Carnations for Emily

Chapter 27: A Moment Shortlived...

Jamie and Emily separated from the kiss, both of their cheeks burning red.
Jamie blinked for a couple moments, Emily looked away embarrassed...
She got off of him and sat back down on the flower bed twiddling her thumbs.
"S-sorry Jamie...
I couldn't help myself." She then buried her face in her hands, secretly smiling for inside there were fireworks going off in her heart.
Jamie leaned up stunned.
"Her lips... were so soft..." he thought.
"Ahem, it's fine... it's not like I didn't enjoy it." Jamie ran a hand through his hair trying to calm down.

Night was beginning to fall.
"It's getting late already?" Emily frowned.
"I was... hoping to spend more time together..." she mumbled.
Jamie hopped up from the flower bed and scratched the back of his head.
"Well, I guess we oughta head back.
If I'm thinking right, most places are closed by now here."
"Alright, I guess so." Emily said.
As the two of them head for home again they started talking about what they each had to do in the coming weeks.
"Oh darn, I should probably head back home to Seattle soon, I completely forgot that I had came here for only a little bit." Emily giggled.
Jamie thought quietly to himself.
"I need to find out what happened to mother all those years ago...
And Zack is planning something too.
I just know it, but what?"
"Jamie? You okay?" Emily spoke out to him again.
"Yeah! Yeah, I'm alright." Jamie said.
Emily puffed out her cheeks again.
"I swear it's hard to tell what you're thinking sometimes."
"Sorry I can't help it." Jamie cracked his finger as he said that.
"You know that can't be good for you right? Cracking your fingers like that?" Emily huffed.
"I know, it's just a bad habit I gained." Jamie smiled.

As they got out of the wooded area of the park Emily couldn't help but reach for Jamie's hand.
Hoping he'll let her hold it.
To her surprise, he did.
Emily couldn't help but smile, yet Jamie just blushed hard.
It was quiet, but peaceful.
Until a voice called out to the two of them...
"Aww look at the lovely couple!"
Jamie quickly recognized the voiced, the inner rage in his heart flared to life as his eyes became discolored once more.
The left turning a bright crimson red...
"I told you I wasn't done with you, friend." It was Zack, he had stepped out of the shadows and into the faint glow of a street lamp revealing his black coat.
"All I need is you.
I have to continue my fathers research." He said.
"You're... fathers research?" Jamie was confused.
"Oh right, you were too young to understand.
I can't blame you though, I was too." Zack paused.
"You see Jamie, if you recall, your father Harvey...
The fool along with your mother were struggling to make ends meet when you and your brother, Nick were born." He continued.
"Right..." Jamie said.
"Well when I was young my father was researching ways to make humans live longer, make them stronger.
Unlock all the parts of the human mind.
He found out that through blood transfusions this can be achieved.
Yet, he was running out of test subjects.
He put out all sorts of flyers, notices, that's sorts of stuff.
Saying he'd pay massive amounts for anyone that would sign up.
Then your gullible father came along..." Zack began to smile as he pushed his glasses up.

"Turns out, he was the best test subject my father could've got his hands on.
Over time and through transfusions he began to change.
His blue eyes turned red and his brown hair turned white.
Slowly, the effects began to take hold.
The only negative was that he was losing his mind too.
Soon enough, he practically became a crazy person and was let go.
Only your mother you and your brother was left.
You mother didn't meet the requirements but your brother, and you, especially you." Zack's smile turned creepy.
"Father managed to rip you two from your mothers arms and soon enough you two went into testing too.
Thanks to your mothers genetics you were more stable the your father, your brother, not so much."
"So this is why I'm so fucked up." Jamie thought to himself and tightened his grip on Emily's hand without him knowing.
"Jamie?" Emily stood closer to him.
She could tell Zack's words were getting to him.
"I believe you'd like to know what happened to your mother correct?" As Zack said this Jamie perked up.
"You know what happened?!" He blurted.
"Of course I do, I am my fathers son after all." Zack's smile became crooked.
"My father put her down." As the words left his lips Jamie sprung on him, slamming him into the concrete sidewalk.
"What do you mean?" Jamie hissed as his red eye flared.
"Oh don't act dumb, you know exactly what I mean.
She died.
My father used a deadly toxin that killed her as soon as she was injected with the syringe.
And the best part is, you saw the whole thing!"
Zack used his weight to flip himself over and pin Jamie to the ground this time.
"You got lucky and managed to get away all those years ago...
Since the throwing knife my father threw at you pierced not only your eye but straight through you little brain, no idea how your survived, you fell over and he thought you were dead.
Unlucky for him you were still alive, except your memory was trashed.
So you managed to escape." Zack smiled as he pulled a knife from his jacket.
He ran it along the side of Jamie's chest around the heart and whispered.
"But I've found you again..."
In a flash Zack shoved the knife into Jamie's side making him scream.
Jamie kicked Zack off but struggled to get on his feet.
"Don't worry!
You'll be fine, thanks to all the experiments, you should heal that wound in no time." Zack chuckled.
"Now be a good little test subject and come with me.
I need to finish my fathers research."
Jamie got back up and pulled the knife out of his side.
Tossing it to the ground he hissed with venom in his words:
"Piss... off!" Jamie was about to rush Zack again until he noticed Emily wasn't where she was...
Zack has her in a chokehold.
"Jamie..." she said with fear in her voice.
"You can either come with me and she won't get hurt or you can defy me and she'll meet the same fate as your mother." Zack, in the hand that wasn't holding Emily, was hold a syringe...
"Tch..." Jamie stopped in his tracks.
"I can't let this happen again...
I'm stronger now... why?
Why is this happening again!" He thought to himself.
Fear and despair gripped his heart.
He wasn't sure what to do...

When what seemed like time stopped something rustled in the bushes near by.
A dagger came flying out towards Zack who managed to duck out of the way with Emily still in a grip.
"So you did follow me.
Louis." Zack smirked.
Sure enough, Louis came walking out from the bush.
His black coat was in rags and one of the sleeves was ripped off.
When Jamie looked closer he could tell that the arm that should've been there wasn't.
It was a prosthetic, an arm made of light metallic material.
"I knew you were up to know good.
You and you're father are the reason Jamie is in such dismay.
I'll kill you for doing him and his family harm." Louis drew his other dagger at the ready.
"Oh dear, it appears I'm out matched." Zack wore a crooked smile once again and looked to Jamie.
Before his eyes, Zack spun the syringe in a stabbing position and pierced Emily in the neck...

"Jamie...?" Emily said in a hush.

Her eyes closed and her body went limp.
Zack tossed her to the ground and ducked as Louis swung at him.
Effortlessly, Zack kicked him away.
Dropping a smoke bomb, he disappeared once more as the smoke cleared.
With a scream of sheer terror, Jamie ran to Emily's side with tears in his eyes.
"Emily? Emily?! Open your eyes!"
Not only did he break his promise to Jack.
But he just lost somebody he realized he truly loved...
More than anything in the world...

Chapter 27: End