by Angela White
“We haven’t let anyone down here yet,” Nathan stated. “It’s still clean. Some of those newer people don’t seem to care if the trash piles up.”
Jeff took a rear bunk. Kevin chose the front, wondering how long it would take the doctor to clear them.
“I’ll be right outside,” Nathan stated. “You know the drill, and welcome home.”
“Thanks,” Kevin told the former rookie that he’d helped to train.
Jeff didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure about it yet. Things seemed just as chaotic as when they’d left and that wasn’t good.
“Let me by,” a female voice ordered.
“You know they’re in quarantine right now,” Nathan refused icily.
“It’s really them?”
“Yes.”
Jeff and Kevin listened to Cynthia badger Nathan for details, grinning at each other. She hadn’t changed much.
It took Nathan almost five minutes to get rid of her. Jeff wondered if Daryl had been standing there with her the entire time.
3
A short time later, Angela was in the center of the SF team, cradled by Marc. She hadn’t considered that he would carry her down the mountain. Instead of arguing, she’d chosen to enjoy being warm and in his arms, no matter the reason. There wouldn’t be many more moments like this for them. He hoped taking her to Adrian would help, but that blond bastard didn’t know how deep she’d gone either. All that mattered now was making sure that Safe Haven and Charlie would be protected. In a few weeks, that would be accomplished and then she could rest in peace.
Marc caught each thought as it went through, wincing, stumbling occasionally. She wasn’t holding much back. It was hard to keep his mouth shut, but words didn’t change her mind. Actions did, except that wasn’t going to be enough either this time. The hope he’d had for this trip began to fade. Adrian wasn’t going to be successful. Angela wanted to die and they couldn’t give her another baby in time to keep that desire from setting into this cursed stone. She would have to be watched for a long time once this was all over.
Angela swallowed the tears, crushed beyond repair. She’d gone from everything to nothing, with one cruel punch.
Marc paused as Angela’s grip tightened. “Are you okay?”
“No,” she forced out. The visions in her mind were ugly.
“What do you need?” Marc demanded. “Name it and we’ll get it.”
Angela looked at the security post near them, the last one for this tunnel. “I need him.”
The rookie on guard there with the level man raised a brow in confusion. “Me?”
Their rookies were constantly busy learning rules from the level men they’d been assigned to. All they really needed was the physical side and weapons training, but that would have to come later. Two other teams of rookies had been accepted into the Eagles not long after they’d come to this mountain, giving them four teams of rookies. Kenn and the vet had been pulling shifts with their new teams, but Charlie was still staying with Tracy and someone else had been given leadership over his team. The boy hadn’t protested.
“Why me?” the rookie asked again. “Did I do something wrong?”
Kyle grabbed the man’s arm and got them moving again, able to feel Marc’s impatience with this unscheduled stop. “Come on. Stay with me.”
Soothed, Angela laid her head against Marc’s neck and tried not to shudder again. Please, don’t, she begged silently. I’m so sorry for what I’ve become. Please, don’t.
4
The walk down took them an hour. Not a single word was spoken until they reached the bottom.
Kyle led his men out to their transportation, hoping the fresh batteries they’d carried down would be enough to fire up the cold engines. They had chosen not to drain fluids or remove hoses in favor of having a chance at a fast escape if it was needed. Still not sure if it might be, Marc had chosen to come down the bugout tunnel as a test to check for trouble. They’d learned two things right off. The first was that no amount of labor would secure some of those gaps in the ground that had tried to crumble under their boots. They’d been lucky to be able to jump and throw things across, almost losing both gear and lives several times. The other thing they’d learned was to never underestimate the ability of the dark to give grown guys the willies. All of them had been glad to behold daylight at the bottom, no matter how clouded or grudging.
“How far are we going?” Kyle asked Marc lowly, motioning the other Eagles to get their transportation ready.
Marc set Angela on her feet, but refused to let go of her when she would have stepped away to demonstrate her stability and give him a break.
Marc sighed. “I used to ruck, honey. This is nothing compared to carrying eighty pounds for twenty miles in a 90° desert.” He kept her tight against him so she couldn’t refuse the help. “We’re going a mile, stopping, then going two miles. The same back, with a possible pit stop along the way.”
“I’ve got it,” Kyle told him, going to the stash of fuel near the laboring Eagles. He tossed bottles of storage additive to the men at the gas tanks, then carried the proper amount of gasoline over. It didn’t make sense to needlessly grab too much or worse, grab too little, if they weren’t rushed. Kyle assumed that was part of why Marc was taking them out early.
Angela knew it was because of her. He was scared to wait even one more day before trying to help her. She was just glad to be out of the cave and away from those who were still determined to kill her. She didn’t know who they were, but their thoughts were always ugly. If they got their way, she would die before Safe Haven was actually safe. If not for Charlie, Angela wouldn’t have cared.
A few feet away, Jennifer stood with her back to the camouflaged tunnel entrance, scanning for problems. Now that they’d come up from their hole, the train descendants would be able to reach them. There were also angry refugees still skulking about, along with entire towns of desperate, starving citizens flooding in from the west. She didn’t want anyone sneaking up on them.
Able to sense his discontent, Jennifer tried not to be offended by Kyle wishing that she wasn’t along for this run. Despite the war with Donner, his mind kept telling him to try playing the role of protector. When he wised up and switched over to what he really wanted, things would get better for him.
What about for you? Angela asked, tucked under Marc’s arm to hide her discomfort under the guise of being cold. Is it what you want or what you owe?
Jennifer took in a deep breath, impressed by the beauty of the view, but also terrified of the mountain. Both. It serves two purposes. Later, when we get tired of each other, I won’t have this debt hanging over me.
You do know that’s crap, right? Angela snapped, unable to contain her hatred of that mentality. You don’t owe him anything. The rescue was an accident. Adrian just wanted to get rid of the slavers.
You misunderstand, Jennifer replied without rancor. I owe him for restoring my faith in humanity, in men. If not for him, I would have the same hatred as Hilda.
That’s not a debt, Angela pointed out. That’s a reward.
Jennifer brightened. Yeah! That’s good, right?
Yes, Jenny. That’s very good, Angela praised, tensing. Jennifer continued to heal and strengthen, to prove that a soul could survive some of the darkest shit. Angela was amazed by it. She was also furious. She didn’t want to get over it. She didn’t want to recuperate. She wanted to be with her dead children.
As she had the thought, snow crunched heavily from the ledge near Jennifer.
“Look out!”
“She’s in a blind!”
“Get down!”
Jennifer ducked the blast of gunfire that came over the edge, but she couldn’t get out of the crossfire completely as the lone descendant blasted the landing with heat.
Angela met the woman with a scream that sounded through the mountains, knocking her off the cliff with a mental hit, but the gunfire had gotten through.
Marc sank to the snow by the ro
okie who had shoved him out of the way to take the bullet.
The rookie’s eyes fluttered open. “Ugh…”
Marc grinned as he felt the slug in the triple-plated vest. It was one of the few vests like this that they had, and probably the only one that would have stopped the AR handgun’s armor piercing round. Kenn was having fun with new designs, but Marc had refused to wear his for this run. He hadn’t wanted to be more protected than his team.
Kyle had Jennifer in his arms, verifying she had no injuries. They both watched Angela cry in relief from the ground, where Marc had shoved her.
“Thank you. Thank you! Thank you.”
Jennifer slowly stood up and went to the crying woman who looked and sounded like a lunatic. As Jennifer realized why Angela was giving thanks, her heart clenched. She was thanking God for not taking Marc. Marc was supposed to be dead now.
Jennifer looked over at the man, only to find the knowledge in his eyes, in his expression.
How long can she keep him alive? Jennifer asked her witch in horror.
The witch didn’t answer. It hadn’t been revealed.
Angela let them take her to the truck and place her inside. The rookie who had taken the hit for Marc was put behind the wheel.
“I owe you a huge favor,” Angela told him when they were alone. “When I’m well enough, I’ll honor that debt.”
The rookie grinned, but didn’t tell her he was now on his way to having what he wanted most, thanks to her choice to bring him along. He was still smiling as he followed Kyle’s vehicle over to the fuel tanks, where Marc would take his place as driver. Until they were ready to leave, the Ghost was standing guard against any other lurking assassins who had dug into the stone to wait for a shot at Safe Haven’s leaders.
5
“Did Willa get her?” Ross asked, unable to wait any longer. “Is that bitch dead now?”
Sonja’s lack of response wasn’t comforting.
“She didn’t, right?” Ross insisted. He was supposed to be guarding the train car door, but he hadn’t been able to stay at his post when Sonja began getting Willa’s message about spotting Angela outside her mountain den.
“No.” Sonja showed no sympathy for Ross, who had recently proclaimed love for the fighter they’d just lost. “Get ready to roll out in the morning. Make sure you personally pack the darts. We can use more slaves.”
Ross stomped from the train car, punching walls as he went.
Sonja sighed. Emotions were handy to use to control people, but when death inevitably came, that control snapped. Ross would now have to be watched for betrayals and revenge.
“Should I?” Bryson inquired from her feet, where he was perched to work on her toenails.
She nodded, admiring the golden glints of the blond hair sticking from his pointy ears. “After we get back tonight. Make it a heavy dose. The others will think he committed suicide over his lost love.”
Bryson chuckled at her joke. The others would know he’d been removed and it would make them more careful about demonstrating their own loyalty. Sonja knew how to rule her people.
“What about their leader?” Bryson asked, detailing tiny flames. “We’ve heard she’s strong.”
The records from Donner had told Bryson that his former co-worker had gathered up the best of the descendant power right after the war. Angela was only a part of it.
“We’ll meet and handle it there,” Sonja declared. “Now that they’ve come from their hole, I’ll be able to scan them when we’re closer. So will Darla. She’ll tell us what gifts they have and then we’ll attack. Like when we were sent to Hawaii to recover the Mitchel girl.”
Bryson frowned. When Adrian discovered where his daughter was, the men in that bunker were dead.
Sonja laughed. “No, they aren’t. They want him to come back, but he won’t. His kind never faces their past.”
Bryson, who had been with Adrian when he rescued that same girl as a child, didn’t correct his mistress. She didn’t like it, but it also didn’t matter. If Adrian did leave Safe Haven to rescue Alexa, it would only make Sonja’s conquest that much easier.
“Should I be worried, my pet?” Sonja drawled, using the language of the fighters because she knew it bothered him. Due to his weaknesses and lack of power, he would never be valued as anything more than a power feed or a butler.
“No, of course not. We’re unstoppable with you leading us,” Bryson promised. He capped the polish and stood up. “I’ll be right back with your lunch.”
“Later,” she ordered. “Get on the bed. I need energy in case their leader makes a surprise recovery.”
Bryson eagerly climbed on the bed. After she was sated, he would ask to remain here during the fight, as he usually did. Bryson didn’t mind serving the queen, but he hated cleaning up after her. Being Sonja’s matched soul mate, even if she wasn’t willing in that, was amazing. Being her janitor was hard work. She left bodies, or pieces of them, in every place that she went.
6
Angela didn’t look at anyone as she climbed from the truck and walked toward the small cave where Marc had chosen to stash her. She’d refused to let them get out and help her. Marc needed to go.
Everyone knew who was in the small cave and that man was smart enough to stay out of sight. It was tense, awkward. Most of them scanned the snowbanks and ant cones instead of her stiff shoulders or Marc’s thunderous expression.
Marc waited for her to vanish into the darkness without a wave and for Adrian to give the short whistle that they’d often used as an Eagle signal to mean things were ready to go. He was clearly furious, but Marc didn’t change his mind. He also didn’t wave Billy over to chaperone them, as Angela had demanded.
“You think this will work?”
Marc returned to the driver’s seat without answering Jennifer’s quiet query. He doubted anything, or anyone, could change Angie’s mind and that included Adrian. She was the most stubborn person he’d ever known, but he didn’t assume she was doing this for attention. Losing the baby hadn’t been planned. He knew that now by her reaction. If she’d planned it, she would have also had something waiting for her pain. Instead, she was eaten up with remorse and anger at herself. Both his demon and hers had warned him that she was obsessing over it, constantly replaying the fight with Vlad that had cost her so much. Besides the obvious not eating much or sleeping well, and the nasty attitude she was developing, there was the crying every night. It killed him to roll over and detect fresh tears, but the ones dried to her cheek each morning were enough to break him. She started and finished every day the same way now–tearing herself apart for the choices she had made. Marc was hoping that time alone with Adrian would at least remind her there were still duties to perform. If she went on like this much longer, the camp would demand a leadership vote.
That’s what she wants, Adrian sent through the private channel that he and Marc had labored on before his betrayals had been revealed. Maybe we should let it happen…
Hearing Adrian doubt his own plans sent fury through Marc. Put her back to work! he snarled.
Yes, boss! Adrian retorted snidely. He didn’t send his next thought.
Marc was glad. Leaving Angie here, alone with his rival, was a bitter pill to swallow.
We never had to be rivals, Adrian reminded him tiredly and then broke their connection.
Marc understood he wouldn’t have any contact with Angie while she was in the cave as a bit of payback for how being banished had felt. Marc gritted his teeth and led the convoy toward the meeting place that Kyle’s Special Forces team would recon. He had his job to distract him, thankfully, but it wouldn’t always be this way. A year from now, he and Angie would be free of that problem–forever.
“He’s planning my murder again,” Adrian tattled.
Angela sighed as she stopped inside the cave. “Not a first for you, is it?”
Adrian was surprised into a snicker at her sarcasm. “No.”
Adrian dropped the black canvas over the d
oorway that would stop most bullets, then fastened the edges to keep the stiff wind from blowing it around and ruining their concealment. He activated the outer alarms using his wrist console, and then switched on the tiny monitor to reveal their den. It wasn’t a great picture, but he had all angles visible with four cameras that were divided into two screens. He had half a mile view in every direction, a small ledge lined with guns and ammunition, and a handful of grenades that he hoped he didn’t have to use to blast a hole through the rear wall if things went bad. Feeling like he had security covered as much as he could, Adrian finally turned to scrutinize his soulmate.
The agony was too much for him, as he’d known it would be. She was in more pain than he could stand if he connected with her. Adrian dropped his eyes as he waved toward the far wall of the small den where rocking chairs holding stacks of blankets and pillows waited.
Angela sank down gratefully, not removing gloves or anything else. She needed to get her breath first. She was still bleeding and cramping, as was normal after a miscarriage or a delivery, and the truck ride had hurt her. Then Kyle had subtly slipped a thick notebook into her kit as he let her out of the truck. The weight had almost been too much.
Adrian stared at her in open misery and joy. “What can I do for you?”
“Mentally, nothing,” she replied. “Physically, I need to be ready to fight again.”
“When?”
Angela sighed deeply. “Hours or a few days, but no more.”
“There’s only one way I can do that,” Adrian stated stiffly.
“Do it and do it now,” she ordered roughly. “All our lives depend on this last step in the plan.”
Adrian immediately went to her, heart bursting with love and happiness. She does need me!
Angela absorbed it all, allowing the witch to direct the streams to where they were needed the most for the upcoming battle. It was the first time Angela had done that. She didn’t know if it would help, but at this point, it couldn’t hurt. The descendants coming on the train were strong. Angela wasn’t positive that she could defeat them at all, let alone while so badly injured. She had to be ready and if Marc wouldn’t share his heart with her, Adrian always would, no matter how evil she was. That was why she needed them both. One for each side of her.
