The Watchers Wake

Chapter 22 - Carried Away

CHAPTER 22 - Carried Away

I was doing my homework on the table as I waited for Scott and Jari.  The bus transporting the competitors was late and so I had walked home alone.  Scott would find me.

 I was battling the evil algebra when I heard the front door slam.  Jari strode into the room dumping his bag in the corner with uncharacteristic fury.  He turned to me and his face told the story.

“It didn’t go well then?” I felt the dread creep into all my joints.

“Natalie, we need to talk,” his jaw flinched and my heart fell, “Look, ignore everything I have said to you so far.  Something isn’t right.  Nothing is right.  I have never said this before but - don’t sleep with him.  There is something wrong, very wrong.  I can feel trouble brewing and I don’t like it.”

“Jari, what are you talking about?  What happened?”

“What am I talking about?  I am talking about Scott, of course.  I don’t understand it.” Jari paced the floor with angry abrupt movements.  “The Watchers are chosen to be unbiased and pure of judgement.  But his pride is his dominant personality trait.  It isn’t right.” 

He stopped and looked at me carefully as if he was weighing up a decision. Then he closed his eyes and his jaw tightened.

“There might have been a mistake.  I have to go.” He finally nodded his head however in his eyes he still looked undecided.  “I have to find out what is happening.  Keep practicing what I taught you and just please be careful Natalie.  I have a bad feeling about all of this.”  

Then without another word he turned and was gone.

I sat there stunned as the tears trickled down my face.  I had a fairly good idea what had happened.  Scott had misused his abilities.  He and Jari would have argued and now I was in the middle.  And from what Jari was implying he was going to see if he could undo what ever bound Scott to me.  Jari was going to split us up.

I was still crying when I heard the car pull into the driveway. I sat at the table and wondered what to do.  How was I possibly going to fix this? 

I couldn’t bring myself to open the front door when he knocked.  I just stood there looking at it like that was somehow going to solve all my problems.

“Please Natalie, please open the door.”

I closed my eyes and knew that I had to hear his side of the story.  I wiped my eyes and took a deep breath before I opened the front door.  Scott was leaning against the door frame.  The side of his face was already red and puffy and he had a trail of blood smeared across his face, his nose was still bleeding.  The rest of his body seemed to be equally ruffed up.

I quickly helped him to the table and got a cloth for his nose and a bag of frozen peas for his cheek.

“Are you going to tell me what happened?”  I mumbled as I busied myself.

“What didn’t Jari tell you?  Didn’t he tell you how you deserve better than me?”

I waited.

“I just got a little carried away.  I didn’t mean to Natalie. I broke the record for the 800 metres.  Harry Smith and I have a long history.   He was in the team that beat us in the finals of the football last year.  He was having a go at me.  I couldn’t let him win.”

I closed my eyes.  There was nothing I could say.

“I am sorry Natalie.  It won’t happen again.”

“Yes, you are probably right about that.”  With my eyes still closed I turned from him, “You should go.  I need some space tonight.  I will need to talk with Jari.  Go.”  I lied but I need him to leave and I didn’t want him to know what Jari was doing.