Ella Awakened (5 page)

Ella sat up
with a start.  She looked at the clock; it was almost 5:00 AM.  Everything
Burke had told her came crashing back.  Was he trying to tell her he wanted her
to kill this Demon?  WTF!  He was delusional.  She was going to throw up.  When
she tried to stand, she fell to the floor.  She began to crawl towards the
bathroom.  Burke had been asleep on the couch.  She must have woken him,
because as usual, he came running.  He was always coming to help her.  It was a
trait she had thought endearing at first, but now she was starting to sense it
was all so she’d be well enough to throw at the Demon.  Gee, Thanks.  He bent
down next to her to try to help her up.

Ella felt
crushed beneath the weight of the physical and emotional stress of the past few
days.  “Leave me alone!  I don’t need your help!”  She shoved him away more
violently than she had intended.  He hit the wall hard.  Ella crumbled,
covering her mouth with her hands.  She didn’t think she was going to make it
to the bathroom.  Burke was right back next to her.  He was pretty fast himself
and stronger than he let on.  He picked her up and carried her to the
bathroom.  He knelt next to her holding her hair and rubbing her back as she
threw up.  She felt like she was falling apart.

Burke got a
cup of water for her to rinse her mouth and washed her face with a wet cloth. 
Picking her up again, he carried her back to the bedroom.  “I’ll go get you
something for the pain,” he told her.

“I don’t
want you to get me anything!  I want you to take me home,” she retorted.

“Ella, I can’t
take you home.  They won’t know what to do for you.  They’ll probably take you
to the hospital, and who knows what’ll happen then.  You could wind up some
government guinea pig.”

“What’s the
difference; government guinea pig or your sacrificial lamb?”  She leaned
forward, refusing to settle back against the pillows.

“What’s
gotten into you?  What are you talking about?”

“The Demon -
you want me to kill the Demon.  You’re helping me because you need me.”

Burke
frustratingly raked his hands through his hair.  He wanted to take her hand,
touch her, sooth her – something.  “Ella, you’ve got it all wrong.  I’ve been
completely straight with you.  Yes, I need your help, but never for a second
will I leave your side.  I’m strong, but you have no idea of the strength
you’ll have.  We have the advantage.”

“You said
nine lives were taken on your world, and that warriors – plural – were
injured.”

“I also said
the Demon draws its strength from those it kills.  It’s nowhere near as strong
now as it was then.  It has been feeding on humans, and humans are nothing like
us Ella.  They’re weak, fragile and slow.  Granted I’m not a warrior, but I
could still toss a human around like a ragdoll.  The strongest and fastest on
this planet would be no match even for the common folk from my world.  It will
be dangerous, but we will be cautious.  We each have gifts that the other
doesn’t.  We complement each other Ella.  Yes, I need you, and I’d like to
think you need me too.  It’s you and I; there are no others.  Are we to let
this monster live, ravaging the innocents of this world who have no defense
against it?  It took Jill Stevens easily enough.  The authorities think she
drowned.  Hell, I did the autopsy myself.  The Demon leaves no trace.”

“What?  You
did the autopsy yourself?”  Ella huffed and pressed her fingers to her temples.

“I’m one of
the city’s medical examiners.”

“Oh wow,”
Ella said sarcastically.  “This just keeps getting better and better.  How the
heck is some alien voodoo guy qualified to be a medical examiner?  Who
interviewed you – Santa Clause?  Did he check your credentials?”

“Go ahead;
be a smart aleck.  It’s not hard to buy paperwork.  Degrees, references, proof
of experience, credentials – they can all be bought for the right price.  That
black diamond around your neck is worth several hundred thousand.  I sold my
father’s ring for just under a million, made some investments, and did what I
needed to do.  I needed to be in a position to know when things went south.  As
far as how good I really am at my job, how many people do you know who can
determine cause of death with a touch of their hands?  It absolutely looked
like a drowning.  Anyone would have said so, cut and dry.  But when I laid my
hands on her I knew.  I saw what happened.  Of course, I can’t report anything
that can’t be shown factual by Earth’s standards.  Now if you’re finished
insulting my dedication and methods, I’m heading out to the greenhouse to
gather some herbs.  I don’t know how
you’re
feeling, but I’m getting a
splitting headache!”

Burke
stormed out of the room leaving Ella to herself.  She felt bad.  He didn’t
deserve her hostility.  Physically she felt a little better since she had been
sick, less nauseated anyway.  She stood up and slowly made her way through the
house, steadying herself against the wall.  When she got to the backdoor, she
went through and almost decided just to sit and wait on the back steps after
seeing the distance to the greenhouse. 
No
,
he deserves an apology
,
she thought and started across the yard.

Burke had
been deep in thought and almost jumped out of his skin when the greenhouse door
opened.  “Congratulations, I’m usually not so easy to sneak up on,” he told her
as he helped her to the chair in the middle of the room. 

Looking
around, Ella was mesmerized by the colors and smells.  “Look,” Ella said,
remembering why she’d trekked out here, “I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry. 
I had no right to be so snappy and presuming with you.  This is all coming at
me so fast, and it’s a lot to take in.  I’m not saying I think I can do this
thing, and I’m not saying you’re not absolutely nuts, but I do appreciate your
help.  And for what it’s worth, I do trust you.”

“Come on
back inside,” he said.  He put his arm around her to help her along.  Once Ella
was settled again in bed, Burke brought her something to eat, some more tea,
and another pill.

“That was
the Demon I saw in the library, wasn’t it?” she asked as Burke settled into the
chair in the corner of the room.

“Yes.  He
would have looked completely normal to anyone else, just some guy in the
library.  But you’re not just like anyone else; you had already started
awakening.  You saw evil in its true form because your senses are
transitioning.  What your body is going through right now is truly marvelous. 
During the awakening, as your body is changing, you have incredible bursts of
strength and speed - incredible even for our people.  Your senses are
fluctuating too, which greatly contributes to the headaches.  You were able to
see the Demon because you had started awakening.  That’s also why you were able
to get away from me so quickly outside of the library.  I know he’s capable of
showing his true form when he chooses, but I think he was just as surprised as
you were at your reaction to him.  Once you’re through the awakening everything
will settle out, although for the first year or so you’ll be at your most
powerful.  I don’t know all of the Demon’s capabilities.  I’m not sure if he
sensed your growing strength or knew your true nature.  I don’t know if he knew
you saw him in his natural state.  I do know he shows himself to his victims when
he kills them.  Either way, I’m glad you’re safe here with me.  I can only assume
he was looking for a victim; Jill was killed within twenty-four hours of you
seeing the Demon in the library.”

Great, now
she felt like even more of a jerk for her behavior earlier.  “I’m glad I’m here
with you, too.”

Burke stood
up and walked over to the bed when she finished eating and seemed comfortable. 
He leaned down and looked her in the eye.  “Next time you try to shove me
through a wall, Ella Fitzgerald, I’m going to tranquilize you,” he said.  He
kissed her on the forehead, picked up the tray with the dirty dishes on it, and
left the room.

~~

Burke cleaned
up around the house a little, and then decided to call Carl to see what was
going on at work.  He tried his friend’s cell phone, but had to leave a message
when Carl didn’t answer.  Burke had just sat down to an early lunch when Carl
called him back.

“Hey, sorry
I missed your call.  We just brought a body in.  I was right in the middle of
the field exam when you called and figured I’d just get back to you.”

“Yeah, what
does it look like?”

“It’s a
young guy, early twenties.  He was apparently out jogging.  There wasn’t any
blood or anything at the site.  There aren’t any contusions other than what
you’d expect from the fall.  There also wasn’t any sign of a weapon or foul
play at the crime scene.  Someone just found him lying there and called the
department.  He did break his arm when he fell.  Other than that I’m working on
it.  I haven’t really started anything here yet.”

“Okay, I was
just calling to check in with you.  Anything else come through since I’ve been
out?”

“No, I’ve
got this, my workaholic friend.  You don’t have to check in; I’ll give you a
call if I need you.  Everything’s cool here.  Go do something fun.”

“All right,
but seriously, don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything.” 

Burke hung
up the phone.  Crap.  Young guy, nothing obvious.  He was going to have to go
down there and check it out.  Ella needed to get through the rest of today and
tomorrow.  He didn’t want to leave her, but he had to find out cause of death.

Burke went
into the bedroom to check on Ella.  She was sleeping peacefully, but there was
no telling how long that would last.  He would go into work, but he’d have to
make a few preparations for Ella first in case she woke up.  He had no idea how
long he was going to wait just for the chance to get a few minutes alone with
the body.  He went out to the greenhouse and cleaned a few things out of a
small dorm room sized refrigerator.  Trying to be quiet, he carried the
refrigerator into the bedroom and set it on the floor so he could clear the
bedside table.  Once the table was ready, he set the refrigerator on it,
plugged it in, and then went to the kitchen.  He had mixed some tea for Ella
earlier, so he got two sports bottles with lids from the cabinet and filled
them with the tea.  He made a turkey and cheese sandwich and put it in a Ziploc
baggie.  Returning to the bedroom, he put the sandwich and tea in the little
fridge.  Burke stood watching Ella and thinking for a moment.  She would
probably need the Demerol and possibly some crackers and ginger ale to settle
her stomach.  He went back to the kitchen, got a small basket and put the
Demerol, some saltines, and a package of peanut butter crackers in it.  Burke
got a piece of paper and wrote Ella a note.

Ella,

Something
has come up, and I needed to make a quick trip into town.  There’s a sandwich
for you if you feel up to eating something, or crackers and ginger ale if
you’re nauseated.  The two sports bottles have the tea to help your headache,
and the bottle of Demerol is in the basket.  Take one or two pills with the tea
depending on how bad you feel.  I’ve also left a waste basket beside the bed if
you get sick.  Your cell phone is in the basket on top of the refrigerator, and
I’ve programmed my cell number into it.  Please call me when you wake up.  I’m
sorry I had to leave, but I’ll be back as soon as possible.  Don’t leave the
house.

See you
soon – Burke

Burke taped
the note to the front of the refrigerator, put the ginger ale inside, and put
the basket on top.  He put the waste basket close to the bedside table where
Ella wouldn’t fall over it, then stood and surveyed the room once more. 
Satisfied, Burke got his keys and left the house.

~~

Burke
couldn’t help but be worried and nervous as he made the drive to work.  It had
only been a few days since the Demon had taken Jill.  If this young man who had
just been found was the second victim, the Demon was moving really fast.  Burke
could only go on what had happened last time, but then the Demon hadn’t worked
this fast.  Was it because the humans weren’t giving him as much strength? 
Ella wasn’t ready yet.  Burke had to see this over, and he couldn’t do it
alone.  After the car accident at the beginning of the last cycle, it had been
all he could do to lead the monster away from Ella.  Burke had fled and the
Demon had followed, being drawn like a magnet to Burke’s strength.  Though
there’d been a trail of destruction, Ella had been spared. 

Burke pulled
into the parking lot at the Office of the Medical Examiners.  It was a small
facility attached to the police precinct, but they had up to date equipment. 
It was just Burke and Carl, and they got along really well.  In spite of the
stress one would expect from such a job, Burke had come to enjoy his work
here.  The department’s conviction rate had risen since he’d been hired, and he
knew he contributed to putting away criminals who might have otherwise gone
free.  Carl’s car was in its usual spot.  Burke entered the building through
the side door.

He only
needed a few minutes alone with the body.  Hopefully it wouldn’t be hard to
get; Carl was sure to take a break at some point.  The problem was that Burke
wanted to get back to Ella as soon as possible.  He wasn’t trying to hang out
here for hours waiting for Carl to need a bathroom break.  Burke peeked through
the window in the door of the first autopsy room.  It was empty.  Going to the
second room, Burke again peeked inside.  There was the young man on the table,
and Carl wasn’t in the room.  Burke opened the door and went inside.  He
approached the table and went around to the victim’s head.  Cradling the young
man’s head in his hands, Burke closed his eyes and waited.