Found (Book 1 of the Haven's Army Trilogy) [COMPLETED]

Chapter 17

"Nina? Can I talk to you?"

She nodded. "What is it?"

I hesitated. "I was wondering: how come I can suddenly sense if someone's a special one?"

She smiled. "So it's working for you too. I hoped it had. It worked on Nathan."

I cocked my head.

She laughed. "When a special one is exposed to me for too long, they can faintly sense a special one, but only if they're close up and all alone. If there other people there, they can't."

I nodded. "That makes sense. That's all. Thank you."

"Speaking of which," she said. "You'll need me on this next mission. The Needle is a busy town. The special ones won't be able to sense anyone through that."

I nodded. "I'll tell them."

Lee, Cecelia, and Nina loaded onto the rowboat two hours later to get to The Needle.

The Needle was a tiny island. It was very cloudy. The houses were wooden and small but there were many.

A ship was incoming on the other side with piles and piles of cotton from The Garden.

The trip was fast because they had Nina. Twenty minutes later, we were back on the open sea.

"We're almost done!" Peter said excitedly over dinner that night. "One more special one and we can leave!" He whooped. I smiled as I disappeared downstairs to see James. I had brought him a softer pillow and blanket and given him some writing materials.

"Here," I said, handing him his plate of potatoes through the bars. "They're a little undercooked but it's better than nothing."

As I set them inside the bars, he grabbed my arm. My eyes widened. Was he going to kill me? Why was I doubting him all of a sudden?

But when I looked up, he wasn't scared or angry. His expression was relaxed and happy. His hand slid down to mine and he moved closer to me.

"Charlotte," he said. "You're the only person who's nice to me. I just want you to know..." He trailed off. My heart was beating hard in my chest as he came closer. I didn't know what to do so I didn't do anything. His hand slipped behind my neck and his lips brushed mine gently. My heart fluttered in my chest.

He let go, blushing almost as red as his hair.

I ran my fingers into my tangled hair and bit my lip. "I'm sorry James. I don't think of you like that." And it was true. I liked Dennis. James was just a friend.

He looked to the ground. I opened my mouth but shut it when I could think of nothing to say.

The bell tolled.

"I have to go," I told him.

He nodded dejectedly.

I brushed my fingers to my lips before running up to the deck. They began calling off names for who would go. There were quite a few, including Naomi herself, Nathan, and Annie.

We boarded the rowboats and rowed to the island. It was a thickly wooded island. In the middle was a stone temple. It looked like it was glowing in the moonlight.

Naomi gripped the side of her boat tightly. I turned to Annie.

"What happened to Naomi?" I asked.

She sighed and shut her eyes. "We were ten. The Halo came searching for the special one. They sent soldiers from The Victory. They ravaged everything but left with the wrong girl." Her eyes opened, glowing sharply in the dim lantern light. "They took Naomi's little sister."

I blinked. "What did they do with her?"

Annie gritted her teeth. "They killed her, in front of the whole town."

I sat in shock. No wonder Naomi hated people from The Victory.

We pushed up onto the sand.

"I know Paul well," Naomi said confidently. "He'll let us take Genevieve without a fight. Let's go. He'll be in the temple."

We followed her through the forest, her flowing, silver-blonde hair easily spotted in the light of the lanterns.

An animal approached Annie and she stopped to pet it. It was gray fur was thick and its eyes were icy blue.

"It's a wolf," she explained. "They help us hunt."

Suddenly, something brown shot past us.

"A deer," she said with a smile.

"Do they help you too?" I asked.

She shook her head. "We hunt those ones."

I nodded.

Suddenly, the temple appeared in front of us. I hadn't even seen it through the dense forest. We followed Naomi to the entrance, where she pushed open a set of giant stone doors. They ground against the stone floor until they pounded open.

We were led through a labyrinth of passageways. Finally we came to a large room with multiple people who were eating together.

"Paul!" Naomi said with a smirky smile. Annie smile brightly at her old mentor.

Naomi bowed. "We're here to bring Genevieve on our journey to save Haven."

Paul frowned. "Naomi. I'm so sorry. I wish I could help you but..." Suddenly, Angels jumped out of the shadows and grabbed us. I tried to get away but their grip was that of steel.

"What's going on, Paul?" Naomi asked frantically, trying to break free.

I looked at my captor. A man, judging by the hair. His blank-faced mask stared back at me with pitch black eyes.

Paul looked to the floor. "If I don't do this, they'll kill Genevieve."

Naomi stopped struggling. Then she looked to the floor. She looked betrayed and insulted. "Still..."

"Take them away," Paul said. They tied my hands together and shoved me after the rest.