"Okay," James said dejectedly. "I'll give you the Book, but let go of my brother first."
"You throw me the Book first," Thomas ordered.
James looked at Matthew and made eye contact with him. He could see the pain on his brother's face, but he also saw something else in his eyes, almost like fire. Without a word, James threw the Book into the air, straight at Thomas. The warlock raised his free hand to catch the Book, but he only held it for a short time. Matthew had taken advantage of the moment and grabbed the hand holding his neck, twisting it mercilessly. He suddenly stood up and guiltlessly kicked Thomas in the stomach as hard as he could. The Book fell to the ground as Thomas doubled over in soundless pain. Matthew was not done; he punched his enemy's face, forcing him down onto the ground. James took over and telekinetically tossed him into the trunk of another tree. He grabbed Matthew and pulled him along while Wesley seized the Book. Before he turned to follow his brothers, he witnessed Thomas disintegrate into nothing. He turned and caught up with James and Matthew, who weren't much further ahead.
They jogged down the street and into an alley, hoping to lose their assailant. Thomas surprised them by materializing in front of them. The brothers braked quickly and ran off in another direction, but once again, Thomas was there to greet them. Wesley noticed the warlock's power of blinking, a demonic ability allowing one to appear in different places in the blink of an eye. Slowly, Thomas advanced upon his prey, forcing them into a dead end. Without saying a word, Matthew grabbed his brothers' hands and jumped into the wall, passing through it as if it were not there. Upon reaching the other side, they broke into a run. After a while of running, they hid in a grove of tall bushes to rest temporarily. Although they panted heavily, they managed to hold their breath when they noticed Thomas searching for them in the vicinity. It seemed like an eternity had passed before he finally gave up and left the area.
"Y'all alright?" James asked.
"Yeah," Wesley said.
"Matt?" James called, hearing no response.
"He's sleep again," Wesley said, noticing the sweat on Matthew's face. He was also breathing very heavily. "What are we gonna do now? This fever is gonna kill him! I think we should get some ice or something."
"Ice?" James asked. "Do you see any ice cream trucks around?"
"Jimmy," Wesley said patiently, "this ain't a good time to be joking around, man. Honestly, sometimes you can be such an ass…"
"But you…" James tried to say.
"But I am trying to help Matt right now," Wesley said firmly, changing the subject. "We gotta decide on something fast."
"Okay," a defeated James said. "Let's find another place to stay, then."
Wesley peeked out of the bushes to make sure everything was clear before giving the thumbs-up to James. He carried the Book of Light while James heaved Matthew over his shoulder and the three of them made their way across the street. Just as they reached the other side, Titilola was standing in front of them, hands on her hips.
"Titi!?" Wesley exclaimed, surprised to see her again.
"What took you so long?" she asked in reply. "Anyway, if you want to help your brother, come with me right now."
"Is that a threat?" James asked suspiciously.
"It's a concern," she said.
"Jimmy," Wesley said, "we need all the help we can get right now."
Titilola pointed to a minivan in the near distance, motioning for everyone to get inside. Deep inside, James knew that Titilola had a good heart, but imposing on her as a stranger, and thereby putting her life in danger, was never his intention. He was about to reject her offer when Wesley gave him a menacing stare. On top of that, Matthew was getting heavier to him. He followed Wesley and Titilola to her minivan, still a little hesitant.
"How are you feeling?" James asked Wesley.
"I'm in pain, as usual," Wesley said, pointing to Matthew, who was fast asleep, "but not as much as Matt over there."
"Give him this," Titilola said to Wesley, giving him a cup.
"What is it?" James asked cautiously.
"It's a special home remedy," she answered. "He seems to have the flu and maybe some symptoms of early pneumonia. This is good for it."
"Are you some kind of doctor?" Wesley asked. "Because you seem to know a lot about this stuff."
"You can say that I'm a doctor," Titilola said. "It's more like a special doctor."
"And you think that this homemade stuff is gonna magically cure my brother overnight?" James asked skeptically.
"You mean just like that flu medicine you bought for him?" she countered.
"Touché," Wesley said, turning to James. "Jimmy, Titi is offering us her home and her help. Can't you just pull out whatever you have in your ass and trust her for once?"
"Right on," Titilola said softly as James gave a hesitant look.
"Jimmy!" Wesley snapped, "I don't know why you're being so damn overprotective all of a sudden, but you need to let it go. I'm giving this stuff to Matt."
"Okay, okay," James said.
James held Matthew's head up while Wesley slowly poured the contents of the cup into Matthew's mouth. After about thirty minutes, Matthew's fever had almost returned to normal, and he didn't look as pale as he had earlier. He woke up, feeling much better. Neither Wesley nor Titilola told James 'I told you so.' Instead, they both shot him a look that needed no words.
"Thanks for helping us again, Titi," Wesley said.
"No problem," Titilola said. "I see that you three are very close. It's pretty rare for brothers to be this close these days. As long as y'all take care of each other, everytyhing will always work out for y'all. Remember that."
"I'm…" James struggled to say before Wesley prodded him in the shoulder, "I'm sorry for doubting you. I should've trusted you from the beginning."
"Water under the bridge," Titilola said.
"But how do you know about all of this stuff?" Wesley asked. "You don't look much older than any of us. Plus, why are you so willing to help us out? Not that I don't appreciate it and all, but it's been on my mind lately."
"It's the 'family business,'" Titilola said simply. "I don't wanna spend all day talking about me, though. I won't ask about your situations, either. I'm helping you because I trust my instincts. You three are the good ones."
"Good ones?" Matthew asked. "Do you know about us? Is that why you've been following us?"
"Don't get it twisted," Titilola said. "I haven't been following y'all. I was led to y'all."
"Led to us?" Wesley asked. "By who?"
"By whom," Titilola corrected. "And by the voices in my head. They've been telling me to help three young men in trouble. I just assumed that y'all were the three. Nobody else looked that much in trouble."
"Could you recognize any of the voices?" James asked.
"Nope," Titilola said. "Never heard of 'em."
I wonder who those voices are... Coming up next chapter: Matthew's getting better (finally), but is he up to the challenge of finding Thomas' host body? Are any of them for that matter? Also, Jimmy gets a phone call...