Atoning (Darkness Rising 3.1)

I relayed it, verbatim. Derek smiled and then said, "So what'd you find, Liz?"

"Has Derek given you the lay of the land yet?" she asked. "I'm guessing he got a good look around outside."

He had--when he'd woken, he'd told us that we were in what looked and smelled like an old lumber mill. Long abandoned, about twenty minutes outside North Bay, in the forest. Right now, we were in an office. There was a row of them, all window-free.

"Jacinda is being held in another office," Liz said, "at the end of the hall. She's bound and gagged. Obviously, none of you get the preferred-guest treatment. She's fine, though. I also got to overhear their plans. Well, not all of them. I never seem to wander in at exactly the moment when they're sitting around discussing their master scheme." She glanced at me. "Do bad guys actually do that?"

"Only in the movies, when they need a convenient way to tell the audience what they're doing...by repeating their plan to people who already know it."

Liz snickered. "Well, I never hear those conversations. I just get people giving orders and talking on radios, and I have to piece it all together like a jigsaw. I didn't hear anything about who they are or why they're doing this."

"Because you aren't the action hero, tied up and about to die. That's when you get to hear who they are, what they've done and what they plan to do. Then, you can stop them when you escape."

"Otherwise, again, everyone I hear talking already knows who they are and what they're doing. Which is very inconvenient for a spy. I did hear something that... Well, it was weird. They seem to want..." She shook her head. "I'll get to that. First thing: the plan. It's pretty much what you've figured out. Rae was supposed to capture you. Derek would come running and they'd nab him. Then, Maya and Daniel. Except they're having trouble finding Maya and Daniel, not surprisingly, considering I'm guessing that getting captured isn't their role."

"It's not."

"They're still hunting for them. Once they have them, they'll hold all four of you for ransom. Well, five, because they're tossing in Rae as a bonus."

"Ransom?" I said. "Tha

t's all this is?"

Derek caught my eye. He'd been waiting, as patiently as he could, while I talked to Liz, but, at that, he needed an explanation. I told him and Rae what was going on.

"Mom and I are bonus captives?" Rae said.

"Apparently."

"So it was all about money," Derek said. "Huh. That's new."

I passed him a wry smile. "Yep, after all these months of being chased because we're dangerous, we're finally valuable...as a quick way to turn a profit. Just like any other kids with rich guardians. Makes me feel normal again. It's a bit discouraging too, though. Just once, I want someone to try to kidnap me to harness the awesome potential of my amazing powers."

"I'd rather they didn't kidnap us at all," Rae said.

"True, but still, if you have to be kidnapped, it's better for your ego if it's actually about you."

Derek chuckled and tugged me back to lean against him.

"Actually, it isn't," Liz said. "They don't want money."

"Ah," I said. "They want something else the Nasts have."

"Kind of."

"Business stuff? Stock shares or clients? Or supernatural stuff? Access to special spells or books?"

"They want one of you. Just, uh, not you guys."

I told Derek and Rae, and said, "Typical, huh? I'm guessing one of the Salmon Creek kids, but I'm surprised it isn't Maya or Daniel. Annie, Rafe and Ash aren't as far along as Maya with their skin-walker skills. And for benandanti, Sam's still struggling with her powers. Wait--Corey. A guy who can see the future is way more valuable than one who can change into a mountain lion or fight demons. Corey's powers have a long way to go, but, he's definitely the most valuable. Just don't tell him that."

Corey was the kind of guy that I'd never have crossed paths with at school. The party-boy, class-cutup jock. I would have worried, if our paths did cross, I'd become a source for his jokes, because of my stutter. In Corey's case, I won't say he wouldn't have done it, but it would have been ignorance rather than cruelty, and he'd have stopped as soon as he saw that it upset me--or as soon as Daniel caught him and told him to cut it out.

"Ooh, I like Corey," Liz piped up. "He's super cute. Super funny, too. He's not a genius, but I don't mind that. Cute and funny is better. Plus, he was really sweet that time he wanted to know more about Greek myths, and I asked a ghost who'd been there and--"

"Is she still talking about Corey?" Derek cut in.

"Sorry," Liz said, blushing. "But cute. And funny. And sweet. Not dead, too, though, which is a problem. Not that I wish he was..." She straightened and cleared her throat. "Okay, boy-gushing over. I'm back. And it's not Corey, which is weird, because he's definitely got cool powers and--" She made a face. "Back again. Ahem. It's not Corey."