Broken: (Ignite, Book 2)

by Fleur Camacho

  Jezzie looked up at Jace. “Jace. You are in charge of Sector Ten, and are to prepare your men for a project that will be disclosed at a later date and at a time of my choosing.”

  Jace froze. “I will not accept this position.”

  “You are to accept this position or I will kill the cockroach.” Jezzie leaned back in her chair and put her feet on her desk. Laura wanted to break her five-inch heel off her boot and stab her with it. “Who knows, I may kill the cockroach, even if you do accept your position.”

  He leaned over, planting his hands onto the desk. “I will not accept the position as First Lieutenant. I will not have that slithering idiot, Kean, giving me orders and I will not be demoted.”

  “Obviously you can’t run this outfit, since I’m the one in charge here.” She smiled at Jace.

  “Just give me my unit, but I won’t answer to any of the other Captains, or to Kean.”

  Jezzie’s eyebrows lifted and her grin slid off her face. Her feet were on the ground and she leaned towards Jace. “So you accept this assignment?”

  He nodded and Laura’s jaw dropped. “As long as I maintain my current status and, this is non-negotiable, Laura is to remain with me at all times.”

  Jezzie’s grin was back, it slithered up her perfect face, and she reached in her desk and pulled out a glowing circle of greenish light. “What’s she worth to you?”

  Jace’s confidence faltered and he swallowed hard but, he nodded. “She’s worth that.”

  “Deal.” Jezzie pulled out a knife and sliced her thumb.

  Laura winced as the blood oozed out. “What’s going on?”

  Jezzie nodded towards Jace and he displayed his hand.

  Laura began to panic. “Jace, what are you doing?”

  Jezzie sliced his palm and they both squeezed their blood over the circle. It took a second, registering the blood, which had mixed in its center, then it glowed red and opened. Jace offered his wrist, and Laura cried out. “No!”

  Jace ignored her as Jezzie closed the light around it.

  “Now, I’ll let you have your wish, and deal with Cherry later, but I want to speak to her for a minute. Alone.”

  “No!” Jace slammed his fist on the desk. Laura scooted closer to him, holding on to the loop of his jeans.

  Jezzie ignored his outburst. “I give you my solemn word that I will not harm her at this time.”

  Jace shook his head. “No.”

  “In any way.”

  Jace grit his teeth, then looked at Laura. “She won’t harm you. And I’ll be right outside the door, watching.” He said this for Jezzie, making it clear that he would be watching her very closely.

  Laura steeled herself, still keeping his shirt over her nose, and nodded. She let his loop go and turned towards Jezzie, folding her arms over her chest.

  Jezzie waited until Jace had walked out of the room, and he turned and watched them. Jezzie leaned back and put her feet on the desk again. “Please Laura, sit down.”

  ❦

  Laura sat down in the chair. It was strangely comfortable which was weird because everything else about this room felt… wrong. She tried to study the computer without Jezzie knowing that she was curious. She was beginning to get used to the smell, at least it wasn’t making her retch, so she put his shirt in her lap and tried to breathe slowly.

  Jezzie crossed her arms behind her neck and studied Laura for a minute, saying nothing. Finally Laura, tired of waiting, forgot to be nervous, forgot about the computer and the smell. “Is there something you wanted?”

  “I’m trying to figure out what’s so special about you. There doesn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary, except the fact that you have red hair, but certainly that can’t be it.”

  Laura shrugged. “I ask myself the same thing every day. Although, everyone really should give Jace more credit. I don’t think he’s the type to fall for every redhead he finds.”

  Laura paused, studying Jezzie. Why did she bring us here? “Hey, how come I know your name? They could never tell me anyone else’s name.”

  Jezzie sneered. “That’s because Jezzie is a nickname. Most of us have the same names as our ancestors and it gets confusing to be called our true names, when so many others have the same name.” She put her feet down and leaned forward. “Would you like to know my true name?”

  Laura’s face paled and she shook her head. “No, thanks.”

  Jezzie laughed and then she looked up at Jace, who was staring menacingly at her through the door. She had special glass in place, she knew he couldn’t hear their conversation.

  “He’s pretty protective of you.”

  Laura looked over at him and smiled. He stared at Jezzie, then breathed on the glass, making it fog, and drew a smiley face. A twist of a smile formed on Jezzie’s lips, until Jace punched it. Jezzie humphed, rolling her eyes, but Laura grinned.

  Laura looked back at Jezzie thoughtfully. “I don’t know that it would matter if it was me or someone else. He lives to protect. He loves to heal others.”

  Jezzie rolled her eyes. “Yes, he does. It’s quite an annoying trait of his.” She studied Laura’s face. “Why does he mean so much to you? You do know that he could’ve escaped earlier don’t you?”

  Laura leaned back, composing her face.

  “You really think that Cherry couldn’t overpower him? Cherry is a good soldier, at best. But he’s no match for Jace. His best trait was Camilla. And now that she’s dead, thanks to you, he doesn’t have much use.”

  “Then why did you use him to take me? And, by the way, it’s Camilla’s fault that she’s dead, thank you very much. She shouldn’t have tried to kill me.”

  “Why?” Jezzie looked at her disdainfully. “You’re just a human. A cockroach. Jace shouldn’t have killed her for you.”

  Laura pressed her lips together. She would just have to disagree on this point. “I had a cockroach as a pet, once.”

  Jezzie’s nose turned up. “Really?”

  “No, not really.”

  A noise beeped from the computer and Jezzie touched the screen. To Laura’s disappointment, her finger did not go through the screen.

  Jezzie read her screen for a moment, then looked back at Laura. “Funny. Cherry’s best trait was his love for his sister. He would burn the whole world if she asked him to. Without her, he’s lost. Directionless. I allowed him to take you because I knew that he wanted it. As revenge for what Jace did. Just the mere fact that he could take you right from Jace’s arms was a sort of punishment for Jace. If he could use you to draw Jace to me, then I was happy to let him do it. And the fact that he wanted you, to punish you for even existing, well that was just the icing on the cake.”

  A shiver ran down Laura’s spine. “You don’t care if he would’ve raped me?”

  Jezzie shrugged. “Why should I? It’s just sex. It means nothing.”

  Laura didn’t know how to react, except the bile rose in her throat again, and she put Jace’s shirt against her mouth to help her keep it down. Jace knocked on the door and growled at Jezzie.

  Jezzie ignored him and leaned towards Laura. “Just remember, cockroach. Jace is one of the strongest and smartest military Commanders. He could leave at any moment if he wanted. But he doesn’t. Why is that?”

  Laura didn’t know how to answer.

  “Because he can’t help himself. He has to know what we’re doing here. He thinks he can outsmart me and report to Michael what we’re doing here.” She grinned triumphantly. “But now that he has the circulo, he won’t be able to go anywhere that we can’t find him. But it makes you wonder, doesn’t it?” Jezzie didn’t wait for an answer. “Why is he willing to risk your life, to get this information? Maybe you aren’t as important to him as you think.”

  Laura turned her face away but the words seeped into her mind. She thought of how fast he broke the angel hair. His quick agreement to his position here. His confident assurances that they were safe, that he would get them out of there. Could he really leave if
he wanted to?

  No. Jezzie’s just trying to get in my head. She trusted Jace. He would keep her safe. Besides, she wanted to help. If they could stop whatever was going on here, in her own town, she would risk it to stop them.

  Laura leaned forward. “You know what I wonder?” Jezzie raised her eyebrows. “I wonder why you’re willing to risk all your plans, to have him here. What if he manages to escape and tell Michael your plans? You’re taking a big risk. Is he really that great of a military commander?”

  Jezzie laughed. “You have no idea.”

  Laura raised an eyebrow. “Maybe he’s more important to you than you realize.”

  Suddenly Jezzie was in Laura’s face and Jace had her pen at her neck. “Back away,” he growled. Jezzie looked at him and laughed.

  “She’s fine, I could’ve easily snapped her neck.”

  “Not before your blood drained out all over your perfectly white uniform.” His face was serious but his eyes dropped to her suit and he cocked his head. “That uniform reminds me of someone else’s. Is that a replica of some sort?”

  Jezzie stood up, grabbing her pen from Jace and shoving him away. “Go gather your unit. I expect you to be ready to train them in an hour.”

  Jace smirked. “What am I training them for?”

  Jezzie sat down and began touching her computer screen. “Train them for military deployment, and a high level precision demolition operation.” She looked at him. “You’ll know the rest shortly.”

  Jace frowned, hesitating, but Jezzie stared him down. “You are dismissed.”

  He nodded once and then turned to Laura. She stood up, ready to leave. They opened the door and Laura took a deep breath in. She hoped she would never have to be in close quarters with Jezzie again. She shivered, grateful for the fresh air, and handed Jace back his shirt.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “What was that about?” Laura loved to see Jezzie so flustered.

  Jace grinned, putting his shirt back on. “She’s always adored Michael. That’s a replica of a uniform he used to wear, back in the day.”

  Laura considered Jezzie’s personality. She went through a lot of trouble bringing Jace here and was imitating Michael? Laura tried to wrap her mind around what that meant. “How do you know Jezzie?”

  Jace looked towards the ceiling. “I don’t know. She’s just one of those people who’ve always been around.”

  Laura furrowed her eyebrows. “How well do you know her though?”

  He shrugged. “We don’t usually run in the same circles, so I don’t know her too well.”

  Laura looked him in the eyes, searching for answers. “Why does she want you here so badly though? I mean, was she here already when you got here? Or did she set up shop after you got here?”

  Jace took a step towards her, the corner of his lip lifted, teasing. “Why’re you so concerned about Jezzie all the sudden?”

  Laura took a step backwards and Jace leaned forwards, twirling a strand of her hair around his finger. Laura traced the top of his shirt. “It just seems like she did a lot to get someone she doesn’t know very well to work for her.”

  He leaned close, his floral smell washing over her, and she breathed in deeply. Her heart picked up.

  “You have nothing to worry about. She just knows that she’s going to need the best in order to win.” Jace paused. “I love how your heart beats faster every time I get closer.”

  Laura stared up at him, her back to the wall, and tried to concentrate on what he was saying. “So you’re the best then, huh?”

  He leaned towards her ear and a shiver went down her spine. He kissed her ear lightly. “The best.”

  She was frozen in her spot and could only stare at him as he pulled her hair away from her face. “I do know one thing that Jezzie and I have in common, though.” He traced her cheekbone with his finger. “Do you want to know what that is?”

  She nodded, her insides were jelly now and her tongue completely useless.

  Jace pulled her chin towards him and his lips lightly grazed hers. “I’ll also do anything it takes to have the best.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tightly against him. He kissed her softly but she opened her mouth, pulling him in. He groaned and kissed her roughly; his fingers grasped her tight and he pushed her against the wall. “Laura, you have no idea what you do to me.”

  She kissed him deeply, never wanting to let him go. “You have no idea what you’ve already done to me.” Her hands traced his chest and wrapped around his waist. His arms, strong and secure, pulled her tight and there was no room for fear. He would protect her. He would save them all.

  In that moment, he knew that as long as he had Laura by his side, he could do anything. She wasn’t his weakness, she was his strength. He would stop Jezzie and her men. He would protect Laura. He could do it all.

  ❦

  Jace stood in front of the room and studied the men. Their uniforms were impeccable except for one glaring imperfection. He took a deep breath and tried to be patient. “Be at ease.”

  The men, in one silent motion, spread their feet and put their hands behind their backs.

  “Who is the Commanding Officer here?”

  A Fallen who stood to the far right of the group took a step forward and saluted Jace. “I am, sir.”

  Jace looked him over. “What’s your name?”

  “Unland, sir.”

  “Unland, do you think you’ve properly trained your men?”

  “Yes, sir.” His chest puffed forward so far Laura thought the buttons on his shirt were going to pop off.

  “Do you think your unit is ready to properly assimilate into the populous?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Jace looked down. “You’re wrong, and you’re fired as Commander. Go to the back of the line.”

  Unland’s eyes widened for a split second, then they narrowed at Jace. “Yes, sir.” His words were in direct opposition to the emotion that spewed from his mouth. He forced his legs to move and eventually they followed his brain and he walked the long way to the back of the room.

  Jace studied Unland as he settled in the back of the room and took note of the way his body betrayed the resentment he felt. Jace looked at the next soldier.

  “What’s your name?”

  This Fallen hesitated. “Caxton, sir.”

  “Caxton, do you think this unit is properly prepared?”

  Caxton was silent for a moment. He didn’t want to seem insubordinate to his previous commander but obviously there was something that Jace wasn’t happy about. Finally, he answered. “No, sir.”

  Jace leaned in. “Why is that, Caxton?”

  “I…” His face flushed. “I don’t know.” His shoulders slumped dejectedly.

  “I get that. Go take you place, and your loyalties, to the back of the line with Unland.”

  Caxton was faster than Unland, he was happy to not be under the watchful eye of their new Captain.

  Jace stepped to the next Fallen down the line. “And what do you think? Are you properly prepared for your next mission: to silently enter the world of the humans, completely assimilate, get what we need and complete your mission?”

  “No, sir.”

  “And why is that?” This one was silent for a moment. But not because he was hesitating; he wanted to make sure he said the correct thing. “We need shoes, sir.”

  Surprised, Laura looked at the floor, slapped her hand over her mouth and choked on a laugh. Their perfectly straight uniforms were in direct contrast to their bare feet. How had she not noticed that before?

  Jace stepped closer; he was inches from his face. “What did you say, soldier?”

  Now he hesitated. “Shoes, sir?”

  “Is that a question?”

  The Fallen was quiet, considering. He didn’t look at Jace in the face and stared beyond him. “No, sir. We need shoes.” He was confident now.

  Jace leaned even closer, so that his nose was touching the soldier’s nose. “What’s your name
, soldier?”

  “Seaman, sir.”

  “Seaman, you’re the new Commanding Officer of this unit. You will prepare this unit to my exact orders. You will not ask me any questions when I give you a command except for the question ‘how’ if you are unable to figure it out yourself. Any other response will be ‘Yes, sir’, is that clear?”

  Seaman stood up straight and proud. “Yes, sir.”

  “Now, Seaman. Do you think you can handle getting shoes for each of the men in this unit?”

  “Yes, sir.” There was no hesitancy. Jace stared into Seaman’s eyes. There was a mixture of confidence and uncertainty, which was the perfect combination for Jace. He needed a man on the inside, whom the unit would respect and obey. But he also needed a man who wanted to please Jace and was willing to work hard to make him happy.

  Hopefully, Unland was eager to impress Jace enough to share any information that would let Jace in on their plans.

  Jace nodded. “You are to do this on your own time and not during training. You have Unland to thank for that.” Jace pointed to a small office connected to the room they were standing in. “Now, is that my office over there?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Jace walked over to inspect it. Laura squinted her eyes, trying to see the room; she noticed with a thrill that there was a desk that contained a computer similar to the one that Jezzie was using.

  Jace walked out of the office. “Everyone is dismissed except for Seamen. We will reconvene at Eighteen Hundred.”

  Jace glanced at Laura and pressed his lips together. “And no one is to talk to Laura, touch her, or even glance at her. Or you will have me to answer to. Is that clear?”

  A chorus of ‘yes, sirs’ echoed around the room and the men began to file out of the room. Laura watched them curiously. Were they all Fallen? If so, where did they come from? And did they know what they were doing? Why were they all willing to hurt others for some crazy purpose that maybe they didn’t even understand?

  ❦

  The men ignored Laura as they filed past her with a few exceptions who snuck a quick glance at her. Soon the room was empty, except for Unland who walked slowly towards her. Laura glanced towards Jace who was busy studying some papers with Seaman, and she tried not to look nervous.