The Return - A Michael Vey Fanfic

Chapter 53

I divert my eyes from Ryann as she dropped the knife, glancing back down at the dying Raymond in my arms. I swallowed hard and said, "Raymond, listen to me. You're going to be fine. I-I'll get you out of this, somehow." Even I could tell he didn't have very much time left.

I put my hand over his wound, trying to keep him from bleeding out. When I did, I realized that Raymond was shaking. I glanced down at him to see a genuine fear in his eyes.

"Emily, I-I'm scared," he blubbered. "I'm not- I'm not ready to die."

I stared at Raymond, surprised, before my shoulders fell in empathy for him. "It's fine. I'm here with you." I laced Raymond's fingers into mine, holding him close. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. I didn't know if I could do this. Raymond, the same Raymond with his brown eyes that were always filled with humor, who had saved me and fought with us, was now going to die for us.

"I'm not ready to die," Raymond repeated. He started breathing raggedly, his stomach jumping up and down. "I still need t-to make-"

"To make me laugh. I know," I whispered. I sniffed, tears rolling down my cheek, and shook my head.

"Do you- promise you will?"

I nodded, smiling sadly.

I saw Raymond nod. He didn't look at all comforted about dying, but he knew as well as I that he was slipping. "You have a- a beautiful laugh," he said with a small smile on his lips. Raymond closed his eyes and his head slumped back.

"No," I said softly, covering my mouth. "No, Raymond please." I brought Raymond's hand up to my mouth, hoping to be able to breath in his scent one last time.

More than anything, I wished I could have done something to save Raymond. I had these powers, powers unlike anything else yet, even then, I was still unable to save Raymond. My power couldn't have saved him, or Ostin, or McKenna or even Raymond's family, because in every instance, I was too late. I had been content to sit back and just let them die because I was too scared to let myself use my power. I was scared of getting hurt, of being found out, of losing someone, of too many things to count. But whatever the reason, I was done being scared. I knew that I had to end this, fearlessly and with my powers. There's no point to having powers of you can't save others with them.

"Ryann," I heard Jacob ask softly. My eyes snapped open. I had almost forgotten that they were there. I had almost forgotten that Ryann had murdered Raymond. I half glanced up at them, not wanting to completely lose sight of Raymond yet. "Why would you-"

"Ah," Ryann said, cutting him off. "Guess again." Before us, Ryann's figure slowly began to change from that in Ryann into someone else. Someone a lot worse. Tara.

"Tara," Jacob growled, his voice becoming low and menacing.

Thinking Ryann was Raymond's killer was bad enough, knowing it was actually Tara only made it worse. Not only did she kill Raymond but his family too. She has ripped Raymond's loved ones away from him, and finished the job by then taking his own life.

"Where is Ryann?" Nichelle asked briskly.

Raymond was gone, because of her, and because of me. Squaring up my shoulders, I washed myself of all of the fear I had inside of me. Every single morsel inside of me that told me that using my powers would be a bad idea. At that moment, I felt something break inside of me. Almost like there was a dam inside of me that had been holding something back all of the years that had finally been worn out enough that it cracked. An energy that I had never felt before flooded through me as it built up power.

"No where of your concern," Tara smirked.

Glaring at Tara and the smirk on her face, I slowly got up from the ground, now standing over Raymond's body. I flexed my fingers angrily to feel the electricity resonating within them.

From the other side of the room, a high pitched beeping sound suddenly started. Everyone except me looked in the direction of the sound. I was still glaring at Tara, unwilling to look away from her even as yet another machine began beeping, then another and another. Slowly, one machine after another, they began beeping at different frequencies and lengths until they were too loud to think.

Everyone except for Tara and I was hunkered over, covering their eyes. Tara glanced at all the machines in amazement.

She looked back at me, conceit and pride written all over her face. "I knew it was in there somewhere," she commented smugly.

It dawned on me that the machine were probably eel readers, picking up my electric signal. Now that I had broken past Nichelle's defense, they were able to.

I reached out my right hand, holding it palm open towards a group of machines, then closed my fist and turn it, as if I were squishing a grape. On cue, every single machine in the room burst in to pieces, sparking brightly.

The others, even Tara, covered their head, while I continued to stand still. My power, it had been released. The only thing I had needed all along was to let go of my doubt and my fear. I only wished I had had enough sense to do it sooner, then Raymond might still be alive.

"Emily!" I heard Nichelle yell from her place on the floor. I could see the fear written all over her face, but didn't understand why it was there. I wasn't going to hurt her or any of the others. "Stand. Down. You do not have enough experience to be doing this!"

Ignoring Nichelle, I stepped over Raymond, toward Tara. I wish I could follow Nichelle's orders, I really could, but I couldn't listen to her. This new electricity running through me was addicting. It gave me power, power that made me actually feel like I could do something for once.

I didn't have to just sit by and watch my friends be killed. I felt like, for once, I might be able to actually save someone.