Read Online Children of the Elementi by Ceri Clark - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Ceri Clark
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her way out to her new life.
Getting through customs concerned Kiera the most. She needn’t have worried though; Campbell’s mind had told her the name of the best forger in Ireland. Even so, passport control just waved her through. She didn’t even have to open it!
As she strode through the station she contemplated her next move. She had to find her family. Taking a couple of hundred out of the cashpoint Kiera scanned the station for signs. The tube station was across the hall. Knowing the family was in Enfield she planned to take the Piccadilly line straight to Oakwood. Her cousins lived next to the park there.
She should have accepted Aunt Clara’s offer. She had wanted to contact them before she died but Kiera had always refused. She didn’t want to think about what would happen when Aunt Clara wasn’t around anymore. If they didn't talk about it, it wouldn't happen. Life doesn't work that way she thought sadly. Standing on the platform, Kiera chewed her lip, pushing back the emotions. She missed her. She knew the Jelleys would let her stay. Her aunt had told her how close she had been to her sister when she was younger.
Kiera took out her address book. She could read now. It had taken torturous months but her aunt had insisted on the lessons once she found about the thefts. Kiera had kept her vow to herself never to tell her aunt, but the wily older woman was wise enough to know that one day she would have to move on when she was old enough. To survive on her own, she would need to be able to read.
It had taken her a long time to get this far, finally to have independence. Kiera stepped on to the train and settled back in the seat.
The tube train soon filled up, and people of all types were packed in like sardines: business workers, tourists, housewives and shoppers. The acrid smell of so many people cramped in together was difficult to ignore. She wrinkled her nose but after a few minutes she got used to it. At each station more and more people joined the train. It was getting more and more difficult for people to get on and off.
Seated at the end of a row of seats nearest the door, Kiera had just enough space to ignore the discomfort of the other passengers. A woman, obviously pregnant, leant against the glass screen on her left. She had one hand holding on to the grips and her left-hand holding a paperback. As they reached Oxford Circus, the door began to open and close repeatedly. It jolted Kiera from her stupor. Realizing the discomfort the woman in front must be in, Kiera half-rose to give up her seat. Before she could, a tall man dressed in a scruffy creased pinstripe suit realized he was about to miss his stop. He began to elbow passengers out of his way with one arm and use his briefcase as a battering ram with the other. People began to shout as his briefcase hit thighs and elbows. He ignored them, desperate to get off.
The pregnant woman standing beside the door looked up but she didn’t stand a chance. There was no room to get off and she didn’t have time or the space to move out of his way. Kiera winced as he twisted and elbowed the woman in the stomach. The woman’s gasp of pain resounded loudly in Kiera’s mind. She felt as well as saw the woman collapse against the blue metal post.
Instinctively Kiera touched the woman. A flash of awareness greeted her - the baby was in trouble. She could feel the baby’s heart miss a beat. The pendant under her shirt began to throb. Surprised she stared at the crystal at the end of its leather cord. That had never happened before. The distress of the baby once again called for her attention. Without knowing why, she placed her hand again over the woman’s stomach. Using her new awareness and fleeting telepathy she reassured the fetus. At the same time, without knowing how, she erased the damage the man had done. As the woman hit the floor she knew the baby was all right. The mother would not even suffer a bruise.
Where the woman fell, a sudden
Getting through customs concerned Kiera the most. She needn’t have worried though; Campbell’s mind had told her the name of the best forger in Ireland. Even so, passport control just waved her through. She didn’t even have to open it!
As she strode through the station she contemplated her next move. She had to find her family. Taking a couple of hundred out of the cashpoint Kiera scanned the station for signs. The tube station was across the hall. Knowing the family was in Enfield she planned to take the Piccadilly line straight to Oakwood. Her cousins lived next to the park there.
She should have accepted Aunt Clara’s offer. She had wanted to contact them before she died but Kiera had always refused. She didn’t want to think about what would happen when Aunt Clara wasn’t around anymore. If they didn't talk about it, it wouldn't happen. Life doesn't work that way she thought sadly. Standing on the platform, Kiera chewed her lip, pushing back the emotions. She missed her. She knew the Jelleys would let her stay. Her aunt had told her how close she had been to her sister when she was younger.
Kiera took out her address book. She could read now. It had taken torturous months but her aunt had insisted on the lessons once she found about the thefts. Kiera had kept her vow to herself never to tell her aunt, but the wily older woman was wise enough to know that one day she would have to move on when she was old enough. To survive on her own, she would need to be able to read.
It had taken her a long time to get this far, finally to have independence. Kiera stepped on to the train and settled back in the seat.
The tube train soon filled up, and people of all types were packed in like sardines: business workers, tourists, housewives and shoppers. The acrid smell of so many people cramped in together was difficult to ignore. She wrinkled her nose but after a few minutes she got used to it. At each station more and more people joined the train. It was getting more and more difficult for people to get on and off.
Seated at the end of a row of seats nearest the door, Kiera had just enough space to ignore the discomfort of the other passengers. A woman, obviously pregnant, leant against the glass screen on her left. She had one hand holding on to the grips and her left-hand holding a paperback. As they reached Oxford Circus, the door began to open and close repeatedly. It jolted Kiera from her stupor. Realizing the discomfort the woman in front must be in, Kiera half-rose to give up her seat. Before she could, a tall man dressed in a scruffy creased pinstripe suit realized he was about to miss his stop. He began to elbow passengers out of his way with one arm and use his briefcase as a battering ram with the other. People began to shout as his briefcase hit thighs and elbows. He ignored them, desperate to get off.
The pregnant woman standing beside the door looked up but she didn’t stand a chance. There was no room to get off and she didn’t have time or the space to move out of his way. Kiera winced as he twisted and elbowed the woman in the stomach. The woman’s gasp of pain resounded loudly in Kiera’s mind. She felt as well as saw the woman collapse against the blue metal post.
Instinctively Kiera touched the woman. A flash of awareness greeted her - the baby was in trouble. She could feel the baby’s heart miss a beat. The pendant under her shirt began to throb. Surprised she stared at the crystal at the end of its leather cord. That had never happened before. The distress of the baby once again called for her attention. Without knowing why, she placed her hand again over the woman’s stomach. Using her new awareness and fleeting telepathy she reassured the fetus. At the same time, without knowing how, she erased the damage the man had done. As the woman hit the floor she knew the baby was all right. The mother would not even suffer a bruise.
Where the woman fell, a sudden
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