Cheating Death – Chapter 5
By MyNameIsCAL
Max and I stood in some cemetery. A place I had never been before. There were three graves in front of us. They read Iggy, Nudge, and Angel. This couldn't be. They couldn't be dead. Max was crying, leaning against me. I put an arm around her, confused.
And then we were running along the streets, downtown. We ducked through an alleyway and into the parking lot, unfurling our wings and taking off. She took my hand midflight as we flew over the town, heading somewhere, but I wasn't quite sure where. This couldn't be the near future. It would probably be a month before I was ready to go anywhere.
I smiled at Max, or at least the me in the vision I was seeing was smiling at her. In the distance, I could hear a helicopter sound. In the darkness, a red dot appeared on Max's back.
"NO, MAX!" I shouted, lunging at her. We went spiraling towards the ground. Max hit the ground before I did. It had happened too fast for us to try to stop ourselves from falling so fast.
"Max…" I whimpered. Pain hit me and blood was everywhere.
"Max," I coughed again, blood coming up through my throat.
She didn't respond…
"Fang, are you okay?"
I opened my eyes. Max was staring at me.
What was that? I thought, waiting for Angel to answer.
That was the future… she paused. That was the end.
I squeezed Max's hand, taking in deep breaths as she rubbed my arm in comfort. The end?
It's preventable, Angel added after a while. We just haven't figured out a way to never reach that point. We haven't figured out a way to stop it.
I'm so tired, I thought back.
Don't worry about anything for now, Angel assured me. You'll know if anything comes up, right away. Rest and convince Max you're okay.
Max left the hospital the next day to shower, so Iggy came to stop by for a visit.
"Nudge and I decided we're just going to have the wedding at our house," he told me.
"Why?" I asked weakly.
"Because you know Gazzy doesn't really like to go places, being home is safe, and…" Iggy paused for a moment. "The food is better when I cook."
"I'm sorry."
"I'd rather be alive than dead," Iggy muttered. "When are you getting out of here?"
"Soon," I grumbled.
The door burst open suddenly and Gazzy came in. "Turn on the news."
I struggled to press the button and Gazzy grabbed the remote out of impatience.
"The two men responsible for the attempt to kidnap a local woman have finally been caught. They are students at a university, the Institute of Technology and Evolution by Xavier. Xavier is a prestigious scientist from London who came to the US to work together with the top growing intelligent minds. Xavier opened the university to challenge today's young and growing minds," the reporter began. "Taking in only one hundred students a year, Xavier knows all of the students. We asked him about what he thought and here's what he said…"
The screen switched to a man with thick rimmed glasses. He was probably in his early forties. I had seen him on the news before.
"I cannot fathom why they would want to kidnap and harm someone," Xavier said. "They were very bright and intelligent young men. I am deeply sorry to the people they have hurt. It is in my interest to investigate why they did what they did. You can learn from anything and everything if you look hard enough…"
The screen cut back to the report. "It appears as though Xavier was caught by surprise. Authorities say they cannot find a motive to why the men attempted to kidnap the unnamed woman and attacked a man who we now know is her husband. Stay tuned for more news on that situation. We'll be right back after this break with the weather…"
Gazzy turned the TV off. "Do any of you understand what we just saw….Well, heard?"
Iggy shook his head. "No, what does it matter?"
"The Institution of Technology and Evolution by Xavier," Gazzy said slowly. "You know what you get when you take out all the insignificant words."
I thought for a moment. I…T…E…X. "Itex."
"Exactly!" Gazzy exclaimed. "Technology and evolution? I mean, c'mon, it looks suspicious. Why would a guy from London come all the way here to set up a university so special?"
He had a point, but it could just be a coincidence. When I asked Angel in my head, she said she didn't know anything about it.
"I think you being home all the time has gotten to your head," Iggy responded.
That angered Gazzy, but he kept his voice steady. "I still think we should look into it. All these years we thought Itex was gone, and perhaps, maybe they're back and stronger than ever. I mean, we don't even know what happened to Jeb."
"I think he has a point," I agreed.
Iggy shrugged. "Then why don't you talk to Max?"
I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. Pain was building. Gazzy and Ig needed to get out of here. They were stressing me out and I was tired.
"I had a vision today," I suddenly said. "And it ends with us all being dead. Angel says that's the end and I need to stop it from happening."
They gave me blank stares.
"But if Angel can predict that we're all gonna end up dead…" Gazzy paused. "Then how can you prevent it? It's inevitable, right?"
"I don't know," I told him, rubbing my chest, hoping the pain would subside.
"So say you tell me I'm gonna get hit by a bus tomorrow," Gazzy replied. "And I don't listen to you and go let myself get hit by the bus. Then that's it! You wouldn't have to worry about me!"
"Don't…Please don't do that," I told him.
He shook his head. "I don't think I could do that."
Max's death would save all of you, Angel suddenly interrupted. It's the reason you can't tell her.