Resistance (The Variant Series #2)

by Jena Leigh

  “Oh, Americans!” said the brute. His two sidekicks sniggered, as though the giant had told some sort of joke. “Love it when we get tourists ’round these parts, we do.”

  “Doesn’t happen often enough, for my taste,” said the lanky redhead standing to his right. “Especially such fine beoir’s as these.”

  The men made for an odd group: one tall and skinny, one short and squat, one a muscle-bound giant and the other…

  Well, he seemed entirely out of place in such company—he seemed nice.

  Kenzie narrowed her eyes up at the giant. They made another attempt to pass, but found their path blocked once more.

  “Leaving so soon?” asked the giant. “The night’s still young.”

  “Let them pass, Oisin.” The roadblock fixed the giant with an angry glare.

  The air around them had filled with a strange static, causing the hair on Cassie’s arms to stand on end. Alex was bracing herself for a jump.

  Cassie held her breath.

  “Now, now, Thomas,” said Oisin with a sickening smile. He reached out to run a finger through Alex’s hair, but she jerked a step backward before he could. “We’re just having a bit of fun is all. No need to be—”

  “I said,” Thomas took an angry step toward Oisin, “Let them pass.”

  Oisin dropped his hand. He looked to Thomas, then snorted in disgust. Mumbling something under his breath, he took a step back, creating enough room for the three of them to file past.

  When the girls were a good twenty feet away, the lanky redhead called out something in a language Cassie had never heard before.

  Kenzie stopped dead in her tracks, a look of rage on her face. Schooling her expression into a smile before she turned, she whipped around and spouted off a lengthy reply in the same language.

  Whatever it was Kenzie said had its desired affect. The look of shock on the lanky redhead’s face was absolutely priceless.

  The look of anger on Oisin’s, however, worried her.

  Smiling now, Thomas clapped a hand on Oisin’s shoulder and dragged his companion around the corner and out of sight before the giant could think up a reply.

  Kenzie, satisfied, turned on her heel and strode toward the dark green door that was the entrance to McGinty’s pub.

  “What did you just say to him?” asked Alex.

  “The abridged version?” asked Kenzie as they neared the bar. “I told him where he could stick it, then politely suggested that he kiss my ass. In Gaelic.”

  Cassie arched a brow. She should ask Kenzie to teach her the “kiss my ass” bit at some point in the future. Might be useful in getting a rise out of Aiden, assuming he’d ever learned what the phrase meant.

  He may have only lived in Ireland for a few years as a kid but, knowing Aiden, it was exceedingly likely that he’d at least learned how to curse in the language of his former homeland.

  Kenzie reached out and grabbed hold of the well-worn brass handle, putting her weight behind tugging the heavy door open.

  As Cassie strode past her, Kenzie said over the roar of music and conversation, “The phrase you’re looking for is póg mo thóin. Use it wisely.”

  The inside of the pub was filled with warm air, low light and a mass of people. On a stage in the corner, a young woman sat with an acoustic guitar on her lap, singing sweetly into a microphone. Her voice was nearly lost beneath the sound of laughter and shouted conversations.

  The bar at the back was made of dark, polished wood, lined with brass railings and surrounded by tall stools—all of which were occupied. The soft light in the room appeared to be radiating from a handful of hanging light fixtures and the two flat-screens at either end of the large room.

  The place seemed pretty crowded for as late as it was. Last call couldn’t have been more than an hour away.

  Scanning the crowded room, Cassie spotted Aiden sitting alone at the bar. After a nod to Alex, and a quick tap on Kenzie’s shoulder to grab her attention, Cassie led the way through the sea of warm bodies and sidled up to the counter.

  “Cass!” Aiden grinned beatifically at her from his barstool. “What are you doing here, gorgeous? You look amazing!”

  He pulled her in for a kiss which she returned, briefly, before placing a hand on his chest and pushing him back onto his stool.

  Cassie scrunched her nose. “You taste like a distillery.”

  She leaned over to get a better look at the glass sitting on the bar in front of him. Aiden’s tumbler was nearly empty, but judging from the color of the remaining drops—and the sweet, smoky flavor of his kiss—he’d been drinking whiskey.

  “Where’s Declan?” asked Kenzie.

  “He stepped away to go talk to some guy he knew,” said Aiden. “Murphy, I think his name was. Over by the stage.”

  Aiden didn’t have to point Declan out.

  Cassie only had to follow Alex’s numb gaze in order to find him.

  There, in front of the tiny stage set up in one corner of the bar, the idiot in question was currently being serenaded by the beautiful brunette swaying atop the platform.

  The girl had set aside her guitar and was now leaning forward, singing sensuously into a microphone, her mouth inches from Declan’s as she ran her fingers through his hair.

  The crowd was cheering him on, while the girl on stage went further into her Jessica Rabbit routine.

  Declan, meanwhile, was politely attempting to extricate the girl’s hand from his hair, smiling up at her but shaking his head, “no.”

  Cassie snorted in amusement as she looked away.

  And then she cursed.

  While they’d all had their attention fixed on the stage, Alex had disappeared.

  She was gone.

  * * *

  Alex pushed through the heavy oak doors and out into the frigid chill of the evening.

  McGinty’s was positioned at the far end of a lonely road, facing out onto a small lot that dropped off slightly at the edges, where a large creek bed wound past and down around the side of the building.

  It was the sound of the water that drew Alex off and to the left, away from the lights of the main road and toward the back of the building.

  She sighed as she ambled alongside the flowing water, trying to push the image of Declan and the girl from her thoughts.

  “What’s this here, then?” asked a voice from behind her.

  Oisin and his two sidekicks—whom Alex had earlier dubbed Creep 1 and Creep 2—stood a few short steps behind her, smiling wide.

  The nicer one, Thomas, was nowhere to be seen.

  “I’d say our luck is changing,” said Creep 2.

  Alex examined her surroundings. Lost in her thoughts, she had wandered to the back side of the building, far from the entrance and well out of sight of any potential foot traffic.

  “Seems the lady’s a bit lost,” said Creep 1, the diminutive, slightly stocky one.

  “Well, now,” said Oisin. “S’pose, we should help her, then.”

  She could read a darkness in Oisin’s expression that caused her heart to sink and her pulse to race.

  On instinct, Alex turned on her heel and ran as fast as she could toward the main road at the front of the building.

  Oisin and the Creeps were faster. Cutting her off, they soon had her surrounded.

  Creep 2, the redhead, grabbed her roughly by the elbow and swung her around, slamming her against the cement exterior of the building.

  Alex fell to her knees in the dirt, coming down hard on her right wrist.

  Stunned, Alex couldn’t get back onto her feet fast enough.

  Instead, she found herself yelping in pain as the Creeps each took hold of one arm, yanking Alex mercilessly upward. They pushed her back until her shoulders met with the wall, then held her in place.

  Oisin sniffed, wiping at the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. He was smiling.

  “Now, now, girl,” he said. Alex turned her face away from Oisin as he hovered ever closer, his breath reeking of ale.
“We were only trying to help you. No need to be rude.”

  Stifling her growing panic, Alex forced herself to concentrate and consider her limited options.

  She was going to get herself out of this.

  She had to get herself out of this.

  No one else knew where she was.

  Using telepathy to send a call for help was out. Both times Kenzie had touched her that evening, she’d grabbed hold of Alex’s jacket-lined wrist.

  But maybe if she dropped her guard and thought it loud enough, Alex might just get lucky. If Kenzie was listening for Alex’s voice in the crowd, she might be able to hear her.

  It was a long shot, but it was worth a try.

  Kenzie!!! Are you there? I need you!

  Three agonizing seconds passed with no reply as Oisin looked her up and down.

  McGinty’s was packed with bodies tonight. Odds were good Kenzie was doing her best to shut everyone out, right now—everyone, including Alex.

  “Someone ought to teach you some manners,” said Oisin. “Think I’m just the man for the job.”

  Two more telepathic cries went unanswered before she gave up and began brainstorming another way out.

  With Creeps 1 and 2 clinging to her arms, teleporting was out of the question. If she jumped right now, she’d merely drag them along with her—and out herself as a jumper in the process.

  Forming a sphere was also off the list, since her arms were pinned against the building and she had no way of throwing the destructive orb toward any of her attackers.

  Which left Alex with only her self-defense training as a possible means of escape.

  The only little hiccup with that option, was that Nate and Decks hadn’t exactly gotten around to teaching her how to escape the hold of multiple assailants at once, when both your arms were being held, and a man the size of a well-fed ogre stood blocking your escape.

  Alex swallowed hard and bit down on her lower lip to fight back the tears that were burning behind her eyes. Her wrist ached beneath Creep 1’s ironclad hold. She had almost certainly sprained it during her fall.

  And if a sprained wrist was the worst thing to come from this mess she’d found herself in, it would be a miracle.

  Think, Alex… Think… What can you do to distract them? To trick them into letting you go?

  Oisin had taken a step back, but was still hovering in front of her, grinning as he looked her over.

  Should she attempt it? He was standing just close enough to try…

  Before she could talk herself out of it, Alex kicked out, aiming her boot directly for Oisin’s groin.

  He leaped back. The toe of her boot connected with his thigh, instead.

  It was enough to piss him off, but not nearly enough to hurt him.

  Instead of releasing her in surprise, Creeps 1 and 2 merely tightened their hold, causing Alex to cry out in agony when more pressure was placed on her injured wrist.

  That was nothing, however, compared to the bright red explosion of pain that ripped through her cheek and the right side of her jaw in the next instant.

  Oisin had backhanded her with enough force to bounce her head off the cement wall behind her with a resounding crack.

  Alex’s vision swam in front of her, her right ear ringing loudly as her knees went slack.

  “Hold her steady, lads,” Oisin’s voice floated from somewhere that seemed both nearby and, at the same time, very far away.

  Still dazed from the first blow, Alex never saw the next one coming.

  Oisin’s fist slammed into her side like an iron hammer, the punch glancing off her rib cage and forcing her to blow out a breath. When she attempted to draw the next, it came in a watery wheeze.

  “Come on, Oisin,” said Creep 1, sounding nervous. “You said we were just going to have a bit of fun.”

  “Never said nothing ’bout harmin’ her,” added Creep 2.

  “I said hold her steady,” barked Oisin.

  Blood dripped steadily from the cut on Alex’s cheek into her mouth and down the side of her neck. It tasted like warm metal.

  “Let. Her. Go.”

  Alex blinked, trying to bring her surroundings back into focus. The pain blossoming across her cheekbone and behind her right eye was making it difficult to concentrate.

  She was even starting to imagine things.

  She must be imagining things… Because why else would she have heard Declan’s voice just now?

  Alex had to hand it to her imagination, though. It had remembered the exact way Declan’s Irish accent snuck back into his speech any time he was angry.

  And boy, was that accent thick right about now.

  With no small amount of effort, Alex was able to turn her head toward the source of the imagined voice.

  “O’Connell,” Oisin said the name like a curse. “This doesn’t concern you, yank.”

  Alex’s heart leapt in her chest.

  She hadn’t imagined him. Declan was standing ten feet away at the end of the alley, his hands balled into fists at his sides.

  “Let her go, Oisin,” said Declan, his voice dangerously low. “Do it right now, and maybe—just maybe—I won’t rip you to pieces with my bare hands… Maybe I’ll just settle for beating you unconscious, instead.”

  Oisin’s laugh was a condescending bark. “I’d like to see you try that, Declan,” he said. “Honestly, I would.”

  Creep 1 allowed his grip on Alex to weaken ever so slightly. “Oisin,” he said, “Maybe we should—”

  “Quiet, John,” hissed Oisin, turning his back on Alex and the Creeps. “It’s time I gave this dumb yank the drubbing he’s got coming to him.”

  The men holding her exchanged a nervous glance. Despite Oisin’s grandstanding, Declan’s unexpected arrival had thoroughly unsettled the Creeps.

  Oisin took a step toward Declan and all hell broke loose at once.

  When four shadowy figures turned the corner behind Declan, Alex immediately recognized Aiden’s angry shout and Kenzie’s voice crying out her name—sounds that prompted Creeps 1 and 2 to jolt in surprise.

  Realizing they were outnumbered, the Creeps dropped Alex’s arms and attempted to make a break for it.

  Oisin, meanwhile, took advantage of Declan’s distraction by sucker punching him in the gut.

  Her eyes locked with Declan’s as he bent double over the fist Oisin had buried in his stomach.

  Without the Creeps to hold her upright, Alex’s legs gave out beneath her own weight. As she tumbled to the ground, Declan retaliated with an uppercut to Oisin’s jaw that sent the man reeling.

  Aiden and a dark haired teen Alex had never seen before ran full-tilt past her, in pursuit of the escaping Creeps. As they disappeared around the far side of the building, Kenzie and Cassie rushed to her side.

  “My god, Lexie,” said Cassie. “Your face! What did they do to you?”

  Alex didn’t answer. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the fight unfolding five feet away from them.

  Declan’s punches had Oisin swaying on his feet, the ogre’s meaty arms raised in a pathetic attempt to defend himself as he tried to return Declan’s blows.

  Alex called it a fight but, in truth, the match ended the second Declan began fighting back in earnest. Oisin got in only two good blows during the course of the entire brawl—and one of those only connected because Declan had been distracted.

  Blood dripped from Oisin’s brow, his nose, and his lip. The area around his left eye was already starting to swell.

  Alex’s attacker was on the ropes, but Declan showed no signs of stopping.

  Oisin fell to his knees, defeated.

  Declan scooped up a fistful of Oisin’s shirt to hold him in place, then raised his fist high, readying himself for another punch.

  Though it pained her to speak, Alex managed to cry out, “Declan, stop.”

  Declan’s eyes shifted toward Alex where she lay sprawled on the ground beside her friends. Whatever it was Declan saw when he looked her way caused his expressi
on to twist first into an agonized grimace, then to harden in a mask of silent rage.

  Declan’s fist came down on Oisin one last time.

  The larger man fell to the ground, knocked senseless by the blow.

  Declan staggered backward.

  Alex closed her eyes.

  It was over.

  — 27 —

  “No, don’t try to move her yet. We don’t know how bad her injuries are.”

  “God, there’s so much blood. Why is there so much blood?”

  “Head wounds. They bleed a lot.”

  “I don’t want to know how you know that.”

  Alex tried to follow the conversation taking place above her head, but it was difficult to hear their words over the crackling sound of her own breath.

  “I’m… I’m sorry,” she managed.

  “Shh,” said Cassie. “Quiet, Lexie. You’re going to be fine.”

  Alex coughed, then seized up at the blinding pain that spread across her right side at the effort.

  Declan stood at Alex’s feet, his face cast in shadow from the street light behind him. She wished she could see his expression.

  Kenzie’s hand swam before her and Alex looked away from Declan’s silhouette. The girl carefully lifted each of Alex’s eyelids with her thumb, flashing the camera light from her cell phone into each eye.

  Alex blinked tiredly.

  She noted with some distraction that she was unusually sleepy, despite the amount of discomfort she was in.

  “Aiden,” said Kenzie.

  “Yeah?”

  “Take Cassie and go see what McGinty’s has in the way of a first aid kit,” she ordered.

  “You got it.”

  “We’ll be right back, Alex,” said Cassie. “I promise.”

  Kenzie began to gently examine her injured wrist. Alex hardly noticed. Too many other parts of her were aching.

  “It’s almost definitely broken,” she said. “And going from the dilation of her pupils, she probably has a concussion. But what I’m really concerned about, is her breathing. I think she might have a punctured lung.”

  “We need to get her to hospital,” said the dark haired teen kneeling opposite Kenzie.