Chapter 9: The Aftermath

"You bring him right home! I'll leave work and meet him there."

"But Mrs. Nilsen, the nurse said he shouldn't exert himself for the next few hours. Why don't you let him stay here for a while and then I can run him home after dinner," offered Maggie.

"With all due respect, he was in your care when he got hurt."

"That was regrettable, but your son was very brave..."

"Tom?" she asked with incredulity.

"Yes, Tom. You should be very proud of the way he stuck up for his friend and for the plan he devised to protect her."

"That may be, but it was this girl that got him into trouble." She paused, before continuing. "I'll tell you what. I'll pick him up and take him home in about an hour. Please have him ready for me."

After ending the call, Maggie looked at Derek and shook her head.

"Let me guess, Mrs Nilsen?" said Derek.

"Yes, Mrs. Nilsen," she muttered. "I can't believe how narrow minded and pig headed she is being about this."

"Well. I'm off to pick up Brett. He left a message for his father, who's out of town. Mr. Nilsen is a bit more understanding than his wife."

"I hope so," she said, looking over at the couch. She saw Tom Nilsen lying there with Carrie sitting on the floor next to the couch, gently stroking his head.

"What happened to them was terrible, but I don't think I've ever seen Tom happier in his whole life," smiled Derek.

"She looks pretty happy too," said Maggie.

"Almost as happy as I am!" grinned Sandy, as she bounced up to Derek and put her arm on his shoulder.

"You two are so cute," smiled Maggie. "It's like I stepped into a time machine and looking at a couple of sweet kids."

"So, wanna play house, buddy," laughed Derek, as he looked into Sandy's eyes, causing both mother and daughter to cracked up.

"Remember, be at the shelter at nine AM sharp," said Suzanne Rowan haughtily.

"I will, Suzanne and thanks," replied Brett Nilsen.

"Thanks for what?" she asked.

"For giving me a chance."

"I'm not giving you a chance. It's that bitch-on-wheels Sandra Turner, who's making me do this."

"Why are you so angry?"

"Because all you guys think of is sex and hurting..." she said, as her mind drifted away for a moment.

"Suzanne, you're wrong about me and I'm going to prove it."

"I'll believe it when I see it," she snarled and walked away.

"Hey Brett," said Derek, as he saw his friend watch the blond walk away.

"Hey, Derek. You know that girl is a bitch?"

"Yeah."

"Want to hear the funny part? There's something I like about her."

"You mean other than her face and her body?"

"Yeah," he laughed. "Something's up with that one."

"You mean like Carrie?"

"Not exactly like Carrie, but she's bitter about guys for some reason. I'm going to change her mind about at least one."

"Well you and your brother are poster children for nice guys. If you can't change her mind, our gender is sunk," laughed Derek.

"Speaking of my brother, is Tom feeling any better?"

"Yeah, I think Carrie is the best medicine for him right now, but your Mom doesn't seem to think so."

"Yeah, Mom's overprotective. Dad's coming home tonight and he'll be supportive. I know he'll be happy about Carrie. I get the impression that he thinks we might be gay, so he'll be stoked about Tom and Carrie at least."

"Well, if Suzanne doesn't work out, I'm sure I can find you someone," laughed Derek.

"Don't bro. I think I want to find my own girlfriend."

Derek smiled. Brett and Tom were painfully shy around women. It seemed as if his and Tom's newfound confidence had inspired Brett.

Well, here we are a day early," grinned Rick Carson after he and Ronnie exchanged hugs with Maggie and Paul.

"We're just so happy to see you guys," smiled Maggie, "Is Laura with you?"

"Nope, she decided to visit some of her friends this afternoon. She'll be with us tomorrow," smiled Ronnie.

"It was nice to see Sandy the other day," smiled Rick.

"She's studying in her room. I expect her down when Derek returns. He's picking up Brett and bringing him here.

"So, where's the man of the hour?" smiled Rick.

"Lying down in the den," said Paul.

"Is the girl OK?" asked Ronnie.

"She's somewhat shaken, but I think she is too busy worrying about Tom to worry about herself. He has a little bruising on his knuckles and around his neck, but the nurse said he'll be OK." explained Maggie.

The four walked to the Den to check on Tom and Carrie.

"You go in, Brett. I have to take this call," said Derek.

"OK," said Brett.

Derek saw him walk toward the door, as he sat in his car. "OK, how did you get my number?"

"I have my ways," stated the voice of the stranger. "I see you have some work to do on your powers. It was a good thing you have a clever friend, or the girl might not have been so lucky.

Derek almost asked the man how he knew so much, but realized he was sounding like one of his father's scratched records, so he didn't bother. "Why couldn't I control Clausen? I did it last night."

"For three reasons most likely. First of all, your power is not fully developed, nor are you proficient with it. Secondly, it is harder to act on a target if they're already wary of you," he said before adding, "It may be easier once you master your powers. Finally, last night you were going 'with the grain' with Clausen."

"What do you mean?"

"Last night, you flooded him with emotions he already possessed. Since he already had those emotions to begin with, it was easier to intensify his emotions than to change them into something he didn't want to feel or think. Today, his subconscious was ready for that tactic. Then, you were trying to control him with your thoughts, which you really don't have the skill or power to do at this point. As far as 'going against the grain, ' you successfully did that with your friend, Carrie, last night when you convinced her to go to your girlfriend's house."

"Is that why I got the headache yesterday and the one today?"

"Yes. It happened when you had broken through Carrie's resistance. Going against the grain can work if the target already somewhat trusts you. You were successful with Carrie because she had been predisposed to trust you because of your relationship with your other friend. As far as today with Clausen, when you stopped trying to manipulate him, your headache vanished," the stranger stated.

"Why are you telling me about all of this?"

"Because the better and more effective you get at using your powers, the more likely you might get on somebody else's radar."

"You mean there are others like you?"

"Yes. As bad as you thought of me the other day, there are those who are truly evil. Luckily, the most evil individuals are not as strong as those who look to preserve balance."

"What side are you on?"

"Need you ask?" he laughed. "I'm not perfect, like most of those 'do gooders', but I see their aims as important and I will side with them when push comes to shove. That doesn't mean that I ascribe to all of their ideas about justice, however."

"Is that why you won't end the 'three times a week' thing?"

"Partly. The other reason is because what we're doing is beneficial to them, to you and to your little corner of the world."

"It's still not fair to any of us."

"How is it not fair to you?" the man's voice snapped.

Derek realized he should back off. "Because I care about them," he softened, while still making his point.

"Aside from Chantelle, you didn't before. Now look at you. You have a hot, loving woman as a girlfriend. By what I forced you to do, you really saved the nice person underneath. She had so much bitterness on the day I met her. Even I didn't know what she was really like under that mass of hate, self-loathing yet, self-absorption, which brought about this punishment in the first place," he paused before continuing, "The redhead..."

"Mindy," informed Derek.

"Mindy, was a tortured soul, who between her attitude and the people she hung out with, turned into a first class bitch. By our actions, you helped her to understand her true nature. Now, she's really happy and I must say that if she weren't only seventeen, I'd be happy to take her off your hands..."

"No, that's OK," said Derek, quickly.

"Pity. She'd get along with the rest of my girls nicely. Well, I'm cutting back on my harem anyway."

"You have a harem?!" exclaimed Derek.

"Yeah, I have a few girls of my own," he grinned.

"How many?"

"Well, I released one yesterday, so I guess I only have eight now."

"Eight? You call that a few?"

"Compared to some of the evil controllers, that's nothing. I guess it's still bigger than yours."

"I don't have a harem."

"Yes you do. It doesn't have the typical architecture, but you currently have four beautiful girls who love you incredibly and follow your orders."

"What about Maya?"

"Your slave?"

"No. I don't want her for a slave."

"But she wants it."

"Deep down I don't think she does. She wants to be loved and this is how she allows herself to become submissive enough to be loved."

"An interesting theory. While I'm not sure I agree, I can't say that you're wrong though. I guess time will tell. In the meantime, I can tell you that she feels happy and fulfilled. Now with Chantelle, you started off poorly but have since done an amazing job of balancing her feelings. You've kind of made her a part time member of your harem. In six months, she could either join full time or go back to her boyfriend."

"Which would make her happier?"

"Neither. The way you left her, she is at peace with her life."

"What if he's not interested in getting back together with her?"

"Then she'll likely be yours."

"You said they could choose."

"They can and they will. Between your past history, the way that you make your girls feel about you and by the love you show them, there is a good chance that most of your girls will stay with you. Like the rest, Chantelle will be happy to stay with you and the others," he paused before adding, "You'll need to try to be more discreet about the nature of your relationship with the girls. Your mother already suspects something, as does your sister about your girlfriend. The big kid at school is suspicious too."

"How do you..." started Derek as he cut off his foolish query, "You know it because you're a powerful man and you will not be trifled with, right?"

"God, I have to stop saying that line. It makes me sounds so douchey," he laughed, before getting serious. "Look kid, be careful. There's a decent chance that the girl's stepfather may still be a threat, as may the pervert he's in cahoots with. Since you have powers now, I'm forbidden from directly interfering with normal people on your behalf, but should someone with powers give you a hard time, I'll be there for you."

"Thanks."

"Speaking of 'powers', in the meantime, you should try to improve yours. Engage in activities that challenge the mind and promote concentration and analytical thinking."

"Like Crossword puzzles?"

"And chess, other games of strategy, anagrams, jumbles, etcetera. The more disciplined your mind, the better. You already have a lot of the necessary traits, but a little practice might help too," he paused before continuing. "The other thing is when you are using your power on a difficult target; you should concentrate in short, intense bursts every few seconds."

"What does that do?"

"It is the mental equivalent of force and inertia. Think about rocking a car stuck in the snow or mud. By applying the gas and then stopping and starting while the car is moving, you can create enough momentum to overcome the inertia. The same is true with the mind."

"I guess that makes sense, as much as any of this."

"I know it is tough to wrap your brain around all of this. It was for me too at first. Anyway, in some ways I'm sorry that you got stuck with all of this, but to be honest, I'm glad it was you I met. You're a good and deserving person" said the stranger's voice.

"Thanks."

"Do you have any more questions? I'll answer them if I can."

"Is my new power permanent?"

"Do you want it to be?"

"No."