I could just make out the group of newer arrivals Tessa had been showing around. They were trying to run but didn’t know where to go. It looked like Justin was trying to lead them away from the house but they were attempting to make a run for it.
Rylan was yelling something but I was barely able to hear over the commotion—something about following him but it was too late. I could feel him … no, feel them. My pull to Nolan was strongest, but unmistakably I was able to feel Chase’s presence. I grabbed Kali who was clearly able to feel Jackson as well since she turned in the same direction. Rylan touched my arm but it was too late. I could just make out Chase through the dust and debris. He followed my eyes and his brow creased. He swore under his breath and readied himself for another fight.
Chase charged but it was my turn to throw Rylan behind me. I should’ve been throwing myself into his arms but instead we were having a standoff.
The hurt on his face stung but I couldn’t let him harm Rylan. Not when he had looked after me and protected me when I needed it.
“Come on, Morgan!” Chase yelled, and I knew he wanted me to stand aside.
I shook my head and planted my hands on my hips. “Not him! Get Kali out of here!”
“Jax already has her!” he continued to yell over the chaos.
I put my hands on his chest, pushing him back and out of reach of my former soul-mate. Ash and dust swirled around us as the fight raged on, but it were as if we were in our own bubble. Maggie and Nolan were occupied behind us. They must have been protecting Chase’s back while he dealt with Rylan. I had to end this fast. My friends were in danger because of me.
“Please, Chase,” I pleaded, staring deep in his eyes, begging him to understand. “Leave him.”
“He’s only going to keep coming after you. This isn’t going to end!”
“It’s not going to end. Not now. Not while Stephen’s out there! You don’t need to worry about Rylan.”
Turning to face Rylan, I realized I would never be able to put into words what I wanted to say.
“Go,” he said, unable to meet my eyes.
I squeezed his forearm. “Thank you, Rylan. I—”
“Morgan, you have to go. Stephen’s going to be furious when he realizes I let you go.”
My hand went to my forehead. “You’re going to be punished.” The realization hit me.
“Now.” He grabbed my shoulders and pushed me toward Chase firmly. “We’ll talk soon.”
Chase snaked his arm around my waist and pulled me backward just as an electric pole crashed to the ground, separating Rylan from us. I was barely able to make out his silhouette in the fire that erupted between us.
By the time we reached Maggie and Nolan it had taken a turn for the worse, but thankfully, Spencer had jumped in and was now taking the brunt of the fight. Chase still clung to me, conflicted. I gestured with my eyes, indicating he should help. I wasn’t sure how much of the drug was still in my system but I reached for Maggie to try Healing her.
“No.” She shook her blonde head. “You need to save your energy until we’re out of here.”
I tried to protest but she cut me off again.
“I’m fine, Morgan, really.”
Nolan gave me a quick hug and helped me steady Maggie while we helplessly watched. Me with my weakened Gifts, them with their half Gifts … we were no match for the Dark Gifts of Rylan’s kind.
Chase took a blow to the face and I stepped forward, conflicted. I couldn’t stand here and watch him get hurt. I felt Maggie’s hand on my shoulder and dug my nails in my arms while Nolan jumped back in to help Chase.
Spencer had the second guy pinned to the ground when another body joined the fight. Not knowing if it was friend or foe, I held my breath. When they finally slowed down enough for me to make out faces, I exhaled. I’d never been so relieved to see a familiar face. JoAnna, my former protector, jumped on the back of the guy Chase and Nolan were struggling with. She had kept me safe in my dorm the months following Chase’s departure and was now helping to keep him safe as well.
The property surrounding the mansion was finally thinning and it seemed most were retreating. Rylan was nowhere to be seen. The two men Chase and Spencer had been grappling with were now lying unconscious in the dirt.
“Let’s find Charles and get out of here,” Spencer yelled.
“He was on the beach with Dad,” Chase yelled back.
“Jackson was headed that way,” Nolan spoke up.
“It’s good to see you again, kid.” JoAnna smiled at me, and in our first display of affection I threw my arms around her and squeezed tightly. She was taken aback but eventually softened enough to return the hug.
Our group headed around the sprawling mansion. Most of the fights had ceased. The lawn was littered with just under a dozen bodies. I stepped around a young boy lying face up. His peridot eyes stared lifelessly up at the starry night sky, and I covered my mouth, choking down a sob as I recognized Zachary. Someone touched my arm but I shook it off.
This poor boy had given up everything to turn and now paid with his life because he believed someone like Stephen. This had to stop.
I knelt next to Zachary and forced his eyelids closed. We may have been on different sides but he didn’t deserve this. A large commotion broke out from around the side of the mansion. Since most of the fighting had already stopped I knew it couldn’t be good.
“Morgan!” a familiar voice practically screamed in the distance. “Come quick!”
“We need you now!” I heard someone else yell.
I gave Zachary one last look and ran as fast as I could. It was like a car running on fumes. I’d start off at warp speed and then putter out until I was stumbling like a toddler. Off and on I ran like that until I finally reached the others. There was a crowd gathered at the edge of where the tall grass gave way to the beginning of the sandy beach.
“Heal him!” Charles commanded desperately. Ben was lying flat in the middle of the circle of people surrounding him.
I dropped helplessly next to the Healer. “I can’t,” I whispered. Lifting Ben’s hand, I forced myself to concentrate as hard as I could to transfer some of my life force into him. “Please,” I begged to no one in particular.
“She can’t.” I heard Kali repeat my words quietly.
“Why not?” The hysteria had crept into Charles’ voice.
“They kept us weak by drugging us. It kept our Gifts subdued.”
“No,” Charles cried, “we can’t lose him.”
“We lost Ian, too,” a voice I didn’t recognize whispered in the crowd.
It was all my fault. These people were here because of me and now I couldn’t save them either. I couldn’t give up. I pushed and pushed even as people started leaving. I brushed away hands from my shoulders and tuned out every voice surrounding me until I felt the trickle I’d experienced only a day earlier and knew my nose was starting to bleed again. Even then I didn’t stop. I felt Ben’s heart slow and his breathing become raspy and shallow.
“No!” I pushed through the pounding in my head and the last thing I remember was my fingertips growing warm.
“Morgan.” Someone spoke softly in my ear, and for a moment I thought I was back in the mansion. I jumped and a hand gently pushed me back to the bed.
“Shhh … not too fast.” I rolled over to view the beautiful face I had missed horribly. I let myself indulge in getting lost in those aqua pools. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
“Better now.” I touched his cheek, loving how the stubble that had formed in the last week felt in the palm of my hand. It just made it feel so real. He was actually here in front of me.
“I love you.”
He smiled that smile and I swore my insides melted. I just wanted to stay in our bubble for a few more minutes before the real world came knocking. He rested his forehead against mine. “You know I love you.”
I scooted over, giving him room to crawl into bed with me. I recognized his room at the Thomas’ hou
se.
“When did we get here?” I asked, laying my head on his chest.
“We’ve been here a while now.”
Pursing my lips together, I finally asked the question I’d wanted to ask since I woke. The one I knew would burst our little bubble and bring us crashing back to reality.
“Is Ben …”
“No,” he rubbed my arm, “Ben didn’t make it.”
The tears I’d been holding in fell like rain. I cried for Ben, for Zachary, for all of the lives lost, for myself and the stress of being kidnapped, for Rylan who was undoubtedly facing Stephen’s wrath, for Kali losing half a year of her life, and for whatever was still to come.
Chase rubbed my back and let me get it all out.
Finally, I said, “If I could only have Healed him. The one thing that could really help someone and I couldn’t do it when it really counted.”
“Don’t you for a second blame yourself.”
“You’re right.” Lifting my head, I looked at him through blurry eyes. “It’s Stephen’s fault.”
He seemed surprised for a moment, and then smiled proudly. “That’s my girl.”
As I pushed myself off the bed, he said, “Take it easy, though. You’re still on the mend.”
“I can’t.” I shook my head stubbornly. “I have work to do.”
He gave me a long look still laying in the bed and shrugged as he got up knowing there was no way he was changing my mind.
“Everyone’s still downstairs.” He motioned a sweeping ‘after you’ gesture.
I started toward the stairs but turned back into Chase and wrapped my arms around his midsection, burying my face in his chest.
“Thank you for coming for me.”
He held me back to peer into my eyes. “Was there ever any doubt?”
“No.” I gave him a long overdue kiss, fighting the urge to push him back into his room and shut the rest of the world out.
We had to put a stop to Stephen before he came looking for me again, and this time he wouldn’t wait for me to make the decision to turn. There was no doubt he’d force it.
The living room was packed. It seemed the Thomas’ had turned into a temporary Council headquarters. When I walked in the room silence fell like a blanket. I felt obligated to say something since everyone stared.
“I just want to thank you all for sacrificing so much to help. I know not everyone was there specifically for me but I still want to thank you. I know Stephen needs me. I’m little more than a weapon to him. A large part of the people that have turned are under his influence. He’s got them thinking there’s more in it for them and that it’s for the greater good. They’re not bad people. They just think their way is the path to a better life for everyone. I can’t tell you important details like I wish I could since they kept me locked up for most of my stay.” I found Kali’s eyes in the crowd. She was sitting on Jackson’s lap. “But I did witness their turning ritual, and unfortunately, I do know Stephen has the amulet.” Murmurs erupted through the crowd. I spoke louder. “I will do my best to help with anything I can. Stephen has to be stopped.”
A few people yelled in agreement but most just looked worried. They turned back to their conversations before I’d interrupted and I followed Chase into the kitchen. Laura, Jim, Spencer, and Grace appeared to be deep in their own private meeting.
They looked happy to see us and I knew them enough to not have to guess they were already making their own plans.
“You ready to make some noise?” Chase asked his uncle.
“Always,” Spencer answered.
Laura looked at me worriedly. “Morgan, are you sure you’re rested enough?”
“I’ve definitely waited long enough. I’m ready.”
Chase massaged my shoulders.
“I don’t have a lot of details unfortunately,” I told them.
“We don’t need them, we have our own secret weapon,” Spencer said.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“You.”
“No, no, no!” Chase’s hands were now shaking on my shoulders. “She’s not your bait!”
Without hesitation, I stated, “I’ll do it.”
Chapter Twelve
The house had cleared out, with most people reconvening at the Council for more formal strategy meetings and brainstorm sessions. Everyone seemed in agreement of one thing—Stephen had to be taken down.
Chase, Jackson, Kali, Maggie, Nolan, and I stayed back. The Council agreed that we’d earned some rest. I was happy to see Charles gave Nolan the majority of the credit for finding me … along with Chase, of course.
It was a small step but one in the right direction. Maggie and Nolan seemed to be developing a closer friendship that I daresay looked to be heading toward more than friends.
Jackson never left Kali’s side. He doted on her like she were the most precious thing in his life and I suspected she was. I knew this was only the calm before the storm, but I wanted to enjoy it before all hell broke loose … again. We lay around the living room like it was any other day. Bowls of snacks littered the coffee table while we attempted to play cards civilly. Between the three guys we should’ve expected anything but calm or civilized. All three had competitive drives and that was a recipe for disaster.
Us girls had all folded out of boredom. The boys were even running out of steam but refused to admit defeat.
“Did you talk to Iris?” I asked Maggie.
“Yeah. She’s understandably freaking but I told her you are safe and will call her when you can.”
“I’ll give her a call tomorrow.”
“It would make her feel better I’m sure.”
“How about you, Kali?” I asked. “Have you called your parents?”
“They’ll be here in the morning.” She beamed. “I can’t wait to see them. They’d been searching all over.”
“Why didn’t the Council let them know?”
“I asked Jackson to keep it quiet. I know it was horrible for them, but if they’d known where I was they would’ve only gotten hurt.” Her eyes glazed over for a moment, lost in a thought or a memory.
I left her in her thoughts and turned back to Maggie. “You know what we need?”
“Hmm?”
“Chocolate.”
She grinned. “Definitely.”
“Chase, can I borrow your car?”
“What? Where are you going?” He sat up straighter and his eyes were wide.
I could already see it was going to take some time for the protectiveness to wear off.
“Relax, we’re just going to get some ice cream. I need chocolate.” This of course was code word for girl talk.
“I can take you!” He started to get up.
“No, you play. I will be fine.” I kissed him before he had time to argue. “Kali, do you want to go?”
She looked at Jackson who was pretending not to listen. “No thanks.” She smiled. I had only been away from Chase for a week. Jackson had struggled to free Kali for six long months. It would be a cold day in hell before either of them let the other out of their sight.
“Take my phone.” Chase handed me his keys and cell. “Please be careful.” He kissed me but held my gaze.
“I promise I’m coming home to you.” Tugging the hem of his shirt, I pulled him to me and kissed him deeper.
Maggie gave Nolan a little wave as she went to wait by the door for me.
“Finally,” she said, closing the car door and further confirming she could almost read my mind. “So fill me in.”
I started from the ball and filled her in on everything after, not leaving out Raven or Tessa. By the time we reached the ice cream shop Maggie’s eyes were wide with disbelief. We ordered and found a little café style table outside before she started with the questions.
“So Raven’s dead?”
“Yep.”
“Wow,” she said around a bite of ice cream, and then forced it down. “What about Tessa?”
“I honestly don’t know. I
didn’t have time to ask Rylan.”
“How was he?” She propped her free hand under her chin. “Rylan.”
“Um … not what I expected,” I answered honestly. “He actually cared about my safety. And not in the same sense as Stephen. Rylan cared about how I felt, too.”
Maggie leaned in, her shaggy blonde hair falling in her eyes as she listened intently.
“He brought me things to do so I wasn’t bored, took me on walks, made sure I was fed …”
Maggie let out a bitter laugh and I shot her a curious look. “Sorry.” She covered her mouth with a napkin. “It’s just you make it sound like you were a pet.”
Again with the pet comparison! Though this time I understood it. Rylan treated me the only way he was allowed to because Stephen never thought of us as anything more than animals beneath him. I knew in that moment that without a doubt Stephen would kill me. He would kill us all.
Maggie shook her head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I know you didn’t,” I tried to assure her. “It just triggered a memory was all.” I attempted to shake it off and explain it to Maggie. “With Rylan it was different. He didn’t treat me like a pet. Stephen, however, feels very differently.”
“I see. Rylan was just following orders.”
“Yes and no.” I saw her brow pull in. “He did more than he should have and went against Stephen’s wishes more than once. I still mean something to him.”
“Does he mean something to you?” she asked quietly.
“Of course. I just don’t know what yet.” I suddenly didn’t feel like ice cream anymore and tossed it in the trash next to us. “It’s hard to explain. I know we’re not soul-mates anymore but we’re still connected.”
“Like Chase now.”
Exposed (The Broken Soul Series Book 3) Page 11
