Scarred by Vengeance (Titanium Book 2)

by Valia Lind

  "I do," ahe says, a pleading note in her voice. "What happened in the ballroom? Who were those people? Why did they want to kill...us?" She's really playing it up, even reaching over and placing her hand over mine. It's getting harder to resist because this is all I want. I want her back. She's only been this...machine for twenty four hours and I already miss her like crazy.

  "I don't know." I say, honestly. I see the change come over her face, her eye narrowing.

  "What do you mean, you don't know?" She asks, removing her hand from mine.

  "I mean, I don't know. I had nothing to do with that. I'd never put you in harms way like that." I add, and suddenly there's something in her expression that gives me hope. "You have to believe me, Princess." I hurry on before I lose her. "I would never do something that would place you in danger."

  Never again, I silently add.

  I think I may have reached some part of her, as she sits there frozen for a few long moments. I think that we may actually have a chance. I let her process what I've said, then stand.

  "Come on, we need to get out of here," I say, reaching for her hand. When she doesn't flinch away, I curl my fingers around hers and lead her out of the restaurant through the back way. I know the moment I said the words, Calen began his race to the alley. I hope after seeing him, whatever doubt she has will dissipate and she'll come willingly.

  "What are you doing?" She asks when we step out into the alley.

  "There's someone you need to see," I say, pulling her along behind me. We're half a block away before Calen steps out of the shadows. I feel the tension run up Tasia's arm the moment she sees him. Complete confusion falls over her features and that's when I realize, I shouldn't have brought her here.

  "Calen, don't—" I say, but it's already too late.

  She rips her hand out of my grasp, rushing him. He yells in surprise, and I reach her the moment her hand can close around his throat.

  "Tasia, stop! It's us. Just listen." I shout in her ear, glancing over to Calen. He needs to talk to her, to see if he can bring her back. There's horror on his face, seeing Tasia like this, but he snaps out of it.

  "T, come on. It's me. Calen. You know, you're number one tech guy? The one who taught you how to dance even though you thought it was too girly. You remember, right?" He barely pauses for a breath as he takes a step closer to the still fighting Tasia. I'm trying to keep her pinned to my body, but she's sly. She's wiggling herself free.

  "T, don't do this. Don't fight us. Blake needs you to snap out of it. Uncle Freddie does too. You remember them, right? Your family. We're your family."

  "I don't have a family!" Tasia shouts a lot louder than I've ever heard her scream, before she's out of my arms. Spinning around, she slams her knee into my groin. The impact sends me into the alley wall, as she twists around, kicking Calen in the chest.

  I scramble to my feet, hating that it came down to this. But she's not the only one who's trained all of her life. Grabbing her arm as she swings at me, I twist it behind her back, ramming my hand into her neck. She cries out, but doesn't go down like everyone else would. She brings her elbow back, jabbing it into my stomach. As the air leaves my lungs, so does my grip on her arm.

  She uses my own movement against me, grabbing my head by my temples. As she's about to slam it into her knee, I wrap my hands around her waist, taking us both down to the ground. I pin her down with my body, but I don't move fast enough as she slams her head into my face.

  I jerk back just a fraction from the impact, but it's enough for her to push her foot into my chest and kick out from under me. I fall against the wall again, my vision swimming with the impact at the back of my head.

  Through a haze, I see her fighting Calen, but he's having the same problem I am. Neither one of us want to actually hurt her. And in this fight, that makes us weak. I see the flash of metal in her hand and I yell for her to stop. But she doesn't stab Calen like I expect her to. She swipes the butt of the knife against his face, knocking him to the ground. I try to get to my feet, my head spinning and suddenly, she's on top of me. Her knife is at my neck and as I look up into her gorgeous eyes, I see a stranger.

  "Don't you dare come for me again." She grinds out between her teeth. "I'm not allowed to kill you just yet, but don't make the mistake again. Next time, I might just refuse to follow orders."

  She nicks me just enough that I see a few drops of blood on the knife when she pulls away. But I feel no physical pain, because my heart is broken.

  She stands up, giving both Calen and me a quick once over and then she turns and walks away.

  I watch her disappear down the alley and finally come to terms with what happened.

  She's gone.

  I lost her.

  AFTER

  LOGAN

  I've made so many mistakes in life.

  Sacrificing my own standards was probably one of the biggest. Because of me, Anastasia got hurt. She lost who she is and I don't know if we can ever get her back. It's like she shut off all of her emotions except one: rage.

  I can't make her see reason or make her trust me. But I guess I've been having problems with that anyway. Calen tried, I tried. But it only made her angrier. She's not coming out of it and I'm terrified she never will.

  We're completely on our own now.

  Kallos has stopped their push for distribution, but that won't last long. From what I've been able to gather, there's another wave coming. Just like I know the people working to bring them down will be coming as well. The news is calling what happened at the hotel a terrorist attack. In part, it really is. Chicago has become the epicenter of a war and we're smack dab in the middle of it.

  Dad will come looking for me soon enough, but I made a promise to Anastasia I'm going to keep.

  I will always fight for her. No matter what.

  This is just the beginning of the end.

  Acknowledgements

  There are always so many people to thank at the end of every book. I couldn’t do any of this without the help and support of my family and friends.

  Thanks be to God, for His unspeakable gift.

  Thank you to my parents, who continue to encourage and support me.

  Thank you to my non-writer friends: Heather, Ariana, Sarah, and so many more than I can name here, for being there for me, even when I’m being a horrible friend and hiding in my writing cave.

  Thank you to my writer friends, who know what it’s like to be in the trenches and are always stand by me. Micalea Smeltzer, I’m looking at you, kid. You have helped me more than you will ever know.

  Thank you to my awesome cover designer, Regina and my editor Heather, for putting this book together and making it presentable to the world.

  And thank you, reader. For picking up this book, for taking a chance on this story, for coming on this journey with me.

  There is so much more, waiting for you in the future, I hope you stick around.

  Tasia and Logan are not finished just yet.

  See how it all started

  Titanium #1

  About the Author

  Author. Photographer. Artist. Born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia, Valia Lind always had a love for the written word. She wrote her first full book on the bathroom floor of her dormitory, while procrastinating to study for her college classes. Upon graduation, she has moved her writing to more respectable places, and have found her voice in Young Adult fiction. You can visit her online at www.valialind.wordpress.com or follow her on twitter, where she spends way too much time, @ValiaLind.

 

 

 
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