“Maybe we can try to see if we can figure it out,” I say. “Right after we find freedom and aren’t running for our lives.”
“Can you tell me Zavy and Toby’s gifts or do they not trust me either?” Alexander asks. His voice is soft like a child’s, afraid he may get scolded for asking.
“Toby can master weapons with an enhanced sense of touch. Zavy called it an Aeros, I think.” I pause and Alexander nods. “Zavy said she was a Communicator with an enhanced sense of hearing.”
“So she can talk to animals?” Alexander asks amazed.
“She said so,” I say. I nudge Alexander slightly with my arm and add, “We’re all in this together now, Alexander.” He gives me a soft smile. I know Zavy doesn’t particularly want to work with Alexander. I remember she had tried to convince me to leave him behind, but if she knew he was here trying to find her she may change her mind.
“How many different combinations of gifts are out there?” Alexander asks me and I tilt my head confused. “Like Toby and I both have an enhanced sense of touch, but can do completely different things. I know we have this list we are trained on, but could there be more combinations?”
“I’d say the combinations are endless,” I admit and remember the dream I had a few nights ago about when Ms. White had lectured on gifts. “I remember Ms. White saying it was up to the power of the gift holder to unlock their full potential.”
“So maybe I could use my powers to master weapons like Toby if I was trained and had enough practice with it,” Alexander works out and I agree. Alexander begins to list off all the information we have about gifts, “You are a Force Lifter. Your mother and my father were both Future Holders. Zavy is a Communicator and Toby is an Aeros.”
“And Paylon is a Controller,” I say, finishing off the list.
“You must have enhanced sense of sight because your mother did,” Alexander says. Talking about her makes my heart ache, but differently now. The fact that I may have this power inside of me because of her makes me feel like I have a part of her with me.
“Maybe your mother had an enhanced sense of touch then,” I offer to Alexander and he nods. “Did you ever hear from her again?” I ask him, trying to recall everything I remember about her leaving. I was over at his house after school as normal. Alexander’s mother had told me I needed to go home and as I was packing up my bags she sat Alexander down to tell him that she needed to go away too.
“No, she never came back,” Alexander says and his voice is dry as he chokes out the words.
“Why did she leave?” I ask, wondering if I remember it correctly.
“Something about my father needing to protect me so she had to go away.” He pauses and adds, “It was a long time ago. I don’t really remember.” I wonder if he’s telling me the truth because I know the day my father left me is still clear in my head.
We’ve been walking for hours and still, neither of us has really said much other than a few comments about our gifts and families. We trade off on who carries the sword since we only have one to protect or hunt with. We’ve started to make our way out of the dry woods and are now back to lower ground where the trees seem to be more green. The air feels heavy with humidity and the dirt beneath our feet turns to a stiff mud. We stopped once to refill our water bottles earlier, and are about to stop a second time to take a break when I hear a branch snap up ahead.
“Alexander,” I whisper, my voice hoarse from not using it. Suddenly there’s another snap, and another, and then it sounds like our intruder is simply running through the woods, breaking anything in its path. A small baby deer runs out right in front of us and I flinch back. My mouth drops, as I watch two arrows fly down from a nearby tree and run straight into the deer causing it to crash to the ground.
My first thought is somehow Zavy got away from Paylon. I watch as someone drops from the tree where the arrow came from and by the strong muscular build I know it’s not Zavy. Another boy, slimmer, follows down the tree. Instinctually my hand finds the grip of the sword on my belt. The first has short brown hair that is just barely peeking through the off white colored hood he has pulled up over his head. He turns and faces us, letting his hand with the bow fall to his side. He takes his other hand and pushes his hood off his head revealing not only the fact that his hair has an intricate swirling design cut into it but also his odd caramel-colored eyes.
I take in a sharp breath when I realize how much they remind me of Titus’s eyes. When the guy speaks to us I can hardly believe what he says.
“Adaline, we’ve been waiting for you,” his strong voice booms.
“You’ve been waiting for me?” I hear myself ask, not recognizing my own voice.
“Yes, come with us and I’ll explain everything,” he says as he positions the bow on his shoulder. Him and his partner make their way toward the deer. They carefully remove the arrows from its side, and lift the deer together. They start heading deeper into the forest, not bothering to wait for us to go with them.
I start to step forward, but Alexander grabs my arm. “Whoa, where are you going?”
“He said to follow him,” I say and Alexander
