Consuming Fire

Chapter 36

It was a calm night outside when they decided to have a campfire at the cabin. Mosi collected the firewood – quietly tearing down a nearby pine tree – and Hunter lit the fire. They sat on logs by the lake, curled up with each other, a group of lost kids sharing stories and laughing beneath a clear night sky.

It was too perfect for Hunter. The voice in her head kept trying to tell her something was about to go wrong, and it wasn't the fire. Hunter stared into the flames, willing herself to push through the barrier of whatever was blocking the familiar voice she hadn't heard since she was rescued. The voice of reason and wisdom. The fire burned, at first a small flicker, and as it began to build, the voice started to rise and suddenly there were names in her head.

Dr. Rosenthal.

Alfie.

Sammy.

Leo.

Jack.

People she'd already lost and those she was about to lose. She couldn't sit around toasting marshmallows when every second they wasted was another second Dr. Wolfe came closer to bringing Jack back and finding Ravenadium.

Whatever had been compelling her to remain ignorant had suddenly been suffocated by the fire, and she was hit with the familiar urge to take action.

"I think it's time we talk about ICE," she said loudly.

"What do you mean?" asked Chantal, who sat beside Joshua with a knitted blanket wrapped around her. Ryo, Fearne, Benji and Imogen all huddled together on the opposite side, and Mosi sat back from the fire with a thoughtful look on his face. Hunter could see Will standing on the edge of the lake, skipping stones with his back to them.

"I mean ... about Dr. Wolfe. And how we should probably start forming a plan to kill him."

"I'm not going back," said Benji. "Nuh-uh."

"Me neither," said Chantal. "Let the FBI catch him, that's their job."

"Guys, Hunter is right," said Marcus.

Hunter caught Joshua's fierce glance in her direction but she ignored it. "As much as I understand you're comfortable here and you feel safe, we need to put an end to this. Just like Dr. Rosenthal said in his letter: we're not just children anymore, we're warriors. Dr. Wolfe needs to be stopped. He has Jack, he has Alfie, he has Jet and Mikayla, not to mention a small army on his hands. He could take us all now if he wanted to. And he's going to stop at nothing until he has all the power in the world." She looked directly at Joshua. "Plus he knows where to get it."

"Hunter, don't-"

"No, they deserve to know Joshua."

"Know what?" asked Marcus.

Joshua sighed. "She's talking about what our powers are made of. Ravenadium."

Marcus cleared his throat. "Come again?"

Hunter explained, from the very beginning. She didn't mention the location, of course, but instead opened up about her past and the transformation her life had taken just a year ago. She finished with Dr. Rosenthal's findings and his warnings about Dr. Wolfe.

"So you see? If Dr. Wolfe gets his hands on this stuff, the world is over."

They all gazed at her in shock, letting the truth of her words sink in. And then suddenly, questions were being hurled at her like bullets.

"How did it get to Australia?" asked Benji.

"This is what you were going on about?" Chantal yelled at Joshua. "So what chemical is mine made out of, some kind of vampire compulsion juice?"

"How do you make time travel?" asked Ryo.

"I bet mine came from like an electrical explosion and this Ravenadium stuff was inside the computer," Marcus said thoughtfully. "Or maybe it was eels. I did touch an eel once."

"But how did-"

"Why didn't you tell-"

"It makes no sense that-"

"Hey, hey!" yelled Joshua. "We don't know the intimate details, but tomorrow I promise you I will look over your files and consult with you individually. Hunter isn't the expert, I am."

Hunter snorted, but didn't argue; he could have this moment of glory and she could comfortably leave the science up to him.

"The point we're trying to make," said Joshua, "is that Ravenadium can create monsters in the hands of someone like Dr. Wolfe if they have an open genetic spiral, which is why-" He looked directly at Hunter, struggling to speak for a moment, and then shook his head and gave in, "Hunter is right. We need to stop him. He already has enough ammunition to take us down. I'm surprised he hasn't already made a move."

Hunter watched Joshua talk, wondering whether the doctor already had. Again, her thoughts turned to Jack and if he'd woken up yet. But then her attention was soon on Will still throwing rocks a short distance away and realized that what she first needed to do was fix things with him.

He needs to be a part of this. He's as much a member of this band of rebels as I am.

Hunter slipped away from the warmth of the fire and walked over to Will with her hands in the pockets of her sweater.