“Holy water,” Cassie says with mock horror. When he doesn’t laugh, she nudges him in the side with her hip, which seems to drop the tension in his shoulders a little. “Quit worrying, you big baby. We’re in this together.” She removes her arm from Gavin’s grip and then caresses his face before turning back to Jezi.
The general was wrong about Gavin. It’s clear in the way he’s holding himself. He’s not egotistical and unaware because in the way he’s looking at Cassie right now, like she’s made of feathers and he’s scared a breeze might take her away, it’s obvious just what his weakness is.
And he knows it.
The minutes tick by as we wait for the first wave of Elites to signal us. My entire body breaks out in a small shudder even though I’m far from freezing. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so present in a moment, yet so far from it. Everything is happening all around me, and it’s happening faster than I imagined it would. Faster than I have time to process.
Jaxen tells Jezi to gear up, and then turns to me. He slides my duffel bag off my shoulders, sets it on the ground, and then does the same with his. “Load up,” he says, unzipping his bag.
Weldon drops his next to me. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this prepared in my life.”
I squat over my bag and unzip it. Right there on the top, wrapped in crimson, is the Dagger of Retribution, which will make this night one I’ll never forget. Quickly unwrapping it, I tuck it in a special pocket sewn into the inside of my jacket. My mind is on autopilot as I grab as many fluxes and guns as I can, sticking them in all the appropriate pockets. By the time the bag is empty, I feel like a new form of weapon. I feel like I’m more steel than human. I’m bullets, blades, and cold metal that can erase existence.
I’m lethal.
Gavin presses his finger to his ear. We were all given small earpieces so we can hear the commands being given by the generals. I pick one off my shoulder and place it in my ear. General Sterling’s voice cuts through the inside of my head.
“Second wave is a go. Over.”
The clock has run out.
Gavin turns back to us, completely decked out in weapons, and says, “It’s time.”
“No going back now, mouse,” Weldon says with raised eyebrows and a kind smile.
We meet up at the door on the roof and wait for the group of Elites escorting us to enter first. I want to shove them out of the way and get there already. Waiting is the hardest part of this whole situation. Knowing something is coming, but not having it happen just yet… it feels like I’m running in place. Like I’m freefalling, watching the ground steadily approaching, waiting for the right moment to pull my parachute. I just want this to be over with. I want to find out that every simulation I ever failed was a fluke and not an actuality. That I can actually do this, as opposed to just thinking I can.
When it’s our turn to enter, we’re reminded to stay quiet. We descend a small set of stairs, huddled together, and within seconds, we’re inside the church. It’s eerily quiet as we take light steps down the marbled floor. Dim light streams through the stained glass windows casting shadows over the empty pews.
I stay between Weldon and Jaxen, telling myself that this is going to work as we approach the door to the entrance of the crypt. There isn’t a soul in sight, not even a Priest. It makes me wonder if they had been warned to stay away.
“The path through the tunnels is all clear. Move in, team two. Over,” Sterling says in our earpieces.
We pass through the doorway and take the narrow stairs to the tunnel system below the church. I can’t see a thing. I can barely make out Jaxen in front of me. It isn’t until we approach the end that I start to make out the solid shape of his shoulders. We pass through a small archway, and then line up in the hallway. A small, brick enclosure is before us, and then a pathway off to the right.
“This way,” the lieutenant in charge of our group says, waving us on. We follow him at a quick, clipped pace. The first wave of Elites are lined up against the walls with guns and fluxes pressed up against their chests, staring straight ahead at nothing. They’re armed reinforcements should something unplanned happen.
“I don’t sense any dark magic. It can’t be this easy,” Jaxen says in my mind.
“They’re probably watching us right now, just waiting for the chance to strike,” Jezi says from in front of him as we hook to the right.
“This is running too smoothly,” Weldon says shortly after.
“Have a little faith,” Gavin says with a short laugh behind him. “We are in a church after all.”
Tombstones line the barren cement walls where the Elites do not. I lose count of how many turns we take until we finally stop in front of a wooden door with a number on it. Six. The Divine Six.
“The Raven is approaching. Prepare for operation destruction to begin. Over,” Sterling says through the earpiece.
“Copy that, General Sterling. All Elites are in place awaiting command. Over,” says the lieutenant of our group.
“Bring her in. Over,” Tillman says.
The lieutenant turns and ushers us through the door. I follow Jaxen’s feet. Every one of his steps reassures me that the ground isn’t actually slipping away from me. I haven’t lost control yet. My friends are still alive, and everything is going according to plan.
“Stand by. The Raven has landed. Over.” It’s Sterling’s voice.
I look up. There it is, the Holy Seal. Just like in the simulation, it takes up the entire back wall of the crypt with holy symbols etched into the walls above it. It’s an old, copper machine that sticks out of the clay walls with a network of rusted pipes and pumps that run in a symmetrical pattern around the center. The same oxidized gears slowly spin in the center of this machine, all turning in opposite directions and at different speeds.
Tillman and Sterling wait beside the levers that control it. “You still have the Dagger?” Tillman asks out loud.
I reach into my jacket, pulling it out. The sharp blade gleams.
“And you remember the drill?” He’s speaking slower now, like he’s unsure I hear and comprehend him.
My hands are shaking. My heart, I’m sure, is on its final beats. I walk past Jaxen and step up to the machine, reminding myself how to breathe. In, out. In, out. I do this until I’ve calmed every last nerve in my body. Until I know I’m in control.
I don’t ask the generals if they’re sure about this. If we should really be doing this, knowing that once the first seal is down, there will be no going back. There will be no chance for second-guessing.
I just swallow down the words and send a small prayer out to the universe that I’m making the right choice. With steadied hands, I find the notch above the three levers where the blade of the Dagger is supposed to slide in. Just like in every simulation. I suck in a good, deep breath, sliding the blade into the notch. The machine creaks and steam rushes out of some of the pipes as I spin the blade counterclockwise. One by one, I pull the levers down, watching the dials spin out of control. The machine grumbles and stutters until it pulses out its last breath of electromagnetic energy.
I did it. I freaking did it.
It was almost… too easy.
With a small, confident smile, I grab the Dagger and pull it back out. I turn to Tillman. “All done,” I say, tucking the blade back in the pocket inside my jacket. I’ve never made it this far in the simulations, and it feels good to succeed in real life. I start to walk away from him, but then a small quake shudders underneath the ground. At first, no one notices because it’s been happening this entire time due to the electromagnetic energy pulsing from the machine.
But the machine is no longer working.
What comes next happens so fast that none of us have time to prepare.
We’re all thrown back from a strong force of dark magic that blasts from underneath us. I slam against the rocky wall, landing on the floor facedown. Sharp pain lances up my back between my shoulder blades. A metallic tang fills my mouth, gushing from
my lips where my teeth poked through.
It takes me a moment to open my eyes—to see past the blinding pain wracking every part of my being. I half expect to see myself broken. To see limbs, blood, and evidence that I never really escaped the hell of the simulations I was put through.
“Faye!” Jaxen yells as he reaches for me, protectively pulling me into him. We’re both gasping for air as he turns to find Jezi, but then the ground shudders erratically again and a piece of the ceiling falls straight for us. He shoves me away as dust and rubble fill the room, choking off our oxygen and momentarily blinding us.
“Get the Everlasting out of here now!” Tillman shouts over the noise. Groans fill the small space. Soldiers are stumbling around the room, trying to regroup as quickly as possible. A few trip here and there, landing face-first into dust that rushes back up into the air.
“Weldon!” Jaxen calls out in a loud bark. I scan the small room, but there are so many bodies. So much dust. So many shouts and screams and ducking that I can’t think straight, let alone see straight. There’s no telling where he landed in the blast.
Gavin braces himself against the rocky foundation close by. “Cassie, we gotta move out,” he shouts over the noise, his face paler than normal. He wears a jagged scrape along the top of his brow, which supplies a line of blood leaking down his chin.
“Jezibelle!” Jaxen shouts out, inches away from me. His body shields mine from the dirt and rock that continuously fall from above.
“Here!” she shouts back. She’s bent over another soldier, healing him.
“Where’s Weldon?” Jaxen asks me.
“Over here,” Weldon calls out. He’s stuck under a pipe that landed across his midsection, trying to pry it off himself.
We dash over to him, but by the time the pipe is lifted off, Darkyns begin to pop inside the room.
Fear douses through my veins like ice water.
One by one, the Darkyns take position behind our Elites, using dark magic to pin them in place. Chilling laughter echoes around the room on the tails of a cool breeze brought in through the hole in the wall. Their shrill voices carry on a high note, all singing my name out like they’re singing a prayer.
Jaxen’s staring at them with his mouth open, as if he can’t believe what he’s seeing. Like he never once thought this would be a possibility. He doesn’t move, doesn’t even breathe, as he blinks and blinks, his thoughts scrambling behind his eyes.
I shake him, but it doesn’t seem to make any difference. It doesn’t grab his attention. A Darkyn appears in front of us, and I scream out before blasting him with a spell strong enough to send him flying backwards.
Gavin jumps forward, appearing in front of Jaxen. He’s taking charge like he always does. His thoughts are focused on the present. “Snap out of it!” he shouts at Jaxen.
Jaxen blinks himself back to the present. It’s like the sound of Gavin’s voice is what brings him back to reality.
“We have to get the hell out of here,” Gavin shouts as he throws the pipe off Weldon.
But that ship sailed long ago. There are too many Darkyns.
Orders are streaming through our earpieces, commanding that we hold our ground. Commanding that the Raven be escorted away and the rest to stay and fight back. Jaxen carefully moves me behind him and backs me up toward Weldon. “Get her out of here,” he says the moment I brush against Weldon’s stomach.
“No,” I say firmly, panicked. “I’m not leaving any of you behind!”
Jaxen spins on me so fast that my breath catches as I flinch back. “Now is not the time to be brave, Faye. Go!” He looks past me at Weldon, and before I know it, he lets go of me and I’m sucked deep into a shadow, leaving the safety of everyone to the hands of fate.
“TAKE ME BACK RIGHT NOW!” I yell, trying to pull away from Weldon’s iron grip.
Every second that passes feels like another bone breaking in my body. Feels like another shred of myself being ripped away until there’s nothing left. Nothing but all of my fears, which have been waiting for the moment when they could finally take over me.
“Don’t be stupid,” Weldon shouts back. “Going back is the worst decision. It’s the dumbest thing you’ve said to date. Risking you being captured isn’t something to play around with. Power or not, something could wrong and you could end up in the wrong hands. It’s better this way. Safer.”
He’s pulling, tugging, yanking me in a direction I don’t want to go, and I fear I’m going to hurt him. I’m going to hurt him before I can get him to walk me back to Jaxen.
“Have some faith in your people,” he says. “They know how to fight.”
I can’t believe my ears. “Not if they’re ambushed! Which they are in case you didn’t notice.” I pull against his tugging and manage to get my hand free. “I can stop them!” I continue. “I can save everyone. I know I can. You have to trust me! I trusted you!” I plead, holding my ground.
He stops, his shoulders stiff. His head slightly bent.
“Please, Weldon!” I continue, shoving myself through this small window of opportunity. “I can get them all out of there. We can’t leave them behind.”
My chest tightens as I wait for his answer. I don’t dare breathe. Not until he gives me the answer I’m seeking.
He curses under his breath and hangs his head. Fights an internal war between his responsibilities and his empathies. His fists ball against his thighs and his golden eyes find mine.
“Do you always have to be so annoyingly brave?”
My brow furrows. “Didn’t you say I needed to stop acting like a coward?”
“Answering a question with a question. How becoming of you.” He exhales loudly, grabs my hand, and pulls me back in the direction we came from. “Jaxen’s going to kill me,” he mutters more to himself than to me. His hastily stomps ahead, pulling me harder than I like. “I’m going to be murdered by my best friend just to prove a point. Just to prove that my partner is stronger than most are giving her credit for. How’s that for the story of how I died?”
“Sounds pretty noble to me,” I squeeze past my teeth, trying not to whimper from the twisting of his grip.
He looks back at me as if he’s mortally offended. “Noble?” He barks out a laugh. “I met noble once. He was an ass. A primitive, prudish ass.” He pulls me to the left and stops in the darkness. “Look, I’m only doing this because you need to show them what you’re made of, and I believe you can. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less. Got it?”
I nod, seeing past the rough demeanor he tries so hard to hide behind. I don’t think about what the Darkyns are doing. About how much time we’ve already lost. I think about how in this moment, Weldon has done more for me than any other person. And I don’t give him enough credit. He’s a good friend. He trusts me.
He. Trusts. Me.
“You do this, or I’m taking you back,” he says firmly. I nod fervently, seeing him through new eyes. “No time for second-guessing,” he continues, looking at me seriously now. I nod again, finally seeing the friend in him that Jaxen sees. The goodness in him. “Get in, render them useless, and we leave. Okay?”
I nod one last time, knowing this is the right thing. This is the only thing.
When we appear back through the shadow, all hell has broken loose. The church is crumbling piece by piece, falling and striking men left and right from either side of the fight. There’s a mess of legs, arms, and bodies that litter the floor. Magic streams through the air in small beams. Electricity strikes left and right.
Jaxen’s not more than ten feet away from me, fighting against two Darkyn Witches with the ease of a seasoned Hunter. I start forward, but a sudden, huge blast of power sends me flying into the air. I smash into the seal with a loud thud and fall face-first to the ground.
Not again.
The air rushes out of my lungs, deserting me. I try to roll, but I can’t move. I can’t breathe.
“Faye!” Jaxen shouts over the commotion.
My power kick
s in on impact. My breathing slowly returns to normal as I dig my fingers into the dirt, letting my rage fuel me. Dark magic is everywhere, leaving my hair standing on end. Every sense in my body is on high alert, scoping and detecting any possible threat.
I know before I roll over that a Darkyn is close. Too close, with the intent of hurting me. I feel his movements almost as clearly as if I can see him with my own eyes. When I roll, I’m ready for him. Just as the Darkyn reaches down for me, I drive my flux up into the cavity of his chest, all the way to his heart, and twist.
Jaxen grabs me from under my arms as I let go of the flux, lifting me to my feet. The lifeless body of the Darkyn slams against the ground, blood pooling out from underneath him. Jezi stands next to Jaxen, looking torn between thanking me and cursing me for returning. She turns away, sending a blast of magic strong enough to knock the feet out from under four Darkyns.
Jaxen pulls me hard against him, tucking me into the safety of his arms. His heat, his scent, and the fact that he’s still alive and still fighting strong springs an overwhelming need to kiss him. “You shouldn’t have come back,” he says into my ear before launching a flux across the room behind me at whoever approaches.
“We’re in this together, remember?” I say as I brush the side of his face. I pull my flux out from the sheath on my pant leg and throw it at a Darkyn who runs up behind Jaxen. He drops to the ground. “I’m going to finish this now. Cover me.”
He looks hesitant at first, but then nods and turns back to the chaos behind him. Weldon moves behind me to cover the other side, and Jezi stands by my side. She nods approvingly before turning her back to me. They have me completely circled, protecting me with a shield of magic and electricity.
I close my eyes and let my inner strength kick into overdrive. Every other time I triggered it was when I felt cornered. When I knew my loved ones weren’t going to make it out alive. When I felt threatened.
Evernight (The Night Watchmen Series Book 2) Page 29