Blue Violet

chapter 21



Griffin sped his motorcycle as fast as it would go as he mentally followed the insane fight his twin was engaged in.

Who the HELL takes on a pack of wolves single-handedly?

He shook his head, terrified he was too far away to be able to do anything about it, and squeezed the gas even harder. He’d been at home sleeping when he’d heard her scream. Ellie never called him like that. It could only mean that she’d run into serious trouble.

He was still too far away for them to be able to share their powers or for him to project his defensive shield around her. Cranking up the engine, he pushed the bike past its limits, and possibly past his ability. He didn’t know if he was going to be able to get to her in time. Just a few more minutes, and he’d be close enough.

“Hold on, Ellie, I’m coming,” he tried projecting to her, hoping that she’d hear him somehow.

As he hit the invisible boundary of distance needed in order to be able to access each other’s powers, he leapt from the seat of the motorcycle and into the air. Now a falcon, Griffin quickly gained the height he needed and focused in on where the fight was taking place.

*****

Alex heard the cacophony of a terrible struggle outside. As he headed downstairs to investigate, the girls and Nate burst through the back door.

“They’re killing her!” yelled Lila. She was white with fear and panting heavily. “She’s keeping them away from us and they’re killing her!”

“Who’s killing whom?” her father, Hugh, demanded. He dropped his book and jumped from his chair.

“Ellie!” Adelaide answered, her eyes seeking Alex’s as she said the name. She doubled over, panting hard. “There’s a pack of wolves…” She pointed to where they’d just come in.

When Alex realized who she meant, his heart stopped beating and bile rose in his throat. Without a second thought, he was out the back door and running toward the fray. As he sprinted across the clearing, all he could see was a furry blur and teeth. “I can’t see her!” he cried to Nate, who had followed him.

“She’s the black jaguar in the middle of it all!” Nate shouted.

Alex gave a brief nod, immediately accepting the bizarre explanation. He didn’t have time to devote thought to all of the implications, although a small part of his brain was thinking, What the hell?! He knew he’d have to deal with it later. Right now he just had to get her out of there.

Realizing that Dexter and Ramsey had followed them as well, he rapped out instructions. “I’m going to freeze them!” he yelled. “Once they’re still, get in there and get her clear. Then I’ll take care of her and release them for you to hit ‘em hard.”

Alex didn’t bother to see if the others had even heard him, let alone agreed. As soon as he got close enough, he stopped running, took a deep breath, and focused all his power. Instantly, the five wolves froze in mid-motion. Holding them there, he watched as Nate, Dexter, and Ramsey moved in. Nate, being the strongest, pulled the massive onyx cat out from under the wolves and over to where Alex stood. He didn’t flinch, his focus solely on the wolves. He had never tried to hold a metamorph still before, let alone five of them. Once Ellie was clear, he released the pack and turned his full attention to her, confident that Nate, Dexter, and Ramsey would handle the wolves. He would need his power to help Ellie.

*****

Just moments before Alex froze the wolves, Griffin reached the clearing. From the air, he’d been able to see his jaguar-sister battling five huge timber wolves. But, unfortunately, he was still too far away to project his defensive shield around her. Diving toward the action, Griffin briefly considered calling to Ellie through their mental link but dismissed the idea, not wanting to distract her even for a second.

A sound of the mighty jaguar’s scream had split the still night air, and Griffin had known a second of the blackest rage and utter despair. He was going to be too late. There was too much movement for Griffin to be able to make out exactly what was happening, but he knew one thing for certain… His sister was going to die and there was nothing he could do to save her.

But suddenly, the wolves had frozen in mid-fight as though they’d been turned to statues. He saw a tall, blond boy run into the midst of the solidified fray and pull Ellie out, leaving her with another male. Griffin recognized Alex, Ellie’s te’sorthene.

*****

Dropping down to his knees beside Ellie, Alex ignored the fight raging in front of him, trusting Nate, Dexter, and Ramsey to keep the wolves off them, and choosing instead to keep all of his skill focused on Ellie. He would’ve tried to hold the wolves still and let the guys kill them right then and there, but he needed every ounce of his power to help Ellie now.

Weakened from her injuries, Ellie shifted back to her human form. She was bleeding badly from the multitude of gruesome-looking gashes all over her body—the worst on the back of her leg. He could tell she had several broken bones, judging from the odd angles of two of her limbs.

But she was still breathing.

Alex used his power to staunch the blood pulsing out of the gash in her leg. But it was tricky. He had to try to stop the blood only on the surface of the vessel, making sure that the blood in her body continued to pump. If he was off even just a little, he could kill her.

Adding physical pressure to two of the bloodiest gashes, Alex waited for the fight with the wolves to be over. He needed Hugh, but he knew his adopted father had stayed behind to protect the rest of the family.

Ellie’s eyelids flickered. “Alex?”

“It’s me…You’re okay now.” He smoothed the blood-matted hair back from her face and bent to give her a quick kiss on her forehead.

“Lila, Adelaide, Nate?” she asked in a broken whisper.

“All safe. You just concentrate on not dying on me.”

*****

Realizing that he could talk to her now without distracting her, Griffin pulled slightly out of his dive and thought her name.

“I’m still here, Griffin,” she answered him silently.

“I’m coming to you, Ellie.”

“No!” she protested. “Protect the family first. If you can get to her, tell Charlotte to come to me.” She knew that Griffin would understand exactly why she was asking for Charlotte.

*****

Alex watched as Ellie closed her eyes again. She looked so pale and so much blood was seeping from her body. He raged inside at his utter helplessness. There had to be something else he could do.

“Ellie?” He tried to get her to talk, keep her with him until Hugh could get to her.

“Griffin…” she murmured. “No,” she said, a little louder. “Protect the family first.” She mumbled something else unintelligible. She wasn’t making any sense.

Alex’s anxiety level ratcheted up another few notches. Clearly Ellie was delirious. She was losing too much blood, and she needed Hugh now. Alex tried harder to stop the blood coming out of the gash in her leg, terrified he’d stop the wrong part of her body. Jaw clenched, sweat dripped down his face with the effort, he held on, praying she wouldn’t die.

*****

Griffin landed between Ellie and the wolf pack and morphed back to a human. Starting with Ellie and Alex, he threw his defensive shield up around everyone but the wolves. This included the house, as he wasn’t sure who was where. This took a tremendous amount concentration and control, as he had to split his shield into several areas without allowing the wolves in.

With the small amount of concentration he could afford to devote elsewhere, he mentally called for Charlotte. He knew she had heard him as soon as he saw a small figure appear beside his sister’s prone form.

*****

A deafening silence fell over everything. All Alex could hear was Ellie’s labored breathing—like she was inhaling liquid—and the thunder of his own heartbeat. Beside him, the sound of a pop announced Charlotte’s arrival.

“Can you get us back to the house?” he asked without looking up from Ellie.

“I don’t think I can,” Charlotte’s voice trembled.

Ellie fluttered her eyes open. “I can. Take my hand, both of you,” she instructed, so weak her voice was barely audible. “Griffin can’t hold this many shields for much longer.”

Sensing the urgency, Alex and Charlotte didn’t bother with questions and both took her hand. With a pop they were suddenly next to Dexter, Nate, and Ramsey. The three, who had been fighting off the wolves, were now standing and looking bewildered that the wolves didn’t seem to be able to touch them, even though nothing visible was preventing them from doing so.

“Tell them to grab hold,” Ellie’s voice sounded in Alex’s head.

Never taking his eyes from her face, although Alex could see she was getting noticeably more fragile every second, he shouted the instructions to the others. As soon as his brothers touched her, another pop sounded, and they were all inside the house with everyone else.

“Now, Griffin!” Ellie yelled, before slumping into Alex’s arms, slipping into unconsciousness.

A horrendous sound broke over the house, like a clap of thunder when lightning struck close.

And then silence.