5 Secrets of Maddison Riley

Chapter 12: Exchanging Spit.

CHAPTER 12: Exchanging Spit.

Saturday, Third day on the run, ??:??

My mind is spinning, the stress and my injury is making my thoughts almost chaotic, I am unable to react. I can’t make a decision. I am supposed to be a super human, a genius, yet I am completely useless right now.

The door handle turns. I get a whip of a scent, it’s a girl. It’s not them. No one is going to attack us. My heartbeat slowly settles down and I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.

The girl looks at me, a nervous glance. She could be about twenty-five years old but I’m not sure, since her skin is so smooth and she’s kind of short. I smile, she smiles back. She has a food tray in her hand and I can’t miss the delicious scent of mashed potatoes. I love mashed potatoes! Potatoes in general are the most underrated food in the world. I mean everyone is obsessed with pizza and chicken nuggets, but let’s be real, potatoes are the best. You can make potato pancakes and you can fry them and boil them and mash them, potatoes are great. People should acknowledge potatoes more, seriously.

“How are you feeling?” I only just notice the notebook the girl is waving in front of my face. I guess I was too indulged in my potato obsession just now.

“I’m okay.” I answer and then show her a thumbs just in case. I have no idea whether or not she is able to lip-read. She smiles in return and then starts writing on a new page.

“Those weird guys left just now, so I thought that it’s safe to bring you guys some food.” I read the notebook. Her handwriting is very clear and it’s easy to distinguish the words even in the quiet lighting.

“Thank you, I don’t know if we can do anyth...” I speak but she starts shaking her head frantically and I stop, she scribbles something very fast and then turns the paper around for me to read.

“It’s okay!!!!!!!” A lot of bolded, written exclamation marks, okay, got it.  “You guys don’t worry about anything, I’m the only one that comes here. Just stay here ‘till you get better.” She’s looking at me, her eyes filled with empathy.

“I…we…” I realize I don’t know what I can tell her, so I decide to keep quiet unless she asks, for her sake. “Anyway, thank you for being so... nice. And thanks for... saving us...really.” As much as it hurt my pride to admit it, without her, we would be dead. What am I good for, really? I couldn’t even protect him. I had let the adrenaline get the best of me, and stopped thinking rationally. It’s not about kicking people, it’s about protecting Nathan. No matter what, he needs to be safe. That’s the choice I had made on the day when the ice fell apart from the building. I had failed. It’s just because of some miraculous good luck, that we’re even alive. Miraculous luck in a little girls disguise. I looked around, she was gone.

The only explanation of this weird fact that I did not register her leaving in my brain would be the healing process. It was just like that time, when I had run about 90 kilometers in a day, some of my abilities weren’t working as they should. In a sudden rush of fear I turn to look at Nathan, who, to my relief, is still sleeping soundly. He’s safe, I tell myself. Yeah, for now, a voice in my head responds. I’ll keep him safe, I just have to recover quickly. This is a good thing, my powers aren’t working so that means I’m healing quickly. This is a good thing.