Concerned, Brea and Shawn followed.
…Alec…
Alec was behind Caslan. The building was dark and looked abandoned. “Are you sure this is where they have them, Caslan?”
“I’m sure,” Caslan replied.
Alec looked behind him. He had six guards with him. The others were surrounding the building looking for different points of entry. Caslan glanced back at him and pointed at the doors ahead. Alec didn’t trust Caslan, but he needed him right this second. Then he felt it. Ava. Something was wrong. He stopped walking and held up his hand, signaling the guards behind him to stop. He closed his eyes and felt her. Fear, then anger, intense anger.
“What are you doing?”
“I have to go back.” Alec shook away the images of Emberlee that darted through Ava’s mind. First, it was her first cry. Then him holding her, then her cradle. Empty. Shawn’s voice. “They took her. She’s got off the island somehow.”
“Back to the island?” Caslan whispered.
The group behind him stayed perfectly still. Alec signaled them to move ahead. He grabbed Damien, one of the eldest guards in the group. “You’ll have to take over. Something’s wrong with Ava. Something’s happened.”
“You can’t go back! We have to hurry before they move the women,” Caslan hissed. “They’re right through those doors.”
“No, I’m going to Ava.”
Bianca came forward, “Alec, what are we doing?”
“I have to go back to the island. Something’s wrong.”
“Let’s just get the women and go, Alec. We’re here now.” Bianca was impatient.
“No.” Alec said, then they grabbed him. The lights went out. It was pitch dark, completely black. He tried to get his bearings. He could hear boots behind him. Then lights. Bright white light. He covered his eyes and blinked rapidly, trying to get them adjusted to the sudden brightness.
“Get on the floor now.” He heard Bianca’s voice in his ear. Then he heard the gun cock against his ear. The cold metal pushed his head to the side. In front of him Caslan stood with a group of others. There was a small blonde girl with him. Alec thought it might be Macy, Brea’s roommate. There were Waevern soldiers behind her. The pieces started to click together in his mind. His heart pounded. He had to get out of here and get to Ava. “Bianca,” he spoke through clenched teeth, “What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m going to kill you, Alec.” She pushed the gun into his temple. “This will be so much fun.” She leaned in and kissed his neck.
Alec jerked away from her.
Caslan smiled at him and folded his arms. “Kill him, Bianca. We have to get moving.”
Alec struggled, trying to figure out what to do.
“You’re such a fool Alec.” Bianca said with a smile. She looked past him. “Hold him.” Alec’s arms were snatched back as Bianca stepped in front of him, her gun pointed at his heart.
“Why?” Alec asked coldly, looking only at her.
“You’re all so predictable, Alec. You really made this way too easy. Bunch of tree-loving suckers. Ava ruined you. You’re so stupid that you can’t see what’s right in front of you. Like Shawn.” She smiled. “Betcha never would have guessed that he’s one of us, always has been. An errand boy who will die just like his pathetic brother. You’re all just pawns in a game.”
Alec looked behind him, realizing it was his own men that held him. He felt an overpowering hate flood though him. Betrayal was not a strong enough word for what he felt slither through him. “All of them?” He said calmly.
“No.” Caslan said. “The others are outside now, wandering around like idiots. There are no other ways to get in. Bianca made sure the lead team would be ours.” Alec stared at him, his hands heating, “Did you take my daughter?”
“No.” Caslan smiled. “Lareina did. She’ll be long gone by now and your wife will be right behind her soon, running to her own sacrifice.”
“What do you want from us?” Alec could feel the guards tightening their grip.
“I already have most of what I want,” Caslan smiled, “and soon I’ll have everything I want. You should thank me for having you killed. You’re about to lose everything; seems to me you’re better off dead.” He looked at Bianca. “Kill him. We have to get to the ceremony.”
Alec pulled free just as she steadied the gun. He lunged forward, knocking her to the floor. Grabbing the gun and jumping to his feet, he seized a surprised Caslan by the throat, slammed him against the wall, and put the gun under his chin.
“No!” A woman screamed.
Alec saw her from the corner of his eye. Macy had jerked an infant from her rail thin arms. The woman was screaming, tears streaming down her pale face. Macy pointed a gun at the baby’s head. “Let Caslan go, or I’ll kill him.” Alec cursed and put his head down for a moment, then he dropped his weapon and raised his hands into the air.
Caslan put his hand to his injured throat and scrambled away. “Shoot him already!” He yelled at Macy.
Alec could do nothing but watch her pull the trigger.
…Brea…
Nisca shook her head, “I found it on your dresser. I went to your room. I thought if I touched the cradle I might be able to pick something up.
“What’s the message?” Brea asked.
“Come to Serinta. Come with one person only and don’t bring the guards. Bring the other four rings. Your life for hers.” Nisca looked at Ava, “Do you remember my dream, Ava? I saw you like that. That’s why they want the rings. They want you to sacrifice yourself. They want to take your magic. They want you to trade your life for Emberlee’s.”
Ava looked up, tears spilling from her eyes. Her blue eyes were smoldering in the moonlight and the storm was getting worse. She looked at Shawn. “Where is Serinta?”
“It’s in New Mexico.”
“Is that even possible?” Brea asked. “That they could take her magic, I mean?”
“Yeah, it’s supposed to be.” Shawn said. He looked at Ava. “There’s a government facility there somewhere. It’s the place those two kids escaped from. Alec and I tried to find it but all we came up with was empty desert. Remember when Alec told you about the studies the government did on weather weapons? Well, their technology is nothing compared to what a child born of the element can do, and they know it. We’ve always suspected that they might be taking more children, and a few years ago we had a few strange weather patterns that were never explained. If they have children born of the element, they don’t need to alter the weather scientifically.”
“They won’t need the children if they have Ava,” Nisca said quietly.
“Take me there,” Ava ordered Shawn.
“Ava, I can’t. It’s a trap. They’re not going to give her back to us.” Shawn stared at her, “Ava, they want you to sacrifice yourself. Even as strong as you are you might not walk out of there. I’m not even sure we could find the place.”
“Shawn. We’re talking about my daughter’s life. I’ll find it.”
“Let me go. I’ll take a team and we’ll find her and bring her home. We’re going to need a lot of manpower just to get her out of there. It’ll be that much harder if we have to worry about you too. I can’t let anything happen to you, Ava.”
“No, Shawn. I’m going and you’re going to take me there. We don’t have time to wait for help and they might hurt her if we show up with an army.” She looked at Brea, “Help me find the last ring.”
…Brea…
Brea followed Ava, barely keeping up. “Caslan said his father had one. I have one. You have two now, the one from the river and the one Nisca found in the arena. That leaves one. Do you know where it is?”
“I have a pretty good idea. Gail told me that Nadia wanted to move the statues because she suspected that a ring might be buried beneath them. We’ll start there.” Ava shot a bolt of lightning at the five statues. Brea screamed as shards flew all around them. Kneeling, Ava sifted through the pieces, cutting her hands as she did s
o. Ava lifted her hands a few inches. Brea watched as droplets of her blood stained the earth. “It’s here, Brea. I can feel it.” Ava placed her palm in the center of the area she had cleared. The ground shook and a hole opened beneath her hand. She grabbed a handful of dirt from the center, stood, and turned around. She opened her hand and showed Brea the ring that rested in her palm, “Let’s go. You will go in with me and Shawn, the others will wait for you a few miles away. Shawn will make sure you and Emberlee get away safely.”
“Ava, please. Just wait for Alec to get back,” Brea pleaded.
“I can’t, Brea. You heard Shawn. You know what they want and what they’ll do if they don’t get it.” She ran towards the dock.
Brea ran after her, “They want you to sacrifice yourself, Ava. Nisca saw it. I can’t help you kill yourself.”
“You have to.” Ava slowed as she reached the dock, “ If that’s what I have to do to get her back that’s what I’ll do.” Ava grabbed her hand, “I need you to come with me. I need you to take her and run. You have to disappear. You might not be able to bring her back here, ever. She’ll never be safe here if something happens to me or Alec.” Ava looked at Shawn, “You have to get them far away. Someplace where no one can find them.”
“I will,” he swore.
Brea looked at him. Shawn was preparing to start the boat.
“Ava what if something really does happen to you?”
“Then you tell Alec I love him.” Ava told her as a tear rolled down her cheek. “If you run far enough and keep her safe, he’ll find you. When he does, it will be safe for her to come home.”
Brea stood in front of her. “Ava you can’t do this to him or Emberlee. I won’t let you run into their trap. They’re trying to bait you. How can you expect me to help them do it?“
“Brea! Alec might not ever come back! They have my baby!” With her eyes flashing like lightning and blue fire dancing around her hands, Ava vowed, “No one can stop me, Brea. Not one single person in this world. I will protect her. They have my child; you have to protect the ones you love. There is no cost that you won’t pay.” Ava lifted her chin and closed her fists, extinguishing the flames. “Until that price is placed on the table, you have no idea what you will pay or how far you will go.” She pointed her finger at her. “Don’t pretend you know this pain, Brea. My life means nothing in comparison to hers!”
Brea felt a tear run down her cheek and over the edge of her jaw. She moved to the side and stood motionless as Ava ran past her. The sky was ominously dark, She had never seen Ava so desperate, nor so angry.
Ava snatched the rope that attached the boat to the dock and jumped in. Knowing that nothing they could say would stop her, Shawn reached up and took Brea’s hand. “Come on, let’s get going.”
Ava didn’t say a word as Brea climbed inside. Her eyes were wide and hollow. Shawn backed the boat from the dock, turned it, and drove it straight into the storm.
…Alec…
Ava’s face. That’s all he saw. He saw it change. He saw her as he’d seen her in the dreams he’d had about her when he was just a boy, he saw her face change as she grew from child to woman. He saw her as she’d been the day he finally went to her, and he saw her as she was now. “She is so beautiful,” he thought as he fell. He felt like he fell endlessly as her life passed before his eyes. The look on her face when she took Emberlee in her arms. The joyful tears in her eyes as she’d looked at him. That moment was the last he saw as he finally landed on his back. His chest burned so bad, he knew any second his life would be over. He felt the blood running down his side and the pain was so intense that his back arched and every muscle in his body hardened. His eyes kept shutting and he struggled to breathe. He would slowly bleed out or they would realize he was alive and end the pain. He didn’t know which would be worse. He wanted to hold onto images of her for these last few moments. He knew he wasn’t going to walk out of here. It was over. He closed his eyes as pain seared through his body.
The voices around him melted away and he tried to concentrate on Ava. He had to see her one last time. She was beautiful. Fire shot from her fingertips and white glass rained around her. He tried to hold onto that image of her, but a woman’s scream pulled him away from her too soon. His eyes flew open.
They were killing them. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The rail thin woman lay on the floor in a puddle of blood. Two men were pouring black powder around the walls of the room. Another woman screamed as Caslan grabbed her. He put the gun to her head. There was nothing Alec could do to save her, just as there was nothing he could do to save Ava or Emberlee. For the first time in his life he felt true fear. He had so much to lose now. Ava needed him more than ever and if he didn’t find a way to survive this, he would never make it back to her. He felt useless as he lay there unable to move. He drew a shallow breath remembering what his father used to say to the Clutch Guards before every battle. The words echoed through his mind in his father’s voice:
“Courage is not fearless and bravery is not a natural instinct. Fear gives birth to both. Feel it, breathe it, use it. Protect what is yours!”
Alec took another shallow breath and rolled to his stomach. He used every bit of strength he had left to push to his feet. He groaned as he half-ran, half-stumbled towards Caslan. Catching him unaware, Alec knocked him to the floor. Another gunshot; Alec wasn’t sure if he’d been hit again or not. He was running on pure fear and adrenalin now. He swung over and over again, surprised by his own strength.
When Caslan stopped fighting back and covered his bloody face, Alec pushed off him and moved toward the two women that were left. Two soldiers came at him, guns raised. Alec dropped down and knocked them both off of their feet. Their guns flew from their hands, but they were far from incapacitated. Alec was on his hands and knees, struggling to rise again, when the doors burst open behind him. Clutch Guards streamed into the room and suddenly the fight was a little more even. The two sides collided around him and somehow he kept going. His brothers fought beside him as those that had betrayed him fell.
…Ava…
Ava thought about everything she had learned. Shawn had just finished telling her about the Waevern recruiting him when he was only twelve and how he had tried to get away from them. He’d told them that he was a Clutch Guard now and no longer a Waevern soldier, but it had made no difference. Vincent and Bianca had used his family, and then Brea, to make him do what they wanted. It was sickening. She didn’t know what she’d expected when she asked him for answers. Brea had already told her most of it, but hearing it from Shawn had been different, harder. Ava looked at Brea. She was quieter than she had ever been. Ava knew that she was blaming herself for Emberlee’s disappearance, doubting her ability to protect Emberlee. Ava had no fear’s on that score. Brea had been fooled once; it would never happen again. Ava wasn’t angry at Brea. She was concentrating on one thing, and one thing only; getting Emberlee to safety.
“Up there.” Shawn pointed as he pulled out his cell phone. He dialed quickly, then said, “Pull over here and wait for my call.” The vehicles behind him slowed.
The desert seemed to stretch for miles around them. They were travelling down a small unmarked road. “What exactly do they do with the children, Shawn?” Ava asked, not entirely sure she wanted to hear the answer.
Shawn sighed, “They’re soldiers, Ava. Those kids are soldiers. Some of them have been in this place their entire life. That’s why we’ve tried to find the place so many times. They don’t know anything about us. We’ve come across them a few times over the years, but it wasn’t until those two young kids escaped that we started to suspect the Waevern’s involvement. The kids are brainwashed into doing horrible things. They send them into battle and use them as the first line of attack. Their names never make the news when they die. They’re our missing. Those that make it out alive are different. I think Caslan was raised there.”
“And you think that’s where they took Emberlee.”
�
�I’m willing to bet my life on it.” Shawn leaned forward looking at the empty road in front of them, “They can create real weather problems with someone like her. That’s why I don’t think they’re going to trade her for you.”
Ava felt sick. “I’ll never let them use her like that. They can have me, but they will never have her,” Ava vowed. “Where the hell is this place, Shawn?” Ava asked, looking around desperately. Panic threatened to snatch her breath when she saw no signs that might lead to finding her daughter. The desert stretched endlessly in every direction, as far as the eye could see. For her, life without Emberlee would be no life at all. Her rising anxiety found it’s echo in the sky as it turned from blue to crimson.
“It has to be right here in this area.” Shawn pointed. “I think I might know how to find it. You’ll need to use your powers, Ava.” He stopped the car.
Everyone got out and looked around. Shawn dropped down to the ground and sketched two crossed arrows and the symbols for North, South, East, and West. He looked up at Ava. “Give me your hand please, Ava.”
Ava did.
“What are you doing?” Brea said as Shawn pulled a small knife from his pocket.
“I need her blood. It will show us what direction we need to take to find Emberlee. This is a location compass. It’s a spell that a True Elementris created. Usually it takes a strong full circle to use it to locate a specific person, but, I’m hoping that since you’re a True Elementris, it’ll work without the circle.”
Ava nodded, “Do it.”
Shawn ran the knife down the palm of her hand, making the same symbol.
Ava clenched her teeth as hot blood pooled in her palm.
Shawn took her hand and turned it over. Blood dropped onto the center of the compass and then spread through the crossing arrows.
Ava screamed.
“What’s wrong?” Brea asked, hurrying to Ava’s side.
“My hand! God, that burns!” Ava opened her palm, flames rose from her palm. She closed her fingers around the flames, then slowly reopened her hand. The compass drawing was now on her hand and the arrow pointing North glowed red. The pain was horrendous, but she pushed through. Determined.
Elementris, Exposure, Eruption Box set: The Vangeretta Curse Series Page 81