The People with Useless Power

Chapter Eleven

"It's much better than this concrete prison."

Mara threw the chair across her office, rage consuming every part of her. Her father had apologized to her for real for the first time, gained her and her friends' trusts, and given her expensive gifts so he could just steal one of her better- no, one of her best fighters? She gritted her teeth. He kidnapped her for no reason other than to spite Mara.

Emily grabbed her wrists, obviously trying to calm her. Foolish. Mara knocked her down and held her down with her combat boots, pressing them into her bloody white sweater and shoving down her heaving, boney chest.

"This is my most comfortable fighting position," Mara smiled. "I can do anything I want from here." She shoved her foot down harder. "I can smash your ribs." She slid her foot up to her neck. "I can break your neck." She slid her foot back down to her chest. "And I can watch you squirm." Emily let out a whimper, a long, sad, pathetic whimper.

Something passed through her mind- a sick thought, a twisted thought, but a fun thought. After all, they both needed time to cool down.

"I hope you like memory foam, Emily."

...

Emily liked memory foam, but not while she was locked up in a padded room. Or, the "panic area, where girls like you go to sort out their crazy thoughts, Emily," as Mara had so affectionately called it.

She had just tried to help her. To calm her down. To soothe her. And now she had metal shackles digging into her wrists and ankles. Emily felt like an animal.

The worst part was the darkness. She could barely see, and knowing Mara, anything could be hiding away in the shadows. To avoid it all, Emily squeezed her eyes shut.

To her surprise, tears started to fall down her face.

Emily shook her head and felt an itch on her nose. She tried to scratch it, but the chains were too short.

She let out a loud wail and began to sob, trying to bite her bottom lip to shush herself, but to no avail. All of the fear and sadness and emptiness finally came pouring out. Emily strained against the chains, slamming her head into the wall- nothing.

Her room was flooded with light for a split second, and then dark again.

She blinked twice and tried to make sense if she was just going crazy, but then there was a face illuminated by flames above her. Emily gasped as she realized it was Emma.

Emma crouched down and started to burn off the chains.

"Emma!" Emily whisper-shouted.

"Shhhh," she whispered back. "I'm just fulfilling my end of our deal. I'm sorry it took so long."

As soon as her hands were free, Emily grabbed Emma's arm before she could move to her ankles. "Emma, come with me."

"What?"

"Emma, let's run away. Together."

She bit her lip and shook her head slowly. "Emily, I can't. I'm sorry, but this is the only home I've got."

"You can stay with me and my family!"

"The family whose home I broke into and kidnapped their daughter?"

"Yes, and brought me back, wiser, stronger, smarter, and with new love," Emily whispered. Emma looked up at her, her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but words failed her. Emily's legs were free.

"New love," she repeated, cupping her cheek. But there was something different in her tone, something off.

Their eyes fluttered shut as Emma's fire went out and they smashed into each other, Emma wrapping her arms around Emily's neck and Emily clutching her as they kissed until Emma finally broke away, relighting her fingertips.