by Angela White
Jack wheeled his horse around and his men followed with sharp jerks on the reins that filled the air with the protests of their horses. They were out of sight before the dust settled.
Angela looked at Marc, hating the order she had to give now, and found him already taking gear from the belts of those around them.
“I’ll send a small team to catch up, if you want,” Angela offered, also hating what she had to give next.
“No, quicker now and alone.”
“Yeah,” Angela grunted. “Take Kendle.”
Marc, realizing how hard that was for her, kissed her as if they were alone.
Kendle turned away, anger growing, and she motioned for the gates to be opened. She suddenly couldn’t wait to be out there killing someone.
Marc let go slowly, pulse rapid, and Angela chuckled. “Nice. Hurry, will ya?”
Marc rubbed her still flat stomach. “Before you know it.”
He was gone a minute later, vanishing into the early morning drizzle with Kendle as if they were about to drop off the planet.
“And in a way, they are,” Angela muttered. She also knew they wouldn’t be alone for long. Another descendant around here needed to know where Jack was going, which meant one of her men would have to compromise.
Angela hoped Adrian would do it. Marc wouldn’t be in the mood for anything but blood after the images he’d witnessed in Jack’s thoughts. Big Jack Devine had come for death and he was going to get it, one way or another.
“Thank you.” Tara and Missy came to Angela, both pale and clearly uncomfortable.
Angela studied the woman harshly, letting the truth bleed through for a single moment. “If Marc gets hurt, you better watch your six!”
Those who heard it thought they understood Angela’s caution, her warning. People would blame the new woman if anything happened to Marc.
Tara, however, took the warning to heart and quickly got out of Angela’s sight. She had read more into it than that. If Marc were injured or killed, Angela would pay it forward.
“Why did we let them go?” Jeremy asked Samantha as they moved away from the others.
“So she can draw them back at the right time,” Samantha answered evasively, realizing Angela might not want that known. “So what’s the snack today? I’m starving.”
3
Marc and Kendle hit the bottom of the main road less than five minutes later, loaded with the basic gear they’d both had on them and a few quick items taken from those nearby. Neither of them worried over it. Pulling their needs from the land wasn’t as hard as it used to be when they’d both been alone in their minds. Now, there was power as well, and the need to catch up to Jack and his crew was hard to fight. It told Kendle to be ready to kill, to bathe in Jack’s blood to save Marc, who would now be Angela’s sword of justice.
Kendle hated anyone having that type of power over Marc, but it wasn’t as if he was going to refuse. Being allowed to kill, expected to kill, had to be freeing.
“It is, in ways,” Marc admitted, always scanning people now. “It’s also heavy.”
“Because you’re not a killer,” Kendle stated. “Unless it’s called for.”
Marc didn’t answer that. He would murder several people, if the opportunity presented itself the right way. And he wouldn’t ever regret those deaths.
“Do they deserve it?” Kendle asked uneasily.
“To me, they do.”
“Then, they do,” Kendle tried to comfort. “You’re a good man. You won’t randomly kill.”
“Uh, Kendle, I need to tell you something.”
“Yes, Marc?” Kendle simpered.
“You’re making me sick with the hero worship and you’re giving Angie thoughts about removing you once you’re no longer useful.”
Kendle froze, a bit stunned at the abrupt topic change.
Marc looked over his shoulder at someone behind them. “Can you do something with her? Angie’s patience has limits, even when she has plans running.”
Kendle stared in surprise as Adrian emerged from the lightly wooded cliff directly above them. On foot, he wasn’t out of breath yet despite running to stay caught up. Marc was built that way, too.
Marc caught the thought and sneered, “This should be a fun trip with you comparing us the entire time. Should we hold still so you can get some of it out of your system now?”
Furious with herself and him, Kendle swung down from her horse.
She strode off angrily and Adrian took her mount without commenting. Marc had blasted her out of the water and he might not be done firing yet.
Marc snorted. “The boss set it up so we’d have to do this together. She’s hoping we’ll work out our differences on this run.”
“We certainly didn’t on the last one,” Adrian stated lightly. He didn’t think it was possible. Marc wasn’t the forgiving type.
Marc didn’t respond to the comment or the thought, and Adrian scowled. “Are we in for another Brady run through hell?”
“Her mind was closed, so I’d say yes to the hell,” Marc replied, trying not to enjoy Adrian’s discomfort. “As for me, no. You’re not worth my time anymore.”
Marc lightly snapped the reins to catch up with Kendle. He swung her up onto his horse, and then neatly slid to the ground.
It was so Indian-like that Adrian gaped. Was Marc part Indian? He got on with them amazingly well.
Prying, Adrian caught a glimpse of a forlorn man on a shore as a boat sailed away and he quickly slipped out, hoping Marc hadn’t noticed the slight intrusion.
Adrian shut his mind down, storing the new thread for later. When he didn’t have to protect his thoughts, he would explore that. From a first peek, it said Marc wasn’t leaving with them.
Adrian’s tiny heart thumped happily.
Marc knew what Adrian was thinking, but the blond traitor hadn’t stayed for the thought that always followed the image of remaining in America. Angie always jumped off the boat and joined him on the shore. She wasn’t going to let them be split up and if Adrian thought that was the final plan, he had a huge shock coming. Marc had considered telling Adrian that Angie had made a contingency plan. If he refused to leave, so would she. Marc had chosen to let her have that moment of revelation and enjoy knowing that no matter how Adrian plotted or schemed, nothing would work. He and Angie couldn’t be parted now. Neither of them would allow it.
4
“Company!”
Angela turned toward the gate. Marc and Kendle had only been gone a short time.
As Angela walked, a number of Eagles fell in step with her. Marc hadn’t left any specific instructions, but he hadn’t needed to. Jack and his red-eyed men had been enough to snap the sentries into full alert. Around the camp, the sense was the same.
Angela knew their unease wasn’t good, but there were many types of descendants and her people had a right to know what they were up against this time.
Angela paused at the gate, out of sight of the new people, and scrutinized them mercilessly. Unlike the morning visitors, these ten men weren’t descendants. The clue was their horses. Angela’ recognized the brands immediately–three small ‘J’s.
Angela went to the gate, hands resting on her guns. “Hello. Welcome to Safe Haven.”
The ten men all took their hats off at the sight of her, and their leader dismounted. He walked toward the gate, stopping when the guards’ guns followed him.
“No need for that with us. We want to talk.”
He edged closer; rotating his hat in restless hands that were covered in thick callouses. “I’m Darian. I have some questions.”
The leader was tall and thin, familiar to some of them, and Angela placed him before he could reveal his identity. “You’ve come for justice. For Dari.”
Darian paled a bit, head lowering. “Maybe, maybe not. We’ve heard you handle things fairly.”
“We do,” Angela confirmed. “And your twin sister was no different.”
Darian raised a face that was li
ned in grief. “You found her guilty.”
Angela nodded again. “She wanted descendants to rule everyone else. She refused my offer to change her mind.”
Darian sighed unhappily. “I can believe you, but my people will want more.”
Angela waved a hand at the gate. “You may enter and file the complaint. The rest must leave. They cannot stay with us.”
Darian waited for the gate to open and then said, “I accuse you of murdering my sister. I demand a trial.”
Gasps and mutters filled their small audience, but Angela smiled as if she’d been expecting it.
“I grant your demand, Darian. Please leave your weapons outside the gate. You will not roam freely within my walls.”
“But I will receive justice,” the man insisted quietly, removing his gun belts and giving them to an uneasy guy on a small, branded gelding. “If it isn’t a fair trial, my people will come here and attack.”
“All trials in Safe Haven are fair,” Angela stated evenly. “But we don’t rush things. You’ll be here a while.”
Darian stepped through the gate and around angry, armed Eagles with no signs of fear. “Got nothing else to do now. She was my only family.”
Angela winced. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
“You killed her!” Darian’s countenance blazed with the first emotion he’d shown. “Why do care for my pain?”
“Because you’re not like your sister,” Angela answered, signaling for the gates to be shut. “I can read that, you know. Your loyalty is misplaced.”
Darian took a deep breath and allowed Kenn to lead him into the smallest QZ. “A trial will tell.”
Jennifer joined Angela as Darian was taken to the farthest tent from the gate. “Is that another problem?”
Angela, who still studying their newest guest, replied, “If I get enough time to prove it, no. If he makes up his mind too quickly, then it could become one.”
“How about I assign a personal guide,” Jennifer suggested, thinking they had several people here who needed to be occupied.
“Agreed,” Angela said. “Put a list together. I’ll pick from it tonight, if he passes the medical.”
“Yeah, about that,” Jennifer said. “Should his first impression of you come from Doc Savage?”
“No, but he’ll understand that even people who hate me agree I’m fair. Let it go for now.”
“I’ll have the list ready,” Jennifer promised, not following when Angela left. Jenny hated the thought of Angela being seen as a cold-blooded killer. She never did that without a need and this new guy had to understand that.
5
“Let’s hear about our target.” Marc had spent the first hour of the ride deciding how best to handle the situation and the people. Now, he was ready for details.
Adrian, still in the rear, caught up to be right behind Marc.
Still leading, Kendle fell back a bit to listen.
“He’s what I am,” Adrian stated, lighting his last stale cigarette. He didn’t plan to dig through the dead land for more. “We trained together, ran together, hunted, competed. They finally split us up when we started using our men in battles of will.”
Marc’s face tightened at the lie, but he didn’t interrupt.
“When you what?” Kendle didn’t have that self-control and shut her mouth when Marc glared at her.
“Give me his profile,” Marc instructed, not sure why Adrian was stalling. Because he didn’t want Kendle to know what a POS he really was? Probably.
“It’s hard to talk about,” Adrian grunted. “You may think spilling your guts is easy, but you don’t have all these secrets.”
“No, I don’t,” Marc acknowledged gleefully. “I’m not slime.”
Adrian’s demeanor went from sullen to ice and Marc let out a sound of annoyance. “Finally! Now get to it.”
With his emotions shut down, Adrian’s voice became the monotone of information that Angela was used to.
“He’s an Alpha with the ability to control others. He can kill you like Becky–with his mind–but he’s limited on range and strength. He can’t handle too many opponents at once and his focus can be broken that way. He hates humans and has always wanted control over this world so that he doesn’t have any rules. If that’s his daughter, he won’t stop coming until he gets her or he’s killed.”
“His crew?” Marc encouraged, storing the note of eagerness under Adrian’s words. If Adrian wanted to be the fighter for this one, Marc would let him and study that fight for his own coming moment with Safe Haven’s former leader.
“They’re the true power. Between them, they have his ass covered too well for an open attack. There are usually twelve of them. We need to split them up. If we can’t, each of us will take one of his men and hope to duck his mental hits during the fight.”
Marc didn’t correct him on the plan, but he already had his own ideas.
“Vlad is the brute strength and their healer. He never leaves Jack’s side. Kranten is the fighter. His spells are deadly. Stephens is the seer and he spends his free time scanning. He doesn’t miss much.”
“Any others?” Marc asked, not liking the admiration in Adrian’s voice.
“He’ll have a few people hidden at a base, but they’ll be messengers and supply finders–not fighters.”
“But they can fight,” Marc insisted. “At least a little or they wouldn’t have made it onto his crew, right?”
“That’s safe to assume,” Adrian admitted. “But Jack is very careful to keep full control of anyone who has real power. Those he leaves behind will be the weakest.”
“Tell me how he usually attacks in a large situation.”
“Head-on, when I knew him,” Adrian stated. “I doubt he’ll use any setup I’m familiar with.”
“He knows you’re here?”
“He didn’t detect me when he came in, but he’ll figure it out. He’s not dumb and there aren’t any fresh rumors of my death.”
“Stay low until I tell you otherwise,” Marc instructed.
“You got it.” Adrian didn’t want to confront Jack. He wanted to know the man’s goal for Safe Haven first and even if they killed Jack and this crew, someone as bad would be sent to replace them.
“You think so?” Marc asked.
“Yes. Angela removed a group of women that were well liked by their people. In fact, Dari may have even been in the chain of command among Jack’s camp.”
“Have you been to their site?”
“No. They were based in Pennsylvania after the war. Command didn’t want us in the same state during the apocalypse. Jack wouldn’t get his mission finished if he knew where I was.”
“What was the Canada mission?” Marc asked.
“Gather all descendants and eliminate witnesses that couldn’t be converted to a military frame of mind.”
“What went wrong?”
“They had survivors,” Adrian answered. “Tara and her daughter, maybe, but there could have been others according to the story we got out of Donner. It was sloppy work.”
“And you wouldn’t have handled it that way,” Marc guessed bitterly. “You would have cornered them like rabbits and opened fire.”
“Yes,” Adrian confirmed. “And so would you, so stop the Mr. Perfect act or I’m not going to be able to work with you.”
Marc’s anger flared for a brief instant and then he surprised them both with a chuckle. “Fine. Just remember you asked for that.”
Suddenly uncomfortable, Adrian continued his profile of their targets. “They were scouting us. The next move will be to send for more men. Surround the site, demand a surrender while waiting for his men, then attack.”
“Simple,” Kendle commented, proud of herself for staying quiet so far.
Marc didn’t stop her coming questions. Letting her go for a minute might give new leads. She knew how to fight and to view a battle.
“It is simple,” Adrian said. “Jack can’t let his plans get too big because his men would have t
o be allowed to think for themselves.”
“He controls them at all times?” she asked.
“It has limits. They have to be in range and when he’s asleep, the line is broken. He uses mental charms to bind them for those free hours.”
“Clever,” Kendle muttered, leading them slowly down the path that still held the visible tracks of Jack’s crew in the slush. “What about his attack methods?”
“Much like mine,” Adrian answered. “Open and heavy.”
Marc snorted, but didn’t say anything.
Adrian flushed, waiting for Kendle’s next query, and the sound of Safe Haven echoed down to them. Pounding, voices, animals and kids–it sounded like a beautiful place for any person to be.
“We’ll always be a target,” Marc murmured. “So we have to stay on offense.”
Marc realized he was pondering aloud and growled, “As you were!”
Kendle resumed gathering information. “Where should we be looking?”
“Behind him,” Adrian stated, a bit surprised at the insight. “He always thinks he has his ass covered.”
Aware of Marc listening, Kendle asked, “How can we split them up?”
Adrian frowned in concentration. “We…pick them off from a distance.”
“Is he likely to fall for that?” Kendle kept at it.
“No. We’ll need them to split up on their own.”
“And that might happen if we each have something they want,” Kendle stated. “What can they be bought with? Women? Girls? Whiskey?”
“They’re not as simple as a drunken pedophile,” Adrian snapped, tiring of answering their questions. “Fear rules them. You’d have to eliminate Jack’s control.”
“Are any of his men willing?” Marc interjected, not letting Adrian stop yet.
“Vlad wasn’t, even when the first teams were put together. Jack’s father had saved Vlad’s family during some ancient turf war and he’s been with him ever since. Rumor says Vlad’s father paid the debt with Vlad.”
“He paid for a debt with his child?” Kendle was stunned by the awful things these supposed powerhouses had done to each other.
