Gifted

Chapter Twenty-Three

"Wanna see what Kenzie's doing?"

"I'm too exhausted to keep up with Kenzie right now," I admitted. Halloween left me shaken; I didn't feel like going anywhere. Iris and I camped out in my room on Sunday like a couple of bums.

"What a boring Sunday..." Iris exhaled loudly.

I had to agree, but part of me didn't want to leave the safety of my cell, er, dorm. I knew I couldn't stay here forever. Aside from finding my room in disarray, I really had no reason to be afraid. I also had no proof that I had sensed anyone else on Halloween other than Chase. He pulled me out of the maze; there was no reason to believe it was anyone else. For some reason, I just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

I ignored the shudder that rippled through my body and jumped up. Iris jerked her head up in surprise.

"Let's go for a walk," I announced, resolving to get out of my room for a while.

Iris let her body sag back down in disappointment. "A walk?"

"Yeah, it's got to be better than sitting in here staring at each other!"

She wrinkled her nose and nodded. "You're right. I could use some fresh air; I really don't get outside enough." She pulled her dark hair back into a pony tail and headed to her room for warmer clothes.

Once we were out in the brisk fall air, we decided to walk across the courtyard, and then swing into the cafeteria for a cup of coffee. The campus looked bare without students milling about; the cold weather seemed to have kept most people inside. A couple strolled into the library together, deep in conversation. Iris and I walked quietly for a while just enjoying the fall atmosphere.

She finally turned her eyes on me. "Morgan, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"It's kind of private...maybe I shouldn't bring it up," she dismissed it.

I stopped on the sidewalk. "What's going on? You can ask me anything."

"Well, you might think I'm crazy, or you might understand. I don't think I'm wrong about this, but I just, well; I've never talked to anyone about this. Well, except for my mom...but anyway, I'm getting sidetracked."

An icy feeling climbed through my stomach and up to my throat. I had a bad feeling about this.

"I know about you Morgan. I know what you can do."

I stiffened and felt all the blood drain from my face.

"W-What do you mean?"

She chewed her lip for a moment and then sucked in a breath. "The things you can do."

"I really don't know what you're talking about." I continued walking toward the cafeteria. I had to try to blow it off.