Drifter

by Leslie Georgeson

  Maddy turned on her stepbrother, fury darkening her pretty blue eyes. “How dare you threaten my friend!”

  Ronin let out a snarl. He snatched Maddy up by the waist and yanked her against him. She kicked and squirmed, screaming at the top of her lungs. “Let me go, you asshole!”

  Mitch flashed to Kate’s side. Taking her hand, he quickly led her back out of the way.

  Ronin marched across the yard with Maddy, heading for the main building. The soldiers quickly parted to let them pass.

  What happened next left Kate so stunned, she couldn’t move.

  Ethan somehow freed himself from the tree. He shifted from a bloody, half-naked man to a giant drifter in a quick blur of skin and scales and sharp fangs that left everyone staring in shock with their mouths gaping open. Amid gasps and shouts of warning, Ethan, now a giant drifter, launched himself at Ronin.

  Ronin spun around, tossing Maddy aside, and let out a grunt as Ethan slammed into him, knocking him backward into the dry earth. Ethan’s sharp fangs slashed at Ronin, aiming for his throat. Ronin jerked his arm up, blocking Ethan’s fangs. Ethan sank his sharp drifter teeth into Ronin’s forearm, ripping and tearing at his flesh. Ronin let out a howl and yanked free, blood dripping down his arm. He lunged to his feet and staggered backward. In a swift move, he yanked the sword from his sheath. The Ethan-drifter danced around him, eyeing the sword, his green-blue gaze glowing with hatred. He flipped up his frill and shot a mouthful of gooey slime into Ronin’s face.

  “Shit,” Mitch whispered, his hand tightening around Kate’s.

  Kate shivered, clinging to Mitch’s hand.

  “Don’t you dare!” Maddy flew into the center of the battle, leaving Kate breathless with awe at her complete fearlessness.

  The Ethan-drifter lunged at Ronin just as Maddy reached her stepbrother’s side. Ronin thrust her out of the way with one beefy arm while he brought the blade toward Ethan with the other. Maddy fell hard on her ass, then scrambled back to her feet. The Ethan-drifter hissed as the blade struck home. Ronin yanked the blade down, then back, slicing the Ethan-drifter’s front leg clear off. The reptilian leg landed on the ground in a pool of blood, twitching. Ethan hissed and growled, then collapsed onto the ground next to his leg. In a blur of scales and fangs and then bloody flesh, he shifted back to human form and lay on his back, his chest heaving. The drifter leg shifted back into a human arm.

  Maddy bolted forward and bent over Ethan. “Oh my God!” she screamed. “Oh my fucking God!”

  Kate rushed to Ethan’s other side, wanting to do whatever she could to help. Ethan’s right arm had been completely severed, blood gushing out of the wound just above where his shoulder had once been. His body convulsed. His eyes rolled back into his head. Then he lay still. Had he died from loss of blood? Or just passed out from pain and shock?

  Ronin lifted his sword and pointed it at Maddy. “Don’t you ever interfere with my business again, woman. Or I’ll fucking banish you and remove my protection. Is that what you want?”

  Mitch flashed to Ronin’s side. “If Ethan dies, we won’t get any information out of him.” His words were soft, cautious, non-threatening. “It might be wise to try to save him.”

  Ronin let out a snarl. “If he’s the lead drifter, then killing him would be the smartest thing to do, because that would make me the new leader.”

  He turned to where Ethan lay on the ground. He lifted his sword.

  “No!” Maddy lunged to her feet, blocking him with her body. “If you kill him, Ronin, so help me I will make you suffer. Every minute of every day! I will slice you’re fucking throat while you sleep.”

  Ronin let out a nasty chuckle. “I’d like to see you try, little sis.”

  Mitch knelt next to Kate and pressed a cloth against Ethan’s wound. “Help Maddy keep Ronin distracted,” he whispered. “I’m going to try something to see if it works, then try to hide Ethan before Ronin kills him.”

  Did Mitch mean teleport Ethan away? Could he do that?

  Maddy shoved against Ronin’s chest, pushing him back. “I hate you!” She marched away with Ronin right on her heels. Kate had to admire Maddy’s bravery. She didn’t once back down from Ronin, though he could kill her with one squeeze of his mighty hand.

  Mitch quickly lifted Ethan into his arms while Ronin’s back was to them. Then he flashed away like a sprinting cheetah. Flash. Flash. Flash.

  Kate stared as he vanished out of sight. That was amazing! It worked!

  As she turned back to Maddy and Ronin, who were still arguing, she noticed Ethan’s arm laying on the ground near her feet. Forcing back a gag, she looked away.

  “I will cut you down if you step in my way again!” Ronin roared. He spun back around, his eyes bugging out when he realized Ethan was gone. “What the fuck? Where is he?”

  Kate stepped back out of the way, moving out of Ronin’s reach, and inched her way behind him. The air stirred next to Kate as Mitch reappeared at her side. He gave a slight nod, letting her know Ethan was hidden.

  Maddy and Mitch exchanged glances, a secret message passing between them.

  Ronin pierced Mitch with his stare. “Can Ethan teleport?”

  “I don’t know,” Mitch answered. “The only gifts I know for sure that he has are the shifting and the cloning.”

  Ronin’s hard gaze landed on Kate. Her heart slammed into her ribs. She stared back, forcing herself to be brave.

  Ronin bent and scooped up Ethan’s arm. He shook it at everyone. “The person who finds the drifter man and brings him to me will be rewarded handsomely. I don’t care how you bring him to me. Dead or alive. In pieces or whole. Doesn’t matter. Just find him!”

  The soldiers all rushed away to search for Ethan. Kate prayed none of them found him.

  Ronin turned toward Maddy. “Get out of my sight!” he growled. “Or I might just decide to chop off your arm for your stupid defiance.”

  To Kate’s relief, Maddy didn’t argue. She turned and hurried back inside Aftermath.

  Ronin’s black gaze shifted back to Kate. “You too, trader girl. Get out of my sight or Mitchell here will have to see me hurting you in ways that will break both of you.”

  Kate swallowed hard. Turning, she took several steps back.

  “Go,” Mitch told her, a warning in his eyes that she couldn’t quite interpret. Was he telling her to run and hide?

  Kate jogged toward the building, glancing back as she reached the door.

  Ronin had Mitch in a headlock, his beefy arm wrapped around Mitch’s neck as he whispered something into Mitch’s ear. Mitch struggled, trying to break free. Then Ronin thrust him aside with a sneer. Ronin’s gaze swung across the yard and landed on Kate. He smirked, his eyes black with deadly intent.

  Kate’s breath caught. She couldn’t stop the shiver of fear that slithered down her spine. Ronin was coming after her. Probably very soon. Maybe even tonight. He had no intention of letting her be with Mitch. He was just letting Mitch think he was so Mitch would do whatever Ronin wanted him to.

  Kate had no doubt Ronin was going to kill her. Probably very painfully. Horrifically. To torture Mitch.

  She just didn’t know when.

  If she wanted to live, she would need to leave Aftermath tonight.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Mitch knew someone had likely seen him picking up Ethan and teleporting him away. It was only a matter of time before that information got back to Ronin. He needed to get Kate out of Aftermath tonight. As soon as possible.

  But first he had to get away from Ronin.

  And he needed to check on Ethan. He had no idea if Maddy had managed to keep him from dying. Though he was beginning to suspect he would never get through to Ethan, he needed to know if his efforts to help Gabe with the mountain would be worth pursuing or not. Because if Ethan died, everything would change. If Ethan died, chances were that Ronin would win. And in that case, they would be wise to get in Gabe’s boat and sail for America.

  “Sit!” Ronin ordered, s
hoving Mitch onto a bench in the dining area. He turned and screamed across the room to no one in particular, “We need beer! Now!”

  A small, haggard-looking woman rushed forward with a pitcher of beer and two large mugs. She plunked them on the table before them and hurried away.

  Ronin poured himself a beer and gulped it down. He clanged the empty mug on the table and looked at Mitch.

  “It won’t kill you to have a drink, Mitchell.”

  Mitch shook his head. “You know I don’t drink.” If he were to ever become inebriated, he wouldn’t be able to control his empathy, even with Kate’s gift. And the drifter in him was strong enough without him losing some of his control by the overindulgence of alcohol. To mix his empathy and the drifter with alcohol was a sure way to lose control. In order to survive in this world, to maintain complete control of his mind and his actions, Mitch had chosen not to drink. Ever.

  Ronin snickered. “Pussy.” He refilled his mug. He gulped it down and smacked his lips. “I’m in the mood to get roaring drunk. That Maddy just pisses me off sometimes! Who does she think she is, interfering in my business like that?”

  Mitch remained silent on the other side of the table. If Maddy was smart, she would stay hidden until Ronin calmed down.

  Mitch had to figure out a way to get away from Ronin before someone came forward and informed Ronin that Mitch was the one who had hidden Ethan.

  Ronin refilled his mug and leaned his beefy arms across the tabletop and eyed Mitch. He was beginning to relax now, to Mitch’s relief, the anger sliding away.

  “If you’re not going to get drunk with me, get out of here. And find me a woman. I’m in the mood for a hard fuck.”

  Mitch rose from the table and hurried away. If Ronin wanted a woman, he’d have to find his own. Mitch had no intention of getting involved in that.

  When he reached the room he and Kate had been staying in the past few days, it was blocked from the inside. Which told him how frightened Kate was. But pushing a piece of furniture in front of the door wouldn’t stop Ronin if he wanted inside.

  “Kate, it’s me,” he called through the door. “I’m alone.”

  A scraping sound followed as she shoved the item away from the door. She pulled the door open and eyed him warily.

  Mitch stepped inside the room and closed the door. Kate flung her arms around his neck and wouldn’t let go.

  “Hey,” he whispered. “It’s all right. What’s got you so spooked all of a sudden?”

  “Ronin.” She leaned back, meeting his gaze. “He gave me the evil eye. He’s going to kill me, Mitch. I know he is.”

  “Ronin’s downstairs getting drunk. This is probably the best time for us to sneak out of here.”

  “What about Ethan?”

  “I’m going to go check on him while you gather whatever you need. I don’t plan on coming back here, Kate. Are you okay with that?”

  She nodded. “Where will we go?”

  “To the mountain. That’s where Gabe and Claire and Honor are. Once we get there, we will figure out what to do. If Ethan recovers, then we can wait for him. If he doesn’t…” Mitch trailed off. “I don’t know. We’ll just have to take it one day at a time.”

  Kate squeezed him tight again, then pressed her lips to his. Mitch kissed her back, feeling her urgency, her fear and worry. If they were going to get out of Aftermath, they needed to go tonight.

  He reluctantly set her away. “I’ll be back soon. We may have to use our gifts to escape tonight, so don’t be afraid to embrace them if you need them, Kate.” He kissed her again, then opened the door. With one last glance at her, he stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him.

  The dining room was alive with soldiers who had returned from their search for Ethan. As Mitch slipped past, he surveyed the area, noting more than half of the tables were full. Several women rushed about, serving the soldiers and replacing their empty pitchers with fresh alcohol.

  Mitch hurried outside, then teleported around the building to the cellar out back behind the main building. Lifting the wooden door to the cellar, Mitch descended the stairs down into the ground.

  A shuffling sound came from the small room, and a lantern was quickly extinguished, filling the cellar with darkness.

  “It’s just me, Maddy,” he called softly, not wanting her to mistake him for a soldier and hit him with something. “I’m alone.”

  “Thank God,” Maddy grumbled. She relit the lantern, filling the tiny cellar with light.

  Shelves of various types of canned goods lined the walls, and bags of potatoes and squash and carrots and other long-lasting produce sat on the floor against the wall. In times of extreme hardship, if no other food supply was available, the food contained in this cellar would support the colony for several weeks or more. The residents regularly circulated the food supply, using up the old and replacing it with fresh, so that nothing staled or molded before use.

  Mitch and Maddy had hidden Ethan successfully down here once before. Hopefully they would be able to do so again.

  Ethan lay on a small, thin mattress in the far corner, covered with a blanket. A pillow lay beneath his head. He was pale as death, unmoving, except for the small breaths that slowly lifted his chest and let it fall.

  “How is he?” Mitch asked as he stepped closer.

  “Not good.” Her eyes filled with sadness. Maddy knelt at Ethan’s side and stared down at him. “He’s still unconscious. His flesh wounds from the whipping are already healing. I cleaned his arm wound and managed to stop the flow of blood, but it wasn’t easy. I tried to cauterize it, but it didn’t work. The hot coals wouldn’t burn his flesh. I’ve never seen anything like it before. So I had to suture it closed as best as I could.”

  Mitch nodded. “It’s the drifter in him. He can’t burn. Death by fire will never happen to him. Or me. Or Ronin. Or any other drifter man.”

  Maddy’s eyes widened. “His flesh will never burn? What about his hair?”

  Mitch shook his head. “No part of him will ever burn.”

  She swallowed hard, her gaze holding his. “What is he, Mitch? I saw him change into that beast. Is his humanity gone?”

  Mitch sighed. “He’s a drifter. But I think he’s still human somewhere inside. He just might need to be reminded of that.” He cleared his throat. “Kate and I are leaving. When Ronin finds out I’m the one who hid Ethan, he’ll kill me and Kate. So we have to leave tonight. I don’t know when, or if, I’ll see you again. So…take care, Maddy. If Ethan survives, and if he’s still Ethan and not the drifter lurking inside, tell him I went to the mountain and that Gabe and I will be waiting for him there. He’ll know what that means.”

  Maddy nodded, a tear trickling down her cheek. “I’m afraid he won’t make it. Look at him. He’s so pale. So…death-like.”

  Mitch stared down at Ethan’s pale face. “You’re doing the best you can. And that’s all you can do.”

  He glanced back at Maddy. “You’d be smart to hide from Ronin too. Get away from here. If he discovers you helped save Ethan, there’s no telling what he will do. He is more beast than man, and his humanity is slipping farther and farther away with each day.”

  Alarm flashed across Maddy’s face. She leapt to her feet. “You’re scaring me, Mitch. What are you talking about? Ronin would never hurt me.”

  Mitch turned toward the steps leading up out of the cellar. Sometimes if you believed in something long enough, and hard enough, it came true. But Maddy was only fooling herself. There would come a time when Ronin would hurt her. Mitch just hoped Maddy realized that before it actually happened.

  “Just be careful. Ethan is Ronin’s biggest threat. You don’t want Ronin to discover you helped Ethan.”

  She nodded. “I understand. I can handle Ronin. I grew up with him. But I don’t understand why you think he’s losing all his humanity.”

  “Because he is.” Mitch headed up the steps. “I don’t have time to get into it now. If Ethan survives, ask him about it
. Ask him to tell you all about his research on the drifters and what he’s uncovered. You’ll either find it all quite fascinating. Or think he’s a lunatic.”

  Mitch paused at the top step and turned back to Maddy.

  “Goodbye, Mitch,” she called softly. “I’ll find a way to get Ethan to this mountain you mentioned.”

  “Good,” he said. “I would hate for this to be our last goodbye.”

  * * *

  Kate paced the room, anxiously awaiting Mitch’s return. She’d pushed the nightstand back in front of the door as soon as Mitch had left, terrified that Ronin would come for her once she was alone.

  She kept seeing that evil look in Ronin’s eyes in her mind, over and over, the promise of violence, the deadly intent. He meant to hurt her. And hurt her badly.

  Kate shivered. She’d never considered herself a cowardly person, but Ronin brought out the terror in even the bravest of people.

  Except Maddy.

  Kate felt her lips twitching as she recalled the way Maddy had marched right up to Ronin and screamed at him. Though Kate admired Maddy, she believed Maddy needed to be more careful around Ronin. Maddy seemed to know a different Ronin than the rest of them did. But Kate was convinced that even if Ronin had once been a hero to Maddy, he wasn’t one anymore. She had no doubt that if Maddy got in his way again, he would hurt her.

  A loud commotion came from the hallway outside the room.

  Kate froze, her heart pounding with fear.

  Someone pounded at the door. “Open the door, trader girl,” a deep male voice called. “Ronin wants to see you. He said to wear something sexy.”

  Kate swallowed hard. She didn’t answer.

  The pounding came again, louder.

  Bang. Bang. Bang.

  “You in there, woman? Ronin said if you didn’t come willingly, we were to drag you down.”

  A loud thud came against the door. Then another. The nightstand shifted a few inches, pushing back from the force.

  More thuds and bangs as something—or someone—slammed repeatedly into the door. The nightstand slid backward another inch. Then another.