Cataclysm (Supernova Saga)

by C. L. Parker

  “Open it, Sinclair.”

  She shook her head as much as she could in his viselike grip. She didn’t want to see what was on the other side. It hurt too much.

  “I said, open it!” he shouted, causing her to flinch.

  Her voice trembled. “It’s locked.”

  He reached around her waist and, with a flick of his wrist, she heard the deadbolts click. “Not anymore,” he said with satisfaction.

  A reluctant, shaky hand reached out and touched the doorknob. The steel was cold against her palm, and it sent a wave of grief straight through her heart. Knowing she had no other choice, she turned it, and the door swung open.

  His chest to her back, Drake urged her forward and into the room. Her feet were weighted down with hesitance, but she managed to take the steps. It wasn’t until Drake flipped on the light that a deluge of memories slammed into her all at once.

  Drake whispered into her ear. “See what they took from you? From us? They have to pay, Sin. They have to pay for what they stole. They had no right!”

  The once-powerful aroma of the room had been diluted somewhat, but it was still there, as were all the trigger items that brought the memory she refused to relive fresh to her mind as if it were only yesterday. A renewed sense of anger and vengeance surged through her, overriding any doubts she may have had moments before.

  Her fingernails dug into her palms, and angry tears clouded her vision. She ground her teeth and narrowed her eyes to slits. “Yes, they will pay for what they did.”

  He wrapped his icy hands around her waist and pulled her against him. Nuzzling the crook of her neck, he kissed a trail up to her ear. “I’ll not make you wait any longer to have what I promised. Bring my youngest to me, Sin. It’s time to exact our revenge.”

  Dominic had come home. Kerrigan knew because the sound of the Barracuda’s Hemi engine as it crept down the street was unmistakable. He just didn’t come to her.

  Midnight came and went, and she had hoped that if he couldn’t stand to see her, maybe he would at least check in on her when she couldn’t see him. But he hadn’t. She had lain awake all night, listening for creaks in the floor, trying to distinguish temperature changes around her, paying attention to any pull, anything that might indicate his presence. There was nothing. She was alone with Millie curled up next to her on the bed, the pup’s light snores the only thing piercing the lonely silence that surrounded her.

  Exhaustion from her efforts to develop and nurture the life in her womb, coupled with the work from restoring order to the bedroom and the stress of everything else in her life that seemed to be crashing down around her, had taken a toll on her. Not to mention the episode in the garden, the argument with Gabe over having not told him about her pregnancy, and the ever-present worry that she would lose Dominic—one way or another. Unable to process any of it anymore, her body shut down, and she drifted off to sleep.

  By morning, there was still no Dominic, and no evidence he had ever come to bed. Millie was at the bottom of the stairs, scratching at the door and whining to be let out. Deciding she would have to make the first move, she got up, let Millie out, and went in search of Dominic.

  She found him in the kitchen with Gabe and Colton, standing at the counter with a bowl of cereal.

  “Oh, boo... you look like shit,” Gabe said in a pathetic voice.

  Alerted to her presence, Dominic looked up but averted his eyes when he saw she was looking at him. He dropped the spoon into the full bowl and pushed it back, preparing to leave. He only paused when Gabe asked how she was feeling.

  Kerrigan turned to look at her best friend. “Um... I feel fine. A little hungry, maybe.”

  Gabe got up from the table. “Well, of course you’re hungry, sweetie. You’re eating for two. Now you have a reason to look like a cow. Come sit down and let Auntie Gabe whip up something for that baby.” He took her by the arm and ushered her toward a vacant chair.

  He was never that attentive unless he wanted something, so either her pregnancy or the fact that he was finally getting some had softened his brashness. She wasn’t sure if she liked it or not, or even if it was some sort of trick—judging by how mad he had been with her the night before—but whatever the case, it was nice.

  From the corner of her eye, she noticed Dominic was leaving, so she pulled away from Gabe to stop him. “Oh, hey, Dominic...” He didn’t even acknowledge her as he kept walking and disappeared out of sight.

  “Just ignore him, Kerr Bear. He’s in one of his moods,” Gabe said when he saw the look of rejection on her face. He directed her back to the table and pushed her down into the seat. “Colt, would you be a dear and go shove a boot up his ass? I don’t care how pissy he is, it’s no reason to treat his baby momma like that.”

  Colton gave her a reassuring smile before he got up and followed after his brother.

  Gabe was already at the refrigerator pulling out a carton of eggs, but he had yet to stop talking. “I mean, she didn’t tell me... of all people... that she got knocked up, but you don’t see me acting all shitty.” He turned around, and when he saw that Colton had already left the room, he put his hand on his hip and smacked his lips. “Did he just for real walk out on me while I was talking?”

  Kerrigan grinned and nodded.

  Gabe waved his wrist into the air and exaggerated a disgruntled sigh. “Well I guess the honeymoon’s over.” He pulled the skillet out of the cabinet and went about his business. “Y’all are going to have to patch this shit up. Little Hyacinth ain’t gonna be a bastard child before she’s even born.”

  Kerrigan furrowed her brow. “Hyacinth?”

  He threw the broken eggshells in the trash and looked at her. “That’s what we’re naming our little girl,” he said as if the decision had already been made.

  Kerrigan got out of her seat and went to pour herself a cup of coffee. “Why Hyacinth?”

  “Because it’s my favorite flower.” He turned his head around and batted his lashes at her from over his shoulder. When he saw the coffee cup, he got a stern look on his face and took it from her. “Nope, you’re preggers. No more caffeine for you.”

  She rolled her eyes and went to sit back down. “And what if we have a boy?”

  Gabe waved the spatula in the air with the roll of his head. “First of all, if a little stinky-ass boy comes out of you, I’m shoving him back in. Secondly, if you do have a boy, it’s really rather simple... we’ll name him after my other favorite thing: Ralph.”

  “Ralph?”

  “It’s his pet name for my cock,” Colton said, coming back into the kitchen. He winked and then gave her a knowing smile.

  Kerrigan rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s not happening.”

  Gabe slid her eggs onto a plate before sitting it in front of her on the table. “People name their children after relatives all the time.”

  “Relatives, not their relatives’ genitalia, Gabe. There’s a difference.” Kerrigan’s stomach churned over the smell of the eggs, so she started with the toast first. “So, um... how is he?” she asked Colton, trying to change the subject.

  He sighed and sat back down in his seat. “He doesn’t want to be bothered, and he’s pulled the invisibility trick again.”

  “Again? I’m really worried about him. He’s ghost more than he is solid nowadays.”

  Colton yawned. “Yeah, I noticed.” His eyelids were heavy, and the dark bags that sat above his cheeks were a stark indicator of just how bad off he was as well.

  “What about you? Are you getting any sleep at all?”

  Gabe sat down with them. “Some, but not nearly enough.”

  Colton shrugged. “I’ll be okay. I mean, this can’t go on forever, right?”

  Kerrigan shook her head. “No, Sinclair’s going to make a move soon. I can feel it. And one thing we don’t need when we face off with her is a crack in our foundation. We have to be a strong, united front. I have a feeling she and Drake will be able to sniff out any weakness among us, and right now... that w
eakness is me and Dominic. I’m going to go talk to him.” She stood up, leaving her breakfast abandoned.

  Colton stood and put his hand on her arm. “Look, Kerr. I know you love my brother, but not telling him that he’s going to be a father was a pretty fucked up thing for you to do.”

  Gabe got to his feet, poised to defend his friend. “Hey! Don’t start in on her! I know my Kerr Bear. Whatever reason she had for keeping that from him... and you will tell me later,” he added as a side note while eyeballing Kerrigan, “it must have been a good one. That man needs to dry it up and stop acting like she, and this baby, aren’t the best things in the world that ever happened to him.”

  Millie jumped up and down, barking at them.

  “Gabe,” Kerrigan said, trying to get them to stop arguing.

  Colton ignored her, and leaned over to face off with his boyfriend. “Newsflash, hun... there’s a war between good and evil going on all around us, and my brother just happens to be smack dab in the middle of it! How the hell is he supposed to be happy about something like this when he might not even be around to see his kid? Not to mention the fact that our sperm donor will now have a new target as well. How’s he supposed to live with himself knowing that it’s his fault the kid will always be haunted by some shit like that?”

  Millie’s barks became more insistent. He obviously didn’t like the vibe in the room.

  “Colton, it’s okay. Really, I—” Kerrigan tried but was cut off yet again.

  “Some shit like that!? Some shit like that!?” Gabe squealed, appalled. “Let me tell you what’s some shit,” he said, rolling his head on his neck with his finger in Colton’s face.

  “Guys!” Kerrigan yelled.

  Gabe looked down at Millie. “Hush up, Mills.” And then he turned to look at her. “You too, Kerr. This is between me and him. It has nothing to do with you.”

  Millie whined.

  “Anyway,” he said with a roll of his eyes at the intrusion. “Like I was saying. What’s some shit is the fact that your brother wouldn’t even be alive, or half alive, if it weren’t for her. And then he goes and sticks his dicky-doo-I-see-you in her hello-how-ya-doin’ and impregnates her with a little crumb snatchin’ doo-doo geyser. Now she’s going to get so many stretch marks that her body will look like a roadmap of America’s great highways, her tits are going to sag so low she’ll have to roll them up and tuck them inside her bra, and her ass is going to spread so much she’ll need a wide-load beeper to alert everyone when she’s backing up. Her body will never be the same again, and it wasn’t that great to begin with. So he’s got some nerve trying to act like this is an inconvenience for him.”

  “Oh yeah!?”

  “Yeah!”

  And then there was silence. Gabe and Colton both had their eyes narrowed at each other, their nostrils flared, poised to launch into another yelling fit the second the other one so much as flinched.

  Colton lost the standoff. “I’m going to go find my brother!” He shoved the chair out of his way and stomped off with Millie trotting to the doorway and barking after him.

  “You do that!” Gabe yelled after him. “And, FYI... you and Ralph are in the doghouse tonight!”

  Millie turned around and whined at Gabe as if he knew what he was talking about. He sneezed, and then held his head high as he pranced off into the other room. Not that Millie actually had a doghouse, but apparently, he had been insulted by the comment nonetheless.

  Kerrigan put her head in her hands. “I don’t want you two fighting over me and Dominic. Our relationship issues are our issues, not yours.”

  “Oh, honey, don’t you worry about it,” Gabe said with a dismissive hand. He sat back down and pushed the plate of eggs back in front of her. “Eat. You need your protein, and I ain’t talking about the salty kind.”

  The metallic screech of the screen door opening drew their attention to the doorway of the kitchen. There was a deep thud of boots on the wood floor in the hallway, and for a moment, Kerrigan’s heart leaped into her throat thinking that Dominic had decided to come back and talk it out. There was even a flip-flopping sound with it, which could have very well meant Colton was with him.

  “What the hell is with all the yelling and screaming coming out of this house lately?” Sydney’s face was screwed up in confusion and aggravation when she stepped into the kitchen with a combat-boot-wearing Olivia behind her. “Last night there was all the crashing and shouting, and then this morning again with the yelling. Either something’s amiss in the land of bliss, or you guys decided to allow a taping of Jerry Springer to take place in your home.”

  Kerrigan’s shoulders fell.

  Olivia’s coal-lined eyes conveyed her perplexity as she thumbed in the direction of the front door. “We tried to ask Dominic and Colton, but they were apparently too busy wearing a path through the front lawn while grunting and growling, either at each other or something else. I couldn’t really tell. Are they arguing or something?”

  Kerrigan sighed. “No, we are.”

  “You and Gabe are arguing?” Sydney asked.

  “No. Dominic and I are.”

  “What? Why? You’re like the perfect couple.” Olivia’s ruffled black lace skirt swished as she crossed the room to join them. “Is it because of Drew?”

  “What!? No! Why would you ask that?”

  She shrugged nonchalantly. “Seemed like the most logical reason. It’s what me and Ty and Syd and Talon argue about.”

  “Livi, stop talking about him,” Sydney said with a shove to her shoulder. “You’ll get my girly bits all worked up again.” She and Olivia giggled, Gabe rolled his eyes, and Kerrigan just looked pathetically morose.

  “Sit, bitches,” Gabe ordered the girls. “I’m about to tell y’all what went down, and you’re going to want to talk—” He stopped and held up his finger when Olivia opened her mouth to say something. “but this is your one and only warning not to interrupt me until I’ve told you the whole story. ‘Cause I’m just close enough to each one of you to reach out and touch a bitch. M’kay? M’kay.”

  He launched into the whole story and didn’t stop until he was ready to hear Kerrigan’s explanation as to why she had kept the pregnancy from Dominic. When she explained the reason, Gabe and the girls nodded in understanding. They knew how protective Dominic was of her, and completely agreed she did the only thing she could do. It was just a shame he’d had to find out the way he had.

  With that out of the way, the girls then started up their baby talk; not that it was anything Kerrigan could particularly get into when the father of the baby apparently couldn’t even stand to look at her. Her friends tried to cheer her up, but until she knew everything was okay between her and Dominic, nothing would be the same.

  By dinner time, the rift between Kerrigan and Dominic had caused a ripple effect. Not only were they still not speaking, but there was a noticeable divide between every couple in the house, including their neighbors.

  Olivia and Sydney had filled the twins in on what was amiss in the Cruz home, and they had taken it upon themselves to have a chat with Dominic who had spent the majority of the day in various stages of spookdom. Colton hadn’t left his brother’s ghostly side, determined to show Gabe that he could be just as dismissive and stubborn. In the end, after having gotten Dominic’s side of things from Colton, the twins had also chosen a side—Dominic’s side.

  And because of that, their girlfriends decided it would be best for them to think about the poor choice they had made while snuggling with their sleeping bags in their surfboard hut on the beach. In answer to that, the twins high-fived each other in celebration of having more time to surf without the ball-and-chains nagging them to come home and spend “quality time” with them. Tyson also decided it would be a good idea for Olivia to run to the drugstore and fetch a home pregnancy test so he could make sure she wasn’t pregnant and keeping it from him as well. As if pregnancy was a contagious disease. That set Sydney off, and after having made a comment about Tyson hitti
ng his head on the surfboard one too many times while wiping out, Talon suddenly grew a set of balls and told her to back off his twin, that she was always riding his ass about something, and that Ty’s brain wasn’t swollen, he just had a really big head—not his fault.

  It was a complete and utter mess—a battle of the sexes. A couples’ therapist would have had a field day.

  When Drew arrived, things didn’t get any better. Not only were the girls—sans Kerrigan—fawning all over him just to make their boyfriends jealous, but he brought news of what they had feared even though they had been preparing for it all along. Drew had found everyone in the backyard, just as they would have been on any other day, except this time they were behaving like there was an invisible line that separated the men from the women.

  “I’ve just spent the day with Sinclair, and she’s given me the order,” he told Kerrigan.

  “And what order was that?” Dominic reluctantly joined the two Guardians in his flickering state of manifestation. He was not about to be left out of something this important.

  Drew was noticeably concerned over his appearance. “Tomorrow night is the full moon. She wants me to bring Colton to the graveyard at midnight.”

  “So soon?” Kerrigan asked. “But, I’m not ready.”

  “You’re not going anyway, so it doesn’t matter.” It was the first Dominic had talked to her since their argument the night before, and he hadn’t even bothered to look at her while doing it. Instead, he focused his attention on Drew, basically dismissing the fact that she was standing there even though technically, he was the one who wasn’t. She may as well have traded places with him and become the ghost herself.

  “So, did you hope to fuck my girl while you had her in your sanctuary?”

  Kerrigan had been about to refute Dominic’s absurd demand that she wasn’t going when she was caught off guard by his question. She and Drew snapped their heads toward him. “What?” they both asked at the same time.

  The rest of the party in attendance stopped what they were doing and looked up.