by Vicki Leigh
Kayla bit her lip. “But, what if I’m that next step? Margaret was able to create this poison, right? Maybe I’m capable of something like that, too, but worse. I mean, I am his daughter, and I—”
“That’s enough.” I rolled onto my side and turned her face to me. “We’ve been over this. You have his power, but you don’t have his vile heart. Whatever happens, you’ll stop it, not play a part in it.”
Kayla’s chin trembled, but I kept my gaze locked with hers, determined to make her believe she was capable of so much more than death and destruction. She nodded, finally, and I brushed my lips against hers. They were so warm, so soft. I couldn’t stop the flutter in my chest. She’d been so strong, so brave these last few days; I was so proud of her—so in love with her. I wrapped an arm around her and drew her closer, kissing her harder. I couldn’t remember the last time we’d had a moment alone, and after everything we’d gone through—everything that was about to happen—I wanted to lose myself in her.
The smell of sulfur hit me, and I shot upright. In the distance, a black figure loomed, red eyes glowing from behind a tree. Damn. It slithered toward us like a lioness stalking her dinner.
“Come on. Time to go.” I stood and pulled Kayla to her feet. A hand pressed between her shoulder blades, I rushed her through the parking lot and into the motel room where the Nightmare couldn’t get her. I slammed the door closed, and everyone’s gazes snapped toward us.
“Sorry. Relax,” I said, ushering Kayla to the desk’s chair. Other than the two double beds, it was the only seat left. Shawn sprawled across one mattress, and Seth and Tabbi watched the television from the other. I stood between them, my arms crossed over my chest.
“Preliminary reports estimate a total of 34,000 people died today between the seventeen cities that were massacred by a still-unnamed terrorist cell,” the reporter said. “All flights are grounded across the country, and the president is urging civilians to stay in their homes except in cases of emergency.”
“This is freakin’ insane,” Seth said. “Why go to the trouble of killing so many people and not take responsibility?”
I stepped forward and punched the off button. “Because Richard isn’t seeking fame. He’s looking for a way to spread Margaret’s disease. Simple as that. The corpses will transfer the disease, and it’ll spread like wildfire. Thousands of people will die.”
“Which is what he’s wanted all along,” Kayla said. “Ridding the world of ‘normal people’ is his ultimate plan.”
“So, what’s our next move? We can’t just return to Caelum,” Shawn said.
I shook my head. “We have to obey Bartholomew. It will only take us a few hours to reach the Allegheny Tunnel. He may have uncovered information, and we can’t consciously disobey him.”
“Oh, look at you, good soldier,” Shawn continued. “Well, I’m staying behind and searching for that bastard. Someone needs to put a stop to him.”
Heat filled my chest. “And you think that you, by yourself, will be capable of doing so?”
Shawn stood from the bed, sizing me up. “Hell yeah, I do. I’m even starting to think Trishna’s in on the whole thing, like Giovanni was. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have me taking orders from some pansy, his band of teenage misfits, and Richard’s messed-up daughter who’s a time bomb waiting to explode.”
I nodded, a sneer on my face as warmth spread from my toes to my head—and clocked him in the face. With a shriek, he spun, falling onto the bed.
“Daniel!” Kayla yelled, lunging at me.
I stepped forward, twisting Shawn’s arms behind his back, nearly popping his shoulders out of their sockets. He groaned and tried to buck me off, but I dug my knee into the small of his back. He shouted.
“You speak about Kayla like that again, I will break your arms. Do you hear me?” I yelled.
“Man, stop,” Seth said, a hand on my shoulder.
I shrugged it off as Shawn nodded, swearing at me.
“And from now on, you will do what I say. I’ve had enough people get hurt on my watch. Damn it, Shawn, I’m only trying to keep you safe.” I pushed him into the mattress and let go, standing straight.
With a wince, he lifted himself into a seated position, rubbing his lower spine. “Fuck you, kid.”
“Feeling’s mutual.”
Kayla came out of nowhere, grabbing my wrist and yanking me to the bathroom. She shut the door, separating us from the others, and spoke as sternly as she could with her voice hushed. “What is wrong with you? He’s your teammate, not the bad guy.”
I clenched my jaw shut, unable to come down from my adrenaline high. My hands shook, itching to punch something else, and my gaze darted around the room. What I’d done was wrong, yes, and I was going to pay for it when I calmed and guilt wracked me from head to toe, but damn it—
Kayla grabbed my face. “Hey, look at me.”
I caught her gaze. It was full of concern and love, not the reprimand I expected to find. Instantly, my fury calmed, lost in the golds and greens of her eyes and the feel of her soft hands on my cheeks. I held her wrists as my stomach hardened. I never should’ve reacted like I did.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to. I get why you hit him, but you can’t punch people every time they say something bad about me. Otherwise, you’d be hitting people a lot.”
I frowned. Trishna’s followers never spoke of Kayla around me. But, subconsciously, I knew that sort of gossip had to exist. The fact that Kayla validated it, though, made my muscles tighten again.
“Daniel.” She shook my head gently.
“I’ll talk to Shawn,” I said, stroking her wrists with my thumbs, calming my rapid heart rate as best as I could.
Kayla sighed and pressed her lips lightly against mine. “You’re a good leader. Don’t let him make you think otherwise.”
A corner of my mouth twitched. “I love you.”
“Ditto.”
This time, I couldn’t help but smile. “Since when did we start saying that?”
She grinned. “Since now.”
With a chuckle, I kissed her again, and then I opened the bathroom door to make more apologies.
woke the next morning with a crick in my neck. Seth, Shawn, and I had given the girls the beds and slept on rotting carpet—which meant I now smelled like piss and cigarettes and moved like an eighty-year-old. I stretched my spine as best as I could, then wandered next door.
After checking on Lian and finding there was no change, we packed our bags, anxious to get to Caelum. It was a cozy squeeze in the van with Ivan and Lian in the back so she could lay on the bench seat, Tabbi and Shawn up front, and Seth on the floor between my and Kayla’s captain chairs.
“This is snuggly,” Seth said as Shawn pulled out of the parking lot, heading for the Allegheny Tunnel.
When we reached Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Shawn called out that we needed gas. Tabbi wasted no time shouting that she was starving, and when word got around the vehicle, everyone wanted a Coke and junk food. Ivan stayed in the van with Lian while Seth, Tabbi, Kayla, and I entered the food mart.
The place smelled like burned hot dogs and strong coffee. With a crinkled nose, I headed toward the back to grab drinks while Seth and the girls loaded up on snacks. Goose pimples rose on my skin as I shoved bottle after bottle of cold liquid into my arms and headed for the counter.
The sound of glass breaking came from outside.
“What the hell?” the clerk asked.
I snapped my head in the direction of the parking lot. Icicles and balls of fire flew between two Magus and Shawn.
Dropping the drinks onto the nearest shelf, I raced for the door. Kayla, stay here and protect Tabbi. I stepped into the fresh air with Seth on my heels. Halfway to the van, Richard’s Magus spotted us. Blast.
Ivan, we need weapons!
A wave of water flew toward Seth and me. We dropped to the ground just in time, and the attack shattered the storefront’s win
dow. I leaped up and sprinted the rest of the way to the now-open van door.
Ivan held out a gun, and I snatched it from him. I popped out the clip—it was fully loaded. Turning, I slammed the magazine back into the handle of the pistol and lifted my arms. A burst of air flung me in reverse. My right side smashed into the van’s mirror, knocking it off the vehicle. I landed with a thud, groaning as the back of my head smacked the asphalt. Seth flung the passenger door open to protect himself and fired, but I didn’t hear the shot hit anything. Jumping up, I raised the gun in front of my face as one of Richard’s Magus turned to Shawn and pulled the trigger.
I was a moment too slow. Shawn flew into a concrete column, and his body folded in half, like an accordion, before my bullet entered the witch’s head.
“No!” Seth yelled, his composure breaking as he ran toward our fallen teammate. The other warlock snapped his eyes toward my best friend and raised his hands. My heart skipping a beat, I fired again. The bullet blew a hole between his eyes, stopping his attack, and he slumped to the ground, dead.
By now, everyone who’d been in the store or their cars watched us with large eyes. We needed to get out of here. Tabbi and Kayla ran from the store. Tucking the pistol into my waistband, I hurried to where Seth leaned over Shawn’s body. I crouched next to my colleague and pressed my fingers to the side of his neck. By the way his eyes were open, unblinking, and how blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, I knew he was dead. But for everyone’s sake, I checked his pulse anyway. Nothing.
“Come on,” I said to Seth. “We need to go.”
“We can’t leave him here.” He motioned toward Shawn’s body.
I frowned as police sirens sounded in the distance. Neither of us were close with him, but we knew better than to leave a fallen comrade behind. Yet Shawn was a big bloke; none of us would be able to carry him.
I swallowed before patting my best friend on the shoulder. “I’m sorry, mate. We have to.”
With tears in his eyes, Seth rose to his feet, and we raced to our friends. None of us were able to drive, but hanging around here was suicide. We had no choice but to evaporate.
“Let’s go, guys,” I said as cop cars appeared in the distance. Ivan carried Lian, and I ushered everyone close, signaling to grab on to me. Ivan took my forearm with one hand, and Seth and the girls did the same. As the officers drove into the parking lot, we disappeared.
We landed in a small state park not far from the Allegheny Tunnel. I’d been here before on one of my former charges’ camping trips, maybe sixty years ago. The place looked different, emptier. If Trishna’s intel was right, and Richard truly could sense when one of us evaporated, it wouldn’t take him long to send a team here. Especially if one of the Magus at the gas station told him they’d spotted me via their Unity spell before their deaths. I’d hoped we could blend in with a group of hikers or a family of campers and try to keep Richard’s Magus and Catchers from finding us. But we were alone. Maybe it was too muggy outside. Regardless, we were in big trouble.
If anyone can hear me, I sent to our whole coven, we’re in trouble. Send a van to Shawnee State Park. Hurry.
On my way, Nolan replied after only a few seconds.
My gaze flit around the campsite as my stomach twisted in knots. “We need to find a good place to hide. Now.” Together, we jogged through the woods until we spotted an empty cabin that looked as if it’d been recently remodeled. “In here. They’ll expect us to have gone to something run-down.”
I kicked open the front door, and a puff of dust greeted me. I waved my hand in front of my face as I stepped inside. Must’ve been a while since this place was rented. Seth, Tabbi, Kayla, and Ivan, still carrying Lian, followed close behind. The room was dark, but with my Dreamcatcher eyes, I could see every detail as if it were daytime. A small dinette area sat in the far left corner, and in the center of the room, three sofas had been formed around a coffee table in a U-shape. Ivan lay Lian on one of them.
“Tabbi, sit next to Lian and keep her invisible,” I instructed. Tabbi couldn’t fight, and I didn’t want her getting caught in any crossfire. “Kayla, help me lock the windows and bar the door.” At least by doing so, it’d make it a little tougher for them to enter. Maybe if they couldn’t get in, they’d assume no one was in here and not come close enough to feel us.
After securing the cabin, I tucked Kayla behind me, taking us both invisible. The three of us boys poised in front of the girls, concealed but ready to fight. Without our bags, the only weapons we had were the few guns we held. I prayed Nolan reached us before Richard’s coven did.
Five minutes later, Tabbi gasped and whispered, “They’re here.” My heart ricocheted into my chest as my feet rooted to the floor.
The room was so quiet as we stood still as statues; the sound of Ivan clicking off the safety on his pistol was like a bomb exploding.
Out one of the windows, I spotted a group of five men and women, all dressed in black, scouring the forest. One of them flicked a ball of fire on and off in his hand.
Blast, they were so close.
No matter what happens, stay close to me, I said to Kayla.
Her grip tightened on the back of my shirt.
Daniel, I’m here. Where are you? Nolan shouted in my head.
Thank God. Stay put. Be there in ten. I hoped. As soon as Richard’s followers pass, we run for the parking lot, I told my team. Nolan’s waiting.
Ten seconds passed.
Fifteen.
Where are they? I asked Tabbi.
She closed her eyes, still sitting on the floor next to Lian, and shook her head. I don’t know. I can’t hear them anymore. They must be out of my range.
As I nodded, my knuckles whitened around my pistol, and I motioned for everyone to make a break for the exit. Slowly—corporeal now—I worked the door open. It creaked, and I cringed, my heart bouncing in my rib cage. In woods this quiet, even the sound of a twig cracking could bring our enemies running. When the door was open just enough for us to slip through, I held my breath, went invisible, and stepped outside, gun raised. I shot my gaze right and left. We were alone.
Stay invisible, I sent to my team, going corporeal just long enough to take Kayla’s hand. As quietly as I could, I rounded the corner, peeking up and down the pathway. There was no one. Gun secure in my grasp, I jogged toward the parking lot, glancing behind me to make sure everyone was accounted for. Ivan and Lian. Tabbi. Seth.
“There they are!”
I jumped as a bullet flew past Seth into a tree, almost nicking him. Bugger, I’d forgotten staying invisible was pointless. A Protector had to have brought them to our location.
“Move, move, move!” I yelled, stepping to the side and ushering the others ahead. My pulse thrashing in my ears, I tucked myself behind a tree and shot one of the Magus in the chest as Richard’s followers closed in on my friends. He fell backward with a shout as I hit another in the leg. The other warlock stopped to check on them, but the two Protectors sprinted harder. I squeezed my trigger.
My gun clicked empty. No, damn it! I wiped sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand and growled. There was only one option now: run.
I dashed after my group, staying in the brush as much as possible. Breaths burst in and out of my lungs as I pushed my legs harder than ever before. My chasers had been trained like me—they knew how to fight, how to kill.
A bullet hit the back of my right shoulder, and the sharp, hot pain nearly brought me to my knees. With a hiss, I pressed forward, running in a zigzag pattern, dodging tree after tree.
Daniel, where are you? Kayla yelled.
Right behind you. Keep moving!
I broke free of the trees and wavered. A grassy area separated me from the parking lot. No coverage, and the Protectors were on my heels.
I might as well be target practice.
The others piled into Nolan’s van. I pushed my stamina to its breaking point, praying I’d reach the vehicle before Richard’s coven stepped out of the
woods.
Run straight. I’m coming to you, Nolan said.
Tires squealed in the parking lot as he slammed on the gas. From what I could tell, the van’s door was still open. My legs burned, and my breathing staggered, but I didn’t slow down.
A bullet whizzed past my head, the sound like a bee on steroids. I swore as I jerked to the right, nearly tripping over my feet. The van was so close. Just a few more feet.
White-hot pain blasted through my leg before the sound of the gunshot met my ears. I dropped to my hands and knees with a shout.
No, Daniel, keep moving! Get up! Kayla yelled.
Come on, dude. You can make it! Seth joined in.
Without looking behind me, I pushed myself up from the grass, groaning loudly through my clenched teeth. More bullets buzzed past my ears, and tears blurred my vision as I fought the limp that screamed for me to give up.
My feet hit pavement, and tires screeched from my left. Only a few more steps.
Another gunshot nicked the side of my ear, and then the van was in front of me.
I dived inside as it passed. As soon as I hit the floor, Nolan turned the vehicle, and Seth yanked the sliding door closed.
A few bullets hit the trunk—and one shattered the back window, forcing everyone to duck—then we pulled onto the expressway and were free of Richard’s men.
I lay on my stomach, forehead against the floor, and locked my hands behind my head, gasping for air. Every breath burned, and my sides ached like I’d taken twenty blows to the ribs.
“Were you hit?” Nolan asked.
“Yeah,” I replied, though it sounded more like a yelp.
Kayla knelt next to me, ready to heal me, but Nolan stopped her. “No, don’t touch him. He’s a walking disease, remember? Daniel, are there exit wounds?”
In my shoulder, no. I would’ve felt it burst through my chest. A loud groan escaped my lips as I forced myself into a seated position. I glanced down at my leg. Nothing. “No.”
“Find something to stop the bleeding.”
Ivan unwrapped his belt from his waist and handed it to me. I tied it around my leg, above the wound, and yanked. I leaned my head back, grinding my teeth as I growled.
