Tormented (Evolution Series Book 2)

TORMENTED

By Kelly Carrero

Smashwords Edition

Copyright © 2012 by Kelly Carrero

This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons either living or deceased is purely coincidental. Names, places, characters and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author holds the rights to this work. It is illegal to reproduce this novel without written expressed consent from the author herself.

Cover Design by Robin Ludwig Design Inc.

http://www.gobookcoverdesign.com/

CHAPTER 1

All humans are created equal… God, how I wished I could go back to being just as ignorant to the truth of my existence. Or more so, I wished I was just a normal human because then my mum would still be alive, and I would still be living in Australia. Instead, I was in hiding, living in Thailand with my boyfriend, Aiden.

I knew I was lucky to have someone go through my change with me, especially a guy who was going through it himself, but with more awareness since his parents were the same.

I still thought about my mum every day and had the occasional morbid dream, but I no longer blamed myself for her death. I wasn’t sure if that was something I came to terms with on my own or with the help of Aiden.

Any other time or place, I would have thought Thailand to be the perfect holiday escape. The weather was literally perfect every day. The people were so nice and hospitable and didn’t seem to have a care in the world.

I was on my way to Baha Baha, which was a great little cafe where Aiden and I practically lived. It wasn’t the nicest looking of places on the outside. In fact, when a local first suggested that we eat there, I thought he was trying to kill us from food poisoning so he could steal our money. Then, I found out the cafe made the most delicious food and drinks I had ever tasted. I pushed my way through the old plastic hanging strips that covered the entrance—their way of trying to keep the flies out of the kitchen.

You must have E.S.P. or something, Jaidee called from behind the kitchen bench. He walked out to the register with our food packaged and ready to go.

Nah, just good timing. I laughed, thinking of the truth.

Should I put it on your bill? he asked.

Actually… I reached into my pocket and pulled out some money. I’ll clear the debt today. This should settle it. I handed over the money. And keep the change. You deserve it; your prices are way too low.

Wow! Jaidee’s eye’s widened. Are you sure?

Positive, I replied. It felt good seeing the way his face lit up. The amount was probably more money than he would make in a month.

Jaidee still had a grin plastered across his face as he disappeared out the back to grab his account book. The cafe was filled with the usual local crowd, chowing down their lunch as if drinking soup. I had never seen anything like the way they moved their chopsticks—amazing.

I suddenly got a very bad feeling that something was very wrong. When he came back to the counter, I started to ask, Jaidee, is everything— Before I could finish my sentence, a man dressed in black from head to toe barged through the front door. He was armed with a machine gun and looked like he meant business.

Without so much as a word, the guy started firing. Everything immediately went into slow motion. I could actually see the bullets leaving the gun as if I were watching a movie and had slowed it down to view it frame by frame. I could even see the air ripple as the bullets propelled their way through it.

At least twenty adults were huddled around the four small tables. Two of the women held babies to their chests. Another two toddlers sat on the floor, obliviously playing with their toy cars.

The man continued to spray bullets into the air. Visions started flooding my mind of the bullets piercing the skin of the unsuspecting victims. The people’s bodies were being tossed around by the force of the bullets. And the blood… it was everywhere.

My mind quickly snapped back to the present while I continued to watch the bullets get closer and closer to their victims. My mind raced as I tried to figure out what I could do to stop the inevitable carnage I had just witnessed through my vision.

What I was dealing with was far beyond my capabilities. I had only just learnt to control my transportation abilities, and my mind reading was still very limited. Glancing around the room, I realised the bullets were within inches of their destinies. Trying to drain out the carnage that flooded my mind, I thought of the person I needed to see so desperately, the one person who could remove the images from my mind—Aiden.

Within a split second, I could no longer hear the bullets rippling through the air or static of everyone’s conversations in slow mode. I heard the crashing of waves, smelled salty sea breeze, and felt sand between my toes. I opened my eyes. Tears streamed down my cheeks, blurring my vision, but that didn’t matter. All I could see was the vision of all those innocent people being slaughtered, and there was nothing I could do to help them.

What good was having my abilities if all they did was bring sorrow to my life? I felt Aiden wrapping his arms around me. The next think I knew, the visions were gone, replaced by Aiden’s shocked expression as he stared at me.

My mind was still working in slow motion as I looked around at my surroundings, not believing what I was seeing. They were all there—Jaidee, the men, the mothers with their babies, and the toddlers who had been sitting on the floor beside the table. Everyone was on the beach, safe and sound. But how?

You must have transported them here with you. Aiden’s voice was still going at its normal pace, even though everything else was not. I don’t know how, but that’s not important right now. We have to be quick and get out of here before they see us.

Aiden was right. All of those people were about to realise they were no longer sitting in the cafe, but on a sandy beach with tourists from around the world watching them.

I stood there in amazement as Aiden quickly removed any trace of me from their memories. Jaidee wouldn’t even remember that I had placed an order with him less than twenty minutes ago.

I’m ready, he said, pulling me into his arms.

I transported us behind some clumped palm trees, which were a safe distance away from the group. As my vision returned to normal, I watched their shocked faces search for some sort of understanding of what had just happened. The locals were starting to freak.

What did you do? Aiden asked, shaking his head.

I don’t know. I thought about what had happened so Aiden could see for himself.

How? He sounded as shocked as I felt.

I had only ever been able to transport Aiden with me. A couple of times, I tried transporting animals, as they wouldn’t be able to tell anyone about it. But it never worked. I had never managed to transport another living creature with me, besides Aiden, of course.

The voices on the beach reached hysteria as the people tried to make sense of what was happening. Passersby flocked to the cafe crowd. They also couldn’t believe what they were seeing. One minute they had been staring out at the deserted beach leading into the crystal clear blue waters, and the next second, a group of people was obstructing their view.

Don’t worry. No one else saw us, Aiden assured me.

My mind reading capabilities were still limited to a few metres from myself, unlike Aiden, who could hear anyone’s thoughts within a couple of hundred metres. For some reason we were not bound to only being able to communicate telepathically when within close proximity to one another, as his parents were. Aiden and I could speak to each other no matter how great the distance.

Give me a sec, Aiden said. He concentrated on making new memories for all the people on the beach. Due to the number of them, he had to opt for a basic memory, even though that left a lot of vague spots.

Once Aiden finished, the people all thought they had planned to go to the beach that day. How they had gotten down there and why they weren’t dressed for the beach was left open, and every time their thoughts would go to that gap, their minds would become foggy, and then there would be acceptance.

Let’s get out of here, Aiden said.

Aiden’s transportation abilities were not yet as strong as mine. He was limited to needing to physically see the location where he wanted to transport. It actually looked as if he were bouncing from point to point, whereas I was somehow able to transport myself to anyone and anywhere, which was another strange thing about me.

All the others like us needed to know the physical location where they want to go. They were unable to transport to a person without knowing where that person was.

I sat on the couch with my legs folded up against my chest, listening to Aiden's thoughts running through his head. He stood on the balcony, watching the crowd on the beach, and tried to make sense of what I did and what it all meant.

I wondered why bad things happened so often around us lately, or rather, around me lately. There were things about what had happened back in Australia that still didn’t make sense. Why had the psycho wanted me? Why had someone killed my mother? And why had her murderer hidden and waited for me to come home?

Those were all things that I did not want to think about. That was part of the reason why we were here in Thailand. I needed a break from reality where I didn’t have to think about the heartbreaking truth of what happened back home in Australia. My mum was dead because of me.

With that thought, Aiden was instantly by my side, pulling me into his arms. He knew that I wasn’t okay. He also knew that it was time to face my demons. There were only two people who would be able to help me with that: Aiden’s parents—Anna and Dave.

Before I had a chance to talk myself out of it, I closed my eyes and thought about Anna.

CHAPTER 2

Holy shit! You scared the crap out of me! Anna held her hand over her heart as though trying to keep it from exploding through her chest.

She was just as I remembered her. She still had the same perfect olive complexion, golden brown hair, and those amazing green eyes that seemed to see through to your soul, which for her wasn’t really that far from the truth.

And here I thought you knew everything, I said, trying to lighten the mood. I could tell Aiden was still worried as hell about what I had done back in Thailand.

Within seconds, Anna’s expression changed from the shock of the two of us popping in unannounced to compassion. She hurried towards me and gave me a comforting embrace. It’s okay, honey. You’re safe now. She released me, but still kept an arm around my waist as she turned to Aiden. Don’t worry. We’ll figure something out.

I know. Aiden gave a slight smile.

For the first time since I acquired the ability to hear his thoughts, I couldn’t hear a thing. That wasn’t supposed to happen with Aiden and me. We were always somehow able to connect to each other’s minds; we were on the same frequency. I started to panic, wondering if I was somehow going to turn back into being just a normal human, but was cut short when Anna gave a little laugh.

Jade, there is no possibility of you ever turning back into a ‘normal human’ when you never were. Anna stopped to have a few more giggles before continuing. You see, honey, Aiden almost always shuts down the barriers to his mind whenever he’s around us. Reaching up, Anna ruffled Aiden’s hair. Apparently, there are some things a son wants to keep secret from his mother.

I was sure my face flushed bright red as I thought about all of Aiden’s and my private moments, lying on an open platter—or open mind in my case—available for anyone to pry into the most intimate details of our lives.

Anna laughed again. Don’t worry, honey. There are also many things a mother doesn’t want to know about her son’s life.

Aiden’s face turned a shade redder than normal. Nice to know you haven’t forgotten how to embarrass me. He leaned down to give his mum a kiss on the cheek.

Hey, it’s a mother’s prerogative to embarrass her children every once in a while. Responding to my thoughts, Anna said, I guess it’s going to take a while for you to get used to me being his mother instead of his sister, isn’t it?

Until a couple of months ago, I had thought Anna was Aiden’s sister, as that was their cover story. No one would have believed that Anna was really his mother, when she only looked a few years older. That was one of the best perks to our immortality. Our bodies would never deteriorate. We would be what society sees as perfection for the rest of eternity.

Yeah, it’s a little hard to believe, I acknowledged. I mean, I do believe that you’re really his mum, but…

To look at us and believe is another story, Anna finished. But just remember, to everyone else, I’m just Aiden’s older sister. Okay?

Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone the truth. Your secret is safe with me. I goofily zippered my lips shut.

Geez, I almost forgot how silly you are sometimes, Anna said with a laugh.

You can be at times. But we still love you anyway. Aiden pulled me into his arms and planted a big kiss on my lips, which of course embarrassed the hell out of me.

Anna laughed. You’ve got to stop thinking of me as his mum. I’m still the same person I was when you didn’t seem to care about kissing him in front of me.

My face flushed yet again. God, I really need to learn how to block you guys out of my thoughts before I die from embarrassment.

And now you know why I put my shield up whenever I’m around them, Aiden said with a grin.

You have got to teach me, I begged. Anna and Aiden both laughed. But I was serious, and unfortunately they both knew it. Aargh! I needed to change the subject quickly. So where exactly are we? I asked Anna. Even though I was the one who had brought Aiden and me there, I really had no idea where I was. When I transported us, I had only thought about bringing us to Anna, not to any specific location.

We’re in Bath in England. It was our home before we moved to Australia. Aiden’s eyes lit up with excitement as he looked around the room. He was obviously thrilled to be home.

We were standing in what seemed to be their library. The walls were adorned with floor-to-ceiling shelves, which must have held thousands of books. Some were new, but most looked as if they