9 Chapter 8

I ripped my radio from my hip and pulled it to my face, "Anyone who has a radio needs to respond."

"Is everything alright Carla?" Kathy asked, "I'm here with Liam, we're almost to the camp."

"Madelyn? Nathan? Paige? Carter?" I called into the radio.

No answer.

"I thought they were with you?" Liam's voice came through the radio.

"They disappeared before the fight," I explained.

There was no answer.

"They've been captured, nobody is to discuss anything over the radios from now on, is that understood?"

"Yeah Carla," Kathy's nervous voice came over the radio before I clicked it off. I slammed my radio down in the dirt and started trudging towards the cabin.

"Carla?" Ryder called out. His voice made me turn to face him.

"What?"

"The rest of the bodies..."

I angrily formed purple tinted force fields around the remaining bodies and quickly moved them into trench. After that I quickly covered them up with the displaced dirt and then dramatically turned back towards the cabin. I heard Ryder's footsteps behind me.

I got to the door of the cabin and pushed it open so hard that the door hit the wall.

"Hey!" Ryder irritatedly yelled at me. I'd be shocked if the doorknob didn't dent the wall. I heard Ryder close the door. My rampage continued to the kitchen table where I shoved everything off of it onto the floor.

I firm hand grabbed me by the crook of the elbow and dragged me away from the table. Ryder released his grip and gave me a slight shove so my back was against the door frame of the large archway.

"Listen to me," He loudly snapped.

I tried to push past him back to the table but he just grabbed me and shoved me back against the archway.

"You need to stop," Ryder loudly berated.

"I need paper," I muttered as I tried to push him out of the way to no avail. I was quickly pushed back to the archway.

"You need to stop. You being like this isn't going to save your friends, and it's not healthy for you as a person."

He had a point.

I leaned against the archway and melted down to the floor. I tucked my knees into my chest and laid my head on top of my knees.

Ryder got down on his knees and crouched down to be eye level with me.

"Now that you're not rampaging," he calmly stated, "Why did you need paper?"

"I need to draw out a plan."

Liam busted through the closed front door. The force of him coming through had caused the door to come off its hinges and hit the floor.

"Buddy, it was unlocked," Ryder shouted, "You're fixing it." He looked back down at me, "And you're fixing the wall."

Liam stormed over and grabbed Ryder by his shoulders, lifting him into the air and knocking him against the other side of the wide archway.

"Where is Madelyn?" Liam growled. He obviously was in the same boat that I was.

Ryder's head tilted so he could see me, "You people have anger issues."

I slowly stood up and took a few steps towards Liam. I gently put my hand on his shoulder and he instantly calmed. He put Ryder down and sat down on a nearby chair, setting his head in his hands.

"What did you do?" Ryder asked as he gently rubbed his shoulders.

I glanced over at Liam and then back at Ryder, "I increased his Oxytocin hormone levels to temporarily calm him."

"Where did you learn that?" Ryder confusingly asked.

"His sister taught me how to calm everyone, I just can't do it to myself," I answered. My jaw clenched at my words.

"Is Madelyn his sister?" Ryder questioned.

I nodded.

I crouched down next to Liam and put my hand on his arm. He lifted his head to look at me. His lips were quivering accompanied by tears running down his face. Madelyn was his only blood family, and he was very protective of her.

"Carla," Liam whispered, "I-I promised her-"

"I know," I whispered back, "We're going to save her."

"I promised that I'd keep her safe and nothing would happen to her Carla. Carla I can't protect her," Liam cried quietly.

I started to slowly move my thumb back and forth on his arm.

A sniffle erupted from behind me and I turned to see Ryder furiously wiping away tears. I shot him a worried look, but he just turned away so his back faced me.

Some movement caught my attention in my peripheral vision that caused me to turn my head towards the front doorway. Kathy stood in the doorway, heaving for breath with tears running down her face. It was time to be the person Paige told me I needed to be.

I stood up and organized stuff on the table so it looked neat; cleaning the stuff I had knocked onto the floor as well. After I finished neatly setting the chairs around the table, I turned to the three crying teenagers in the main room.

I folded my arms on top of eachother and softened my facial expression so I didn't seem so harsh. "The three of you need to pull yourselves together because I can't go rescue them myself. Please sit at the table, I'll be right back."

They had looked at me when I spoke and move to the table after I finished. I walked past them and jogged out the door. I thought about what had happened in the events leading up to them disappearing.

Maybe something was dropped, a way for me to track where they are.

I walked in the direction that they here standing, over by a little trailer house. I slowly walked over where they were standing, examining every detail imprinted in the grass or dirt. Three little pieces of wood sat awkwardly in the grass, like they had been thrown. I reached down and grabbed them, quickly realizing that they were the cross necklaces that I had made for everyone.