by Dale Mayer
Unless he hadn't known about the blasts.
Jared shook his head. This was beyond confusing.
And he just wanted to get the hell out of here. He hadn't been able to save his father. He doubted there was anything he could do to help any of the other prisoners.
"Jared?"
He turned to look at Tessa. Unshed tears shimmered in her beautiful green eyes. He couldn't ignore her pain. Her brother might be a twisted psycho, but Tessa was real and down to earth. He didn't know about all her abilities, but then he wasn't sure she did either.
He walked closer to her. "Are you all right?" he asked in low tones.
"I will be." She sniffled. "It's just hard to see him like this."
"Has he ever shown that side of his personality?"
She shook her head. "I have to believe that this is caused by drugs. It's too impossibly big if it isn't."
It was hard to work through her thinking, but he did understand. Her whole life as she'd known it would be called into question if her brother really did hate her as much as he appeared to. That had to be hard. Jared understood hate and relatives. Look at what his aunt and uncle had done to him.
"It is quite likely the drugs. But how can we tell?"
"Tyson could have told us if we'd asked." She shrugged. "But I doubt we would have believed him."
"Tyson?"
She winced and gave him a short account of Cody's older brother.
"Shit." That had got to bite.
"Yeah, that's one way to explain it."
He couldn't imagine it, but if Cody's brother was a traitor, then it was quite possible that Seth was, too. And if that was the case, Jared didn't know what to think.
He had wanted to kill anyone involved in his father's incarceration. But it was one thing to imagine doing such a thing and quite another to actually act on those thoughts, particularly when he might actually know the man – and damn near impossible when he was related to those who had saved him.
*.*.*
"Pick up the pace, Wendy." Rhia never glanced behind to see if the soldiers were following her or not, but she wanted to get the hell away if that was a possibility. If they followed to see where the two women went, then fine. But she'd rather go alone.
They made it to the first of three doors. Rhia opened one to find a large room with beds. She closed it and walked to the next one. It was also a room with beds. The third door opened to a small hallway with cupboards, several of which were on the ground.
"The blast affected this area, too," Wendy commented.
"Maybe and maybe not. There was a lot of fighting here." She explored the small area and opened another door to find the stairway. "Yes. This is exactly what we're looking for." With a quick glance around to make sure they were alone, she motioned Wendy to go down ahead of her.
She closed the door behind her and followed.
"How far down does it go?" Wendy asked after they had gone down several flights of stairs.
"I don't know. But it's supposed to end at the mine, so we haven't missed it."
They went down several more flights of stairs and came to a sealed metal door.
Rhia turned the handle. It opened easily under her fingers. She pulled it open and stepped out into the destroyed tunnel, only to find the path blocked by large boulders.
*.*.*
Cody let Tessa and Jared have a few minutes alone. She needed it. So did he. He couldn't school his thoughts the same way Tessa could. And she wasn't doing a great job of it right now. Pain and fear and shock all ate away at her. He'd gone closer to her, but she'd stumbled away from her brother and toward Jared. Cody wanted the direction to be accidental.
Her brother's hatred was not.
For that, Cody wanted to pound his face into the ground. Only Serus was there before him.
Before Cody could react, Serus had tossed his son into the back wall, anger vibrating through his face. "The only reason I'm not killing you right now is because I want to believe that drugs are responsible for this attitude. I've never seen it before, and I sure as hell don't want to see it again. You have no reason to treat your sister like this."
"She's a freak." Seth slowly managed to regain his feet, a wary eye on his father. "Look at her. She's not like us."
"And so you hate her?" Serus asked incredulously. "What does that make you? It makes you different. It makes you scared of the unusual. Well, guess what? That kind of thinking when you're five is a whole lot different when you're an adult. We're all different. Even you. Does that make you better than us? If so, then Tessa is better than you – because she's even more different," he growled.
Cody raised an eyebrow. That had got to hurt.
It does, Tessa whispered in his mind. But Dad is right. We are all different. All unique in our own way. Seth is no better than us and him being similar to a large group of other people does not mean they are better because there are more of them—
A terrifying rumble came from the base of the mountain. The ground shook beneath Tessa's feet. She gasped. Cody raced to her side, tugging her into his arms. He murmured against her hair, "It's okay. Just more aftershocks. Take it easy."
"I just want to get out of here." She shuddered. "But what about my friends – Catherine, Jill? And our friends – Motre and his group?"
"We've got teams searching now," said the leader. "Soldiers. We are going to go through this place and find everyone who is still alive. You need to go home."
Tessa turned to him. She wanted to trust him. She did.
Then do, urged Cody. They came to help. Let them help.
I really want to but...
But what?
"Tessa, are you all right?" David asked as he approached her from the far side. "You're just staring back the way we came. Are you ready to leave?"
Jewel cried out from his side, "Please, let's go."
Cody stared around at the sad looking group on both sides of the fence and realized it was the best thing for the group. But leaving Jill and Catherine behind was unacceptable to Tessa. And how could he leave Motre and his group? They'd fought on her side. Still, when did one step back and let others help?
"These humans came to search for survivors and to clean out the vamps." Jewel reached out with a shaky hand and pleaded, "They are professionals. Let's let them do their jobs."
David pulled her in for a hug. "Easy, Jewel. We're almost done. We're going to be fine."
"For the moment. What if there are more tremors? What if this whole damn thing comes down? Look, we said one hour and we said we came to find Seth. We found Seth and it's past one hour. Let's go home," she said forcefully.
"I second that motion," said Ian, limping back toward the entrance. "We've done what we said we'd do – let's go home."
Tessa's mind was spinning. Cody heard the wheels turning like a steady buzz. Worrying about her friends and the mountain coming down.
We can't do everything, Cody said quietly.
But we can do this.
Ask him.
She turned and studied her brother's sullen face. Determinedly, she took several steps toward him and shoved her face into his. "Where would the latest humans be kept?"
He sneered.
Without warning, her fist delivered a hard uppercut to his jaw. His head snapped to the side and he stumbled backwards. She got in his face again. "My school friends are here somewhere. I want them safe. Where are they?"
"How the hell would I know?" he snapped and glared at the wall behind her head.
His buddy Warren, Councilman Thompson's son, sniggered beside him. Cody picked him up and shook him hard.
Tessa spun around to face him.
"That means you know where they are," Cody snarled. "So give. Where the hell can we find them?"
"Why the hell should I tell you?" Warren snarled, trying to punch Cody in the face.
Goran growled and somehow grabbed Warren from Cody's grasp. Shielding him from t
he others, he bent his head and spoke into Warren’s ear.
Cody tried to hear the conversation, but it was over before it had begun and all of a sudden the words exploded from the punk's mouth. "They’re in the new section of the mountain."
"Hey, shut up," Keegan said. "You know what kind of trouble we're going to be in if they find out you told?"
"Who's they?" Cody spun around to face Keegan.
"None of your business." He turned his back on Cody.
Cody, in a move reminiscent of his father, picked him up and tossed him to the ground.
"You don't scare me," Keegan hissed as he bounced to his feet. "Let this be you and me. Just the two of us."
Cody opened his mouth, and a sound Tessa had never heard before came ripping from the back of his throat.
"No." Serus stepped between the two young vamps. He glared at Cody. "No, no, and no."
Cody could feel the insult and the anger sear through him. He glared at Serus, his fists clenching and unclenching.
Serus widened his stance and crossed his arms across his chest. "No," he said coolly. "This punk ass kid is not worth the time or effort. You have to save your energy for healing."
Oh, I'm sorry, Tessa cried. I forgot about your wing.
I don't give a damn. I can still take him, he snarled at her.
I know you can, but we need you whole and healthy and able to fly. And Dad is right. This miserable piece of shit is not worth fighting over.
His body had stiffened into a steel beam. He glanced around, trying to give his temper time to cool, and realized that the soldiers had surrounded them.
Shit. Take our eyes off them for one moment and they get the upper hand.
Cody glared at the circle of humans. He spread his fingers wide and opened his arms, then grinned at them. "Looking to watch a fight?"
"Or something."
The energy in the mine had changed, with anger and testosterone crackling in the air. Tessa shifted uneasily. Cody glanced at Jared. He was looking back toward the mine entrance as if going home was the thought uppermost on his mind. Not that he could blame him.
This situation has to be defused quickly.
What are you up to?
Just watch. She turned to Goran. Nodded at the punk he still had pinched in his hand and said, "Get directions."
Then she turned back to her father. "Knock Keegan and Harding out."
Cody spun. "No. Let me."
Serus snorted, eyed Tessa carefully, then shrugged and turned to face the young arrogant vamps. Cody couldn't see over her father's shoulder, but within seconds the young vamps were both unconscious on the ground. She turned back to the soldiers. She motioned to the vamps on the ground and said, "Pick a couple men to carry them and your injured man out of here."
The leader glared at her and growled, "Who died and gave you command?"
She grinned evilly. "Not you...yet."
That wiped the look off his face. She nodded in satisfaction. "Accompanying you will be my brother, Jewel, Jared, and Ian."
There was a chorus of protests around her.
Wow.
Cody, his arms crossed, the mad gone from his stance, a small smile at the corner of his mouth, waited.
She held up her hand for silence. "The ancients, the rest of the army, Cody, and myself will continue deeper into the mine to find the others."
Behind her, Goran growled, "And why the hell would I want to do that?"
Serus walked over to Tessa. "What are you up to?"
"We have other vampires to find. Ones that fought on our side. I can't leave them any more than I can let the army find them and view them as the enemy."
"Motre," Cody explained quietly, supporting Tessa.
Tessa nodded. "Exactly. And I need to find Catherine and Jill. We will go to them. Hopefully somewhere along the way we will find Motre's group."
Goran harrumped and looked over at Serus. "Well, what do you think?"
"Maybe." He stared at the punk in Goran's grasp. "But do we trust the instructions?"
Tessa shook her head. "No. That's why Seth is coming with us."
"Like hell I am." Seth snarled from the side. "You can't fucking make me."
She turned to stare at him. "Of course we can. You might think you're a big part of this operation, but you're nothing. A groupie is all you are. A low level follower who thinks he's a big shot."
Seth roared and raced toward her. Serus tried to step in front of her, but she shoved him out of the way. "I got this."
Her brother had almost reached her side when she made a quick slicing motion and he stopped, a look of incomprehension coming over his face. He dropped to his knees then pitched forward to the ground.
Jesus. Cody couldn't believe what she'd done – even if he'd seen it before.
Everyone around her gasped in shock. She ignored them. Cody stepped forward and rolled Seth over onto his back.
Tessa bent over her fallen brother and made a second slicing motion in a slightly different movement, as if playing with something they couldn't see – which of course she was – and he opened his eyes. Comprehension dawned on him and he crab walked backwards as fast as he could to get away.
She straightened and glared at him. "Now that we understand each other, get up and lead the way."
She deliberately turned her back on him.
And gazed into her father's worried eyes.
With a quick glance at everyone else staring at her, she straightened her back and said defiantly, "I didn't hurt him, but maybe it will knock some of that druggie arrogance out of him."
Her father frowned, then snapped, "We're going to talk about this later."
She snorted. "Fine. Just remember the shots he took at me earlier. At least I didn't hurt him." She shot her brother a disgusted look and added, "Now if we don't get a move on, there may not be a later."
Cody turned to study the small group that collected on one side. "David, do you mind?"
Jewel reached out and clutched David's hand. He looked down at her exhausted face and shook his head. "No. We need to get them out of here."
"Thanks, David." Cody watched as two soldiers picked up their injured mate and worked their way over to David's group. Then two big men walked over to Keegan and Harding, picked them up, and threw them over their shoulders.
Serus growled, "Best to keep them out cold."
"And this one," Goran dropped the one he held. "Keep him out cold, too."
The leader smiled, motioning for another soldier to pick up the punk. "No problem. We'll enjoy that part."
The group slowly straggled back the way they'd come.
Cody nudged his father forward. Goran growled. "She could have ordered me home too, you know."
"No, I couldn't," she said quietly. "I need you and Dad as backup."
He stopped in his tracks. "What for?"
She pointed to the rest of the army men leading the way. "For them."
*.*.*
Serus motioned to his daughter to lead the way. Goran, are you okay to stay with us?
Hell yeah. Goran snapped, But I'd like to know what's going on in her mind.
Maybe Cody understands, Serus growled, I sure don't.
Hah. He's so in love, he can't see his way forward.
Ah, those were the days. Serus grinned. In your case, you probably don't remember.
I've been in love lots of times, Goran protested.
But never longer than a few months. With a snort, Serus picked up the pace and caught up with his daughter, leaving his friend spluttering in place.
"Tessa, what's going on?"
She picked up the pace.
"Running away isn't going to help."
Her steps slowed...slightly. She cast a glance over at him. Her face was a mixture of thoughts he couldn't read. She dropped her gaze. He raised an eyebrow. "What's going on?"
She sighed and jammed her fists into her pocket. She open
ed her mouth to speak. He leaned in to hear her. When she didn't say anything, he nudged her gently. "Tessa?"
"I'm having a hard time about this whole thing with Seth." She shrugged as if trying to shake off her problems.
Serus tried hard, but he couldn't hold back a heavy sigh. "Please don't hold his behavior against him. He's under the influence of drugs. Like your mother was."
"Is he?" she whispered with a quick glance behind them at her brother.
"I have to believe it. Until then, I'm trying to be understanding.”
"Understanding has nothing to do with the look of hate in his eyes. Even if he was drugged, all those feelings had to have been inside him already. He couldn't have been forced to feel that stuff. Not as strongly as he does. That means he's been harboring these emotions for a long time."
"No. He's been under the assholes’ influence for a long time. He's had reprogramming and mind control."
Her steps slowed. She turned to study her brother.
Seth caught her gaze and spat on the ground. Goran cuffed him on the back of his head.
Tessa turned away, shivering. Serus put an arm around her shoulders and tugged her closer. Seth would pay for that. He'd make sure of it. But not right now. "You have to give him a chance. This is not the same brother you sat with a week ago."
"Yes, it is. They'd have been giving him drugs way before then. He knew what he was doing last week. We didn't know. And even now he's not sorry, he's only sorry he's been caught."
There was enough truth to her words that Serus held back any comments. "Besides, what does his guilt have to do with the reason we are going deeper into the mountain now?"
"Because this isn't over. Because there are more assholes here. More top level leaders to take out, and I want to make sure no one is left to restart such a nightmare ever again."
He could understand that. He didn't agree with it as their group had become bedraggled and needed rest, especially her, but he wanted the same outcome.
"And..."
"And I want to find my friends. I thought it would be okay to have the army find them and get them help, but with this mountain rumbling like it is, I don’t want to take the chance. They are here because of me and I can't leave them."