by Aral Bereux
Pussy whipped!
The voice in his head circled him like a vulture to its prey. Indeed, he agreed, he didn’t want the proverbial genie unleashed just yet. He needed to keep calm or Julianna would bolt as quick as her legs would carry her, something he couldn’t risk happening, or he’d answer to a lot of people higher than him on the food chain.
The risk of the noc escaping was slim. The bounds he had fastened around his wrists, down to his ankles and back again had the noc doubled up. Only a Houdini of the preternatural world would get out of something so carefully constructed. Caden agonized over the unconscious body for a long time before he left it alone.
He crouched to study the restraints security. The breeze stirred the smell of a rotting corpse into his face, forcing him to turn away gagging. He watched the water, holding down what little food he’d had before taking in another deep breath.
He leaned in again, to check the tautness of the rope a final time. The bullet wound in the noc’s shoulder festered in yellow tendrils of pus, stretching thickly in strings across the gaping hole. It was where the bulk of the offending odor came; blocking further blood from leaching its way out.
His hand hovered over his sidearm. The dying state of the prisoner wasn’t lost on him. But not for a moment did he regret his action with the gun. Rather, he found his regret rested with his lack of control over Julianna’s insistence on taking the prisoner. She went against his command, and he let her. This gave the voices in his mind a platform. The Militia intelligence she had hidden was his oversight, too. He wondered what other secrets she held in the corner of her mind, where he was unable to reach. Master watcher that he was, reading a Seer was always difficult – Julianna was downright impossible.
The breeze swirled again, taking the thought, to replace it with the smell of putrefying flesh. Caden grimaced under his held breath. The bounds were secure, but a noc’s nature was difficult to restrain. Clever and resourceful creature’s, much like himself, they were also vicious. A noc was not the right captive, injured or not, when they were already running from the Militia.
Pussy whipped, face it. She has you under her spell.
Julianna’s whimper bounced along the cave walls and distracted him from the creature.
Caden watched her huddle into the embrace of a man she had feared days before, nodding to his gentle whispers lapping deep within her mind, reassuring her, settling her fists which pushed against his chest. Julianna’s fever was her saving grace. Caden’s anger rose again.
Damn reckless girl; wait ‘til you’ve got your health back again, then we’ll see who commands this damn camp!
Caden pushed up from his crouch, yet his conscience nagged him, what little he had. He jumped the small crevice running through the rock, stepping carefully over the uneven surface worn from age and water, to stand beside them.
Bas glanced up from cradling Julianna. ‘Her fever’s raging.’
Caden watched her curl further into Bastiaan’s arms, talking to ghosts not there, and crying quietly.
‘Without medical supplies…we need to move into the next town and scavenge.’
Bas frowned. ‘The next town’s fifty miles away. She can’t ride out. We barely made it here.’
‘Danny and Devo, they’ve rested. They can do the trip.’ He knelt down. ‘Here, hold her for me.’
Caden raised the bottle above her head, gently tipping water over her thick, dark tangle of hair. She relaxed into its cool shower and Bas’s large hand wiping her face.
‘Better Jay?’ Caden asked.
Julianna nodded for more and Caden obliged.
‘Even if they moved out now, if they manage to find anything…if the Militia isn’t crawling over these parts by now…’
Bas wiped her face again. She chewed at her cracked lips, not stopping until a trickle of blood seeped from the cut. The sting shocked her eyes open. Bas laid her down in the blankets while Caden put his wetted fingers to her lips to wipe the dribble of blood.
‘If you’re not comfortable with Devo riding out, I’ll go with Danny myself.’
Caden found himself watching Julianna settle into a restless slumber beside him. He tipped more water over his fingers and wet her lips again.
‘With no sleep? You’ll kill each other before you hit the interstate,’ Bas said, eyes rolling in disagreement.
His brother was right. The thought of sleep made his eyes heavy. Caden felt the thick stubble growing on his face with a frustrated hand. The thought of riding out and leaving her bothered him. Bas knew a few things, but he wasn’t medically trained, not like him.
Caden touched her cheek and she pressed into his palm.
‘You’re right,’ Caden said. ‘I need to stay.’
‘She feels safe with you. You owe it to her and Isis. He’ll want the details on this.’
Isis? He forgot about his fearless leader. The thought stunned him.
‘Yeah, if we can ever contact him. Damn comms are useless now, and if we managed to get it working, every man in the new world order would monitor our conversations. They’d be taking notes and shutting us down.’
Bas nodded quietly.
‘I’m ranting I know, but fuck it. We’re in a hell of a position right now. Everyone’s after us.’ Caden rubbed his hand over his chin stubble again. His hand felt hot from her cheek. ‘I’m not used to this, Bastiaan. Remember when we did the hunting?’
‘We’re no longer Militia, my brother. We made our choice. I think it was the right one, don’t you?’
Caden frowned at the girl sleeping gently in her makeshift bed of blankets. Of course I do, the Old Council is redundant. Old values abandoned for the need to rule under false pretense, factions divided – what I spent years attaining, but still…the nagging in his mind – maybe some of the Militia ideals were right.
I could be mistaken—
‘Caden?’ she called.
The louder voices in his mind abandoned him for her pleading whisper. ‘Right here, J Rae.’
‘I’m dying, aren’t I?’
You were dying last night, Julianna. When Taris stabbed you, over, and, over again. Then I healed you, and I saved you, and we fought together again—
‘Am I?’
‘No.’ he lowered from his knees to spread his long legs on the damp, uneven rock. He tightened the thin blanket over her chest. ‘Talking stupid talk, girl. You have a bad fever, makes it feel like you are.’
Bas ambled for the corner, where the remaining two of their camp were woken. The mission was given in a hushed whisper. They nodded in Julianna’s direction, with the whole she’s done for look. Caden glanced down at Julianna, following their stare. She’d settled against his leg, resting her hand around his thigh, with her cheek pressed close. Her eyes were open and staring into the space around her.
She’s listening.
He tipped more water into his hands and stroked her face, cooling her skin. Julianna looked up weakly to meet his eyes. He winked, nodding to her before breaking their connection, to watch the others prepare for their ride out.
Daniel pulled his boots on while Devo checked and holstered her Glock and hunting knife. Bas counted extra ammunition for them to take.
‘What do you need?’ Daniel asked. He checked his spare magazine clip and walked over to stare at Julianna.
‘Anything you can get your hands on,’ Caden said. ‘Anything that’ll fight this infection and fever.’
Daniel squatted on his haunches. ‘How long’s she got?’
Caden pursed his lips. ‘Just be quick.’
‘As quick as can be,’ Daniel said.
Caden was dubious, but it was Daniel’s sister after all. Maybe this one counted for the man. They lingered in each other’s stare, eyeballing the other, until Devo broke their tension from her call at the narrow gap on the ledge, where the water didn’t flow.
Caden put the bottle to Julianna’s lips but she didn’t drink, and even when Bas tipped her head to help, she refused.
Daniel stopped at the ledge. ‘If we’re not back by morning—’
Caden nodded, his focus rested on Julianna. ‘Can’t afford to screw this up, Danny.’
Devo slipped over the edge. He nodded and jumped the ledge after her. A low rumbling broke through the crashing of the water, filling the cave chambers with the bikes engines speeding along the dirt track to the interstate.
Caden wet her lips with his fingertips; it was enough to coax her to the water again. She drank a dribble, with the rest running against tight lips.
‘What now?’ Bas helped him rub more water over her face and arms.
She stirred.
Caden’s worried eyes met with Bastiaan’s frown. ‘We can only do one thing. We wait.’
CHAPTER 2
3rd May, 2018, 0010 hours.
West side, in-country
Taris lifted the burnt scrambler from the spent fire. Its tarnished silver still glinted in the brightness of the headlights, but the leather was no longer attached, burnt beyond recognition in the pit he stood near. He kicked at the charcoal dust with his boot, thinking, contemplating, looking out, and searching the rustle of the trees as the breeze curled around them with its frost. It was about to rain.
The camp was lived in, how many he couldn’t tell, but someone was injured too. The blood pooled under the tree was wet, it wasn’t a mere scratch this person had suffered, and he hoped Julianna was the one injured. This made all good sense to him. They were rushed in leaving, one or more of the camp was bleeding out, they were panicked, and when people panic, they make mistakes.
He basked in the glow of the headlights, cutting through the darkness in yellow streaks, with the thought still dancing in his mind. The fine spattering of rain swirled, like dust bunnies on the air, trailing the light, until they disappeared again in the black wilderness. From the corner of his eye, a patrol officer reported the campsite abandoned.
Taris pivoted where he stood, listening, and nodding his head, searching for any trace to contradict the report, knowing the fugitives they hunted were well and truly gone. The IDM had served its purpose though; the tracker had brought them close enough that Julianna’s scent was still fresh.
‘They could head for the next town. It’s empty, a few wild prets out there, but shelter…there’s shelter and—’
Taris dismissed the patrol’s suggestion. ‘No, they’re creatures of habit. They’ll run for the trees.’
Other soldiers huddled around the first of a line of Jeeps single filed along the dirt track. A map was laid out on the bonnet with their torches shining over it. They discussed its patterns, deciding the strategy they would next take.
Taris watched on, as he thought about the bitch. The uncontrollable, back answering, traitor bitch, who he used to call honey. He chewed his bottom lip where a small cut stung. He’d given in and healed his own black eye when it started to close up, but he left the cut.
Damn whore-bitch!
He joined his squad; the Jeep’s engine still radiated a little warmth in the bitter night.
‘Give me landmarks,’ Taris demanded. He leaned over the map himself, tracing the main interstate with his finger. ‘Caves, valleys, small towns, lakes…’
His finger stopped tracing to start tapping. The grin spread wide across his face.
‘Commander?’ the patrol questioned.
‘Have a team assemble for the township east of here. We’ll set blockades on the highway – one to the east and one to the west of the location surrounding Devils Canyon.’ He tapped the map again. ‘They’re in there, somewhere.’
‘Yes, Sir.’ The patrol in charge of communications moved away from the wind’s path to radio in their next position.
Taris closed his eyes. The breeze carried the smell of rain across to the east, greeting his senses.
‘Everyone’s on this. I want the HSD, the drones, every soldier on duty and off. These monsters killed your comrades in cold-blood. Don’t you men fucking forget it.’ He flicked his eyes open to the thunder rolling in the distance, in time to see the sheet of lightening illuminate the night sky.
‘The canine unit, commander?’ the patrol officer held the radio to his ears, listening to the response from base command. ‘They want to know if we need the dogs.’
Taris studied the map. The system of caves, the lake, the river, it was all close to the interstate, but far enough to hide, and only thirty miles from the bloodbath they left behind.
‘Everyone!’ he snapped. ‘Make sure the dogs have collar trackers. Any congregation of the pack can be investigated with the drones first. I’m not losing more men to these pricks.’
The radio hissed back at him with storm interference, and the skies opened a deluge of rain over them, dumping it in thick slants of running water. Taris grimaced again, and rolled his eyes. The only thing warming his heart tonight was the thought of Caden out in the open and in the rain too, bleeding, hurting, and hopefully panicking. He reveled in the moment, playing out the scenarios before him, as he walked through the thick mud to the Jeep waiting.
‘Commander?’ the patrol with the radio called him.
The door of the Jeep creaked open. Taris’s boots laden with fresh mud weighed him down as he leveraged himself into the passenger seat. He waited for the radio to stop hissing while he scraped the thick mud from his boots along the edge of the door. Mud dropped off in chunks. The Jeep started, and the maps were being folded away.
He honed into the frequency Julianna was offering, but all he sensed was a wave of grey that obscured his vision.
Not well are you girl, not well at all. That or you’ve figured out who you are by now.
His back pocket chirped.
What now?
It chirped again, vibrating through his back pocket, until he left his distraction for the mud on his boots, to stop the disturbance.
The incoming message on the comms was from the general again. He swiped his finger across the panel, clearing his own reflection, for the pissed off face staring back.
‘You have your wish, Tarisos. The Senate’s agreed to your request. Meet with us at Central Command tomorrow morning before you visit the Gatehouse.’
‘Will do, General.’
The general leaned over his clasped hands, perching himself on the antique, wooden desk in his office.
‘We’re at their last camp.’ Taris replied to the general’s curiosity. ‘Closing in. I’ve just ordered my troops to rally here for orders. If I find them—’
‘Do as you will with the brothers. Keep them for the trials, for interrogation, kill them, I don’t really care. Julianna and Daniel, however, they’re to be captured alive.’
‘Daniel? Why Daniel?’
‘He is the Seer’s brother, why not? Do you have a problem with my orders, Tarisos? I can speak with the Senate again, if you wish?’ The general arched his brows. ‘Shall I?’
‘Just questioning your rational, General. Daniel holds no value, in my opinion.’
‘Just questioning my authority, more like it. Don’t forget who gave you your rank, son; and don’t forget who granted your tremendously long reach, as of our morning meeting tomorrow.’
The radio in the background stopped hissing, and the troops awaited his orders patiently. The comms blurred under the rain falling, and he wiped its screen over his pants. He raised it to his don’t–fuck–with–me expression.
The general leaned away from the comms. ‘Everyone else is to be killed on sight; and anyone who has a problem with that, kill them too.’
The patrol officer with the radio widened his eyes. The unexpected surprise amused Taris.
The general continued, drawing Taris’s attention to the comms, but Taris wanted to continue his stare at the officer. He watched from the corner of his eye, all too aware of his driver stuttering his last order over the radio, for a cleanup crew to attend their location.
‘The Senate’s had enough of this horseshit. When they heard about your suspicions of Caden mentoring
the Seer, all hell broke loose here. You can imagine no doubt. The concerns right now are tremendous.’
‘No doubt,’ Taris said.
The patrol officer turned away to clip his radio onto his belt. He ordered everyone to their vehicles, and waited behind the steering wheel. Taris caught his eye again.
‘Maybe you should have tried harder with Julianna. We wouldn’t have this problem if you were still engaged. Hell, you should be—’
Fuck me!
‘Married? Marry that bitch to appease the Senate? Marry a traitor?’ he stole out of the jeep for privacy. ‘Don’t put that shit on me! I was a fucking mushroom with you remember? You kept me in the dark, kept me fed on bullshit until it hit the fan. Maybe you assholes should have mentioned something earlier about the Seer, but it was all about Caden then, now look at the fine shit it’s gotten us into – and who the fuck’s cleaning this fucking fine mess up now?’
‘Your men are listening, Tarisos. Lower your voice, show some respect.’
He thought of the Senate, took a breath and calmed himself. His officers were indeed watching his display of temper.
I’ll lower my tone until tomorrow morning.
‘My apologies, General.’ He sucked the mist hanging on the air in front of him. ‘But this frustrates me, too. You need to understand that—’
The comms went dead.
Taris found himself staring at his reflection again and through that to the muddied ground. The rain was steadily growing heavy; the tree he stood under sheltered him from its downpour. Their few hours of communication were gone. The transmitter would shut down until tomorrow.
The sky was a midnight dark, and the clouds masked the stars. He shivered at the miserable night ahead of them – but the Senate had agreed to his demands. It was a start. Tomorrow, the Senate would grant the same abilities to him, as Caden had been gifted centuries ago. Tomorrow his luck would change, and then Elizbeth crossed his mind with her fair features, and swollen belly. The baby Seer was growing inside her.
