Emily Shorn
Chapter 4
The sun shone in her eyes. That's what woke her up. Then the feel of something soft against her skin unsettled her. When she opened her eyes, she felt sure that blasted Mastermind had captured her. How else could she explain her beautiful surroundings? She couldn't remember ever seeing a place this grand before. True, at some point in her life she had lived in one of the richest cities on the Mediterranean, but since then so much had happened she didn't really trust the memory anymore.
Then she remembered the man, the one in that jet. Had he brought her somewhere? She couldn't be sure. In any case, he wasn't who she had called, so it didn't matter. The bald man, the one called Xavier, he was the one she wanted.
Slowly Emily sat up, wincing at her sore muscles, and pulled back the thick blanket. It took most of her strength to do that, but there was no telling how long she had. She knew that man was a mutant, and, as far as she was concerned, she couldn't trust her own kind. Looking around, she spotted a slightly open window and stumbled to it. She had one foot outside when the door behind her opened.
"What are you doing?" a male voice asked.
Surprised by the sudden disturbance, Emily lost her footing and began to fall. Reassuringly strong hands wrapped around her and pulled her back inside. She breathed heavily from the scare and from the simple effort of staying upright. The arms that held her lowered her to the floor, and she looked up into deep green eyes.
"It's okay," the man said. "You're safe."
She was too weak to argue. Instead, she rested against his chest so she wouldn't fall farther. Then she heard the sound of motorized wheels and looked up again. It was the bald man.
"Xavier," she cried, straightening. She immediately regretted the movement.
"Yes, I'm here, Emily," he said. "The people who rescued you are my students. I sent them to you when I received your message."
So he did have new disciples, she thought. It figured. The question now was, was there another chamber around here somewhere?
The old man must have noticed the way she searched the room and gave her a reassuring smile. "No, we're not going to try to contain your powers," he told her. "It was my greatest regret to leave you there. Forgive me."
She nodded weakly. "I heard you arguing," she muttered. Already the adrenaline began to leave her. Soon she would fall back into exhausted sleep. "Please, I can control it now. You don't have to stop me anymore."
Xavier gave her a sad smile. "Logan," he called softly, "could you help her back to her bed? I fear she is still much too weak."
The man who held her nodded. So that was his name, she thought. Somehow it didn't suit him. As he lifted her and she wrapped her arms around his neck, something in his smell seemed familiar, like he'd been this close before, but her mind was clouded, and she left the thought for later. Gently he helped her pull up the covers and lay down. She was barely aware of the chair he set next to her bed and mildly wondered how long he'd sit there. This thought as well was hard to sustain, and she drifted off to the sound of motorized wheels fading down the hall.