Through the Windshield Glass (13 page)

"Alice
Beth Patterson," the words felt tentative and difficult to pronounce at
first, but with each repetition of my name it became stronger, "Alice Beth
Patterson. Alice Beth Patterson! ALICE BETH PATTERSON!"

Soon enough I
was screaming, I was too angry to cry, but the copper taste of blood from my
throat flavored my tongue. The corners of my mouth screamed for me to stop, but
my head wouldn't allow it. I seemed to understand that if I lost my name I'd lose
everything, and I couldn't let that happen again.

I don't know
how long it went on, but I was mildly aware of the light getting dimmer and
dimmer in the room. When I was in almost complete darkness I realized Kinga's
voice had stopped. All the screaming had been somewhat cathartic. My intense
anger at Mrs. Cole at Kinga had gone from a knife in my stomach, to a dull
pounding in my head.

I lay back on
the bed, totally exhausted from my efforts, my stomach growled, but I didn't
dare attempt a trip to the kitchen. Not because I was afraid of Kinga, but
because I was afraid of falling asleep on the way there.
　
I tried to sleep, but my throat was raw to the
point it hurt to breathe, my stomach hurt from using my diaphragm so
vigorously, and my jaw felt as though it would fall off. I knew I wouldn't be
able to
　
chew anything, but
I
　
could at least get some
water to soothe my throat if I made it to the kitchen.

Gathering my
remaining energy, I dragged myself off the bed, unsteadily crossed the room,
blindly found the doorknob and began to twist. At the same time it turned the
other way. I gasped and relinquished my hold. I backed up away from the door,
but since the room was so small there wasn't really anywhere to go. I ended up
catching my heel on my too big pants; I flailed my arms and somehow managed to
end up in the white chair next to my bed. Unfortunately, I also managed to hit
my funny bone on the bedside table. So when the person on the other side of the
door came in, I was sprawled haphazardly in the chair and nursing my elbow.

"Are you
okay?" the person asked. I couldn't see who it was because of how dark it
was in the room, but it was definitely a male voice that had spoken, "Did
I hurt you?"

"No,"
I responded. I was rubbing my elbow vigorously, trying to get it to feel
normal, "you just scared me, I did the tripping and falling on my
own."

A moment later
I felt a hand touch my arm near my uninjured elbow, "Give me your hand,
let me help you."

I did as I was
told and the man helped me to stand.

"Why is it
so dark in here?" I asked him. Maybe I should have asked for an identifier
first, but I really wanted to know why I couldn't see.

"Oh,
right, sorry. Sun!"

Immediately
light filled the tiny room. It flared for a moment, making everything burn
gold, then it stabilized to a comfortable natural glow. If I had gasped loudly
when the man first came in, it was nothing in comparison to what I did when I
actually saw him.

My new
companion was just as attractive if not more so than Daman, but in a different
way. Daman was all dark and shadows, while this new man was light. His hair was
so yellow it appeared almost white; it was curly like Daman's, but softer,
easier. Not as tightly coiled. The more I looked the more similarities I
noticed between this person and Daman. They could almost pass for twins, the
blue eyes were even the same. The only difference seemed to be the hair, and
the fact that this new person seemed to glow.

"What's
your name?" he asked.

"Alice
Beth Patterson," I said without hesitation, "it will never be Ira, if
you're going to call me that you can leave."

I didn't sound
as certain as Avery, but it was a start.

"I won't
call you Ira as long as you don't call me Beau. My name is Michael Andrew Finn,
it's good to meet you, Alice Beth Patterson."

I realized I
should shake his hand, but my hand was still in his. Michael noticed at the
same time and laughed.

"I think
this is yours," he said. He flipped
　
my
hand over palm
　
up and
pushed it towards me. I didn't close my
　
hand
fast enough to hide Daman's mark. Michael noticed even before I thought about
hiding it.

"What
is--" Michael stopped himself, "I have to go. I brought you
food."

Michael pointed
to a tray on the bed, but before I could thank him, he was gone.
　

"Yeah,"
I said awkwardly. His smile made my heart stop.

Chapter Twenty

Honestly, I was
so exhausted and flustered after Michael left that I barely tasted the food as
it went down. I barely managed to set the empty tray on the floor before I
wiped out on the bed.

When I woke up,
my room was dark again. I assumed someone had just told the light to leave
after I had fallen asleep, but then a little voice informed me otherwise.

"You slept
for two whole days!"

It was Aida, I
couldn't see her, but the voice and enthusiasm were unmistakable.

"Two days?
Sun!" I attempted to bring the light like Michael had, but nothing
happened.

I heard Aida
laugh, "Kinga said it was best to keep you in the dark for a little while
after you wake up. We don't want to scare your eyes."

"Aida, why
is Kinga in charge?"

"Please
call me Leigh. That's my name you know."

"Of
course, can you answer me that question, Leigh?"

I could hear
the smile in Leigh's voice, it was obvious the feeling of her name in her ears
was good, "She's in charge because she was the princess."

"Kinga's a
princess?"

"She was,
before Alecsander took over. No one wanted to fight her when she decided to
lead the rest of us."

"Why not?
She had no real authority anymore."

A new voice
joined Leigh's. It was Michael's, "No one else had any idea what to do.
Avery challenged her from the start. Most of the rest of us who don't approve
of her leadership don't oppose her so openly."

"Then how
do you resist her at all?"

My appetite for
information had been whet. I wasn't going to stop my questions until I was
satisfied, even if that meant tying Leigh and Michael to the chair with my bed
sheets.

"There's a
sort of resistance within the resistance. It's mostly made up of people who
won't give up their names, or have ideas that Kinga doesn't approve of on how
to get rid of Alecsander."

"Like
pouring water on him to melt him like a witch!" Leigh exclaimed.

Michael and I
both laughed, "Just like that," Michael said.

"So is Avery
the leader of this resistance within a resistance?" I asked.

"No,"
Michael said, I felt him sit on the edge of my bed, near the hand with Daman's
mark on it, "Avery would be too obvious, Kinga's always got him in her
scope. But, she would never expect her right hand man, or her young, naive,
charge."

My jaw dropped,
"You and Leigh?"

"Who else
could it be?" Leigh asked. For such a small girl she had a lot of voice.

"We want
you to join us," Michael said, "before you even knew about us you
were fighting for your name and that's what we need. The brains of our
operation have an idea, and it's going to take a lot of people with all their
memories to pull it off. Are you in?"

It wasn't hard
for me to decide to join up with Michael and Leigh. So far they were the only
two people I really liked.

"Good.
Just make sure to call us by the name's Kinga gave us when she's around. Even
Avery. If we're lucky, we'll have a working plan soon. In the mean time, learn
the ropes here. Do just as Kinga says, and make as many friends as you can.
When new people arrive let me know. The best time to snag
　
new people is right when they
get here."

I nodded my
agreement and understanding before I realized Michael couldn't see me,
"Okay. Can I ask you a question?"

"I guess
you could try. No promises on a great answer though."

I smiled
nervously, "Why did my hand scare you so much yesterday?"

I felt Michael
tense and subconsciously touch my hand, "I've only seen that mark once
before. It's not a good thing."

"But what
is it?"

I was leaning
forward now; I could almost feel the heat coming off Michael because I was so
close.

"A demon
has claimed you. That mark is the equivalent of an engagement ring on earth.
Except when a demon claims you it's not love, or necessity. It's desire, and
the need for strength. Most demons claim their victims and take them
immediately, I only know of one who dangles his like bait in front of
him."

Michael's words
were chilling. I felt light-headed. My mind flashed back to the hall where
　
Daman had poisoned me then
carved the circle into my palm. I reflexively closed my fist as I remembered
the pain.

"Who?"
I asked.

"The name
he goes by when looking for claims is Daman, but most people here know him as
Alecsander."

My worst fears
were confirmed and I felt my throat catch as though I was going to start
vomiting poison again.

"Can Daman
find me again?" I didn't mean to sound so terrified, but sitting in the
dark, learning the person I had loved, and despite everything, still loved, was
a murderer, and a vulgar creature who's name alone seemed to drip with evil.

"Yes. That
mark is like a tracer, you'll lead him straight here, it's exactly the break
we've been waiting for."

"You want
the bad guy to come here? And you're glad I just stumbled into this place so
you can use me as bait?" I couldn't explain why, but Michael had upset me,
I already had my suspicions about the circle, but I didn't think I would be
dangled like a steak in front of a hungry dog.

"No, we're
not glad you're bait--" Michael said, "you're not bait, you're
just--"

"The
reason he's going to come here which is exactly what you want."

Michael acted
like he was going to say something, then seemed to choke on his words and
sighed, "Fine, yes, you are sort of bait, but we won't let anything happen
to you."

"Well. I'm
not sure if I trust you all. You're going behind your leaders back, how
trustworthy can you be if you're so willing to dissent?" I didn't know why
I was arguing, I actually wanted to join the resistance badly, I didn't like
Kinga and I didn't think the way she was running things was right, but
Michael's side didn't seem so attractive right then either.

"We didn't
dissent. We are still behind Kinga in all the choices we feel are right, but
there are some things that could be done differently that would help us succeed
faster. What we're doing is no different than people from another party
opposing the current president. We aren't going to do anything about it, but we
can have our own options just in case." Michael was trying valiantly to
dig himself out of a deep hole and was actually doing pretty well, I didn't
want to admit it, but his point was valid.

"I'll have
to think about it," I replied. My words felt like stones rolling out of my
mouth, they were so heavy and cold I thought they'd crush Michael, but instead
of suffocating under the pressure, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good, I
hope you come around and see our side."

"That
could be difficult seeing as I'd have to sacrifice myself. I'm not sure I want
to die twice."

"Everyone
dies sometime, Alice. And if you make it here, you die twice. There's no way to
escape it. You can live here until you're old and gray, for as long as you want
even. But eventually, you have to move on, whether you think so now or not. No
one can live with themselves for eternity when they are still so human."

"Fine, I'd
rather not die again so soon. Does that sound better?" I was being
incredibly mean, I knew it, and I didn't care.

"Whatever
you choose, Alice. My happiness doesn't matter in your decisions," Michael
said in an infuriatingly calm, and almost condescending voice.

I was seriously
tempted to stick out my tongue, I could've gotten away with it since it was so
dark, but I felt like Michael could sense each move I made.

"I think
it's time we leave, Leigh," Michael said. He got up off my bed, his
fingers brushed mine as he stood, "sorry," he mumbled. Seconds later
the two were at the door.

"Just
think about it," Michael said. He opened the door and a chink of light
spilled across my bed, illuminating my marked hand. For an instant the circle
seemed to flare bright orange, but it was gone before I could decide if it had
been real.

"I
will," I promised. I wouldn't have sounded convincing to a four-year-old,
but Michael didn't press. He and Leigh left, close the door behind them and
sending me into the lonesome dark once again.

"Sun,"
I muttered half-heartedly. A little light flared, but quickly faded.

"Sun!"
This time it was too bright.

Frustrated, I
yelled, "Night!"

Nothing, I
shielded my eyes with my hands, "Dark! Black! No light! Come on!"

"Stars."

It was Kinga,
my room went dark again and I lowered my hands, "Sun," Kinga said in
an even tone. The light flared and settled just like it had when Michael first
showed me, except it was dimmer, more like a summer sunset.

"Why are
you so agitated, Ira?" Kinga asked.

"I--I'm
hungry."

It wasn't a lie,
I had slept for two days and my stomach felt as shriveled as a raisin.

"Beau and
Aida
　
also seemed agitated,
what did you say to them?"

Kinga sounded
protective, like she would kill me if I said one negative word about them.