“I’m not gay, Shoestring.”
He frowns. “They never are.”
Before I can respond, a loud knock interrupts us. He winks again and sashays across the room and around the corner.
I rub my eyelids. What the fuck is going on here? I’m in a house with Tripp and his super white name in some reenactment of Brokeback Mountain.
Then there’s Kiwi, with her unwarranted black girl attitude giving me blue balls for no reason.
“Kenya!” Tripp bellows from out in the hall. “Come in, girl.” The door slams shut and two pairs of feet pound their way into the living room.
“Pike.” Kenya nods at me. I nod back. She looks around. “Where is Kiwi?”
A bang rings out from another room in the house, and Kiwi comes rushing in. She smiles at Kenya. “I’m here.”
Kenya claps. “I’m here to escort you to the main grounds where you’ll take lunch in the main cafeteria. Colonel Jax will lead the Presenting. All you three have to do is sit on stage next to him. From there, Juliet will brief you on the rest of your day.” She smiles. “If you’ll follow me.”
Kiwi is on her feet first and the two of them start for the front hall. Tripp glances at me. I take it as a cue to stand up and get moving. He follows suit. Together, we rush to catch up. They’re halfway through the door. As we close the distance between us, Tripp lets me go ahead of him and closes the door behind us.
Outside, the light is sickly yellow. The four of us trudge across the grounds of Compound Six, which is on an old military base in what used to be Alabama. As we walk, I step closer to Tripp.
I nod ahead toward Kiwi. “She always that mean?”
He shakes his head. “A little intense, but no, the attitude is new.” He grins. “Showed up at the same time you did.”
My hand rises to shield my eyes from the weird interrogation room glare.
I grin. “Well, I like a challenge.”
Tripp sniggers. “I’ll take that bet.”
I shake my head. “If you win, I’ll let you give me a blow job.”
Laughter gushes out of him and I glance up at the sky. There is something off about it. A flicker of yellow ripples across a space that is more silver than blue. For some reason those ripples put me on edge.
I’m so busy looking up that I barrel right into Kiwi. My head jerks down toward her. “Sorry,” I mutter.
She hisses up into my face.
Surprise doubles me back, eyes narrowed. “The fuck?”
Everyone stops in their tracks and Kiwi is the first to set back off in the direction of what looks like an old hospital. Kenya offers a sympathetic smile and turns to follow her.We pass beside a small, man-made pond settled beside an old golf club. Everything is beige and maroon bricks, gated in by fences with wisps of electrical charge making the air buzz.
Scattered in the distance sets a row of watchtowers with armed Enforcers atop them. Beside me, Tripp clears his throat and my eyes dart over to him. He nods up at the sky.
“Weird, isn’t it?”
I raise my gaze again. “Doesn’t feel natural.”
“That’s because it’s not.”
My eyes widen and he nods. “Yeah, we’re boxed in.”
“Meaning?”
“There is an energy field around the entire compound,” Kenya says from a few paces in front of us.
I turn my attention toward her. “Why?”
“Because berserkers aren’t the only danger out there,” Kenya says, leading us left. “The energy field went up after the last fire storm.”
I blink. “Fire storm?”
She doesn’t get a chance to reply because we stop at a row of low, concrete barricades with a few armed guards at each end. Kenya flashes a badge at the nearest one and he nods us forward. We have to zig zag through the barricade maze, then trek up a small hill.
I clear my throat and again ask, “Fire storm?”
“Yeah.” She glances over her shoulder. “We lost twenty people in it. After that, the field went up. It’s manipulated to look like the real sky. Most people don’t notice it.” She eyes me as we approach a rectangular building with rows of boxed windows. It stands five floors high. As we approach a set of glass double doors Kenya turns to me, an interested regard on her face. “It’s rumored the gods are back,” she says in a low voice.
Dead weight drops onto my shoulders. She turns, leading us past more guards and into a sea of light blue-cloaked bodies. People bump into me from every direction as I weave through the crowd, losing sight of Kenya and Kiwi. I edge near the corner of the room. That’s when I spot them by an elevator. I rush to meet them, followed seconds later by Shoestring. My stomach twists into knots. The elevator ding makes me jump. As we pile inside, her words circle through my head.
It’s rumored the gods are back.
If that’s even close to true, for what? To protect the creatures they made? I sure as shit don’t think so. To help the mortals? Not likely. And which gods? Hopefully not any from the former U.S. of A.
The elevator dings again, batting away those questions. I sweep my gaze over another sea of blue bodies. Pairs of eyes dart toward us as we walk through the cafeteria. A low buzz of mumbles swirls in the air. It swells until every eye stares into me. Then it cuts to total silence.
It’s so quiet you could hear a silent fart shake someone’s butt cheeks. I stare straight ahead and try to ignore the hundreds of eyes following our movement toward the front of the room.
My gaze fixes on Colonel Jax seated on a platform, looking like a confused asshat trying to decide between being a pirate and being Goth. Anger rushes from my flared nostrils at the sight of him. To make things even more fun, Juliet is seated on his left along with some Indian dude-dot, not native-in a wheelchair.
When we’re closer to the platform, Jaxass stands and holds out his arms, then holds his hug pose.
“Friends, welcome the guests of honor,” he says in his whisper of a voice.
My eyes narrow further until I can barely see. Blurs of movement flash in my periphery. Almost as if commanded, everyone in the room stands. I take in a sharp breath and freeze. Unnoticed, the rest of my team march up the steps and onto the platform.
My hands ball into fists, and I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face with a tire iron. A wave of want and need pricks every inch of me.
Shit burger, there are so many of them…
So many humans. And I want them all. Deep blue stains my vision, and the call buzzes my lips. I try to bite it down, try to move.
Can’t.
I form an “o” with my lips and prepare to ease the buzzing pain.
Yeah, I’m going to call each and every one of them. The song swells in my throat.
“Pike!” Sadie’s voice slices through. Brings my ability to reason with it. I turn left, toward the sound of her voice. She stands there, her face twisted into a what gives expression. We lock eyes and I don’t dare look anywhere else.
That girl is the only thing keeping me human, so to speak.
Hands clamp down on my shoulders. My head jerks forward, and my eyes take in Jax. I didn’t hear him move, but now he’s planted right in front of me.
“Are you alright?” he whispers with a concerned dad tone.
“Um.” I gaze around the silent cafeteria and slowly nod. My eyes touch Sadie’s face again. This time she wears a half scowl. I grin before Jax pulls me up onto the platform.
The buzz in my limbs ebbs away as I trudge up the stairs and take the empty seat next to Kiwi. I keep my eyes averted. The last thing I need right now is a death glare.
My fingers lift to my temples and I rub out the last of my need to kill buzz. It falls away slowly; I swallow it to the pit of my stomach. When I get control of myself, my normal senses return. Sight first.
Juliet says something I don’t catch, then the room fills with applause. As she takes a seat, Jaxass steps up to the podium. He lifts a silver flask to his lips and takes a long sip. Then he places it into h
is inside pocket and swipes both hands over his lumpy, baldhead. The clapping dies down. He doesn’t speak until the room is still.
“We’ve all been living in hard times.” His voice, usually a soft whisper, becomes a louder whisper.
I sweep my gaze from him to the crowd. The better to see if they’re going to swallow this bullshit. Everyone is leaned forward and tense. As if one escaped word from Jaxass is a matter of life and death.
“We’ve all lost people we love, our sense of security.” He pauses. “Our civilization teeters on a scary cliff of the unknown.”
Heads nod. Tears roll. I surprise myself by not snorting. Instead, I let my gaze flitter over to Sadie. Her arms are crossed over her chest. She glowers at everyone around her with clear frustration.
And I can’t help but smile. Momma didn’t raise a fool. Glancing away before I start laughing, I place a fist under my nose to keep out the smell of BS.
“Well, I am here to tell you that hope is not lost,” Jax says, raising his fist in the air.
Someone in the crowd whoops. He goes on. “It is true that things may never be the same, but what is lost can be recovered.” Two of his fingers stab the podium. “And we will rebuild.”
Applause explodes inside the cafeteria, drowning out all other sound. Their happiness drizzles onto me. It makes for a nice little high.
I haven’t tasted hope like this in a while. Every human feeling in this space swells. Every. Human. Feeling.
Something makes me frown despite the light energy swirling inside my head.
Every human.
But, there have to be others. My kind. I focus my power and reach for them. Seconds trickle away. I have to block out Kiwi and Tripp’s energy. Minutes run out, and I find nothing.
“Residents of Compound Six,” Jax’s voice slithers out again, robbing my focus. “I submit to you that there is a cure beyond our protective walls.”
Stone silence. I glance over at the Colonel. Both his hands are draped on either side of the podium. “But we cannot continue like this. Divided… scared.”
I roll my eyes. He sounds like a poorly done Abe Lincoln.
He steps back and gestures to the three of us, eyes locking on mine. Then, in the loudest voice I’ve ever heard him use, he says, “I present to you… this brave team. A group of people and descendants of the gods who have dedicated themselves to retrieving our cure.” With a smile, he turns back to the awed crowd. “The new world rests on their shoulders.” He points at Tripp. “Tripp Mason.” He stands with a gesture from Jax. “Kiwi Grunder.” Ditto. “And, the hope we’ve been waiting for… Pike Richards.”
My eyes stretch open. It takes me a few seconds to stand with my new teammates. Colonel Jax starts the clapping, and my mind tunnels around that last remark.
The hope they’ve been waiting for? Hell does that even mean? It takes several moments for the applause to still. Jaxass motions for us to sit, and I stumble backward, confused as a mofo. As I lower myself back into my chair, my arm brushes Kiwi’s.
I know that you like to do it.
My body tenses and my eyes dart around the room. I dig my hands into the sides of the chair.
You like to sing. Like to kill. Want to kill now, don’t you?
I try shaking the voice out of my head.
I see you. You like it. Crave it.
My fingers press into my temples, hard. Like the action will drive whatever the hell it is out.
But—maybe you can’t live with yourself. Maybe you should kill--
My jaw clenches.
Yourself. Do it. Do it now. Do it. Now.
A scream punches its way up from my gut and slams the walls. Blood red falls across my vision. I dig my nails into my face and start to rock. I must look like I’m up batshit nuts creek. And I try to stop, but something has put me under.
In the back of my mind I know it’s an attack. With another pained howl, I grunt and push back, hard.
And again. Until finally, the red floats away like droplets of blood.
There is no way to tell how long everyone has been gaping at me. Clearing my throat, I lower my hands to my sides. Masks of horror paint all their faces, which I get. But I can’t think of shit to say so we sit in thick silence together.
My gaze snaps over to Kiwi. She’s looking over at me. Then, her lips curl with a half-smile. My eyes narrow.
Shit on a limp dick. It was her crazy ass. Light footsteps interrupt how much I was just about to hate her. I look up at Colonel Jax.
“Are you okay, son?”
Son, huh? That’s unnecessary. I manage a tight grin.
“Yes, sir.” I keep my voice low, so that only we can hear. “Must be a little PTSD, ya know, from my time in the Pit.”
Crinkles set in beside his narrow eyes when he smiles. Without a word, he nods and returns to his place in the center of the stage.
I try not to glance at Kiwi as people set up trays in front of us. Hushed conversation fills the room, and Colonel Jax announces it’s time to eat.
Biting the inside of my lip, I lean back and listen to the clatter of forks hit trays and gulps from people drinking. It fades into the background, and I just sit. And stare.
My gaze settles on a tall, muscular dude. I notice the bulging tattoo on this throat. It bobs up and down on his Adam’s apple.
It’s an equal armed cross.
A symbol I know real well.
A symbol of purity. A cross to separate us from them.
My eyes slide up his beefy throat and lock onto his gray eyes. His eyes are locked on me too, burning like drugs injected into muscle. The longer our gazes meet, the harder the lines in his face get.
Yeah, I know that look.
Means he wants to step to me. Do something violent.
A smile stretches my lips wide. I flash him all the teeth.
His eyes turn to slits and I wink at him.
It’s worth it. The fury on his face flushes him sunburned red. His mouth opens and closes like a fish that can’t figure out a bigger fish. I feel the emotion rolling off him. He can’t stand to look at me anymore. Finally, he looks away, leaps up and storms out of the cafeteria, not bothering to bus his tray.
I chuckle until my eyes dart over to Sadie. She’s not eating, either. Her mouth is turned down in a frown, and she just stares. Then she shakes her head. I slump back into my chair. She’s right. Fuck am I doing here? The buzz of chitchat makes my head pound. I stare as Sadie makes a point of looking around at the crowd.
And that’s when something clicks in my brain.
Something I realized earlier. They are all human. Each one of them.
It makes no sense. I know there are more of us here. I heard their wails in the Pit…
I close my eyes. No.
No way.
An image of the equal armed cross, a symbol these people piss all over, bobs inside my head.
What did Jaxass lie?
We can’t live divided.
Yet, here we are.
I’m still deep in thought as the cafeteria empties. When I finally move again, I gaze over at Colonel Jax and point at him.
“I have words.” I smile. “They want some alone time with you.”
I tap my fingers against my knees in the empty cafeteria. All that remain are the Colonel and Juliet. They stand several feet away, speaking in low tones. By the time they stop I’ve tapped two hundred and thirty eight times. I force myself to quit, then wrap my hand around my thigh to lessen the temptation.
I glance over just as Juliet starts heading toward me, fingers rested lightly on her side arm. She pauses in front of me, peers down, and reaches into a pouch on her belt. My eyes widen when she pulls out a syringe.
“Pike, I need you to hold out your arm.”
I shrink back. “The hell for?”
Her eyes flicker back to my face and she waits.
Gulping down a dry patch of nerves, I study the liquid swimming inside. Light blue, and it is in no way getting into my veins.
“It’s an infusion of monkshood.” She swings her hair over her shoulder.
I raise an eyebrow. “And… why would I let you inject me with that?”
While she stares down at me, unmoved, I try to burn her with my gaze. For people that want nothing to do with us, they know their shit.
Well, I guess that shouldn’t be a shocker. Know thy enemy and all that crap. I hesitate because a monkshood injection will magically sedate my black ass. It’s not a good time, not as bad as nightshade, but that’s not exactly a silver lining.
I shake my head. “No thanks.”
“It’ll wear off in ten minutes.” She sniffs. “And I’m sure you can understand that I can’t leave you alone with the leader of this compound without taking precautions.” Her head tilts to the side. “So, take it or this conversation doesn’t happen.”
Fuck my life.
I shoot a hateful look at Jaxass, then glance back at Juliet. My jaw clenches as I nod and pull up my right sleeve. She squeezes a latex strip around my bicep, taps my arm at the crease of my elbow, and then slides the needle in.
I wince when she pushes in the infusion. An icy burn tears up my arm, then ripples of pain burst to the rest of my body. Tears pool in my eyes. I struggle for air that burns my chest.
The room swims in front of me like a bad acid trip.
“That’ll give you ten minutes.” Juliet’s voice warps in my ears. I shut my eyes as her feet thunder away from us.
I feel like I’m buried under a crap ton of ice. Reaching up, I cover my eyes and try to pull it together.
My head starts to steady, not much, but enough. Jax clears his throat. I drop my hands and try to turn my head. After a few minutes, I finally manage to twist my body in his direction.
He’s seated in a chair across from me, leaned over, hands clasped in a ball.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Richards?”
I struggle to keep my eyes open. To meet his calm stare. This, I manage, but the only other thing I seem capable of is panting and sweating.
I hold up my hand and fingers streak across my vision. I blink, then stare. As I lower it, Colonel Jax leans back and crosses his legs.
Silenced Page 5