She nods, sniffing back her emotions. “I just wanted to be sure I did everything I could. Coop and I both agreed I should come after discussing what Gage told Wes. Coop knew it was the only way to keep me sane.”
My stomach lurches. “What did Gage tell Wes?”
“You know, that I was the only person who could ever stop him.” She waves her wrist. “God, I would never have even entertained coming down here if it weren’t for him. Of course, Coop and I knew it was bullshit. That’s why I was giving Wes such a hard time. Besides, as heroic as I sounded a moment ago, I’d never go through with it. In truth, I’d make a lousy sacrificial lamb.”
My heart stops. I want to smack Gage into tomorrow for ever getting this ridiculous ball rolling. And leave it to Wes to bring it up and guilt Laken with it. Although, suspiciously, he wasn’t jumping at the chance. I’ll bet anything he already has another plan cooked up to snatch her away from Coop.
“Cooper and I discussed it—he said I should come so that I would forever know that I didn’t have to carry an ounce of guilt with me for the rest of our lives. He assured me Wes would either lie or deny me. He was right. The funny thing is, I didn’t for a minute think Wes would say yes.” She shakes her head as if waking from a dream. “I really don’t know why I’m in tears.” She blinks back a smile. “I swore on all that is holy to Coop that I was just here to clarify—even if Wes agreed to it, I had you here to drag me back to safety.”
“’Kay.” I’m slow to nod—still pissed at Gage for sponsoring this insanity. “I get it. You can sleep at night knowing you did all you could. Sorry Gage had anything to do with this. I’ll make sure he apologizes to Coop for putting you in this position.” She shakes her head as if that won’t be necessary. “You needed to know you did everything you could. And you did.” I push a kiss to the top of her head as she bucks beneath me.
“I hate myself for coming here, Skyla. I don’t know why I let Gage fill me with self-doubt,” she says it so sweetly I can tell it wasn’t meant to send a barb through my heart, but it does. Darn Gage.
“Don’t hate yourself.” Hate Gage, I want to say. “It was noble—and stupid, but mostly noble,” I tease.
She gives a little laugh, wiping down her face. Her mascara washes her cheeks with soot.
“How about we head to the Burger Shack? My treat.”
“Sounds good.”
We evict the ghostly bodies from every orifice of Laken’s car and get out of Wesley’s private hell.
Although, I might have to give Gage a tiny piece of Hades as soon as I get home.
“What the heck were you thinking?” The evening is wearing thin as my patience with him. I’ve just fed my own children with my bosom, and now I’m finally getting dressed for the Council of the Superiors meeting.
“I’m sorry.” Gage actually manages to look agonized over this. “I knew I put my foot in my mouth the second it slipped out. It was stupid. Coop asked how things were going with Wes and—I swear, it’s like this lack of sleep has turned a filter off in my brain. Forgive me.”
I cringe a moment. I so get it. “Come here.” My arms slip around his neck. “Of course, I forgive you. My own brain isn’t exactly up to par these past few weeks itself—which is sort of scary, considering where I’m headed. Come with.” I dot a kiss to his lips, and he relaxes a bit. We’re almost at the one-month mark of no sex, and I’m starting in on some serious withdrawals. “It’ll be fun.” I bite down over my lip. “You can hang out in the back.” I run my hand down his jeans as the twins lie side-by-side in Barron’s bassinet. I hate separating them at night. I think they’d sleep better if they were together, but my mother threatened me with life and limb, so apart they shall be.
“Trust me, you’ll get further without me. People see me as the enemy.” He lands a kiss to the nape of my neck, and I melt into him with a moan.
“Speaking of the enemy…I’d hate to see you make any.”
“I’ll talk to Coop—and Laken. And I’ll never repeat anything idiotic Wes and I exchange,” he moans, closing his sleep-deprived eyes. “All I want to do is kiss you, Skyla.”
My stomach boils just thinking of Wes and Gage having heart-to-hearts. It’s downright frightening to think he’s that close to pure evil.
A steady breath plumes from me. “Okay. And I want that kiss tonight.” My lids land heavy when I say it. I take his hand and guide it between my thighs. “I want it right here, Mr. Oliver.” My body shakes because I don’t want to wait that long.
He inches back as if readying to call my bluff. “You ready for that?”
“I’m always ready for that.” I rub my thigh over his blooming crotch. “In fact, I’m ready for whatever you want to give me.”
A dark laugh rumbles from him. “Then that’s what you’re going to get.”
“Be gentle with me, though. I’m like a virgin again.” It’s true. I needed a few stitches when all was said and done, and I’m convinced Dr. B tightened my chastity belt a notch.
“Like a virgin.” That devilish grin breaks out over his face. “It’s going be an interesting night.”
“You’ll use a condom,” I charge him with the duty. “And I’ll use my mouth.” I take a bite from his ear. Even though we’ve had oral options since the twins were born, we haven’t exactly exercised them. Truth be told, we’ve been a little more preoccupied with sleep and scavenging to get it.
“My body misses your mouth.” He runs a kiss from my ear to the hollow of my neck.
“We need to stop, or I’ll never want to leave. Come with me,” I plead once again.
He shakes his head just barely. “I’ll stay behind and map out all the things I’m going to do to you later.” He rubs my shoulders, and I moan into him.
“Can’t wait to see what you come up with when I get back. I have two bottles in the fridge.” My mother hooked me up to electronica like a cow and expressed two full bottles in an hour’s time. She was more than impressed with my ability to produce enough human dairy to feed the boys twice over. And, after seeing those two white glowing bottles, so was I. “Don’t wait up.” I nuzzle my face in his neck a moment. “I’ll kiss you in all the right places and rouse you from your sleep myself.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
Gage and I each snatch up a twin as he walks me downstairs, where we find Logan already waiting, talking to Bree and Em while Drake and Ethan gorge in their visual au natural fun-fest. Their eyes are literally set agog at the television.
Beau Geste pops up from the other side of the couch with an ear-to-ear grin on his face. “I see butts!”
“That you do.” I make a face at Gage. Our children will not see butts if I can help it. I dot Nathan’s forehead with a kiss as if to prove a point.
Gage nods as if agreeing with me just as a bevy of beautiful blondes exposes their toddler-tight derrières.
“It’s like freaking Christmas,” Ethan chokes out the words.
“Speaking of the fat man’s big day,” Drake barks over to Mom and Tad. “Pay attention to the list this time, Pops. You gave us pillows and socks and shit last year. It’s like you forgot the true meaning of Christmas—stuff.”
“I’ll get her back soon.” Logan offers Gage a quick pat to the shoulder, whispering something into his ear, and Gage shakes his head in response. My curiosity is piqued, but my nerves are overriding my need to snoop. I hand the baby to Mom and press my lips to his soft as a peach forehead.
We start to head out, and Mom waves with Barron’s tiny hand. “Goodbye, Logan and Mommy!”
“Have fun on your date,” Tad yelps, upset that I’m once again stepping foot off the property without my two tiny twin engines that never seem to shut down and sleep.
“It’s not a date,” I whisper under my breath. Because really? What’s the point?
Gage and I kiss goodbye at the door, and I coo into Nathan’s precious face before dotting his nose with my lips. It’s swoon-worthy seeing Gage hold his tiny doppelganger in his big
strong arms. There is nothing hotter on this planet than Gage Oliver as a father.
Soon enough, it’s just Logan and I standing outside of the Landon house with the fog sealing our bodies like a membrane. Something stirs inside me like a memory, like a premonition. Logan interlaces our fingers as we head to the Mustang. It feels safe like this with him, and yet, hollow without Gage.
We can never lose Gage.
Logan pulls my hand to his lips as he helps me into the passenger’s seat. “I agree.”
The Council of the Superiors is held on the outskirts of Ahava just east of my mother’s sparkling domain. A portal is open to those in attendance, so it’s the one time I don’t need to beg Marshall for a ride—although, my favorite Sector is present in support of me, as are Brody and Ellis. Of course, there is Logan, but he’s like my other half in this operation. The Retribution League is just as much his baby as it is mine.
Logan wraps an arm around my shoulder. “Dr. Booth to your left,” he offers the heads-up. “Do your thing.”
“Dr. Booth!” I wave him over. “You look great—ten years younger at least.” It’s a genuine compliment. He’s lean and mean and dressed pretty decent, too.
“It’s all thanks to my fiancée. She’s taken to me like a pet project, I suppose. Which is fair since I came to her as a fixer-upper.” He pats his trim belly.
“Speaking of fixer-uppers.” I realize I should segue into faction business, but Rev’s obnoxious face bounces through my mind. “Revelyn has made quite a presence in my family as of late.” God, what else can I say? Just about everything that wants to fly from my mouth is perfectly perverse.
“That’s wonderful!” His eyes light up with a touch of pride, and my stomach wrenches. “It’s been so long since he’s had any good influences in his life.” He rubs his wooly brow with a finger. “I’ve always thought I did him a disservice by letting him navigate through life on the coattails of his whims. I should have put my foot down a few times with little Rev-Rev. He’s landed himself in quite a few rough patches over the years.”
“Is that so?” I bet accosting underage girls wasn’t one of them. “Is he here?” I scan the area for the man who thought wise to deflower my sister in her own backyard.
“No. Heavens no. He’s got some hot date. He’s quite the ladies’ man.”
“Oh, I’m aware.” I seethe a moment at the idea that Mia was just one in a long string of girls he took the penis plunge with that day. “Anyway, I’m addressing the factions today. I’m proposing a break in tradition, and I’d really appreciate your support.”
He twists his lips, unsure of what I’m saying. “Skyla, the factions are born and bred on tradition. I’m afraid I can’t support a youthful whim without examining it in detail. These things take time. I’m sure you understand.”
My mouth falls open, and the urge to beg him to side with me rises up like vomit in the back of my throat. “Revelyn slept with my sister, and now she’s not a virgin. Did I mention she just turned sixteen?” Dr. Booth’s eyes bulge the size of soccer balls. “I’m afraid I can’t support his youthful whims either, and, unfortunately, I have examined this in far too much detail. I’d like to forgive him, but these things take time—and perhaps a police officer or two.” His mouth falls open at the legal implications Little Rev-Rev seems to have ensnared himself in. “I’m sure you understand.” I take a full step in. “I really need your support, Dr. B. You have the respect of the elders. If you have my back, I’ve already won half the battle.”
Nicholas Haver slams the gavel down and calls the room to order from inside the cave-like dwelling. Bodies rush past us in an effort to get a seat, and both Dr. Booth and I do the same. I’m more than familiar with this end of Ahava, the lilac scent, the beautiful waterfalls that dress the outer opening of the cave-like sparkling curtains. Inside, the walls pulsate a strange shade of crimson. It’s markedly warmer in here, no thanks to the tornado of fire that towers toward the rear of the structure. But, tragically, what I remember most about this beautiful cave is the fact that Logan Oliver lost his life here. I’ll never forget that horrible day—the final day of the Faction War. Logan died in an effort to help me win that damn battle and become the overseer of these very people, and, here I am, at the big meet-and-greet, as a lowly observer—an unwanted one at that. There are at least three hundred people here tonight. Usually, there aren’t this many representatives, but, as of late, every faction is shaken at the thought of what the Steel Barricade might do next. I take that back. The Counts have dwindled to nothing at these shindigs. Thanks to Wesley, they’re all doing the Steel Barricade Shuffle.
“Rest assured, you have my full support.” Dr. Booth looks past me, stern, like a father readying to administer a beat down. “I’d appreciate some time to speak with my son once we get back. If you so wish to involve the authorities, I completely understand.”
I don’t—for now, but I give a curt nod. No use in taking the incarceration card off the table just yet.
Nicholas starts in on his usual spiel—weather, local news, ridiculous antidotes to regale the foreign nations, then the hard hitting stuff—Nephilim misconduct around the globe, his shared expression of worry over what the Barricade might be capable of.
A woman stands up near the back. “I’ve heard there are serums they’ve administered to their members in an effort to shield their Nephilim DNA! What’s being done about this?”
A man with a dark beard that neatly outlines his jaw as if creating an exterior mouth ready to swallow him whole stands up. “All this UFO shit is terrifying my kids—not to mention putting a target on our backs!”
Then a flurry of verbal attacks hit hard as hail. We’ve heard the tunnels have reopened! And this time they’re not just taking Celestra! What about the rumors that the government already has us in its sights? Are we able to survive this as a people?
Their horrified faces, the terror in the hearts breaks me.
“Enough.” I hop onto my chair and look around the monolithic entombment. Nicholas pounds his useless gavel, but I choose to ignore it. “I realize I am no longer your overseer, but I also realize that the protection the faction leaders promise is virtually nonexistent.”
A few brave souls dare to audibly agree.
“And I also realize that the old way of doing things is obsolete. The Barricade has fine-tuned itself, and I propose we do the same.” The cheers roughly double—the majority still not sold. “I’m aware that the Barricade has enlisted a small army of its best and brightest to terrorize the citizens of this world in an effort to make us look like monsters ready to devour the human race.” The room slips to a hypnotic silence. “And, I’m aware of the fact the Barricade has enlisted a vast number of our Viden brothers and sisters to do something far more sinister.” A rumble breaks out into the crowd. “If you think the world is afraid of us now—when the Barricades’ next phase of intimidation begins, the world and the Nephilim people will never be the same.” A few gasps circle the room. “I am breaking with tradition.” I look to Dr. Booth when I say it. “I am fighting this wickedness among us with my bare hands, my mind, my very soul. I will not let evil prosper. Is anyone with me?” A dull round of cheers breaks out—still not enough for an outright rebellion. My mother’s words come back to me—only a true rebellion that consists of the majority can invalidate the Justice Alliance.
An exceptionally tall man stands up across the aisle. We’re the same height, and I’m standing on the seat of a chair. If all the Nephilim were his size, they wouldn’t need to scour for a DNA imprint. The world would have long since learned our secret.
“What is this next phase of intimidation?” he gruffs.
The crowd shouts along with him, asking for the truth.
I take a full breath and look to Logan for help. Even the mention of the resurrected dead sends a shiver up my spine.
“The next phase of intimidation will be the final phase—it will be all the Barricade needs to land us where they want us.” I sw
allow hard because there is no good way to stop this. What am I without solutions? Just another helpless face in the crowd. “Spectators.”
A quiet hush fills the cavernous space. Faces bleach white. A few bend over with their head between their knees.
Nicholas claps his gavel. “Skyla, I bid you to take a seat. These are serious matters that call for serious resolutions.”
“I have a resolution.” It might be a lie at the moment, but I’m hoping what comes out of my mouth next is something we can run with. “The tunnels are open. It’s true.” Loving it so far, despite the adverse reaction from the crowd. “It’s me who has opened them.” More gasps, a little bit of honesty never hurt. “I’ve imprisoned members of a special unit of the Barricade known as the Immunity League. Members of this league were deliberately causing disturbances for our people—making it look as if we posed a threat—assuring the world that we were one.” People are rapt at attention. Who knew the truth could actually work in my favor? “I have a place, a holding tank not in an earthly realm, ready to accept as many Spectators as we can capture. We’ll need hunters. I’ll accept as many volunteers as you’ll give me. We also need spies. This is a call to any and everyone with family, friends, coworkers in the Barricade. I am one of them, but their leader, Wesley, only feeds me what he wants me to know.” I look around at the crowd, my eyes scorching over theirs. “My husband tells me everything.” If it’s one thing I need everyone to understand, it’s that Gage would never turn on us. There isn’t a deceptive bone in that boy’s—man’s body. “We need all eyes and ears on board to pick up even the faintest whispers of a wicked plan. We’ll need all the information funneled down from faction districts straight to Paragon where I’ll set up a centralized communication force, along with a Nephilim Bureau of Intelligence. This is not a war—this is a preservation of our people. These are not times to lean on old unreliable practices. This is a time to band together and forge a future devoid of the danger that our brothers in the Barricade force upon us.” The crowd breaks out into a wild cheer, and my heart soars. “The Earth is our home, and we will not be disrespected in our own house!” A roar breaks out as the room erupts in agreement. “This meeting is adjourned. All interested parties please see Dr. Booth who will record your information in our database. It is your responsibility to inform your constituents. There is no time to waste. We have remapped, regrouped, and restructured. Tonight, we stand as one faction, and our name is Retribution. Yesterday, we were caught in evil’s snare, unable to fight off its stronghold, but today, we stand united together—and tomorrow, we are set for victory!”
The Serpentine Butterfly Page 68
