Chapter 9

As they walked into the family room of the house, Jess spotted Caleb, and shifted herself behind Reid. Her grip on his hand tightened, and she put her other hand on his bicep.

Reid pulled her over to a couch and they both sat down across from the other three guys, and Jess was unsure about what would happen next. Caleb looked over at her and smiled reassuringly, and she tried to relax.

"Jess, Reid already filled us in on your stalker story, but we need you to fill in the details."

"Well the beginning is pretty much the same up until the actual stalking part. He saw me use one day when I got a flat tire after one of the school dances. At first I wasn't sure if he had seen, but by the next day I was positive. He followed me around like crazy, not saying anything, just following me. I tried to avoid him, but it was too hard to dislike him in public because everyone liked him so much. I stayed home one day intending to pack my bags and get out, but I wasn't fast enough. He stormed into my house and yelled, do you know what I can do to you? You think you're the only one with abilities? I tried to shake it off, still in denial that he had seen me use, when he threw me up against a wall. He was ten feet away. His eyes were black as he walked closer to me whispering, I've always had a problem with using. You see, I didn't know how addictive it was, and now I just can't stop. Will me your gift and I swear your family won't be touched. I tried to explain that I couldn't, and that it would be impossible for me to will it away, but he was no longer listening. My mom had come home for lunch that day, and walked in on the scene. Still keeping me up against the wall, Chase hit my mom with a burst of power, sending her tumbling down the stairs."

"What do you mean your gift," Pogue interrupted looking confused.

Jess held up a hand to silence him and continued, "He threw me around some more, but he wasn't getting the answers he wanted out of me. I concentrated as hard as I could and hit him hard. At this point I'm a little fuzzy. I'm not exactly sure how I did it, but I got my mom out of the house and to the hospital. The next thing I remember is the doctor telling me the surgery went well, but she hadn't woken up yet. My father and I waited for weeks, but she still hadn't woken up, and we both agreed that if I left, she might have a chance. First I ran to Canada for a while, but started having nightmares and panicked. Then I moved to California, but the same thing happened. The whole summer I must have moved every week to keep him off of my trail. Knowing I couldn't neglect school, I ran here, but it won't be long until he finds me again. Reid told me about what happened before I met Chase, and I'm terrified that nothing will be able to kill him."

"What did you mean before about not being able to will away your power," Caleb asked.

"Haven't you read the whole history?"

She looked around and noticed that all four boys had identical looks of confusion. Sighing, Jess got up and walked to a window.

"Before the five came over from Europe, there were ten. All ten were siblings, in five sets of twins: one boy and one girl in each set. No one knows the parents that raised the ten children, or how exactly the power originated, but ALL ten children possessed it. The power of one completed the other. The girls' power was like a steady stream of electricity while the boys' power focused itself into balls of energy. The boys carried the bulk of the strength and endurance when it came to using, but couldn't protect themselves for shit. That's where the girls came in. Not only could the girls create a protective barrier around themselves and anyone around them, they had the ability to use without aging."

"WHAT" Pogue yelled.

Jess shushed him and continued, "When the twins were to turn eighteen, the girls could share this gift with their brothers, but the ten never made it that far. Being reckless one night, one of the ten exposed their power to the public. With everyone on a witch hunt, excuse the pun, the twins decided to split up for a time to keep each other safe. They only planned to separate for a couple of months, until everything died down, but matters only got worse. The five boys, running from witch hunters, decided to sleep aboard a ship one night. The next morning, they realized the ship had left port, and was traveling to America, leaving the five girls alone in Europe. Obviously you all know your own family history from there, but you don't know what happened with the girls. Just as the boys married, so did the girls, and just as the boys only had one offspring, so did the girls, but they had only girl children. Their power was passed down from generation to generation."

"Well then where is everyone else? Shouldn't there be five of you" Caleb demanded.

Jess shook her head slowly. "The five girl families moved to America a century ago. Actually, they lived near Ipswich for a time, but once again something hunted them. One of the boy families that had gone bad, wanting the power the girls had, attacked them."

"You mean Chase's grandfather was the one that attacked them?"

"Yes. Completely engulfed in power, he forced three of the five to will away their power, not knowing that they could have given him the ability to not age. Unlike your power, when we will ours away, the gift of agelessness isn't part of the deal. That gift has to be given freely."

"So there were still two families," said Caleb, "where is the other?"

"She's alive and safe, watching over my mother back home."

"Wait so we're related," Tyler asked, still kind of confused.

Jess laughed, "No, not really anymore. It's been over 500 years since the ten were separated. Our powers are the only thing that unites us, not our blood."

Reid, elated by this news although it was obvious they weren't really related, stood up and walked over to Jess, putting his arms around her. He looked down into her face, and knew there was something else.

"Babe, what is it?"

"Well, when I had first met Chase, I wanted to seem older so I told him my eighteenth birthday was a few weeks away. I already told you that he found out about my power and the gift of agelessness. The day he attacked me was my 'eighteenth' birthday. He must have figured out that I was lying by now," Jess said nervously, not wanting to meet his gaze.

"When is your real birthday?"

"Two weeks."

Reid's jaw clenched as Jess let this bomb dropped. He knew two weeks was not enough time. Chase could already be here. Reid, not wanting to let Jess know how scared he was, said, "Don't worry about it Jess. Everything is going to be fine."

Over her head, Reid caught the other boys eyes. Without speaking he said, SHIT, FUCK, DAMMIT! WE ARE OUT OF TIME. CALEB, YOU BETTER HAVE A PLAN.

Authors note: What does everyone think so far? Thanks for the reviews!!