Capturing Ella

SNEAK PEAK - Shattering Lucy

Hey guys! As a Christmas present to you guys here's the first chapter of the next book "Shattering Lucy", a sequel to this but from the perspective of Jason, Joe's best friend, and Lucy, an abused girl. Of course, Ella and Joe (and their baby!) will be involved quite a bit too. The first chapter of this will be going up properly before the end of January - Hopefully. But the question I wanted to ask is this; Quite a few of you wanted to see Ella and Joe through the pregnancy and of course the birth and the early days with the baby, and I have written quite a few chapters about it already (mainly Ella and the Benedict's so far,) but would you want it added on to the end of this book or in another book completely? Please let me know! :D 

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"Shattering Lucy"

Chapter 1 – Jason

April, a year after "Capturing Ella" 

I sat in my best friend's kitchen, aimlessly throwing around a meat cleaver and catching it not caring if I injure myself. From here I would see the perfectly serrated edge of the knife, the stainless steel tips pointing away from each other, each tip perfectly filed into position, perfect for hacking through meat. I ran my finger slowly the blade, watching intently as each ridge of my fingerprint ran over the pointed metal, digging in but not enough to cut each other. A game I used to play with my best friend, Joe, before he got into a serious relationship was seeing if he would stab me in the back. It was just a test to see how far he would go, and sure enough he just proved he was a wuss and wouldn't do anything to hurt anyone. That was until he was evacuated down to Cornwall, before accidently killing two security guards of terrorists because they threatened to rape Ella – his now fiancée. Now, it felt like I barely knew him and his morals but we still continued to be joined at the hip.

However, I could see Joe from where I was sitting, just in the kitchen with his four month old daughter sat on his hip, happily bouncing her up and down as she continued to gurgle at him, the babies arm around his neck, the other hand holding his finger. Joe grinned at his daughter, quickly brushing back her hair. There was some noise in the kitchen as Ella continued to warm up the babies bottle of milk as Joe smiled at her and all I saw in my best friend was love and affection for someone who has been in his life for less than a year. I knew there was something between them, they were both Savant's and each other's Soulfinder's. Obviously I knew what it meant but I wasn't a Savant but the pure dedication and love they have for each other was just insane and I was jealous of that. Not that I would tell them that.

Truth be told, I never understood what the whole "family" jive was all about. I only remember growing up with me and my Mum in a small flat about ten miles from here. My Dad had buggered off when I was three days old for reasons that Mum never told me too, and my older half sister Dooley was already in university by the time I was five due to the extortionate age difference between us. When I was born, she was already taking her GCSE's in preparation. The doctors had told me I was lacking social skills and was already socially isolated when I was three and was enrolled at a local nursery near the town's community centre. It was one of those mama-and-papa's play sessions but with no Dad and a Mum working full time to support me I was left to play alone. Three years olds, looking like a fat potato with a ginger curly hair (Yeah, one point in time I was ginger – it was a rough time for us all,) with no one to play with in preschool. I stood, holding my favourite toy – a fluffy airplane – wanting someone to play with but everyone was with their parents, the workers too focused on the grizzling kids to give two looks in my direction. For about three weeks I played alone, making up imaginary friends until a small girl joined the class. She was the same age as me, as the class was for three to four year olds, but was even more timid than I was. Small for her age, with a blonde bob and the brightest green eyes that I could remember almost eighteen years later. We were inseparable for over a year, playing every day. Every Saturday she would come over to play. This lasted for a year and a few months, until the Christmas when we were both four edging on five. We broke up for Christmas, and I made the girl who's name I couldn't remember presents. Two cards, a sculpture and a sown together bag that my Mum helped me with. I was so excited to head back to preschool, but on the first day back she wasn't there. Instead, my Mum was given a letter along with all the other parents.

That night, Mum had to sit me down and tell me that girl had died in a car crash that Christmas, along with her family. I was devastated. I went to the memorial for her and her family. I thought I would never see her again.

I could have not been any wrong.

Skip forward a few years of bullying and childhood isolation and I met Joe in the playground and both of us grew up together. Neither of were lookers, and continued to get bullied. It was year seven and the news came into Mum and I one night that Doolie had attempted suicide due to adult bullying. Adult bullying – actually grown men and woman. To cut a long and sad story short I decided I never wanted to live that life and it got better blah blah blah. I went to university to study criminal science and forensics, and Joe got a full time job and then got a job at Maui. Joe was a powerful Savant who was lacking control, so I wasn't surprised he got offered the job he wanted. However, I was completely in shock when my letter was posted offering me a job to look at dead bodies or forensic cases. Of course I took it. Not even a month after I started, Joe was sent down to Cornwall after him and another chick got death threats from a terrorist. A month after that ordeal happened and they both lived I found out they were Soulfinder's and were living together – and then they were engaged – and then they were expecting their daughter. Joe's fiancée and mother of his child? My childhood best friend from preschool for "died" in a car accident but had to go under Witness Protection Scheme and adopted by her Uncle and Aunt and was raised a Benedict. My "dead" childhood best friend married my other best friend and now had a little baby – my Godchild.

'Jason, Earth to Jason,' I heard and looked over at Ella, who was sitting opposite me at the table. She had pushed down my laptop lid and was looking at me expectantly. 'Put down the knife, please.' She said gently and I looked at the butcher's knife I was gripping in my hand. A trickle of blood fell from my hand, where the knife dug in, down my arm and dripped onto my jean leg.

'Where's Joe and -?' I asked.

'Joe's taking her back up to bed, you've been daydreaming for at least twenty minutes now –can you just pass me that knife?' Ella coaxed and I released my grip on the butcher's knife, passing it to her. She made a face as she stood up, putting it in the sink and ran warm water on to bloody knife. She walked back, grabbing the first aid box and a damp tea towel. I bit my lip as she took my hand, wiping off the dripping blood which was starting to clot in some places.

'You've got your figure back,' I whispered trying to make conversation as she cleared up my blood. How was I so stupid to hold onto a blade so hard it cut me?

'Well, I wasn't very big was I?'

True. She had the smallest baby bump I've ever seen, the normal to what people are when they're twelve weeks pregnant. Three days after the birth when she was released from hospital she was back to wearing skinny jeans and her normal shirts.

'You finished bleeding yet?' She asked, only gently dabbing the towel on my hand. Upstairs, we could hear Joe talk to the baby who sat there giggling to herself. Ella smiled softly whilst I looked at her. I envied the relationship she had with Joe, the love between them two even without the Soulfinder bond but it just made them stronger. I wanted that type of love. 'What the...' Ella whispers as we both sat there staring at my hand. As if by magic, the gash on my hand from holding the knife in my hand started to seal itself up, the flesh binding together into a neat pink line. Ella quickly ran the wet towel over my hand and nothing happened and nothing came off. The cut had magically healed itself.

'You might want to talk to Joe about that –' Ella said grinning at me.

'What do you mean?' I asked her, fascinated by the fading pink mark on my hand.

'You're a Savant.' Ella simply said, getting up again to finish to put the baby bottles in the wash as I sat to marvel what she just said to me.