"Where's Tyler?"
They were on their way to the library and Reid did not stop walking, "He said he would meet up with us. He's probably checking on Faye. Relax, Pogue."
Pogue frowned, "Why would he do that?"
This time, Reid stopped and faced him. "Because she was hurting. Dude, are you so blind that you didn't see it?"
They stood a little ways from the library's entrance. Caleb backed Reid up, which sort of shocked Reid. "It's true, man. She was stiff and cringed each time she moved. Faye did a pretty good job at hiding it from the girls."
Pogue continued to frown as he glared at Caleb and Reid. "Caleb, we shouldn't trust her. She feels just like Chase, and you saw her eyes at Nicky's."
Knowing Faye's excuse last night was a lie, Reid did not even bother to tell them. He just studied his friends. Pogue was filled with hate towards Chase and anything that reminded him of the guy. Reid did not blame him but it was Pogue's main weakness. . . other than Kate. Caleb had a slightly better grasp on his emotions. He still feared what would happen if Chase returned, though. Reid's tone was flat, "Care to elaborate?"
"I think she's connected with Chase somehow. I swear that those were his eyes last night."
"Same here. I don't think I'll ever forget him, not after all he's done." Chase's face was stern.
"Stop being the Devil's advocate, Caleb. If she is somehow connected with Chase or if he comes back, we deal with it. He can't do anything to us this time. We've all ascended." Strange enough, Reid was being the reasonable one. It was starting to bother him too.
Caleb turned his head away from them to make sure they were still safe to talk. "Maybe Reid's right."
Shoving his arms towards Reid, Pogue spoke to Caleb. "Do you realize what you just said? Reid's almost never right. We can't trust this girl and leaving Tyler alone with her is a bad idea. You know he's the weakest."
Tyler was the closest to Reid out of all the boys and he was not going to hear this. "Tyler can take care of himself and I don't think Faye is an issue."
Caleb just stood there and watched the two of them. Pogue's eyes seemed to shine with his anger, and also his fear. "No normal person can change their eyes like that. She even feels like Chase. You don't want to believe it because it means you can't hit on her anymore. She is dangerous."
Something snapped in Reid but instead of the raging fury he usually had, this was the calm before the storm. A far greater and more dangerous anger. "She had a name, Pogue. It's Faye and she has done nothing to us. Even if she is connected to Chase somehow, she doesn't deserve this. Faye has done nothing to prove herself a threat. It's the complete opposite. You know how Tyler and I told you we found her last night? There were no footprints, no sign that anyone else was there . . . and I felt someone Using. Big time. I think Chase is a danger to Faye."
Not knowing what to say, Pogue just looked at Reid. Caleb could not help but smile. Reid was finally growing up and getting a hold on his anger. They watched as Reid started walking the opposite way of the library. Caleb yelled after him, "Where are you going!"
Reid continued without turning around, "I'm going to check on them. Don't bother following."
Caleb and Pogue exchanged glances. "Maybe he's right, Pogue."
"Yeah, we'll see."
0()0()0()0()0()0()0
"Wait."
Tyler stopped lifting the bandage on Faye's abdomen and looked at her face. Faye was laying down on his bed since it was the best way for him to see the wound without causing her more pain. She looked at him, her eyes serious with a hint of fear. "Tyler, you need to promise me you'll let me explain before you freak out."
He memorized her pleading eyes. "Why?"
"Please . . ."
He had only met her the other night but from the way Sara and Kate talked about her, he knew how much this was costing her. "I promise."
Letting go of the breath she was holding, Faye's entire body seemed to relax. However, Tyler saw the underlying tension. His hands went back to the slow task of removing the bandage. Tyler took a deep breath and swallowed. Thanks to Faye's request, he was nervous. He could not figure out what type of wound would cause this much anxiety in a person.
As the final part of the bandage came off, Faye studied Tyler's face, waiting for the reaction that would mean her death. She was sure that the Covenant would not allow her to live, not after what her family had done.
Tyler looked at the wound. It was as if someone had etched a design about the size of his hand into her skin . . . but he could not make it out with the blood. He reached down beside him to the bowl of hot water on the floor. He grabbed the cloth and rung it out before gently dabbing away the blood.
His brow furrowed as the mutilation became clearer. Carved perfectly into her stomach was a lifelike spider. Words were carved in an arc and below it as if to frame the spider. The top read "Memento Mori" while the bottom read "Lex Talionis". Images of Chase ran through his mind. Caleb had told them about Chase's spiders and Tyler knew from the Book of Damnation that spiders were associated with the Putnam family.
He looked into Faye's eyes, keeping his face as neutral as possible. "Is this Latin?"
She tried to read him for a moment but she did not know him well enough to be able to read him when he was hiding. She chose her words carefully. "The bottom basically translates to 'an eye for an eye'. The top is . . . to be taken as 'remember that you will die'."
His face remained void of emotion, but his voice was forceful. "Why."
Faye but the corner of her bottom lip. A moment of silence passed before she replied. "To remind me who I am . . . and where my loyalties should lie."
"You're a Putnam, aren't you." It was a statement, not a question.
She could not read him and hated it. "By blood."
"But not by choice?" His voice had softened.
"I was born into a family who saw me as a mistake. I'm female and I've always been ashamed of my family. Those are two things they couldn't accept. I believed your Covenant was justified in what they did to us. My life was a living hell caused by my own family. Branded a traitor; beat until I was barely breathing." Faye clenched and unclenched her jaw. She turned her haunted eyes away from him.
"Last night, you were hurt protecting us. Weren't you."
She looked up at Tyler. "You have an unnerving knack, Tyler Simms. How in the hell did you determine that from what I just said?"
This caused Tyler to smile, "I've had years of practice. My parents always said that Reid liked to beat around the bush."
Faye slowly nodded, "Well, you're right. He tried to attack you guys at Nicky's but I stopped him. He never cared much about using in public."
"Who?" Tyler was afraid he already knew the answer.
The intensity in Faye's eyes scared him. "My brother, Chase. He didn't really like me stopping him and this is his reminder for me to back off."
Tyler's gaze returned to the wound. "Who's he after?"
"All of you. I can warn you when he's coming."
"Won't he hurt you?" Tyler realized he was still holding the rag and put it in the bowl.
"It doesn't matter what I do. He's insane and he's my brother. Siblings have a tendency to push buttons." Her smile was bitter.
If it was even possible, Tyler looked more worried than before. Faye raised a single eyebrow, "What's wrong?"
"How are we going to tell the others?" He looked at her from under his eyebrows. The contrast between the dark brows and the brilliant blue of his eyes was shocking.
A big grinned broke out on Faye's face, "Reid'll be easy."
Tyler was still worried, "But Caleb and Pogue won't. Chase effected them the most."
That definitely ruined her mood, "I know."
"How?"
"Let's just say we're connected. That's why I know when he's coming." Faye propped herself up so he was no longer leaning over her. A sharp pain surged through her and she hissed.
Tyler grabbed her shoulders to steady her. "Let's get you bandaged up."
The first aid kit was on Reid's bed behind him. He grabbed the gauze and the tape but had to search for the antiseptic cream.
"Get the others." Faye struggled to breathe.
Tyler turned around to find Faye wide-eyed and looking straight ahead of her. Her expression reminded him of someone fighting to hold their pain in. "Why, what's wrong?"
"He's coming." Her eyes flashed blue for a second and then went back to normal. She was breaking out in a cold sweat.
Leaning down beside her, Tyler gently took her hand in his. "How long?"
If he had not been listening carefully, he would have never heard her whisper. "Hurry."
"I'll get them. Don't do anything stupid that'll get you killed." With that, Tyler ran to the door and slammed it behind him.
Her eyes went solid blue again and she smirked despite the pain, "Won't do anything Reid wouldn't do."
0()0()0()0()0()0()0
A/N: Sorry I took a while to update but I'm getting to the point where I may only be able to update once a week. School is getting heavy and work is overwhelming. I've taken on more shifts to help out. Being a descent person sucks. This chapter was hell to write. I basically had the end of it written from "Get the others" onward. I could I rewrote it about seven times.
My issue may have been that I kept playing the next chapter out in my mind . . . I also wrote the middle on the next chapter before the start of this one (oops). Well, I hope it wasn't too much of a disappointment.
paige: Thanks! Glad updates excite you but I may not be updating as often as any of us like.
brrwsklly: Nice to see people reviewing. Awesome? Wow, I like you people. You make my very modest ego go way up. I'm practically floating.
xBrokenDreamerx: Don't worry about it. I am the same way. Usually my internet goes down on me and then I am really upset. Yeah, Tyler did not get even close to an equal part in the movie.
Skye Mercer: Looking forward to your story!
Draco's Secret Lover: Okay. . . you confused the hell out of me with the scuba/giraffe thing. As I said, I'll try to update as much as possible but I may be stuck to once a week or even worse.
Goddess: Maybe. We'll just see what happens.
Philyra: Pig? Guy? Any of those work? Any guys reading this, I mean no offense by putting pig and guy beside each other.
Mrs. St. John Allerdyce: I love the name. He was my favourite character in the X-Men movies. As for Reid, I think the actor (Toby?) is British. I saw an interview and it sounded like it. Yes, we all love rebels.
arianna: No! Don't stop your story. They are two different concepts.
And a thank you for the nice comments and the reviews from alexus, kEs-2717, Miss.Allerdyce, and xxNeenxx. At this point, all those who don't have questions or make a comment that I get this urge to respond to with be put under a 'thanks to'. Sorry!