by Miranda Kavi
I saw them.
The reaction in my body was violent. My subconscious grasped the danger before I had a chance to process it. My mind went into instinctive red-alert mode.
Just your average guys at first glance.
But they were anything but. Their steps were jerky and unnatural, as if they didn’t know how to operate the body they were walking in. As I paused to watch, moved, ten feet with one step, in a jerky, almost glitchy motion, but with perfect unison. I’d seen it before, the weird movement and felt the strange feelings that came with it. I’d seen it in the trees and shadows of San Antonio.
Cold, unadulterated fear nested at the base of my spine at the realization that accompanied my knowledge. They had been following me for a while.
They wavered and flickered, like reception going bad on a television. I swallowed the scream rising in my throat. They were getting close. Really close.
Oh, shit.
I sprinted. I made it down to the river’s edge, avoiding the paved sidewalk where tourists might be.
I glanced behind me again, shocked to see they were only ten feet away from me. I picked up speed, running across the loose rocks in the direction Dennis had instructed.
I pretended to stumble over an old car tire planted by Dennis jutting over the rocks. I fell on my stomach hard, even though it was controlled movement. By the time I flipped over onto my back, they were only a few feet away. I didn’t see any of my companions. I pulled out my gun.
A large form jumped out of the long grass lining the bank, beheading one of them in one precise movement of a large machete. I gasped at its head rolled straight to me and came to rest by my side. “Fly, Aurora!” Damien yelled, still holding the machete he had just skillfully used.
I launched myself into the air, away from the other thing. My ascent was violently interrupted. Its hand wrapped around my non-holstered ankle in a crushing grip. The bones in my ankle crunched in a sick way, sending jolts of pain up my leg and into my hip.
Konstantin attacked him from the side, tackling it mid-air. Its hand released my ankle. They both tumbled to the ground. I landed behind the thing, now in earnest battle with Konstantin.
More people spilled out of the brush surrounding us. Dennis pushed me out of the way. Keith caught my arm. He pulled me close to him, and then gently rotated me behind him, creating a barrier between me and the Shyama.
Konstantin had prevailed in his hand-to-hand combat. The creature was pinned to the ground.
Dennis placed a gun with a thick silencer on it against the skull of the thing and literally blew its head off. The blood and gore splattered on the rocks all around us. Despite what all my training had prepared me for, the sight was shocking.
Within thirty-seconds, both of the Shyama had been incapacitated. I was no longer in immediate danger.
Keith stepped away from me, grabbed a large black duffel bag hidden in the grass, and threw it on the rocks. I looked up, tearing my eyes away from the two decapitated bodies, still shocked from the incredible display of violence and gore. Carmen, Konstantin, Dennis, Karen, Ben, and the other blockers has stepped out of the long grass and formed a loose circle around the bodies. Dennis pulled a large machete out of the black duffel bag. “Quick. Let’s finish this.”
For every mess, there was a clean up. It was part of the rules. I grabbed a machete out of the bag and joined in with the rest, dispatching the solid forms into much smaller parts.
My brain went into shock as I did the gruesome work. Their bodies looked human, with blood, entrails, and all the other bells and whistles, but something was wrong. They broke into crumbly pieces with little effort. Their flesh was ice cold to the touch, even though they had only been dead for a couple of minutes.
Once their bodies were destroyed, we threw the pieces into the swiftly moving river, except for one. Karen sealed it in thick plastic evidence bag to take back to the scientists.
I put my hands in the cold water. The swift current rinsed the blood off my hands, dim light painting the red streaks a muted black.
I liked it.
“Karen?” Dennis asked.
She nodded and pulled the backpack off her back. “Okay, who needs a clothing change?”
I looked down and took in the bright smear of blood across my chest and shoulders. Several of the others were covered in blood. I accepted the sweater she threw at me, throwing her my bloody sweater in return, which she crammed into her bag. Several others followed suit, changing into non-bloody clothes. I tried, though not very hard, to avert my eyes from Keith’s incredibly well-muscled build as he changed shirts.
When we were all changed, Dennis squinted at all of us in the dark. “Okay. You guys look good. Head back to the hotel. Go in groups of two or three.” He ran his fingers through his hair before he spoke again. “Good job.”
I walked back to the hotel with Keith, ignoring the throbbing in my ankle and the popping sensation with every step. It had only been fifteen minutes from the time I left the hotel room and stepped out into the cold night air. Remnants of fear still trickled through my body.
Keith wrapped one strong arm around my waist. “I can hear your ankle popping with each step.” He pulled me closer. “Are you okay? It was a lot, I know.”
“I’m just a little shell shocked.” His arm felt good around me. I didn’t shrug it off like I should have.
“I’m glad you’re with us now. You’ll do well.”
“Thanks,” I said.
He leaned closer. “I watched you clean the blood from your hands in the river. You were excited.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but snapped it shut and opted for silence instead.
“It means you’re a little wild around the edges. Remember: you are many things, but human is not one of them.”
There was acceptance and a little something more in his eyes, but no judgment.
We were the second group to get back to the hotel. Damien and Karen were already there, speaking quietly at the small table in my hotel room. Konstantin and Carmen came shortly, followed by Dennis and Ben. The other three blockers came in the final group.
Keith handed me a small scrap of paper with his name and number written on it. “I don’t want this to be the last time we talk.” He kissed me on the cheek and walked out of the room with his handler. I folded it and shoved it into my pocket. But I couldn’t. Wouldn’t. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
Soon, everyone had left the room except for Dennis, Konstantin, and Carmen. Dennis pulled a few beers out of fridge. “I think this calls for a mini-celebration to a successful first mission for Aurora,” Dennis said.
We all raised our glasses. The beer was good in my overheated mouth. Carmen and Konstantin sat cross-legged on their bed, all smiles.
A thump brought everyone to attention. A beer bottle was rolling around the ground, bubbling its contents onto the thin carpet. My eyes jumped to Carmen. She was frozen in place, her eyes closed, her hands now empty.
Her bright aqua eyes flew open and she jumped to her feet. “Aurora!”
Konstantin grabbed her arm. “Darling, what is it?”
She ignored him and kept her gaze fixed on me. “It’s them. Something’s wrong…your mom.”
Chapter 18
The world tightened around me. “What?” I said. “What do you mean?”
Before she could answer, Konstantin’s cell phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and flicked it open. “What is it?”
His eyes moved to me as he heard what the caller said. “How many? Where?” he asked the caller, pausing between questions. “We’re on our way.”
He hung up. “They’ve been spotted by the people watching your mom.” He shut the cell phone and shoved it back in his pocket. “My people are trying to distract them, but they need backup before they go against them. They must have figured out who you are somehow.”
My knees gave out and I sank to the floor.
No.
Konstantin kneeled next to me. “You stay h
ere with the blockers. It will be okay I—”
“No!” I said. “I am not staying here with the blockers. We need to leave.”
Konstantin put his hand on my arm. “It’s not safe.”
“Screw that!” I shrugged his arm off. “This is my mom we’re talking about here. I don’t care if I’m safe. You can sit here and argue about it if you like, but I’m leaving.” I grabbed my purse and jacket, ready to go head out blindly into the night.
“She’s right. We have no time to waste. Let’s go,” Dennis interjected, giving Konstantin a hard look. “Go to the airport. We’ll meet you there. I’ll make some calls and get more people to meet us there with weapons.” He strode to the door, cell phone in hand. He paused at the doorway. “How many?”
Konstantin hesitated, his eyes darting to me and Carmen. “Five,” he finally answered.
Dennis pressed his mouth into a thin line. It scared the living crap out of me to see steel-nerved Dennis worried.
“How much time do we have?” he asked.
“Not much, six, seven hours maybe,” Carmen said.
“I’ll activate our standby units, but we are the closest.”
I glanced behind me as we headed to the stairs. Dennis leaned in the doorway of Keith’s room, speaking in low voices to Keith and Damien. Keith’s eyes flicked to mine right before I went down the stairs. I hated the pity I saw in them.
I was silent, using my free hand to wipe the tears from my face. I had to get to Wichita. I couldn’t let anything bad happen to her.
I barely noticed the engine roaring to life in the rental. All my energy was far away, wishing for a way to transport myself to my mother’s side.
Carmen slid in next to me, while Konstantin sped through the empty streets.
Carmen put her arm around me. “I need you to calm down. We’ll make it in time. We’re going to protect her, okay?” She wiped a tear off my cheek. “You want to call her?”
I counted my breaths, in and out, fighting for a calmer place. The panic was there, eating away at the edges, but I was in control again.
I dialed her number. “Mom?” As soon as I heard her voice, I could feel the delicate control already cracking.
“What’s wrong?”
“They’re after you, and they are close, in Wichita.” I choked out the words, losing my fight against the sobs. “This is all my fault. I’m so sorry.”
“They found me? Where are you? Are you okay?” Her questions tumbled out.
I was no longer able to speak, my sobs chocking my words. A dark swirl of fear and anger wrapped around me, pulling at the very fibers of my sanity.
Carmen took the phone from my hand. “Aubrey? It’s Carmen. Yes, she is safe, with us,” she said after a pause. “I’m not sure how they found you.” She paused, listening to my mom speak.
“It’s too late. If you run, it will grab their attention, plus, it could make it harder for our people to get to you.” A much shorter pause. “Use the largest caliber you have. If you can destroy their head, it incapacitates them for several hours.”
She handed the phone to me.
“Mom?”
“It’s going to be okay.”
“It’s not okay,” I said.
“Do whatever Carmen and Konstantin tell you. I love you.”
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
“It’s not your fault, baby. I love you. Stay strong and stay alive, no matter what happens to me.”
“Don’t say that. I love you.”
“I love you more,” she answered before she hung up.
We made the next flight to Wichita via Dallas. We boarded immediately.
I leaned my head against the window of the plane, willing it to take off so we could get to Wichita. I glanced at my watch. It was 5:00 a.m. My mind raced a million miles a second, going over every possible scenario. It flashed to my mom, to the Shyama, to Carmen, to Konstantin, to my sister, and to the stupid picture of Gavyn in the magazine.
I woke up when the plane touched down in Dallas. I tapped my feet impatiently while I waited for the plane to make its endless journey into gate. My ankle was mostly healed, and had only the slightest hint of discomfort, a great perk of being one of the gifted.
I jumped out my seat, nearly hitting my head in the process. Carmen put her arm on mine. “She’s fine. We can’t make the plane go any faster.”
Konstantin pulled out his cell phone as soon as we walked off the plane. He snapped the phone shut and spoke us in a low voice as we make our way to our departing gate. “One of them was in your mom’s neighborhood early this morning.”
“What?” I stumbled over my tired feet. He caught me before I hit the ground and left his arm around my waist. “Hold on! Please let me finish. Our two blockers took it out. There are only four left now. The rest of the crew in New Orleans are two hours behind us. Some more people are driving over from Texas right now. They are already in south Kansas.”
I walked in circles around the perimeter of the gate. People glanced at me then looked away. They were trying not to stare, probably because I was acting crazy. Maybe I was crazy.
“Drink this.” Carmen handed me a bottle of water. I gulped the whole thing down. “Now go to the bathroom, wash your face and hands, and get yourself together.”
I forced my rubbery legs to walk to the restroom. When I came out of the stall, I confronted my image.
My long hair hung limply around my shoulder and elbows. In the harsh bathroom lights, my skin was pale, and sickly white, with splotches of hot red on my cheeks. I had deep dark circles under my eyes.
I felt an incredible and overpowering surge of anger toward the Shyama. I grabbed onto the anger like a life preserver, pulling it inside of me and using it to focus. They had made me feel this way. They were coming after my mom. They needed to die. I wanted to make them bleed, make them hurt.
I was ready to fight.
Chapter 19
We landed in Wichita two hours later. My brain had shifted into tactical mode. I looked expectantly at Carmen as we landed.
“We need to hurry, but your mom is fine right now.”
As we strode off the tarmac, Konstantin was on his cell phone, talking in hushed tones so he wouldn’t alarm the crowds of morning travelers streaming by us. He snapped the phone shut and motioned with his finger for me and Carmen to come closer.
“The two blockers are sitting in front of her house in a SUV. The Shyama are in the neighborhood, but they’re hiding. The crew from New Orleans will land in about forty-five minutes.”
“Can I call her?” I asked.
“If you call your mom when you are this close, it’s going to put a beacon on her.”
“Okay.”
Carmen spoke up. “Let’s get food and caffeine. Come on.”
“We need to go!”
“Konstantin is getting the rental car, which is going to take a few minutes. I can’t make it go any faster. You need fuel.”
She hooked her arm through mine and directed me to a fast food restaurant. We loaded up with food and soft drinks, meeting Konstantin outside, who was waiting in the rental car.
I forced myself to eat while he drove. Dark gray and black clouds gathered in the sky. A serious Midwestern super cell thunderstorm was rolling in.
My anxiety built as we got closer to my mom’s house. I couldn’t wait to see her face, just to know she was really okay.
Carmen stiffened in her seat, breathing heavily as we pulled onto my mom’s street. “They are close. Very close.”
We pulled up behind the large black SUV parked in front of the house. Two very tall, Hispanic guys emerged from the SUV as we rolled to a stop. They waited outside my door until I got out, then formed a protective boundary around me we while ran up the long driveway.
My mom yanked open the front door to let all of us in, then slammed it behind us, locking the three extra bolts she had installed on the door years ago.
She pulled me into a hug. “You should have stay
ed in Orleans. It isn’t safe for you,” she said, her green eyes probing mine. “Are you okay?”
“I’m okay. Are you?”
A flash of lightening interrupted our reunion. A loud smattering of wind-blown rainwater pattered against the window. Carmen looked out the large window at the ever darkening sky. “This is going to be nasty one. It’s getting dark.”
She put her pale hand on the window and closed her eyes. We were all silent as she used her gift. “They are preparing to attack. They’re going to use the storm as cover. We need to get ready. Now.”
Konstantin turned his attention to my mom. “What do you have?”
She led him over to the couch, where she had laid out her weapons and ammo. Konstantin and my mom had a quick discussion before handing out my mom’s impressive collection of handguns. I had always made fun of her for her interest in firearms, but now I understood.
Konstantin and the blockers went methodically through the house, planning a defense and identifying all the entry points.
An impossibly loud boom of thunder shook the house. I peered outside the large ceiling to floor window that dominated the living room. The front lawn was neatly manicured with a row of round shrubs. The storm darkened sky cast everything in deep blue light. Wind gusts shook the branches of the trees with violent force. The familiar scene of my childhood was transformed into a menacing landscape.
As my eyes roamed over the yard, a dark shadow rose above the hedge, barely visible in the swirling rain and darkness.
I could clearly see a head, shoulders, arms, and legs, but it didn’t have a face. The inhumanity of it hit me hard. “It’s outside.”
“Get away from the window!” Carmen screamed.
Before I had time to step back, the window exploded, sending a shower of glass everywhere. Something large, cold, and hard shot through the window, tackling me and pinning me against the far wall of living room. My head made contact with the opposite wall with a loud crack. I struggled to understand how I had traveled fifteen feet in one second. My gun flew out my hand.
