Catalyst (22 page)

             
             
             
             
             
             
-John, Cathy, Ike, Sarah and our Ron, whom you took from us already…

             
"Oh…my…" Simon said behind me. "Brave souls," he whispered in reverence.

             
"They committed suicide," I muttered and though to me their death was honorable, even with the children there on the bed with them to spare them the horrors, it still hit too close to home for me. My own mother's suicide was something I'd
never completely worked
out. In fact, the shrink at the base said I was borderline incompetent and I was almost sent home for mental instability when I got the call. But I pulled my crap together
back
then
and I could do it now too.

             
"They weren't affected by the Lighter speak," I mused as I looked at the father's hasty scribbled words. "They knew exactly what the Lighters were."

             
"It would seem that you're correct. Strange. I'm very curious about what happened here."

             
"Doesn't matter now."

             
I set
the letter right back where I'd gotten it gently. I hoped the Lighter bastard who stepped into this house knew how to read. He'd be re
ading what was coming for him and
I'd make sure of it if it was the last thing I did.

             
Judgment was coming.

             
Hell was waiting.

Hell Is Waiting

Chapter 15
- Sherry

             
We'd barely gotten Lily into bed when someone was knocking on the hatch door. I bolted up in surprise
from the couch. People didn't just knock on our door. No one was in the store right now. In fact, we hadn't even figured out the whole store situation yet with Margo gone and all.
We were no longer allowed to sell
food except finishing up our inventory. We could only sell gas and maps and things like that.

             
So who was knocking on our door?

             
Max and I looked at each other a second before he blurred to the stairs. Ryan was right behind him. Lillian and Ellie came and stood beside me as we waited to see who had paid us a visit.

             
I wondered if Max
would say, "Who is it?" but he just
grabbed a stake,
unbolted the door and opened it in one quick motion. Then he growle
d and his hand holding the stake snapped forward.
I couldn't see who it was
,
but
assumed it wasn't someone good. M
eaning it was a Lighter.

             
But Ryan stopped him with a hand on his forearm and a, "Wait, brother."

             
"Wait for what? Ryan, what's wrong with you," he said and struggled against him.

             
"
This is the Lighter who helped us at the facility."

             
"Daniel," Lillian said softly and ran towards them. I followed.

             
There he was; dirty, disgusting, his clothes a mangled and torn mess. And he was watching Max's stake with wary eyes.

             
"Move, Max. Let him in!" Lillian insisted.

             
"He's a Lighter, Lillian. Have you lost your senses?"

             
"He's hurt," she said and pushed Max away
,
but he caught her by the arm and moved her behind him.

             
"What has gotten into you?" he asked her and then looked to Ryan. "Ryan-" he started.

             
"It's true, Max. He helped us," Ryan explained. "Daniel, how did you find us?"

             
"I…" he looked at Lillian guiltily, "I followed you that day."

             
"See!" Max insisted. "A tame Lighter is still a Lighter."

             
"No, let him in," Lillian pleaded. "He's hurt and dirty."

             
"He's not a puppy, Lillian," he scolded. "You can't just bring a Lighter in from the cold."

             
"Daniel," Ryan tried again. He seemed to be the only level headed one operating. "Why did you come?"

             
"
I can no longer work at the facilities. My cover is no more. They figured it out, they didn't know it was me, but they became very suspicious. I had to leave before they found me out."

             
"You didn't answer my
question,
"
he said quietly.

             
"I came because…I was invited," Daniel told him and looked at Lillian, then at me. "Does the offer still stand?"

             
"No!" Max boome
d and looked at Lillian and I sternly. "Don't even think about it.
What in the worlds has gotten into you two?
"

             
"Merrick was the one who invited him, Max," I rebutted.

             
"Well Merrick isn't here now, so no is my answer."

             
"Max," Ryan said and his eyes moved and bulged slightly as he looked at him. They were fighting in their heads. You could tell who was talking because their head moved slightly with the vehemence of their words.

             
"
He's a Lighter, Ryan!" Max bellowed. "A Lighter! The very opposite of us.
I don’t care what he did, he's not coming in here." He thought for a second. "As a matter of fact, we have to kill him."

             
He moved to push the stake through Daniel's belly
. We all moved forward
,
but there was no stopping the swiftness of a Keeper on a mission. Except another Keeper. Ryan and Max were locked in a never ending battle of arms and wills.
I heard Ellie's small gasp and looked to see her covering her lips with her fingers in clear distress.

             
I needed to intervene.

             
"Max," I said softly and went to stand next to them. They both strained against the other in a silent and strangely still fight. "He saved me, Max. He saved Lillian and Cain. He would have turned us in already if he was going to."

             
Max looked at me and I saw him soften the smallest bit
,
but he still scowled at me
as he said, "Look,
I'm not Merrick. I'm not going to just give you whatever you want because you pout at me."

             
"I'm not pouting. I'm asking," I said steadily.

             
"This is on you," he said
,
but still didn't let Ryan go. Or maybe it was the other way around.

             
"Understood
."

             
He took a deep breath and looked at Ryan, who removed his hands and the stake. Max swept his arm wide with a sardonic twist to his lips for Daniel to enter. Daniel, the most polite Lighter I knew, thanked him
,
but Max just scoffed and stomped off. But not before yelling
over his shoulder
, "All
on y
ou!"

             
Daniel, Lillian, Ryan and I stood at the stairs awkwardly. Finally Daniel spoke.

             
"I didn't mean to cause trouble. I told you before that I would not be accepted."

             
"It's fine," I answered. "Max is old school," I said
,
but forgot and changed
it
to something more simple. "He hasn't…acclimated like some of the other Keepers have to our way of thinking."

             
"So you said you got caught?" Lillian asked getting right down to business. "What happened?"

             
"Well," Daniel drawled like he wasn't sure…or didn't want to say. He lifted his shirt and showed us a massive gash on his side. Lillian gasped and kn
elt to look at it. "Normally, my skin
would have healed by now. I don't understand it, but I had to kill my brother who gave me this. If I can't heal, I have no idea how I would keep that from them."

             
I glanced
at
Ryan. He was gaping at Daniel's wound like it was a bomb.

             
"Wait," I stopped Daniel
. "You're not…spurting light like the others do, from your wound."

             
He looked at me pointedly and nodded grimly. "I know."

             
"What could that mean?"
I asked him as I went to the cabinet and got some gauze and tape.

             
"
I can not conjure a response for that."

             
I almost smiled at his formal tone and language. Lillian held her
hand
out for the supplies and didn't even look at me. Again, I wanted to smile. Oh boy…the boys were not going to like this when they got home.

             
"
What the…" Max said and we looked up. He was white as a ghost. "How is that possible?"

             
"I don't-"

             
Max wasn't giving him any room to talk. He marched right up to him to examine himself. "It went clean through." He
looked up at Daniel's face. "You were run
through."

             
Daniel nodded. "Yes, he found me sn
eaking water bottles. We fought.
I lost until…I didn’t lose anymore.
He died when I ran him through.
I didn't."

             
"What does this mean?" I asked Max.

             
"Your guess is as good as mine."

             
Then Lily walked in.

             
"Hi!" I heard brightly behind me. We all turned and Lily was standing there with her doll; innocent and oblivious.

             
"Lily, get back!" Max barked and I looked at him funny. He looked at Daniel and then back at me. "I have no idea what this means, Sherry. Are you willing to risk it?"

             
I huffed
,
but before I could say anything either way, Lily came forward and grabbed my hand.

             
"Hi
," she said to Daniel.

             
"Hello."

             
It was then that I finally looked up to his face. He was fully involved in t
he Lily trance; full blown, no
way out, tractor beam. I pressed my lips together to stop the smile. Max was in no mood for anything above the line of disgruntled.

             
"Does that hurt?" Lily asked and scrunched her nose at his stomach.

             
"It does. Yes," he answered cautiously and a little stiffly.

             
"You should put a band-aid on it. Mommy has plenty," she said and tugged on my hand. She then moved her head and eyes in an impatient gesture. "Get him a band-aid, Mommy."

             
"Honey, he needs a little bit more than just a band-aid."

             
"Ooooooooh," she said like it was a light bulb kind of revelation. Then, "Well, we can help him."

             
"How?" I asked
,
but immediately felt chagrinned for doing so. Lily however walked right up to him. Max started to stop her but I held my hand out. For some strange reason…I needed to see this out. She crooked her finger to beckon him down to her.
He went without hesitation to his knees in front of her. He held his side out of pain
,
but the grimace was replaced with a small
surprised
smile as she took his face in between her small alabaster hands.

             
"I see you in there," she said to him softly. I gasped a little, not knowing what to make of it all. She looked back at me. "It's ok, Mommy. He's not a bad man. I can help him."