Chapter Thirty-Seven
Echo
Almost everyone was on patrol tonight; Seahill Square was a madhouse. Everyone was celebrating the New Year and it was nice to see everyone getting along.
But we were still ready for any disturbances.
I was standing in front of the crowd, next to the barrier erected near the ball, eyes scanning for anything suspicious, when a blur moved past my peripheral vision.
Leon was standing in front of me with an alarmed face.
“Leon?” I was confused as to why he was here; this type of scene was definitely not his.
His blond hair was disheveled, as if he had just rolled out of bed.
“That pastor’s wife came to Asher about the crazy doctor. She said he was talking to the pastor about killing people tonight. Here.” His words were rushed, and his face scanned the crowd, looking for the doctor. But Leon hadn’t met him before—only Asher, Draco, Rose, and I had.
Everything I’d been thinking fell into place in my head. Dr. Bellmont was the killer, and he wasn’t going to kill everyone tonight. There was something bigger than him happening tonight.
“We can’t evacuate this many people without panic.” I looked around for the chief— he needed to hear what I had to say.
The people started to count down as the ball above me began to descend.
“Keep your eyes open for anything suspicious. Are the others around? Have Rose feel for any dangerous emotions. I already know Phillip is trying to find the best outcome for this night. Lilith needs to get to a high point and watch. They could get trampled if the crowd gets scared.” I was nervous but focused. I hoped that Sarah Burke was wrong, and that nothing would happen tonight, but an instinct inside me suggested otherwise.
Leon nodded and then was gone.
“Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Happy New Year!” The happy screams were deafening as couples grabbed each other for kisses and hugs. I think there were even some strangers exchanging kisses.
Confetti started falling from where the ball met the end of its countdown pole.
I waited among the drifts of colored paper falling around us, so far nothing was happening. If someone was going to cause chaos, one would have thought it would have been at midnight. Bigger show and all.
Ten minutes passed, and everyone was still cheering their hearts out, and I was beginning to think Sarah had been mistaken, but then I heard a scream from somewhere in the crowd. Not a happy sound, but a scared sound. I looked at Randy, the cop to my right, and signaled for him to go check it out. No one was panicking yet, and that was what we wanted to maintain for as long as we could.
I felt a tickle in the back of my throat from the cold wind and started to cough to relieve the itch.
Then I saw Asher running toward me, and I couldn’t have been happier to see that he was safe.
“Asher, what are you—” Before I could finish asking him why he was here, his body dropped to the ground and blood started pouring out of his skin. Slits on his forehead appeared, and I screamed as I took off for his body.
“Please no, Asher!” I cried for this to be a dream, and he wasn’t dying before my eyes. I heard other screams around me and cries of pain, but I couldn’t see beyond Asher’s glossy eyes as he bled out in my arms.
“Don’t you die, magic boy. You heal yourself and then help me catch Bellmont. There is no way I’m losing you, too.” I ran my fingers down his face, wishing I had his magical influence over energy.
“I love you, Echo.” He shuddered, and then his breathing stopped. I roared in pain, my heart shattering, and I became a bear without thinking. My human form couldn’t process the emotions of losing the man I loved, so my animal took over.
“Welcome to the New Year!” a familiar voice yelled into a microphone from the stage above.
The crowd was screaming and shifting, terrified by the sudden presence of the bear and the bleeding bodies around them.
My eyes narrowed, and I didn’t even care that people could see me change as I became a hawk and flew toward Robert Burke with revenge in my heart.
He was part of this.
“Fear is the path to redemption. Look around you, those who were born with the powers from Satan himself are a danger to us. They know our fears and have control over our very safety. We must stop them before they spread their plague among the holy.”
I changed before him into a woman, not caring that literally all of the world was seeing me naked. I wanted him brought to justice and that was all that mattered.
“See, a woman with hate in her soul will set fire to the world. This demon changes into any animal she chooses. She can turn on you like a lion looking for prey and become a fly on your wall, listening to your personal matters.”
A fly on the wall?
That thought stopped me. He knew more than he was letting on.
“Those with powers, you have been outed, as we normal, God-fearing people deserve to know who we stand beside. Every one of you have been given a drug that showed you a hallucination of your greatest fears. And since we know you are all cowards who hide in the night, you will stay in that hallucination forever.” Robert smiled at me, and I read between the lines of his words.
Hallucination of our greatest fears.
My greatest fear was losing someone I loved again after getting close. I turned toward the crowd below and scanned the faces. He wasn’t dead. I knew it. I had faith that Asher wasn’t dead, and when I heard someone call out my name, I knew I was right.
Asher was staring at me with wide eyes, concern written all over his face.
My body sagged with relief, seeing him there.
“Face your fears,” I whispered to myself and turned back toward Robert, whose eyes were roaming over my body with unnerving desire.
“I was instructed to give you this.” He pulled out a card with a single rose attached to the paper.
“You know you’re declaring war, and this is one you will lose.” I grabbed the card and held the rose in my other hand.
“This is God-mandated, my dear. Ridding the world of demon spawn. You should not exist.” He grinned like he was above me and spit on the ground between us.
“You kill me, and I won’t release the antidote for the hallucinogen. There’s a widespread panic down there. Once I make it into the crowd, I will set them free of their fear. The damage is already done.” He started walking toward the door that led to the stairs down to the ground level.
“I will get you. Maybe not today, but one day,” I vowed, and he bowed his head and slipped behind the door.
My fingers fumbled with the card and saw chicken scratch handwriting inside.
One single Rose and a cut to set her free, an angel is born, and the sheep will follow thee.
One beast to rescue where death stands still, and finish what has been given to me as God’s will.
I examined the rose and dropped it to the ground in a frenzy.
Changing into a hawk again, I flew down to Asher, switching to my human form after I landed. He pulled me into an embrace as I told him to have everyone meet me at headquarters before transforming again and flying off to get into gear and prepare for a fight.
They want a war. I’ll bring them a war.