by Angela White
Conner and Adrian took their semis right overtop the bullet-ridden vehicles, taking the center path between the cheering soldiers.
The refugees behind them tried to follow at first, but the big guns kept firing in sweeping patterns that couldn’t be argued with. Now in fear for their lives, the refugees fled to the only safety available–the door in the mountain.
“Let’s roll!”
Angela’s order brought the soldiers to their bumper in seconds, providing an armed escort that didn’t waste ammunition but eliminated any threats that chased them.
In Conner’s truck, Angela slid onto Marc’s lap to make room.
Marc could feel her rage boiling. After a few minutes of it, he sighed. “Okay. Pull over.”
Conner found a wide area that appeared empty and brought the rig to a stop.
Adrian pulled in on the passenger side to provide protection while the soldiers surrounded the small convoy.
Marc took Angela to the next truck so that she could check on their injured. As soon as she was busy, Marc teamed with Adrian and sent her latest order.
“Good.” Adrian had been surprised when they left the valley without handling it. “The two of us or does she think she’s going too?”
“She wants to. I told her the camp needs her more. Use that.
Stop it, both of you. I’m going to the camp. Everyone here is going with me except for the two of you. Take what you need, set up right here and wait for him
Marc grinned, eager to repay Bryson for the scare they’d had.
Adrian motioned toward Jennifer. “Get the boss to base.”
Jennifer frowned a bit. “I, uh, don’t know how to drive one of these.”
“I can drive.” Kenn groaned, peeling his jacket open. “Three vests and I’m stunned.” Kenn forced himself up. “He wants us dead. That packed too much punch to be anything but personal.”
“I agree.” Marc zipped his jacket and gestured to Kenn. “Get them to base.”
Adrian and Marc let the trucks get out of sight before moving, but they began before that. Teamed, they agreed on a plan without argument. They also disagreed with Angela on how to handle the assassin once they captured him, but neither of them argued. Both men wanted a conversation more than payback. If Bryson was alone, they needed to know. If he had more friends, Angela’s newest battle plan would be put in effect. They were sick of loose ends.
Marc began working on their blind while Adrian chose the setup location. Both of them listened for vehicles or refugees, but it appeared that most of them had stayed in the valley.
They didn’t discuss what was happening there.
4
Bryson was standing a hundred feet above the collapsed ledge where Safe Haven’s leaders were supposed to be crushed in bloody heaps. The fury kept him warm even when the winds became intolerable. Bryson couldn’t believe his plan had failed. There was one thing he could do now and that was die for the cause. This was no longer just his war.
Bryson tucked himself into the shadows of the crevice, scanning the awful battlefield below. The refugees were still swarming into the valley, fighting each other. There were fires and screams, gunshots, and wrecks as cars plowed into each other in an attempt to be the first one to reach the door.
Bryson got his breath and then used his remaining energy to direct his gift in a single direction. It had been one of Sonya’s favorite tactics to use against other descendants. Only a few of their kind were able to open direct lines of communication that prevented other descendants in the area from hearing them. Bryson was one of those.
Erik, I failed. They escaped.
We knew that you would, Bryson. You underestimated them.
Bryson could have argued that no one could prepare for a wildcard, but shame wouldn’t let him. What do you want me to do now?
As Bryson paused for the answer, he continued to berate himself for failing to foresee some people coming back for the leaders. It had been easy to figure out what Angela had planned once he’d found their hidden vehicles and he’d gotten cocky. I should have disabled them.
We want you to do what you would have done if we hadn’t found you on their doorstep like a lost puppy. Chase them.
Bryson brightened. He might get a second chance at revenge.
Do everything the way you would if we weren’t here. That means using stealth, so don’t call us again.
Bryson frowned, rubbing his cold hands together. If I hide, they won’t be able to find me.
Erik’s laughter increased Bryson’s humiliation.
Like I said, you underestimated them. As soon as they get their camp to a place they consider safe, the hunters will be sent out. Make sure you’re found by the main targets.
How do I do that?
You do that by ignoring the sheep. When they fail, the shepherds will be sent out.
Bryson couldn’t discover a flaw with the plan–not that he would have argued anyway. His chance to do it alone had been blown the minute the soldiers came back for Angela.
How will you know when they’ve got me?
We’ll be watching. You can’t escape us. You stink of loyalty to Sonya. You’re easy to find.
The mental connection closed before Bryson could respond.
Angry and ashamed, he curled into a ball and forced himself to rest until it got dark. He had a lot of climbing to do.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Moments Like This
1
“Who wants first watch over him?” Erik glanced around his camp. Seventy men and women had come with him from the abandoned town where Sonya had enslaved half the population and stirred the rest into needless violence that had always cost lives.
“Nicholas and I will take the first shift.”
Erik gave his approval of Isaac’s offer. “Pick half a dozen. My crew will relieve you in six hours.”
Erik’s mercenaries were all tall, dark, stocky, and hungry. Wearing concealing clothes in multiple layers, and black boots with chains that were taped down to hide noise, the crew was intimidating. Erik didn’t care what they looked like. He didn’t have rules on hygiene, uniforms, or anything else that didn’t matter. They had found similar gear in one of the towns that they had raided, which had led to everyone dressing alike. None of that mattered to him. He only cared that they followed the orders he gave.
As the group of descendants got set to leave, Erik ducked into the small canvas where their cook was trying to produce a meal while fighting the winds from untucked corners.
“She won’t eat.”
Erik ignored the woman glaring at him from a dark corner. That was the only place the wind wasn’t coming through–where it was blocked by her rounded body. Her dark, curly hair no longer glowed and her eyes no longer lit up in welcome, but Erik’s affection for her had never wavered. He would do anything for her, except what she had only asked once. Her freedom was not an option.
“Let her starve, not the men. How long?”
Brian shrugged, hating the duty he’d been drafted for. “At least an hour. This rehydrated shit sucks.” The young man dumped a canteen of water in the pot and slammed the lid on. “I can’t wait to get to civilization.”
Erik scowled at him. “Our town is empty. As soon as people found out Sonya was dead, they took off. We are all that’s left.”
Brian shrugged. “I assumed when you got revenge for Safe Haven killing your friends and family that we would return to base and reestablish our town. To me, that means power tools and lights.” Brian gestured at the dim lantern and the muddy ground underneath the camp stove that he’d set up. “You can’t expect miracles in these conditions.”
Erik scanned the tent and called over his shoulder. “Two volunteers for mess.”
Erik had made his camp in a small impression in the mountain range, liking the angle for his sentries so they could view in every direction. He was aware of stragglers around them, but he wasn’t concerned. If anyone was unlucky enough to stumble across this camp
, the guards would handle it.
Erik was retired, but he’d been doing jobs off the books for years. Hired mercenary pay was better. Many of the men and women around him had been doing the same and no one complained about the weather or the hardships that came during tracking down prey. They were used to it.
Two volunteers strode toward the tent.
Erik ducked out as the two men went in, noting who was eager to earn his approval. Everyone on this trip wanted the Safe Haven descendants dead. Many of his crew had lost family members, including Erik. Sonya and Vlad had only been distant relatives, but duty had still demanded he avenge them. Erik might have ignored that if not for the call Safe Haven had made after poisoning everyone. The open challenge in that call had told Erik that if they didn’t take care of the Safe Haven people now, that camp would continue to grow in power until they were out of reach. Erik was confident that the fighters with him were more than enough to handle ten new descendants now, however. All of the people in the makeshift camp were killers, even the women. Sonya had insisted on keeping the men and women apart for battles, but Erik had never believed that was a good idea. Many of the mercenaries in his group were couples, which always encouraged them to fight harder. Having something to live for mattered.
Erik thought about the furious woman he had left under the mess canopy. Michelle would never forgive him for the abuses she’d suffered, but Erik loved her. She was the other half of the reason he was doing this. If Safe Haven took control of the United States, he would have to release her. She had been his slave for three decades now. She had born him ten children, three of whom they had buried. Two had died on the train with Sonya. The one she was carrying would join the other four here as protection while he set up a new base further south to take advantage of the better weather and to fish now that the herds were gone.
“We have a group of refugees coming in. Four of them. No big weapons that I can see.”
Erik came over to take the glasses from Mango, who had duty. Erik scanned the group and smiled. “Invite them in.”
The mercs around him chuckled, knowing what came next.
Erik swept the camp, ready to be settled in to rest until his shift came up to follow Bryson. They were using ATVs and carrying Glocks, but Erik didn’t believe that was how this battle would be won. He also didn’t think that Adrian Mitchel was stupid enough to hunt Bryson himself, but there was always a small chance that he was so they would monitor Bryson just in case. Erik expected the real fight to take place in Market Town, where Safe Haven was running to hide. Erik and his group had observed the UN fight. Now that they knew the type of gifts Adrian’s crew had, they were ready.
Erik nodded at the other guard on duty as the refugees entered his camp in drunken staggers that implied they were wandering from site to site, partying. He ducked into his private tent, shivering. Sonya had taken most of their gear for the battle, leaving those in the town to scavenge whatever they could.
Erik sat down in the empty chair, taking the warm mug of tea from one of the four men lounging in his travel home. This quartet was the most powerful of his crew. Hugh could throw a slashing rain and Jon had a form of fire. The other two were only able to zap, but they were both good at it. Erik was able to magnify the gifts around him. “As soon as Mitchel is in sight, we all aim for him. According to the stories we were told, he was banished. They won’t protect him. They don’t understand how important he is.”
“What about the woman and the Ghost?”
Erik shrugged. “Once we kill Mitchel, we’ll take the others captive. You can play with them for a while and then they’ll be reclaimed.”
Outside the tent, a short scream cut off abruptly.
Erik smiled. “Such a beautiful sound.”
Jon handed Erik a packet of dehydrated ice cream to snack on until dinner was ready. As their magnifier, they needed Erik to stay healthy. “We all know Mitchel needs to die, but why are you so insistent that one of us has to do it?”
“I don’t have faith that anyone else can do it.” Erik revealed his fear. “You remember what a pain he was on our team.”
“Sure, but that still doesn’t explain why he wants you more than the rest of us. We all set him up.”
“I did a little more than that after we were sent to different corners of the globe. I’m at the top of his kill list.”
The four men around him scowled. Hugh and Stephen were brothers from Maine, but they hadn’t been home in decades. Dugan and Jon were relics that Erik had rescued from bunkers after the war. All four men were loyal to the point of death.
“Why?”
“I was supposed to bring in one of his kids for lab work. The little bastard didn’t make it.”
“You killed a kid?” Jon wasn’t as evil as the others who turned to him in disapproval.
Erik shrugged. “Feels like anyone else. Never bothers me.”
Under the mess canopy, Michelle struggled to her feet. As usual, she was pregnant and miserable.
Brian watched her go, assuming she needed to use the bathroom again. Michelle had always been around. Nothing had changed for her during his life so far.
Brian had lost his cousin on the train, but unlike the rest of Erik’s group, Brian wasn’t angry and he didn’t care about duty. He was delighted to be the surviving member of his family. They were all evil.
Brian, like Erik’s wife, was very different from the rest of Erik’s group. Tall and blond, he could have been a Mitchel.
Michelle stumbled through the remaining camp of four dozen sprawling, screwing, killing, laughing descendants who no longer had any rules they were required to follow except for Erik’s. She ignored the leers and knowing glances from them, the same as she ignored the rare looks from those who would have helped her. Michelle had given up hope a long time ago. All she wished for now was an easy death.
Michelle stepped behind a boulder and squatted. As she finished and stood up, a man came from the cover of the huge rocks next to her.
Before she could scream for help, Michelle was grabbed and dragged backwards.
2
“Pull over.”
“Are you sure?” Kenn glanced at Angela. “We’re almost there. We should view Safe Haven vehicles within the next few minutes.”
“Yes. I don’t want Conner pulling into camp alone. It will send a bad message.”
Kenn flashed his lights to get Conner’s attention, then pulled the truck over. Before he could arrange security, Angela had already jumped out and slammed the door.
The area where Kenn had pulled over was sparsely populated with tall, moldy trees that shed light showers of snow and cold drops over her as she ran to Conner’s truck. None of the farms appeared to be occupied and all of the fields were bare. If anything had been growing, the refugees who had come through from the west would have stripped it anyway, but it was still depressing.
As Conner got them rolling, Angela spotted movement on the ground near them.
A small line of ants came from the dense undergrowth, presumably in search of food. Angela wanted to order Kenn to run them over, but she held herself in check. She had a schedule to keep, but she wouldn’t forget that the mutations needed to be handled. Until Safe Haven sailed away from America, the Eagles would be using the ants as targets again and dropping bait balls into nests. She would do everything she could to eliminate the mutations. She hoped Pitcairn Island didn’t have that problem and she was determined not to bring any of them along for the cruise.
Kenn was glad that Angela had hurried, but he also had faith in the soldiers that surrounded her. He gave Ivan a wave of approval.
Kenn suddenly wondered what conversational topic she and Conner would have for the last mile of this journey. Whatever it was, the boy would benefit from it. Angela was a lot like Adrian in that way. She liked to prepare people.
In the truck in front of them, Angela was trying to do exactly that. “There’s going to be an official vote tomorrow to lift your banishment, but there�
�s a chance they’ll overrule me.”
Conner fell in behind Kenn’s truck this time, distracted. “Will it go well?”
Angela shrugged. “Depends on Candy.”
“Cool.” Conner grinned, forgetting that he wasn’t supposed to have had contact with her. “She likes me now. It’s all good.”
Tension filled the truck.
Conner glanced over to find Angela glaring at him. Instead of the myriad of excuses that he could have used, Conner sighed. She was miserable and I could sense it hundreds of miles away. He steered around the debris like Kenn was doing, but his mind was in the past. I was in Market Town the first time she called out for help. I knew I wasn’t supposed to answer, but I had to.
“I already knew all that. The problem is that you didn’t think I did. If you’re going to hide shit from me, maybe I should keep you two apart.”
Conner frowned. “If she and I are both willing, what does it matter to you?”
“It’ll hurt your dad.”
Conner realized why Angela was in the truck with him. “You’re not here for me. You’re here for my dad!”
“Of course. I don’t want to hurt him any more than he already will be when the camp reinstates his banishment. You’ll be allowed back into the camp, but everything you do will reflect on him. I want your dad to have another chance in the future and I can’t do that without help.”
Conner relaxed, understanding that he wasn’t in trouble. “I want that too. What can I do?”
“Stay away from Candy.”
Conner became angry. “For how long?”
“As long as it takes her to come to you.”
Conner scoffed. “I can have that tonight.”
“That may be true, but only because you’d be taking advantage of her loneliness or using your gift. If you do it the honorable way, it’ll take time. During that period, the camp will learn to trust you again, your relationship won’t be suspect, and your dad may not pay for any mistakes that you make. That’s a small price for the type of happiness that you two will have together.”
