Of Stone and Sky

by Charissa Stastny

  With my pockets full of glow rice and my bottle of glow solution at the ready, I checked the clock just as my phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number but answered in case it was one of the officers checking in with me.

  “Hello?”

  “We have your husband and will kill him if you don’t do exactly as I say,” a deep voice said.

  I froze. They had Lincoln?

  “W-where is he?” I asked, a tremor to my voice.

  “Just follow directions, and no one will get hurt. Leave through the front doors so we can make sure you’re not followed. Walk toward the cafe. You know the way.”

  “Don’t hurt him,” I said, but the person hung up.

  I leaned over my desk and shuddered. Keep it together. You won’t be able to help him if you’re freaking out. Oh God! I pleaded, Keep my husband safe.

  Joe’s door was closed as I walked toward the elevator. Thank the gods. I didn’t want anyone I loved to see me and try to follow me out. I had to keep my husband safe.

  My skin prickled as I exited the front doors of EcoCore and walked down the stairs. I gripped my water bottle and took courage from the rice in my pockets slapping against my leg. It didn’t fall out as Lincoln had predicted. I’d experimented with angles until I’d gotten it just right, where only a slight nudge would send kernels out.

  You’ve got this, girl, I told myself as I headed toward the cafe. I had prepared for any eventuality. Things would work out. They had to! I reached up to touch Mama’s amulet, but it wasn’t there.

  Ugh. Officer Snyder had it. I knew I shouldn’t have parted with it. Mama had said it would always protect me. But now I didn’t have it.

  Something sharp and cool settled against my back. I flinched as a huge man wrapped an arm around me.

  “Don’t scream or I’ll slice ya,” he said in a gruff voice.

  I couldn’t have screamed if I’d wanted to. Every muscle in my body had frozen up. Don’t let fear control you. My brain would help me if I remained calm and composed. It wouldn’t if I let emotions run rampant.

  “Where’s my husband?” I asked and felt proud that my voice didn’t waver.

  “Shut up and keep walking. You’ll see soon enough.”

  A car door opened up ahead. Another man stepped out, glancing around like he was guilty. I stumbled and let my water bottle spill solution onto the wheel.

  My captor cursed and clenched my arm painfully as he pulled me up. I made sure to step into the syrupy solution before the other guy dragged me into the back of the car.

  The car took off, and one of the men squeezed my face. “She’s a beauty.”

  I slapped his hand, making the other man laugh.

  “Patience, Ringer. Boss said he’d let us have some fun with her once we bring her in.”

  “She’s in the car,” Ringer said, running his hand down the front of my blouse.

  I spat in his face, making him curse as the other man guffawed.

  “Serves you right, you greedy git. I told you to be patient.”

  Ringer glared at me. “I want to have fun with her right now, before the others.” He pulled me hard against his mouth, choking me with his nasty tongue. I tried to fight, but he had me pinned too tight.

  The other guy knocked his friend’s head with a gun. Thank the gods! I sucked in clean air, wanting to vomit.

  “Leave her alone. I don’t want a knife in my side because you pissed the boss off.”

  Please, Angel, I prayed, hoping he’d seen what had happened. He’d told me before Lincoln and I had left that he would park down the street to make sure no one followed me home.

  Remember Hansel and Gretel. Find my trail.

  62

  Angel

  Gramps leaned forward in his seat as my heart pounded. Did Saemira have a death wish? Why had she come out the front doors in broad daylight instead of going to the parking garage as Officer Tayne had told her to?

  “We have to follow them,” Gramps said, breathless as we watched Ringer and Slade force her into a car.

  “Answer!” I yelled at my phone, but Officer Tayne’s phone continued to ring.

  “Lincoln,” Gramps said next to me, and I realized he must’ve called his grandson. “They have Saemira. They’re taking off with her in a white Honda Accord.”

  “Tell him to meet us at the cafe on Fourth,” I said, slamming my phone down so I could turn the car around and follow.

  He repeated my words to Lincoln as I focused on driving. They had to have taken her to the cafe. It was the closest location from here. I parked a block away, not wanting to alert them to the fact that they’d been followed.

  Gramps told Lincoln where we’d parked and to hurry his butt up. I grabbed Saemira’s black light from the bag next to me. I’d carried it with me ever since she’d insisted I keep it, knowing she must have had a reason.

  Had she known this would happen? Had the foolish girl planned all along to go it alone?

  I opened the door. “Stay here and wait for Lincoln. I’m going to check the perimeter for guards. Keep trying Tayne. Let him know what’s happened.”

  “Will do.” Gramps looked angry, not scared. “Go find our girl.”

  I would find her, or die trying.

  63

  Lincoln

  Angel was just walking away from his car as I pulled up. “Wait for me,” I said, running over to Gramps. “Get out of here. It’s too dangerous for you to stick around.”

  Officer Snyder and I hadn’t gotten very far up Red Butte Canyon road before we’d been shot at by another vehicle. Snyder had been hit in the shoulder, and the other car had sped away as I’d pulled over to help the wounded officer. Tayne’s men had shown up within minutes with an ambulance. Frantic to see my wife and make sure she was okay, I’d left the scene after assuring them that I’d check in with Tayne. Gramps had called right after that, and I’d sped like a maniac back to the city, hoping I wasn’t too late.

  “Take my car and go home.” I handed him the keys. “Call 9-1-1 if Tayne won’t answer.”

  Gramps took hold of my wrist, pressing against the watch he’d given me. “Be careful, son.”

  “I will.” But I’d do whatever it took to get my wife back, even if it involved taking risks.

  Angel frowned as I caught up to him “Hunch over. You stand out with your confident stride. Try to blend in. Be invisible.”

  I did as he ordered, and we slipped into a back alley.

  Angel pointed. “Their car’s here. And I found Saemira’s footprints with the black light by the back door. No one’s guarding it, cocky bastards.”

  The door was locked. I pulled out my phone to call for help, but Angel batted my arm. “Silence your phone. It will only hinder us from here on out.”

  I obeyed and looked up to see Angel jimmying something in the lock. The knob turned in his hand, and he pushed it open, peeking inside before motioning me to follow.

  We crept inside and he waved me up the hall. “Keep a lookout,” he whispered, before shining his flashlight over the floor and walls.

  I stood there, trying to decide what I’d do if someone caught us in the dark hallway. Would I rush them? Act lost? We were in a back storage area where non-employees shouldn’t be. I doubted anyone would believe I’d lost my way.

  “Ah ha,” the kid said softly. “She left us a trail.” He pointed the beam against a door, where a geometric pattern footprint glowed in the dark. “She must’ve kicked it.”

  Again, the door was locked.

  My stomach churned at how much time had passed.

  Angel had the door open within seconds. Thank God he knew what to do.

  I texted Gramps to tell him we were inside and had left the second door from the back unlocked for the police when they arrived.

  Please, let him get a hold of Tayne.

  We made our way down a cobwebbed stairwell that made me itch. “Have you been here before?” I whispered.

  “No. But I’m guessing this is the diner Duke refe
rred to. Tunnels connect it to other hideouts.”

  I followed his black light into the void, skin still itching. The basement had three tunnels leading out of it. Thankfully, my brilliant wife had left us another trail to know which one to take.

  “There you are.” Angel picked up a glowing piece of rice.

  “You don’t seem surprised.”

  “Gem and I always left trails for each other as kids. She was experimenting with making rice glow last week. She showed me her experiment so I was looking for rice. Let’s hope the rats don’t eat her trail away.”

  At the mention of rats, I shuddered, but continued into the darkness. Nothing would stop me from finding my wife.

  64

  Saemira

  My captors hadn’t bound my hands. Though I’d practiced for that scenario with my crazy pocket pants. Releasing bits of rice was easier with my hands free. Hopefully, Angel would pick up my trail and lead the police to this den of vipers. If he didn’t, I’d be worse than dead.

  My captors weren’t gentle. The one called Ringer couldn’t keep his paws off me, and the grumpy one with the gun just liked to yank me faster than I could walk in the dark.

  A light up ahead made me squint. Boxes cast eerie shadows on the floor and walls as we entered what appeared to be a windowless warehouse. I shuddered, feeling like a lab rat in a dark and sinister maze.

  Duke and four others greeted us with catcalls and whistles.

  “Ah, Temptress.” Duke motioned to my captor. “Bring her to me. We’re all hungry for fresh meat, yes?”

  The men cackled, making me choke on spit.

  My captor manhandled me to stand before his evil boss, leaving my arm bruised. Duke waved him away.

  “You tried to trick me, but I turned the table on you and the police. The cop wearing your clothes was shot. So was your husband. They’re both dead.”

  I sagged to my knees. “No,” I whimpered.

  “Yes. You’re a widow now. Maybe a rich one, yes? I’ll let you live, Temptress. You might be my cash cow. But first, you owe me and my men some pleasure for all the trouble you’ve caused.”

  “Go to hell.” I spat on his boots.

  His fist came out of nowhere, knocking me to the cold concrete. Blood filled my mouth.

  “Watch your mouth, Temptress.” He clapped. “We have an initiate who needs breaking in. Who’s ready to help tenderize this fresh, delicate, scared piece of meat?” He nudged me with his boot as his minions cheered.

  God, I cried, knowing He was the only one who could help me now, give me wings to fly away.

  65

  Lincoln

  Gramps’s watch showed we’d been wandering these tunnels for twenty minutes. Would my wife be alive by the time we found her?

  “Do you think she’ll be okay?” I asked my brooding partner. I needed him to tell me Duke wouldn’t touch her. That he wouldn’t violate her or kill her. But Angel had said in jail that his uncle had raped Saemira as a child. He would definitely hurt her again if we didn’t find her.

  What if we were already too late?

  “I don’t know,” Angel said.

  “She’ll be okay,” I said.

  “She’ll be okay,” Angel repeated, but I could tell neither of us felt reassured.

  Please, God, let us find her in time. I hadn’t stopped praying since I’d gotten Gramps’s call that my wife had been taken.

  Angel turned off his light. I felt my way toward where I’d seen him last.

  “What is it?” I whispered.

  “Light up ahead. See the glow?”

  I squinted but couldn’t see anything.

  “No light from here on out. Try not to bump into something and give us away.”

  Minutes ticked by as we maneuvered into a huge cavern with boxes and crates stacked around the walls. A group of men stood in the center of the room, cheering and howling. They circled something, or someone, and didn’t notice us creep inside and hide behind the boxes.

  Please, don’t let the thing they’re circling be my wife.

  “Who wants to go next?” the leader yelled. He had a large hoop earring in one ear and a cruel face. Angel’s uncle?

  The circle opened slightly, and every muscle in my body spasmed as I caught a glimpse of Saemira on the ground, blood smeared around her mouth.

  “Let me at her,” said a sinewy man.

  “No, me!” another said, beating his chest. “A real man.”

  The leader motioned to the burly guy. “You have a minute.”

  The thug pumped his fist in the air and raced up to Saemira. He yanked her to her feet and tried to kiss her. She spat in his face.

  I willed her to hang on until we could help her.

  He growled and ripped her blouse down the middle, sending buttons flying and making her wince. Thankfully, she had a tanktop underneath. I moved forward to protect her, but Angel yanked me down.

  “There’s too many,” he said under his breath. “Stay here. I’ll distract them.” He shimmied behind another pile of boxes.

  The thug held onto a flailing Gemma, smashing his face into hers, then rearing back.

  “She bit me!” he roared.

  The leader laughed and motioned to the smaller man. “Maybe you can do better.” Duke stared at his watch as the others chanted like fiends from hell.

  The sinewy guy chased my wife around the circle and tackled her to the ground. My eyes stung as I watched the monster grope her.

  Where are you, Angel?

  My hands fisted as I prepared to run to her rescue. I couldn’t sit here and watch my wife get ravaged.

  “Time,” the leader said.

  The smaller man cursed. Saemira had a wild look in her eyes as she faced the next guy who came at her. She was a goddess surrounded by devils, refusing to break.

  But I was ready to shatter.

  66

  Angel

  Three, two, one. I took a deep breath and stepped out from my hiding spot, stumbling toward the group of former coworkers.

  “Hey,” I said, acting drunk. I recognized Slade, Tito, Boxer, and Ringer. I didn’t know the other two. “You started the party without me.”

  Duke pushed out of the circle, a murderous expression on his face. “Should’ve guessed you’d come for your whore. Just like your pathetic mother, trying to save a lost cause.”

  I froze, and he laughed.

  “Didn’t know your mama tried to save you, did you? She owed me money and couldn’t pay. I took you down to the river to teach her a lesson about priorities. She begged for your life, willing to give me anything in trade. So, I took the whore right there as you squealed in the mud, like the pig you are.”

  The others hooted. Saemira tried to pound her fist into Slade’s manhood, but she missed, and he wrestled her to the ground.

  Hold on, Gem. I didn’t know what to do besides keep Duke talking. There were seven of them, and only Lincoln and me. We couldn’t win this fight. But by the gods, maybe I could kill Duke for raping my mama. For raping my friend.

  “I drowned her to the sound of your squealing.” Duke smiled as words choked in my throat. “I should’ve drowned you, too, but I hoped you might grow up to be of use to me.” He pulled out his gun and cocked it. “I was wrong.”

  “You-you killed her?” I shuddered, realizing everything he’d told me my entire life had been lies. He wasn’t my uncle. He was my mama’s murderer. My mama had been good. She’d tried to save me. She’d loved me.

  “Yes, Bengalo. And now, I’m going to kill you, as I should’ve back then.” He raised the gun.

  “No!” Saemira screamed from where Slade had her pinned to the ground.

  Duke laughed. “After I kill you, I’ll have my way with your Temptress. Again. And again. And again. Until she doesn’t please me. Then I’ll kill her, too.”

  Saemira cried and fought to escape. I wished I could hold her one last time, tell her I was sorry for failing her.

  The lever of the gun clicked.


  This was it. Duke would win, as he always had. The gun discharged, but something heavy hurtled into me, knocking me to the ground and crushing the breath out of me.

  Chaos erupted as men grunted and yelled. Duke shouted. Saemira screamed again.

  I lifted my head to see who was on top of me. My eyes bulged when I saw Lincoln. He’d pushed me to the ground. Saved me.

  And he was bleeding!

  By the gods, he’d taken Duke’s bullet, the one meant for me.

  67

  Saemira

  Jabbing back with my elbow, I connected with my captor’s sensitive region and heard a groan. I rolled over, ready to fight all seven men to get to my husband, who wasn’t dead as Duke had told me. My husband who’d just been shot and might still die.

  That couldn’t happen.

  I scrambled to my feet and sprinted toward Lincoln, but Duke grabbed me before I could reach him.

  “Don’t be rash, Temptress.” He brought the muzzle of the gun to my temple.

  I watched helplessly as my husband kept bleeding.

  “Leave her alone!” Engjell rolled out from under Lincoln’s body and climbed to his feet. “Fight me.” He hit his chest. “Best man gets to keep her.”

  The others prowled around, preparing to take him from behind.

  Duke waved them away. “Step back. Bengalo’s mine. And the girl.”

  He held me in a hold Engjell had taught me how to break as a child. If I relaxed my arms and stepped back into him, I’d be able to free myself. But the gun made me hesitate. He could shoot me. Or my friend. I glanced over at my bleeding husband.

  Angel’s hand shot forward, releasing rice. Duke raised both hands to protect his face, and I kicked back with my foot to connect with his crotch. He crumpled to the ground with a shriek. Angel launched himself on top of Duke, bringing his hands behind his back. I stepped on Duke’s face, crushing his cheek into the ground as I retrieved the gun.