The Price We Pay (Life After War Book 7)

by Angela White

  Feeling dammed either way he went, Marc decided to take the hour and care for the herd, then go to Angela’s side for the final showdown with Donner. It was still hours away. He would have time to reach her and not have to view the condemnation in her eyes if he told her the camp was safe and sound.

  Marc scanned the small sea of tents on the narrow outcropping, then the two cave entrances. If they had…

  An ugly growl split the peaceful silence and Marc whirled around to discover Dog leaping through the air. The wolf landed on the chest of a man wearing all black and the sentries realized they were under attack.

  “Get in the cave!” Marc shouted, sending out the order mental as well, and the camp members who heard him began shouting and fleeing.

  These infiltrators had to climb up for hours to reach this spot, telling Marc they had indeed had another traitor, as Angela had suspected. This attack couldn’t have come from Heather. She hadn’t known where the second den would be. Dog leaving had spooked the soldiers as they waited for Safe Haven to go to sleep, and they’d come over the edge early.

  Marc saw Doug and Peggy come from the mini-mess tent and start grabbing people, shoving them toward the second cave they hadn’t used yet, and then he was forced to bring out the Marine as the enemy came up the edges of the cliff.

  Quinn joined Marc as he rushed toward the invaders, and other Eagles fell in with them. The two groups met each other with hoarse shouts and violent swings.

  4

  Seth stopped on the rise and knelt down to survey the small enemy camp below. During the walk here, he still hadn’t come to terms with the horrible chore Angela had given him. Becky had helped though, by telling him the rest of Angela’s plan that she knew.

  “Angela will need you there, Seth,” Becky stated furiously. “If you’re not, she’ll die. She has pinned everything on you.”

  As he considered all the things that could wrong, Seth didn’t think this was a mental game to get him agree. Becky had sworn that she would be protected, that Angela was the one in grave danger.

  “You ready?”

  Seth glanced over to see Becky wearing an outfit that brought his male side to alertness and scowled.

  Before he could argue, Becky reminded him, “They’re already looking for me. I’m the dancing girl. It’s sure to get you taken in.”

  Seth wasn’t worried about blending with the men getting set to attack Safe Haven. All he had to do there was let the asshole out. Becky’s safety terrified him.

  “I’ll be fine,” she lied, hoping he couldn’t hear the tremor in her tones. She actually had no idea if Angela had her covered or not. Adrian hadn’t before and she was scared.

  Seth felt her waver and gently put his arms around her. “We could—”

  “Don’t.”

  Seth leaned over to meet her eyes. “Why do you have to do this? Tell me or I can’t.”

  “It will give me my life back,” she state slowly, realizing she had to trust someone. “I have to do it. I want to.”

  “For the power she’s offered,” Seth argued quietly. He understood the allure.

  “For my soul.” Becky sent him the image of her flirting with Rick, accepting the vial of drugs to hurt Neil. She ran through the mistakes she’d made, tears pricking her lids.

  “I have to atone,” she forced out through lurking sobs. “Then his voice in my brain will go away.”

  Seth did the only thing he knew to—he held her close and cursed Adrian. Over the last month, he’d come to understand how many of their lives Adrian had put in danger during their time with the Slavers.

  Becky didn’t let many of her tears fall. She was growing stronger now and the need for justice and retribution had been replaced with the longing for her mental control. She didn’t like being unstable.

  Her addition to the plan had been to suggest using a chain reaction and she was extremely happy with being proven right. She was also extremely worried about Seth. He was in a dangerous role, more so than she had been. Seth could be hit in the crossfire even if his role wasn’t discovered. The line they were walking was too thin for comfort.

  “Uh, they’re about to leave,” a voice above them said pointedly. “If you’re going in, now’s the time.”

  They looked up to see no one there and Crista had to stick a hand from her blind and wave before they found her location.

  “Oh, too good,” Becky praised, discovering the hammock that was cleverly hidden by blending with the tree trunk. One of the newer models that had come out before the war, the hammock was horizontally hung, with branches woven into the straps until it appeared to be a part of the tree.

  Even Seth was impressed, but he mostly felt relief. Crista and Samantha were the best female snipers in camp, and he was suddenly sure the rookie wasn’t alone here.

  Seth glanced around subtly, searching, and was rewarded by Zack’s face a few trees away. He was using the same setup as Crista and Seth realized there were hammocks and men all over these trees.

  “Feel better now?”

  Seth nodded at Becky’s breathless question, realizing she’d been scared. “If you keep lying to me, we’re going to have problems, Rebecca.”

  Seth waited for her anger or a denial, and was surprised by her answer.

  “I’m an Eagle, Seth. I follow orders. So do you.”

  She turned toward the camp. In a few seconds, all hell would break loose and Seth would casually join the fleeing men during the chaos, wearing Kenn’s dog tags.

  Being a cop was very close to being a soldier and other than terminology; he would have no trouble blending in. Angela had provided close lessons with Marc on the guns and gear he was currently carrying, and Seth controlled himself as he watched Becky vanish into the chaos, covered by Zack’s constant firing and Crista’s careful shots. Those two were a hell of a pair with firearms.

  Seth waited like was supposed to, even when he saw Becky going toe-to-toe with a huge soldier. The big man lifted his own gun and put it in his mouth, unnoticed by the soldiers fleeing from the unexpected assault.

  When the soldier pulled the trigger, Seth realized what gift Becky had been hiding. She could make people do things.

  Bad things.

  5

  “I’m leaving now.”

  Kendle didn’t look up from her glower at the small camp of soldiers on the rise below them. She was two minutes from dropping down on them. She didn’t need Kevin’s distraction.

  Kevin went to his team. “Let’s go.”

  His team had shown up during the night to offer protection and deliver the boss woman’s newest orders.

  Your people need you. Leave Kendle.

  Kevin didn’t have anything else pulling him away now and he felt a huge weight life from his shoulders as he chose to return to his goals of being the best Eagle in camp. He would no doubt spend a lot of sleepless night from here wondering what had gone wrong with Cynthia, but he would get through it.

  Kendle heard them leave and didn’t care. She didn’t want the bonds that Angela and her haven were trying to force on her. She wanted blood.

  Kendle understood on some level that Angela had sent her over the edge on purpose, but the rage in her mind was constant. She didn’t have the strength to fight it anymore.

  Kendle jumped down off the edge, knives out and ready, and saw the two other teams camped under the ledge. Too late to go back, her mind switched off and the animal came out.

  Not very far away, Kevin and his team stopped, exchanging unsure glances. They didn’t like leaving anyone to die, let alone a woman, and it was obvious that that’s what they were about to do. The sound of men shouting was proof that Kendle had drawn more trouble than she could handle alone.

  “She made her choice. Let’s go. The boss needs us.”

  There was nothing else said, even when a woman’s desperate screams echoed across the mountainside.

  6

  “That’s one of ours,” Jennifer said, stopping. She and Kyle were doing
a fast hike through the paths, but with so many mines places, it was hard to fly. Being able to recognize the Safe haven equipment was helping them to identify dangerous areas, but there were camps of soldiers to sneak around and rain running down the cliffs in furrows.

  “Should we—”

  “No.”

  Jennifer knew Angela would have their people covered. If she didn’t, there was a reason for it and Jenny wasn’t going to interfere. Add that to the bad feeling in the pit of her stomach and it came out in a harsh, demanding tone that Kyle associated with the witch. “We have our orders.”

  “Down!”

  Jennifer dropped to the ground as a branch swung out, spikes meant to impale her. She stayed down, catching her breath, and Kyle waited for her to be ready. He’d known she was tough, and she was doing well now, but she was still beyond furious that Angela had sent them all out here this way. Surely there had been a better plan!

  Jennifer, who was so strong mentally that not even Angela could keep her out if she wanted in, didn’t tell Kyle the result would be worth it. If all of Angela’s team died, it was worth this goal, but it was also one the males would never have allowed, let alone supported. Their leader was a clever, evil, problem-solving bitch, and Jennifer was suddenly very proud to have served her, no matter for how short a time.

  The sounds of battles behind them pushed Kyle and Jennifer to their trekking and the mobster kept her close, sharp gaze picking out the holes, triggers for traps, and other obstacles, hoping the soldiers coming up the mountain were being as careless as they sounded.

  “They might be blowing them before they reach it,” Jennifer reminded him, not wanting to get their hopes up for a victory. Even if Angela got what she wanted, Safe Haven could still lose enough people to be devastated, including Angela herself.

  Jennifer’s stomach flipped, hard and fast, and she leaned over the faint trail, retching.

  Kyle watched their backs nervously, hating the sudden lull in the noise. Jennifer’s sounds would carry…

  A series of thundering explosions echoed from below them, signaling the onset of Angela’s chain and Kyle grabbed Jennifer by the arm. “Come on!”

  They both knew there would only be a short time until the chain caught up with them and they plunged ahead, hoping not to blow themselves up.

  Jennifer gagged again, stomach out of control, and Kyle lifted her over his shoulder and hefted them up the last part of this cliff and onto a flat area.

  It was covered in tents and soldiers who’d heard the explosions and started to flee upward.

  Until Kyle and Jennifer burst into their campsite.

  For one second, none of them moved except Jennifer, who retched over Kyle’s shoulder, and then the soldiers went for the guns and Kyle ran toward the side of the cliff, knowing he’d never make it.

  Jennifer raised her gun, firing wildly as she puked again, and felt her witch come forward to direct the aim.

  Kyle moved faster, picking out the edge. They were almost…

  Kyle arched as the slug hit, thrown off his feet, and they both fell forward and over the edge of the cliff.

  “Get them!”

  The soldiers followed their surprise prey to the edge, but the drop was too far to see the bottom. Rain, mud, and debris were rolling down the cliff and it was impossible to see where the bodies had fallen.

  “Go down and get them!” the highest ranked man ordered through the storm and explosions echoing upward.

  “No way, sir!” one of the men shouted angrily. “I’m climbing away from that noise!”

  The other men followed the rebel and the officer was forced to do the same, thinking there was no way the pair could have survived the fall, even if none of the bullets landed.

  Kyle lay still at the bottom of the ledge, buried in mud and almost unable to move. Pain, hot and sharp, rushed over his spine, as if Angela were punishing him again.

  Jennifer had landed further down, rolling with the water and she pushed herself up dizzily as blood ran down the side of her face. “Kyle?”

  She stood up, shivering, and traced the water’s path to his still form lying in the thick mud. “Kyle!”

  Jennifer splashed to him, and rolled him over, seeing the red water. She screamed for the witch as her hand found his injury and tried to plug the hole.

  Let him die.

  Jennifer wanted to shout in denial and managed not to. Save him!

  You agreed with Angela. You know she’s right. Let him die now and save him the pain of later.

  Jennifer couldn’t do it. Kyle had healed her in too many ways for her to abandon him like this. In all the leaving scenarios she’d foreseen, he’d at least still been alive in them.

  Save him! Jennifer sobbed. Give him my son’s life.

  He isn’t injured badly enough to use your credit, the demon confided reluctantly. She’d clearly been hoping Jennifer would leave him here to die in the explosions that were steadily getting closer.

  The witch sent power through Jennifer’s hand and Kyle arched again, gaining consciousness as the bullet was forced out of his body.

  Kyle’s scream hurt Jennifer in ways she had no time to examine as shouts of fleeing soldiers came.

  “Get up!”

  She helped Kyle to his feet, aware of his daze, and got them headed back up the water’s path. It would be treacherous, but still better than the areas that were mined. At least the muddy water would have cleared out the traps.

  Kyle hugged Jennifer and tried to stay on his feet, barely aware of what was happening as the witch continued to heal his wounds. It was a painful, distracting process that left him breathless and groaning.

  “Shhh,” Jennifer cautioned, leading them to a small stand of trees for cover as more voices echoed right behind them.

  “Get down,” she ordered in a hiss, shoving on him, and Kyle lay still in the mud with Jennifer across his back as the two teams of soldiers came running through the mud.

  “Keep moving!”

  “Get higher!”

  Fleeing the chain of events, the soldiers were on top of Kyle and Jennifer in seconds, and then gone, leaving only muddy prints and relieved hearts.

  “Let’s go,” Jennifer said, pulling on his arm.

  Kyle stopped her, recognizing the area they were in. “Over here.”

  He led them to a small cliff and began feeling around on the black wall. Jennifer grinned in surprise when the blackness fell away to reveal a cave that had been hidden by a simple black sheet.

  The pair went inside, replacing the cover, and waited for the explosions to stop. As soon as it was over or at least settled down, they would head out.

  Jennifer, stomach rolling again, quickly got a drink from her nearly empty canister and tried to think good thoughts.

  Kyle was still too dazed for clear thinking and he spent the time counting explosions and marveling over her gifts. He’d worn a double vest set up, but hadn’t counted on being shot in the small of the back. By all rights, he should be dead.

  7

  The morning had come with heavy grit above a layer of nasty black clouds that splattered them with angry drops of acid rain. Weakened by time, the chemical rain no longer caught fire as easily, but it still caused discomfort in the reaction against skin. The hives and itches spread with the storm, drenching friend and foe alike.

  On the top of Lookout Mountain, Angela and her small group were the only ones remaining. Everyone else was either behind her, protected in the dens she’d chosen, or below her, fighting for all their lives.

  “Anything yet?” Shawn asked, pushing a hot cup of stale coffee into her icy hands. She hadn’t slept.

  “Give the weather more time to work,” she answered vaguely, ignoring the steaming cup in her hand. She was peering down the mountain, spotting heat clusters and waiting traps, and potential disasters that she would have no control over from this dawn. Once the mines were triggered, other layers of her hell would be activated and from there, hundreds of men wou
ld die.

  Angela had left herself a single choice in the plan and she peered down the last ridge with that moment on her shoulder. She saw too many of her own who would be caught to ignore the small twinge of concern. It would lessen the damage she was about to do, but it would save the lives of her front line.

  Angela keyed her mike, very pleased with Jeff’s ingenuity. The field radios would also be heard by the soldiers, but her people had extra batteries and orders not to shut theirs off in case of an emergency.

  “Wait.”

  Angela let off the button, turning to glare at Adrian, who she wasn’t sending anywhere that she couldn’t get to him in mere seconds.

  “Give it another hour before you call. It’ll give away too many positions to do it now.”

  “Why do you keep trying to help me? I’m handing you over to save the camp.”

  Adrian shrugged, leaning against the bars. There wasn’t room to lie down. “The future. You know about the future, don’t you, baby-cakes,” he taunted.

  “Don’t call me that!”

  Adrian chuckled, shaking his head. “We would have been fire and brimstone together.”

  Angela was now able to recognize the way he was trying to manipulate her and she hit the mike while staring into his nervous eyes.

  “The area you are about to enter is dangerous. Safe Haven people are already clear. You will kill more than half of your remaining five hundred men. We will outnumber you. Drop your weapons on a main road and go to your bunker. And do it now.”

  Angela let the evil come forward to make sure they understood she wasn’t bluffing. “Or I will kill every last one of you. Please consider attacking Donner instead. A high place in my army goes to the man or woman who brings me any piece of Major Donner.” She cackled a bit. “I prefer a whole head, but even eyes will work.”

  Donner’s sharp voice echoed across the radios of his men, giving away their locations and saving Safe Haven teams who were being snuck up on. “When we take their camp, you can rape any female you want, any age.”