“Old times?” Mrs. LaMotte crossed her arms and her manicured eyebrows slanted in strong disapproval. “John has snuck in here before?”
I shrugged my shoulders in response. It didn’t matter how I explained my relationship with John, both Mrs. LaMotte and Kian would get the wrong idea. He was my one of my best friends and I could always rely on him to make me smile.
What would John think of Kian? I hadn’t told John much about him. Other than that he was a hot guy who had spilled my family’s dark secrets to me in a deserted mall hallway. Would he be overprotective like Michael? I didn’t think so, but John sometimes had a scary side when he was mad. I had only seen it once, a month after Liam died. He attacked three norms who cornered and taunted me. John hospitalized those boys with nothing but his natural brute strength.
A soft knock tore me from my thoughts.
“Come in.”
John stepped into the room and froze with the door still ajar. He swung his restless gaze across the room, stopping for a moment on Kian and then Mrs. LaMotte. He looked as if he wanted to bolt.
“What’s all this?” John looked at me. Hurt and anger filled his voice as he straightened his back.
“Shut the door and come here.” I patted the spot next to me on my bed. “It’s not what you think.”
John pulled the door shut with a soft click and shuffled his way over to me. Halfway to my bed he noticed the man knocked out and tied to Rebecca’s bed. He returned his gaze to me and raised one eyebrow.
“Looks like there was a party.” He jumped into my bed, lying back onto my pillow with both hands resting behind his head. His legs were draped over my lap. I rolled my eyes at his posturing. He was trying to prove how comfortable he was, but I could see the nerve below his left eye ticking and that he was clenching and releasing his jaw. John was uncomfortable.
“I should be offended that I wasn’t invited.”
“There’s a lot to tell.” I placed my hand on his shin and squeezed to get his attention locked on me. “I need your help.”
“Spill it, but first… why do you have an unconscious man strapped to Rebecca’s bed? Does it have anything to do with the dead guy outside and the rest of the staff freaking out downstairs?”
“Yes.”
I filled John in with the details on the break in. John exploded out of his supine position, spine rigid and jaw clenched tight, when I detailed my fight with the man who was now ornamenting our garden. He high fived me when I told him of my discovery of the tied up man’s Talent. When it was over, he pulled me in for a side embrace, hugging me close and tickling my waist with his fingers. My head rested on his shoulder and the fatigue of the night began to settle in.
“So that explains the guy who’s in need of a nose job. Who’s Mr. Broody by the window?”
Kian turned around and glared at John’s arm wrapped snugly around my waist. “I’m Kian.”
John turned to look at me and the humor danced behind his eyes. My lips pursed and I pleaded with my eyes for him to not say a word, but John was never one to listen.
“So you’re the stalker.”
Kian met John’s glare and the two had a silent staring contest.
“Give it up you two,” Madison yelled in exasperation, as Rebecca began rolling in her bed laughing. I didn’t see what was so funny about this situation at all, but her high pitched laugh was contagious. Soon I began to chuckle, which started a chain reaction including Madison and John. I fell back and held my sides as I joined Rebecca in a boisterous laugh of my own.
The four of us had been best friends forever, and we knew each other better than anyone else in the world. We laughed because this whole situation was ridiculous. We laughed because we were stressed to our limits. But mostly we laughed because deep down we knew we were going to be separated for the first time in our lives, and there was no telling when we’d see each other again.
“Had enough?” Mrs. LaMotte asked with a checked smile. She understood as well and enjoyed seeing the four of us use these last moments in joy instead of sadness.
“Yes,” I sighed, wiping the tears from my eyes. “Let me pack a few things before we meet Michael.”
“You haven’t explained to me how we are getting out undetected,” Kian spoke up, forgotten in our little descent into madness.
“Oh right.” I hopped up and began stuffing items into my backpack. “John is a light manipulator and a damn good one.” John jerked his head up at the compliment and I gave him a wink. Blush tinted his neck and ears as he nodded at me. Despite his cockiness, John never was good at accepting compliments.
“He will be able to bend the light to render us practically invisible. He’s the best at Saint Vincent’s and in class he has been able to hide three people for up to an hour.”
“What about the rest of us?” Rebecca pouted.
“You and Madison will be staying here with me.” Mrs. LaMotte straightened her blouse as her phone began trilling. She looked at the ID and stepped into the hallway.
“I don’t feel comfortable with you running off with him,” Madison nodded in Kian’s direction. “We hardly know him.”
“I think Mrs. LaMotte’s right. Tonight is a prime example of how just being around me is dangerous. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt. Plus, John will be with me until we meet Michael, and I know you trust him.”
Madison nodded her head and glared at the wall. The temperature in the room rose a few degrees as she suppressed her anger. I had stepped into the adjoined bathroom to pack a few toiletries when Mrs. LaMotte returned.
“Sadie.”
“Yes?” I replied walking back into my room, looking around to see if I might have forgotten anything.
“The Moreau family council will be here any moment to collect the body and to question our captive. You need to be gone before they arrive.”
Kian and John both stood up and walked toward the door without a word, keeping their distance as if the other were infected with a deadly virus.
Rebecca jumped up, pulling Madison and me into a tight hug with her momentum. My arms wound around both girls’ waists and I felt the sweetness of Rebecca’s Talent and the heat from Madison’s leak into my lower back. With great care and restraint, I released a small vein of my Talent into my friends and for a moment we were one, our Talents flowing between the three of us, connecting me to my best friends on a primal level.
We broke away and I felt better about our separation. Even though it was going to suck being apart from the people I loved, I could rest knowing they would be safe here with me gone.
Mrs. LaMotte met me at the door and placed her hand on my arm in a motherly gesture. “Contact me if you need anything. I will be there.”
Her sincerity touched a lonely place in my heart - the part that ached for a mother. Mrs. LaMotte had never been a warm person, but she had always been there for me. I nodded in response because I was sure I’d cry if I tried to speak.
The three of us melted into the shadows as John’s Talent cocooned us in a bubble of warmth. We silently made our way to the meeting place. John’s Talent hid us in plain sight, but would not disguise our voices if we spoke. Those around us would hear disembodied voices.
Thirty minutes into our walk, sweat from the humid evening was pouring down my back. Summer nights in the south were not exempt from the heat, and I suffered more with each step we took. We arrived at the meeting place rather quick due to our hurried pace and found ourselves in an industrial district, looking up at an abandoned warehouse. Graffiti decorated the rusted metal exterior and the high windows were still intact, which was peculiar for a deserted building. The door was pulled ajar, but not enough that we could squeeze in without alerting someone watching the door.
Kian leaned in and whispered, “We have to open the door to get in. I don’t think anyone has followed us, but I’d like to be careful.” He turned to John, who was beginning to show the signs of stress from using his Talent without a break. “Can you hold the two of u
s until we get inside and have enough stamina to get yourself home undetected?”
John nodded. Hiding his own genetic signature was easy and something he could keep up for days if needed.
“I’ll go in first. Stay right behind me, Sadie, but keep an eye on the perimeter for anyone hiding.”
I nodded and we prepared ourselves to enter the building. John reached out his hand, caressing my cheek. I placed my hand on his and leaned into the gesture. His hands were cold from exertion. We held each other’s gaze, letting our eyes express what we couldn’t voice. The squeaky hinge pulled my attention from John to Kian.
Kian disappeared within the building and I turned to scan the horizon. Nothing seemed out of place, so I nodded once to John, blew him a kiss, and stepped through the door.
Darkness pressed down on me as the door closed with an eerie click behind us, encasing us in an inky blackness. I could barely make out Kian’s frame less than one foot in front of me, and I reached out to grab hold of his shirt before he disappeared from sight. At my touch, he turned to give me a hopeful grin before we stepped deeper into the warehouse.
“Stop right there!” a voice shouted from above. I strained my neck to see who the voice belonged to, but there was no one.
“State your name.” Another voice. This time hiding in the shadows before us.
“Sadie,” I said, as I stepped around Kian, who proceeded to cross his arms across his chest, flexing his muscles and sneering into the blackness in attempt to intimidate. While I tried for the opposite approach and opened my arms outward, attempting to present myself without hostility to whoever was guarding the warehouse. “This is Kian. Michael sent us.”
Whispering filled the darkness before a loud click, and then I averted my eyes as blinding flood lights filled the room.
“Sadie!” Michael’s voice boomed above the voices, and I jolted my head up trying to locate him. He was running to me with Lacy close on his heels. Without thinking, my feet were moving toward them and we collided in a tangle of arms.
“Tell me. What happened?” Michael asked, as he looked over my face appraisingly. He took note of the few bruises from my fight earlier and wrenched his gaze accusingly at Kian.
Kian ignored Michael and lumbered across the room to a group of men in military attire.
“It’s a long story, but the short version is that I was attacked at the orphanage. We don’t know for sure, but we think they’re men sent from my grandfather. I killed one of the men by accident, in self-defense, and the other will be taken into custody by the Moreau family council for questioning. Kian showed up after the fact and explained your involvement with this underground.”
I slapped his chest in mock anger and he chuckled in response. “I’m annoyed you never told me, but I get it.”
“Oh Sadie! I’m so glad you are safe,” Lacy sighed. “When Michael received that text we didn’t know what was going on, but ever since you told us about your grandfather, we have been preparing, in case you need us.”
“Is this the underground location?” I asked, looking around the empty warehouse, feeling a little underwhelmed.
Michael’s boisterous laugh echoed throughout the open space. “No. This is just one of many places we use to meet with those who seek help. We will stay for the night to make sure you weren’t followed before taking you to the underground.”
“Are you hungry, Miss?” A young norm boy with creamy brown skin and dark brown eyes with matching curly hair approached me with a bag of dried meat and bread. I nodded and accepted his offering.
“What is your name?”
“Robert, but everyone calls me Bobby,” he said and shrugged.
“Thank you, Bobby.”
He ran his fingers through his short hair. “No problem, miss.”
“How old are you? Shouldn’t you be at home?” I asked, curious why a young boy would be involved with the underground.
“I’m 11!” Bobby stood proud, his shoulders pulled back. “When my momma died, I had nowhere to go, so I was put in the system. Two of my foster fathers beat me before I wised up and ran away. The HCA took me in and gave me a family. My life would be worse without them.”
“I’m sorry.” I placed my hand on his arm and his eyes widened in shock.
“I’ll get you a bottle of water.” He leaped into action, feet hammering on concrete floor as he made his way to the back of the warehouse.
“He likes you,” Lacy joked.
The interior of the warehouse was just as desolate as the exterior. Above us hung metal platforms that had seen better days. I was shocked to see men and women patrolling on them as if they weren’t terrified of falling to their deaths through the rusted metal. The thought made my entire body shudder. It was obvious the warehouse was made for storage, and when the owners abandoned the structure, they left mounds of crates stacked throughout the room. I couldn’t see any rhyme or reason in the layout, but it there were recognizable pathways through the mayhem.
Kian approached our group and placed his arm on the small of my back, stepping in close to me. Michael’s gaze narrowed on Kian’s hand before looking to see if I was okay with it. I shrugged my shoulders and smiled before taking a large bite of jerky. Michael visibly relaxed. Somewhat. For a moment, I wondered if Michael would ever approve of Kian.
“Captain Monroe informed me we would be staying the night. Although we were shielded on our walk over here, I am uncomfortable staying here. Koenig’s men have been anticipating Sadie’s movements. They could have a man who has enhanced senses.”
“This warehouse is secure. We have done this thousands of times and always protect our marks,” Lacy replied. I took her in for the first time. Her long hair was neatly combed and tied into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. She wore black cargo pants with a white t-shirt and a pair of black combat boots. Everything about her screamed badass, and it warred with the vivacious version of Lacy that I knew.
“Let me show you to the sleeping area. You look exhausted.” She twined her arm with mine and gave me a brilliant smile. My heart sighed in relief. Although she looked different, deep down she was still my friend.
We had walked no more than five steps before an explosion rang throughout the warehouse, bringing me to my knees. My ears rang and the world tilted. Lacy and Michael were standing before me screaming something before taking off, battling their way through the melee to the cloud of smoke and dirt billowing from where the door used to be.
Hands snaked their way under my arms and jerked me to standing as Kian pulled at me, urging me to move to the back of the warehouse. With each heartbeat ringing in my ears, the sounds of the battle around us emerged. Shots fired and I heard the pings of the bullets hitting the metal beams around us. I spun around in desperation. Where were Lacy and Michael?
Kian pulled me back against his chest. “You can’t go up there.”
I hadn’t realized I was walking into the chaos. “We can help!” I screamed, trying to jerk from his firm hold.
“Not this time, Sadie. Everyone is fighting for your safety. Don’t make it harder for them.” He again pulled me toward the back of the warehouse. My heart wanted to fight alongside the HCA, but I knew Kian was right. I needed the underground to hide me so I could figure out what to do next.
I felt like such a coward and shame heated my cheeks, but I ran as hard as I could away from the fighting. Bullets whizzed past my head and I began to zigzag, hoping to dodge them.
Kian’s feet skidded on the concrete as he turned headlong behind a large stack of crates. I followed without reservation, but slower so I wouldn’t slide on my ass while bullets rained around us. He was skirting the perimeter to return to the front of the warehouse.
“We’re heading back?” I asked, chest heaving while I sucked down gulps of muggy air.
“There are men coming through the back entrance. The guards gave me a run-down of the layout. There is another exit ahead.”
I nodded and increased my speed. Kian was almos
t to the door when out of the corner of my eyes I saw Bobby’s small lifeless body collapsed on the floor. Blood was pouring out of a wound in his temple in a gory halo. His little hand clutched a bottle of water. My vision narrowed on his pale lips. Sound disappeared as tears threatened to fall. Turbulence filled my chest and I screamed.
Chapter 15
All I could see was the violence around me. My gaze locked with the chain man who was watching me with his head tilted to one side, eyes narrowed to thin slits.
“You,” I whispered. Power exploded from inside me and my Talent filled every inch of my body. In my peripheral vision, I saw Kian reach out to me. “Don’t touch me,” I growled, and began forcing deep breaths, pushing my Talent back into the depths.
The chain man laughed in amusement. “Little girl. I hear you have a sting to your bite.” He paused, and his gaze traveled from head to toe with unnerving thoroughness, lingering on my feminine assets with a leer. His visual assault made my stomach turn. When he dragged his impassioned gaze to my face, I wanted nothing more than to vomit, but I kept my glare locked on his. He wouldn’t intimidate me that easily.
“Come on now, little girl. We won’t hurt you, if you come without a fight. Your grandfather just wants to meet his long lost granddaughter.” He reached his hand out to me and took a few steps my way before he stopped short, his angry gaze anchored on Kian. As soon I felt Kian’s hand grasp mine, the strong vibrations of his Talent began to flow through our connected hands, his strength swept throughout my body.
The warmth of Kian flowed through me. In that moment he couldn’t have known that I was barely in control of my Talent and that he risked his life to touch me. My free hand found the pendant between my breasts and held on tight as I took in Kian’s strong profile. Something blossomed in my chest as I examined him. His strong jaw was clenched in determination, nostrils flaring with each measured inhalation, and his attention was fixated on the chain man.
“Who are you?” I returned my gaze to the chain man. He cocked his head to the side, with one hand casually rubbing his chin in thoughtfulness and the other tucked across his ribcage, fiddling with one of the chains draped across his massive chest.
The Caelian Cycle Boxed Set Page 12