CHAPTER 3
Evening around 6:30 pm.
The smell of mildew hung heavily in the air seemingly clinging to their skin. Shalimar absently rubbed at her arms, it was not cold per se but the dark eeriness of the building seemed to crawl between her flesh and bone. A cold shiver ran down her spine and she wished she could shed her prickly skin and leave this place. Adam thought Klarissa and Kyle might have been using this older building for a hideout. Nothing looked to have been there for years, the windows were either broken or covered so heavily with dirt and grime no light could penetrate them. Glancing over at Brennan who looked just as unnerved about their coming here as she did she shrugged.
"Adam?" Brennan came closer to Shalimar taking a protective stance around her small form, causing her to stop.
"What is it Brennan? Have you found anything? Any sign they were there?" Brennan looked around once more. "No Adam, I think this is a bust. Nothing is here beside rats. Looks like they were hiding out some place else."
"Alright you two head back to Sanctuary, I will check in with Jesse and Emma."
"Gotcha"
"Well, I do not know about you but I'm not one to hang around this place." Shalimar wrinkled her nose while surveying the room again.
"Yeah me neither, just feels bad. Come on, let's bail." Brennan's hand slid up against Shalimar's back leading her out the way they came. Something felt very wrong about this building; he just could not place it. He continued to glance behind him while hovering over Shalimar, his large body offering itself as a shield if need be.
"Wait." Shalimar held her hand up, the flash of yellow feline eyes accompanied a slight crouch and fighter's stance. Brennan stopped short looking for something, anything, the blue haze and crackle of electricity formed a ball in his ready hand.
"Someone is here." Her adrenaline pumped the fight was always welcoming, but this time the lingering feelings she had entering the building seemed to caution her, warn her. "We need to get out of here." Shalimar stalked her way to the exit watching everything as Brennan did the same walking backwards guarding her.
"I concur, something is definitely not right about this place."
Watching, Kyle stood hidden in the darkness of night facing the old building, they had entered his house, his very own sanctuary. A smile cracked through his weathered lips. "This Adam, thought we were just two rogue mutants you know? Petty thieves." It was not a question for Klarissa but a statement; Kyle often spoke in statements she mused in her crouched position at his heel. "Little does he know. . ." Dark eyes glistened against moonlight looking on toward two figures that now emerged from the run down building. "I think it is time we start playing a new game with new players."
Shalimar swung open the large entry door stepping out into the crisp night air. Inhaling deeply she scanned the perimeter looking for anything odd, Brennan soon followed.
"That place just gave me the creeps." Brennan piped while brushing off unseen grim from his black sweater.
"I know what you mean, it felt like something was crawling over my skin. Disgusting. Well, we better . . ." Shalimar froze, teetering forward slightly, her eyes widened as her lips parted slightly, she held her breath. Something was happening a searing pain shot through her back spreading as if tendrils of some foreign creature were lacing themselves around her body and drawing her into a pain flooded abyss.
"Shal? Hey?" Brennan looked inspecting towards her. "You okay?"
"Brennan?" She whimpered before all ability to stand abandon her as her knees buckled and brought her crashing toward the ground, Brennan lunged forward catching her limp form.
"SHALIMAR!" He held her body close to his, looking wildly around the vast parking lot, as darkness swallowed all things past a few feet. He saw nothing. "Adam! We need help!"
Worry laced Adams voice as it cracked through the night air. "Brennan, what's going on?"
"It's Shal, something happened I do not know. She just collapsed Adam, we need help, something is not right here." Brennan looked up again scanning his surroundings still the dark of night challenged him, offering nothing.
"Jesse has the double helix, he will be there in four minutes. Brennan does she have any wounds?"
Brennan scanned her stomach and chest with his left hand, then he felt it, seeping slowly through his fingers pulling his right arm out from under her he saw her blood trickling down his wrist. "Oh God. Adam, it's bad."
The smell of mildew hung heavily in the air seemingly clinging to their skin. Shalimar absently rubbed at her arms, it was not cold per se but the dark eeriness of the building seemed to crawl between her flesh and bone. A cold shiver ran down her spine and she wished she could shed her prickly skin and leave this place. Adam thought Klarissa and Kyle might have been using this older building for a hideout. Nothing looked to have been there for years, the windows were either broken or covered so heavily with dirt and grime no light could penetrate them. Glancing over at Brennan who looked just as unnerved about their coming here as she did she shrugged.
"Adam?" Brennan came closer to Shalimar taking a protective stance around her small form, causing her to stop.
"What is it Brennan? Have you found anything? Any sign they were there?" Brennan looked around once more. "No Adam, I think this is a bust. Nothing is here beside rats. Looks like they were hiding out some place else."
"Alright you two head back to Sanctuary, I will check in with Jesse and Emma."
"Gotcha"
"Well, I do not know about you but I'm not one to hang around this place." Shalimar wrinkled her nose while surveying the room again.
"Yeah me neither, just feels bad. Come on, let's bail." Brennan's hand slid up against Shalimar's back leading her out the way they came. Something felt very wrong about this building; he just could not place it. He continued to glance behind him while hovering over Shalimar, his large body offering itself as a shield if need be.
"Wait." Shalimar held her hand up, the flash of yellow feline eyes accompanied a slight crouch and fighter's stance. Brennan stopped short looking for something, anything, the blue haze and crackle of electricity formed a ball in his ready hand.
"Someone is here." Her adrenaline pumped the fight was always welcoming, but this time the lingering feelings she had entering the building seemed to caution her, warn her. "We need to get out of here." Shalimar stalked her way to the exit watching everything as Brennan did the same walking backwards guarding her.
"I concur, something is definitely not right about this place."
Watching, Kyle stood hidden in the darkness of night facing the old building, they had entered his house, his very own sanctuary. A smile cracked through his weathered lips. "This Adam, thought we were just two rogue mutants you know? Petty thieves." It was not a question for Klarissa but a statement; Kyle often spoke in statements she mused in her crouched position at his heel. "Little does he know. . ." Dark eyes glistened against moonlight looking on toward two figures that now emerged from the run down building. "I think it is time we start playing a new game with new players."
Shalimar swung open the large entry door stepping out into the crisp night air. Inhaling deeply she scanned the perimeter looking for anything odd, Brennan soon followed.
"That place just gave me the creeps." Brennan piped while brushing off unseen grim from his black sweater.
"I know what you mean, it felt like something was crawling over my skin. Disgusting. Well, we better . . ." Shalimar froze, teetering forward slightly, her eyes widened as her lips parted slightly, she held her breath. Something was happening a searing pain shot through her back spreading as if tendrils of some foreign creature were lacing themselves around her body and drawing her into a pain flooded abyss.
"Shal? Hey?" Brennan looked inspecting towards her. "You okay?"
"Brennan?" She whimpered before all ability to stand abandon her as her knees buckled and brought her crashing toward the ground, Brennan lunged forward catching her limp form.
"SHALIMAR!" He held her body close to his, looking wildly around the vast parking lot, as darkness swallowed all things past a few feet. He saw nothing. "Adam! We need help!"
Worry laced Adams voice as it cracked through the night air. "Brennan, what's going on?"
"It's Shal, something happened I do not know. She just collapsed Adam, we need help, something is not right here." Brennan looked up again scanning his surroundings still the dark of night challenged him, offering nothing.
"Jesse has the double helix, he will be there in four minutes. Brennan does she have any wounds?"
Brennan scanned her stomach and chest with his left hand, then he felt it, seeping slowly through his fingers pulling his right arm out from under her he saw her blood trickling down his wrist. "Oh God. Adam, it's bad."
