Fracture

Chapter 1

"We're not supposed to be here, Lex," Janelle says. "They made that quite clear three years ago. Don't you remember the military guards following us, making sure we didn't come to this particular spot?"

Even though she's right, I ignore her, inching closer to the fence that surrounds Compound B's training field. I can't turn back now. I need to discover who's pulling me to this place.

"When we get caught, I'm not covering for you."

I let my eyes roll; her confidence in me is overwhelming. "Will you relax? It's the middle of the day. Everyone's at combat training." My fingers grasp the cold metal fence as I look out over the soldiers training. He's here; I can feel his presence.

"Exactly! Two empty spots in training make it glaringly obvious that 'Hey, Janelle and Alexis have ditched!'"

I shove my hand over her mouth, silencing her shout. "If you're not quiet, we'll definitely get caught."

Our eyes meet, and she nods her head as I take my hand away.

"Think of it like this; there are ten compounds and over 150,000 acres in this place. What's the likelihood of Commander Marks picking this particular training field, let alone alley to check?"

"If you're trying to comfort me, it's not working," Janelle says, shaking her head, causing her blond braid to swing like a pendulum. "This is a fool's errand. How can you pick out someone that you got a glimpse of...once? We're going." Janelle grabs my sleeve and begins pulling me down the alley.

"If you want to leave, then leave," I say, yanking my sleeve from her grasp. "Nothing is keeping you here."

She looks at me for a moment then tilts her head to the side, staring into the distance. I feel a subtle tug on my emotions as she seeks to understand what's driving me. Her ability to sense the feelings of others is both a blessing and a curse.

"I'm not leaving without you," Janelle says, walking over to the fence and staring out over the field. It seems as if a deep burden weighs her down.

I want to kick myself for being so thoughtless. Janelle doesn't need to be here, but I opened my big mouth and told her about the crazy connection that formed when I saw a soldier during training. I should have come alone, not that Janelle would have let me, but I could have tried.

"Janelle, I'm sorry, I..."

"No, I'm sorry," Janelle says, cutting me off. "I should have known that this connection is reminding you of the past. You shouldn't have to bear that burden alone," she pauses a moment; before a grin spreads across her face. "Besides, I can't go back alone. I wouldn't be able to blame it on you if I got caught."

Her apology makes me feel worse, but I need her. This connection scares me. In truth, it's not really a connection, but a feeling of awareness of another person. Right now, it's faint, but I worry that it will grow into something that will destroy the other person or me, as it did three years ago with Jared.

"Do you think it's Jag?" Janelle gives voice to my thoughts, but I have to shake my head.

"No, he's gone," the words come out in a whisper. The pain of Jared's death is still raw after all these years. Anguish threatens to pull me in, and part of me wants to give in, but I know it will not help. It will only cause me to relive those last moments.

"Lex, you can get through this," Janelle says. "Focus on the training field, the hot guy wearing the black uniform."

I shake my head at her crazy comment but turn back to the field. A laugh breaks through as I scan the area and see row after row of soldiers lined up in black uniforms. The presidential red dragon splayed on the back of each one.