Queen of Quarantine

by Caroline Peckham

  "What was it you called that vest when Saint insisted you wear it?" Monroe asked, giving me a look that said 'you would have been dead, idiot' as we headed towards the stairwell.

  "A coward's cheat sheet to get out of death," I replied, shrugging as I refused to backtrack on that opinion. "But if I have to cheat death to make it to my girl then fine."

  “You’re insane,” Blake muttered.

  "We will be discussing your lack of care for your own mortality in further detail once we get our girl back," Saint snapped as he abandoned the computer hacking shit to join us, drawing his own gun. "But as of right now, we need to focus on getting to the top floor."

  I shoved the door to the stairs open but flinched back as bullets rained down from above, cursing as the four of us were forced to back up into the reception again. Who knew how many assholes were headed our way? I cursed at the idea of a shootout. Not that I didn’t enjoy blowing people’s brains out, but we didn’t need to be wasting time on these motherfuckers.

  The dead guard's radio suddenly crackled to life and I glanced towards him as words came over it that set dread pooling in my gut.

  "Chopper inbound, prepare for evac."

  "Fuck!" I roared, shoving the huge desk across the room to block off the stairs and looking around.

  "We have to get up there before they get her on that helicopter," Saint snarled. "My father won't be this sloppy again. We won't get another chance."

  We all looked to the staircase where the sound of the approaching guards was getting loud enough to let us know we were almost out of time. We could fight our way through them, but could we do it before the chopper got here?

  "There's gotta be a maintenance ladder in the elevator shaft," Monroe said, turning and running across the room to force the doors open.

  "I'll hold them off," I said firmly as he and Blake managed to yank the doors wide. "We can't have them taking pot shots at us on that ladder."

  My brothers all looked to me with concern in their eyes and a silent communication spilled between us. We were all equally desperate to get to our girl, but this plan could only work if we were smart about it and played the best game possible. So long as one of us made it to her, that was all that counted.

  "I'll stay too," Blake agreed.

  “Be careful.” Monroe clapped us both on the shoulders before heading into the elevator and climbing up to force the maintenance hatch open.

  "Don't get yourselves killed," Saint growled in a command that brokered no negotiation.

  "Yeah, yeah, we love you too, you fucking psycho," I teased.

  I grabbed an assault rifle from the body of one of the guards I'd already finished off and the door to the stairwell began to rattle as the guards beyond it started trying to batter it down.

  In the next breath, Saint was gone, climbing up into the dark elevator shaft behind Monroe, and Blake and I raised our guns. He tossed a couple more pink smoke grenades to fill the rest of the room as we readied to fight for our damn lives.

  "For her," he said in a fierce voice and I smiled the only true smile that had crossed my lips since she’d been taken. Because this might be a form of insanity and I could be looking my death in the eyes right now, but so long as it was in aid of that girl, I knew that I’d die with this smile on my face. Though I was seriously hoping it wouldn’t come to that and I’d have her in my arms before the night was up. Either way, I was all in and I knew the others were too.

  "For her."

  I was wheeled outside onto the roof and the cold night air swirled around us as the crescent moon smiled a crooked smile at me.

  I was working on my right leg which felt the loosest of all my limbs, trying to tug it free of the binds even though it wouldn’t do me much good. But I wasn’t just going to lay down and accept this fate. The Night Keepers were so close. They had to make it to me. Maybe I could buy them a little extra time if nothing else.

  “Where the fuck is it?” Jonas barked and I craned my neck to see that the helipad was empty.

  Hope sparked in me like fireworks and I screamed once more, the sound echoing everywhere. They had to hear me. They couldn’t be far behind now. My skin prickled like I could actually feel them drawing closer and I was certain that if I could buy us even a few more seconds that would be all it took for them to reach me.

  “Would someone shut her up?” the doctor snapped, but the guards seemed reluctant to touch me despite the masks covering their faces.

  One of them lifted their handgun, aiming it at my forehead.

  “Quiet,” he growled, but as terrifying as that dark barrel was, I knew my death didn’t await me in it.

  They weren’t going to kill me when they were taking so many measures to get me the hell out of here. So I screamed louder and cried my Night Keepers’ names into the wind, praying it would carry my voice to their ears.

  “For fuck’s sake.” A fist cracked against my face and my lip busted as Jonas stood over me, blocking out the light of the moon, his shoulders rising and falling as he glowered at me. My head rang and blood wet my mouth as I glared up at this asshole, silently promising him an agonising death. “Quiet.”

  The thumping sound of a helicopter approaching somewhere off in the sky reached us and Jonas gripped my throat to keep me from screaming again, squeezing tight enough to make my ears pop.

  The world grew loud as the helicopter circled overhead and came down to land on the helipad, the wind whipping wildly around us and blowing my hair across my face so that it was hard for me to see what the people surrounding me were doing.

  I continued to jerk my leg back and forth to try and get it free, my heart rioting in my chest as time seemed to move too fast. They weren’t here. Why weren’t they here? Had something happened to them? Were they in trouble right now, needing me just as much as I needed them? I’d never felt so fucking helpless as I did right now, strapped to this goddamn bed and immobilised by the weakness in my body just as much as the men surrounding me. I was a goddamn fighter and I needed to fight. I refused to give up, no matter how hopeless it might have seemed.

  Jonas released my throat as he wheeled me toward the helicopter, one of the guards yanking the door open as I was rolled beneath the propellers.

  I screamed once more, but the sound of the helicopter stole my voice away and panic ripped through my core. I’m running out of time.

  The guards collapsed the legs of the hospital gurney so it flattened down beneath me then they lifted me into the back of the helicopter while my heart raced with panic and I thrashed uselessly against my bonds. They all poured in after me and fear spilled through my chest like a vat of poison tipping over.

  “Saint!” I screamed. “Nash! Kyan – Blake!” Desperation built in my soul, in every fibre of my flesh.

  “What are we waiting for, go!” Jonas snapped, wheeling around to glare at the pilot.

  “There’s a team coming with the vaccines,” the doctor explained sharply. “We can’t leave without them.”

  I twisted my head to try and see back across the roof and the door flew open a beat later, making my heart stutter with my final hope.

  But it wasn’t my men. Three nurses ran toward us in hazmat suits carrying a large metal box between them.

  They started climbing into the helicopter, securing the box of vaccines beside me and I was engulfed by panic. The Night Keepers hadn’t made it to me in time. It was too late. My enemies were taking me. And I knew the moment the helicopter took off from this building, I’d never see my boys again. Troy Memphis would put me somewhere I’d never be found in a million years. Even after his work was done, I knew he’d never let me go. If the Hades Virus didn’t kill me, my usefulness would expire eventually and he’d have to tie off all the loose ends. My truth could never get out, so he’d ensure it died with me.

  I raced up the last stairs with Saint right on my heels as we headed for the roof exit, the sound of the helicopter making my heart seize in my chest as I threw the door open with a heavy bang
.

  The wind tore around us as the helicopter began to take off and I spotted Tatum onboard it, strapped to a hospital gurney, her lips moving like she was screaming something though the roar of the engine stole her words from me.

  “Tatum!” I bellowed in reply, answering her call and promising her I wouldn’t let them take her with that one word alone.

  I sprinted forward, running as fast as my years of training allowed, my muscles burning and pumping as I roared her name.

  The guards onboard the helicopter began firing at us and I wasn't sure if it was through some miracle or divine intervention that I didn't feel the rip of metal tearing through my flesh.

  A flash of motion shot past the corner of my eye and a plume of pink smoke spiralled through the air from the smoke grenade Saint had just thrown at them.

  His aim was true and the grenade landed in the midst of the guards on the aircraft, rolling beneath their seats as they all yelled out in alarm.

  They stopped firing at us as they fought to get their hands on the grenade that had quickly filled the entire helicopter with pink smoke, and it stopped rising as the pilot was momentarily blinded.

  I exchanged a look with Saint and for once there wasn't an ounce of animosity between us. I could only see the burning, desperate desire in him to return our girl to safety and we agreed on that sentiment so wholeheartedly that we were bound as one in that moment. No words needed to pass between us, no bullshit, no communication of any kind. Because we both knew that if that helicopter left here with our girl onboard, we would forever be cast into damnation for it.

  This was our one shot and we wouldn’t fuck it up.

  We didn't slow a beat as we raced towards the helicopter which was now hovering about eight foot above the rooftop and starting to rise again.

  The smoke grenade was tossed out over my head and I could see our opportunity sliding through our fingers as we both leapt up beneath the belly of the mechanical beast at the same moment.

  My hands gripped the landing skid and I grunted with the effort of heaving myself higher as the helicopter lurched to one side thanks to our weight hanging from it.

  I cursed as the thing shot skywards, the rooftop disappearing beneath us as we sped higher. Saint and I hung from the skid with nothing more than the strength of our arms and the power of our bond to the girl they held captive to keep us there.

  I managed to swing my leg up and over the landing skid, hanging like a sloth from a tree as I tried to figure out how the fuck I was going to make my way up into the aircraft without getting my brains blown out.

  Saint made it into a similar position to mine and caught my eye as he pulled another smoke grenade from the clip on his belt and I nodded once, seeing his plan as clear as day.

  He tugged the pin free and reached up, tossing the smoking canister into the helicopter through the open door before they got a chance to close it, causing the guards to yell out in fright.

  I didn't give them time to recover from their shock, grasping the edge of the open door above me and heaving myself up and into the helicopter, making sure I didn't look down at the fall below us for a single second.

  A gun was levelled at my head the moment I stood and Tatum's alarmed scream sounded through the haze of pink smoke just as I managed to knock the pistol aside before the guard could fire. The loud bang made my ears ring as his bullet sailed out through the open door into the nothing beyond and my heart leapt as I wrestled with him before he could fire again.

  I wrapped my arms around him and whirled him around using brute strength, launching him out of the open door behind me before he even got the chance to try and fight me off. He fell with a scream that was drowned out by the roar of the propellors overhead and I forgot about him before he even hit the ground.

  I dove at the other three guards who were little more than shadows in the pink smoke as the helicopter tipped sideways and Tatum yelled my name, like even in the murky depths of the smoke she could recognise me.

  "We've got you, princess," I promised her just as a heavy fist found my jaw and I was knocked sideways by the force of it.

  It was too smoky to be sure who was who within the confines of the belly of the helicopter, but seeing as I was happy to kill each and every one of them, that wasn't much of a problem for me.

  I wrenched a knife from my belt, driving it into the chest of one of the guards as he lurched at me then lunged for another before he’d even fallen back into his chair. But just as I swung towards him, the helicopter dipped dramatically and I lost my footing, falling backwards towards the open door with my heart leaping as I dropped my knife and tried to grab anything at all to stop my fall.

  My gut plummeted as I fell out of the door, but before I could fall to my death, a hand caught mine in a firm grasp and my gaze lifted from the churning propellors to meet Saint Memphis's cool, dark eyes.

  The smoke grenade tumbled over my feet and twirled away into the darkness of the city below as the helicopter lurched the other way again.

  "Watch yourself, brother," Saint growled like me almost dying had been a major inconvenience to him as he hauled me back into the belly of the aircraft.

  I shoved him aside as one of the guards lunged at him, catching a fist to the jaw for my troubles before I was knocked from my feet and fell hard on my back with the asshole on top of me.

  I fought like a demon, using every last drop of power in my limbs as I punched and punched as hard as I fucking could, feeling bone break as my opponent tried to pin me down beneath him.

  Three gunshots went off in quick succession and Tatum's scream made my blood run cold as I failed to see anything beyond the beast of a man on top of me.

  With a snarl of determination, I managed to get my knees up between us and I kicked out as hard as I could. The guard screamed as he was launched right out of the open door and I swiped blood from my face with the back of my hand as I got to my knees.

  "Easy now," warned the asshole we'd been tailing earlier to find the lab, glaring at us from his position beside Tatum where he had a knife pressed to her throat.

  Tatum's big blue eyes were wild and furious, not a drop of fear in them, just that burning determination to live which I loved so fucking much.

  "I can put a bullet between your eyes before you spill so much as a drop of her blood," Saint threatened, his pistol aimed directly at Jonas as he stood facing off against him.

  But the fact that he hadn't taken that shot told me he wasn't certain of that at all.

  I rose to my feet slowly and Jonas's tongue darted out to moisten the corner of his lips as he looked between the two of us.

  "What's going on back there?" the pilot called in fear and Jonas almost glanced his way before realising that was a bad fucking idea.

  The last guard and the doctor were lying dead on the floor in growing pools of blood from Saint's shots and the two nurses were crying and cowering in the far corner, clearly hoping to avoid our attention.

  "It's under control," Jonas barked at the pilot as the helicopter continued its route to fuck knew where.

  "Is it?" I asked, tilting my head to one side and he tightened his grip in Tatum's hair, making her curse as she scrambled against his hold, a drop of blood spilling along the blade he held. He’d die for that. And I’d make sure it really hurt.

  "Toss your guns out," Jonas snapped, raising his chin like he thought he was the man.

  My lip peeled back as I did just that, the two pistols on my belt sailing away into the city below. Saint tossed his gun out a beat later and Jonas nodded eagerly.

  "Knives too," Jonas added and our blades were quickly tossed out of the helicopter as well, neither of us willing to risk Tatum over a damn weapon. "Now, hold your wrists out."

  I bristled as I did what he said and he gingerly reached out to the dead guard closest to him who was slumped in his chair, pulling a pair of thick zip ties from the corpse's pocket and tossing them towards us. He never once took the knife from Tatum's throat, keeping it
in place with his other hand.

  "Secure your wrists," Jonas snapped, getting cocky now and I was really looking forward to wiping that smug look off of his smarmy face.

  We both did as commanded and I used my teeth to pull the zip tie tight around my wrists, though not so tight that I wouldn't be able to escape the hold they had on me. Jonas seemed to realise that and hesitantly moved around the bed, taking the knife from Tatum's throat and pointing it at me as he reached out to yank the zip tie tighter.

  He stepped forward to do the same to Saint, but just as he did, Tatum managed to yank her leg free of her restraints and aimed a harsh kick at his back.

  Jonas swore, stumbling forward and Saint threw his forehead down onto the bridge of his nose, making him shriek in agony as it shattered and blood spilled.

  I charged at him like a raging bull, head down and shoulder catching him straight in the gut, knocking him down beneath me where I fell on him, slamming my bound hands into his face as hard as I could.

  The keen sting of his blade swiping across my side sliced into me, but I just bellowed my rage as I hit him again and again.

  Saint's heavy boot slammed down on Jonas's hand, immobilising the blade and grinding his fingers beneath his heel as blood poured from Jonas’s face beneath me while he screamed.

  I didn't stop hitting, striking him again and again as Tatum yelled encouragement, giving me all the motivation I needed to understand that this motherfucker had done something terrible to her.

  Jonas fell still beneath me and Saint dragged me back, the knife now in his hand as he swiftly cut through the zip tie binding my wrists and freed me.

  Jonas groaned in agony as he came to and I hauled him to his feet before shoving him towards the open door and the terrifying drop below.

  "Nash," Tatum gasped and I glanced over at her where she remained strapped to the hospital gurney. For a moment I thought she might have been about to tell me to spare him, but of course she didn't. She wasn't some frightened girl, scared to kill those who hurt her. She was a queen, and she wanted to command her knight into action. "Make it hurt," she snarled.