“This Vincent that you speak of, he is the sorcerer, correct? The one who has gone dark.”
“Yes, he is.”
“He has been coming to my world and stealing my warriors, turning them against me in an effort to take over my world much in the way he has done yours.”
“He hasn’t won yet.”
The Brute nodded towards him. “Just as he has not in my world as well. The captain of my force has been trying to overthrow me for years, and Vincent is promising him the throne if he helps him to take over the other fifteen dimensions. But as long as I stand he will not succeed.”
“You are from a different dimension? Another world?” Dakota asked, slightly fascinated. “Legends said that the Brutes were once humans.”
Argento scoffed, and the Brute next to him laughed.
“We are no puny humans underneath this.” He pounded his fist to his chest again.
“We are no puny humans,” Dakota growled through his teeth. “If Vincent has not been creating the Brutes from our people somehow, then where have our villagers gone? He had children caged, but no adults were anywhere to be found, and we have lost thousands to him.”
“We have your people and we have brought them as a sign of goodwill.”
“You have the other villagers? How?” Tony asked, coming to stand next to Dakota.
“Who are you?” Argento addressed him, aggression lacing his voice.
“I am Tony, and I have been the one who has gone through each and every village your Brutes have torn apart.” The anger was rolling off him in waves, and Dakota put his hand on his shoulder to calm him. “I am also the one who found those caged children.”
“You said you have our people. How?” Dakota interrupted.
“Vincent,” Argento started, looking back at Dakota, “has been sending them through a portal and into my world as a way to trade with my captain for more of my force. My captain has been using them to make weapons in an effort to kill me.”
“Platinum-coated.”
“Yes,” he growled. “My people can’t handle the platinum, and until Vincent started trading the humans, it did not even exist in my world.”
“So what do you want from us?”
“We wish to work with you to bring down this Vincent. Those you see behind me are the only who I can trust to remain loyal to me. The rest of my warriors can’t be trusted.”
“How do we know we can trust you? Or any of your warriors?” he asked, gesturing to the Brutes behind Argento.
“I could tear you all apart before you could even blink,” Argento said, folding his arms over his chest. “But I will not. You and your people are not those we are at war with. I am showing you goodwill by coming here, knowing that your blades are coated in platinum and could strike me down. I have also brought your missing people here as an additional show of our mutual enemy. You and your people will come to no harm by my hand or the hand of those I trust. We are not a violent race, Dakota. Vincent has made us this way. Until he showed up in my world, we had no war with anyone.”
“How did you know my name?”
“Word travels fast, Fighter. Rumors have spread about you, Dakota, the warrior from another world.”
Dakota nodded and looked to Tony. He could see how unsure his friend was, but knew they had no choice.
Dakota took a step forward and reached his hand out. Argento took it, and they shook. “Give us our people and we will work together to bring this bastard down.”
Argento smiled. “I like you, Dakota, even if you are a puny human.” The humor in his deep voice caught Dakota off guard. “Bring them.”
Dakota’s eyes widened as he saw the villagers being led towards them from the woods. He had expected to see dirty, tired, starving and beaten people, and instead, although he did see worry and sadness in some eyes, what he saw was clean, alert, and well-rested villagers.
“We fed them and allowed them to rest before we made the journey. Some were very near death when we found them.”
“Thank you, Argento.” Tony stepped forward.
Argento nodded to him. “If it were my people, I would have been angry as well. My captain will pay for what he has done. I am afraid to report that some of your people had perished before we could get there, but we brought the bodies of those who had passed with us so you may give them a proper burial. It is very important in our culture to do so, and so we wished to offer you the same respect.”
“Thank you,” Dakota said to him as Tony went to talk to the other villagers.
“We will make camp out here until you trust us. I imagine your people would not take too kindly to those they perceive as their enemy sleeping inside the walls.”
“Do not set up camp out here just yet. I will speak to my people. I would prefer to keep you all hidden from view of any of Vincent’s scouts that may be lurking outside the walls.”
Argento nodded in agreement and then showed his teeth in a frightening smile. “Yes, I would very much like to be a surprise to them as well.”
“You are going to let them in here? To stay? Near our people?” Brady asked angrily. “Are you serious?”
“They are not our enemy, Brady,” Tony told him.
“You have got to be kidding me! They have slaughtered and kidnapped our people and you are just going to let them live in here with us!” Brady slammed his fists down on the wooden table.
“They aren’t the ones who have done it. Vincent and the rogue Brutes have,” Dakota told him.
“So he says!” Brady gestured to the wall where Argento and his men waited.
“So all of the other villagers say as well, Brady,” Tony added, a silent warning in his voice. “They all corroborated his story once they were back inside the walls. Three hundred people are back here, nearly too many to even house, and they are sleeping a dozen to each cottage and some are even setting up camp outside. The parents of those children we found are back home because of Argento.”
“So now we are calling them by name,” Brady mocked. “Anastasia would have never allowed this.”
Tony was in his face so quickly Dakota didn’t even have time to block him.
“Anastasia would have done whatever was necessary to ensure the safety of our people. She would have welcomed Argento and his warriors with open arms if it meant defeating Vincent. Do not ever try and pretend that you know her better than me. Or better than Dakota for that matter. Don’t you want your mother to be safe? Your sister? Because the only way that is going to happen is if we ally with the Brutes to end this war.”
Brady shot Dakota an angry stare and stomped out of the cabin.
“He will come around,” Tony said, shaking his head. “He lost his father and his love to the Brutes.”
“It’s definitely going to be a tough sell, but I believe it is for the best.”
“I do as well.”
After meeting with the villagers, Dakota led the Brutes inside. They made up their camp near the training cottage and Dakota assured the villagers that they would have Fighters watching them constantly. Dakota watched as some of the villagers who had been prisoners walked towards their camp and spoke to them as if they had been friends for years. That showed him more than any words could have that Argento and his followers could be trusted.
Dakota smiled to himself. They had just been handed what they needed to get Ana back and win this war. Vincent wasn’t going to know what hit him.
“Hey, honey, how was your day?” Dakota asked as he and Annabelle came through the door.
“It was good.” Anastasia was positively beaming. The nightmare was beginning to fade in some spots, and memories of her life with Dakota and their child were coming through again. She was excited to get back to her writing and move forward with her life.
“That’s wonderful to hear!” He kissed her loudly on the mouth and she knelt to give Annabelle a hug.
“I love you, Mommy! I missed you while I was at school.”
“I missed you too, baby! Guess w
hat?” she asked her, grinning.
“What?” Annabelle’s eyes widened.
“I made cookies.” Elizabeth had taught her on one of the days she had sneaked over to Dakota’s house.
“Yeah!” Annabelle giggled when Anastasia tickled her.
“Go get cleaned up for dinner and set your homework out,” Dakota told Annabelle. As she turned to leave, Anastasia sneaked her a cookie.
Dakota pulled Anastasia in for a hug. “I missed you, my love.”
“I didn’t cook dinner.” Guilt set in that she hadn’t made food for them. She had just gotten so wrapped up in getting the house cleaned and making the cookies that she hadn’t remembered.
“No worries, Ana. You’re not that great of a cook anyways.” He winked and set his backpack down. “I’m going to go get out of my scrubs and then we will head out.”
“Where are we going?”
“Dinner. We are meeting Max and his new girlfriend at that Italian place up the street today.”
“Max?” she asked cautiously. She couldn’t begin to explain the sense of dread that came over her at the mention of that name.
“We’ve only been friends with him since high school, Ana. Just because you based a character on him—a bad one, I might add—doesn’t make him a bad person.” The sternness in his voice caught her off guard. She couldn’t recall ever hearing his voice take that tone.
“Oh, okay,” she responded, and then turned to finish folding the laundry she had washed.
“Be ready to leave in thirty.” He kissed her lightly and then turned and headed for the stairs.
Anastasia finished folding the laundry and started up the stairs with her basket. As she came to the top of the stairs she dropped the basked and bit back a scream. A bleeding Gregory stood facing her, his eyes wide and filled with tears. He was reaching for her, and when she took a step back he opened his mouth to cry out but no sound followed.
She took a step closer to the mirror, and when she touched the cool glass she could have sworn she felt his touch on the other side. Anastasia closed her eyes and shook her head. “It’s not real,” she whispered to herself. “It’s only in the story.” When she slowly opened her eyes again, it was only her reflection staring back at her.
“Did you do any writing today?” Dakota asked her as they drove through Seattle.
“No, I just spent my time picking up and relaxing.”
“Good, I’m glad you didn’t write any today.”
“Why?”
“It’s just been getting to you so much lately. Honey, you woke up this morning and didn’t remember our daughter,” he whispered quietly so only she could hear. “Maybe it’s time you stop.”
“Stop? It’s all I’ve ever wanted to be. Why would I stop now that I finally have it?”
“I’m just worried about you, is all.” He reached over and grabbed her hand. “Just think about it, okay?”
She nodded and looked out the window. She couldn’t give up her writing. Her entire life all she had ever wanted to do was write stories that would make people happy. Stories that had the power to pull the reader out of whatever was going on in their lives at that moment and submerge them into adventures that they would never be able to take on their own.
Nightmare or not, part of her believed that she had spent most of her life fighting beasts and not writing, so why would she let go of what she had now? Still, his words rang with truth. Maybe she should change up her story. Erase what she had and start over again.
“Where have my parents been?” she asked him, curious as to why she didn’t remember when the last time was she had seen them.
“They are in Africa on a safari this month, remember?”
“Oh yeah,” she lied. “Must have slipped my mind.”
They pulled into the parking lot of a small Italian restaurant, and when she saw who was standing waiting for them in the parking lot, her heart began to thud.
“Dakota, we have to go.” She started to panic. Maximus and Ophelia stood hand in hand in front of their headlights waving and smiling as if they were all best friends, as if they hadn’t killed her father or been responsible for the death of hundreds of innocent villagers.
Her hand reached down where her sword would normally sit, and she suddenly felt very empty without it. She reached down in her subconscious and tried to summon her magic, but nothing was coming.
“Ana!” Dakota yelled, pulling her out of her trance.
“What?” she asked, hoping he didn’t notice how badly she was panicking inside.
“Do we need to leave?” he asked worriedly. “You look freaked out.”
“Just the remnants of my nightmare. Honestly, Dakota, I’m fine.” She smiled at him and turned to look at Annabelle. “Hungry, honey?”
“Yes.” Annabelle smiled and Anastasia’s fear began to fade, but in the back of her mind she felt as if a voice was screaming for her attention.
Sitting at dinner, she did her best to focus on the conversation. Max and Ophelia were nothing but friendly to her and her family, but she continued having visions popping into her head. She saw herself sparring with Maximus, his cold eyes staring right through her when she would knock him to the ground.
“How is the book coming along?” Max asked her, pulling her from her thoughts.
“It’s moving forward.” She smiled lightly, trying to avoid looking at him for long.
“You’re writing a book? How exciting!” Ophelia exclaimed, clapping her hands together.
“She sure is. Made me a bad guy because I’m so devious.”
Maximus laughed and Ophelia slapped him lightly on the arm. “Devious, yeah, okay. If being devious means using all the hot water so I only have cold left, then yes, you are as devious as they come.”
They continued laughing, and Anastasia did her best to push her thoughts out of her mind, but they continued surfacing. She saw Maximus standing over an unconscious boy—Brady, she remembered—and she felt the anger in her chest as if it were happening right in front of her eyes. She looked to Dakota for some kind of reassurance that she wasn’t going insane, but he looked as happy as she had ever seen him, and Annabelle wasn’t the least bit uncomfortable around them.
She looked up at Ophelia and saw her cleaning her dirty fingernails with a blood-covered knife as Gregory lay bleeding on the ground. It all played out in her head. They fought until Anastasia threw a ball of light into Ophelia’s chest and she saw the life fade from her eyes.
Anastasia stood up so quickly that her chair fell back.
“Ana?” Dakota asked, and Anastasia flushed when she saw everyone’s eyes on her.
“I-I’m not feeling well. I’m sorry.” She turned to leave, and Annabelle gripped her hand.
“I’ll come with you, Momma.”
“I think we are going to have to head out, she’s been having some trouble today with getting out of writing mode.” Dakota laughed lightly and shook hands with Maximus. “See you later, man. It was nice to meet you, Ophelia.”
“Nice to meet you as well. Hope you feel better, Ana.”
“Anastasia, and thank you,” Anastasia corrected her and then scolded herself. What was wrong with her?
“How are you?” Dakota asked after they had arrived at home.
“I don’t know. I can’t seem to get out of my head. I keep having these visions play out and it’s just not possible.”
“I think you should talk to a coworker of mine.” At her questioning look, he continued, “He’s a therapist, a very good one, and he might be able to help you start separating. I want you to be able to do what you want with your life, Ana, but I don’t like how it’s affecting our family and your happiness.”
Anastasia thought about it for a moment and then nodded in agreement. She had to do something to stop this assault on her emotions. She couldn’t separate reality from fiction, and she worried that it would cause pain to those she loved the most.
“I’ll set you up an appointment for tomorrow.” Da
kota smiled and rubbed his hands down her arms. “Everything is going to be okay, you’ll see.”
“We need to find a way to mark you and your warriors so that our Fighters don’t accidentally get one of you with the platinum blades,” Dakota spoke to Argento as they looked over a map of the most recent Brute camps.
“Agreed.” He nodded and rubbed his hand over his face. “So this Anastasia, you say she is with Vincent now?”
“Yes.” Dakota’s jaw tightened. “She gave herself up for me.”
“She is his niece?”
“Yes,” Dakota said again, knowing where this conversation was going. “He kidnapped her as a baby and sent her to live with an abusive man and his wife. She was beaten most of her life and hates Vincent.”
“So you believe she can be trusted? You say this Phoenix, as some of the people call her, is the only one who can take him down?” The grin was in his voice although it wasn’t on his face, and it put Dakota on edge.
“Yes she is. It was prophesized when she was a baby.”
“By an old woman. Are you sure it still stands true today?”
“I wasn’t that old when she was born,” Carmen said from behind them, and both man and beast turned to face her.
“I did not mean any disrespect.” Argento bowed his head towards her and she smiled.
“Oh, easy, Brute, my feelings are not easily hurt.” Dakota could have sworn he saw a smile flash over Argento’s harsh face.
Carmen waved her hand as if to erase what he had said from her memory. “I have visions of the future from time to time; it is part of my power. I saw her defeat him in a way that no one else will be able to.”
“How?” Dakota wondered.
“With her magic, it is fuzzy to me, so I can’t see the location. I only know that her magic is the only thing that will take him down.” Carmen turned to Dakota. “I’ve got something.” He forgot everything that he and the Brute king had been talking about and he turned all of his attention to Carmen.
“You found her?”
The Fighter (Prophecy Series Book 2) Page 3
