Only the Lost

by Amanda M. Lee

  “Something happened on our way over,” I explained to Brett and Oliver. “We hit something in the water. It turned out to be a revenant.”

  Oliver very deliberately got to his feet. His expression was unreadable, but there was fire in his eyes. “What do you mean? Why would the revenants be in the water?”

  “I think the obvious answer is that they’re coming here.”

  “But ... why?” Brett was clearly bewildered as he glanced between faces. “I don’t understand what any of this means.”

  He wasn’t the only one. “We’ve discovered a few things,” I volunteered. “The biggest of which is that revenants are basically bastardized cousins of vampires.” I told them the story as quickly as I could, leaving nothing out. When I finished, the doubt reflected on their features was obvious.

  “And Claire told you this?” Oliver challenged. “How certain is she that it’s true?”

  “She seemed pretty certain. She said some minor details might’ve changed over the years, but the heart of the story was the same. Revenants and vampires both sprung from demons.”

  “That’s true of vampires,” Brett noted. “I’ve read our history books and they all confirm that. The revenant thing, though ... I just don’t understand. If they were such a great threat, why wouldn’t that story be included in our lore?”

  I’d been giving that a lot of thought. “All the paranormals worked together,” I volunteered. “That rarely happens. They recognized a threat and worked together to eradicate it. I think they hid the truth for several reasons.

  “The first is that each group couldn’t very well continue to hate other groups if it became common knowledge that all of them worked together at one point and nobody but the enemy died,” I continued. “Old grudges run deep. Each group wanted to continue to hate. Groups might start doubting how smart that was if a truce was not only brokered but achieved for an extended period.

  “The second is that I think they were trying to make it so others, those too stupid to see the folly of their actions, didn’t try to cross over to see the revenants. If that happened, the revenants might’ve had the ability to use those individuals as a means to cross back. It’s just an idea, but it makes sense.”

  Brett stroked his jaw. “It does make sense,” he agreed. “The problem is that they’ve put us in a real bind. We don’t even know how to fight these things, and now you’re telling me that they’re descending on the island. How are we supposed to stop that?”

  “Fire works well,” I replied. “They burn quickly enough.”

  “You can stab them, too,” Aisling offered, pulling a dagger from her pocket and grinning maniacally. “Do you guys have weapons here?”

  “We have an arsenal in the closet at the end of the hallway,” Oliver replied. “It wouldn’t hurt to arm ourselves. Brett and I can also fight with our bare hands. We’re strong, but it’s possible the revenants are equally as strong.”

  I immediately started shaking my head. “I don’t think so. We took out four yesterday without breaking a sweat. But if I had to guess, most of them were new. I guess it’s possible they grow stronger with time. I really should’ve asked Claire about that.”

  “She needs to be warned.” Oliver’s tone was grave. “She and Collin need to be made aware of what’s coming so they can arm themselves.”

  “And stay out of the water,” Aisling added. “It’s not safe for them to go for a relaxing dip right now. We’re not sure where the revenants will make land, but they’re probably already here.”

  “And it won’t take them long to zero in on this building,” Oliver noted. “The original men were well aware of the location of the gate. They’ll probably head directly here.”

  “So we need to be ready,” I insisted. “We need to arm ourselves and keep the revenants out. The one thing we have going for us is that the door is narrow. We can pick them off as they enter easily enough.”

  “We’ll still need backup,” Brett added. “You need to call the Grimlocks and tell them what’s going on. It’s going to take some time for them to get out here.”

  I hunted in my pocket for my phone. “I’ll call now. You guys handle Claire and Collin. Then we’ll batten down the hatches and prepare to defend the gate.”

  “There’s one other thing we need to be concerned about,” Oliver countered. “Paris. She was due to take a separate boat. She should be arriving any second.”

  My heart skipped a beat. I’d completely forgotten about her. I wasn’t sure what to do, but there was no way I could leave her out there unprotected. “I have to get her.”

  “We have to get her,” Aisling corrected. “We promised my father we wouldn’t go anywhere alone.”

  Annoyance reared up to grab me by the throat. “Since when do you listen to what your father has to say?”

  “He occasionally makes sense. This is one of those times.” She was unnaturally calm. “You can’t go alone. You’ll need eyes in the back of your head. It will be safer for us to go together.”

  I didn’t like that idea one little bit. “You have a baby. I’ll be fine on my own.”

  “I’m going with you. You can’t stop me.”

  That wasn’t technically true. I could stop her with magic. I wasn’t exactly keen on the idea, however. “Aisling ... .”

  “She’s right.” Oliver firmly shook his head. “You can’t go alone and we can’t go with you because of the sun.”

  “Then we should head out.” Aisling gripped her dagger tightly. “She’ll be under attack the moment she hits the dock.”

  “Let’s go then.” I still wasn’t thrilled with the idea of Aisling accompanying me, but we were out of time. “You must do everything I say while we’re out there. I’m dead serious.”

  “It’ll be fine.” She sounded sure of herself. “We’ve faced worse. Trust me.”

  BRETT AND OLIVER WATCHED US from the security room. The camera footage was grainy, but it was good enough for them to warn us via radio if they saw movement.

  “You’re clear,” Oliver offered as we hit the sidewalk on the water side of the building. “I don’t see anything.”

  That was both a relief and a reason for agitation. “Where are they? We know they’re out here. I would rather know and fight than constantly look over my shoulder.”

  “We’re better off leaving the fighting for when we’re all together,” he responded. “Just collect Paris and get back. There will be plenty of blood to spill when you manage that.”

  I increased my speed. We were jogging by the time we hit the end of the dock ... and that’s when the true scope of what we were dealing with became obvious.

  “Oh, my ... .” Aisling’s mouth was agape.

  I was right there with her. “Paris!” I screamed. She looked lackadaisical as she docked, as if she didn’t have a care in the world. She was out of the water, which was a relief, but she didn’t seem to sense the danger. Her eyes were quizzical when they turned in our direction. “Run to us!”

  Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. “And good morning to you.”

  The revenants were appearing in the water. It was almost as if they’d been walking along the bottom of the river rather than swimming, which made sense. Slowly, methodically, they trudged forward. Once they hit the beach they would be able to cut Paris off. We couldn’t let that happen.

  “Move your ass now!” Aisling screeched, gesturing toward the water.

  Paris finally slid her eyes in that direction and the look on her face would’ve been comical under different circumstances.

  “Run,” I ordered. “Right now!”

  Paris didn’t have to be prodded. Once she understood what we were facing, the sheer horror of it, she raced away from the water as fast as she could manage. She made it to us with time to spare, and I pointed her back toward the aquarium. “We’re putting a team together in the gate room. If they attack, it will be easier for us to take them out there.”

  Paris gasped as she ran. “I don’t understan
d what’s happening.”

  “None of us understand,” Aisling shot back. “We don’t have enough information to truly understand. It’s fight or die.”

  That was a grim reality for all of us now. We had no other options.

  OLIVER AND BRETT MET US AT the aquarium door. They looked relieved when we streamed through. Brett corralled me at the souvenir counter and gave me another hug.

  “Are you okay?”

  I nodded. “We’re fine. They’re coming.”

  “Then we must get back to the gate room.” Oliver was calm in the face of certain destruction. “Cormack called while you were retrieving Paris. They’re on their way. It will be at least thirty minutes before they can get here. Your paramour was bellowing to talk to you in the background. When Cormack asked about you and I explained where you were, numerous vile threats were issued.”

  I could only imagine. “I’ll handle Braden when he gets here. We have to worry about survival now. We should probably go to the security room so we can watch them through the security cameras. Once they get close enough, we’ll return to the gate.”

  “I’ve patched the security feeds into the gate room computers,” Oliver countered. “We can watch from down there. I don’t think it’s wise to be anywhere else at this point.”

  I didn’t have an argument to the contrary, so I simply nodded. “What about Claire and Collin?”

  “Claire is in the botanical gardens. She says she’s ready should they approach. I doubt she’ll be a target. Collin is at the casino. He was checking the kitchen equipment when the call came in. He wanted to come, but I told him to stay. He’d only be a distraction if we worried about him.”

  I was already weary when we descended the stairs to the gate room. “All we have to do is hold them off for thirty minutes. Then we’ll have help.”

  “I saw about twenty of them,” Brett offered. “We checked every feed while we were waiting for you to return to the aquarium. I think the five of us can take twenty of them.”

  “I agree,” Oliver said. “The doors are heavy, the opening narrow. Only one — two at most — will be able to enter at the same time. We will make a large dent in them before any manage to muscle through the door.”

  The fact that they were so upbeat made me feel better. “We’re going to be okay,” I confirmed. “We’re strong ... and Aisling is a total badass when she wants to be.”

  Aisling grinned. Despite the circumstances, she was clearly enjoying herself. “You’ve got that right.”

  My spirits were bolstered until the moment we opened the door to the gate room. I heard the whispering right away. It was so strong it almost took my knees out from under me.

  I reacted on instinct. Paris was behind me, so I turned and shoved her out of the room. Brett was at the rear of the formation, so he caught her, his eyes going wide with an unasked question I couldn’t possibly answer. When I turned back to the front of the line, Oliver was already at his computer. I could see his furrowed brow from fifteen feet away as he registered the data flying through his equipment.

  Aisling was too close to the gate. In fact, she was almost standing on the first step of the gate platform.

  “Aisling, get away from there!” I bellowed the warning so loudly her shoulders jerked in surprise.

  Puzzlement wafted over her features as she shifted her eyes to me. She was confused. She couldn’t hear the whispering.

  “The gate,” I snapped. “The gate is about to malfunction. You could be sucked to the other side.”

  Realizing the danger inherent in her position, Oliver started racing toward Aisling. I had the same idea, but Brett had grabbed me from behind, pulling me from the room. There was a glint of light as the gate kicked into overdrive. That was the last thing I saw as Brett dragged me away.

  The noise was overwhelming again, but it didn’t knock me out. I had to press my hands over my ears to stay upright, though, and I closed my eyes as blinding heat flashed three times on the other side of the door.

  It was over as quickly as it began.

  I slapped Brett’s hands to get him to release me and raced through the doors, desperate to find Aisling and my godfather. My heart gave a terrific heave when I realized the room was empty.

  Twenty-Four

  The revenants never came to the gate room. We waited, even as every horrible possibility crowded my mind, but they never entered the building.

  Brett, who looked as shaky as I felt, held it together as he watched the camera feeds. Once the gate stopped flashing, the revenants turned on their heels and returned to the water. Were they hiding there? Were they biding their time? Were they returning to their previous haunts? I had no idea. All I knew was that I’d lost Oliver and Aisling ... and I was positive my heart might break.

  “Is everybody okay?” Cormack and his Grimlock army arrived exactly when we expected them. They clutched swords in their hands, wild looks in their eyes.

  My heart lodged in my throat when I tried to answer. What could I tell them?

  Braden pushed past his brothers and made his way to me. His arms were strong, his emotions warm, and yet I felt so cold all over I didn’t know how to react.

  “Are you all right?” He tipped my head back and stared into my eyes. “I was so worried we wouldn’t get here in time.”

  “I’m fine.” Somehow I found my voice. It sounded normal, which felt miraculous given the circumstances. “They didn’t even come down here. I was certain they would, but ... they didn’t.”

  “Where did they go?” Cormack asked, glancing around. “I mean ... I would’ve jumped to the same conclusion. If they weren’t heading for the gate, what were they doing?”

  I didn’t have an answer.

  “Where is Aisling?” Redmond demanded. He was either the first to notice that his sister was missing or the first to give voice to his worry. “I bet she was gung-ho to fight those things. Is she feeling sorry for herself in the bathroom? That sounds just like her.”

  He moved in that direction, as if he was going to stroll into the ladies’ room to mess with his sister. Paris stopped him.

  “She’s not here.” Paris’s voice was strong. I had to give her credit for holding it together. All I wanted to do was fall apart.

  “What do you mean?” Cormack’s eyes flashed with annoyance. “I gave her a specific order. She was to stick with Izzy the entire day. Are you telling me she shirked her duties and left you here to fight those things on your own?”

  I immediately started shaking my head. I couldn’t stand the disappointment in his voice. “She didn’t abandon me.” I worried I would suddenly burst into tears. I knew if that happened I would likely never stop crying. “She would never leave me during a fight.”

  “She wouldn’t,” Paris agreed. She was obviously steeling herself for the big reveal. It should’ve been my job, but I couldn’t force myself to say the words. Once I did, they would be real.

  “I have some bad news,” Paris announced, sucking in a breath. “I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but something happened while we were preparing for battle.”

  In slow, concise terms, Paris laid out everything that happened. She didn’t embellish. She was matter-of-]fact and straightforward. And when she finished, the Grimlocks were in tatters.

  “You take that back!” Redmond’s face was red with exertion as he took a purposeful step forward and jabbed a finger in Paris’s direction. “You’re playing a game or something.”

  “Why would I do that?” Paris held her hands palms out. “I’m not the sort who plays games when it comes to love and loss.”

  “Loss?” Cormack stirred. He looked like a man who had aged ten years in two minutes. “We haven’t lost her. I ... she’s not gone.”

  “She’s not,” Brett agreed, speaking for the first time. “She’s most certainly not lost. She’s with Oliver. He’ll take care of her.”

  “But you’re saying she’s on the other side of the gate,” Braden countered. “You’re saying she
... crossed over.”

  “That’s the assumption,” Paris agreed. She refused to fall victim to emotions, instead holding herself together in a manner I envied. “There’s no other option for what happened to them. They were here one second and gone the next. That’s not necessarily a death sentence. We know from recent experience that the men who disappeared sixty years ago managed to return ... and they were alive when they did.”

  Cillian, always the calm Grimlock, completely lost his cool. “They came back sixty years after the fact! They came back as monsters! If you think we’re going to allow that to happen to our sister ... you’re crazy. We’re getting her back right now.” He moved toward the gate, and I was certain he was going to throw himself through the shimmering wall of magic. Cormack caught him before he could.

  “We have to think about this,” he growled as he wrestled his son. “We can’t run off half-cocked. That won’t help your sister.”

  “We can’t leave her.” Cillian struggled against his father’s grip as his voice broke. It was enough to crack my heart. “She’s probably on the other side of the gate waiting for us. She expects us to come for her. We can’t just leave her.”

  “Do you think that I’m going to leave her?” Cormack was beside himself. Aisling mentioned a broken man when she told me the story of her mother’s death on the boat ride over. She said her father stumbled in the immediate aftermath, but then pulled it together because he had to. His children needed him. That’s what I was seeing now. Cormack looked as if he was about to fall down, but he was strong enough to keep his children upright. “We’re going to find her. I promise you that. We have to come up with a plan first.”

  I rubbed my forehead as I struggled with my emotions. I couldn’t help feeling this was my fault. I should’ve kept her out of the room. I should’ve been the first through the door. I should’ve ... done anything other than what I’d done. Aisling would still be here if I’d thought faster, reacted quicker. Now the family I’d started thinking of as my own was about to lose the most important piece.