Part of the Truson S.E.T. series.
He knew who it was and shifted his weight against the wooden frame. After three tries, he finally managed to push himself inside. Smoke and burnt ashes invaded his face, causing him to cover his nose and mouth. He scanned the room.
She had to be here somewhere.
He was relieved when he saw Mandy crouched in the corner, shielding her face from the smoke by putting her head in-between her legs. He scooped her up in his arms and bolted out of the room. In the hallway, he found his best friend, Stin Vanderson, heading in their direction.
“Are you guys okay?” he asked. His eyes cut from Ford to Mandy. He placed a hand on Ford’s shoulder to get his attention. “Are you okay?”
“She’s fine.” Ford stared at her. “She’s just a little shaken up, that’s all.” Ford tore his eyes away. He knocked down the door. Half of the room had been engulfed in flames. He felt a hand on his shoulder.
“I need to get in there before the room is completely destroyed,” Stin said.
Ford nodded. Stin galloped into the room as the students came up the stairs. Ford gained control of the crowd while a massive gush of icy winds enveloped the room, dousing the flames within a matter of minutes.
Damn, Ford already felt guilty about leaving Mandy alone in the room without supervision. Now his students had to come and see the damage left behind. What the hell was he thinking? Why did he let her get to him to the point where he stormed out of the room, leaving her alone for someone to come and rescue her?
He shook his head.
There was no time for self-pity. He needed to know what happened and to find out who was responsible for it.
“Mandy?”
She stared at the wall, not moving, not even to blink her eyes.
“Mandy?”
Finally, she blinked and focused his attention on him.
“Yes?” she asked. Ford saw the fear before her light green eyes flicked into a bright blue halo.
“What happened Mandy? Who did this to you?”
The halo quickly disappeared.
“Mandy, I know you’re upset about last night. I get it, but you need to tell me what’s going on.”
Tears trailed down her freckled cheeks. “No–no one tried to hurt me,” she said. “I got upset and ripped the pillows.” She sniffed and wiped the tears from her cheeks.
A gush of wind blew on Ford’s skin. He shivered. He knew what that meant. Stin was using his powers of snow and ice to fuel the flames. The wind was an indication that the entire room was an icebox , and no one was allowed in unless they wanted to get frostbitten.
“Then I grabbed the cover from the bed. I tried to swing it to the other side of the room. That’s when it happened,” Mandy said, breaking Ford’s thoughts.
“When what happened?”
“I set the place on fire, Ford. I nearly destroyed the room!”
Mandy stood up.
“What did you guys do to me after the accident? And what is with these terms I don’t understand? Mandy inched closer to Ford. “Tell me the truth. I need to know everything.”
***
Ford could have gone on and on about someone trying to murder her. Or he could have gone a different route and told her about who she was, what kind of life she led from childhood until she married the worst man on Earth. But he couldn’t. Not yet. He knew what he needed to do.
He rubbed her shoulders.
“I know this is hard for you to understand, but I’m not the enemy here. We need to start trusting each other. The only way we can do that is if you do as I say,” Ford said. “I won’t be able to save you from yourself if you don’t.”
“What does that mean?” Mandy scratched her head before she massaged her scalp. This whole situation scared her. She didn’t know what was going on or what she was doing. How could she possibly set an entire room on fire? She was losing her mind. She needed to be someplace safe, away from the chains and the machines holding her back.
She just wanted to be alone. Her thoughts slowed down as Ford rubbed her back.
“I will explain everything to you, I promise. Just not here. There are too many people around. I need to take you somewhere safe.”
“Hey, it’s Mr. Mayfield!” Someone yelled. Ford smiled as his students gathered around him and gave him hugs before some of them noticed Mandy standing next to him.
“Who’s she?” One of the students asked. Never removing his hand from her back, Ford tried to inch her forward to no avail.
“This is Mandy, one of the newest members of the Truson Super Elite Team.”
Some of the students said hi.
“So, Mr. Mayfield, when are going to start teaching us again? We miss you, man.” The male student put a hand on his shoulder.
“I will be teaching you guys very soon. For right now, I have to make sure my friend Mandy gets well-adjusted to her new life as an Orman.” He paused when he saw Stin strolling toward the door.
“Whew. That was some fire,” Stin said. “Do you guys know who did it?” Mandy didn’t say a word. She couldn’t make eye contact with anyone. Weird sensations rocked her entire body as she replayed what happened again in her mind. None of this made any sense. She could feel the tension squeezing at her throat.
She needed air. If she didn’t get out of here soon, she was going to have a panic attack.
“Yes. It will be taken care of, don’t worry about it,” Ford replied and showed his pearly whites to Stin and the students. “As much as I would love to chitchat on this issue, I think Mandy may be feeling a little ill. I’m going to take her someplace where she will feel better.” Ford’s eyes landed on her. “Are you ready to go?”
“Yes, please get me out of here.” Mandy walked down the hall while Stin and Ford stared at each other.
“Mandy, don’t go too far please.”
Stin looked past Ford’s shoulder. “Uh…you might want to go after her dude. She’s already ahead of you.”
Ford’s head turned down the hallway. Dammit, he did to again. He let her escape from his sight. What the hell was the matter with him?
“Ford?” He heard Stin and a few of the other students call his name, but he was far too busy searching for Mandy. His heart raced. Blood rushed through his veins. He thought about the possible scenarios if she were ever to escape the island.
He could afford to let that happen.
Uh-oh! Mandy has escaped and Ford has lost track of her. Find out what happens next in Epiosde Seven of An Ormna’s Revenge.
