by Tiffany King
"What the hell?" Shawn asked, yelping when the cold spray hit him full force. Turning toward me, he slowly stalked me. "Oh, I get it. You choose your BFF over your own blood," he said in mock anger.
Backing up through the water, I turned to flee a moment before he reached me, counting on my extra speed abilities to carry me a safe distance, away. What I wasn't counting on was Robert and Mark joining forces with Shawn. Darting to the left, I tried to pass around Robert's outstretched arms. Misjudging the distance however, I tripped over his foot, as his hands made a grab for me, sending me tumbling into the ice-cold water head first. An unexpected wave tossed and turned me as I tried to break through to the surface. The force of the wave pressed my face into the rough sand. Gasping for a breath that wasn’t water-filled, I sat in the chilly water shivering from the cold.
"Oh, Krista, I am so sorry," Robert said mortified as water dripped into my eyes. He reached a hand out to help me up.
Using the uneven ground to my advantage, I pulled Robert down with me. Lynn and Sam whooped with laughter as Robert came up swearing from the cold water.
"Soorrrrrrrrryy, I cccoouldn't resssist," I said between giggles and my chattering teeth. Using each other for support, we staggered out of the freezing ocean with our water-laden clothes hampering our movements. "Wooooowww, thaaaat wattttter is freeezzingg," I said through chattering lips as we finally joined our laughing friends on the safety of the dry sand.
"See Sis, you mess with the bull, you get the horns," Shawn joked.
"Haha veeerry funnnny," I said as my teeth clattered together painfully. A breeze off the water blew across my already chilled body, making my skin take on a light blue shade.
Robert swore again as the same breeze hit him. "Holy flipping cow, how the Hell do people actually surf in that?" He said, with his own teeth chattering slightly.
"It's called a wetsuit, man," Shawn said chuckling.
"Har har," Robert said, shaking his wet head in Shawn's direction, sending droplets of icy cold water flying in all directions.
"Come on, we need to get you guys in the house before you get sick," Mark said, pressing my shaking body tightly against his. I welcomed his body heat as I snuggled in even closer. The walk to the house seemed endless as my unprotected side was exposed to the persistent breeze blowing off the water.
Robert kept up his colorful string of words each time the breeze blew across us.
I would have laughed, but the cold had sucked all humor out of the situation for me, as I focused, on placing one foot in front of the other. My frozen feet screamed at me with each step, but I clamped my lips together, not wanting to worry my friends.
Mark halted our progress when I stumbled over my next step, unable to feel my feet. "Are you okay?"
Finally caving, I shook my head painfully. "I cannnn't feellllll myyyy feeeeet," I said through my painful chattering teeth.
Mark knelt down in front of me to get a better look at my feet, but the lack of light made it hard for him to see. He scooped me up in his powerful arms as if I weighed nothing more than a toddler. "Shawn, come hold Krista's feet," he barked, striding toward his house at a brisk pace.
Shawn walked sideways, rubbing my ice cold feet with his hands. "Holy crap, your feet are like blocks of ice," he said, rubbing his hands over them briskly, using the friction to try to warm them.
"Soorrrrrrrrryy," I said apologetically. "They'reeeee alwayyyss coolld," I added.
I almost groaned out loud with relief when I saw the wooden staircase leading to Mark's house up ahead. Mark strode purposefully up the stairs with me still cradled in his arms.
"What happened?" John asked concerned as we climbed the last step.
"Krista and Robert went for a brief swim," Shawn said jokingly.
"Really, you choose a time like this for irresponsibility?" John asked reproachfully, taking in mine and Robert's blue lips and chattering teeth.
"Well, it's not like they did it on purpose," Sam said in a feisty voice, sticking up for her brother and me. "It was an accident, we were just messing around."
"That's all fine and dandy if we weren’t facing a life threatening situation," he said, clearly pissed off as he trailed after us. "It's time you stopped acting like kids and fulfilled your roles," he said in a loud voice, making me cringe deeper into Mark's arms. I hated to be yelled at more than anything else. I could feel panic clawing at me as he followed us into the house.
I was shocked at his tone and was surprised Mark didn't jump in with his own comment. I tilted my head to look at his face and saw his jaw was clenched as he strode with me through the house toward the guest bathroom.
"What if they get sick now and are unable to fulfill their duties?" John continued to berate us loudly, ignoring Kieran's voice as she tried to calm him.
"Enough," Haniel said with authority ringing through his voice that only an Archangel could pull off. "Go warm her up," he directed Mark.
"What was that about?" Sam asked quietly, running a steaming tub of water for me as Mark continued to cradle me in his arms.
"He's right," I said as another shudder raced through me. "It was irresponsible of me."
"No he's not right," Mark said quietly. "You’re still young. We all are, and we should be allowed that luxury without the weight of the world on our shoulders all the time. Yeah, getting wet was not the best idea, but accidents happen," he added, setting me fully dressed in the tub of steaming water. Pinpricks of pain shot through me as the hot water engulfed my frozen limbs. After several painful moments, my flesh began to warm and the pain faded away. Lying back against the back of the tub, I sunk down until every inch of me was submerged, except for my chin.
"You stay with her," Mark said after a few minutes. "I'm going to go see what's going on."
I closed my eyes, dismayed at the trouble I had caused. I was a walking disaster. If I wasn’t getting kidnapped or taking on an Abbadon three times my size, I was falling in an ice cold ocean at the most inopportune time. No wonder John had gotten so pissed. I was like the ultimate drama queen. I felt bad and hated the idea that someone was mad at me.
"Krista, it's not your fault. Truthfully, the whole thing is my fault for messing around in the first place, but honestly, I really don't understand what the big deal is. I mean, sure, I hope you guys don’t get sick, but I don’t know how a case of the sniffles is going to affect your performance?" Sam asked, sounding bewildered.
"I'm not sure," I said, standing and drawing the curtain closed so that I could shrug out of my soaked shorts and t-shirt. Sam handed a towel through the small crack between the shower curtain and the wall. Draping the towel around me, I knotted it at the top securing it into place so I could wring out my dripping clothes. Once most of the water was wrung out, I hung them on the towel rack at the far end of the tub so they wouldn’t drip on the floor. I was surprised to see the bathroom empty when I stepped out of the shower. Sam had thoughtfully left my current sleeping attire of sweats and sweatshirt on the bathroom counter. Snuggling into the clothes, I reveled in the comforting warmth they provided. Only one last touch, the thick fuzzy socks lying on the vanity stool that didn't belong to me but I would gladly borrow.
I walked on silent feet toward the living room where I could hear a hushed conversation going on. Stopping in the doorway, I was surprised to see everyone crowded in the living room listening to Haniel intently.
Haniel broke off when he saw me. "Feeling better Krista?" he asked.
"Yeah," I mumbled, squeezing in between Sam and Shawn on the couch. "What did I miss?" I asked, feeling self-conscious.
"You did not miss anything. I was merely explaining the importance of unity," Haniel said, looking at all of us. "Your enemy will find the slightest crack in your armor and use it to his benefit. Do not give him that advantage," he said, leaving us to ponder his words.
His departure released the lid on the quiet atmosphere as several conversations broke out around the room. I watched John approach Mark and observe
d their quiet conversation. Confused, I turned to Sam. "What did I miss?" I asked, repeating my question from moments before.
"Mark came out here and blew a gasket. Told John he wasn't our father and that if he ever talked to you like that again he would no longer be welcome here," Sam whispered in my ear. "It was kind of cool having Mark stand up for us like that."
I glanced back in concern at Mark and John. I was relieved when I saw that their conversation at least looked amicable. They stopped and John headed my way when they noticed me watching.
"Oh great," I mumbled to Sam, sinking back into the couch.
"Krista, I'm really sorry I yelled at you guys like that. Mark and Haniel are right. I had no right to do it. When I saw Mark carrying you up the stairs I thought you were seriously injured and for a brief moment I thought our enemy had attacked you. I lashed out unreasonably when I discovered the true reason. I hope you can accept my apology," he said sincerely.
"Of course I can," I said, slightly embarrassed. "I could only imagine what it looked like with Mark carrying me earlier." Everyone's nerves were on edge and seeing one of our own injured, was guaranteed to send some panic through our group. "We should have been smarter, but believe me it wasn't my intention to take a nightime swim," I said, smiling at him.
"I would guess not," he said, laughing. "Well, I guess I better go see how much trouble I'm in with the little Missus, for the trouble I've caused," he said, grimacing as he searched out Kieran.
I watched his retreating back and saw Kieran talking with him earnestly before she gave him a quick, hard hug. I guess that is the beauty of being Linked; staying mad at each other was next to impossible, I thought, standing up to seek out my own Link.
Mark met me halfway across the room, grabbing onto my hand. We walked down to his, room that he was sharing with Shawn and Robert. "You okay?" He asked pulling a blanket up over me as I settled against the pillows on his bed.
"Yeah, I feel a lot better. Sooooo, I hear you were my knight in shining armor tonight," I said playfully.
"Just put it this way, I can't handle seeing someone yell at you like that. They may be older, and perhaps wiser, than us, but they are not our bosses," he said. "It's okay, though. John apologized and I'm fine with that as long as it doesn't happen again," he said, lying next to me on the bed and tucking my head under his chin. I snuggled close to him loving the body heat he provided. My eyes drifted closed, exhausted from my foray into the ocean and its aftermath. Sinking deeper into sleep, I smiled in my dream knowing Mark would be joining me soon.
But he never came. I was all alone. Jerking awake, I sat up blinking in the darkness. I knew instantly that something was terribly wrong.
Chapter 16
I rubbed my tired eyes trying to make sense of how I knew something was wrong, and then I felt it hit me like a Mack truck.
Evil had entered our refuge.
I reached over and shook Mark awake. I placed my finger on my lips to silence his questions. Reading my expression and my thoughts, he knew instantly what I was silently telling him. Surging to his feet in one fluid movement, he reached a hand down to pull me to my feet with the same precision.
We crept to the door as quietly as possible, listening for any foreign noises outside the room. The door burst open, knocking us backwards as two Daemons wearing the bodies of two burly men charged into the room.
The force of the door sent me flying backwards and I landed in an ungraceful heap on the bed. Feeling disoriented from my flight through the air, I frantically sat up searching for Mark. One of the Daemons lunged at me, but Mark was there quickly, sending the Daemon smashing into the wall. Rolling on the floor, Mark used the hardwood floors of the bedroom to his advantage as he gripped the Daemon by the hair and slammed his head against the ground in a crushing blow.
The other Daemon used Mark's preoccupation to advance on me, obviously well coached on their task to take out the Guides. Scrambling off the bed, I scooted down the wall and snatched the slim wrought iron lamp off the dresser, jerking the cord out of the socket in the process. I backed into the corner preparing for the Daemon approaching with dead eyes. I fought the urge to scream as his grubby hands reached for me, but grasped empty air as Mark jerked him away from me and threw him across the room. The Daemon crashed against the dresser, taking the shelves that lined the wall down with him. The Daemon rose to his feet, incensed from his airborne flight across the room and charged Mark like an enraged bull.
I felt helpless huddled in the corner while Mark fought him, but Haniel's instructions had been clear. As Guides, we were expected to stay out of harm's way. It was hard to see who had the upper hand as they exchanged blows. I watched horrified as Mark's head slammed against the wall. He stood up facing the Daemon, swaying slightly, it was obvious he was winded from the blow he had taken. His hits looked less precise and more sluggish.
Watching him struggle, I began to doubt Haniel's words. What good was I to Mark, huddled in the corner like a helpless waif? Grasping the lamp more firmly in my hands, I charged the Daemon, striking the back of his head with as much force as I could muster.
My attack did little more than distract him for a moment, but it was all Mark needed as he took the Daemon out with a well executed kick to this windpipe. Grasping his throat with one hand the Daemon staggered and landed on his knees. Mark used his bent elbow to slam into his temple sending the Daemon sprawling in a heap at his feet.
Dropping the lamp, I rushed to Mark's side. I ran my hands down him searching for an injury.
"Krista, I'm fine," he said crushing me to him. "Are you okay?"
Stepping back, I surveyed him and was surprised that he was right. Except for a small cut in the corner of his mouth, he looked fine. "I'm alright too," I said as I used the pad of my thumb to wipe away the blood on his chin.
Mark grabbed my hand and together we silently stepped out of his room. The house was pitch black as we slowly made our way down the hallway. I anxiously wondered where my friends were. I wanted to shout a warning to them, but knew that we needed stealth on our side until we could get our bearings. We heard a soft thump in the second guest room to our left. Mark put his hand on the knob and twisted at the same instant that he threw the door open.
I was unprepared for the sight that met my eyes and felt sour bile burn its way up my throat.
The curtains on the window were torn down, allowing enough moonlight into the room to illuminate a crumpled female body on the floor and two bloodied Daemons in a heap by the window. A third Daemon stood towering behind someone who was down on his knees. The Daemon's hands were knotted in the Protector's hair to maneuver him where he wanted him to go.
The Protector hung lifeless with all fight gone from him. His hands reached weakly for the body that was crumpled on the floor as anguished tears poured from his eyes. My blood turned to ice when I saw that it was Thomas.
Mark's outrage came out as a warrior cry. He battered the monster in the gut with a deadly foot, forcing him to let go of his victim. Grief like I had never felt before flooded through me as I watched Thomas crawl toward the limp body on the floor. My head did not want to make the connection of who the crumpled body was. There was no need to check for a pulse. Thomas's cries of heartbreak made it clear his Link was gone.
"No!" I yelled.
Not my Grace, not my sweet loving Grace that brought sunshine to every room she entered. My heart shattered into a million pieces as I watched Thomas curl up on the floor beside her, dragging her lifeless body into his arms. Haniel's words from long ago ran through my head, Protectors cannot live without their Guides.
It seemed so unfair that Thomas had fought valiantly, taking out two Daemons of his own and had still lost his very existence for living.
I turned my anger toward the monster that had done this, but saw I was too late, Mark had already stopped him. The body of the Daemon lay in a heap on the floor. Mark grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the room. I wanted to dig in my heels and stop time.
I wanted a do-over.
I didn't want my new, wonderful friend to be dead. Sensing my resistance, Mark dragged me from the room, leaving Thomas to his grief and ultimately his own death.
The house was no longer quiet as we emerged from the room, I could hear the sounds of crashing and flesh meeting flesh as the Protectors fought for us. I could hear weeping further down the hall, but would not allow myself to think about who it might be. I did not want to know who else we had lost.
We cautiously continued our slow journey down the hallway. We were near the end when a hand reached out of Mark's dad's room, snatching me by the hair and dragging me into the room. Yelping in pain, I tried to twist away from the Daemon that held me. Mark charged after him, missing the second Daemon that had been waiting in the room.
They had set the trap and we had walked right into it. I watched, horrified as the ambushing Daemon punched Mark in the face knocking him to the ground. The Daemon stood over him kicking him in the ribs. I could hear the crunch as one of Mark's ribs obviously broke. I fought screaming to escape the death grip I was being held in. The Daemon pummeling Mark looked me in the eyes, smiling as he aimed another kick at Mark's exposed head. Mark's hand snaked out, grasping the Daemon by the heel, using his momentum against him by forcing the leg up and unbalancing him.
