“Are you scared?”
“Of you? You’re my big bad Created that would destroy the world to keep me safe, and would do everything in your power to keep me from breaking a nail. No, Ash, I’m not scared, I simply know why your world was sorry to see you go.”
His laughter came out big and booming despite the fact she thought they were supposed to be in stealth mode.
“Quiet.” She brought a finger up to her mouth while whispering furiously.
“No worries, Brook. We are surrounded and compromised, there’s no reason for silence.
He took her hand and they walked further into town. They made it to the middle of the street before Josiah came out. His thick form was the worse for wear. Someone had pushed him around leaving bruises on his body. His clothes were coated with sweat and blood. Those storm grey eyes promised retribution as they swirled with the intensity of the sea.
Brook shook. The Patron wasn’t playing and he didn’t care who he threatened.
“Ash, they want your mate. If you turn her over they are willing to spare everyone else and the Patron will forget the money, they just want her.” He shoved his thumb out in her direction.
“And if I don’t?”
“Nothing goes down easy and everyone is fair game.”
Ash nodded his understanding and met Josiah’s eye’s. Brook watched as they communicated unable to understand what was being said.
“I won’t give her up.”
“I never thought you would. Good luck.”
Josiah threw a quick smile at Brook before he turned smartly on one heel and walked away.
He walked away whistling the tune for the battle at the OK Corral. Brook found she liked Josiah more each time she met him.
“Where do we go now?” she asked when Josiah disappeared into a building.
“We walk away. Maybe scout out a place to take a stand before we are converged upon.”
Ash took her hand, but Brook could already hear the rumbles of people moving in. Closing ranks. Her stomach dropped as she wondered if she was going to make it through this. She looked over at Ash. In the end it mattered but it didn’t, she wouldn’t give up the time she had with him.
He picked up his pace running to the end of the street where there was a half wall they might be able to use for protection.
“I don’t want us trapped in a building, I also don’t want us standing out in the open. This is our best option for now,” he explained as the dived behind the flimsy barrier.
Two men dropped behind them. Ash turned and ran to the fight. They circled him. He used his laser as a sword swinging out. One jumped back, the other lifted a gun behind him. Brook whipped out her weapon without thinking.
Her thumb pressed on the trigger, a white light pouring out of it. She shoved it into the back of the man causing him to fall silently to the ground as Ash took care of the one in front of him.
An angry cry came from in front of their barrier. They were surrounded; there were at least one hundred men out there, all coming for them. Her eyes widened and she hastily said goodbye to Ash.
“I love you, Ash. Always remember that.”
“Tell me tonight, Love. Get behind me.”
They stormed towards them before a scream was heard.
“What’s happening?”
“Reinforcements.”
She could hear the smile in his voice and she knew Dante and his brothers were out there fighting for them.
Twenty men surrounded them.
“You should have taken the deal.”
Brook backed up until her back was close enough to feel the heat rolling off Ash. They weren’t going to make it. She took a deep breath as she accepted her fate. They attacked moving in. No one touched her; they concentrated on Ash. More men joined them seeming to come from nowhere. He lifted his weapons one in each hand cutting through the men in front of him. A shot was fired going through the men and hitting Ash square in the chest. He went down with a grunt of surprise.
There was a cheer as he hit the ground. Brook screamed running to his side. One of the men gave her an evil smile as he yanked her up and stabbed her in the stomach. She went down with a scream of pain.
Ash roared as his body changed and he stood on powerful legs. His beast went berserk taking on each man. His claws caught and impaled them throwing them into each other. When he was done, no one breathed.
He dropped to his knees by Brook’s side in his beast form reaching for her. His beast receded as he pulled her to him.
“Brook.” Tears fell on her.
“Don’t cry,” she whispered as blood pooled at her lips.
“Don’t talk.”
“I’m not sorry. I just wish I didn’t have to leave you.”
Her breath wheezed in her chest while her eyes closed. She opened them her vision fading. It was a dream after all. The aches and pains she lived a lifetime with were coming back. It had been such a lovely dream.
“Brook.” Dante’s voice tickled her mind.
“I’m dying,” she told him.
“I know, but you don’t have to. I can send you back. Back to your parents, your people, you may be able to escape death there.”
“What does that mean? Will I forget this time with Ash?”
“It will be like you never met him.”
“No.”
“Brook, you could live.”
“I. Don’t. Care. I may as well die, if I won’t have Ash.
“I understand.” Dante took his hand and stopped her heart.
*~*~*~*
“Move it! Move it!” Jazlyn’s voice whipped out.
“You have no authority here.”
“I have twelve days left which means my job is not over until that time is up. I run this department and always have. Get Brook into the regenerator now!”
She had no idea what came over her, all she knew for sure was that her friend wasn’t dying, not on her watch.
Her frequency had gone off. Dante the male that offered her the candy said that Brook was dying. She needed Jaz to help her. They were taking her to the A’rouk medical facility. There wasn’t even a thought; she jumped up, dressed, and called a transport using Brook’s name when they balked at picking up someone like her.
When she got there they were debating on whether to try and save Brook. Debating! She flailed them with her tongue. She worked to control herself as she programed the regenerator. Brook had a fortunate stroke of luck; her heart slowed to the point of almost not beating. It’s what saved her life. She slumped against the wall as she waited for the musical beep of the regenerator to let her know that it had done all that was possible.
The sound came, shaking her out of the dark thoughts going through her head. Jerking to stand straight, she began to enter the code that only she knew. Once the door popped slightly open, she swung it wide. Placing special gloves on her hands that came up to her shoulders—the regenerator would destroy healthy skin if it didn’t have a wound to repair—she reached in to pull Brook out. Now it was a waiting game.
She barked out an order to have Brook taken to the room she originally used when she was in the facility. It always amazed her that the room was actually called the Brook room.
Squaring her shoulders, she walked out into the waiting room. She wasn’t looking forward to seeing Ash’s face and telling him it was still touch and go. Shaking her head, she wondered what was going on with her. Maybe this is what happened when the two-week bell was sounded and everything was just about to fade to black. The Jazlyn she bottled up was determined to come out and live—too little, too late.
Look at them, they loved Brook. Ash was standing in front of a window but he was facing the door. Hunched over, every emotion crossed his face for display. There was sorrow and intense grief, then for a moment his face would brighten and his eyes glowed, hope. Not that it lasted long, his face tightened now and his fist clenched, determination.
Being faced with such emotions made her wonder what her life could
have been like if things had been different for her. Ash stood as she stepped out from behind the door.
“Brook?” he asked as he crossed the room to her.
“No way to tell. I did everything for her I could, now it’s up to her. As she would say, she has to decide to stay or leave.”
He nodded and ran his hands through his hair. That look was back, the one that tightened his face.
“She’ll stay; I know she will.”
Jaz nodded and looked around the room. The man she met earlier was there. Dante, she repeated his name and shivered. There was something about him that both calmed her and made her feel uneasy at the same time. His very demeanor cried out for a respect she didn’t understand. Those deserving respect in her life were usually evil.
Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she focused on Ash again. “You can go see her if you’d like to.”
He nodded his head and politely held the door open for her. Dante followed also as she led them through the corridors. Sadness swamped her as she realized she had spent her life walking these corridors and it was all about to come to an end.
She stopped in front of the room Brook was in and took a breath before pushing the door open. She looked like she was simply sleeping, if not for the all the equipment hooked up to her and the fact that her beautiful dark skin had no color to it.
“I’ll leave you alone.” She reached out and gave Ash a quick hug, her face flooding with red as she did it. “I know she will decide to stay also.”
She looked back quickly before she swiftly left the room.
*~*~*~*
“I just found her. I can’t lose her.” Ash sat on the side of her bed slipping his hand into hers. He kicked off his shoes and eased his body close to Brook.
“Hold on for a little while longer. This facility is the best in the world. If she can
be helped, the equipment they used will do it. Remember they brought her out of her Cryo sleep, it’s in their best interest to prove their Cyro’s can handle being regenerated and still live up to being tested physically. They want to show the world she is strong in order to be able to bring others out of Cyro sleep.”
Dante gave him a smile and turned the lights off as he left the room.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ash’s eyes burned red. The calm brown color that he strived to keep was nowhere to be seen. Dante’s hand that was casually clapped against his back didn’t calm him down. His beast was raging, demanding blood.
Brook was lying in the hospital bed as unconscious as when he first entered the room two days ago. She was losing the battle. At least that’s what the sinister voice in his head told him It wanted him to change and rip the heads off of the staff trying to help her. He never realized he had such a dark side.
“Let’s go.” Dante’s voice was low and held the authority of the first Created in it. There was no way Ash could ignore the command.
He turned with a look that promised death and followed Dante out of Brook’s room. “Where are we going?”
“To satisfy your beast.”
They quickly hit the main level on the Earth without encountering anyone. Ash growled in his head, no one was stupid enough at this point to want to engage with him. He had to go to the other side of the room to sit with his eyes closed for the doctors to enter to check on his mate. Seems he scared them. None of that would have mattered if it weren’t for Brook.
He got into the hover car, not caring where Dante was taking him. All he knew was that it was away from his mate. His heart stuttered. Logically he knew there was nothing he could do in that room. The fact that there seemed to be a wall around her mind preventing him from talking to her mentally or even sharing the nightmares she was fighting alone, killed him.
With a sigh, he sank down in the seat fighting the mist of tears that shimmered in the corner of his eyes. The thought of being alone tore him up. Apart from when Amber said she was going to leave him to go on some trip that would keep her away for years there was no greater pain. Though watching Brook fight for her life put all those other emotions to shame.
Dante brought the hover car to a stop. They were parked in front of a place he had never seen before. Ash was sure Dante had more little spots unknown to the world than he could imagine.
“Why are we here?”
“Get out,” Dante replied opening his door.
Ash followed him into a building that seemed small on the outside, nothing but a barn actually. Once inside it was bigger than a gallery. Every place his eyes landed there was a weapon.
“Dante?” His mouth opened as his eyes grew larger. He hadn’t seen anything like this since the war.
“Someone had to keep all this safe. Suit up.”
No need to tell him twice. He walked over and pulled out a few of his favorite weapons from when he was fighting in his other life. It reminded him of the days they went to war for the scientist. He never thought those memories would be fond and he was right but the familiarity of them was comforting.
“Who are we fighting?”
“The Patron. We located one of his strongholds. There is a fifty-fifty chance of him being in there. Doesn’t matter either way, this is meant to send a message. Stop hunting Brook, or else.”
“What if it doesn’t work?”
“Then we’ll send another message, until he gets it. I think the next question is what happens if he stops hunting Brook.”
“What do you think will happen?”
“He will start hunting us.” Darkness shone in Dante’s eyes that made Ash stop for a minute as a shiver took him.
“Don’t you mean that he will start hunting me?”
“No Ash, he’s about to learn that the second deadliest thing on the Earth is a mated Created.
“What’s the deadliest thing?”
Dante gave him a smile laced with the innocence of the ages. “Me.”
Ash shook his head holding his ground against a need to hide in the presence of the aura Dante gave off.
The door opened, allowing Mick and the rest of his brothers to enter. The aura around Dante died down.
“Everyone ready?” Mick asked as he walked into the room already fitted with weapons.
“Ready,” Ash replied, putting thoughts of Dante out of his head.
Mick came over and pulled up a schematic of the place they would be invading. It was surrounded by walls that were monitored with both new and old technology. There were guards who walked the perimeter. There were even wild dogs, the kind that had been mutated in the war.
“It’s like the Patron laid out a welcome wagon just for us.” Mick’s voice was deadly.
Ash had forgotten how much Dante and his brothers had to dial their natural aggressiveness down when they made Earth their home. It had been bad for him and his brothers, but nothing like what Dante and his clan went through.
“I think you haven’t had a good fight since the war.” Ash gave him a knowing smile.
“Don’t remind me and thank you for bringing so much fun into our lives.” Mick gave him a smile before turning back to the schematics pointing out both the weakness and the strength of the Patron’s fortress.
“Are we ready?” Everyone nodded.
Mick turned to look at Dante. “Let’s go Patron hunting.”
They turned and left the building piling up in hovers, Dante in the lead.
“How’s Brook?” Mick asked.
“She’s still out cold. I can’t reach her mind,” Ash told him, his eyes on the road ahead of him.
“She’ll make it.”
Ash nodded, there really wasn’t any other possibility in his world. His mate, his Brook, had to survive this if she wanted him to survive.
“Thank you, thank you both.” He threw a look at Dante including him. They nodded to him in silence.
They ended up close to the barrier, in a spot no one would think to look for a fortress much less surviving humans. The Patron picked a spot that mankind would never stumble over.
Their bodies changed shape becoming taller and thicker as they morphed into their beast form. No one looking at them would think they were human at this point. The weapons they still carried made them look like a person’s worse nightmare come to life. Ash smiled, seeing his family in their natural shape brought him comfort.
They climbed the hill, staying close to the ground. All movement stopped when a droid came over the hill. That was an upgrade, something they hadn’t planned for. It came close to Ash investigating him as he stayed still. It extended an arm trying to get a blood sample. With a sigh Ash’s hand snaked out catching the droid midair. He tore it in half.
The Created were on their feet as one storming the hill. The element of surprise had been lost. They roared over the side of the hill to encounter skilled bodyguards of several alien worlds.
Weapons raised, eyes blazing, they charged down the hill into the fight. A huge snake like creature came for Ash using its tail to fling him to the ground.
“Haven’t seen one of you since the war.”
“We’re around looking for you and your family.”
“Glad you found me, I wouldn’t want to disappoint.”
The snake came for him fangs dripping a poison that incapacitated the victim while he would swallow it whole and slowly allow his meal to burn alive in the acid in his stomach.
Ash laughed. “You don’t want me; I’d give you a stomach ache.”
He ran towards him. Springing up into the air, he pulled a deadly looking knife from his boot. Flipping in the air, he ran the knife across the snake’s neck causing him to spurt blood. The snake hissed trying to latch his fangs into him. Ash came down on his back, stuck the knife in, and held on tight as the snake began to convulse in its death.
Letting go of the knife, he roared as he used his claws along with the bulk of his body reminding everyone present of what he was. The guards turned and started running. A few of them held onto the weapons firing at him. He took the shots like he didn’t feel them. He tore through them, demanding to know where the Patron was. They died with screams on their lips but gave no information.
Ash: Love Me Harder - Alien Paranormal Romance Page 17
