Retaliation: the beginning

Chapter 28: "Finding the seer_2_"

They were on their way, though Emily's heart didn't stop racing until long after the school building disappeared from sight; until she was sure no one was going to come after them. Brian didn't comment; probably because he was too busy inspecting his hair in the mirror.

They eventually stopped at a dingy, 24-hour diner located just on the outskirts of Mayville, to grab a bite to eat. The smell of burnt coffee and greasy food permeated the air, assaulting her nose, but Emily was starving. It was late, so they were the only ones there with the exception of the possibly homeless man passed out near the window.

Their waitress was a blond in her twenties who, judging from her hair and makeup, was still living in the '80s. She was also overly attentive, shamelessly flirting with her "Brother" and Brian, being the idiot he was, reveled in the attention, all playful winks and charming smiles.

By the fifth time the waitress came by to refill their drinks with not one, not two, but three buttons of her blouse undone, Emily didn't even bother trying to hide her disgust.

"You know it's just for show." Brian said smugly, once the waitress was out of earshot. "I'm a celebrity remember?"

"You think I'm jealous?" She asked incredulously, unconsciously folding the sweatshirt Aaron gave her that morning.

Brian took a slow sip of his tea. "You tell me."

"You realize I'm older then you right?"

"Some men like that in a woman. Derek says with maturity come experience."

And that was more information than she needed to hear. Emily promptly set her fork down and pushed her plate away, appetite officially gone.

"So, a seer." She said, trying to steer the conversation back to what mattered. "Do you believe him? Blake I mean."

"Well Derek says a seer is supposed to see the past and future through an object, so he didn't lie to us so far."

"Forget about Derek, do you trust him on your own?" she asked again.

Brian nodded "When it comes to Ely, I trust him, they know each other longer then we have so if he says he's missing a part of his memories then who am I to question that."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." she looked down at the piece of clothing resting in her lap. "I'm just nervous; we don't know anything about this woman we're going to meet."

Brian shook his head. "Don't worry, she's harmless. Not that I met her, but Derek encountered her before."

"And you're sure she's okay?"

"Given what he told me, I think it's very likely." Brian said. "They're elusive creatures so they prefer to stay hidden and there have been so few eyewitness accounts that our knowledge of them is still quite limited."

Emily paused, looking genuinely impressed. Brian rolled his eyes. He wasn't completely stupid.

He furrowed his brow. "But why would somebody mess with his memories?"

"We don't know for sure someone did this to him, it could have been an accident."Emily replied matter-of-factly.

"He's practically a walking target." Derek emerged from the back making her choke.

He looked quite comfortable figuring he was a fugitive, with his shaven face and hair combed back, dressed to the nines and reeking of expensive cologne. He stood behind their booth, Brian's face light up unlike Emily's.

"You followed us?!" She hissed.

"Think about it," he said ignoring her surprised look, "He shows up and starts fixing everybody's problems. Don't you think that would attract attention?"

"And messing with his memories? What does that accomplish?" She pressed.

"To evade suspicions. Cover their tracks." Derek responded "What he's doing is bound to draw some unwanted attention, particularly from antagonist, and no one likes to be hunted."

"Then why didn't it happen on me?" She asked. "Or Brian?"

"Believe it or not, I actually had nothing to do with this." He pointedly ignored the skeptical look she shot him. "I gave him my word. What sort of man do you take me for?"

"A manipulative psychopath." She answered without a beat.

"I only do what is best for my client."

"You kidnapped me." She reminded him.

Derek stared at her, expression blank but the tightness in his jaw was an obvious indicator that her lack of trust bothered him.

Whatever. He only had himself to blame for that.

"Or this is a misunderstanding," Brian broke the ice "And Ely just had a blow in the head, perhaps." He said, all too casually.

"Yes, that too." Derek let out a dramatic sigh. "Either way if you want to talk to the seer you better hurry up, they tend to disappear after sun down."

"Yeah, it's already six thirty," Brian checked his watch "Get the bill?"

Derek nodded and with that, he disappeared into the cashier, Brian took the opportunity to drag Emily outside.

"Can you chill a little? He came to help us."

"Then why didn't he ask first instead of following us like a creep?"

"Well Derek is a bit of a creep but it's just his style, has Aaron ever asked if he could hang with us?"

"No but that's different-"

"Different how?" Brian took a deep breath "Look, just give him a chance; one is all I ask for. Please?"

"Okay, fine." Emily was more than a little irritated as she was made to sit in her car for so long, elbow propped up against the window sill and foot tapping impatiently. Next to her Brian was in a total different planet with his headphones.

She sighed, taking out her phone. She had several missed calls from Elias. She ignored them just like Aaron asked her to, scrolling through her list of contacts until his name jumped out at her. She swallowed, her thumb hovering, hesitating before hitting it.

Surprisingly, it went straight to voicemail.

"Hey, it's me." She opened up with. "I know I haven't returned your calls for a while, I'm kind of busy but" She paused, licking her lips. "Call me back when you get this. Bye."

At long last, Derek emerged sliding into the passenger's seat beside her.

"What took you so long?" Brian was first to complain.

"I asked for directions."

Emily rolled her eyes in exaggeration "We don't need directions we already know where we're going."

"There's a short cut, it'll buy us more time."