Panic floods my heart. I yell at Kroll to stop. He doesn’t hear me until I step on his toes and wrap both arms around his right forearm.
“Don’t kill him,” I plead with my constricted throat.
Kroll comes to a halt. His eyes meet mine but his mind is not all there yet. I nod to reassure him. He’s running high on adrenaline or whatever is it that gives Sliman their swift, instinctive reactions.
The next moment, Eric attacks Kroll. I can barely believe my eyes. He actually thinks he can take on Kroll. Not many men have lived long after having such an unwise thought.
They roll together on the ground. When Kroll pins Eric down, I have no option but to jump on Kroll’s back to get him to disengage. The vicious side of his brain is too strong. I decide to play the alien bride card. I grab the skin on the back of his neck and yell out the secret code that binds him to me.
The shock has immediate effect. Kroll backs off Eric reaching for the pulse gun in his back pocket.
“That won’t be necessary,” I hiss at him kneeling down next to Eric. The poor man’s face is all bloodied. I’m worried he might have a broken nose, but he seems unharmed otherwise. He sits up fine on his own. He’s stronger than I would have expected.
“I’m sorry about that,” I say. “That happens when someone grabs me.”
Eric’s wild eyes stay focused on Kroll. “What is that?” he says.
“That’s… that’s my friend, Kroll. He’s my bodyguard.”
Kroll’s thoughts are so loud I can almost hear them. He’s growling and cursing inside his brain but so be it. He has to re-learn how to obey.
“It’s not human,” Eric says.
“Not so much. But he’s good at what he does.”
Frustration brings tears of exhaustion to my eyes. I was so close to earning Eric’s trust, so close to showing him there are still reasons to fight left in the world.
“I’m sorry about before,” Eric says climbing to his feet.
I reach inside my backpack and hand him an antiseptic patch. “You should clean your face with this,” I say. “I could do it if you’d let me.”
He doesn’t respond nor does he show any sign that he even heard my offer. I decide to start cleaning his face. I gently feel his nose with my fingertips to make sure it’s not broken.
“I reacted instinctively,” Eric says. “I lost myself and forgot you were there. I thought I was alone.”
“You’ve been attacked before?” I ask.
“Something like that.”
“We understand,” I say, stealing a glance at Kroll who’s watching us with a grim expression on his face. “We live on the edge of our nerves, too. Kroll overreacted but he’s sworn to protect me.”
“Kroll?”
“The big guy’s Kroll, yes.”
Eric looks so miserable I feel sorry for him. “When you grabbed my shoulder, it triggered something in me. Something I don’t want to discuss.”
“We all have bad memories, Eric. Really, it’s okay.”
He nods. “He is a Sliman,” he says pointing at Kroll. “Although I’ve never seen any quite like him.”
“Kroll is special.”
“That I can see. And you say he serves you?”
“It’s not quite like that,” I say, trying to keep this as dignified as possible for Kroll. “I’ll understand if you don’t want to accompany us any further.”
“No, I want to go with you,” he says. “I want you to tell me more.”
It’s agreed. We return to the descent with Eric leading the way. Kroll pulls me back. “Are you okay?”
“I’m perfectly fine, Kroll. And you know I can defend myself if need be.”
“It didn’t look that way.”
“You are not to harm Eric.”
He furrows his brow. “If you think that I blame him, you’d be mistaken.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“If I were him, I would have strangled you long ago.”
“What a sweet thing to say,” I say with a wink.
“You could annoy the dead,” Kroll continues.
“You’re not exactly a charmer yourself.” Even as I say the words, I know he’s right. I’ve been firing questions at Eric since I met him even though it’s clear he hates questions. My stubbornness is not my best quality.
We reach the bluff that overlooks the Grain Village in the late afternoon. A stiff wind helps battle the humidity. I search for my binoculars in my backpack when I remember that Eric snatched them away from me on this very spot two days ago.
I glance at Eric’s bruised face trying to determine whether it’d be a good idea to ask for my binoculars back.
“Looking for these?” he says with the binoculars already in his hand.
“Actually, yes, thank you.”
My heart stops when I look through the binoculars. Among a group of villagers I notice a small woman with her hair pulled back clumsily, carrying a heavy bucket of water. Her gait is unsteady and her shoulders hunched.
She has aged a lot more than she should have in eleven years.
Eleven years. I repeat the number to myself to make it believable. I was seven years old the last time I saw her and life has not been kind to either one of us in the meantime.
I close my eyes tight trying to imagine her like I have been for years, as the young woman she was when I left her. I want to run down the hill and take her in my arms fully knowing she would not recognize me.
Even if she did, she’d probably not care. Her mind has been shattered into fragments. I want to hold her anyway and tell her not a day has gone by that I haven’t thought of her.
Eric senses my distress. He places his hand on mine and takes the binoculars. “Who is she?” he says.
“My mother,” I whisper.
Eric considers my words. “You were born in this village?”
I nod. “They won’t remember me.”
“Is this why you’re here?”
“I don’t know why I’m here.”
“I think you do,” he says. “She’s gone now.”
Kroll grunts slightly. I take one look at him and know he’s about to give me a piece of his mind. “Not now, Kroll,” I say.
“You have to wait for the right moment to get her out of there,” Eric says.
“The thought never crossed my mind, Eric.”
“Really?” Kroll says.
“Yes, really. I can’t do it. I know that, Kroll. I can’t let them know I was here. Not before we find Rabbit and Scout anyway.”
I expect an avalanche of questions from Eric but they don’t materialize.
“I need to see things with my own eyes,” he says staring intensely into the distant encampment.
“You mean the village?”
He turns his stare on me. “I mean your world.”
I make up my mind fast. “Then come with us. Our worlds should meet, you’re right. And we should fight together. You’re a fighter. I can tell that. Kroll knows it, too.”
I have a fear Kroll will voice his disagreement but he remains quiet.
“I fight only when it’s useful,” Eric says.
His predictability has become amusing. I hide the fact that I enjoy it.
“He fights only for himself,” Kroll observes.
“At least I’m not anyone’s dog,” Eric says.
The two brutes face off.
“Good,” I say making light of their tough guy moment. “Now save some of that for the real enemy. We’re going to need every bit of your bad moods.”
“I’ll go,” Eric says breaking free of his staring contest with Kroll. “Marisa will go as well.”
“Marisa?” I repeat as I remember the young woman with the worried eyes. “Do you think she would be up for this?”
“She will go,” he says handing me back my binoculars.
I see Kroll clench his fists. Eric’s bossy manner is an acquired taste.
13
The shock of bringing Eric and Mari
sa to Spring Town won’t quiet down for a while. A lot of questions and assumptions are made within the first ten minutes of our arrival and even though everyone’s pretty much astonished, the reaction that interests me the most is that of Dom.
He’s been a part of several confidential Exodus meetings and knows all there is to know about present and past on Earth. His controlled manner and pursed lips at the sight of my guests set various alarms on in my head, the main of which is that Exodus has not been in the dark about the existence of free humans on Earth after the invasion. Far from it. They’ve probably been monitoring the situation since the beginning and they never bothered to let us in on the secret.
Finn makes his disapproval of my actions clear when we meet in private after we’ve exhausted all introductions and explanations. Eric and Marisa have been taken to the guest rooms to rest.
“You just can’t follow your own rules, can you, Tick?”
“What rules are you talking about?” I say batting my eyelashes.
Finn is unfazed. “What did you hope to find?”
“Hope isn’t what drives me these days, Finn.”
We sit down opposite of each other. Finn takes out his stress ball and starts practicing finger-strengthening exercises. “What does drive you then?”
It’s kind of embarrassing to admit that I don’t know. “Rules were made to be broken,” I say.
Finn laughs. “You mean records. Records were made to be broken.”
“Whatever,” I say. “Okay, then how about this. There’s an exception to every rule. Is that better?”
“Barely,” he says. “The problem is that you find an exception every time to every rule. Exceptions are supposed to be very rare.”
“Are you saying finding free humans roaming the mountaintop is an everyday thing?”
“It’s all a little too convenient,” Finn says.
“Always suspicious Finn,” I say.
“Always naïve Freya,” he says.
We smile to each other knowing neither of us will back down.
“Has there been any word from Exodus regarding Daphne?” I ask.
“No, Damian did not try to get in touch with you while you were gone.”
His answer worries me. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Sure it wasn’t,” Finn says. “You don’t have to put up a front. I know you have your doubts about Daphne.”
“I wouldn’t call them doubts.”
“Why? I do. I have major doubts and I am sure Damian does, too. He just wants to give her the benefit of the doubt.”
“Really? Because whenever he looks at her it’s like he can’t hear or see anyone else. He’s not healed yet, Finn. He’s damaged.”
“Tick, I’d be worried if he wasn’t damaged. Give him some time.”
“Time is the one thing we don’t have. To be honest, I’m kind of blown away to hear you defend him. That’s new.”
“You’re right. And I don’t plan to make a habit of it.”
I smile but I know Finn. His heart is always in the right place even if that means defending Damian. It’s a gift and a curse that he can always excuse people’s flaws. He’s done it with me so much I wonder if excusing my many flaws over the years is how he developed the talent.
As the noon siren calls out for the lunch gathering, Zoe steps in the room holding a beaming touchpad. She keys in a few words before putting it away.
“Finn,” she says, “you never filled out the paperwork last night. You were in charge of security, right?”
Finn nods as he takes out his touchpad. He scrolls down a list of data to get to the right spot.
“Why do we still bother with paperwork?” I blurt out. “Who benefits?”
Zoe shrugs. “The cloud huggers like to have everything recorded.”
“Yeah, but this is not Exodus,” I remind her. “We should all be training.”
Finn gives me a curious look. “All?”
“Yeah, the older children, too. They should be able to defend themselves.”
“Isn’t it a little late for that?” Zoe says. “It looks like it won’t be long before we’re under attack again.”
“It’s better than doing nothing,” I say.
“Yeah, why not?” Finn says. “It will keep them occupied. Someone will need to coordinate the training.”
“How about you?” I suggest.
Finn shakes his head. “Not me. I need to worry about my own training. Pick someone from the Dark Legion. Better yet, Exodus.”
“Go file that paperwork,” Zoe urges Finn.
When he steps out, Zoe eyes me with concern. She pulls her hair back and then lets it hang down again.
“What’s up?” I say. “Why did you want him to leave?”
“I don’t know. I honestly don’t,” she says as she plops down on a chair.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m a mess, Freya. I feel like I’ve lost my way. And my mind.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean.”
Zoe’s eyes turn darker. “No, I really don’t think you do.”
I put my arms around her shoulders. “You’ve been through a terrible ordeal. First with Joshua, now with Daphne. It’s emotional overload. You don’t have to be brave about it.”
She lets out a sigh. “I’ve been spending a lot of time with Finn.”
“Yes? You guys have been working together? That’s good. Finn can certainly make you feel better. He’s good at bringing out the best in people.”
Zoe considers my words. “You’re right,” she says. “Listen, I feel stupid for even suggesting it but I think I’m beginning to like Finn.”
“I thought you always did, Zoe.”
She lowers her eyes. “I don’t know why I’m doing this to myself.” She stops to take a deep breath. “I shouldn’t be telling you this.”
It finally hits me. Zoe’s trying to tell me she’s starting to like Finn in a new way. I’m not sure how I feel about her revelation.
“Never mind,” Zoe says when she notices my hesitation. “It’s probably just misplaced feelings. I had a chance at love with Joshua and now that he’s gone, I don’t know how to go back to who I was before I met him.”
“You don’t have to go back, Zoe. You’ve changed. You’ve grown. That’s a good thing. And you don’t have to explain yourself either. Not to me. But you can’t forget that Finn is with someone.”
Zoe smiles. “It’s not Ella I’m worried about.”
“Don’t even go there,” I say hastily.
“You know it’s true. He’d come running if you asked him.”
“We’re beyond that, Zoe. Finn and I are at a good place as friends.”
“If you say so.”
Her stubbornness irritates me. It should be her feelings we examine, not mine. “Yeah, I say so.”
“Well, then will you tell me what you think?”
“I think we should go outside,” I say. “We need some fresh air.”
As we walk out the door, my touchpad beeps.
“We have visitors,” Theo says frantically. “Come to the control room.”
Zoe and I glance at each other and dash straight over to HQ.
We find Theo hunched over the main console.
“What visitors, Theo?” I ask.
“Looks like bombers,” he says.
“In the middle of the day?” Zoe says in disbelief.
“They’re playing with us again,” I say through my clenched teeth.
“Time to hit the alarm,” Theo suggests.
It takes a moment to make up my mind. “No, don’t,” I say. “I’ll strike first. I’m tired of their games.”
“What do you mean?” Zoe says.
“Let’s get a cart. We’ll meet them before they approach the town.”
Theo reads my mind. “You need to slow down. You don’t have to do everything yourself, Freya.”
“I will. Right after this last thing.”
We get to the gate and keep going until two d
rones are clearly visible in the sky. They move slowly as usual giving me time to put my plan in motion.
“Is it just the two of them?” I ask Theo.
“From what I can see, yes,” he confirms.
I rub my hands together to create a small purple shield around Theo, Zoe and me. That should keep us off their sensors.
“When they get within shooting range, I will attack them,” I tell my friends. “You’ve seen me do it before with a receptor.”
“It never ended well,” Zoe says.
She’s right but I’m done questioning myself and my decisions. I’ve done plenty of that. Now it’s time for action.
“By all means, I should be dead a thousand times,” I say. “I’m alive because I’m not that easy to kill. I need you guys to trust me.”
“We do,” Theo says, stealing hopeful glances at Zoe seeking her approval.
“Do what you have to do,” she says giving me her blessing.
“Thirty more seconds,” Theo says with his eyes glued on his touchpad.
I close my eyes. I feel waves of energy rippling through my body. “You might have to physically support me,” I warn my friends as a blue energy field is forming furiously in my hands.
I can feel that my energy is stable. More so than ever before since I discovered the force within my cells.
“Now,” Theo yells.
I drop the shield and launch my energy blasts toward the sky.
“Just like old times,” I whisper as I strike one of the drones out of the sky. The craft spins downward out of control and crashes with a deafening bang. Flames burst instantly up from the crash site.
That I did not foresee. So far, all drones I’ve hit have exploded in the sky and splintered into thousands of small pieces before hitting the ground.
“Call Dom!” I yell to Zoe. “We’ll need to put that fire out.”
My full attention now goes to the second drone which swerves swiftly back to avoid conflict. But I’m too pumped up on adrenaline to allow that to happen. In an ultimate effort, I concentrate all the power in me to turn it into a sizzling red ball of energy.
rise of the saviors Page 10
