Aegis: Catalyst Grove Read Free

was his beacon of hope.   It was his sign that he was not going to die in these woods.   It was also his little secret.   Orphans did not have many personal belongings, and this was one of the things he could call his own.   Although he longed to stay there, Graham knew he had to keep moving.  
    Now back on Greenwood property, he slowly made his way up the steep gravel road and past the three ancient willow trees in the front lawn of the Orphanage.   As he crested the hill, Graham noticed a thin and wiry boy stealthily making his way out of the side entrance of the Parlor Room.   Weighing in at 85 pounds soaking wet, 5’3” tall with jet black hair, greenish-hazel eyes and small button nose, Damien was Graham’s best friend.   Since leaving Peru as a small child, he never seemed to lose the golden, South American tan.
    “Que haces? Porque eres tan descuidado!”   Ms. Winstone has been looking for you for over three hours!” said Damien, trying to yell as loud as he could while still whispering in his Latin-Spanish accent.   “You never stay gone this long. What is going on?”
    “I know, I know…..it takes a while to search all of Wellington.   I was going as fast as I could,” replied Graham.   “Now let me by, I need to get back inside.”
    Graham had already lost control once today; he was not going to do it again, especially in front of Damien. He had to get away.
    “Hey wait!”   Damien grabbed Graham’s arm and pulled him back.   “I don’t know how much longer I can be your watchman, Graham.”
    “Look Damien, you and I both want to find out what is going on.   Both of us cannot go to Wellington, and I know my way around the woods surrounding the market much better than you do.   This is what we agreed on, right?”
    “Yes,” Damien murmured as he rolled his eyes.  
    “Good, it is settled then.”   Graham pulled his arm from Damien’s hand and continued quickly towards the door.
    Damien wasn’t going to let Graham walk away again.   Sprinting after him, Damien again stopped Graham with a hand to his chest.
    “Listen, I don’t know what your deal is right now, but we need to talk.   How about you try talking to me for once instead of avoiding me like the plague.”
    Graham took a deep breath to hide his frustration.   He knew Damien was getting tired of being pushed to the side, but over the past few months, his unexplainable power had become increasingly more difficult to control and hide.   He was only trying to protect his best friend, but he recognized that Damien was not about to let him walk away without some answers.  
    “Fine.   Maybe when Ms. Winstone’s friend comes over again, we can find out more about this mystery person.   Her last conversation didn’t exactly give us much to go on.   It is like I am looking for a ghost.   The only thing I have to go on is the fact that there is a huge guy in town named Cavaness, who can do things normal people can’t.”
    Glad that Graham was finally talking to him, Damian tried to concentrate on what Graham was saying, but the fear of being reprimanded by Ms. Winstone kept him on edge.
    “We both need to be in on the conversation, so we don’t miss anything, ok?” whispered Graham.   “We need a plan.   I only got the final part of their conversation last time.”
    “ Sí ” replied Damien.   “Now, vamos , we need to get back inside. I don’t want you to get in trouble.   Why don’t you go to the West Wing and act like you have been hiding there.   If I see Ms. Winstone, I will tell her that we have been playing hide-and-seek.”
    “Hide-and-seek?   What are you talking about?   We are fifteen , Damien.   We don’t play hide-and-seek.”  
    “Hey, its the best I’ve got right now.   You have any better ideas, amigo?”
    Graham thought for a few seconds and realized he could not come up with anything better, so he reluctantly agreed.   He put his two fingers to his forehead and flicked them