Awakening: A Timeless Series Novel, Book Four

by Lisa Wiedmeier

  “Cheyenne?” Callon grasped my shoulders.

  “Nearby.”

  The entry door closed, and Nakari jumped to my side, a coat and shoes in hand.

  “I’ll get her to the SUV. You three leave now.” Nakari pointed towards the door.

  Callon hesitated.

  “Go!” she commanded. “I’ve got this!”

  I scrambled to get my boots on, not bothering to tie them, and Nakari helped me with the wool coat.

  “How much time do we have?” she asked, her jaw growing tight.

  “Maybe five, ten minutes. I don’t know.”

  “It’ll have to be enough.”

  She jumped us to the window overlooking the park, and then turned to face me.

  “He can’t control you now, Cheyenne,” she assured me. “We’re going to make him run in circles.”

  “He spoke to me again, Nakari,” I said.

  “It’s only because you focused on him, nothing more.”

  I nodded, but I wasn’t completely sure if that was the answer.

  “Stay here,” she said. “I’ve got to let them know our plans.”

  Nakari disappeared from sight, and I studied the landscape. This wasn’t any ordinary park; this was something that spanned a great part of the city, not unlike Central Park in New York City. Dark shadows illuminated by the city lights appeared on the horizon. We only had minutes now…

  Nakari appeared again and took hold of my hand.

  “We’ve got this,” she assured me again. “Just hold on. It’s going to be a wild ride.”

  Chapter 22

  Nakari and I landed on the sidewalk in the wintery air. I studied the trees where I’d seen shadows moving. Nakari jumped us into the park, heading straight for them. I glanced back, watching our silver SUV leave the street and drive off into the night. A bell chimed in the distance…four a.m. At least we’d have the advantage of night skies for another hour, but it could work to Marcus’s advantage too. I could only hope Nakari knew what she was doing.

  “You do realize I don’t have full use of my powers,” I said, feeling the wind whipping through my hair.

  “Don’t need it,” Nakari replied. “I just want to capture their attention for a little bit.”

  “Why?”

  We stopped beneath a lamppost, adjacent to a snow-covered path.

  “Diversion to get the boys away.”

  I narrowed my brows.

  “But what if Raina’s here?”

  She shook her head. “You took care of that, Cheyenne. She hasn’t forgotten about your mother. She wants her freedom just as much as you. She won’t help Marcus.”

  “But he controls her, Nakari, like he controlled me.”

  “You heard Colt. His powers are weakening, which is why he needs you, his power source. Without you, he can’t control everything he used to. Your marriage to him did more damage than you know.”

  So my mother was right, marrying him was the only way. She saw that it would reduce his powers enough to lose control over Raina and his other allies, like Darrien and Jahlem. We stood a chance…maybe.

  Nakari’s hold on my hand tightened. I heard paw pads running in the snow. Marcus was desperate; he dared to bring the Tresez out into the city where they could be seen. But Nakari also had a bit of desperation in her too; she was willing to jump us around in public.

  “Hold on,” she said, her gaze focused on the horizon. “We’re going in.”

  The cold wind whipped over us, causing a chill to run down my neck. Like clockwork, I felt the fire spread through me. My powers were restoring themselves.

  We landed beside a grouping of trees, waiting for the right moment. Nakari stepped out from behind them, pulling me with her as a pack of Tresez paused, eyeing her carefully.

  “Seriously?” She put her hand on her hip. “You came into the city with only five of you?”

  Conall shifted into his human form, a smirk rising.

  “Aww, you came out to play, did you, Nakari? And you brought Cheyenne as well.” He began stalking towards us. “And here I’d thought you’d just run away like a fearful fawn.”

  “Run away and miss this?” she laughed.

  Conall shifted into a Tresez mid-stride, leaping at us. I blinked, and we’d jumped further behind them. Conall’s enraged snarl echoed in anger. What was Nakari doing? We were heading deeper into the park, as she continued to jump us closer to Marcus.

  “He won’t use large amounts of his power, Cheyenne. He doesn’t have his battery charger.” Nakari said, knowing what I was thinking. “I want him angry. I want him to come after us. He’ll chase us down, all the way to Montana.”

  “What?! You said this was just a diversion!”

  “I changed my mind.”

  My heart began to race. I just wanted to get away, and this crazy redhead wanted him to chase us back to Montana? Where the heck had this come from?

  “Nak—”

  My words were cut short as we came to a sudden halt. Nakari stepped a few feet away from me, her boots on the edge of a ravine overlooking the west half of the park. Her auburn hair rippled in the breeze, the dwindling moonlight showing the determination in her face. She had a mission, and she wasn’t about to fail.

  A long howl came from behind us, and another to our right. Conall and his Tresez were gaining ground.

  “We’ve got them just where we want them,” she said.

  She took hold of my hand.

  “Blast them when I tell you to and not before.”

  I nodded, not knowing if I’d have enough power to do any damage.

  We jumped down into the west end of the park, the patter of paws right behind us. Nakari purposely jumped us back and forth like a pinball, waiting long enough for a Tresez to leap, but not make contact. Their chests were heaving as steam from their snouts circled around them. Some whined in frustration, while others began to pant. She was wearing them out.

  We jumped again, this time landing inside a large circle of bare trees. A familiar Tresez with white paws and a narrow white stripe extending from his eye to his snout emerged from a low lying brush and snarled. Conall was getting agitated with this game.

  “Enough!” he bellowed, shifting back.

  Nakari and I remained still, while shadows I hadn’t seen earlier moved in the landscape. Trackers were here, but they lacked their best, Darrien and Jahlem.

  My skin prickled. Marcus was close.

  Nakari glanced over her shoulder, past me, and we jumped further back into a small opening. Her fingers tightened over mine.

  “Angel,” Marcus said, stepping into the moonlight. “Is this how you’d treat your husband? Run away when all he wants to do is shower his love and affection on you?”

  “You call draining my powers, locking me away inside my own head, and being a wife beater showering me with love and affection? You have no control over me now, husband!” I said, knowing the reaction I’d get. If Nakari wanted to ensure a chase, she’d have one now.

  His left eye twitched. Without warning, he lifted his right hand, releasing a bolt of lightning. I threw both my hands out at the same moment, sending a blast of power as Nakari and I vanished a few feet away. Marcus flew to the ground, landing in the snow. He jumped to his feet again, his palm curling when I blasted him again.

  “Now, Cheyenne!” Nakari said and began jumping us in circles as she directed the blasts.

  Trackers and Tresezes alike began to scramble for cover. Only Marcus himself stood immobile. We turned and faced him one last time. His chest heaved as condensation flew from his nostrils like an angry bull. He’d never been bested before, and it rubbed him wrong.

  I squeezed Nakari’s hand; we needed to get out of here.

  Marcus raised his hands, ready to fight, but I knew this wasn’t the time or place. I only had to give us enough time to run. As if Nakari knew what I was thinking, she let go of my hand as I slapped my palms together and drew them apart, creating a single fiery whip.

  Marc
us flexed his fingers, but before he could draw on his powers, I snapped my golden whip across his cheek. He turned away, only to have me unleash the fiery sting across his chest again, ripping his leather riding coat open.

  He released a deafening roar that sent goosebumps down my neck, and Nakari reached for me as we disappeared. We flew through the trees and shrubs at a blinding speed, stopping on the sidewalk outside the park near some office buildings.

  Nakari and I stared at each other, breathing heavy. I had regained more power than I realized. A silver SUV squealed to a stop, and the door opened. Colt’s arm yanked us inside and we sped away.

  I leaned against Colt’s shoulder.

  “I think that’ll do it, Cheyenne,” Nakari whispered.

  What had we done?

  “Are you both alright?” Callon asked, leaning over from the far rear seat. Daniel leaned in beside him, his hand brushing back his hair nervously.

  “We’re fine,” Nakari replied and pressed her eyes closed. “I think we may have overdone it.”

  “What do you mean?” Colt asked, adjusting himself and helping me buckle my seatbelt. “You were just supposed to create a diversion.”

  “He’s angry,” I replied.

  “Really angry,” Nakari added.

  “What happened?” Daniel asked.

  “This crazy red-head changed her mind,” I replied.

  “Well,” Nakari swallowed. “He tried to kill me, and Cheyenne pulled a ‘Cheyenne’ on him.” She used her fingers as quotes.

  I narrowed my eyes.

  “I pulled a ‘Cheyenne,’” I used my fingers as quotes too, “on him? What the heck does that mean?”

  Nakari looked down, fiddling with her fingers.

  “Um, sometimes we’ve said, ‘don’t make me pull a Cheyenne on you,’ if we’re about to go crazy.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Seriously.” She looked up from under auburn hair.

  “Wow.” I shook my head.

  “But it’s not a bad thing necessarily,” Nakari said, trying to make amends. “It’s like we’re teasing you, but you just haven’t heard it yet.” She fiddled with her coat sleeve. “I didn’t mean to upset you, sorry.”

  Colt leaned in and hugged me, and I sighed, glancing at Daniel and Callon. I knew at times I’d gotten out of control. They were just afraid to say it in front of me.

  “It started in Ireland, didn’t it?” I asked.

  Nakari looked up and nodded. I smiled, realizing who likely said it first.

  “And let me guess, Koda started it?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, then it’s safe to say I ‘pulled a Cheyenne’ on Marcus, and he didn’t like it.”

  Callon studied us for a moment. “If I’d known this is what you were up to, Nakari, I wouldn’t have let you go…but having Marcus battle on our territory is smart.”

  “If we can beat him back,” Colt said.

  “It’s going to take about seven hours driving,” Darrien replied. His fingers typed on the GPS.

  “He’ll be coming hard,” Jahlem said. “But strategically, he’ll pull back just enough to get his army here. We’ll only have a day or two max to get prepared.”

  “How many routes are there, Darrien?” Callon asked.

  “According to the GPS, two,” Darrien replied.

  “Take the most populated and fastest,” Callon said. “It’s a fifty-fifty chance he’ll end up on the same road. We’ll have at least an hour or two head start.”

  “How many were with him?” Colt asked.

  “Twenty or thirty, mixed between Trackers and Tresezes,” Nakari replied. She turned towards Callon, as if a wordless conversation were going on.

  “He’ll have to leave more than half his men behind,” Darrien replied. “He’ll send them back to prepare.”

  “Then let’s keep ahead of him,” Colt replied, patting Jahlem’s shoulder.

  Jahlem nodded, but I caught his frown in the rearview mirror. He wasn’t quite sure we could do it.

  What if Marcus caught up to us? Would he try and run us off the road? Would he use his powers? I stared out the window, watching the city lights fade in the distance. Daylight would be coming soon, but how much time did we really have before this showdown began? And our small family, as strong as we were, was no match for Marcus’s entire army.

  “Are there more who can fight?” I asked, looking up at Colt.

  “Yes, they’re on their way now,” he replied. He turned to stare out the window, but not before I saw his face tightening. He began fiddling with the leather seats, his fingers tracing the stitching. He had doubts filling his head too.

  Consequences, my angel, Marcus whispered. There will be consequences for your actions.

  My breath caught. He’d spoken to me again. How?

  “What’s wrong?” Callon’s arm came around my shoulder, pressing me back in the seat as he leaned forward. “What’s going on, Cheyenne?”

  My lower lip trembled, and I pressed my eyes closed.

  “He can’t control you,” Callon said calmly. “You have barriers in place.”

  “He spoke to me,” I whispered.

  “What’d he say?” Daniel pleaded. “What did he say to you?”

  “That there’d be consequences for my actions.”

  Callon pressed his mouth to my ear, his warm breath heating my neck.

  “You fear him,” he said softly.

  “No…well…” I sighed, knowing the truth.

  “You fear failure,” Callon answered for me.

  I bowed my head.

  “It’s your fear of failure that allows him to speak to you in your mind. You’ve opened the doors and windows of your memories, but now you need to close the door to his connection forever.”

  “How?”

  I gripped his arm with my free hand, holding him in place.

  “Let go of the fear, the past failures you thought existed. Each and every one of them has brought you to this point, to this moment, to this mountain. We’re not falling back. I’m by your side, with your family, fighting for you as you fight for us. Failure is not about getting back up. It’s turning away, but you haven’t. You’re standing strong, and you’re going to succeed.”

  I listened to his words, felt the love in them as he held me tight, regardless of the time we’d spent apart. What may have looked like failure in their eyes, in my eyes, wasn’t. Every single step I’d taken had led me to this point, and to this moment. I couldn’t fail with my family behind me. It was their love and support that pushed me on.

  “It’s going to end,” my voice grew stronger. “I’m not a failure.”

  His lips touched my cheek in a kiss, and he released a heavy sigh before he drew back. I lifted my hand over the seat, our fingers lingering.

  We were going to fight this battle, and not give in—all of us.

  I eventually let go of Callon’s hand, curling myself further into Colt’s shoulder. His arms came around me, holding me tight. He was my light, my hope, always had been. He was my defender, never giving up. But it was Callon who’d given me strength to believe in myself.

  “I love you,” Colt whispered on my head, kissing it.

  His love was what made me want to live. His love gave me hope. He was always, and forever would be, my shining light in the darkness—irreplaceable.

  Moment by moment, my courage grew as we drove. I realized I’d never failed; I’d always taken the course leading me to this one defining moment in my life. Freeing the Timeless race forever.

  Seven hours seemed like an eternity. Even though Marcus was chasing us down, I knew I’d defend my family when the time came, now or later. I relished each and every moment I’d had with them—all of them, as I knew things were about to change.

  Heavy snow was falling by the time we reached Helena. I knew it was only a matter of time before we’d be back at the cabin. The cabin held so many fond memories of Callon, Colt, and Daniel, memories filled with laughter and love.


  Butterflies erupted in my belly. Happiness, all the happy moments that I’d long pushed away, flooded to the surface. We were going to end this where it started for me. Where I found out I was Timeless, where I transformed, where I realized I loved the three of them so much more than I ever thought possible.

  I watched the road, my leg bouncing lightly as we neared what I thought was the turnoff for the cabin, but we didn’t turn. I glanced back over my shoulder. Callon was resting his eyes, and Daniel smiled sheepishly.

  “We missed the turn,” I whispered to Colt. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

  He continued to stare out the window.

  “We didn’t miss it. I gave Jahlem directions when we stopped for gas. He knows where he’s going,” Colt replied.

  “But you said the cabin in Montana.”

  “I did.”

  He smiled. He then directed his attention to the snowy scenery outside the window. What was going on? Had I been gone so long that I didn’t recognize it? The SUV’s engine slowed and Jahlem carefully turned off onto an unplowed road. Despite the thick snow, I could see tire tracks from previous vehicles.

  I watched closely as we traveled down the narrow trail, searching for any signs of a cabin. A large structure came into view, a cabin, but not the same cabin I’d lived in for so long. This was something completely different.

  “It’s called Selavon,” Colt whispered near my ear. “It’s named after the man who built it in the eighteen hundreds.”

  Jahlem parked in front of the garage, alongside several other trucks and SUV’s. Whose house was this? Colt opened his door and climbed out. I followed behind as he led us around to the front.

  Colt pointed. “The original building consisted of the single cabin you see at the front.” He gestured to the sides. “The other two additions were added later. It’s been completely updated.”

  Nakari, Jahlem, and Darrien seemed to have disappeared, but Callon and Daniel stood behind me as I stopped and took it in. The single story log cabin was flanked by two massive two-story additions, creating a U-shaped courtyard to the front entrance. There was a large fountain, now drained, that adorned the courtyard to the house. Massive pine pillars held up the front porch, leading up to the stone entrance. The oversized solid wood door was set off by paneled glass windows on the sides and across the top, and there were terrace doors leading off rooms on either side of the additions.