3 Hit the Road Jack

by Christin Lovell

“What does that mean?” I bit out.

  “I just told you I was on this mission because the asshole messed with my operation,” Kai said through gritted teeth.

  I narrowed my eyes, accepting the challenge. “So you mean to tell me that if Jack was torturing your brother you wouldn’t beg to trade places with him, take compassion on him in the midst of suffering?”

  “He’s a big boy.”

  “I don’t believe you.” He shrugged again. “What about when your dad was suffering right in front of you? You didn’t beg to trade places with him?”

  “That’s different. I was a new vamp back then. Time has hardened my heart.”

  “If you had a hard heart Kai, then you wouldn’t love at all, and I know you love me.” Abruptly the room went silent. Craig, Will, Kalel, Gabi and Kellan all had stunned faces; they couldn’t believe I’d just said that. I could barely believe I’d just said it. Kai looked at me, fire in his eyes. Then, suddenly it was gone. He bottled all his emotions and buried them deep inside.

  “I don’t have time to argue with a naïve child,” he growled and walked out the room. I stood motionless staring after him with my mouth gaping open.

  “That was a low blow Lex,” Gabi said, effectively slapping me in the face with guilt. I sighed, collapsing back onto the couch.

  “I think we all need a bit of fresh wind and more gator,” Craig suggested, effectively breaking the tension again.

  “You just want more gator.”

  “Darn tootin fig newton!” he grinned. I chuckled, relaxing a bit at his crazy phrases.

  “Sounds good to me. How many more of those blood packets do you have Kalel? We’ve gone through a lot of them.”

  “We have a manufacturing plant in England. I stopped off and grabbed a few boxes when we were there.”

  “Awesome, thanks. They’re great. You’ve definitely earned me as a customer when we get back to Charleston.”

  “I’ll set you up with an account before we get back and sell them to you at cost.”

  “Thanks.”

  Chapter 28

  We all went out for dinner at a local restaurant on the waterfront side of town. It offered variety; no gator, but Craig wasn’t too disappointed. He just liked food in general. Eventually Kai joined us as well, once he walked off his anger. I probably should have, but I didn’t feel bad.

  We were again the only crazy group to sit outside in this weather on the deck overlooking the water. It gave us time to talk about our strategy in Puerto Rico anyways.

  “Do you have any radios?” I asked Kalel.

  “They run on satellite signal, which we wouldn’t get in El Yunque,” he replied.

  “What about old fashioned walkie-talkies?”

  “Usually they max out at about a quarter mile, and El Yunque is huge.”

  “Well crap.” I pushed around the pasta on my plate, quickly growing cold. “Any ideas?”

  “What about the military radios? Those allow communication over miles,” Kellan suggested.

  “We’d be hard pressed to get a hold of those between now and then.”

  “The army should have some. We have a base in Miami. I can request some to be delivered during the layover,” Al offered.

  “Even if they don’t work, I’d just feel better going in with something,” I said, taking a bite of my cold pasta and then pushing the plate away. My stomach had been uneasy all evening, foreboding corroding my core.

  “Any idea where in El Yunque he could be? From the aerial maps I pulled up on my phone there’s several mountains covered with rainforest and supposedly tunnels running through the mountains too.”

  “Anywhere. Given how often he’s communicated with us, I doubt he’d choose our arrival to be silent. We’re walking right into a trap that he’s set up perfectly,” Kalel stated.

  “Are you guys ok walking in there knowing that? It’s not too late to back out. I would understand.” Part of me was praying that they would, and the other part was praying they wouldn’t. As much as I hated to admit it, I was probably going to need the back up.

  “We’re sure,” Al answered for them, giving everyone a stern look warning them not to go against him.

  “Actually Lexi, I’m not scheduled to go with you into the forest,” Will said.

  “Why am I not surprised? Tell me Will, what is it exactly that an Eislom does?” He at least had the decency to look slightly embarrassed.

  “I’ll accompany you only until a certain point,” he announced.

  “Woohoo.” I twirled my pointer finger around in a tornado motion.

  “Believe me or not, I am doing my job Lexi,” he defended.

  “That’s fine Will. I guess I just don’t understand exactly what your job is, or rather what the point of your job is.” He nodded his understanding, not bothering to further explain himself.

  “What do you say we go out to the club and let loose? It’s our last night here,” Gabi said.

  “I’m game.”

  “Alright. Let’s go cut a rug,” Craig nodded.

  “Cut a rug? Really Craig?” Gabi snickered. “Come on. You can do better than that.”

  “Jealous of my flossy vocabulary mate?” he smirked. Gabi burst into laughter.

  “Hey Craig, when was the last time you talked to Mel?”

  “This morning.”

  “She’s ok?”

  “Beautiful as ever. We Skyped.”

  “And I won’t go beyond that. Al, have you talked to Beth?”

  “Earlier. She’s been calling me regularly checking on everyone. She’s a nervous wreck at home of course.” He took a long, slow sip of his water; his eyes grew starry just talking about her. It was sweet to know that after all this time they were still madly in love like my parents were.

  I smiled, looking at Kellan, getting the same starry eyed look in return. He leaned in and planted a soft kiss on my lips. I jumped at hearing a chair scrape backwards. Kai shot up from the table, threw down a wad of cash and walked away. Kellan surprised me by pulling away and standing up to follow him. Gabi and I exchanged worried glances.

  “Let them hash this out,” she ordered. I watched Kellan catching up with Kai, my heart racing, pounding in my head.

  I swear I didn’t sit still, bouncing in my seat, straining my ears to hear what was going on between the two of them. The anticipation was killing me. I was hoping they would work it out, but I half expected to have to break up a fight off in the distance.

  What felt like forever, but was probably only two minutes later, Kellan and Kai both strode back to the table, both of them tense, but at least walking amicably beside each other. I raised a questioning brow at Kellan. He shrugged and smiled.

  “You guys ready to head out?” Kellan asked.

  “Um, sure,” I stuttered, trying to figure out what he’d said to Kai that could possibly have evoked a truce.

  “Just go with it,” Gabi whispered.

  “Enjoy it love,” Craig added.

  “They both love you Lexi. Men will do many things for the woman they love,” Al commented. I blushed at the fact that my fiance’s dad acknowledged that more than just his son loved me. I didn’t know how he remained so calm and collected about it. Maybe he was secure in my love for Kellan in return.

  “Oceana here we come!” Gabi yelled. “Oh my gosh Lex, I checked it out online. Every room has a different theme, and guess who will be traveling around the world tonight?” She wagged her brows suggestively. I could tell she was trying to let go of Rafi, but wasn’t quite there yet.

  “I can’t wait, but shouldn’t we go back to the hotel and change first.”

  Gabi looked me up and down, still in my JC velour set. “Oh yea.”

  Al and Will opted to stay at the hotel, which wasn’t surprising. I couldn’t exactly picture the two of them at a night club anyways. Gabi and I changed into our best LBD. She wore hers with a pair of black tights and a pair of blue suede pumps nearly identical to mine, accessorizing with silver and teal feather
earrings and a purple clutch. I paired my dress with black tights as well, but opted for my purple suede ankle boots that had a fringe detail, large square diamond earrings and a diamond tennis bracelet that my dad had given my mom a few years back for Christmas. Gabi and I both let our hair fall free and wavy.

  “Ok, now we’re ready to go party,” she smiled approvingly at our ensembles.

  “Kellan, please hold my ID,” I passed him my fake license that Kalel had given me before. I carefully tucked my cell phone in my bra, pulling my v-neck cut back up for modesty. The dress already clung semi-close everywhere else on my body, even down the long sleeves; I didn’t need any more sex appeal.

  The club was huge, and crowded. I checked my watch, surprised to find it was already eleven when we arrived. At the club, Gabi and I went off, leaving the guys to hang out. We actually did make it through each room of the club, although my favorite was the Reykjavik Icehouse. The neon blue lighting created a perfectly chilly backdrop. I enjoyed the Parisian Boudoir’s seating. The banquets were upholstered in the most luxurious crushed velvet fabric and provided a premium view for people watching.

  By the time we found the guys again, we had mingled with more local males than we had fingers and toes. They were all very nice and had a bit of Southern charm to them that I found endearing. Gabi got a few phone numbers, but I knew she wouldn’t be calling any of them anytime soon. It was going to take a while for her to get over Rafi. She put up a good front, but I knew she cried behind closed doors.

  “Where were you ladies all night?” Craig asked, a twinkle in his eye, as if he already knew.

  “Mingling, getting stacks of local numbers,” Gabi bragged. I elbowed her, looking at Kellan who was smirking, completely unfazed by the information. They definitely knew.

  “What did you guys do all night?” I countered.

  “Mingled; got our own stacks of local numbers,” Kellan winked.

  “These two pussies followed you two around all night,” Kai rolled his eyes.

  “And how would you know that?” I smiled, having cornered him.

  “We followed you two to make sure you were ok,” Kalel stepped in.

  “You don’t think we can take care of ourselves?” Gabi pressed, her hand on her hip.

  “Frankly, no,” Kalel stated.

  “Hmph,” Gabi scoffed, grabbing my hand and leading me out the exit doors.

  ~~~

  I stopped short at the white envelope taped to the door of my hotel room, my serum flooded my mouth immediately. Cautiously I looked up and down the hall, but found nothing suspicious. With a shaky hand I snatched it off the door. When I flipped it over and didn’t find Jack’s seal though, I frowned.

  I pulled out the note tucked inside, swallowing the hard lump in my throat.

  Dear Lexi & Kellan,

  It’s been a true honor and pleasure to have been blessed with the opportunity to get to know and work with the heroes of the next vamp generation. Lexi, given your determination, I know you will accomplish all I’ve read. And Kellan, you will influence this journey more than you realize.

  Earlier, you asked me what an Eislom did; what is my role precisely. An Eislom’s role is to help their assigned students until they gain the ability to navigate the trenches alone. I was to open your eyes to your destiny without revealing it; I was to facilitate you both in achieving your destiny without changing it.

  If I look back to where you started Lexi, more dependent on others than yourself, you’ve grown immensely and far surpassed my expectations. Kellan, look at when you first met Lexi to now, you have grown and evolved into a strong vampire who has more inside him than he gives himself credit for. Together you are a power duo; world domination in a coupling. I’d like to think that I helped mold you into that pair, but truthfully, I only made you both aware of your purpose. Until I came along, you were merely living; but now you are living to succeed and fulfill that charted journey.

  Unfortunately, my job is done at this early stage. I’m ever so proud of you both for your immaculate progress; you’re quick students. Should you ever need a reference or require my skills, please do not hesitate to contact me.

  Proudly,

  Your Eislom,

  William Jameson

  “That’s it? He came and went that quickly?” I stood stunned, staring at the paper in my hands. I knew I had a stupefied expression on my face, but I was so caught off guard by Will’s departure that I didn’t know how to react. Kellan took the paper from my hands.

  I thought back over our journey, trying to think of how Will had influenced it because I would give him that; he did influence us to some degree. He forced us to involve our purpose in every decision that we made; I think he was the one that made us accept our destinies for what they were predicted to be while not shying away from making it our own still. And, admittedly, now that he was gone, I felt like a part of our journey had ended already. I was saddened by that.

  “What’s going on Lex?” Gabi asked, watching my expression with concern.

  “Will’s gone.”

  “Oh. You really liked him didn’t you?”

  “Yea. I gave him a hard time, but I appreciated him.” I shrugged, trying to brush it off.

  “I’m sorry chica,” she said, pulling me in for a hug.

  “It’s ok. He did say earlier that he wasn’t going with us into El Yunque, so I knew a goodbye was coming, I just didn’t know it would be so soon.”

  “Well, technically it’s only a day early.”

  “True,” I gave her a small smile. I took a deep breath. “Well, that’s that. I’m going to shower and get comfy, probably try to get a few hours of sleep before tomorrow.”

  “Make sure you sleep,” she said, looking pointedly at Kellan. Kellan threw up his hands, as if saying he wasn’t starting anything, but not stopping it either.

  “Good night Gabi. I’ll see you in the morning,” I smiled, pulling Kellan into the room by his shirt.

  He threw my back against the wall, crowding my space and kissing me hard. His lips pushed me to respond, forcing my mind to mold to his. It was an intense collision that had my mind spinning in seconds and my body heating beneath his touch.

  “Sorry about Will babe.”

  “It’s ok. I knew it was coming.”

  “At least you never have to worry about me leaving you,” he said, instantly stopping me dead in my panting tracks. The journal came rushing back to me.

  “The journal said you were shot last minute in the forest. It could have easily been a rainforest.” I didn’t realize I was crying until he wiped my cheeks with the pads of his thumbs.

  “Even if it is, we have tonight. Let’s not waste it worrying about what may or may not happen.”

  Not given me a moment to think or say otherwise, he lifted me, wrapping my legs around his waist and carried me to the bed. He gently laid me back on the pillows, cascading soft kisses on my lips and jawline. He lifted off my dress, his eyes going directly to the permanent scar on my shoulder where he bit me. He showered kisses over the spot as I sunk into him.

  Chapter 28

  “Dear God that flight was brutal,” Gabi complained as we grabbed the few pieces of luggage that had survived off the belt. Security in the San Juan airport had been worse than customs, especially with our luggage. We’d been pulled into a back room when they found our weapons doing a scan. I lost count at how many people we had to glamour. “Next time we ship our weapons,” she huffed.

  Craig chuckled at her dramatics. It had been quite an experience, but I felt somewhat reassured by the way they handled everything.

  The second we stepped outside the airport, the heat swarmed us despite the island breeze. I was surprised given that it was January. My pulse sped up the second we climbed into the black van. I clutched Kellan’s hand, intertwining our fingers and squeezing.

  “This is it. We’re really here.”

  “Regardless of what happens, I would still choose to do this with you. I wouldn’t c
hange a thing.” He kissed my fingers, surrounded by his.

  “Likewise. I love you.”

  “I love you.”

  “The hotel is down the street from El Yunque. We’ll be able to see it from below. Maybe seeing it from afar will help us plan so we don’t go in blind,” Kalel said.

  “You are visiting El Yunque?” the driver asked.

  “Yes,” Kalel replied.

  “El Yunque is magical, but stay on the main road. People get lost in there,” he warned. My stomach knotted even tighter, something I didn’t know it was capable of.

  “Thanks for the warning,” Kalel nodded.

  Thirty minutes later the van pulled up in front of a couple condo buildings next to a good size intersection; they were an orange stucco that stood out against the backdrop of El Yunque. It was vast, covering the entire backdrop to that area of town with green in the shape of mountains. It was overwhelming in presence from a distance, so I could only imagine once we were inside it.

  “We rented a 3-bedroom condo for the week,” Kalel announced as we walked into the space. Sand colored tiles ran diagonally across the entire space. The white walls and Caribbean-style dark rattan furniture only emphasized the fact that this was a Puerto Rican villa. “I plan to tell Art of our location. I told him if we haven’t contacted him in four days to empty the condo so no one knows anything.”

  I looked wide-eyed at Kalel. Oh God. He’s planning for the worst, as if he’s expecting it.

  “Don’t look at me like that. I’m just taking precautions. I don’t expect to die in the next couple days, but just in case I’d rather not leave a mess for other vamps to clean up with the humans.” I slowly nodded my head. “You’re the only one who needs to sleep so you can have the master. I plan to set up all my equipment in the second bedroom since it has a built in desk.”

  “Thanks. I’ll help you set up.”

  “No offense Leka, but you’d probably be more of a hindrance than a help.”

  “None taken. You’re probably right. Me and technology don’t seem to be getting along lately anyways,” I chuckled nervously, looking down at my necklace. I didn’t know why I even bothered keeping it on. I guess I was hoping that it would miraculously start working again when I needed it most. That had me staring at the veins in my hands, looking normal and slightly blue beneath my skin at the moment.