Stolen Powers

Chapter Eight: A Wild Western Showdown

The next morning came, and I was thankful that nothing bad happened overnight. The storm died down and the normal outside world returned. It was bright, sunny, and very humid.

"Good morning guys. It's time to get up," my mom said sweetly.

I was still cuddling with Bailey, who was buried into a pillow after my mom woke her up. Rubbing my eyes, I rolled over onto my back before sitting up.

"Mason," Donovan said, and he was laughing.  "Your hair looks like a birds nest."

I shook my head and tried to fix it, but that only made all of them laugh at me more.

"Trust me, it's not worth it," Bailey said as she kissed me on the cheek before getting out of the bed. "Jamie, what do you think about sharing some clothes with me?"

Jamie frowned as she walked over to her bag and dig in it to see what she had. She held up a cute shirt and matching pants. Bailey smiled and reached for the clothes.

"Yeah, that'll work. Thank you," She said as she went into the bathroom to change.

"What's on the agenda today Mrs. Powell?" Donovan asked, trying to spark a conversation.

She shook her head. "Just get to Los Angeles. I think we can do it, it's just an eleven and a half hour drive is all. Not including gas stops and bathroom breaks."

"What about breakfast?" I asked as Bailey came back out, looking adorable.

My mom sighed. "Yeah, we'll get breakfast and stuff ourselves up. I was thinking we could stop in Phoenix for lunch if we make it on time."

I did the route in my head. "Yeah, that makes sense. Phoenix is about halfway."

Jamie nodded while she slipped into the bathroom to change as well. I glanced at the clock, and it was just past eight.

"Well if we're leaving, we need to do so soon. I don't want the NGZ catching up with us anytime soon," my mom said, looking out of the window before relaxing.

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We drove to a restaurant just outside of El Paso, and it looked nice to eat at. We were all starving, so nobody argued about getting out of Texas to eat. While nobody was looking, I pulsed my hand, and the electricity was still there. Donovan nudged me and shook his head.

The diner was packed, and I could hear a variety of English and Spanish being spoken with all kinds of different accents. I looked at Jamie, and she seemed to be calm about everything.

Then a man who looked a little stressed walked up to us. "How many?"

"Five," my mother said with a kind smile.

He turned around and scanned the restaurant for an open table, and his eyes fixed on one in a corner. I sighed in relief.

"Right this way," he said, motioning us to follow.

We followed him, and I constantly looked around the restaurant for any signs of danger, and fortunately it looked mostly normal. We sat down, and the man thanked us and walked away to host another family that just walked in.

"I feel bad for that guy," Bailey mumbled as she picked up the menu.

A few minutes later, a Hispanic man walked up to us and spoke with a thick accent that I strained to understand. "Hello, my name is José and I will be serving you today. What can I start you off to drink?"

"Yes, can I get a water?" My mom asked, and he frowned as he wrote it down.

Jamie's face turned to fear, and I lightly kicked Donovan in the shin to get his attention. I nodded towards her.

"And for you sir?" José asked kindly.

"Yeah, I would like a sweet tea."

He looked confused. "¿Lo siento?"

Jamie picked it up. "Dijo que le gustaría un té dulce."

José smiled and thanked her as he walked away with the drink orders.

"What's going on?" I said quietly to Jamie, which caught everyone else's attention.

"Don't turn around now, but I saw NGZ soldiers walk into the diner. I don't think they've spotted us."

I tensed up, and electricity sparked in my hand. Bailey scooted closer to me and held my hand to calm me down.

Jamie cursed under her breath. "One of them looked over this way. I think they know we're here."

I nodded, calmer now. "Just act like we're normal people that doesn't know anything about the NGZ, okay?"

Everyone nodded as the man came back with our drinks.

"Are we ready to order?"

Everyone nodded and he started with my mom. I casually turned around to look at the soldiers, and I saw them in full uniforms across the restaurant. One of them looked up and locked eyes with me, and he said something into his radio. I turned back around as I ordered my food with José.

As he walked away, my face grew more serious. "Once we get out of here, expect a fight."

Donovan bit the inside of his lip. "What about other people seeing us use our powers?"

I thought about that, then turned to Bailey. "Bailey, you're just going to have to restart them as they come up to us before it gets violent. Me and Donovan can take them down. We'll use our powers, but I can shock them without anyone seeing."

She nodded and the food came later on. We all dove in like we haven't eaten in days, which was what it felt like. Thinking about it now, it's been since home that we've last eaten.

José asked us if we wanted dessert, but I could tell all of us were anxious to leave, so we politely declined.

We got up to leave, and we tried our best to sneak out of the restaurant without being seen.

But that was unsuccessful, of course. We basically ran out of the diner, and the NGZ were already on our tails.

Once we were outside, it was time. We all faced them, and my fists were curled up into balls. Nobody said anything, just stood there like one of those Wild West cowboy fights.

The soldiers raised their guns, and we got in our fighting stances. I cleared my throat, which was the cue for Bailey to restart them.

It worked, but this time they held the side of their heads and groaned in pain.

"Now!" I said to Donovan as we ran up to them and began to shove them backwards. I shocked them every time I touched one of them, which set them on the ground groaning in pain.

We took that chance to get out of there before anyone else came. My mom started up the car, and we sped off north into New Mexico, escaping death this time from the NGZ

But we all knew there was more fights to come. It was too obvious.
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