War

by R. S. Broadhead

  Payne’s mouth dropped. “We’re literally right here, hearing you talk shit. You know that, right?”

  “Oh, I know. That’s why I said it.”

  “As much as I’d love to see what else she can throw out in terms of demeaning comments toward you two dicks, we need to move if we want to get this done before sunrise.” Tommy turned once everyone had gotten off. “This way.” We followed him to two oversized dune buggies. He twisted and walked backwards. “You up for driving the other one?” he directed at Savannah.

  Her eyes lit up. “Sure.” As he turned back around, he tossed the keys over his shoulder in her direction. “Just make sure you treat it better than you did that plane. Thought I taught you better than that.”

  She caught them and practically skipped her way to the one in the back. “You’re just mad I did it better than you would have.”

  “Ha, yeah, okay, Bliss.”

  I climbed in beside Tommy as the rest of the guys piled in behind us. I couldn’t help but smile. It felt like old times. Ollie would have loved this, although I was sure he would opt to be in the buggy behind us with Reese. The engine roared to life and Tommy stomped the gas, darting us forward. The cool night air slashed against my skin. It felt great next to the stuffy plane.

  “So, how close are we going to be able to get to it before we have to get out and walk?” I asked.

  Brandon leaned forward. “I don’t want to draw any attention to us, so we’re going to stop about a mile out and walk the rest of the way.”

  I nodded and leaned back to enjoy the rest of the trip before the walk. We shared a few jokes and laughs during the trip and all too soon, we were coming to a stop. In a single file line, we walked down a trail with Dax in the lead. He held some homemade looking device out in front of him, which pinged every few seconds. The longer we walked the more bright lights illuminated the sky from off in the distance. Soon the pungent smell of rotting eggs flooded my nostrils. I reached out and shoved Payne. “What the hell, dude? Did you shit your pants?”

  Brandon snorted. “Welcome to the Dead Sea. It’s just the way is smells.” Everyone groaned at the increasingly gag-worthy odor.

  Dax’s machine pinged more rapidly and he came to an abrupt halt. I slammed into the back of Payne and took a few steps back, crashing into Brandon.

  “This way,” he said. He darted to the side with Reese hot on his trail. A body of water came into view. I stopped and took in the sight. It was nothing short of amazing. “Come on!” I focused on the wiry frame of our leader and forced my feet to move in order to keep up. “Everyone watch for sinkholes when we get to the shore.”

  That comment didn’t sit well with me. All I could picture was hitting one and disappearing. The closer we got, the softer the earth became. My boots were covered in a gray paste-like goop. The pinging became a steady noise, and Dax stopped.

  He gnawed on his bottom lip and shook his head. “Something obviously isn’t right. The machine must be broken or something.”

  “What do you mean? Sounded like it was working just fine on the way here.” Reese snatched it from him and focused on the screen. After a second, she shoved it back in his hands. “Yeah, I have no idea what I’m looking at.”

  “It’s saying the energy level increases.” He swallowed and dropped his gaze to the ground before pointing toward the water. “It spikes in that direction, out over the water. It doesn’t make sense.”

  Reese blinked at him and without saying another word, bent over and started unlacing her boots. “If it says it’s out there, then it’s out there. I’m going to check it out.”

  “That’s crazy. It can’t be out there,” he tried to reason.

  She straightened. “Why is that crazy? Honestly, with everything we’ve seen you can tell me that this is so insane that we shouldn’t believe it’s out there somewhere?”

  He shook his head. “I guess not. But you can’t go out there alone.”

  Before anyone else could volunteer, I stepped forward. My best friend died for her, and I would do the same. “I’m going with her.”

  I quickly snatched the boots from my feet and walked toward her. Together, we closed the gap to the water’s edge. She took one step, but instead of dredging through the salty liquid, her foot remained planted on the surface. She gasped and looked back at me. Wide-eyed, I shrugged unable to wrap my head around what was happening.

  Time slowed. My mind raced as she continued to walk across the water. I inhaled, feeling my balls swell with confidence. I would not fall through the water. I would not fall through the water. I had to keep repeating it as I took that first step. Shell-shocked, I stood on the moving surface too. Nothing about it made sense. I stared down at my feet, firmly planted on the surface of the water, not even causing so much as a ripple. Reese had taken a sizable lead, not bothering to wait on me. I carefully made my way out to her. She held the relic out in front of her. The light from the moon hit the top part of it and beamed directly beneath the water. Something below us glowed, starting as a small ball and growing larger as the seconds ticked by.

  “Reese?” I called out.

  Uneasiness washed over me. Deep in my gut, I had the feeling that things were about to take a turn for the worse. The water broke and swallowed us up. My arms and legs struggled against a force pulling me toward the bottom. I screamed, bubbles encasing my body. This was it. I was going to drown.

  20

  Reese

  My chest burned as my body ached for oxygen. I hadn’t been expecting to go under. I stilled, fighting to calm my heart as I was pulled in the direction of the glowing light. A ring drew near and fast. Jace and I halted over what looked like a pipe lid. I motioned for him to grab the handle with me. Pressure built between my lungs. I wasn’t sure how much longer I would be able to hold on.

  Together the two of us wrestled against the wheel. It didn’t seem as if it were going to budge. My hope was dwindling the more seconds ticked by. Determined, the story would not end here, I gritted my teeth and struggled to make it turn, and finally, with my one last ounce of strength, it started to move. The tunnel opened, sucking us through and spitting us out onto a grassy island before resealing.

  I gasped for air, panicking at my situation. Before I could go full on freak out mode, Jace touched my shoulder and grounded me.

  “Look.” He pointed above us toward a black hole materializing. He laughed and touched his forehead. “Holy shit. I can’t believe we actually found it.”

  I stood, not taking my eyes from it. “Yeah, but how do I get this thing to absorb the energy from it?” I held out the relic. Without any effort, blue flames burst from the tattoos on my wrist and engulfed it. The piece heated between my fingers and slightly shook. Like a black smoke, the hole contracted and contorted. The relic beckoned, and slowly retracted it. Once it had completely vanished, the blue flames retreated back into my veins and the metal cooled instantly.

  “Wow. That was almost too easy,” Jace mumbled. He looked up at the pipe we had come through. “Now if finding a way out was that simple.”

  My stomach twisted as I was launched upward. Before my skull could collide the lid of the pipe, it burst open. We plowed through the water so fast it hurt my head, practically feeling as if it were crushing it. Within seconds, we broke surface and went airborne before coming back down into the water with a huge splash.

  I pushed my hair away from my eyes and found Jace smiling at me. “Guess you got your wish.” I splashed him with a handful of salty water. He laughed a lay back to float on the surface.

  “Are y’all okay out there?” Tommy screamed.

  “Yeah,” I called back.

  We were more than okay. I was on top of the fucking world at the moment and enjoying every second of it.

  I slept during the trip back. Despite being thrilled that something actually came easy for us, I dreaded returning to Jackson. Mostly because I knew there was going to be awkwardness between Shayla and me. My game plan was to stay clear of her
and Hollywood. I had determined that was best for everyone. I didn’t want things escalate more than they already had.

  When I walked through the door, Harley met me with a warm grin. “About time you guys got back.” He wrapped me in his large arms. I leaned into him, enjoying the safeness of his hold. “Geez, you stink though.” Instead of pulling back like I expected him to, he held me tighter. “Nothing I can’t handle though.”

  “Maybe so, but I really do need to get a bath after being swallowed up by the Dead Sea.” I pushed away and smiled at his curious expression. “I’ll have to give you the details later. After a hot shower.” Our fingers locked between us. “So how were things here?”

  “You mean did she cool off?”

  I tilted my head. “Maybe.”

  His lips pulled into a grim line. “Sorry to tell you I don’t have a good report on that end. She’s been a nightmare to deal with. And I know he’s my friend, but Hollywood is making it way worse than what it needs to be. Really glad if this was what it was going to be like when he got a girlfriend then I’m glad it took him so long to find one.”

  “That bad, huh?”

  He nodded.

  That news really broke me. A small part of me thought that maybe with all of us being gone she would have time to reason with her actions and cool off. I guess that was the last thing she wanted to do.

  “Well, guess I’ll have that to look forward to. See you in a bit.” I turned and walked to the showers. After cleaning up and putting some fuzzy pajamas on, I went to the common room that I had yet to visit since Fuzz had remodeled the place. I dropped down on the couch and pulled the relic out.

  I stared at it, twisting it between my fingers. Inside this thing held the power to open or close a portal. It seemed hard to believe such a small thing could withhold so much power.

  “Ready to lock it up?” Fuzz asked, coming up behind the couch I was stretched across.

  I flicked my wrist and tossed it in his direction. “Yep. Ready to get that thing destroyed to get this over with already.” I twisted over to my side and curled inward toward a pillow. “You guys got any ideas on where the other one is? The faster I get it locked up in there the better.”

  “Reese, you just got back from a trip. You’re going to burn yourself out if you’re not careful. Take some time to rest for a bit before jumping onto the next mission.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I slept enough on the plane ride home. I’m ready for round two whenever y’all want to throw a location out.” I yawned before I could stop myself. Damn it. Stupid body functions.

  “Mmmhmm. Seems like you need the rest. Do I need to sing you to sleep?”

  Picking up the pillow nestled against my body, I hurled it in his direction. He barked out a laugh and disappeared through the door. My lids became heavy, as if cotton were behind them. I closed them and was out like a light.

  “Reese.” Someone patted me on the cheek. “Wake up.”

  I winced at the pain in my neck. I reached up and touched the ache, attempting to message the soreness as I cracked my eyes to find Harley standing over me.

  “What time is it?” I smacked my dry lips together. It felt like I had been out for days, weeks.

  “It’s after nine. I have a little something for you at the bike shop we had. I thought now would be a good time to give it to you. You know, as kind of a take your mind off things type gift.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me from the couch. “Go get some clothes on and meet me outside. Unless you want to stay here all day and take the chance of having another fight with Shayla.”

  That comment got me up and going. “Be out there in five minutes.” I ran from the room and managed to find some clothes. Shayla was coming toward me in the hallway, and I bolted from the building. Relief washed over me the more distance I put between us. Harley was already sitting on the driver’s side of a Jeep. I climbed in and slammed the door closed. “So we’re going to your shop?”

  “Yep.” He put the vehicle into drive and maneuvered us in the direction of town. I peered out the window, seeing my little home city busy with everyday life. It was odd to me that no one but us knew what was going on. We made a few turns and put some miles behind us. Soon, McVay Road. came into view, and then we were pulling into the shop where I had first laid eyes on Harley.

  He shut the Jeep off and sat back, staring ahead at the building. “Feels like forever since I’ve been here.”

  “You miss it?”

  He laughed without humor. “Not really. It was cool getting to build things here, but it was kind of boring. Not much action because you guys were getting all of it.”

  “If we hadn’t been getting all the action, we would’ve never met.” I squared my jaw and lifted my head, daring him to argue with that.

  “You got me there. How about we go revisit our first date?”

  I smiled and nodded. After he unlocked the door, we went in. He bypassed the front counter and made his way directly into the back shop.

  “So, I know you’ve been a little stressed lately.” He ran his hand along a large bulky object beneath a drop cloth. “I started working on this before we left. I planned on giving it to you once we got back.”

  “Oh yeah?” I stepped forward, reaching out to uncover what was hidden beneath. Harley quickly shooed me back. I laughed at his apparent excitement. Crossing my arms, I narrowed my eyes at him. “How did you know you were going to give it me?”

  His smiled faded, turning his expression serious. “I’ve had dreams about you since I was created.” He took one step toward me. “Only your face was hidden.” Another step. “The day I met you.” Two more steps. “I had a feeling it was you.” My back pressed against an old beat up truck on the rack. He stopped in front of me. “And my feelings are never wrong.”

  I looked up at him as he towered over me. “You think I’ve earned what’s under there? I haven’t been too nice of a person since we came back here.”

  “Oh, you’ve earned it. That and so much more if you want it,” he said, his voice dropping in a ragged, throaty way.

  I tilted my head. “What kind of person would I be if I told you I didn’t want it?”

  What had gotten into me? Hormones. Those little shits would make you do some things the better part of your brain tried to get you to reason through. Currently, it was trying to tell me I wasn’t ready for any of this to happen. I wasn’t over Steele. It wasn’t fair to Harley. Those thoughts were getting shoved to the back of my mind, in a closet to be locked away. Especially with the way his lips parted and the hungry predatory gaze he had me pinned with.

  A low growl emanated from deep within his chest that sounded so wolf-like it sent shivers up my spine, leaving goose bumps along the way. My lips parted as my chest heaved. The anticipation of what he would do to my body drove me crazy. One of his hands went beside my head, resting along the top part of the truck. We locked eyes for a moment. A second later, his hand thrust deep into my strands and gently yanked back so I was forced to look up at him.

  “Tell me I’ve earned you.”

  “You’ve earned every single inch of me,” I answered breathlessly. That was all it took to break the careful charade he had been having around me. Everything around us stopped the moment his mouth slid across mine.

  The world.

  Time.

  There were no words to describe how it felt to give myself over to him. This was more than perfection. This was soul shattering. My blood heated as he deepened the kiss, pressing me harder against the chilled metal. His tongue swirled against mine, softly, in an almost teasing manner. He gave me just enough to want more. And more was what I wanted. I rocked forward, nipping at his bottom lip. His body tensed as the hand that rested against the truck moved down. It grazed my breast and stopped at my hip, resting on the bare skin between the top of my pants and bottom of my shirt.

  BAM!

  We both jumped and broke apart, looking in the direction the noise came from. Harley’s head dropped back as he deepl
y inhaled the air. “There’s something here.” Before I could ask what he was talking about, three large beasts ripped from his flesh. Vixler stood in front of him, and Gamick and Kolisus came over to me. The hairs on their backs stood on end as each one pawed at the ground, clearly wanting to tear whatever was out there apart.

  “I’ve never smelled anything like this before.” He turned to meet my gaze. “That’s unusual. I’ve run across just about every creature in existence.”

  21

  Reese

  Panic raced through me. It was short lived. An explosion from the end of the shop washed it away and replaced it with adrenaline as pieces of wood and metal flew toward us. I gripped the side of the truck, preparing to be hit. At the last second, Harley’s arms wrapped around me, and his body folded around mine.

  The dust settled, and I drew in a ragged breath. The smell of smoke assaulted my senses. Flames charred the grass outside.

  Harley’s palms gently touched my cheeks. “Are you okay?” I nodded. A snarl ripped through his throat as every muscle in his body coiled. “Whatever did this will pay. Stay put. I’m doing a sweep with the wolves.” Without waiting on a verbal command, the three beasts launched forward and disappeared through the wreckage and around the corner of the building.

  I took a few steps, kicking a few pieces of debris from my path. A familiar tingle traced along the contours of my neck, raising my awareness that I wasn’t alone anymore. I stopped, already knowing whom I would find behind me.

  “I’m not sure who you are, but destroying this shop’s door was no way to get attention if that’s what you wanted.” I stilled listening for movement. Any other time I would have attacked. But deep down I knew this stranger wasn’t here to hurt me. He’d had his chance to do that already at that place Eight Ball had dragged us to. Instead, I waited, yearning to hear his voice. Anything for a hint on why he was always there.