Until that witch put a spell on me. Missy was her name. Humph. They got out of there darn fast, carrying that betraying daughter."

Opal and Jasper darted out of there, the woman's screams following them.