“Really?” Could someone help me be happy? How did that work?
I sat up, and he ignored my nakedness, keeping his eyes on my face. I lifted my hand to his face and he kissed my outstretched palm.
An angry pounding on the front door made us both jump. We scrambled out of bed and pulled our clothes on. “Dang, what time is it?” Benjamin mumbled, glancing at the wall clock. “It’s only seven.”
“Benny! Open up!” Eleanor’s furious voice grated against my ears. I hadn’t really talked to her since she’d yelled at me several days before, and I had no desire for her to ruin my morning.
Benjamin blurred out of the room and opened the door. “El,” he said, nonchalant. “What’s up?”
“Have you seen Jillian? She didn’t return to the armory last night. Marco asked me to search for her.”
“I’m right here, Eleanor.” I pulled down my shirt and walked out of the bedroom.
Eleanor stared at me, her eyes traveling up and down my body as she took in my bare feet, rumpled clothes, and messy hair. Her face slowly turned red.
“You screwed my brother?” she hissed. “Is stealing Dean not good enough for you? You had to take Benjamin, too?”
Benjamin opened his mouth to protest, but I held up my hand. “First of all, chick, I did not steal Dean, so don’t bring it up again. Second of all…”
Her words had just clicked.
I pecked Benjamin on the cheek. “Sweetie, can you give me a moment alone with Eleanor, please?” Benjamin nodded and returned to the bedroom. I crossed my arms and faced Eleanor. “Be honest with me. Are you angry that I brought Benjamin into my world, or are you angry that Dean likes me?”
The pieces had just fallen into place and a very silly picture had taken form.
Eleanor had been cold to me since I’d entered the Sentinel camp, and I could believe that she was upset her brother had been taken captive, which ultimately stemmed from his position on my team. I knew a sister’s concern for her little brother, and I could respect that.
But her open hostility had begun when I’d said that Dean was going to tell me about the Sentinels and the JM-104, despite him not even knowing me. He’d canceled plans to speak to Eleanor about something, and even assigned her to a different jeep so he could sit next to me. She’d referred to him as her “ex-boyfriend” in the little cover story she’d concocted last summer even though, by her own admission, they’d never dated.
As Ember had said, Eleanor wasn’t really angry about my “fake” personality. Eleanor was angry that I was apparently playing with the heart of a second man she cared about.
Eleanor’s eyes widened. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that you were nice to me in Saint Catherine, but you’ve been horrible to me in the Rockies. I don’t think you’re a terrible person, and I don’t think you faked being nice last summer. I do think that you struggle to handle situations that you can’t control with your powers, like Dean’s crush on me and my relationship with your brother. So, are you angry that I brought Benjamin into my world, where he’s always wanted to be, or are you angry that Dean likes me?”
I already knew the answer. Eleanor, quiet and subtle, probably had no clue how to win over an exuberant man like Dean. I’d blown in like a tornado and ruined everything.
Eleanor’s lip quivered, but she lifted her nose in the air. “Right now, I’m angry that you’re playing both of them.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not. I told Dean yesterday that there’s nothing between us, and since Benjamin and I got married last night, there never will be.” I stuck out my hand. “Hi, I’m Jillian Trent, the sister you never had and probably never wanted.”
“You got married?” Eleanor’s face was priceless.
“Yes. It was a superhero ceremony. Binding of the hands, vows, all that.”
“You’re married.” She was still staring at me as though I’d grown a second head.
“Yes.”
“You married my brother.”
“Yes,” I said slowly. “Because I love him.”
A confused little frown crossed her face. “But… you’re both so young.”
I sighed. “Oh, come on. Twenty-one isn’t that young. It felt right. And I do love him, Eleanor. I’ll treat him right, I promise.”
She studied me for a moment longer, a wisp of sadness in her large, hazel eyes. “You must really hate me.”
“Hate you? No. Spent a little while being scared of you? Sure. Now that I know what you learned growing up, it makes sense that you went with the torture route. That comes naturally to you, doesn’t it?”
Eleanor looked down. “Yeah.”
“Me too. I’d like to talk about it with you sometime.”
I did, too. I wanted to start over with Eleanor, this powerful woman to whom I was now related. Not only could she prove to be an important ally, she might be a friend, if she could ever let go of the idea that I’d stolen Dean.
Eleanor rushed toward me and wrapped her arms around me. “I always wanted a sister. And I’m sorry I called you brainwashed. And yelled at you.”
“I deserved it,” I said, my voice muffled by her jacket. “But don’t tell anyone we got married, okay? We want to tell them.”
She backed away and smiled at me, her eyes tearing up. “I’ll just go tell your team I found you. I wish I could tell you that you can relax here for a while, but we’re loading up in two hours. A storm is moving in that’ll make transportation almost impossible if we’re still on the mountain, so we’re leaving a day early. I can’t alter the weather.”
Her voice had taken on the sweet, lilting quality that I remembered from our first meeting. This was the Eleanor I knew and liked, who wasn’t eaten up by jealousy and fear.
“I understand. We’ll be out in a minute.”
“Benny!” she called. “Get out here!”
Benjamin opened the door, now fully dressed in his superhero combat medic uniform. He eyed Eleanor with distinct wariness. “Hey, El.”
She gathered him into a hug and rubbed his back. “Congratulations. Be blessed.”
Benjamin patted her back. “Can you raise the chances of us being happy?”
Eleanor shook her head and wiped her eyes. “No. That’s on you.”
With that, she hurried out the door into the snow and made her way toward the armory.
Benjamin took my hand in his and we walked back to the bedroom to finish getting dressed. After we were in our winter gear, he gave me a long kiss, and we shut the door of the infirmary behind us and headed to the armory to meet with the rest of our team.
It was time to begin preparations for battle.
36
“Dean, let me give the briefing.”
We were in the armory, standing off to one side while the rest of the Sentinels cleaned their weapons and counted bullets. I faced Dean with a hand on my hip.
He blinked at me. “What? Why?”
“Because while you respect me, some of your men don’t, and they’re going to work with my team whether they like it or not. If I give the briefing, it’ll establish that they have to listen to me.”
“That’s unorthodox.”
“Have you met me?”
He gave me a crooked grin. “Yeah, I have. And I’m glad I did.”
“So, what do you say? It’s your team, so it’s your call.”
“Okay. The way I see it, this is a joint superhero and Sentinel operation anyway, so it stands that you should be giving some orders. Some of the guys could use a crash course in dealing with superheroes.” He glanced over at Judd, who’d been reissued his weapon in light of the new mission.
I clapped him on the shoulder and joined my team in another part of the room.
Ember grinned at me. “Benjamin said you two made up. I’m so glad.”
“You’re psychotic,” I said, holding up my wrist. “But thank you. Did Benjamin tell you anything else about last night?”
“No,” Re
id cut in, clearly fighting a smirk. “And I don’t really want to hear about anything else, because when I went into the infirmary to go to bed last night, the bedroom door was locked and there were some interesting noises coming from inside.” He gave Benjamin a significant look. “You’d better have done that on your bed, pal.”
Ember blushed, but Marco pinched the bridge of his nose. “Aw, come on, man. I did not need that mental image.”
Benjamin winked at me. “I thought you’d like to tell them the big news.”
Marco looked up and squinted at me. “Out with it. Are you pregnant? Is that why you’re back together?”
I merely smiled. “I suggest you pay close attention during the brief.”
Reid and Ember gave us looks of playful suspicion, but I wouldn’t say anymore.
A few minutes later, Dean called the room around him and told everyone to pull out a pen and paper.
“All right, Sentinels, listen up. We’re doing something unlike we’ve ever done before. Most of us have raided compounds, but we’ve never had a superhero team on our side. Battlecry and her team will work with us tomorrow, providing offensive power, cover, and medical.” He looked each Sentinel in the eyes. “If anyone here has a problem serving alongside superheroes, the door is behind you. The main part of the brief will be delivered by Battlecry. Pay attention.”
Several Sentinels uncapped their pens, poised for notes.
I stood in the center of the circle and directed all attention to the detailed whiteboard diagram of the largest known Westerner compound, in which two hundred and fifty people lived. Around me, twenty-three Sentinels either stood or kneeled, ready for my part of the brief. It was not often that I gave operation orders on this scale.
I took a deep breath and pulled my shoulders back.
“I’m Jillian Trent, codename Battlecry, leader of the superhero team that will be working alongside your unit for this mission. Prepare to copy. Please hold all questions until the end.” I pointed to the surrounding area. “This is the situation.”
Dean, Marco, Ember, and Reid’s mouths fell open. Benjamin beamed.
I quickly explained the weather, terrain, and the known activities in and around the compound, on which Dean had briefed me earlier. I moved on to the description of the friendly forces—my team.
“I will lead Tank and Helios on the north side of the compound, where the wall is weakest. Firelight will be stationed here,” I said, pointing to a small hill that contained a copse of trees. “Positioned with Luke, who will provide cover for her while she directs local fauna. Mercury will attend to injuries as needed.”
I raised my voice to grab people’s attention. “This is our mission: The Sentinels and my team will attack the enemy compound at zero two thirty at the coordinates listed on the diagram to liberate forty-eight known captives. I say again,” I said, speaking even louder, infusing as much strength as I could into my words as I repeated our mission.
I continued to speak, falling into the role forbidden to me by Garrett Williamson so many years before. I assigned tasks to each squad, explaining their jobs and the concept of each operation.
The Sentinels glanced at me every few seconds, then wrote notes on their pads, their eyes communicating not hatred, but confidence. Though I was a despised superhero, they trusted me to lead them, along with Dean, into enemy territory with unknown variables. I wanted to.
As I explained the rules of engagement with the Westerners—order to surrender, shoot if they did not—I recalled a quiet evening many months before.
Marco and I had researched Benjamin and his siblings, and during our research we’d found a picture of Christina St. James, the woman who’d stormed a prison camp, walking through the gates and batting away bullets and grenades.
On that fateful day almost exactly a century before, she’d never heard the word “superhero.” She hadn’t yet devised the principles, nor given herself a codename and uniform. She was just Christina St. James, and she was going to liberate the prisoners or die trying. She’d done so in a time when not only did women not lead nearly anything, but they weren’t even allowed to vote.
She hadn’t cared. They’d taken her family and she was going to do something about it.
I was her direct descendant. I’d compared myself to her on the night I’d taken my oath to be the leader of my team. Had I kept my vows? I’d tried to. But there, in the armory tucked in the middle of the Rockies, I felt the mantle of the legacy that had been handed down to me, mother to daughter, for one hundred years.
Though I was giving tactical orders, I was not a soldier.
Though I was surrounded by Dean’s men, I was not a Sentinel.
I was a superhero.
The hollow ache in my chest began to hurt a little less.
37
Inch by inch the Sentinels and my team moved to our positions. The overcast sky obscured any natural light, but none of us dared turn on a red-lens headlamp. We were in sight of the largest Westerner compound, which appeared to me as a fortress in the gloom. High walls surrounded a village of houses, community buildings, and small gardens. Around the compound, fallow fields spread out for a quarter of a mile.
Dean had spent the first fifteen years of his life in such fields. Now, to my left, he gripped a tree, visibly shaking with anticipation of liberating more slaves.
I hardly dared to breathe.
Dean turned to Ember, who stood on his other side. She nodded once and peered through the thick branches of a conifer. I could make out her face—surprised, then alarmed.
She caught my eye. I can’t hear anyone in the compound.
I closed my eyes and listened to the faint sounds of life in the compound: a cough, a toilet flushing, a baby’s hungry cry. I hear lots of people.
Ember lightly punched the tree and let out a whispered curse. There must be some other animal telepath. I’m beginning to hate them.
I pinched the bridge of my nose while I thought. If Ember could not hear the thoughts of the Westerners, her role in the fight was greatly diminished. We wouldn’t be fighting blind, exactly, but the fighting teams would have a much harder time. My job was fairly simple—find the slaves—but the Sentinels needed to know where the Westerners were. All of us were relying on Ember to direct them to where they were required most.
Ember caught my eye. Change in plan?
There wasn’t enough time to come up with a new plan, especially since I didn’t know who or what was responsible for Ember’s power failure this time. No change in the plan. You’ll stay here with Luke.
We were in the copse of trees that we’d decided upon during battle planning. It was pitch black out, and we weren’t especially close to the compound. She’d be safe here, but I’d make sure her cover, a moody Sentinel named Luke, guarded her even if she wasn’t playing a major role anymore.
I put my lips to Dean’s ear and whispered the new development. He nodded once.
I checked my watch. The attack would begin in one minute. Spread out around the compound, Sentinels and superheroes alike were strategically placed in groves of trees and in low areas, out of sight. All of us waited for Reid’s signal, which would be unmistakable.
The plan was solid. The Sentinels had raided the Westerners countless times. Though they’d never attacked a compound of this size, my team would provide the offensive power required.
So why could I not shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong? I glanced at Ember, whose powers had been snuffed out immediately before they were most needed.
My stomach curled. Something wasn’t right. This wasn’t a coincidence.
Dean’s watch beeped.
I took one last calm breath and willed myself to settle into a cool, calculating mentality devoid of emotion. I would not be a mindless killer, but I was a trained warrior. We’d storm the compound and surprise the Westerners in their sleep.
The ground began to shake. Large, sharp cracking noises in the distance were followed by the deafening crash
es of walls falling to the ground. Within the compound, men yelled for their comrades to prepare for battle.
Dean and I surged forward with the rest of the Sentinels.
Gunfire and muzzle flashes lit up the night, but they weren’t from Sentinel weapons.
The Westerners had been waiting for us.
Enormous stadium lights around the perimeter of the compound blasted on, temporarily blinding me. Dozens of men were lining up behind the rocks of the fallen compound wall, aiming automatic weapons at the highly-visible Sentinels who rushed at them from all directions. Bullets whizzed around me while Sentinels fell.
Benjamin ran to each fallen Sentinel and healed him, allowing them to jump up and continue the assault.
I opened my mouth to order Reid to provide cover.
He was one step ahead of me. A wall of dirt flew up between the Sentinels and the Westerners, hardening to rock with a loud crackle. My second-in-command was several yards to my right, his eyes glowing ghoulishly, psychokinetically pushing the wall of dirt in front of him.
The wall of earth moved slowly across the field like a broom, and then I heard shouts of horror as it reached the ruined wall and the shooters on it. All at once the earthen wall collapsed onto the men, crushing them in dirt and rocks. For a few seconds, there were no gunshots. We scrambled over the dirt, stones, and bricks. I could barely hear anything over the sound of my panting.
I was the first one over the pile. When I reached the top, I took one look at what awaited us and ducked down for cover. “Tank! Earthquake! Now!”
Reid fell to his knees and slammed his fists into the ground. As his hands struck the earth, the ground began to shake, harder and deeper than I’d ever felt it move beneath my feet. I tumbled down the little dirt hill he’d made, but the ground did not stop quaking.
Around me, Sentinels shouted and fell, but all of them landed safely in the field.
In the compound, buildings began to collapse. As I’d hoped, many of them collapsed on the snipers and crew-served weapons that had been set up. In the brief second I’d looked over the hill, I’d counted at least five snipers lying in wait for us and dozens of men crouched behind barricades with various assault weapons and handguns.
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