Pyro

Chapter 20

The driver passed us some towels from the front to dry off.

None of us used them. Even Kaz, who, atypical to his character, was solemn.

Instead, the three of us mulled over the possibility of bringing the dead back to life. At least, I knew I was.

Bring Rebecca back? That seemed too good to be true.

And even if she could be brought back, would she be brought back as a rotten corpse? A decaying shell of who she was? The thought made me want to vomit; fortunately, my stomach was devoid of sustenance.

The oppressive atmosphere, stifling and swirling with convoluted theories, was broken when Kaz finally spoke. "Henry, do you think she's actually omniscient?"

I lifted my head, strands of water-logged hair falling in my face and sending rivulets of water running down my cheeks. "What do you mean?" I asked.

"Yaknow, when you were talkin' to her, she said a bunch of stuff that she couldn't know about you," he said, forcing his teeth still to avoid clattering them. "That stuff she said about you and your friend. Is it all true?" He knew what it meant if it was. That there was a possibility Proditio could be omniscient.

I nodded bitterly. "Yeah, it is."

He sighed through clenched teeth and folded his arms. "So then she's tellin' the truth. She's omniscient."

"A-A-Are you st-stupid?" Zoe was hugging herself in an attempt to warm up, but that didn't prevent her stammer. "No one can have a power like that."

He scowled. "Why not? Pretty boy here can control fire and even make fire that can't be extinguished, so why can't someone be all-seeing?"

"Omniscient means all-knowing," I corrected, earning an irritated grunt from Kaz and a smirk from Zoe. Then I shrugged- though the motion was stiff and forced. "I don't know. That kind of power has never been seen by anyone before. But, I never told anyone about what happened between Rebecca and me. I don't see how she'd know what went on between us."

Zoe raised a brow; it was rather impressive, seeing as she hadn't stopped shivering since entering the limo. "What about that guy at the hotel? Cute guy, blonde hair, blue eyes? Does he know?"

Quinn? I bristled at her description of him-I wasn't sure why-but nodded again. "He didn't know either. Only Rebecca knew, and she's dead." Dead... yes, she was dead. Somewhere along the line, that fact had truly sunk in, and I said it now without any trace of doubt.

But if she could be brought back, I... I'd do anything.

Even if it means helping the woman who's to blame for her death? Wais asked. His sudden voice jolted me. C'mon, don't leave a guy hanging. Would you help Proditio if it meant getting Rebecca back? he persisted.

The thought sickened me-assisting the person who was to blame for her death to begin with-but, without a doubt, I'd do it. I owed it to Rebecca: she probably saved my life the night I got piss drunk, and it was time for me to repay the favor.

Besides, take down the organization who killed her in the process? I'd do it in a heartbeat. Though Proditio's desire to dismantle her own organization befuddled me, I wasn't complaining.

I'd do it, I replied. Then I paused. Would you?

Huh? I caught him off guard, apparently.

Proditio mentioned taking someone away from all of us- not just me. So I'm guessing she took someone from you and Miranda, too. Proditio had claimed they were siblings, and it was safe to assume the two of them embarked on their mercenary journey to avenge whoever they lost. The others-Parker, Zoe, and Kaz-probably joined up with them for the same reason: to avenge their lost loved ones taken away from them by Proditio. They were united under a common goal. Come to think of it, all six of us joined together for the same reasons- avenging a loved one. Would you help her if it meant getting your loved one, or ones, back?