“I helped her,” Trina says confidently. “Come on, Owen. I’ll show you.”
I follow Trina over to the fallen woman, who is just opening her eyes. She looks up at Trina with wonder.
“I saw you in my dream,” she says. “I was falling down a long, dark tunnel, and you caught me.”
“Hush now,” Trina says, putting her hand on Janice’s forehead. “You still have a fever. Try to stay calm.”
I watch the scene in amazement, wondering how Trina could have changed so much in a few short hours.
“What the hell happened here?” I ask, turning on the three guys again.
“She attacked us!” Jesse says.
“We attacked her,” Charlie counters.
“They attacked first, then Trina did,” says the only other woman in the group. “She used her powers—it was pretty scary.”
“Trina doesn’t have powers…” My voice trails off as I see evidence against my words written all over their faces.
“Tell that to my ass,” the last guy says, picking himself up off the ground. “I think it broke when she threw us across the yard with a flick of her hand.”
I look between the four of them, more questions building in my mind, but Trina grabs my arm.
“Owen? We have to get Janice to the infirmary, right now.”
“Oh? Oh!” I reply, my senses beginning to sharpen as I turn back to Trina. “Of course.” I give her a searching look. “Trina, what’s going on here? Do you suddenly have powers?”
“I guess so?” she says, looking at her hands. “I mean, I’m trying to call it up now, and I’m not feeling anything—but I definitely did push these guys away from me, and I helped Janice. But Owen—please. We need to move her.”
“Okay,” I answer, shaking my head. “You punks just consider yourselves extremely lucky, on all counts. Get out of my sight.”
Even though Jesse looks like he wants to argue, his friends urge him away, and they leave. I pick up Janice and walkthrough the woods with Trina, who stays close, comforting the girl.
Trina walks with her head high, an aura of mystery and power clinging to her. She looks calm and sure of herself in a way she never has before. It makes me happy that she’s feeling so much better, but scares me a little, too.
She changed so much, so fast. I wasn’t expecting it, and I truly don’t know how to handle it.
When we reach the infirmary, we find a bed for Janice, and I try to take Trina home. She shakes her head.
“No, I should stay,” she says. “What if I could heal the others?”
“Trina, I don’t know,” I reply. “You’ve only just started learning. Don’t exert yourself.”
“I have to try,” she says, and goes to walk towards a row of beds. When she stumbles, I’m right there beside her, and the sharp scent of her blood floods my nostrils.
“Trina, you’re still bleeding!”
“I’m alright.”
“No, you aren’t! For fuck’s sake—”
I don’t wait for her permission, I just pick her up and leave the hall, walking as quickly as I can back to the house. She protests a little, but I can tell she really is tired now and beyond arguing with me.
I carry her all the way to the bathroom, where I set her down on the edge of the tub and rip her sleeve open to see the wound. Trina winces a little, but doesn’t flinch.
“It’s deep,” I say with concern. “It could probably use stitches.”
“No, don’t worry about that,” she says. “I think it will be okay.”
