by Angela White
“I don’t think so. I hear your guilt and I’m reading it in your body language. What did you do to Kip?”
“He died at the den!” Cynthia was haunted. “…after I told Angela he was bothering me.”
“Ah.” Adrian drew in a thick lungful of smoke and shot it across the fire toward her. “Confess your sins, Cynthia, and be allowed to return to her good graces.”
“I thought that’s why she sent me to you.” Cynthia’s red cheeks paled. “My hatred of Matt and my desire for her mate were bad, but when I told her about Kip, I wanted him gone. She knew that’s why I’d come to her, even after I’d already handled him.”
Adrian resisted the urge to search in her memories to discover what else she’d done.
“I’ve become corrupt.” Cynthia regarded him with confused anger. “How?”
“Your secret plan to steal Marc?”
Cynthia flinched from the perfect shot. “She can’t know that!”
Adrian laughed.
Cynthia began to shake. “I’m not coming out of this mountain alive.”
Adrian tried hard to find compassion or a bond to the powerful child studying him, but all he found was pity. “I’m sorry, Cyn. You crossed a line with her. She’s the one who has to forgive you for that error in judgement.”
“She won’t.”
“Because you aren’t sorry?” Adrian asked.
Cynthia stood up, interview forgotten. She stared down at him with a layer of insanity showing. “Why can’t you be like him?”
Adrian glared, full of resentment again. “Because this world requires more than a boy scout and you know it!” He jerked a hand toward the tunnel. “Maybe Marc can save you since I’m the piece of shit.”
Cynthia wanted to deny that was what she had come for, but she couldn’t. Deep down, she had hoped Adrian would claim her.
Adrian forced himself to stay put, not letting her misery or fear through. “Confess your sins to her and beg forgiveness. Then stay away from her mate.”
“What if I’m not sorry and I’m not going to stay away?” Cynthia’s voice was a whisper.
Adrian grunted. “Then get your affairs in order.”
“No faith at all that he’d be happier with me?”
Adrian laughed again.
This time, it was harsh enough to echo and send Cynthia fleeing from his painful mockery. Everyone else believed she had a touch of mountain sickness. Angela, and now Adrian, had figured out that it was madness. They both assumed she had cracked while being in here. It had happened to a couple of other folks who were being drugged each morning to help them control their reactions, but the reporter had started to get this way after shooting Cesar. Marc’s gratitude had flipped her over the edge. Much like Kenn and Conner, she had an obsession.
“I’ve been fighting it.” She climbed the ladder to the next level, muttering. “Maybe I shouldn’t worry about that anymore.”
Confess…
Cynthia shoved that out. She could do it, but she wouldn’t mean it and Angela would see right through that.
“Marc will help me.” She ignored the curious, worried glances of those she passed. “One boy scout can be enough to save the world if the rest of you evil creatures are gone.”
Bang! Bang!
Sounds of labor echoed, snapping Adrian into reality. It told him that Kenn and Charlie had handled the bodies and were replacing the ladder that had broken into several pieces. The sound of hammering came again, along with citizens from every level complaining about the noise. So much for a peaceful night.
4
Kenn observed the boy on the level above him. Charlie was anchoring the ladder while Kenn held it steady. As their lights flashed and threw shadows, Kenn had caught a glimpse of a bruise on the teenager’s neck. At least, he assumed it was a bruise, because the boy wasn’t supposed to be having contact with Tracy yet. Kenn did a fast count and realized that if it had been long enough for Angela to be sexually active again, then it had been long enough for Tracy.
Kenn studied the boy, trying to spot anything that would prove or disprove his new theory. When he couldn’t, Kenn jotted a mental note to ask the next time they were alone.
“Here. This is the last nail.” Greg handed it to Kenn and helped hold the ladder while the Marine pounded it into the connector piece he’d had to rig. They hadn’t finished sorting all the debris piles. Kenn knew there were plenty of nails to be found there once they did. Right now, these basic repairs would hold them until morning when they had more hands.
Around Kenn and Greg, the Mountaineers were observing in fear and suspicion. They’d woken to falling bodies. Most of them didn’t know what had happened. Jimmy did. Kenn had told him while he had also warned the doctor about his thief and the possible traitors that Kyle hadn’t had time to handle before Simon attacked. Those loose ends needed to be cleaned up, but it would have to be on the next shift. Everyone on the bottom floor was too alert. The top levels were settling down, however. Kenn hoped Angela would forget his thoughtless comment. He’d been full of adrenaline and eager to brag about his quick fix for what could have been a nasty situation. He hadn’t thought about his words before running his mouth.
“She’s got other things on her mind than you.” Charlie came down the ladder. “And it’s not a bruise.”
Kenn gawked.
Charlie snickered, not caring if he was about to be ratted out or scolded. Making love to Tracy had been everything he’d hoped for and then beyond.
“Did you wrap it?”
Charlie blushed. “We handled that.”
Kenn caught a hot flash and brought down his mental barrier. “Keep that shit to yourself or you’ll be caught before lunch.”
Charlie laughed. “It was worth anything mom does to me for breaking the rules.”
“Even being separated?”
Charlie snorted. “She won’t do that. She’ll be happy that Tracy is better.”
“So rules don’t matter now?”
“Rules always matter.” Charlie became serious. “She’ll be my wife before we hit the island. I proposed to her. She said yes.”
Kenn was startled into a laugh. “Wow. You’re fast.”
“I know what I want.”
“I’ve always assumed you already knew.”
“I do. Let me rephrase that. Now, I have what I want.”
Kenn connected the pieces without his gift. “A love like your mom and dad.”
Charlie nodded. “We’ve both got a lot to learn and we’ll have issues like anyone else, but it won’t be like what you’ve all gone through.”
“What makes you two so different?”
“We’re learning from your mistakes.”
Kenn couldn’t find fault with that. “Well, remember a couple of things, okay?”
“Like what?” Charlie didn’t mean to be arrogant about it, but Tracy’s sounds were still ringing in his mind. She’d been pleased.
“Your honor has to come first, even before her. Don’t lose her respect. And always try as hard to get her off, every time, as you did tonight.”
Charlie’s cheek went scarlet, but his shoulders straightened into a young man’s confident stance. “I will.”
Kenn clapped the boy on the shoulder, proud of him. “Cool. Now shut up about it or you’re gonna stress people even more than they already are. Tracy doesn’t need it and neither do you.”
Charlie zipped his lip and resumed work on anchoring the bottom of the ladder while Kenn held it in place, but in his mind, Kenn’s advice took the place of Tracy’s throaty moans. Honor, respect, and full effort every time. I can do that.
Chapter Twenty-Four
The Onion Man
October 22nd, 2013
1
Shawn woke up because of the whispers. Eagles weren’t quiet unless they needed to be. Leadership and spies whispered, and leadership was sleeping right now.
He lifted his head to peer into the dim room where all of the kids and older citizens had been put, along wit
h two sentries. Those two men were in the deep corners, away from the whispers by the door, but the words came through clear enough for Shawn to understand.
“We can go anywhere you want. Ever been to Disneyland?”
“No. It’s cold out there.”
“I have coats stashed under some debris. We’ll get them on the way.”
“The guards will be mad at me.”
“We’ll be gone, sweetheart. They can’t yell at you if you aren’t here, right?”
“I guess so.”
Shawn hoped this wasn’t what it sounded like.
“We can leave right now, if you’ll search for us. You want to be out of here, don’t you?”
“Everyone does.”
“I’ll take you right now. Just tell me if we can get out.”
“I can’t do that. The alpha said no magic.”
“She’s asleep. She won’t know.”
“She’s the alpha. She knows everything.”
“Kid, I have to get out of here and you’re taking me. Get up!”
Shawn felt the fear. He wished he could tell Missy to come on out here, that he would handle it, but he wasn’t a descendant. He didn’t know how to talk to them that way.
We’re connected. Missy’s scared voice whispered, making him jump. We’re coming out now.
Shawn stood up, careful not to wake the reporter or make any noise that would alert Courtney to his presence. He waited for their shadows to come through, pressed against the wall by the door.
Missy led the way, staying in front of the tall, thin woman like Shawn was telling her to do. She pointed toward Cynthia, who was opposite Shawn’s position now. “Shhh...”
Courtney nodded, walking around the reporter. She never glanced in the other direction.
Shawn’s heart clenched as he grabbed the woman and dragged her backward into the half-cleared training room.
Missy was experiencing Shawn’s dislike of the chore. She heard a dull thud and glanced down at the reporter who was staring around in wary confusion. “Go back to sleep.”
Exhausted and scared, Cynthia did what the child told her.
Shawn came alone, gesturing to a guard in the hall to give his explanation.
Missy held still as the sentry came to her for a verification. She wasn’t afraid of the Eagles. They were like Shawn, but she didn’t want the soldiers guarding the alpha’s door. They were hard to read.
Shawn put an arm around Missy, not worried over comforting her now. Angela had told him he had a mate in this camp when he was ready for it, but he’d chosen more training with Adrian in place of that–mostly because he had a child to care for now. He was beginning to look on Missy as a daughter, something he’d never thought to have. Parenthood had never crossed his mind as an Eagle. There was too much other work.
The boss’s door opened, revealing Angela’s tired face. “I’m sorry. We weren’t positive that Courtney was in with Howard. I couldn’t get into their minds and I didn’t want to ruin her life here if she was innocent.”
Shawn wasn’t mad at her. “We’ve had so many betrayals that I regard everyone as an enemy. They have to earn my friendship.”
Angela nodded. “Same here. It’ll keep us alive.”
Shawn glared at Ivan for a moment, arm around Missy, then he took the girl toward the repaired ladder. “Let’s hit the bathroom and then get you something to read, okay?”
Missy had grown to enjoy story time and bobbed her head eagerly. Shawn had saved her. He was her hero.
2
Adrian patrolled the top floor with light steps an hour later. He was trying not to wake anyone, but this level was full of descendants, making that hard to do. Adrian listened to the sounds of a heavy wind beating against the top of the mountain. He wouldn’t have been able to hear it if their heat and other utilities were active. It was a comforting noise, but at the same time, it called to him. It said that air would be better than a woman’s touch after being in these passages for months. Sweet freedom was just one door away.
Adrian sighed, going to check on the kids. As he neared them, he caught flashes of dreams and nightmares. Some of them were ugly.
Adrian spent a minute blasting the kids with calm, happy thoughts that he hoped would replace the nightmares. The months since the war hadn’t been easy on them.
“He comes.”
Adrian spun around to find Leeann sitting up. Her eyes were shut and her face had the expression of sleepwalkers, but her voice was as alert as Adrian was right now.
“They’re here.”
Around Leeann, other kids began to stir and mutter.
“He’s here.”
“They’re here.”
“The Onion man.”
Adrian shivered. More kids were sitting up to repeat the words.
“He’s coming for us.”
“The Onion man wants us.”
Adrian flipped on the light, hoping it would wake the kids before they got louder, but more of the children jerked upward, mumbling.
“What’s going on in here?”
Adrian didn’t respond to Kyle, still trapped with the kids in their mass vision. He’d never witnessed this anywhere except in the government labs.
“He’s here.” Leeann peered at Adrian with blank eyes, voice eerie. “He wants you most.”
“We’re ready for him. It’s okay.” Adrian went over to hug Leeann, who was shaking. “We won’t let them get you.”
Leeann wrapped her arms around the only adult male she felt like she could trust now, other than Billy. “He knows I’m here. He wants me to open the door.”
Adrian patted the girl, aware of the other kids lying down as if nothing had happened. “Let’s talk to the boss, okay? You’ll feel better after that.”
“She scares me.”
Adrian paused. “Angie? Why? She would never hurt a kid.”
“She let Matt die.”
“Matt was bad.”
“Matt was confused.” Leeann sniffled. “I liked Matt. He was my friend.”
“I’m sorry. So is Angie, but it had to happen or Matt would have hurt someone. You know what he was planning?”
Leeann nodded. “I told him the bullies would stop if he would tell on them, but he wouldn’t listen. He wanted revenge.”
Adrian took the little girl past Kyle, not responding to the mobster’s hand code questions. “It’s hard for you because you’re not like the other kids. You’ll be an alpha someday. That means you have to try harder than the other kids to understand what’s happening around you.”
“I’m trying, but I miss my friends.”
They had lost a dozen children in the earthquake and mess fire. Adrian sighed. “Me too. Jeremy was a good man.”
Leeann felt his pain and hugged him again. “I’m sorry he died.”
“Me too, sweetheart.” Adrian saw the door was already open and nudged the little girl into Angela’s cubicle. “Tell her what happened and then talk to her about your fear, okay?”
“She won’t get mad?”
“Not at you, I promise.”
Leeann ducked into the shadowy room.
Adrian listened for a minute, glad when Angela comforted the girl. He could also sense her anger at the situation and her misery at the kids being afraid of her, but that was also a part of the job. If the citizens didn’t fear her a little, she wouldn’t be able to lead them. Even a man in this job would have problems right now.
Adrian spun around to find Kenn staring at him with a blank expression that sent chills down his spine. There was no way Kenn was faking it.
“He’s here. The Onion man is here.”
Adrian put a hand on Kenn’s shoulder, remembering the first time he’d gone through it. Visions rarely happened to him anymore, but in the beginning, he’d been freaked out by it.
“He has thousands of men. They’re in trucks and tanks. The Onion man has no mercy.”
“What are his orders?”
“He has no orders.”
“Death.”
Adrian swallowed a shiver. “We’ll handle it. Come back to us, Marine.”
Kenn slowly became aware of standing in the hall by the weapons chamber. He peered at Adrian in confusion. “How did I get up here?”
“Tell me what you saw.”
Kenn realized he’d had a vision and grinned. “I didn’t know that would happen.”
Adrian snorted. “Yeah, it’s fun now.” He gestured toward the mess, where their relief was getting coffee and preparing to take over. “Let’s check the cameras before the camp gets in here.”
Kenn followed, mind replaying the UN convoy rolling in. “We’re not ready for what’s coming.”
“Are we ever?”
“No, and yet, we end up winning. It’s almost like we’re being protected or something.”
Forced into a laugh, Adrian ignored the surprise from those in the mess, but his mirth vanished as soon as the laptop screen loaded. It was impossible to laugh when faced with so much death. Nothing was alive on the screen except for blurry hordes of flies, but the mood was one of imminent danger. The UN had come.
“This is Kendle.” Radios crackled across the drafty cave. “We’re home. Come in, Safe Haven.”
Adrian turned, feeling Angela behind him. He took in her grim face and the worried alertness of the wolfman by her side.
“We’re out of time.” Angela’s voice was haunted. “The next mass slaughter is about to begin. Dig the tunnel.”
3
“Oh, my God!”
Kendle and her team stood on the snowy ledge, using binoculars to view the mountain. They hadn’t been able to see anything in the darkness when they’d arrived. Forced to wait for dawn, the view was uglier than they’d imagined. The vultures circled and cried, fighting for scraps even though the field of bodies stretched for miles across the valley.
“Some of them are Mexican.” Tommy pointed through the late afternoon sunlight. “There are flags and vehicles.”
“Anything out there?” Ben was following their training to the letter. He was above Tommy in skills like this, so he was guiding him through the process. When it came to anything weapon related, those positions were reversed.