Chapter 6

Killian walked out into the hot Florida air, letting the door slam shut behind him. The small bell on the handle jiggled like a bad omen and some paint chips fell off the door frame. He didn't stop to say anything to Hayden as the jinn watched him from where Nora tapped away on her laptop.

"Killian," Hayden called out.

"Not now," Killian didn't turn.

"Killian, listen to -"

"What Hayden?" Killian snapped. "What is it? What are you going to say? We'll find her soon? Everything will be okay?"

Nora's hands paused over her keyboard. She looked up and used her palm to push her glasses back in their place. Her eyes moved to Hayden as he lowered his hand and let out a small sigh.

"It's been two days," Killian said. "She's been gone for two days and we....."

Killian's throat began to tighten. He couldn't speak as breathing became impossible. Every time he blinked, Kiara's face flashed before his eyes. His hands balled into fists, causing sharp pain to shoot up through the cuts on his knuckles.

He was terrified....terrified he would never find her again. His north star had disappeared from the sky and he was lost in the dark woods.

"We're close," Hayden said slowly. "Nora will find something."

"We're running out of time," Killian shook his head. "Every second she spends with them is too long."

"We really are close," Nora sat up. "I actually do have something."

The boys turned towards her as she rotated her laptop to show them a map of the gulf of Mexico. Killian walked up to her and peered at the screen.

"Reports of ships and sailboats disappearing in the past few years," Nora explained. "They all seem to accumulate here, here and here."

As she spoke, she used her stylus to circle three different coordinates.

"Some of the reports of ships that have found their way back speak of sudden storms," Nora pulled up the records. "This could be it. These could be the islands."

"Three of them?" Hayden asked.

"Yes," Nora nodded. "And! You'll never believe this."

Killian wished the girl would hurry it up and not drag out the information. But he knew she was doing the best she could and that was plenty.

"Just two years ago there was a huge military parade a few towns over," Nora tapped on the mouse pad and a news clipping popped up. "New naval ships were being deployed from here."

"So?" Killian asked.

"So?" Nora's eyes widened. "Look at these ships! They're not US naval ships. They have no markings. No logos. Nothing."

"You think they're from Project Skyfall," Hayden looked at the girl.

"They have to be," Nora looked down at the pictures. "This is news from a high school newspaper. No major network covered this. Something this big should have gotten more coverage."

"Unless the government is running a top secret operation," Killian said. "They wouldn't show these ships off."

"I agree," Nora nodded.

"Okay," Hayden took in a deep breath. "I'll go tell Ares and Clare. We can split up and go look at the locations."

"That's a good plan," Nora said.

"And luck on the money?" Killian asked Nora.

"I'm still looking," Nora frowned. "I'm on a wild goose chase. The money has been passed around from country to country."

"Keep looking," Killian said.

As Hayden instructed Nora to send everyone the coordinates of the islands, a black car pulled up to the small shop and stopped. Everyone waited with suspicious eyes as the door opened and Ben Zephyr walked out.

Killian's eyes darkened immediately. He was shocked by the amount of anger he suddenly felt towards the man. He hardly knew him. But he was one of them. He was a product of something that was very wrong with the world. The living breathing product of the people who took his north star from him.

As Ben walked around to the passenger side of the car and held the door open for Adeline, Clare and Ares walked out of the shop. The women looked at each other for a brief second before Clare looked away and focused on Ben. Adeline's face fell as she took in a deep breath and walked up to where everyone stood.

"We want to help," she said, stopping in front of Hayden and Killian.

"Thanks, but we got it," Hayden hated the way his tone was so clipped. This was the woman who had helped raise him. She was his mother's twin.

"I have Ben's memory," Ben said. "Everything he knew about these people. It's all still in my head."

"So nice of you to share it with us now," Killian snapped. "Where the hell was this generosity when Hayden and Ares were trying to shut this program down months ago? You two vanished. Hide out behind your palace walls with Arla, not even giving a second glance to this mess."

"We didn't disappear," Adeline stepped forward. "We continued our work. We did and are still doing everything we can to wipe this program out."

"Well it's not enough," Killian shouted. "You created a monster and it's not stopping."

"Killian," Ben spoke gently. "I can understand how you feel."

"Don't speak to me about how I feel," Killian spit. "You're the last person I want to hear that from."

"Killian, we want to help," Adeline said. "We love Kiara and we were devastated when we heard abou-"

"Oh yes," Killian laughed. "You look so torn up."

Adeline closed her mouth as her shoulders dropped. She looked at Clare and then at Ares.

"Please," Killian held up his hand. "Save your statements for the newspapers and T.V. We don't need your glossy sympathy."

"Let us help," Ben said once more. "I'm willingly turning myself over. Ask me anything and I will tell you all I know about project Skyfall."

Before anyone could decide on what to do, Nora jumped out of her van and squeezed past Killian and Hayden. She jumped into the circle and held the laptop up to Ben.

"I have three possible locations for islands they could be using as their base," she said. "Which one do you think is the best option?"

"Nora-" Hayden tried to pull her back but she pushed his hand away.

"What?" she said. "They're here to help. You all can argue after we get information."

"The girl's right," Ares said. "We need all hands on deck."

"Speaking of decks," Nora held up a finger. "We need boats. If we want to go find these places we will need transportation."

"Don't worry about that," Clare said. "I can have Maksim send us boats."

"We know someone nearby," Adeline volunteered. "The family buys and sells yachts. It'll be faster to get boats from them then to have ships be portaled here."

Clare looked a bit uncomfortable. It had been months since she had seen her cousin. Ever since Adeline and Ben's secret came out in the family, one one knew what to do. Everyone was hurt, confused, angry, scared. They didn't want to push Adeline away. But she had pushed them away years ago when she made the decision to hide something so big.

But then again, hadn't Clare done the same thing when she kept her powers a secret from everyone?

"Okay," Clare nodded. She was tired of the awkwardness between her and Adeline. "Call them and see if they can have three boat ready for us."

"Just one," Ben stopped his wife.

"What?" Nora looked at her screen, checking to see if the man was looking at the correct thing.

"There's only one island here," Ben said.

"But there are three sites where ships vanish."

"Connect all the locations," Ben said.

Nora handed him her stylus and watched as he drew lines from one coordinate to another. A triangle formed on the screen in the middle of the gulf.

"The island is in the middle," Ben said.

"How do you know?" Hayden asked.

"The three locations where ships vanish are the pillars for energy fields. They surround the island, stopping anything or anyone from entering from any direction."

"That makes life a lot easier," Ares said. "We just have one place to search."

"What about naval ships?" Nora asked. "Dozens of ships were deployed into the gulf."

"That is beyond my memory," Ben looked up. "They must have made those calls after Ben left."

Killian watched Nora slowly nod her head.

Kiara will like her.

The sudden thought made his heart shrivel up painfully once more. He wondered if the people around him could see how suffocated he was. Every second he felt as if he was moments away from completely losing his mind. And ever since Kiara was taken, each second had become a thousand year.

Killian wanted everything to happen at lightning speed. No matter how fast everyone moved, he still had the urge to scream.

Kiara needed him. Did they not understand that?

Ever so often he had the urge to go off on his own. But he reminded himself he needed to think clearly. Alone, he didn't have the manpower. He wouldn't let his emotions get in the way. He wasn't going to be reckless when it came to Kiara. So when Adeline called her connection and arranged for a yacht, Killian bit down on the inside of his cheeks and held his breath.

"Are you breathing?"

Killian's eyes snapped down to Nora. she had walked out of her van to stand next to him as Ares, Clare, Ben and Adeline all gathered around discussing strategies.

"I think so," Killian said, letting out a deep sigh and running a hand through his hair.

"I know you probably don't want to hear this, but Kiara is going to be okay," Nora said. "We will find her. We're very close."

Killian slowly nodded his head. He folded his arms over his chest, hoping the hollowness in his body would go away. He was begging to feel like a balloon. All he wanted was to feel Kiara in his arms.

"Killian," Hayden's voice surprised the pair as they stood in the parking lot.

Nora turned and found the jinn walking up to them as Clare and Ares suddenly began to head into their car.

"Nora, Maksim is sending someone from the palace to help you in the van," Hayden held out his hand. "Take this."

"What is that?" Nora looked at the small black bud.

"An ear piece," Hayden held it up. "We can't mind-link you."

"Right," Nora picked up the small piece of neat tech and placed it in her right ear.

Hayden watched her as she fiddled with the thing as if she had a bug inside her ear. Her shoulder twitched and she jumped every time anyone spoke into the thing.

"The yacht is at the docks," Hayden turned to Killian. "We're driving over."

Killian nodded. He turned on his heel and headed for Hayden's car. Nora stood in her spot and looked at her van. Was she supposed to drive that thing?

"Justin will pick it up," Hayden said, reading the look on her face. "Get in the car."

"I need my Mac," Nora held up her hand.

"Get what you need," Hayden said. "The rest will follow you there."

"Okay!" Nora rushed into the van and grabbed her laptop.

When she came out, Hayden held the back passenger door open for her and watched her climb in.

"Do I still need to keep this vest on?" Nora asked in the dark car.

"Yes," Hayden said, buckling himself in.

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

"That's not a really good reason," Nora's eyes narrowed.

"That's your opinion."

"It's for your safety," Killian spoke up, surprising the two. "Ares says you always have to be ready."

"I can't breath," Nora complained.

"You seem just fine to me," Hayden looked at her in the rearview mirror.

Nora didn't reply. She fell back against the seat and pulled out her laptop. The search was still bouncing off hundreds of different cities. She was beginning to grow frustrated as she nibbled on her thumbnail and chipped off the edges.

What the hell was this? Nora asked herself. There was no way they had the money be moved around that much. This was probably a ruse of some kind.

"Hello!" Hayden's voice yanked Nora out of her head. She looked up and found both the boys staring at her from the seats.

"Yes?" Nora asked, closing her laptop.

"Did you hear anything that I was saying?" Hayden asked.

"You were speaking?"

The jinn rolled his eyes. He unbuckled his seat belt and opened his door.

"Justin is in the van behind us," he said. "Stay with him. He sent out some drones to search the sea. Help him monitor them. And keep us informed."

"Got it," Nora jumped out of the car. "And you guys?"

"We're going with Clare and Ares," Hayden nodded towards the big yacht at the dock. "Ben and Adeline are going back to deal with cover up in case anything goes south."

"Got it," Nora nodded.

The sun was beginning to slowly disappear in the sky. It left a canvas of orange and pink hues as the salty hair from the sea tossed Nora's hair around her face. Despite the heat and humidity, she felt a shiver run up her spin.

"Okay," Hayden nodded towards the van.

Nora gave the boys a thumbs up before she turned away and headed over to the van. The door slid open and she jumped in.

"Hello," a skinny man with wire rimmed glasses, red hair, and a scruffy beard smiled as he made space for Nora at the monitoring station. "I'm Justin."

"Nora," Nora scanned the set up. "How many drones did you send out?"

"Four," Justin didn't take his eyes off the screens. "You take these two and I'll take the other."

Nora.

Nora screamed as Hayden's voice rang out in her ear.

Jesus Christ! Nora!

"I'm sorry!" Nora covered her mouth. "I forgot I had the earpiece on."

Can you hear me?

"Yes," Nora was so thankful the van was dark and Justin couldn't see her turning red as a tomato.

Keep in touch, Hayden said. Let us know if you see anything on the drones.

"Got it," Nora nodded.

Just then, she looked over her shoulder and spotted the yacht moving away from the dock. She could see Ares standing on the deck with Killian. They slowly drifted out of the harbor before picking up speed and sailing away.

"Eyes on the screen, please," Justin cleared his throat.

"Sorry," Nora muttered as she turned back.

She pulled out her laptop and set it up beside the drone screens and opened a new window. Justin watched as she clicked her way around before hooking up her small screen to one of the larger ones and displaying a sonar radar.

"What's that?" he asked.

"The coast guards are always monitoring the gulf for drug trafficking," Nora said. "Last year, the palace donated a new underwater pod that can be remotely moved around to scan different ares."

Justin grinned, "Nice."

"I'm going to send it ahead of the yacht to see if we can catch anything."

"Smart girl."

"Thank you," Nora smiled.

Within minutes she had the pods break away from the coast guard's formation and zoom ahead of the yacht. She kept a close eye on the screen as the distance between the boat and the pod increased with each passing minute.

"Anything yet?" Justin asked.

"No," Nora shook her head. "How are the drones doing?"

"Everything seems to be clear," Justin sighed. "Maybe we have the wrong place."

Nora was about to disagree when her computer did it for her. A loud beep rang out in the van as the sonar radar screen suddenly showed a small blip.

"I spoke too soon," Justin said as he moved over to get a better look. "What is that?"

"I don't know," Nora muttered as she focused and pushed the pod to go farther.

Suddenly, there was another beep.

And then another.

And another.

"Holy shit," Justin paled.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Nora pushed away from her desk. She hit the speaker button on her earpiece and waited for Hayden to respond.

"Hayden!" she said urgently. "The ships! The naval ships."

What's going on? Hayden asked.

"They're two miles ahead of you," Nora said. "And there's like twenty of them."

Are they moving?

"No," Nora double checked on the screen. "They're stationary."

There was a pause.

"Hello?" Nora's heart began to hammer. "Hayden."

I'm here, Hayden replied. Ares thinks they're guarding the island.

"You need to turn around," Nora quickly checked the screen. "There's too many. You guys need reinforcement. I'll call the king's guards. They can meet you ha-"

We have Ares with us.

"No," Nora shook her head. "Manpower! They'll move Kiara if they see you coming."

Silence.

"Hello!"

Justin looked up as Nora waited for a reply.

"Hayden!" Nora called to the jinn. "Can you hear me?"

Suddenly, a wave of static buzzed through Nora's ear, making her jump yet again.

"What's going on?" Justin asked.

"We lost connection," Nora turned to the screen. "Where are the drones?"

Justin looked back at the screen and his face paled, "They were just there, I swear."

"Shit," Nora jumped up. "They know we're coming. Hayden!"

More radio silence.

"Where are you going?" Justin asked as Nora headed for the van's doors.

"I have to see if I can get better service outside," Nora said. "They need to kn-"

The van door slid open without Nora's hand even touching. She froze as a woman with a silver nose ring smiled at her from the outside.

"Hello," the woman said kindly.

"....Hi," Nora did not like the way her stomach dropped.

"I know you," the woman's smile widened. "I saw you on campus."

"On campus?" Nora raised a brow.

"You go to Donates?"

"Well, technically-" Nora didn't have a chance to finish as the woman yanked out a gun and shot Justin in the forehead.

With all the strength in her body, Nora screamed at the top of her lungs. She tried to pull the van door close but the woman yanked her out and hurled her into a portal.

Nora felt her body tumble down a roller coaster as she got transported from the van to the deck of a ship. She hit the ground hard as the sound of loud explosions rang out all around her. People yelled and shouted as gunshots rang out and cannons fired. Nora hurried up to her feet and looked around with fear.

"What the hell..." the woman with the silver nose ring said as she walked out of the portal. She looked around as if she too was shocked by the chaos.

"Hilary!" someone shouted.

"What the hell is going on?" The woman, Hilary, turned to the man running up to her.

"Ares," the man said. "We're getting no response from the island. They came out of nowhere."

"What do you mean?" Hillary looked over her shoulder to the ship a few yards away.

"No one is answering to our distress signals," the man emphasized.

"Did you try Bram?"

"Of course, I tried Bram!" the man shouted before his eyes landed on Nora over Hilary's shoulder. "Who's she?"

"A student from Donates," Hillary looked back at Nora. "I was going to take her back to the island."

"Well, no-"

Before the man could finish, a powerful blast collided with the side of the ship. Everyone was knocked off their feet as the ship began to groan. Nora scrambled and grabbed onto a flag pole as another blast hit the same spot and created a massive hole.

Nora began to scream as the side of the sip tilted forward. She felt gravity take over her body as things and people started to roll off the edge and vanish into the dark sea below. With panic, she gripped the pole as hard as she could. Her knuckles started to turn white as she looked up and screamed again.

Her eyes landed on Hayden. The boy stood on the other ship as he sent blast after blast, trying to sink the ship Nora was on. She began to scream and wave her hand hoping by some miracle he would see her.

"Hayden!" Nora screamed. "Hayden! Stop!"

But the jinn couldn't hear a thing. Their earpieces had stopped working. The sun had disappeared. Everything was stacked against Nora as the ship began to slowly descend into the sea.

Suddenly, the earpiece in Nora's ear started to buzz. She hardly paid any attention to it as she stared at the water rushing up to her.

Nora!

Hayden thought he was seeing things.

Nora, what the fuck? How did you get here?

"Hayden!" Nora screamed.

She looked up as the boy shed his human form and turned into a figure of pure blue blames. He shot forward like a comet but stopped inches away from Nora. in desperation, she reached for him, but he jumped back.

Like a rock hitting water, hurt dropped in Nora's heart. She had managed to hold back her tears up until that point. But as soon as she saw the way Hayden jumped away from her, her eyes watered and she cried out in fear.

Through the flames, Nora thought she saw Hayden's expressions twist. He looked as if he was trying to say something. But Nora had no time to decide what he was doing as the ship suddenly dived into the ocean.

Fuck! No!

Hayden shot into the water after Nora.

He would never be able to forget the pain in Nora's eyes. The way Nora's eyes watered when he jumped back crushed some deep hidden part in Hayden's chest he never knew he had. He desperately tried to tell her he couldn't touch her in his true form without burning her. But of course the human brain couldn't pick up on magic like that.

She couldn't understand him and now she was sinking to the bottom of the sea thinking Hayden refused to save her.

Clare! Hayden called out through his mind-link. I need you. Nora is here!

What? Clare asked from somewhere in the sky.

Fuck, you can't touch her either! Hayden realized as he looked up and saw the phoenix flying through the clouds. Ares!

A little busy here!

I don't care! Hayden yelled. Nora was on the ship we just sank. Help her! Get Her out! Killian, stay the fuck away from her. It is not her time yet!

Violent death, Killian barked. Not my department.

Hayden had the sudden urge to scream. He had felt helpless before when he couldn't control his magic and everything fell out of place. But this...this was on another level.

Looking for a way to touch her without toasting her alive, Hayden searched the water. There had to be something. But just as he was beginning to go a notch over panic, a dreadful thought occurred to him.

Where's Nora?

Hayden shot forward in the water.

She was right beside him a second ago!

Where the fuck was she?

Panic turning into anger, Hayden blasted the ship wreck in front of him. The bits and pieces blew up and scattered all over the water, but there was still no sign of Nora.

__________________________

The ground was moving.

It shifted and then rebuilt.

Nora couldn't understand what was happening. She stared up at the dark sky full of stars.

"Star," she said. "I like stars."

Suddenly, cool water rose up from her feet to the back of her head. Nora frowned wondering where she was.

Was this the afterlife?

The last thing she remembered was Hayden's blue light following her into the water. Why would he do that? If he wasn't going to save her, why follow her into the sea?

As Nora laid wondering all those things, a face suddenly floated into the line of her vision. It was a young girl. With long pink hair that hung around her small heart shaped face. Her eyes were coal black. Iridescent scales shimmered along the edge of her face as she blinked her thick lashes and stared at Nora.

Nora jumped up.

She was shocked by how much force it took. The vest she wore weighed her down and her wet clothes didn't help her either. Her hand slipped on the sand as she tried to scurry away from the girl in fright.

The girl held up her hand. Her lips frowned as her eyes softened. Nora couldn't breathe properly as she realized the girl wasn't a girl at all. She was a mermaid...

"Who are you?" Nora asked.

The mermaid smiled. She raised her hand above her head and formed a half circle and closed her fist and touched her heart. Nora just stared.

"Where am I?" Nora looked around the dark beach. "Am I alive?"

The mermaid once again moved her hands around in the hair in a beautiful dance. This time Nora watched her closely.

"You can't speak?" she asked.

The mermaid paused and shook her head.

"But you understand me?"

The mermaid nodded.

"Am I dead?"

The girl shook her head.

"Did you....did you save me?"

The mermaid nodded.

"Am I safe here?"

There was a short pause before the mermaid shrugged.

"Oh boy...." Nora's throat dried. "Is this the island?"

The mermaid tilted her head and raised her brow.

"Do you know where the other's are?"

The mermaid shook her head.

"Why did you bring me h-"

Suddenly, the mermaid sat up. Her eyes widened as she spotted someone over Nora's shoulder.

"What?" Nora looked around. "What is it?"

As quick as a fox, the mermaid jumped back into the water.

"No! Wait!" Nora jumped to her feet and stumbled.

She felt as if she was standing on jello. Her legs were so weak and tired. Like a fish out of water.

Nora didn't know what to do. She could feel someone standing behind her as she stared at the spot where the mermaid was just standing. She knew she couldn't avoid not looking forever. Running away wasn't an option. And there was nothing on the beach to help her protect herself.

With a deep breath, Nora said her prayers her mother had taught her and turned around.

"Oh..." she said, feeling a rush of cold water leap up to her ankles, cooling her like the relief that poured into her heart. "Kiara."

Nora smiled, feeling relieved it wasn't some psycho hybrid. She let out a nervous laugh and hunched forward on her knees, trying to calm her breath.

"Oh thank god it's you," she said. "Oh my god. I was going to pee myself."

Kiara didn't move.

Nora shook out her wet hair and started to undo the straps of her vest.

"Killian and Hayden are on their way," she said.

"Killian?" Kiara asked.

"Yeah, he's comin-" Nora looked up and let out a small yelp.

Kiara's eyes had turned as gold as the wheat on the fields in rhea. Her face was unreadable.

Nora felt her bones chill. She tried to take a step back but Kiara's hand shot forward and grabbed her neck.

"Kiara!" Nora gasped. "What are you doing?"

Kiara's nails dug into Nora's neck and began to draw blood. That was also around the same time Nora's eyes dropped and for the first time she noticed Kiara's appearance.

The girl was covered in blood.   

What do you think all this will mean in the next few chapters?