Page 49 of Dark Flame

“Mr. Bellum, sir,” said Juan, stepping forward. “I would never violate your trust or Kelly in that way. I will respect your wishes that I remain here while she’s at college. I will, however, protect her at all costs if she needs me. I cannot control my feelings, nor can I control my ability to feel her fear or concern or sadness. I know she’s young. I never expected this. But when Ben and I walked up, I just knew. I knew. School will give her time. It will give her the time she needs to figure out if I’m really what she wants.” Juan’s face fell into a sad, desperate look.

“You are,” said Kelly, linking her fingers with his.

“You both are,” said Regan, smiling. “Sorry I didn’t say something sooner, but I think it’s always best if these things just sort of work themselves out. You two were designed to be together, both from a gifts standpoint and your hearts. It will be difficult to be apart. Kelly will struggle, as will Juan, but it can be done.”

Uri’s face fell in desperation, and everyone knew what that meant. If something happened to Kelly or Juan, the other would most likely die. Whether he liked it or not, this young man was tied to his daughter now and forever. Kelly reached out for her father’s hand.

“Daddy, you have to trust that Juan and I will not do anything stupid. I’m going to go to college, but now given what Regan said, maybe I should take online courses.” she smiled.

Uri nodded, pulling his daughter in for a big hug. However, it was the stern look on Ben’s face that had everyone feeling the tension.

“All this time. All this time, you knew, and you didn’t tell me,” said Ben. Mary reached for his arm, but he pulled away. “Did you all know? Did you all know that he was special? Was I the only fucking one in the bunch who didn’t know?”

“Ben, it’s not like that,” said Kane. “None of us knew. No one picked up on it, absolutely no one. For some reason, Juan was able to hide his gifts better than anyone here was. I suspect because he did it to survive as a child.”

“I’m sorry, Ben,” said Juan, stepping toward the only man he’d ever called father. “I was scared for so long, and then, well, then it just didn’t seem to matter. When you said we were coming to Wyoming to help a brother, I was more than happy to come, but when I figured out what they all were, that we were all the same, I knew sooner or later I’d have to say something.”

Ben shook his head in disbelief. All these years, he’d raised Juan as his own son, and not once in that time did he display any special abilities or skills that he could remember. He was a grown man now, a man obviously in love. It would take time, but he would learn to accept it. He pulled the young man for a hug, kissing the side of his face.

“What now?” he whispered.

“Now, I watch Kelly from near or afar,” he smiled, looking at her parents. “When the time is right, we’ll marry. We both know we will.” Ben nodded, and so did Uri.

“Well,” said Adam, “either way, I want to do a full workup on you, Juan. Everyone has to have one done. We need to make sure you weren’t micro-chipped as well.”

“I was,” he said, staring at the group. “When you started taking them out of everyone, well, I just did it myself so I wouldn’t have to say anything.” Adam opened his mouth to scream but then thought wiser of it.

“That was incredibly stupid, young man! You could have gotten an infection or worse.” Juan nodded and smiled at the doctor. “Fine. Tomorrow at the clinic.”

“Let’s go, everyone. Homecoming dinner!” said Aislinn.

Juan and Kelly stayed behind the group a bit. Slowly making their way to the grove where they knew the tables would be set for their dinner.

“I should have come to you sooner,” said Juan. “I should have told you how I felt.”

“I knew,” she said quietly. “I love you, Juan. I’ve loved you since the first day I saw you but knew you’d think I was too young. I may only be eighteen, but my mind isn’t eighteen. You know that, right? I know what I’m feeling, Juan, and it’s love for you.”

He smiled, nodding at her. He pulled her close, kissing her forehead.

“I still think you’re too young, but it seems we don’t have a choice in this. I’ll wait, Kelly, patiently I’ll wait for you.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

The lives of the group forever changed that day. It was the beginning of their new lives. Lives in which they could write their own story, their own history. They would start a new path of helping others with their gifts, not abusing them. They would never again allow anyone to use their gifts for evil.

In the months ahead, they discovered that there were no others like them alive in the world. All died either by their own hand or Moore’s and Viskoff’s. Their band of merry men and women was exactly what they saw in front of them.

Kane began writing a business plan for their new company. It would be called “TG Protection” – TG forThe Gifted, which no one needed to know about. It would be their little secret.

He didn’t want them to become mercenaries or murderers. He didn’t want to be guns for hire or circus show freaks. He wanted them to make a difference in the world. Take on tasks to help the little guys, the underdogs. That might mean a small country or a family hoping to find their lost child. He wasn’t even sure what that looked like right now, but he was sure that the team would be able to make a difference in the world, just as he’d suspected.

Their team was fast becoming a family.

Ben and Mary were living together, although neither saw the need to get married at this point in their lives. Mary was content to be enveloped in the love and adoration that Ben showed her every day. His strong arms made her feel safe and secure in a world where she’d felt very little of that.

Kelly went off to college, much to the dismay of Juan, and then just as quickly, left to pursue her degree online. It was physically painful and detrimental to them both to be so far apart. Neither could stand the distance, and Uri and Melanie accepted it.

No one really knew the young man’s age, but Adam concluded he was most likely around twenty-five. He was tall, dark, handsome, and insanely quiet, but more than anything, he was in love with Kelly Bellum.

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