by Skye Malone
She glanced to Ellie, an expectant look on her face.
The girl gave a small nod. “It’s fine. Just pictures and mental exercises and stuff.”
I didn’t respond. Ellie sounded edgy, and miserable as well, and she seemed like she wanted to be anywhere but on this road with the elders all around.
Olivia paused, regarding the girl for a moment, and then continued as if attempting to ignore the tone. “With the abilities you’ve shown already,” she said to me, “I have no doubt you will pass. So, Chloe, do we have an agreement?”
I stared at them. Each elder still standing watched me, and they barely seemed to breathe. Hope showed in the eyes of most of them, while in a few others, the expression was mixed with a weird sort of envy.
They wanted this. They wanted this as badly as Ellie had wanted to become dehaian. It wasn’t any different. Not really. They’d given up being dehaian, but they hadn’t stopped wanting to come here.
And I could understand that. Good grief, I could understand that.
My gaze slid to Olivia. But it still didn’t mean they were trustworthy. Not by a long shot. It didn’t mean something else wasn’t going on.
I glanced to Ellie. Her expression hadn’t changed.
“Can I talk to you?” I murmured to her.
She blinked. With a quick glance from me to the elders, she nodded. I retreated toward Baylie’s car. Ellie hurried after me, Baylie coming a step behind.
My parents tried to follow. A warning sound from Noah brought them up short.
“What is it?” I asked softly. “What’s with the look?”
Ellie hesitated, her gaze flicking to the others. Several yards away, my parents hovered as close as they dared to Noah, who had taken up a position as a buffer between us and everyone else on the road. The elders still watched us, though they glanced to their friends with every few heartbeats as if fighting the urge to speak to each other.
I realized they probably knew what Noah was, through Dave telling them if nothing else.
“They’re probably okay,” Ellie said.
I turned back to her.
She looked uncomfortable. “It’s just what that cop claimed. I know Olivia said the ones that ‘sided’ with Grandpa or whatever would be kept out of the loop, but…” She grimaced. “Grandpa has a lot of friends, and I… I don’t want to speak badly of the elders. I mean, they’d know about this more than me, and I’m not a–”
“Just say it,” Baylie snapped.
Ellie winced. “What if someone is lying? What if they agree with Grandpa, but they just haven’t said anything to make Olivia think they’re not on her side? I really don’t want the elders to be in pain, but if you give them this ability, it doesn’t go away after this procedure thing, and then they’re like him…”
My skin crawled.
“I don’t want anyone hurting people like he did either,” Ellie finished.
“She’s right,” Baylie said quietly. “You can’t risk it. I mean, Harman took a knife to Zeke, for pity’s sake. And I saw Zeke’s arms. What that guy did to those spike things of his. If people like that could come here whenever they wanted…”
I nodded tightly. If even one of them was the same as Harman and they got their hands on a dehaian…
I shuddered. Ina liked to come inland. Surely other dehaians did too. And then there were kids. Maybe someone Zeke’s little sister’s age, who’d die like Miri had, but with that bastard or one of his friends experimenting on her…
My throat clenched with nausea. Drawing a ragged breath, I shoved the thoughts away. “Yeah,” I agreed.
Baylie glanced to the elders. “So how do we–”
Tires rumbled on the road. I turned. A trio of sedans rolled to a stop, all three of them painted in subdued shades of taupe with the look of undercover police vehicles.
My brow drew down. How many cops did the elders control?
The doors opened. A tiny gasp escaped me, the sound incredulous.
This couldn’t be happening.
“Hey there, folks,” Chief Reynolds called, his voice strained to a fraction of its normal friendliness. From the other cars, the men from Colorado emerged, some of them barely making it to their feet before they had to brace themselves on the sedans for support. Aaron joined them, trembling hard with his gaze twitching between me and the elders like he couldn’t decide who worried him more.
Harman climbed from the passenger seat of Chief Reynolds’ sedan.
I wanted to turn and run.
“There she is,” Harman said, motioning to the men by the cars and then pointing at me. He didn’t even glance at the elders. “The dehaian boy should be somewhere close as well.”
“What are you doing here?” Olivia demanded, moving between us and Harman’s people.
Robin followed her, as did several of the others who could still walk. Keeping his eyes to the men around the taupe cars, Noah closed the distance between us. I could see hair-thin lines of light running through his skin.
“Olivia,” Harman called cheerily, seeming unaffected by the ocean’s proximity. “Everyone. What a pleasure to see you. I’m here to collect the young lady.”
“The hell you are!” Olivia snapped. “How did you know we would–”
“I have friends, of course,” he interrupted as though it was obvious. “They’re just as invested in my research and the girl’s wellbeing as I am.”
Olivia glanced around, incredulity in her eyes. I swallowed hard, doing the same. I could read the implication. Ellie had been right.
“Mr. and Mrs. Kowalski,” Harman continued, spotting Mom and Dad. “How nice to see you as well.”
“You…” Dad snarled, stalking forward. “You bastard! Your ‘assistants’ nearly killed us! What were you–”
“I promise you,” Harman said as the chief stepped in front of him, bringing Dad’s advance to a halt. “I had no idea they would do that. I had no idea what they were. I only pieced the truth together myself a few minutes ago, based on what I heard through the police scanner. I am terribly sorry. It was my understanding that my associates were, well, just healthy landwalkers. And only interested in recovering the girl to help her.”
Dad didn’t respond.
“I swear,” Harman insisted. “Now, please. Allow us to bring your daughter inland. I believe this much exposure to the ocean air will set us back on treating her condition, so it’s important we leave as soon as possible.”
His gaze turned to me and shivers ran through my skin. It was like he didn’t care how many people were between us. Like he didn’t even see them.
“You’re not going near her!” Olivia snapped. “You–”
“We can help your daughter, Mr. Kowalski,” Harman said, ignoring her. “I don’t want to think of the damage more time away from the treatments could–”
“Stop it!”
I blinked at Ellie’s outburst.
Her curly braids trembling, she stared at him. “Stop lying, Grandpa! Your ‘treatments’ almost killed Chloe! You–”
“Oh, Eleanor,” Harman commented as though just noticing the girl. He looked to Dad. “My granddaughter is correct, in the latter part at least. The treatments did almost kill Chloe, but because Eleanor took it upon herself to remove your daughter from our care.”
Ellie gasped. “That’s not–”
“I forgive you, my dear,” Harman continued blithely, “and I’m sure the Kowalskis will too. I realize you didn’t understand that your actions could have cost Chloe her life.”
Hurt and outrage in her eyes, Ellie shook her head. “That is not true! You were killing her! And Zeke! He almost–”
“Nonsense,” Harman countered. “Dehaians don’t feel pain as we do. Everyone knows that, and my experiments proved it. The boy barely cried out. He was fine.”
Spikes pushed out of my arms. I couldn’t stop them. To hear him talk so calmly about torturing Zeke…
Harman c
aught sight of them, and he made a pitying noise. “Don’t worry, dear. Those will be gone soon.”
He motioned for the men around him to move toward us.
Olivia retreated a step, keeping herself between them and us. “You are not doing this, Harman. If I have to, I–”
The cocking of a gun cut her off. She looked over in alarm.
“I wouldn’t,” Phil cautioned, a handgun in his meaty grip.
Olivia stared at him. “You…”
“I told you we should have just put the girl underground,” he continued. “We could’ve avoided all of this and made her much easier for Harman to find.”
Robin stumbled forward, her face pale. “Phil, you idiot! You can’t let him just experiment on her! What about the–”
“A few storms don’t make an apocalypse, Robin,” Phil replied tiredly.
She blinked, incredulous. “Don’t you get it? This is wrong! You can’t–”
Robin cut off when he pointed the gun toward her.
Olivia tensed.
Phil gasped. He looked to Olivia furiously, his face twitching as if he was fighting something no one else could see.
“No…” he snarled.
His gun swung toward her so fast.
The shot rang through the forest.
Olivia choked. Staggering back, she lost her balance and fell to her knees. Her hand clutched her shoulder, pain written across her face.
“Bastard!” Robin cried. She rushed to Olivia. Noah grabbed Ellie’s arm, stopping her from doing the same.
“I can patch that up for you,” Harman told Olivia. “No worries.” He turned his gaze to us. “Now please, everyone. Allow Chloe to come with me.”
Chief Reynolds and the men with him drew their guns. Behind him, Aaron hesitated, and then cautiously did the same.
Phil aimed his weapon toward the rest of the elders. “All of you stay there. We just want the girl.”
He started toward us.
Fissures bright with firelight raced through Noah’s skin.
Dad moved into Phil’s path. “You can’t–”
Phil shoved him hard, sending him staggering to the side, and then he lifted the gun, aiming at Noah.
“Back off, kid,” Phil warned.
Noah strode toward him.
A glowing blur slammed into Phil, driving the gun from his hands and propelling him sideways into the trees. Another greliaran hit two of the men beside Chief Reynolds, throwing them both back into a sedan.
Snarling, Clay spun. His burning gaze went from me to Noah for less than a heartbeat, and then he lunged.
Noah intercepted him. They both tumbled to the gravel.
Gunshots rang through the forest. I looked up fast.
The men around Harman had scattered. In a panic, they fired at Owen as he charged them. In the center of the road, Dave scrambled to help Robin and Olivia while the other elders fled for their own vehicles. The elders surrounded Mom and Dad, jostling them when they ran past. I saw Mom fall.
A laugh came from my right. I turned.
Wyatt grinned, fiery cracks spreading through his face and his brown eyes disappearing into a red glow.
“Chloe, run!” my dad yelled.
Wyatt raced at me. I backpedaled, with Baylie and Ellie retreating behind me.
Noah slammed into him, driving him to the ground. Several feet away, Clay rolled to one side, shaking his head as if to clear it.
Ellie grabbed Baylie and me, pulling us with her. “Come on!”
We ran for the car.
“Noah!” Baylie yelled.
He shoved away from Wyatt and raced after us.
I yanked open the rear door and scrambled inside while Baylie jammed the key into the ignition. I spun, looking through the back window.
The elders’ vehicles were tearing pell-mell down the country road. Dave and Robin were bundling Olivia into the woman’s sedan and motioning for my parents to come with them.
And Wyatt was getting up. Behind him, Clay was pushing to his feet as well. Under fire from the rest of Chief Reynolds’ men, Owen was retreating into the forest while Harman ignored them all, shouting and waving at us as though to signal the others that we were getting away.
Noah tumbled into the seat beside me.
Baylie hit the gas.
The car surged forward, leaving the chaos behind.
Chapter Seventeen
Wyatt
By all that was holy, that was going to be the last time Noah and his damn stepsister drove off with my fish.
The absolute last.
I turned away while the stepsister’s car whipped around the curve and disappeared. Back by the junction of the road to our house, the elders were taking off like the hounds of hell were on their tail. Narrowly avoiding getting hit when the cars sped away, the big guys with guns bundled Harman into one of their brown sedans, ignoring his cries about the girl escaping.
“Hey, wait!” Clay shouted, running toward them. “Where are they going? Where’s the girl–”
Cars doors slammed. Gravel sprayed as the brown sedans raced off.
And then no one remained but us.
Snarling a curse, I looked around at the empty forest. That couldn’t be it. They were gone, she was gone, and we’d lost her trail. I wanted to run to the SUV right now, except that we’d left it a quarter mile back and by the time I made it there, she’d be even farther away. There were half a dozen paths out of here down that road; she could take any one.
But there had to be something else we could do. Somewhere else we could follow her. Harman wanted to get his hands on the fish too. Maybe we could call the little bastard.
I snorted at the thought. This wasn’t like Dad’s strategy. I wasn’t above calling people, but I also wasn’t going to sit around waiting for her to come to me. I’d take action. I’d chase her down.
And then I’d make her pay for getting away from me over and over again.
I started back down the road. It’d been a good plan, all things considered. Everything had been going great. We’d driven along the side road and the cops hadn’t even noticed us as they’d flown by on the main path. We’d kept the windows down, listening for any signs of others nearby, and soon enough picked up the sounds of an argument. The idiots had stopped along the road like they didn’t even think we’d be coming, and not a single one had noticed when we’d pulled over and then snuck through the forest toward them.
Of course, moving through the forest in silence was sort of our specialty. Catching dehaians who wandered onto our property would require not barreling toward them like a herd of cattle, after all. Dad had made a point of teaching us to move fast and quiet, and forced us to practice till even he couldn’t hear us coming.
Not smart, that.
My lip twitched. But regardless, things had been going well. We’d seen the landwalkers, the girl’s parents, all of them.
And the fish.
She’d been so close. Just beyond the trees, without Noah or any of those damn elders nearby. I’d sent Clay at Noah and Owen toward the big guys with guns, which left me that pretty little doll of a black girl and the stepsister all alone with my fish.
And it should have worked. It all should have worked.
If Clay had stopped Noah like he’d been supposed to, anyway.
Still rubbing his jaw from the punch Noah had landed on him, Clay watched me while I stalked toward him.
“So what are we going to–”
I slammed a fist into his face.
“Dumbass,” I spat as he stumbled back. “How could you let him get away from you like that?”
“He got away from you too,” Clay protested.
I growled. He retreated a step.
“Hey,” Owen called. “We got a live one over here.”
I turned. By the intersection, Owen hoisted himself up the last step of the incline leading from the forest to the road. Leaving Clay, I strode towar
d him.
“There,” he said, nodding toward the underbrush.
A man lay in the ditch below him. Dressed in a navy sports jacket with brass buttons that strained to hold the thing closed over his bulk, he was slumped against a tree with blood dripping from a gash on his bald head.
“Help…” he wheezed, his eyes closed. “Somebody help…”
“Clay ran into him,” Owen murmured, watching the guy. “He had a gun.”
I glanced to the man’s hands. “Not anymore.”
Skidding on the grass, I climbed down to where the man lay.
His hand fumbled toward me. “Please. Please, help…”
“Yeah,” I agreed, moving my foot out of his reach. “Sure, we’ll help you. Don’t worry. Just tell us, though. Where’s the girl headed?”
“Girl?” He opened his eyes with effort. “But– oh God. You–”
The fear on his face made me smile. I crouched down and watched him try to scoot away, not that the attempt worked. He could barely move.
“Simple deal, buddy,” I said. “You want help. We want the girl. Where is she?”
He seemed to be having trouble breathing and for a heartbeat, he almost appeared to debate answering. I started to stand again.
“Okay,” the guy relented. “They’re heading south. She’s… it’s…”
I reached down, grasping his sports jacket. “Where?”
He mumbled a string of numbers. My brow furrowed in confusion.
“Latitude and longitude,” Owen said behind me.
I didn’t turn around. “I knew that.”
“Now, please,” the man begged. “Please call the–”
I shoved him back into the tree again. His neck broke on the impact.
A faint, tingling sensation rushed along my arm, through my chest and up to my head, almost like adrenaline coming from outside me. But better than that. So much better. My lip spasmed toward a snarl, my brain torn between pleasure and shock.
As fast as it’d appeared, the feeling faded away.
I stared down at the guy’s corpse. Dad had warned us about the landwalker elders. Told us to stay away from them. They were dangerous, he said.
