Angered Seasons: The Worst Birthday Ever (Volume One)

by Chester, Mireille

  John poked his head around the corner. “Just thought you’d want to know he’s sleeping.”

  I smiled my thanks and flopped myself down beside Lane.

  “What do you think we should do about Lizzy?”

  “Do I sound like an uncaring ass if I say I don’t want to deal with it right now? My brain is fried, Gabs. I just want to go to sleep and wake up in my own bed at home.” He lay down and watched as I slipped off my boots before lying down beside him.

  “What day would it be when you woke up?” I asked.

  “Yesterday morning.”

  I looked back at him. “What? Why in god’s name would you go back to yesterday morning? That’s when all this shit started to fly!”

  I felt him shrug. “That coffee from Timmie’s I got on our way to work was fantastic.” I felt him smile as I started to laugh.

  “Oh, my god, you are such a geek!”

  “I know,” he relented before turning serious. “We’ll have a talk with Lizzy in the morning.”

  I nodded. “I’m worried about Max. I haven’t seen him like this for a long time.”

  “Yeah. But you know what? He’s a strong kid and he’s got a lot of people here that love him.”

  “Yeah, he does.” I let myself relax and started dreaming of waking up in my own bed.

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  I opened my eyes and stretched then blinked. What the hell? I glanced around and tried to figure out which room I was in. It looked like my room. I frowned. When had I painted it red? I hated red. I glanced down at my comforter. Red. I rubbed my hands over my face and quickly pulled them away, wet and slick. My heart kicked in my chest and I glanced around the room again. The paint wasn’t dry, so why was I sitting in the room? My stomach heaved at the familiar smell that suddenly overwhelmed me. That wasn’t paint. I stumbled out of bed and tripped on something large on the floor, my scream echoing in the room as I turned to see what it was.

  Maxy lay on the floor in a pool of dark blood, his eyes staring, lifeless, into mine. There wasn’t a part of his body that didn’t have damage to it. His eyes had been gouged out, most of the skin on his face had been ripped away.

  “Max?” My whisper stuck in my throat and a sob raked through me. “Maxy.”

  I started to crawl backwards and stopped short as my hand fell on something else behind me. I closed my eyes and turned, scared to look. I took a deep breath and forced myself to see what I had touched.

  “No. Oh, god, please no.” Johnny lay on his stomach, his face turned away from me, his hair black with blood.

  A whimper startled me and I jumped to my feet. Marie had plastered herself into the far corner of my room, little Ashley shielded in her arms. Pete lay at her feet, his chest ripped apart.

  “Marie!” I took a step toward her and paused at her scream. “Marie, we have to leave!” I started to move again then froze. There was nothing quite like the sound of a rifle being loaded.

  “Don’t do it Gabby.” Lane’s voice shook.

  I turned slowly, shocked by the mix of emotions in his words. Anger, fear, complete devastation.

  “Lane?”

  He was covered in blood and bruises, he had a cut under his left eye, and his lip was split. The gun was aimed at me. He blinked and the tears left streaks down his cheeks.

  “Lane, what happened?”

  He shook his head and swallowed hard. I caught some movement in the mirror and my stomach heaved. It took a second to register that the woman looking back at me was me. My hair clung in mats, my clothes were ripped, and I was covered in blood. I looked myself in the eyes and doubled over to throw up a thick stream of red.

  “No, no, no, no…” I shook my head and leaned against the wall.

  Lane choked on a sob as my yellow eyes met his.

  “I’m sorry, Gabby.”

  He pulled the trigger and I screamed and jerked in pain. My face hit the floor with an amazing smack and everything started to go black.

  “Gabby!” Lane’s hands were rolling me over. “Gabs. God, I’m sorry.” The sound of feet running to where I lay sounded muffled. “Shit. Jason, can you get me a cloth? There’s blood all over the place. Gabby… Gabby… come on. Wake up.”

  I jerked away from the pain as someone put pressure on my nose. All of the tension left Lane’s body at the sight of my eyes focusing on him. “I am so sorry, Gabrielle. You screamed and I sort of jumped myself awake and managed to push you right off the couch.”

  I frowned at looked past him to our entire crew staring down at me with worry.

  “What the hell were you dreaming about?”

  I swallowed hard. “You shot me.” My voice broke.

  He jerked back. “What?”

  “I turned into one of the Yellow Eyes and you shot me.” I closed my eyes and tried to get my heart to slow. Lane pulled the cloth away to see if I was still bleeding.

  “I am so sorry.”

  I grunted. “You had to. I was killing everyone.”

  He started to laugh. “I meant about pushing you off the couch.”

  I glanced up at him and smiled. “Well, it’s not like you did it on purpose.” I touched my nose gingerly. “Does anyone need to use the bathroom before I use the shower?” I grinned. “You know, you’d almost think we knew this was coming the way we designed this shop.”

  Lane helped me up. “If I’d known this was coming I would have put bedrooms in it.”

  I grabbed a towel and a clean tank top and jeans and headed to the bathroom. The first thing I did was wash the blood from my face. I sighed as the hot water ran over me, my cuts and scrapes from last night still giving me a bit of a sting to remind me they were there. I heard the door open and close.

  “Did I break it?” Lane sounded so guilty I had to smile.

  “No.” I poked my head around the curtain to show him I was fine. “It’s fine, Lane.” I frowned. “Hey, it wasn’t your fault.”

  “I promised you I’d never hurt you.”

  “Lane, you were sleeping.”

  He gave a slight shake of his head. “Once I realized I’d pushed you off, I looked over and all I could see was you lying on the floor the day Chris beat you.”

  I’d been twenty five and dating my second boyfriend. After a month of being together, he’d decided it was time I put out and I’d objected. He hadn’t taken kindly to it. I still sent prayers up to god to thank him for bringing Lane home early that night. When I’d come to, Chris lay in a pile on the living room floor and Lane was carrying me out to the truck to take me to the hospital.

  I shut the water off and wrapped a towel around myself before stepping out of the shower. “Lane.” I waited until he was looking at me. “You didn’t hit me. I fell off the couch. I’m fine.”

  He ran his hands over his face. “You’re sure you’re alright?”

  I nodded and hugged him tightly. “Now, get out so I can get dressed.”

  He stopped at the door and frowned. “I’d never be able to shoot you.”

  I blinked. “Well, if I were to start killing everyone in the shop, I’d want you to.”

  He shook his head. “I’d shoot myself first.”

  I stared as he left and closed the door. By the time I was decent, the twins had cooked up some breakfast and my stomach growled at the smell of bacon and eggs. I glanced up at the clock. Six thirty in the morning.

  I made my way to sit beside Max who was staring at his hands.

  “Hey.”

  “Hey.”

  “How was your night?”

  He glanced at me and smiled. “Better than yours.”

  I grinned. If he was joking around then he’d managed to get past the hurting himself stage.

  “Have you felt anything like at the park?”

  He shook his head. Lane’s cell phone went off and I watched as he answered it.

  “Lane, here. Oh, hey, Robby. Not much, just holed up at the shop. You?” He looked up at the clock. “Yep, we’ll meet you there.” He hung up. “Robby’s
opening up his shop in twenty minutes to a few of his customers. We made the list.”

  I finished the bacon I was eating and swallowed my coffee in a gulp. “I’m coming this time.”

  He nodded. “He also said the bow you ordered is in, so he can get you set up for that as well.” He downed his coffee. “Jason, you’re in charge until we get back. Max, you’re with us.”

  I caught Lane looking up at Lizzy who was glaring at him. Max pulled on his boots, no questions asked, while I handed Jason my rifle and hopped into the one ton. We pulled out of the yard and I marveled at the lack of snow and the odd green patch of grass that was already starting to show.

  “This is unbelievable. It’s barely seven and I don’t need a jacket out. Mother Nature’s lost her marbles.”

  Lane nodded. It took fifteen minutes to get to Robby’s sports shop. Ten trucks lined the street when we got there. We made our way to the front door and were let in by Robby’s brother, Shawn. Everyone tensed at the sound of the door swinging open.

  “Lane, Gabby! Good, you made it.” He glanced at Lane’s rifle, nodded to himself, and went to the bullet case. “You need a couple more guns?”

  “If you’ve got them.”

  Robby nodded, went to the back, and returned with three more rifles. He set them on the counter beside the boxes of bullets and went into the back once again. He was grinning when he returned.

  “Here she is, Gabs.” He pulled the bow out of its case with a flourish and I laughed.

  “Ooh. Oh my god, Robby, you weren’t lying!” I aimed an invisible arrow at the mule deer head hanging on the far wall. “It is so comfortable!” I grinned and handed it to Lane to try.

  “Alright, so here’re your arrows… I added three more packs of the Gold Tip XT Hunters so that gives you 24 altogether. Here’s ten boxes of shells, three riffles. Maxy, you have your hunter’s safety yet?

  Max shook his head. “Not yet.”

  “You know how to shoot?”

  Max looked to Lane who nodded. “He shoots cans out at the shop.”

  Robby gave a half shrug before handing him one of the rifles. “I don’t think those yellowed eyed idiots out there give a shit whether or not you’re killing them legally.”

  “Do you think it’s going to get worse?” I frowned and looked around the store where others were waiting to have a turn at Robby’s supplies.

  He raised an eyebrow at us. “There’s no news. None whatsoever. No TV guys stepping up with special announcements, no radio guys telling us what might be happening… just that same message over and over. Stay indoors, don’t come out.” He shook his head. “How long until folks run out of food? I have no clue what is wrong with those people, but I will tell you one thing. This is going to get worse before it gets better.” He took a deep breath. “Shawn’s been told not to go to work at the water plant… they told him to stay home. There’s no one manning the plant right now. Start boiling your water just to be safe.”

  Lane nodded his thanks for the bit of inside information. “How much do we owe you?”

  Robby looked at his till. “Give me half now and if we all survive this shit, you can pay me the rest later.”

  Lane handed him one of the credit cards, signed his name on the receipt, and slung the rifles over his shoulder. We said some quick hellos to a few of the others we recognized then made our way to the truck.

  “Um, Gabby?” Max’s voice shook.

  “What is it?”

  “I think we’re about to get some company.”

  I looked up and saw a group of eleven Yellow Eyes walking down the street in our direction. A quick glance back to Max caused my heart to jump in my throat.

  “Holy shit, your eyes are glowing again.”

  He squeezed them shut. Lane leaned into the truck, grabbed his sunglasses, and handed them to Max who quickly put them on. I grabbed two rifles and a case of shells.

  “Let’s get inside.” Lane led the way back into the shop. “Robby, there’s a group of eleven of them heading this way.”

  Everyone stopped talking and stared at us. I frowned. No, not us… Max. I looked up at him and took a deep breath to stay calm. The silver glow of his eyes could be seen through the dark glasses.

  Lane stepped between Max and the others. “He’s not the problem here. We don’t know what’s up with Maxy right now, but he’s not dangerous.”

  “So says you,” grumbled a man I’d never met. He narrowed his light blue eyes at us.

  “You won’t be killing one of my employees while I’m standing here.” Though Lane hadn’t raised his voice, there was no mistaking the threat behind his words.

  I felt Max stiffen beside me.

  “They’re here,” he whispered. The room went still as everyone pulled in a collective breath and held it. It was almost comical. Here we were, all of us experienced hunters, armed with a variety of weapons, and none of us wanting to draw attention to ourselves.

  “I don’t know if I can shoot another person,” mumbled a woman behind me.

  I glanced back and wondered if I was as pale as her at the moment. “It’s either you shoot them or they tear your throat out.”

  Whatever little bit of color she had left drained from her face at the sound of my words. I loaded my rifle and pulled Max down beside me behind a shelf. Lane took the shelf next to us. That seemed to set everyone else in motion and soon everyone was set up behind a shelf or desk, gun barrels or arrows aimed at the door. We watched as dark shadows moved behind the closed blinds in the shop’s windows.

  I glanced at Max who had taken off the sunglasses to get a better look through the sights on his rifle. His eyes looked like they had been photoshopped. They didn’t glow like a light. It looked more like someone had poured mercury into them. Past him, Lane stayed focused on the door. The five minutes we all stayed ready seemed an eternity.

  “They’re gone.” Max blinked and the silver bled back into green.

  A shadow towered over us.

  “What the fuck was that all about!”

  I jumped between Max and the man who had questioned him earlier. “That was nothing. See? Maxy’s fine.”

  The man pushed me to the side and I grunted as I fell into a shelf. He grabbed Max by the front of his shirt and jerked him toward his chest. Max closed his eyes and started to count, though I could tell he was going to lose the battle with this internal battle. I knew the instant he took a swing at the man, he’d be dead. Everyone, Max included, stopped moving at the sound of a rifle being loaded. The man stiffened and my heart jumped at the sight of Lane aiming his gun at him.

  “Take your hands off of him.”

  The man turned red. “Robby, you’re actually going to sit there and let this idiot point a gun at me?”

  Everyone turned to see Robby who shrugged and pulled a cigarette pack out of his shirt pocket. He pulled a smoke out, lit it, and took a long drag. His eyes stayed on Max the entire time. “Seems to me Maxy, here, just managed to keep us alive.” He took another drag. “Let the kid go, Garrett.”

  “I’m not going to…”

  “Garrett! I don’t think you’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting Lane. Here’s something you need to know about him. Lane only loves two things in life, and you’ll pick up on that immediately if you ever have a conversation with him. The first is Gabrielle, that pretty little red head you just threw to the ground. The second is the community service kids they work with, which Maxy happens to be.” He inhaled deeply and blew the smoke out slowly. “If I were you, I’d let go of the kid.”

  Instead of listening, Garret seemed to decide that Lane wouldn’t simply shoot another human being. He pulled his arm back to punch Max. Instead of pulling the trigger, Lane flipped the gun around and smashed it against the back of Garrett’s head just as Maxy ducked away from his fist. I ran to stand in front of Max, my rifle slightly raised in warning.

  Lane had his rifle up again, his eyes scanning the people staring at us, looking for the next one who was about to sta
rt trouble. “Get him out of here, Gabs.”

  My heart dropped. “I am not leaving you with a bunch of lunatics.” My comment earned me a few grumbles.

  Lane’s eyes met mine. “Go.” When I simply glared back at him, he turned his attention to Max. “Get her back to the shop.”

  Max glanced from me to him. “Sorry, Gabs.” He caught the keys Lane tossed to him then swung me over his shoulder. “Boss’s orders.”

  “Whatever happens, go.” Lane put himself between us and the others. I pounded my fists against Max’s back, unable to stop him. He threw me into the truck and jumped in himself. I looked up just as Max floored the truck and saw Lane being hit by another man and falling to the ground. I screamed and Max blanched at the sound of a riffle going off. The smell of blood reached my nose and I noticed a cut on my arm where I’d fell into the shelf. My dream rushed back to me. I barely had time to roll down the window before my stomach rid itself of the bacon and eggs. My chest clenched, my sobs raked through me.

  “I’m sorry, Gabby.”

  I watched as Max’s tears matched my own and I took his hand, clinging to it. I closed my eyes and cried harder as my mind alternated between Lane being dragged to the ground and the sound of the rifle going off. There really was no sound quite like that.

  To be continued…

  For Matt

  It’s amazing what a conversation about the weather can spark in the imagination.

  About the Author

  Mireille Chester was born in Ottawa, Ontario in 1979 and moved to Saskatchewan when she was eight. Writing is one of her many passions which also include reading, drawing, painting, animals, and the outdoors. She is a stay at home mom and wife.

  Her first series, The Chosen One Trilogy, is the first of her adventures which are based in the world of Quelondain. The three stories, Crossover, Journey, and Destiny follow the adventures of Hayden Carlson when she suddenly discovers a world filled with magic and finds herself caught up in a war that could wipe out almost every being that lives there. The trilogy has been described as a great mix of epic and paranormal fantasy.