“Here’s to killing some Breslins.”
“Be careful,” Wyatt could not help but warn his best friend.
“I always am,” Ryker smirked and then was gone.
Wyatt watched the doorway for a few seconds before turning to Dev.
“He’ll be fine,” she stated confidently.
“I hope you’re right,” Wyatt replied quietly, “he has to remain emotionally detached to keep himself alive.”
“You and I both know Ryker understands what he’s doing, better than anyone,” Dev stated as she and Wyatt made their way towards the exit, “he’s just a little excited. I have a feeling though, when it comes time to get down to business, all that joking around and let’s-go-kill-us-some-Breslins will be thrown out the window and he’ll be nothing but precise and professional.”
“I know. I really do. I just worry. We rarely go out separately so all of this just feels a little strange,” Wyatt explained.
Dev wrapped her arm around Wyatt’s waist as they walked.
“He’ll be fine,” she insisted.
Wyatt remained quiet as they walked, deep in thought, his arm draped around Dev’s neck. When they reached the door, Dev turned to him, pulled him close and kissed him long and hard.
“What was that for?” he asked, his head spinning.
“That’s for that moment, when it comes down to me, you and Max, when you remember that he’s all mine and you don’t try to be a hero. You just back off and let me have at him.”
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
The crisp night air was exhilarating after spending hours beneath the city, winding through old and abandoned tunnels full of dust and dirt. Max pushed his way out of the tunnel to come aboveground behind some buildings on 73rd street, close to Central Park and his meeting point with the others.
The tunnels were full of Magicals and Max had been forced to stay well hidden, lest word spread he was in town, but street level did not pose the same problems. If necessary, he could glamour himself, but no one was paying attention to him, so Max walked along easily, as if he had not a care in the world. Turning onto Broadway, he headed uptown to the 79th street entrance of the park.
Max checked his watch. He was two minutes early, just like he preferred. He pulled his hood up over his head and waited, catching sight of Julia first, her walk impossible to mistake and Nona soon afterwards. The girls approached cautiously, quietly, only breaking their cover when they spotted him leaning against the wall.
“Max,” Julia greeted him solemnly.
Max nodded then turned and smiled at Nona, his unrequited crush.
“I didn’t see you at the meeting,” he noted.
Nona smiled broadly, knowing Max had scanned the room several times for her, amused by his schoolboy proclivities.
“And hello to you, Max,” she pulled him into an embrace and whispered in his ear, “don’t worry, I was there. I saw you rally the troops.”
Max laughed as he kissed her cheeks in greeting.
“That wasn’t a bad performance,” she smiled in admiration, “good thing Carter didn’t see it.”
“Good thing for you,” Max laughed lightly, “had he been there, Carter would have had the whole lot of you killed.”
“And tortured,” Nona added with a smirk, “you mustn’t forget the torture.”
Max grinned and pulled her close, kissing her forehead affectionately.
“We should get going,” Julia interrupted them, pointing at her watch, “the others will be in position soon.”
Nona frowned at the too-serious warrior, but agreed it was time to make a move.
“I still can’t believe you’re not in the group attacking The Academy,” Nona commented as they entered the park.
“Had I not found the portal, I would have been,” Max explained.
“What portal?” Julia asked.
“The portal the hybrid used when I almost killed her,” Max lied, “it’s how she landed here in the first place and she’ll probably try to use it again to escape once we attack. That’s when I intend to end her very short, worthless life.”
“Assuming she returns,” Nona replied. “Seems a rather obvious escape route, no?”
“No,” Max bristled at Nona’s criticism of his plan, “it’s not obvious at all. It took me months to find this portal, it’s so well-hidden and rarely used. For all I know, she doesn’t even know it exists.”
“Well, let’s not hope that’s the case, Max,” Nona patronized him as she turned on the path and headed for her meeting point, “lest we wait here all night for nothing.”
Max ignored her comment as he watched her head up the hill and away from him.
“Be safe,” he called to her.
Nona turned around and smiled as she pulled her hoodie over her head and disappeared into her surroundings.
“As always, love.”
And then she was gone.
Without a word, Julia started walking in the other direction then turned and disappeared into the woods. Max jogged to catch up to her, checked his watch one last time and then disappeared into the woods as well, leaving behind nothing but the late-night quiet.
“Can you reach out and feel him?” Wyatt whispered to Dev as they crept along the rooftops.
She shook her head.
“I’m not that good at it. It would take me forever to find his energy.”
“Are you picking up anything strange?” he asked.
“Uh-uh. It makes me too tired,” she explained, “so I just tune it out.”
“Some good you are,” Wyatt joked.
“Totally worthless, I know.”
“What about Jools?” he asked, “what’s her deal?”
Dev took a couple of steps and jumped to the next roof across the street.
“Show off,” Wyatt called to her before he followed suit, taking a running start to make the leap, landing next to her.
"Jools' deal," Dev continued as they made their way uptown, "is that she has an overactive sixth sense that she would like to keep hidden from folks."
"Kind of like my dad?" Wyatt asked.
"Far more advanced," Dev corrected, "which is what scares her."
Wyatt walked along quietly, thinking about his little sister's quirks, petty jealousies and outright petulance. It was what made her who she was, or at least so he thought. Never once did Wyatt think to look beneath the surface and see what made Jools tick.
He would bet a million dollars Ryker had known her secret for years.
"Dev," Wyatt suddenly stopped walking.
She turned back to find him standing stock still in the middle of the roof. Each of Dev's senses was suddenly on high alert.
"What?" she asked as she scanned the rooftops.
Wyatt approached her, the wheels of his mind spinning at a frantic pace.
"Jools would be able to sense Max, right? She's powerful enough, isn't she?"
The few times Dev had touched Jools, she had been surprised by the power flowing through her, unchecked and wild.
"Absolutely," Dev replied, "easily."
"Unbelievable!" Wyatt exclaimed.
"What?" Dev asked, unable to follow his train of thought.
"Ryker knows what Jools can do, he's probably known forever. That's why the two of them wanted to be stationed in the park. They're headed straight for Max."
“No,” Dev shook her head, “no way.”
“I know Ryker better than anyone,” Wyatt insisted, “so trust me, this plan has his name written all over it. He used Jools’ abilities to find Max before either of us do to make sure he’s the only one in harm’s way.”
“Your sister would never let him do that.”
“My sister is in on it,” Wyatt shot back.
Dev stood there, thinking through Wyatt’s theory, wondering why she didn’t realize it herself. It made perfect sense: Ryker and Jools would go to extreme lengths to keep Wyatt safe, especially after everything Wyatt had done for Ryker over the years and Wyatt’s recen
t attack by the werewolf.
"We have to get to the park," Wyatt started running along the rooftops, "now!"
Dev caught up to Wyatt and the two raced uptown, practically flying over the rooftops, quickly forgetting the original plan to scope out attacks as they made their way uptown and report them back to Josiah.
Standing atop the Dakota, looking out over the park, Wyatt caught his breath and waited for Dev.
“Wyatt Clayworth and the pretty thing from the subway tunnels,” an unfamiliar voice whispered in the darkness.
Dev pulled out her blade and searched the night, her eyes finally coming to rest on a vampire seated atop the highest point of the roof, looking down on them with lazy amusement.
“Darvin,” Wyatt hissed, “what the hell?”
"You shouldn't curse, Wyatt," the vampire admonished the warrior, "it's quite beneath you."
"You shouldn't sneak up on people," Wyatt retorted irritatedly, “and you should answer my question."
"The one so pleasantly presented to me?" Darvin asked with a bored look on his face.
"I don't have time for this crap," Wyatt waved off the vampire and headed for the edge of the roof, Dev following close behind.
"I saw Ryker," Darvin trailed off, providing nothing more.
Wyatt quickly scanned the jump from the roof to the park and decided he much preferred scaling down the face of the building over the giant leap.
"I'm sure you did."
Darvin slunk down from his perch, lingering near Dev and Wyatt, but also keeping his distance. Dev sensed he was a bit wary of Wyatt.
“He was with that stunning sister of yours,” Darvin added.
“You shouldn’t be thinking about my sister,” Wyatt warned as he continued scanning the street below, “I won’t tell you that again, Darvin. Next time I’ll just kill you.”
Darvin shook his head sadly.
“Darby would not like you speaking to me in such a manner,” Darvin quietly hissed, almost sounding menacing.
And just like that, Wyatt sprang. One second he was at the edge of the roof, the next he was on top of Darvin, pinning the vampire to the ground, his hands around Darvin’s neck.
“I’ve asked you politely several times not to speak of my sister and each time, you’ve ignored me. I’m starting to feel like you might think I’m a joke or something.”
Dev tapped Wyatt on the shoulder, wondering what exactly he was doing.
“Hold on, Dev,” Wyatt waved her away as he released the vampire, “Darvin and I have some unfinished business, don’t we Darvin?”
Darvin rubbed his neck, looking bored all the while.
“Wyatt, you should just kill me and get it over with,” Darvin suggested as he stood and dusted himself off, “or are you scared of what Darby would do if she knew you hurt her favorite child?”
“You should just stop talking about Jools and we’ll be good,” Wyatt replied as he walked to the edge of the roof and stood next to Dev, ignoring Darvin’s comment about Darby.
“I should,” Darvin agreed, “and I will...one day.”
Wyatt stepped towards Darvin, but Dev pulled him back to her.
“Seriously?” Dev asked irritatedly, “really?”
“At least it has more sense than you do, Wyatt,” Darvin snickered.
Dev spun around and faced the vampire, remembering very quickly the many reasons she hated his kind.
“Shut up, Darvin, before I kill you myself!”
Then they heard it. The unmistakable sound of blade on blade, steel meeting steel. Wyatt flung himself over the side of the roof and began scaling down the front of the building, neither bothering to glamour himself nor caring whether anyone saw him. Dev watched him from the rooftop for a few seconds, saw him land on the sidewalk and head across the street for the park. She took a few steps back to get a running start, only to be stopped by Darvin.
“They’re in the twenty-first quadrant of the park,” he stated flatly.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Dev replied.
“You don’t,” Darvin agreed, “but Wyatt will.”
Darvin returned to his perch while Dev took a running start, leapt into the air and landed in the park. Wyatt came running up behind her and the two headed deeper into the woods, towards the sound of the battle.
“Darvin said they’re in quadrant twenty-one.”
“Darvin is a class A liar,” Wyatt sneered.
“One day you must promise to tell me all about him,” Dev insisted, “he annoys you so.”
“Suffice to say I should have killed him when I had the chance,” Wyatt stated with finality.
“But you didn’t because of Darby?”
“One of the many things I haven’t done because of Darby,” he replied as he turned to head north, “quadrant twenty-one is this way.”
“I thought you said Darvin is a liar?” Dev asked.
“But one obsessed with Jools,” Wyatt replied then brought his finger to his lips for Dev to be quiet.
They moved into the woods as several voices could be heard headed in their direction. Wyatt unsheathed his sword and held Odara in his other hand; Dev held a short Raven blade in each hand. Neither said a word as they waited for the group to near. Inspecting the area around her as she waited, Dev sighted a path towards her right that appeared to loop back and would enable them to attack the group from behind. She kicked Wyatt’s foot and signaled for him to follow her. They walked silently for about thirty feet and as suspected, came out directly behind the group of Sanctum. It was almost too perfect. She and Wyatt crept up behind the group and attacked without warning.
There were seven warriors in total, spread along the path in a loose formation, fresh from a battle, their guard down. Dev and Wyatt decimated them in no time at all. While Dev cleaned her blades, Wyatt inspected the bodies.
“These are Sanctum from all over, not just London,” Wyatt stated with a bit of surprise.
“Breslin must have called in all his favors,” Dev replied as she headed back into the woods, “come on, Wyatt.”
He finished cleaning his sword and ran to catch up to Dev, taking the lead to guide them in the proper direction. Neither spoke as they came upon another group of Sanctum, well-hidden but heard by Dev. She and Wyatt climbed a tree to better see the group and Dev pointed out each of their hiding places. There were five in total, but they were fairly spread apart and attacking them would be an undertaking. Wyatt pointed to a tall warrior with short, dark hair, the apparent leader of the group.
“That’s Nona Gaston,” Wyatt whispered, “Max’s unrequited love. Which means he’s somewhere close by.”
They returned to the ground and spread apart, enabling them to come at the group from two sides. Wyatt counted them down and then they sprang, Dev landing on a warrior and slicing her throat before she even realized what was happening and Wyatt beheading one Sanctum while gutting the other hiding nearby.
Nona caught sight of Dev and smiled as she approached.
“Max will be so disappointed when he learns that I killed you,” Nona laughed.
Dev said nothing, just continued moving towards Nona while out of the corner of her eye, she saw Wyatt battling the last Sanctum of the group.
“Cat got your tongue, love? Or do hybrids not come with one?”
Dev sprang at Nona, slicing her blades through the air, moving with lightning speed. Nona anticipated the strike perfectly and managed to land a blow to Dev’s arm, slicing open her shoulder. Dev screamed in pain and reached back to slice at Nona from the left, but Nona parried the blow with her sword and circled back around to come at Dev with quick, short blows. None of them landed, but she was pushing Dev deeper into the woods. Her arm was bleeding profusely, the blood making her fingers slippery on the blade. Falling backwards over a downed tree, Dev provided Nona the perfect opportunity to pounce and land on top of her. Nona pinned Dev’s arms to the ground, grinding her knee into Dev’s shoulder wound as she sliced Dev’s cheek open
and listened to her scream.
“Hopefully Max heard that,” Nona grinned.
With all of her strength, Dev brought her legs up behind Nona, wrapped them around the girl’s neck and swung them back to the ground, forcing Nona off her. Dev grabbed her blades and before Nona could recover, landed on her, both blades slicing deep into the girl’s chest. Nona’s eyes widened in surprise and her mouth filled with blood as the poison from the blades quickly spread throughout her body.
“Hopefully Max heard that,” Dev sneered as she removed her blades and stood over the dead warrior.
Wyatt came up from behind her and touched her arm.
“You ready?” he asked, then hesitated when he saw Dev’s face.
“Don’t do it, Wyatt,” Dev warned, “I am fine.”
“I didn’t say a word,” Wyatt defended himself as he studied her face and shoulder.
“You didn’t have to,” Dev replied, “just stop staring and let’s go. Max is here somewhere, Nona said as much.”
“Head back that way,” Wyatt pointed due south, “there’s a path about forty yards from here that leads to the twenties.”
“The twenties?” Dev asked as she walked.
“The quadrants in the twenties,” Wyatt explained then suddenly quieted, pointing in the distance, “look down that hill to the right.”
Dev followed his finger and searched the darkness, coming to rest on a silhouette that could only belong to Ryker.
“Should I even ask how you found him?” she wondered aloud.
“I could find him anywhere,” Wyatt replied cryptically as he headed towards his best friend.
Dev followed close behind as they raced through the woods, nearing the place she first entered Wyatt’s life.
"Wyatt," Dev called to him as he wove through the woods.
He stopped and waited for her.
"Ryker is standing almost exactly where I exited the portal," she noted, "isn't that odd?"
Wyatt studied his friend for a minute, noting slashes across his chest and face and that Ryker was missing one of his swords.
"What's odd is that my sister is nowhere in sight," Wyatt replied.
Dev scanned the area and sure enough, Jools was not to be found.
Book One: The Girl (The Sanctum) Page 32
