Heavy Metal Heartbeat

by Ambear Shellea

  They deserve it, his inner animal crooned. I agree, he answered back.

  Tears fell from his eyes as he pulled his cell phone out and flipped it open. Sniffling, he punched in Abrams’ wife's number. Jaxson's hand covering the phone caught his attention.

  “Let's get them out of here before we call the families, and let me make those calls.”

  “I will wait until we get them out of here, but they were my men, my responsibility, my phone calls to make.”

  Jaxson looked like he was about to object when Anna's voice rang out. Bullets couldn't have out run him, he took off so fast. He rounded the corner and skidded to a halt. Anna stood cradling his father in her arms.

  No!

  The rock rhythm in his chest stopped. His breath was a ball of fear lodged in his throat as his mind processed what his eyes saw.

  Anna's words caught his attention. “He's still alive, but barely.”

  He shot forward, took his father's limp form in his hands and laid him on the grass. His eyes frantically looked for signs of trauma, wounds or damage. His eyes blinked and then he found it. It was shrapnel to the heart and spine. Anna's face entered his line of vision followed by her soft words.

  “Ozzie, let me take him to my house. Sebastian is still there with that Woodson guy and I can call Dr. Phillips on the way. They may be able to help save him.”

  “How? He will kill us all if he's bitten. Anna, he won't handle it the same way I did.”

  “I don't know, but still, they may know something.”

  “Fine. Take him. Tell them do whatever they have to short of biting him or changing him. He hunts the supernatural; he doesn't want to become one. I will be there as soon as we get this mess cleaned up.”

  A dark shadow crossed the yard. He spun, ready to kill, but he found nothing. His inner beast stirred, pacing its cage.

  “Anna, take my father and go. Now!”

  He gave her a stern look when she stalled. She nodded in agreement and bolted out of sight. Thunderous ripples shook his muscles and his growl rattled in his chest. His eyes darted from side to side, searching, hunting, stalking. Jaxson stepped in front of him.

  He tried to push Jaxson out of his line of fire.

  “Dude, what are you doing?”

  “We have to go. Now! I'll explain later. Haul ass!”

  Hearing the alarm in his friend's voice, he raced for the car. Sliding in Dukes of Hazzard style through the open window, he fell into the front seat and turned the keys. The Challenger roared to life and sped away, “Razor's Edge” by AC DC blared on the radio as they sped down the highway. He shot a quick glance to his friend in the passenger seat.

  “Explain to me why we are running away like a couple of punk-ass bitches?”

  “Trust me, we needed to get out of there. As much as you are going to hate to hear this, we need Sebastian. “

  “Why? What was back there?” He flicked his eyes to the rear view mirror, checking for pursuers.

  “What I have been running from.”

  Chapter 22

  With Jaxson by his side, he rushed up the stairs to Anna's house, anxious to hear about his father. He marched through the door and into the living room. The light from the moon sprayed the room from the open curtain. It was the only light and added to the somber feel.

  Dr. Phillips stood hovering over Ozzie’s father, checking his vitals. Sebastian stood at the head of the couch, making suggestions and asking questions.

  Ozzie was in shock. He walked over to the makeshift bed and looked at his father.

  His father lay unconscious on the sofa, his shirt off and covered with a blanket to his waist.

  He looks so weak.

  He knelt next to couch and grabbed his father’s hand. The doctor filled him in without him having to ask.

  “Ozzie, your father is in bad shape, but I think he will recover just fine. I have given him a sedative to help him sleep. He was very lucky. The shrapnel didn't hit anything vital or go very deep. The worst of his wounds were from loss of blood. That in itself is dangerous enough. Anna explained to me what happened, so I stopped by the blood bank on my way over and grabbed a few bags. He has received all of it. Now we just wait for him to heal.”

  Ozzie turned his gaze toward the doctor.

  “Will he ever walk? Don't look shocked; I felt the shrapnel embedded in his back along his spine.”

  Doctor Phillips swallowed and scrubbed his hands. “I don't know, Ozzie. I am sorry. Right now we need to focus on his recovery. Once he is better, we can visit that issue.”

  “No, Doc, you don't understand. If he can’t hunt, for him, his life is over. He will give up. That is the Zane way...to die in battle like warriors, heroes. He will not be happy if he is confined to a wheelchair. I know him. He will give up and die.”

  “I am sorry. I have done all I can. The rest is up to him and the good Lord.”

  “Thank you, Doc.”

  “Ozzie, I promise you he will walk. He won't be any fun in a wheelchair,” Sebastian told him.

  Ozzie smiled back at the vampire and laughed at the joke.

  “Thank you, Sebastian.”

  He felt Anna kneel beside him. She ran her hand through Mr. Zane's hair and said nothing. She just sat there, comforting them both. Fighting back tears and keeping his voice low, he mentioned a memory.

  “You did that to me. I remember you running your hands through my hair.”

  Her lavender eyes looked into his and she smiled.

  “Back when I was in college, I read somewhere that running your hand through a coma patient’s hair is soothing, and that they can feel it. You, and now your father, were in so much pain. This is all I can do for him. Just try and offer some sort of comfort to help him through this. I did it for you so you would know you were not alone.”

  Unable to help himself, he pulled her into a hug.

  “Thank you, Anna, for everything…saving my father, changing me when Paige asked...” He pulled away. “And being a good friend. I am sorry that I threatened to kill you.”

  “Ozzie, I can’t blame you. I had the same reaction with Sebastian when I found out he turned me. I am glad that you decided not to kill me, but I do understand.”

  He got to his feet and noticed Jaxson and Sebastian were missing. He looked to Anna.

  “Where are Jaxson and Sebastian?”

  Just as she was going to answer, they emerged from the hallway. Neither of them looked happy, but they offered no answers.

  I will deal with it later.

  “Sebastian, did you find out anything? I'm sure Anna informed you. It was a trap and Paige was not there.”

  “Unfortunately, no, but I have an idea about where we can find them.”

  “Where is the wolf?”

  “He is still tied up in the kitchen, but he is of no use right now. We have bigger fish.”

  “What do you mean?” Anna asked. “What's going on? Sebastian, you have that worrisome hard-lipped thing going on.”

  “I don't have time to explain it all, but in a nutshell, Tyrick has very powerful help, more than we can handle, so I have a plan and none of you are going to like it, especially you, Anna.”

  “Just cut to the chase. We have wasted enough time, and I am not waiting any longer to go after Paige.”

  “Just hear him out, Oz. It is the best we can do.”

  He raked his hands through his hair and sighed.

  “Fine, hit the highlights so we can go. I need to call in my backup team.”

  “No need,” Anna pointed out. “Your father's team and your back up team are on their way and should arrive any moment. While your father was still conscious, he was giving me orders, I figured he was a pretty smart man, so I followed them.”

  He looked over at the man on the couch and then back to Anna.

  “That is what he does best...lead!” He turned back to Sebastian. “So, you were saying?”

  Chapter 23

  It was dark in the yard, but everyone, Anna, Jaxson, a
nd both teams, were there. Sebastian prepared to explain the mission he came up with. His B team looked skeptical as he spoke while Ozzie’s father's team looked as if they were struggling with whether or not they should kill Sebastian or just wait and see how it played out. Ozzie knew he needed to do something.

  “Sebastian, hold on.” He stepped forward and addressed the teams. “I see the looks you are giving Sebastian and Anna, and I am telling you they are not necessary. They are both very trustworthy and may just end up saving your ass before the night is over. Any order Sebastian gives you tonight, treat it like it came from myself or my father.”

  Stewart, a man from his father's team, stepped up and voiced his protest.

  “No offense, Oliver, but we have hunted with your father when he was chasing Sebastian. Intent on staking him, he was. Now we are supposed to follow his lead?”

  He held his hand up ready to explain when Anna jumped in.

  “Now you listen here, Stewart, old man Zane was in my arms and called you from my phone. I know what he told you. He told you to assemble his team and get here ASAP. You will do as he has ordered, which is listen to Ozzie and Sebastian. I will let you in on another secret. When that man wakes up...” She pointed toward the house. “I am to give him a full report. Not Ozzie...” Her finger touched her own chest. “Me!”

  Ozzie withheld a laugh as Anna put her index finger inches away from Stewart's face and continued her rant.

  ”I have a friend to save, so if you don't want to run with vampires and the supernatural tonight, grab your gear and head out.” She turned to the rest of the men. “That goes for any of you. Mr. Zane is fighting for his life and has asked you to help his son rescue the love of his life, Paige. I don't give a damn if you don't like me or Sebastian. She is best friend to me and a good friend of Sebastian's, so we are going! Either way, you are going somewhere. You can go with us, or you can go home, but we are not doing this any longer. Sebastian is going to tell us his plans and we are leaving. Go or stay, I really don't care.”

  Ozzie noticed both teams looked to him. He shrugged and said, “Hey, that is pretty much what I would have said. Stay or go, but we have work to do.” He smiled at Anna and said, “Thank you.”

  He turned back to Sebastian once again and asked, “The plan?”

  Sebastian stepped back into the moonlight and addressed the crowd.

  “We are traveling to the Wayward Stone Cliffs area. Those who drive will park at mile marker 72, and we will descend into the thick woods from there, heading toward the cliffs. It is about a three-hour walk on foot to the cliffs but only about an hour and half to the clearing. Now for the complicated parts…”

  Sebastian pulled out a map of the area and laid it across the hood of Ozzie's car. He pointed south of the cliffs on the map.

  “Mr. Zane's team, I want you assembled here in the south quadrant. You will fan out from this point to this point. There are twenty-five of you to cover about half a mile. You will scour and eliminate anything within this area between the starting point and the clearing.” He pointed to the north of the cliffs. “Here is where Ozzie's B team will fan out and do the same. Since there are only fifteen of you, you have the least amount of ground to cover. You will go from this point and fan out to this point. Now, that leaves a small gap that Ozzie, Jaxson and I will sweep through and all of us should meet in the clearing at about the same time.”

  “Where am I going to be, Sebastian?” Anna asked.

  “You will be here. This trap was set for you and I don't know why. As I said, there are some big players here, none of which have ever had anything to do with you and we don't have time to discuss it. I will explain it later.”

  Waving her hands, Anna protested.

  “Hell no! I am not staying here and doing nothing.”

  “You have to. You will be a distraction to everyone.” Sebastian added.

  Jaxson weighed in with his two cents.

  I agree with Sebastian. Everyone here knows you can handle yourself, but until we find out more about what we are walking into, this is best.”

  “No! What if you can’t get her out without me? The note did say for me to show up.”

  “And what if your presence distracts us and we lose you and Paige?” Jaxson retorted.

  Anna stomped her foot.

  “I am going! She is my best friend. I can't stay behind.”

  Sebastian stepped close and held Anna by her shoulders.

  “I am ordering you to stay here. Since I sired you, you have to obey. I hate for it to come to this, but you are staying!”

  He stepped out of Anna's line of fire. She narrowed her eyes, shooting daggers at Sebastian. Her eyes darted to Ozzie.

  Damn!

  “Ozzie, what do you think? Should I stay here?”

  He scrubbed his scalp and thought about how to answer. His gaze swept across their faces as they awaited his reply.

  How best to say this?

  “Anna, perhaps it is for the best. I don't know what is going on, but I do know what I felt back at the Woodson Estates. Jaxson and Sebastian obviously have more of a clue than I do.” He shrugged his shoulders, and she folded her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. She weighed her options.

  “Fine! I will stay here,” she blurted out.

  He knew the words were not entirely the truth. He shot her a pleading glare. She threw her hands up and shot back a retort.

  “What Ozzie? I said I would stay here!”

  Even though he watched her stomp into the house, he wasn't sure she would stay. Part of her was telling the truth, and part of her was lying. He could tell she was conflicted. He understood. If anyone had said he couldn't go, he would have just kicked their ass and went anyway. He hoped she would stick to her word, but if he were a betting man, he would pass on the gamble. With nothing left to do about it, he turned to the crowd.

  He waved his hands in the air and hollered, “Load up, and move out!”

  His gaze shot to Sebastian.

  “You riding with me, or do you need to run?”

  “I am going to run. It helps me think.”

  He extended his grip and shook the vampire’s hand.

  “See you there.”

  Jaxson was right behind him as he headed to his black on black 2012 Dodge Challenger. After sliding across the hood, he opened the door and climbed in. He took a deep breath as he started the car, allowing himself one brief moment of nervousness. The car roared to life as he exhaled, letting it go. He gripped the steering wheel and looked to his friend.

  “You ready to kick some ass?”

  Jaxson returned his smile.

  “Let's do it!”

  “Rollin'” By Limp Bizkit blasted through the speakers as he peeled away. Gravel was flung into the air as he took off.

  Chapter 24

  Ozzie reached his destination just as “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns n Roses beat through the speakers. He pulled the car off the road and noticed both teams had made it and were gathered just off the street.

  “Looks like everyone is here,” Ozzie commented.

  “Yep, looks that way. Well, Sebastian isn't here yet,” Jaxson pointed out.

  “I'm sure he will be here...sometime. He may have decided to charge in by himself. If he hasn't shown up in a few minutes, we move without him.”

  “Sounds good to me!”

  He turned off the car and pulled the keys from the ignition. He shoved them into his right front pocket as he climbed out. As he settled into his surroundings, chills slid down his back.

  Games! Whoever it is, they have to play games.

  The unnatural chill travelled across his skin, biting into him as if to devour him inch by inch. He shook it off and looked around.

  Tall wooden poles lined the street giving off small orbs of light that took from the eerie green glow of the sky.

  A storm is coming.

  Bending to the will of the wind, the trees bowed over, shaking their leaves in defiance to the storm, thre
atening to blow him off his feet. Angry thunder boomed through the air and vibrated everything as it rumbled through his chest and announced the arrival of the blasting energy cascading across the sky. The flashing violent light over the horizon reflected off his aviators. Honeysuckle and violence lingered in the air like perfume, caressing and teasing with a promise of an interesting evening, an evening no one was sure they would survive.

  He approached his men and shook all their hands as he always did before a hunt. Jaxson joined him.

  He removed his sunglasses and took in every face.

  “Is there any questions about the mission?”

  All of them shook their heads no.

  “Good. We are going to wait another five minutes before taking off. Remember to fan out just as you have been taught and watch each other's back.”

  Lightning flashed a warning, temporarily blinding them. He called out each team leader.

  “Lubbix, Kiston.”

  A memory flashed in his mind of each man. Lubbix, head of his B team, had trained himself, and Kiston, head of his father's team now, had taught him the same training tactics he had learned while he was a Navy Seal. He admired them both.

  The crowd moved slightly, followed by murmurs as the two leaders made their way through. Lubbix, the burly muscle man, stepped forward first. Two pistols attached to the ammo belt around his waist separated his dark shirt and pants. His army issued boots snapped twigs as he made his way He stood front and center, saluting. Ozzie returned Lubbix’s salute.

  Kiston made his way to the front. He stood a head taller than everyone else. His dark brown crew cut swerved and bobbed as he maneuvered his way to the front of the crowd. He looked dangerous dressed in his Navy Seal tactical gear over black clothes. When he stepped in front of the crowd, he also saluted. Ozzie returned the gesture.

  “Lubbix, Kiston, you are responsible for your team. Get them in and get them out. You know the drill!”

  “Yes, sir!” They both shouted.