Kindred of the Fallen

by Isis Rushdan

  The concert had started with big, heavy strings. Serenity sat through the performance, stealing glimpses of Abbadon’s face during moments she experienced great emotion to see if she could detect any on his. He sat a little straighter or leaned forward ever so slightly at certain parts, but none of it was the reaction she’d hoped to see. Well into the performance, the chords turned eerie. A hint of sadness washed over his face as he scooted to the edge of his seat.

  A beeping noise, like a watch alarm, went off behind her. Cassian whispered something to Talus and got up. Talus grabbed his arm, but he managed to make it out of the box. She followed him. A minute later, she came back, took a knee next to Cyrus and whispered in his ear.

  “All right, go try to catch up with him,” Cyrus said. “If the threat is real, don’t engage. I want you to observe and wait for us.”

  Talus nodded and took off.

  Cyrus looked at his watch. His face creased. He tapped Abbadon. “I’m going to leave.”

  “But the final movement hasn’t even started,” Abbadon whispered.

  “I’m sure it’s nothing, but I want to check on them to be certain.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Abbadon said.

  He shook his head. “You should stay. There’s an hour left of the performance and the finale is your favorite part.” Cyrus glanced at Serenity. “Why don’t you stay with Abbadon?”

  “I’d rather go with you.”

  Cyrus stood, taking her hand. “We’ll see you back at the house.”

  Abbadon nodded.

  “How will you get home?” she asked.

  “The weather is lovely. I’ll fly.” Abbadon took off his suit jacket and handed it to her. “Would you take it back for me? I’d hate to ruin another.”

  She took his jacket with a smile, and followed Cyrus out of the box.

  “What’s wrong? Why are we going back?”

  “Something set off a sensor at the house. Cassian and Talus went back to check it out.”

  “What was that beeping?”

  Cyrus increased his pace. “We have the house alarm linked to a couple of watches so we can monitor it while we’re away.”

  She struggled to stay at his side. Her heels clattered up a storm of noise that echoed through the quiet lobby. “Should we be worried?”

  He held her hand. “No. If it’s anything serious, I told them not to engage.”

  They hurried across the street to the garage. Since they’d left before the performance ended, she hoped it wouldn’t take the valet long to bring the car around. Cyrus looked at his watch, and she suddenly felt jittery and tense. The emotion wasn’t hers.

  He shifted his weight from leg to leg in a subtle, controlled way. He did his best to appear calm, but she sensed his nerves firing like pistons.

  Their car was brought around after eight minutes of waiting. Cyrus tipped the young man and they hopped in. Traffic on 57th Street was bumper to bumper. He stared at the time on the dash. They turned onto 12th Avenue, moved easily for a few blocks and then slowed to a crawl. At a red light, he checked the time again.

  During each delay, she pictured Cassian and Talus zipping through the traffic on their bikes with ease. She wondered if Cyrus had the same image burning through his mind, fueling his anxiety.

  “Is it faster to drive or fly?”

  “Fly.”

  He gritted his teeth and she realized she was the one slowing him down.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Evan wandered around Serenity’s bedroom. It was the size of their condo…his condo. He made certain not to touch anything the way he’d been instructed as if he were a two-year-old. Stone hunkered in Serenity’s closet, inserting small devices in the items he had pointed out.

  Dark hardwood floors, posh furniture and floor to ceiling windows that probably gave her amazing light to paint. Cyrus had given her a life ten times better than he’d ever be able to provide, but did he love her? Did he cherish her? Did he recognize how special she was?

  What was he thinking? He couldn’t let her stay with a monster. In saving her, he’d also save himself.

  A painting of Cyrus, bare, chiseled chest with wings rested on her easel. He didn’t look like the blue monsters in the tank. Damn him to hell, he looked like a fucking archangel.

  “Where’s Artemis?” Jagger asked out of breath.

  Evan led him through the doorway to the adjoining room. They passed an elegant office into a bedroom. A massive four-poster bed dominated the center of the room with disturbed covers and tousled sheets. A red lace thong lay on the edge of the bedspread.

  He inhaled her scent mixed with the pungent odor of sex. This was where they fucked.

  Corrosive heat spurted in his veins like battery acid, dissolving the last threads of his conscience. Artemis’s plan could be illegal, immoral or heinous. He no longer cared. He was all in, fully committed no matter what.

  Artemis stood to the side of the bed, eyes closed, sniffing a pillow.

  “We tripped a silent alarm. I’m not sure how long ago. We need to leave,” Jagger said.

  Another man with a gun rushed into the room. “Two of them just showed up on motorcycles. We can exit out back and make it to the rendezvous point.”

  Artemis threw the pillow onto the bed. “I have a better idea,” she said with a smile.

  Serenity tried to reach Talus and Cassian on their cell phones. No answer. The expressway wasn’t backed up, but Cyrus could only go eighty miles per hour because of other vehicles. When they finally reached an open stretch of road outside of the city, he floored the accelerator.

  The front gate was open and he sped up the drive. The house quickly came into sight and he slowed down in preparation to stop.

  The front door was wide open and both motorcycles were on the ground. Cyrus clenched the steering wheel so hard she thought he would rip it off. Metal screeched as the shape contorted in his hands. Her heartbeat quickened and her stomach did flip-flops.

  “Stay here,” he said to her in a rush, as he leapt from the car and ran into the house.

  She glanced around outside. Nothing stirred and no strange sounds indicated trouble. Her eyes drifted over the deformed steering wheel, then to the motorcycles turned on their sides in front of the house. Everything seemed fine, but something was wrong.

  A flicker of movement on the far side of the lawn, to the right of the lemon grove, made her open her door and get out. The breathless night was still. She scanned the area and waited for whatever it was to emerge again.

  Dark shadows and flashes of silver danced across the grass. She inched forward. It was Talus. Her body moved in a frenzied whirl and the darkness around her also moved.

  A gelid frisson of terror blasted inside Serenity. It was hard to tell exactly what was going on, but she knew they were in danger. She could make out figures moving with Talus.

  Her heart pounded with such force her body shook to the rhythm. They were in trouble and needed help. She took off running toward the movement. “Cyrus, out here!” She sprinted as fast as her legs would take her, kicking off her shoes along the way.

  Soon, she could clearly see Talus fighting four men dressed in black. Talus favored her right leg as if injured.

  Cassian fought a tall blonde woman with a patch over one eye. Behind them were five more men holding guns. And Evan stood awkwardly next to the men, also cloaked in black and holding a gun.

  Had he truly gone over the edge? Had he come here with these mercs for revenge?

  She lengthened her stride and pumped her arms. She had no idea what she would do—what she could do—when she reached them. All she knew was she had to help them.

  The men fighting with Talus had long steel batons. Every time they hit her, white sparks of electricity glinted in the night. A man in black lay on the ground close to her feet. She managed to disarm one of her assailants. She kicked the man in the stomach and he flew backwards ten feet before hitting the ground.

  A man standing by Evan lifted his r
ifle and shot Talus in the leg.

  She limped backward a couple of steps and fell to one knee. She picked up something from the ground, maybe a set of batons. The other three men reengaged. Talus hit one of the men in the leg. White sparks went off, crackled in the air and he dropped to the ground. A man lifted a rifle to shoot her again, but she grabbed one of her attackers and used him for cover.

  The blonde woman had the same kind of batons. Whenever she hit Cassian, he flinched backwards. He was slower than Talus, and the woman appeared as if she wasn’t putting forth much effort.

  Serenity’s lungs burned as she struggled to take in air fast enough to keep her legs moving. They seemed so far away. Through the thumping of her heart, filling her ears, she could hear the fighting up ahead.

  Everything unraveled so quickly and so slowly, all at once.

  Cyrus bolted past her. Even without his wings, he moved swift as the wind. Human legs could never travel at such speed. He barreled forward and just as he was about to reach them, the blonde woman looked at him. Had a smile flashed over her face?

  The woman tapped the two batons together and long blades emerged from the ends. She crossed her arms in front of her body in a quick, fluid motion and Cassian crumpled to his knees. His body hit the ground next to his head.

  “No!” Talus screamed.

  Serenity came to an abrupt halt. She wasn’t sure if it was the sight of Cassian decapitated or the shrill cry of pain from Talus that made her stop running.

  Talus lunged for the blonde, but Cyrus caught her and brought her to the ground. Serenity was certain of it that time. The woman definitely smiled.

  Cyrus lifted Talus and dragged her several feet backwards as she kicked and screamed.

  The three men that had been fighting her closed in, but the blonde raised a hand and they stopped. The men with Evan raised their weapons. Several red laser lights pointed at Cyrus.

  Her gaze followed a stray beam to a red dot on her chest. Evan stared at her with a look of terror. He said something to the man next to him. The man redirected the gun from her and took aim on Cyrus and Talus.

  Cyrus tried to subdue Talus as she flailed. “Now is not the time! I need you to go back to the house and take Serenity with you.” He tried to let her go, but she only lunged at the woman again. Cyrus grabbed her, shaking her as he hollered, “I need you to get a hold of yourself! Go back to the house and take Serenity.”

  “Your new little pet can’t stay and play?” the woman asked Cyrus, as she nodded her head in Serenity’s direction.

  He released Talus and she hissed at the woman, then backed away, crouched, chest heaving. Talus screamed one more time and whirled around. Her face was contorted in pain and tears streamed down her cheeks as she jogged toward Serenity. Her leg was bleeding from several spots. Talus reached out and snatched her by the elbow, without stopping. She pulled Serenity back to the house, forcing her legs to move or be dragged.

  Gunfire pierced the night air behind them, eight…no, twelve shots fired.

  Serenity jerked away from Talus and stopped. Panting, she turned back. She had to make sure Cyrus was still standing.

  Cyrus whizzed around the intruders, slapping weapons from their hands and snapping their necks like twigs.

  Her heart leapt with relief.

  Talus seized Serenity’s arm and hauled her to the house. Serenity tried to turn her head to keep her eyes on Cyrus, but it was impossible at that speed. She could barely keep up. They were nearly back to the house, when she tripped over the bloody bodies of Max and Sybil, but Talus kept her from falling.

  They raced up the steps of the veranda and Talus released her. She looked back at the lawn, but couldn’t see Cyrus. Talus rushed into the great room and Serenity trailed her.

  The room was in shambles. The cushions on the furniture had been ripped open and the stuffing pulled out. At the far end of the room, books had been knocked off the shelves and were strewn across the floor.

  Talus paced back and forth, her hands tight fists at her sides. She knocked down a chair and the lamp, then punched a vase. She turned her rage to a table and beat it with her fists until she smashed it into pieces. She clawed at the wooden shelves of the bookcase, ripping them apart.

  “Cassian! Cassian!” Talus dropped to her knees as she continued to howl his name, pulling wildly at her hair, beating herself in the head.

  Serenity ran to her and sheltered her in her arms. She rocked Talus until she stopped hitting herself, but continued to wail.

  Talus pulled away, falling into a weeping lump on the floor. Serenity had no idea what to do. As she stood, she realized she was shaking. She staggered to the mangled sofa and sat on the edge. She stared at the ripped out stuffing of the cushions and it felt as if rock hard arms held her steady in place, the same sensation she had whenever she envisioned her father dying.

  Emotion drained from her, leaving her numb. But hot tears rolled down her face. Trembling, she shut her eyes, but instead of seeing her father, she saw Cassian falling to the ground.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  As Artemis pointed an energy gun at Cyrus’s back, Evan froze. Lights blinked on the side of the gun. Cyrus killed the last militant, snapping his neck.

  Stone grabbed Evan by the collar. “The gun isn’t fully charged. It’ll barely slow him down. We’ve got to go now!”

  They took off running. Krieg was a few yards ahead of them.

  “What about Artemis?” Evan asked.

  “She’s fast. Can handle herself.”

  Evan glanced back. A white burst of light hit Cyrus, propelling him to the ground.

  Artemis jogged backward with the gun pointed at Cyrus. A second burst discharged.

  Evan kept pace with Stone. Thank goodness he stuck to a routine of hitting the treadmill every day for a four-mile run. They made it to the iron fence. Stone grabbed hold of a black rope hooked to a grappling device on the top. He climbed the fence, keeping his feet on the bars. At the spiked top, he jumped over. Evan followed, slowing at the spikes.

  Artemis bolted from the darkness, her blonde bun unraveling in curls down her back. By the time Evan jumped to the ground, Artemis had made it over. Did she even use the rope?

  They climbed into the truck. Jagger was behind the wheel and Krieg sat up front.

  As they raced down the road, Evan turned to her. “What happened back there? You said in and out! It’d be easy. Then those kids showed up and you lopped off that boy’s head.”

  Artemis smoothed back her hair.

  Evan glanced around the empty truck. “They’re all dead. You just let Cyrus kill twelve men when you could have stopped him with that gun.”

  Artemis slid forward in her seat and eyed him. “Lego blocks. I can get more.” She smiled. “Don’t worry. You’re special like Stone and Jagger and Krieg. Irreplaceable.”

  “You’re fucking insane!”

  Her head rolled back in a bright smile as she laughed.

  Abbadon rushed into the great room. His wings retracted and his color shifted to normal.

  Serenity bounded over to him. “Is Cyrus okay?”

  “He’s fine. I saw him out on the lawn. He’s cleaning up.”

  Wiping tears from her eyes, she inhaled deeply with relief.

  He looked at Talus, who was curled in a ball. “I should’ve come back with you.”

  “Abbadon, Talus is hurt. There’s blood all over her leg.”

  He left the room and quickly returned with gauze, water and forceps. He tore open Talus’s pant leg and wiped the area clean. Blood oozed from four nickel-sized wounds in her right leg. The bullets were embedded close to the surface.

  “Hold her. I’m going to take them out.”

  She held Talus while he dug into the holes and removed the bullets. Talus only winced. He rinsed out the wounds and bandaged them.

  “There was a woman with Evan. A blonde with a patch over one eye,” Serenity said.

  “Lysandra!” Talus jerked up, her hair wild around
her face.

  Serenity stared at her, shocked Talus knew her name, and then looked at Abbadon. “Who is Lysandra and why was Evan with her?”

  Lowering his head, Abbadon edged back, retreating across the room.

  “Who is Lysandra?” she demanded, rising to her feet.

  He sat on the window ledge and finally looked at her. “Lysandra is my sister. She no longer uses that name and now goes by Artemis.”

  Uncertain what to think, she stood motionless.

  “Is she still alive?” Talus asked hesitantly.

  “Yes,” Abbadon said in a whisper.

  Talus let out a howling screech. “Tell her the rest. Tell her why that bitch still lives, while Cassian is dead. Tell her!”

  Befuddled, Serenity’s gaze bounced between them.

  Abbadon sat rigid as a tree, planted to the windowsill. Dark blue blotches flashed on his skin in various areas on his face, chest and arms. They only appeared for seconds. He straightened his shoulders, took a deep breath and the sapphire explosions stopped.

  “Lysandra and Cyrus…” His voice trailed off.

  He spoke the words in a tone that made her reach for the sofa behind her.

  “Tell her!” Talus shrieked.

  Abbadon’s gaze fell. “Lysandra was his inamorata.”

  She didn’t understand the word, but the meaning was clear. But it wasn’t possible.

  Those of Herut believed in spiritual purity, in remaining celibate until finding their kabashem. There was no way Cyrus had touched another woman and certainly not that woman. She shook her head. It was a lie. Abbadon was mistaken. There was some misunderstanding.

  It became difficult to breathe. Her lungs forgot how to expand or the air in the room suddenly became heavy as water. A vise squeezed her heart slowly and her chest ached.

  She slumped to the edge of the sofa, staring at Abbadon.

  The vise tightened and she grew lightheaded. Unfettered from the anchor, which kept her grounded in this new world, centered and focused, she drifted, completely lost. She could hear Abbadon speaking to her, but it was as if she floated away, overhead, as she listened.