Discovering Rowan [on hold]

Chapter 18

I ran through the trees twisting and turning trying to remember the route, but after five minutes the trees were all a mass of green and brown, one undistinguishable from another. Skylar was trying to reach me telepathically but I slammed my shields up as I was away from him and more determined than ever to keep him out of my head. I passed the fallen tree trunk I had walked over, but wait, I could have sworn I passed that minutes before? 

I felt something whistle past my ear. I stopped running to catch my breath I looked around me for the source of the sound. Nothing. 

Then I head the sound again but something had lodged itself in the back of my shoulder. Wincing at the pain I pulled it out. 

It was an arrow.

Someone wanted to get me.

I ran, faster this time, but after a few minutes the world started to spin leaving me swaying from side to side. I tried to pull myself together but the dizziness won. I ran sideways in a dizzy haze and slammed the side of my body into a tree trunk. I crumpled to the ground the pain in my side agonizing. I tried to pull myself up, muttering profanities under my breath but I collapsed onto the floor again.

"You're stronger than this Ro." I muttered under my breath as I pulled myself up using the tree trunk as support. I placed my hands onto my side to try and stop the pain but my hands came back sticky with blood. I felt like I wanted to feint with the dizziness and the sight of the blood but I pulled myself together. I grabbed a long branch from the ground snapping it in two and leaning on it to support my weight. I was well and truly lost. It was getting dark and I was alone. I reached in my pocket for my phone.

I'd left it in my rucksack back at the clearing with Skylar.

I felt tears in my eyes but I blinked them back furiously, angry at myself. How had I been reduced to a bloody crying mess?

Crack.

A twig snapped behind me and I turned round. A bullet flew towards me and instinctively I put my hands up to cover my face. But at the last minute the bullet split into four small bullets a net strung between them. Without the support of the branch when the net landed on top of me I crumpled underneath the weight. Refusing to give up I tried ripping the net apart with my bare fingers. Failing, I gave a cry of frustration.

"She looks like a wild lioness trying to escape her captors." An amused voice stated.

I looked up to find the source of the voices. Eric stood there a smug smile on his face.

"You," I spat. "Are you going to get me out of this now? The joke's gone a bit far now don't you think?"

He looked at me with amused eyes. "The joke? This isn't a joke Rowan." He turned and held his hand out. Since when had Eric had ten fingers? I shook my head but that only made the dizziness worse. "She's in the net without means of escape so getting her into the sack should be quite easy. Pass it over." And out of the shadows emerged Mr Vayner holding a sand coloured sack. I felt around on the ground for a weapon of some sort to defend me.

"It's no good Rowan. You're too weak to fight either of us." I bit my lip my face hardening into a scowl. I wouldn't be beaten. So I went to my last resort.

'HELP! SKYLAR PLEASE' I screamed telepathically.

'Rowan....okay?....help... trying...where...you...blocked...headache...' His replies were faint and I couldn't make anything out.

"Don't try reaching for him. People are coming for him too. Some of them savants like you and I. They'll block the telepathic connection between you and Skylar so he can't even get a peep through."

I was screwed.

I gave into the dizziness and the pain and fell into a deep sleep.

***

I was woken up by something slamming into the side of my body. I clenched my teeth to stop myself from crying out in pain. I tried to figure out where I was. I blinked my eyes. I couldn't see anything. I presumed from the constant bumps I was in a vehicle of some sort. I listened and I could hear occasional snippets of conversation.

"The dizziness arrow worked...not long...strengthening formula...net was good...what are you planning on doing with her?" All of a sudden everything came flooding back to me. The dizziness. Eric. And the fact that I was trapped in a sack. At this point I picked my ears up listening in further.

"I want to see how different foods affect her, how she heals, sleeping patterns, but that's just a vague outline. Studies on the brain ecetra."

"Doesn't that involve dissection?"

Oh shit.

You need to improvise Rowan. And fast.

Taking my earrings out I stabbed them though the material of the sack. I gave them a slight tug, as not to break them. They were useless. I took the earrings out of my sixth piercing. That was the earring I first got my ear pierced with. A silver stud which was much stronger and sharper on the end. I stabbed it through again and gave it a slight tug. There was a small rip. I worked at it with my fingers widening the rip until it was big enough for me to wiggle out of. Still in the net I looked around my eyes adjusting to the dark. Lined up against the wall there were several guns, bows, arrows and a knife. I reached up and grabbed the knife by the blade. It left a line of blood on my hand but I needed to get the knife and the hilt was too high to reach. Sawing at various parts of the net I managed to get myself out of it and stood up in the back of the van. I stumbled towards the doors. I planned to dive to the side and hope for the best.

"She's out! Pull over!" The van swung to the side and I toppled over, my bad side slamming against the side of the van. I cried out in pain. I had to act fast. Reaching for the handles of the van door they swung open but before I could jump out Eric's hands grabbed onto me. I tried to shrug them off but it didn't work. I bent my head down and sunk my teeth into his hand. Letting go of me with one hand he pulled me close to him and although he didn't have as much muscle as Skylar he certainly had a fair bit. One of his arms wrapped around me while the other grabbed one of my wrists. I twisted trying to get away from him. Looking down at my wrist I looked down and widened my eyes. He was trying tie my hands up.

"Get your vile hands off me you asshole." I yelled kicking him.

He smirked unaffected by the kick. He tied my hands to a rail on the side of the van. He then slammed the doors. The van swerved to the side again and my side hit against the floor of the van.

Weak, tired and hungry I passed out.