Two (Countdown Book 5)

Chapter 19

That was, without a doubt, the longest I hadn't seen her in. Days dragged into weeks, and weeks dragged on until I couldn't stand the suspense anymore. I had called her nearly every day, but she never picked up. I even called Riley, but he wasn't answering either.

So, it was a great relief to me when their car pulled into the basement in the early morning of May the twenty fifth.

And then my heart dropped into the pit of my stomach.

Riley got out of the driver's side of the car, covered in scratches and bruises.

He couldn't get injured.

And then I waited for Mackenzie to get out the other side.

But she didn't.

She didn't get out.

I practically ran towards Riley, my insides freezing like ice. "Where is she?" I shouted, almost running into him. He staggered a little, holding on to me for support. He looked terrible.

"I'm so sorry, Eli... I did everything I could..." Riley muttered.

"What do you mean?" I shouted desperately. "You're immortal!"

"H-he stripped it away from me." Riley said grimly. "One minute, I was fine, the next I felt pain. And he beat me to next Tuesday. That's why I took so long getting back."

"Makinshien." I breathed angrily. It wasn't a question, but Riley nodded nevertheless. "What happened to her? Riley, please tell me she's not-"

"I'm sorry, Eli," he began. "But it's worse than that. He took her."

"What?" I snapped.

"I don't know." he said truthfully. "One minute, he's busy beating me to a pulp. The next, he grabs her round the waist and drags her through a portal, kicking and screaming."

I took a few deep breaths, struggling to digest all of that. "You look terrible. Wyatt's upstairs, ask him if he's got a medical kit." Riley headed to the stairs, but paused, looking back at me.

"I'm sorry, Eli."

"Yeah, me too."

***

"ELI!" I heard someone shout through my bedroom door. "Come on, Eli, open the door."

I ignored them, turning up my music a bit louder and launching my DVD player across the room so it shattered against the wall. I could feel tears on my face, but ignored them as I picked up a book and launched it through the window, shattering glass everywhere.

"Eli, please open the door." I heard a voice say softly. It was Jess.

"GO AWAY!" I shouted.

"I'm not going anywhere until we've talked." she said. I knew she wasn't lying. I turned and unlocked the door, not even bothering to open it. Then, I turned back towards the window, trying to work out what would smash it more.

I heard the door open and close. "Eli." Jess said.

"What?" I snapped. "What do you want?"

She noticed the many empty beer bottles litering my floor. "Have you been drinking?"

"Are you going to yell at me?"

She didn't answer. She walked up to me, putting one hand on my wrist. "You're bleeding." she noted, looking at the large cut on my forearm.

"I am." I said. I didn't know that the cut was there, but it didn't hurt. Not in compared to the pain in the pit of my stomach.

Jess lead me over to my bed and sat me down while she started cleaning and bandaging the wound on my wrist. "We'll get her back, you know." she said as she worked. I stiffened.