Chapter 8

There were two unmarked police cars parked opposite each other near the house in Franklin Street, Seattle the Officers were ready to change shifts. Last night's Officers were back and leaning against the side door of the other car exchanging news, with the voice over the radio of the station's operator doing his rounds in the background. Suddenly they caught their call sign and the short sharp message. "There is a kidnap victim in the house ….."

As soon as the word kidnap was uttered the Officer at the window exclaimed "Food for three. One sided fight." along with his partner's exclamation of. "Damn!"

The operator's words, "Go in carefully" were said to an emptying car.

And the finishing "paramedics are on their way." was joined by the loud explosion of shattering glass and things from the rooms landing in the front garden. All four officers were running towards the house, disbelieving their eyes and ears and one was yelling into his shoulder radio extra for backup.

oxoxo

At The Deep as Tim shouted "No" realising who Derek had on the end of the phone and all its implication he had the sensation of a white flash all around him. He could feel Tess calling his name as darkness and extreme pressure built up around him and he was blasted through everything along the connection to Ben at great speed to come to a shattering full stop when he hit something very hard.

Splat! Just like a cartoon figure on the wall when it is slammed into something very hard at the end of a very long fast run or squashed by a heavy falling object.

As he felt himself coming together and back into 3D shape, he realised that travelling along the connection in blind anger/panic felt ten times worse than the first time and that had been gut wrenching enough … possibly like a bullet shot from a gun. Gathering his wits together he realised he was in Ben's basement and looked around hoping he could stop anything from happening or warn the police officers who he hoped were watching outside.

He knew he'd travelled in seconds as he saw Jake smiling with the phone in his hand as he leant against the open door at the top of the stairs and could feel the impression of the words "Do it!" hanging in the air.

In answer to the words Josh was already getting up from the bottom stairs to walk over to Ben with a rod in his hand flicking the switch on and off just to make sure it would work. From his past on Hank's farm Tim knew it was a type of stun gun and could kill an animal.

Ben was watching terrified, silently knowing what was going to happen, and there was absolutely nothing he could do but to curl himself away from Josh, which would be difficult as the chains were tight and the wall was right behind him.

Tim could feel the anger that had travelled with him, get stronger as he realised there was nothing he could move or distract them the bulb was poor and there was light from the hallway. Extreme frustration was added to the anger and he felt a flash like lightening engulf him and he found himself in the middle of the front room. There energy was spinning around him now gathering speed and the air was turning a hazy red, getting darker red as it got stronger and then spread out in the room.

He looked out of the window towards the road where he hoped the police car was. The window shattered as the television spun from the corner of the room and followed other smaller objects through it. Mirrors and glass in the pictures broke and larger furniture tried to follow making the room a wreck.

At the same time he felt and knew the pressure was going upwards, heard the shattering the glass from the window above as something went through it, and knew that the same thing was happening to the room above the garage. The noise of shattering glass, things crashing to the ground and the vibration from pressure was tremendous.

Then the energy was gone and everything was still.

He heard yelling and turned his attention back to Ben and found himself in the basement with Josh turning away from Ben to go up the stairs to see what the noise was.

He saw Ben lay half curled up and very still and could see his aura ebbing away. He controlled his fears and sat beside him then slid gently into Ben's mind as he had with Meg's hoping to be met by a lot of softballs of memories or darkness of unconsciousness not the emptiness of death.

He found deep darkness with a small figure dressed in a white wedding dress, standing on a chain, the links lying flat shimmered faintly with different colours in the darkness. Further along the chain holding hands was a child with two other people. He recognised them as Sara, Benjy, and Casey then suddenly there was another figure between them and the figure in white. He recognised Maria, she seemed to be trying to link with the figure in white and Benjy but the distance was too great. He could not tell if the figures were fading or the darkness was getting deeper and realised that Ben was close to death.

His attention was caught by the figure in white as she grew more distinctive, he knew it was Meg. She looked more beautiful than ever and he realised that was how Ben saw her and she was his strength and Ben was trying to use it to stay alive. He watched as she stepped forward into a gold ring, which shimmered around her forming a cloak and a link to the chain she had stood on.

Tim knew he had to help and thought of her when they were children playing in the garden at her parents' farm.

As if she felt his presences she turned towards him and held out her hand.

He took it and as their hands met he felt gentleness and heard her call Ben's name telling him she loved him. He did not know how but he became the link between her and Maria then on back towards Sara, Benjy, and Casey. As he passed over the other shimmering links he looked down and saw names on them, recognising his own and Mark's, and others he knew and some he did not.

He felt himself stop and looked up to find he had travelled in a circle. He was on the opposite side of Meg and held out his hand to bridge the wide gap. He saw that the gold cloak had gone and had become a gold thread in his hand which he had linked everyone back to Meg with. It shimmered and got thicker and the chain beneath his feet had moved and was linked with the gold ring.

He felt strange realising he had been the connecting link and could feel the strength travelling through him via the thread and it was getting stronger as it passed through everyone into Ben. Gradually he could feel Ben's heart beat steadying from a dying flutter to a slightly stronger beat but also sensed Ben was not breathing and yelled at him to breath. But nothing happened.

Suddenly there was a jolt and pressure around him followed by another stronger one and then another. He looked down at the chain under his feet it was gone and he was back where he started, on the edge looking in. He could see Meg, Maria and Benjy; they were holding hands still standing on the shimmering chain with the gold b wrapped around them, and he gently slipped out back into the basement.

He found himself beside an Officer giving Ben mouth to mouth breathing. As the Officer moved back to see if Ben could breathe all right on his own he recognised the man as the Officer from last night and smiled feeling Ben was with someone who would care. Satisfied with the result the Officer took his jacket off and put over Ben to give him some warmth while calling to his partner to come and help.

Tim was exhausted and found comfort in the noises of sirens coming to halt outside, sitting down on the stairs he felt himself slip into the wall as he leant back against it. He stopped himself going in any further but could not be bothered to move as the officer from the other pair, came down the stairs and walked through him. He listened to their chatter and pieced things together while they covered and looked after Ben.

oxoxo

Tim heard how they had ran not believing what they were seeing, and now wondering what caused the explosion as no fire or extra people had been found. How they had paired up with their natural partners, the original pair from the night before ran for the front door tried it and shot the lock and entered carefully.

The other two went carefully through the debris to the front room windows and climbed in, mindful that someone must have thrown the things out. The room was a mess and dark and as they'd searched with torches they'd found and fought with Jake who'd hidden there just before the front door lock had been shot out having seen movement through the glass in the front door.

The two officers in the passageway had met Josh coming up from the basement into the passageway waving the stun rod in front of him. The office yelled at him to drop it and shot him in the arm when he did not. One officer dragged the protesting Josh out the way while the other went into the basement and found Ben. One thing they knew they had two very frightened badies on their hands.

oxoxo

Feeling his energy return and knowing Ben would be taken care of Tim remembered the fear in Tess's voice at being left alone so soon after her death and gently thought of her. With the familiar flash of blackness he found himself back at The Deep, and everyone was making their way out he brushed passed Carmen as he gently came to a halt near the table he'd left earlier.

He stood beside Tess and looked at her, she was hunched up, chin resting on her knees, with an aura of extreme fear around her as she watched everyone leave. She didn't realise he was there she was so afraid. He gently remembered the first time he saw her at Ocean Drive and the feeling he could like her as they chatted, but then his obsession with Meg had over taken him again. Now the obsession had gone and with it the chains and he suddenly felt free, calmer and knew she would feel the same now she was free of Derek and smiled.

He put a hand on her shoulder feeling her aura jump as she felt him and heard him say. "He's all right! Come on we'll go to Ben's house and swap stories. Remember think of the sofa and we will be there... Then I'll take you on a trip of a lifetime to Las Vegas or anywhere else you please!"

Tess looked up at him slowly stretching from her hunched position and got up, her aura changing, put her hand in his, smiled and said. "I thought I lost you. It seemed like a lifetime here. Thank you..." Her voice changed and had a slight giggle of amazement as she realised. "You've changed … no wet concrete ... stronger, better!"

Tim looked at her and smiled back realised he did feel better, whole. "Good. You're looking happier too. Come on think of the sofa!"

Their laughter seemed to echo around The Deep as they disappeared.