Ravenous (Book 1, The Ravening Series)

by Erica Stevens

CHAPTER 17

  I didn't stop to think. I shoved Abby back and pushed her towards the woods. "Run!" I yelled at her. She turned beneath my shoving hands and stumbled toward the forest. I turned and plunged in the opposite direction. "Aiden!"

  I couldn't see him over the glare burning my irises, couldn't hear him above the screams shredding the night. "Aiden!"

  I was running toward the blinding light and certain death that made it impossible to see the bridge anymore. I had no idea where I was or where I was running. I stumbled, tripped, and sprawled onto grass. I had somehow managed to make it into the rotary, where exactly in the rotary I was though, I didn't know. I could be closer to the bridge; I could be on the complete opposite side. I struggled back to my feet.

  "Aiden! Bret!" I screamed, terror for their lives clawed at me and left me nearly breathless. Not my brother, I pleaded. Please not my brother, please not Bret. Please. Please. Please.

  The bushed I crashed through tore at my skin and clothes before I plowed into another bush that halted me abruptly. I thought I was somewhere near the Cape Cod spelled out with yews in the center of the rotary. I couldn't be certain though, but I thought I might have hit the C of Cape. That meant I had at least approached the bridge side of the rotary in my heedless rush, and I wasn't running aimlessly in the wrong direction. I just didn't know where to go from here, which direction was the right one.

  Arms wrapped around me and pulled me back. A terrified scream escaped me; I clawed savagely at the arms, certain death had just locked me within its lasting embrace. "It's me Bethany," a voice whispered in my ear. I slumped as I recognized Cade's voice, but I couldn't see his arms around my waist against the harshness of the glow surrounding us. "We have to go back Bethy, we have to go back."

  Cade was pulling me away, dragging me toward something. I didn't know which way we were going, what was happening anymore. More screams echoed out of the light bringing to mind a wounded mountain lion. I’d never heard such awful, agonizing sounds in my entire life. I wanted to clasp my hands over my ears and attempt to drown out the suffering echoing within those shrieks. I would never get that sound out of my head.

  Aiden. Bret. My heart was shattering. This was it; I couldn't take anymore. This was my breaking point. It would soon be over, for all of us, and I didn't even care anymore.

  Cade kept his arm locked around my waist as he pulled me to the ground. "Move Bethany!" he grated in my ear.

  I didn't care to move, I didn't truly care to do anything ever again. When I remained limp beneath him, he began to half push and half drag me into the center of a bunch of bushes. They were scratchy and caused my skin to burn. Whatever the bushes were, they weren't friendly. Cade cursed as he followed behind me, struggling against the low hung branches of the plant.

  I didn't care about the bushes, or the pain. The only thing I cared about right now was I could finally cover my ears. Curling into the fetal position, I clamped my hands over my ears, but it did little to drown out the awful sounds. Cade wrapped himself around me, using his body to cover mine.

  "Shh, Bethy, shh love." I didn't realize a low keening sound had been escaping from me. I was shaking, but no tears spilled free. I was too horrified, to shocked to cry.

  "Cade," I moaned.

  His body was warm and strong as he enfolded me within his embrace. His cheek was against mine, his hand wrapped around my head and forehead as he tried to shelter me. There was nothing sexual about his embrace right now. There was only a desperate need to protect me, to shield me from the horror and death surrounding us. His mouth pressed against my cheek; his breath was warm and ragged on my skin.

  My eyes remained closed but the light burned against my eyelids, I thought it would be seared permanently into my irises. "My sweet Bethany."

  He kissed my cheek gently. That was when I became certain we were going to die, and he knew it as well as I did. I found that to be an even worse realization. Cade had been stoic throughout this whole thing, even somewhat playful. I sensed the regret and longing radiating from those three words.

  The glow was briefly more intense and I became aware that the screams had stopped. The silence, either from the lack of noise or from the suffocating quality of the light, was profound. I shivered, Cade held me closer as the luminosity faded.

  I remained frozen, too stunned to move. I didn't open my eyes; I wasn't ready to see anything. I strained to hear something, but there was nothing to hear. Not anymore. It was nearing dawn, but the birds didn't chirp. I couldn't even hear Cade's breath anymore, couldn't hear the fierce beat of his heart. The peace was unnerving in the wake of all the noise and light.

  I couldn't take it anymore; my eyes flew open. Gradually they began to adjust to the early morning dawn enough I could make out the plant wrapped around us. I couldn't identify it immediately, but its size, look, and smell made me think of juniper.

  Cade gradually unraveled from me. I froze, unwilling to move as he crept forward. The bush was large, but not large enough to keep him hidden for much longer. Sound flooded in like high tide on a full moon. The world came to life again as he lifted some of the lower branches and peered out. I winced against the abrasive sound of the plant as the branches grated against each other.

  I couldn't see anything, but I caught the small slump of his shoulders. "I think it's safe."

  His voice was surprisingly soothing against the stark clamor pulsating in my eardrums. "Think?" I winced; my voice was nowhere near as calming. He nodded. "They also thought the bridge was safe."

  "You didn't." No I hadn't, but that didn't do anybody any good right now. Especially not Aiden and Bret. A twinge tugged at my heart as a lump lodged in my throat. "I think the bridge was booby trapped somehow. I don't believe the aliens are around here right now. But if I'm right, what just happened is going to bring them here, in droves."

  He continued when I looked at him questioningly. "I saw no ship; there were none of those creatures around. Nothing happened until the first group made it off the bridge and onto the highway. I think the trap was set to lure in as many people as possible before it was released, just in case an escape was attempted in groups."

  I was appalled and sickened by the endless depths of cruelty the aliens possessed. "We either go now, or we wait until morning Bethany. When it’s light out."

  Translation, when they would be able to see us better. "Now is good."

  I barely caught the brief flash of his gaze as he turned back to me. I was more than just impressed by his resilience; I was awed by it. He had lost so much in his life, endured so much, and yet he wasn't going to quit. Not even now, when things seemed far bleaker than they had only ten minutes ago. There was a good chunk of me completely ready to cave.

  I had lost too much in these past couple of days; my mother, my brother, my boyfriend, it was too much. Maybe Cade was able to carry so stalwartly on because he hadn't suffered such harsh losses as recently as I had, but I knew that wasn't the reason behind his determination. Cade had lost a lot in his life; maybe not as much as I had, but he'd also experienced great loss and sorrow. He was just as confused as I was, just as frightened, but he was going to forge on.

  The only difference between us, I realized now, was he truly believed we were going to survive all of this. I didn't. The realization was a little depressing, and yet a little reassuring. He believed we were going to survive, and I believed in Cade. I may not have faith we would make it through this, but I had faith he would do everything in his power to ensure we did.

  "Come on Bethany."

  His fingers were strong in mine as he pulled me out from under the bush. "Abby?"

  "She made it into the woods," he assured me.

  I glanced around, but we were on the backside of the rotary and I couldn't see the bridge from here. Cade was bent over as he darted into the middle of the road with me in tow. I felt exposed here, vulnerable. I held my breath as I waited for the awful light to blaze forth, for our death to come, but it remained still in the early
dawn. Cade held firm to me as we plunged into the woods. I took my first easy breath as relief rushed through me, but I knew we weren't in the clear yet. We had to find somewhere safe before full daylight set in.

  Cade continued to pull me forward, but I had to look. I had to know. I pulled my hand free of his. "Bethany!" he hissed.

  I scrambled through the woods, tearing at the leaves and dirt as I stumbled back up the embankment we had just plunged down. I nearly fell over as I skidded to a halt near the road. I had expected to find desiccated remnants of the once proud bridge. Instead, I was struck by the fact it looked the same. The lights were still on, but in the growing day they were far dimmer.

  I didn't see human body parts or guts like I'd expected, but I thought if I crept closer I would find some blood. Of course there would be blood, there had to be. Humans had once stood there, and now they were completely gone. There had to be some remaining evidence they’d existed.

  However, I saw no sign of them in the dawning day. My brother had completely disappeared. My heart struggled to pump the blood through my veins, but it was having great difficulty with the simple task.

  "Bethany." I turned back to Cade. Abby and Jenna were behind him. Abby was crying; tears ran down her dirt-streaked face. The sight of my sister, my only living relative, helped to ease the constriction in my chest a little. "We have to go Bethy."

  I bit on my bottom lip as I nodded to him. I knew we had to go, but I didn't want to. I didn't even know where we were going to go, or what we were going to do. I wasn't ready to leave Aiden and Bret behind, even if they were already gone. I glanced back at the hated bridge. Our lives were rapidly unraveling, but for now, at least we were still alive.

  Motion to the right caught my attention. My eyes narrowed on the IHOP restaurant. There were woods behind the building, and in the shadows of those woods, there was movement. I took a step forward as I strained to see what was moving around over there. Aiden suddenly appeared at the edge, his hair was tussled and standing on end, he looked beaten, but he was there.

  "Aiden," I breathed.

  "What?" Cade demanded.

  Abby, Cade, and Jenna hurried to my side as Bret appeared. Relief swamped me and I found myself able to breathe again. "Oh!" Abby cried, she went to run out of the woods but Cade grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her back.

  "You can't go out there," he admonished.

  Abby looked like she was going to protest but she remained silent. Molly appeared behind Bret. It seemed she’d taken the worst of whatever had happened to them. Her clothes were torn; her reddish hair was a frizzy, crazed mess around her dirt-streaked face.

  I didn't see the man who had been with their group. I didn't know if he was choosing to remain hidden, or if he'd been lost like the others. Aiden pointed behind the building, toward the road running under the bridge. He began to make motions like he was doing something, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was. "Is he pumping gas?" Jenna asked in confusion.

  "The gas station, down by the beach," Cade said with a note of dawning realization in his tone as Aiden began to make swimming motions.

  "Near the rental place," I whispered.

  Cade gave him the thumbs up sign. Aiden hesitated before nodding and slipping into the woods. Molly followed behind him but Bret remained for a moment before blowing me a kiss and fading away. "Thank God," I whispered.

  Cade squeezed my shoulder and pulled me away from the roadway. I didn't miss the questioning look Jenna shot me. Though it seemed silly to even think about such things now, I knew she would reveal anything that happened between Cade and I to Bret. Even now, after all of this, she still wanted him. Or maybe it was because all of this, she wanted him even more. We had few loved ones left, it only made sense we would search out more loved ones to rely and depend on.

  I looked toward Cade. From the outside looking in, someone might say that was what I was doing with him, and what he was doing with me. But as his midnight gaze met mine, I knew better. I knew no matter how badly I didn't want Bret to be hurt, he would be. There was no way to stop that, because in Cade's eyes I could see my future, my home.

  It was the strangest, most exciting, confusing, and comforting feeling I'd ever experienced and I savored in it. Cade's carved features softened; his eyes gleamed with understanding as a secretive smile curved his full mouth. A connection sizzled between us, a bond I felt in every cell of my body as my toes curled. His hand seemed to burn into my skin, searing through my flesh as it flooded me with a heat the likes of which I'd never felt before. A heat I'd never even imagined could exist until Cade.

  "What are we going to do now?" Jenna inquired.

  Though our attention was diverted to her, I could still feel the strange connection pulsating between us. I was unreasonably certain the strange bond couldn't be broken, that it never would be. Not even by death.

  I thought I should be terrified of these emotions; I'd never wanted to be this vulnerable and exposed. But I was vulnerable, I was exposed, and I was at the complete mercy of my feelings for Cade. I'd vowed I would never feel this helpless again after my father's death, but I failed miserably.

  If he didn't feel the same way about me... But he did. I was illogically certain of that.

  I slid a sideways glance toward him as he walked beside me. His shoulders were tense, his gaze slid over the woods as he seemed to search everywhere at once. His words from the tree whispered back over me, 'you will always be the only one who matters.’ They had been true, I knew that instinctively; knew it with everything I was and always would be.

  He had meant those words, because for some strange reason Cade desired me, and cared for me far more than I had ever realized. We were bonded by similar experiences and grief, but even more than that Cade saw all of me. Saw everything I was, and always would be, and he understood it in a way no one else could. I think he understood me better than I did. It was frightening but also exhilarating and wondrously comforting.

  If something were to happen to him...

  I abruptly broke that thought off. I couldn't go there; I couldn't even begin to go there. I couldn't bring myself to face the realization I was more than likely going to lose more loved ones before this was over. It was likely we wouldn't all survive, that none of us may survive.

  "Find a good place to lay low for the day, and get some rest. We can't get to the gas station without running across the highway; we're better off doing that at night, and we can't keep going without some rest," Cade finally answered.

  We slipped further into the woods and moved quickly through the underbrush. "I'm so relieved," Abby said as she looped her arm through mine.

  "Me too," I agreed, though it felt odd to be happy in this horrible situation. People had just died, many other lives had been lost, but we still had Aiden and Bret. We began to climb as the woods started sweeping upward. It was full morning now and sweat was already beginning to bead along my forehead and trickle down my back. I longed to sit for a little bit, maybe even close my eyes. Recently my main mode of transportation had been my feet, as had many other people's, but I wasn't prepared for this much walking, and running. My blisters were growing blisters.

  Cade stopped as we came across an old rock wall splitting the hill in half. "If we keep going we're going to come across the paintball course," I said.

  Cade nodded as he studied the wall, and then the woods. Then, slowly, his head tilted back. My heart seemed to stop; I stiffened as my heart leapt into my throat. Before I could tilt my head back to see what had caught his attention, he grabbed hold of me and shoved me against the rough bark of a locust tree. My breath was momentarily knocked from me.

  "Stay," he ordered.

  I was too astonished to move anyway. He’d been so fast, so rapid, I watched in amazement as he grabbed hold of Abby and Jenna. He pulled them back, sheltering them beneath the leafy bowers of a large oak. The three of them flattened against the trunk of the tree as the small ship that had somehow caught Cade's attention, moved
across the sky over a hundred yards away.

  I could feel the boogeyman breathing down my neck as my thoughts turned to the others. Aiden, Bret, and Molly had been lucky before, I could only hope our luck would hold out. They were sitting ducks if they didn't find some sort of shelter. Even if it was just a tree.

  "Bethany!" I turned at Cade's harsh whisper. He'd stepped from the shadows of the tree; his hand was outstretched to me. My attention was drawn back to the ship as it settled over the area of the bridge; I waited, breathlessly to see what it was going to do. "Bethany, we have to go!"

  A door in the bottom of the ship slid open. My heart started playing the drums as something dropped out of the ship. It was small and round. At first I had the insane notion it was a cannonball, but right before it dropped below the tree line, legs unfolded. Another one dropped from the ship as the first one disappeared. They were the size of a grown dog, perhaps a Shepherd, but it was impossible to tell from this distance.

  What were they?