“Cease fire!” Mark yelled. “What are you shooting at?”
“I saw someone in there!” the private yelled back, never taking his eye from the rear sight of his M4 Carbine.
Mark shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Fire in the hole!”
Mark pulled the cord and sent the charge winging down the passageway. It hit the side wall as it entered, not going anywhere near as far as he wanted. The three warriors ran for it, diving after counting to five and covering their heads. The concussive blast from the charge was mostly expended outward into the Rotunda, but enough of it blasted the walls of the secondary tunnel to shake loose a great pillar of rock that fell into the entrance, blocking the tunnel. Mark stood up and dusted himself off.
“Well?” he demanded of the other two still face down on the cave floor. “What are you waiting for?”
The two privates popped up and returned to the line of warriors heading toward Broadway.
“Two by two, ladies!” Mark called out, ordering the warriors to operate in pairs.
Merrit hung back to help out if any Forsaken showed up near the rear of the formation.
“Forward,” Char said softly, pointing toward Broadway, the tunnel that continued into the bowels of the earth.
In the silence of the cave, everyone heard the order.
Terry’s Prison
“What’s your friend’s name?” Terry asked. Yanmei looked into the corner where her servant sat hugging her knees to her chest.
“Her name is Fu,” Yanmei finally answered.
“The sooner we leave, the better off we’ll be,” Terry suggested, trying to not sound desperate. He wasn’t sure he was successful.
The Weretiger smacked her lips and folded her arms across her chest. She leaned against the wall, her head tipped backward. Terry read her body language as being defensive.
He’d been too aggressive.
“Where’d you grow up, Yanmei?” Terry asked. She relaxed, but didn’t uncross her arms.
She was still on the defensive, protecting herself.
When she answered, it wasn’t what Terry expected.
“Does it matter?” she started, keeping her arms crossed but looking down as she shifted her feet. “Does anything matter after the fall? Here I am, doing this! I should be in a city on the edge of a jungle, living two lives, both fruitful, rather than wasting away inside this cave! But we lost our freedom of choice when the world ended, didn’t we?”
She looked to be talking to the floor. Terry was no longer in the conversation. He worked his shoulders, hoping that when the time came, he would be able to wrap his arms around his wife and children. He kept his mouth closed.
“Of course we did. Those with the power over life and death were the only ones capable of making decisions. The rest of us just went along. What else was there to do?” she cried.
She uncrossed her arms, held her face in her hands briefly, and then ran her fingers through her straight black hair. When she looked up, she locked Terry Henry in her gaze.
“Those with the so-called power need people like you to do their bidding. Then you run across people like me. The only thing that I demand is that people be themselves,” Terry said softly, leaning forward against his chains. He believed in what he was saying because he lived it. “Maybe I insist that they be the best version of themselves.”
He thought of Betty and Lester and their three cows, what a pain in the ass they’d been.
Terry opened his eyes. As thoughts did, his memories of Betty and Lester had flashed through his mind over the course of an instant. Yanmei hadn’t moved since he last looked.
When she did move, she dropped her hands to her side, smiled at Terry Henry, and nodded.
Mammoth Cave
Kirkus intended to ambush the drawn out line of intruders. He’d gotten one but was driven deeper into the tunnels when the grenade exploded. Before that, he thought he heard the human in charge yelling something about silver-tipped ammunition.
That could be a problem.
He was in the tunnel off the Rotunda when they decided to blow it. Kirkus was ready to take out those three idiots before anyone realized that he’d been there, but they were aiming their rifles, and then one fired, narrowly missing his head. Kirkus was not yet ready to experience the pain of having silver punched through his body.
He would count on the next series of trips and traps to whittle the numbers down.
Kirkus had also been dismayed by the presence of a Forsaken with the party. He couldn’t imagine what would drive a Forsaken to join Terry Henry and his group. He couldn’t imagine Terry Henry allowing the Forsaken to feed on human blood as his kind was destined to do.
Forsaken were higher on the food chain, as Kirkus saw it.
He ran when they threw the satchel charge, but it got caught at the entrance to the tunnel. After the explosion and the group had moved down Broadway, Kirkus found that he could get through the rubble and into the Rotunda.
He worked his way out of the tunnel and waited until the last of the Force members disappeared into the next cave before approaching the Forsaken lying on the floor.
Kirkus strode boldly up to him.
“A daywalker,” he sneered, standing with his hands on his hips, looming over the injured Forsaken.
“My name is Joseph,” he said as he forced his eyes open and looked up. He slowly moved his hand to his head so he could remove his hat. Joseph was surprised that he wasn’t afraid. The Forsaken before him was more powerful, radiating an aura that others would sit up and take notice of.
“Why?”
“Name?” Joseph responded as tersely.
“Kirkus,” he said as if it sullied his name to give it to one such as Joseph.
“Well, Kirkus, it’s like this. Terry Henry Walton saved my life. The Werewolf pack was going to tear me apart, and he wouldn’t let them. Over the years, he trained me how to fight, but alas, I find myself at a disadvantage after that razor storm you set up. My compliments to your ingenuity on that, by the way,” Joseph said with a slight nod.
A smile twitched at the corner of Kirkus’s mouth, but he quickly tamped it down.
“When they are all dead, I will give you the option of joining me. Until then, Joseph,” Kirkus said, walking away until he disappeared over the rubble and into the side tunnel as he raced to get in front of the intruders.
Joseph watched him go. His whole body hurt, but he needed to get back into the fight. Clovis brayed in the distance, echoing up and down the tunnels. He smiled.
“Humans and their dogs.”
North Chicago
Kae opened his eyes. He was on his knees at the bottom of the steps to the mayor’s building. Shonna and the Forsaken were rolling on the ground in a life and death struggle.
Timmons and Sue were both wailing mercilessly on another Forsaken not far from where Kae was coming back to himself. Kimber was dancing around the outside, chancing a kick when an opening presented itself.
The Forsaken was no longer able to protect itself. Kae was amazed that it was still standing.
“Shonna!” he managed to yell. Kim heard her brother and turned, seeing that he was alert, even though he remained on his knees. She slapped Sue on the back and they both ran to the other fight, grabbing the Forsaken and dragging it off Shonna.
She was bleeding from a number of cuts and bites, but they only made her angry. Shonna rolled to all fours and jumped to her feet.
Kim and Sue had the Forsaken’s arms behind him and were pressing his face into the ground. Shonna vaulted into the air and dropped a pile driver kick into his head. The Forsaken’s skull shattered, and its brains splattered in all directions.
Sue jumped back, but it was too late.
“What the hell?” she exclaimed, wiping her hands on the Forsaken’s dirty clothes. The disgust on Kimber’s face told them how she felt about Shonna’s final solution.
“Sorry,” Shonna mumbled, not looking sorry at all.
Ted how
led from near the second pod, and his wolf pack replied. They were tracking the intruders.
The warriors had returned to their senses. They were running to reclaim dropped weapons and establish a blocking force in front of the mayor’s building.
Kae stood when his head cleared. He didn’t have to wonder what had happened. The Forsaken, when it was face-to-face with him, had taken over his mind. Kae remembered the internal struggle. The Vampire had not been completely successful.
Kimber grabbed her brother by the shoulders, finishing wiping her hands clean on his shirt. He’d find out later about that, but at present, they were both safe and healthy.
“The kids,” he realized.
“Inside!” she exclaimed, bolting away. He struggled to get one foot in front of the other, stumbling as he climbed the steps.
As soon as they entered, they heard the yelling from upstairs, the rough voices. The intruders had gotten inside the mayor’s building.
And Billy lay dead in the hallway.
Kaeden caught up to Kim, where they stopped for a moment before both running for the stairway.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Mammoth Cave
It took the group a long time to transit Broadway, but the area was so large, a booby trap would have been minimally effective. From Broadway, a number of side tunnels branched off. One still had a sign for the restroom.
“FUCK!” Char howled, growing more frustrated by the options and the snail’s pace at which they moved.
She sniffed the air, then closed her eyes and reached into the etheric. She could feel that Terry was somewhere in front of them, in or near the main tunnel. She could sense both Forsaken and humans in the side tunnels, but not many of the living beings.
She could also sense a Weretiger near Terry. She assumed the Were was acting as a guard. “You’ll get your chance to fight a Weretiger, Gene,” Char snarled, complete with lip curl.
Aaron shifted uncomfortably, padding back and forth in his Weretiger form. He’d already sensed one of his kind. He had been accepted into the pack, thanks to the kindness of Chief Foxtail, but he had always been alone. The FDG had traveled to China often since Aaron had joined the community, but he deplored how Akio, Terry, and Char instantly assumed Weretigers were the enemy.
He conceded that Weretigers were an aggressive bunch and after Gene was almost killed, they took no chances. It was time for Aaron to put it on the line.
Aaron threw his head around, nodding down the tunnel, padding ahead, then coming back. He stood and put his paws on Cory’s shoulders. She grunted under his weight, even though he was a lean cat. Cory could feel his sadness. She put a hand on his arm.
“I think we should let Aaron talk with the other Weretiger first, Mother,” Cory said supportively.
“When we get close, I’ll consider it,” Char replied as she looked back and forth. “Mark. Grenades.”
She didn’t need to say anything else. The warriors closest to the side tunnels cleared the area in front, yelled, “Fire in the hole,” and blasted the tunnels.
Most of the tunnels weren’t blocked, but with the explosions, Char hoped that anyone trying to get in behind them would be dissuaded. She didn’t want to fight within the side tunnels or the main tunnel. She simply wanted to get TH and leave.
They’d already suffered enough.
They’d passed through Broadway and tensions were still high. Merrit fell back, even with the last warrior, as he used his senses to help him see an ambusher should one try to sneak up on them.
Adams crept into Gothic Avenue, a long tunnel with a number of washouts and offshoot tunnels that fell away into the darkness far below. He shined his flashlight, looking for hiding demons, even though his senses told him there was no one there.
He moved forward in hops, leaping from one place to another as he remained wary.
The first rumble passed in only an instant. Everyone froze. Adams felt it in his feet. He was closest to the sound and the vibration. When he realized what it was, it was too late.
Adams relaxed as the cave floor, a natural bridge, separated and started to fall.
Gene was on the split, throwing himself flat as the world before him fell. His bigger haunches kept him from going face first over the edge.
“NO!” Char yelled, running toward the trap.
Adams didn’t scream as he disappeared into the darkness. He said only one word. “Xandrie.”
Char took a knee and hung her head. Above her on the wall of the cave was a sign that read, “Bottomless Pit.” She closed her eyes and reached out with her senses, following the living Werewolf downward, longer than should have been possible. When he finally hit bottom, his life force was extinguished.
Cory held her mother, pulled her upright. “We need to keep going. Father is up there somewhere.” Cordelia’s eyes glowed blue in the dim light.
When Char looked up, her own glowed a vivid purple. Rage seethed within, and Char was about to turn it loose.
***
Yanmei was torn. So many small explosions and they were getting closer. She closed her eyes and could feel them coming.
“A Weretiger?” she asked.
Terry shook his head. If Aaron was with them, that meant Cordelia was there, too. He wasn’t good with that. He needed out of his restraints so he could get his daughter away from Kirkus’s house of horrors.
“Yes. His name is Aaron. He was a teacher in China when he was modified. He came back to the United States before the fall, but he was always an outcast. We brought him into the pack and consider him one of our family, but he’s still alone. He loves teaching, so he’s taught all of our children in addition to most of the kids in North Chicago!” Terry tried to end on a high note.
“I miss my own kind, too,” Yanmei whispered. “The Sacred Clan. I miss them. They were scattered to the winds in the final days.”
“Let’s go meet him. Unchain me, please, Yanmei. We need to get out of here!” Terry knew that he couldn’t share that his daughter was with her mother but expected that Kirkus already knew. He wondered where the Forsaken was. As they got close, Terry figured that Kirkus would show up.
Terry didn’t want to be in chains when that happened.
The Weretiger nodded slightly, looked at her servant, and then walked up to Terry, grabbing a shackle in both hands.
North Chicago
Kim and Kae took the steps three at a time as they headed to the second floor. There were more floors above, but they weren’t being used. The mayor had her home on the second floor, and that was where the yelling was coming from.
Kim and Kae ran down the hallway, but Kae held out an arm to stop his sister before bursting into the middle of a bad situation. They put their ears to the closed door and listened, even though their own hard breathing and pounding hearts worked against them.
The men were yelling at Felicity and Marcie, ordering them to put something down. The kids were terrified and screaming.
From what Kae could tell, the men had their backs to the door. Kae motioned to his sister, then did a finger countdown from three to one. After flashing the last digit, he turned the knob, and they both slammed into the locked door.
“Crap!” Kae yelled, then pushed his sister to the side as he dove the other way.
Gunfire echoed from the room as bullets ripped through the door and chipped the wall on the other side of the hallway. Kaeden and Kimber stood with their backs to the thick wall on either side of the door. Kim glared at her brother.
Neither of them had a weapon, but even if they had, they would never fire into the room where Kae’s family was.
“You’re surrounded!” Kim called toward the door.
“Maybe,” a man’s voice said from the other side of the door. “But we have some people in here who say that you’re going to let us go.”
“I’m pretty sure they didn’t say that,” Kim replied. “Your buddies are all dead. It’s just you two dickweeds.”
Kae looked angrily at his sis
ter, then held his hands out, mouthing the words, “What the fuck?”
She waved him away.
“You have two choices. Let them go so we can talk about your future in North Chicago, or we’ll just have to kill you,” Kim said coldly.
“I don’t think you’re going to do that. If we’re going to die, then we’ll just make sure these pretty ladies die, too. Hey, Bob, do you think those kids will bounce if we toss them out the window?” the one voice called from behind the door.
“Maybe we’ll try one at a time, to check things out,” a second voice answered. Neither was laughing. Kae hoped that everyone was bluffing and that things would calm down.
But just in case…
Kae ran past the door. Another shot and more splintering as the bullet ripped through, but Kaeden was already long past.
He ran down the hallway, down the steps, and out the front door. Kae almost ran Timmons down.
“They have my kids,” he panted, unable to explain further.
Timmons grabbed the young man’s shoulder. “Then we have some work left to do,” he said calmly, his face set. Sue’s lip curled of its own volition.
Wolves howled nearby, followed by a rifle shot and a man’s scream. Ted looked into the distance.
Shonna was standing nearby, looming over a dead and rapidly shriveling Forsaken. She left it and joined Kaeden and the two Werewolves.
“The door is locked upstairs. They threatened to throw my kids out the window!” Kae said in a panic.
“I’ll be there to catch them if they do,” Shonna vowed and jogged away to take a position below the window, but there were many to choose from. She stopped and held up her hands. “Which one?”
Kae pointed. Shonna dashed to it.
“I think I’ve had enough of these assholes,” Sue stated.
“I’m with you, my love. Let’s go unfuck this.” Timmons fiercely kissed Sue, and they ran for the door. Once inside, they stripped and changed into Werewolves. Kae ran past them, but they beat him up the steps.
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