Stopping this thing was the only thing that mattered now. I knew it would raise its defenses as soon as the shots started, but maybe I could weaken them.
Barry's voice rose from somewhere out of sight. “This world isn't for you.”
The beast didn't look up, but it started to raise the protective wall of air. Seeing the flow, I reached through the Path and cut through the wall. Before I could tell if my tactic worked, I started to fire.
The creature shrieked when other gunshots erupted. The wall was gone and the shots were well aimed. It folded its wings in, trying to make itself smaller. The trunk of dark energy surged downward and struck home. The power of the portals cracked open and started to pour into the creature. The lights went out, but the Path was fiery white.
The sordis turned to me. I pulled the trigger and nothing happened. The clip was spent.
It couldn't smile with a beak, but through its fury and pain, I also felt triumph.
“Broken pacts will be paid,” it said.
Shots fired from Logan's direction. I tried to block the creature’s defenses but it was like throwing a pebble to stop a waterfall. The beast turned and crouched. It sprang forward. Barry’s scream pierced the air. I left the relative safety of the hall and entered the room while trying to form an assault on the creature's Path.
The air pressure was intense.
The sordis screeched and clawed Barry up from the floor. A swirling mass started to form beside them.
“I know my way back,” it said.
Barry screamed. I tried to pull the Path, to alter it in some way, but it felt carved in stone. With no plan, I moved forward as fast as my broken leg could manage. Barry was dragged into the portal. I stopped and stared. Screams continued to tear through the hole between dimensions after Barry disappeared. Moments later, the portal closed. The pressure in the room subsided.
“He's gone.” My voice came out far too loud in the still room. All traces of Path connected to Barry and the sordis had been broken. The remnants left behind swirled, as if uncertain, before morphing into the slow-paced flow of a nearly empty room.
Logan came up beside me. We stared at the place they disappeared.
Kyrian walked into the room and broke the silence. “It's gone?”
We turned. In the dim light from the hall, she looked pale and unsteady on her feet.
“They're gone,” Logan said.
The thought of asking her where she had been entered my mind, but fell away just as fast. She had never been an agent. What could she have done?
Instead, I asked, “Where's Hank?”
Logan paled. “Hank?” He called out. His voice had the broken edge of panic.
Despair from Logan engulfed me before I broke away from the Path. It felt like heartbreak.
I hobbled around trying to navigate through the mangled desks and debris. “Hank?”
Kyrian joined us. “We need a head count.” Her voice carried through the room. “Call out if you can hear us.”
Groaning came from under a bulky computer monitor. Dropping my crutch, I pulled aside a monitor and found an agent. Blood had soaked through his shirt and trickled from his ear. Logan was staring at me apprehensively from across the room. After a quick shake of my head, I called out to two employees that had gathered, but were only staring blankly at the wreckage. They mutely took over putting pressure on the gash across the man's chest.
The crunch of metal pulling away from metal came from Logan.
“Hank!”
I used my crutch for leverage and left the bleeding agent. When I made it over to Logan, he held our unconscious handler.
Logan talked to Hank in a calm but firm voice, telling him to wake up.
“Get the doctor!” I yelled across the room to Kyrian.
She had been issuing orders to people as they entered the room. “He's on his way.”
Tears streaked Logan’s face. I had no idea that Logan's relationship with Hank ran this deep. I started clearing away wrecked keyboards and chairs in an effort to free up more space around the two. When the doctor rushed in, bag in hand, I waved him over.
Dr. Yelton relayed orders for a brace and stretcher. He gripped Logan's arm, forcing the elf to look him in the eyes. “He's been knocked out. It doesn't look bad, but he needs a CT scan. Move him carefully upstairs and I’ll meet you there.”
Logan nodded and waited for the stretcher. Dr. Yelton went to examine the next person injured.
When the stretcher arrived, I started to follow my partner upstairs.
“Stay here.” Logan's face was fierce. “Help where you can.”
I would have protested, but a pleading look was in Logan's eyes that I had never seen before.
He wanted to be alone. It hurt, but I understood.
I fell back and examined the room. Three more men were injured. Two people were clearing walking room through the wreckage. Kyrian was in the center issuing orders.
After limping over to Kyrian, I stared mutely around. It seemed like hours had gone by. Days even. If it weren't for the shot Dr. Yelton gave me, I'd be weary and bleary eyed. Instead, I was numb.
“Barry wanted you out of the way,” Kyrian said.
I couldn't bring emotion to my voice. “He did.”
“He thought you could have tied him to his crimes.”
“I should have tied him to the crime.” I sighed and leaned heavily on a crutch.
“Go see the doctor,” Kyrian said.
“I should help out here,” I said without moving.
“Washington will be here later today,” Kyrian said. “I want you checked out by the doctor and back home.”
Kyrian strode off without another word.
Progress was being made around the room, but it was slow. Over the loudspeakers came three long, low tones. Lockdown was being lifted. Metal shutters on windows and doors would be rolling back. More agents would be arriving.
The place where the portal had opened and closed stood empty. I shook my head. Enough agents would be around. Someone else can keep an eye on this. As agents started arriving, I headed toward the clinic upstairs.
I was expecting similar chaos and noise around the patients’ rooms, but things weren't bad. Keeping quiet, I sat in one of the hallway chairs. The MyTH doctor and extra medical staff on hand provided quick care. Rooms were in short supply. The Lost and seriously injured took the rooms, injured agents, like myself, sat out of the way.
“He's awake.”
Logan was standing beside me. I hadn't noticed him walk up, but that shouldn't surprise me. He didn't look tense, which was a good sign.
“He'll be okay then?” I asked.
Logan nodded. “A knock on the noggin and a few bruises, but he'll be good as new. How about you?”
I had to think about the question before answering. “I'm good. Kyrian wanted me to see the doctor before heading home.”
“Home? She doesn't want you to stick around? Be debriefed or something?”
“No, she’s more worried about the guys from Washington arriving.”
Logan nodded and sat down. We watched people come and go. We watched the doctor become more and more worn down.
“Listen,” Logan said keeping his eyes on an agent standing down the hall. He seemed uncomfortable. “About downstairs. With Hank—”
“It's good that you found him so fast.”
“Yeah,” Logan said. He didn't look away from the man down the hall.
“He's going to be okay.”
Logan stayed silent.
“We're all going to be okay,” I said.
A corner of Logan's mouth curled up in a half grin. “Good to hear,” he said.
Chapter 30
“I'll be out for a few hours,” Gran said. “Logan will be here to pick you up for work soon, so we'll catch up tonight.”
“I’m off work for the week,” I reminded Gran.
“I know, hun, but Logan’s going to need you today.”
The thought of go
ing into work made my stomach turn into knots. “Sure thing, Gran.”
After Gran left, I flipped on the TV and mindlessly flipped through channels. I was under doctor's orders to take it easy for a week, and for once, I wanted to listen to those orders.
Twenty minutes later, Logan came in through the kitchen and I went to greet him.
“How are things at the office?” I asked, as I pushed a plate of cookies in his direction.
“The boys from Washington have moseyed out of town.”
“They left fast.” I sat down and propped my foot up.
Logan shrugged. “They got what they needed.”
“Have they tracked down all the Lost yet?”
“There's one or two we’re still working on, but we'll find them.” Logan pulled at the collar of his shirt.
“What aren't you telling me?” I asked.
“This is the hard part. We've been placed under a gag order. No one inside the agency, outside of those already in the know, can find out about Barry.”
I sneered. “What's that supposed to mean?”
“The rest of the agency is being told he died while trying to protect people from the sordis attack. Barry is being touted as a hero. Idea is that it helps with moral.”
I gritted my teeth. “Someone who tried to kill me is being praised for saving our lives?”
“Seems like the real information has already been destroyed. Redacted down to nonsense.”
Logan let me fume for a minute before pressing on. “Kyrian is in charge for now. That little lady is determined to drag us into the twenty first century. When you get back to the office, there's plenty of scanning and shredding to do. We're going digital.”
“Gran says I'm going to work today.”
“Well, I wasn't sure you should go, but Travis seemed to think he needs you. If you’re up for it, we need to head over to the Sanctuary today.”
“That's better than going into the office.”
I grabbed my crutches and Logan drove me to the Sanctuary.
Travis and James met us in the parking lot and we rode out together in the ATVs. We took the trail slowly to accommodate my leg. It was aching fiercely when I got off the machine.
We went past the cave entrance and stepped into the woods.
I frowned and looked around. “Looks a lot different from when we dropped the troll off.”
“Everything's dying,” Logan said.
The leaves should have been a riot of color. Instead, they had already stripped themselves from the trees.
“The trees are starting to rot. What's worse, it's spreading.” Travis pointed out toward trees at the edge of the dead ones. “The grass and bramble are dying out and the trees are starting to look sickly.”
I shifted uncomfortably on my crutches. “I fed that creature's energy into the ground here.”
“I invited James along. He has some ideas on how to fix the area,” Travis said.
James walked slowly around the area, making sure not to step in the area where plants were dying. “They are only theories at this point. I think we need to know exactly what we're dealing with before we start.”
Logan tapped his head. “See anything useful?”
I looked around at the bleak landscape once more before closing my eyes and opening the Path. It was getting easier to push back the raging flow, but it threatened to overwhelm me if I dropped my guard.
The Path in the dead ground seemed to boil up and come in my direction. “Oh, crap.” I pushed the energy back using the Path.
“What is it?” Logan shifted his stance as though ready to attack.
“It startled me. The energy jumped out and wanted to join with my own Path.” Pushing more firmly. “It's actually settling back into the ground with surprising ease.”
Logan relaxed.
“It's energy then?” James asked. “Nothing sentient?”
I watched the nameless mass as it sunk tendrils around another tree and dragged on its Path. “It's dark and volatile, but in the end, it's energy without direction.”
James smiled. “That, we can deal with.”
Travis, James, and I discussed cleansing methods and came up with a plan. James lit a smudge stick and walked the outside of the area, chanting as he went. He couldn’t see where the darkness started and stopped, but he must sense its edge. He never went beyond and never strayed into the muck. When he was finished, the area around the oily pool flexed. The ritual would keep the dark energy from spreading further into the woods. Before letting go of the Path, I probed the area gently. It was locked down.
We made the trek back out of the woods. We made a plan for follow up treatments, said our goodbyes, and went home.
The trip wore me out, but Halloween was around the corner and I needed a costume. With that in mind, I went out with Gran and Susan the next day and picked out a costume. Super Girl was out. Super Girl could not have a broken leg and I felt very un-Super Girlish. Instead, I chose a generic witch costume. It was long enough to work with a broken leg without showing anything I didn't want to show.
Morgan and Gran presented themselves on Halloween. They looked fantastic as the Frankenstein and his bride. They headed out to a party with Logan, dressed in his cowboy gear.
I stayed back at the house and Rider joined me to pass out candy.
We sat in the living room and I introduced Rider to the world of scary movies.
“You are looking for him, are you not?” Rider asked.
“What do you mean?”
“You have looked up at the stairs several times now.”
I blinked at Rider. “I didn't even notice that I was doing it.”
“He will be back. I did not know Vincent well, but I saw the two of you together several times. He will be back.”
I shrugged and reflected back on Vincent. A piece of me was missing; the piece of my soul that Vincent had tucked away inside. Would I know if that piece of me had died?
Work was evolving. Under Kyrian’s reign, improvements were being made. I was even thinking of taking some classes in forensics in the spring. Forging forward was the key.
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Acknowledgements
While working on AIR: Shattered Soul, I’ve had amazing support from family and friends. Special thanks to Adria Waters. She sat next to me when I typed the first words in this novel, gave me feedback on multiple drafts, and has walked through the entire process next to me. She is a constant well of encouragement and lends a sympathetic ear when needed. I’d also like to thank Hadena James, who gave valuable feedback and consistently encouraged me to move forward and Christina Benedict, who made sure I didn’t stay discouraged when I fell.
Finding a home with multiple writers’ groups allowed me to receive constructive feedback from a wide variety of viewpoints. The Columbia Missouri Novelists group and the Writers In Robs Living Room have given me valuable insight. Members of Bacon provided me with support and information along the way. Leigh Michaels provided detailed comments that assisted me seeing the novel in a new light. Thank you to Frankie Sutton, my editor, for all of her assistance. Deranged Doctor Design provided me with a wonderful cover design and formatting.
I also want to thank my parents for reading everything that I put under their noses throughout my life. My sister Tamera was supportive and very understanding when I couldn’t talk because I was typing away. Other thanks need to be extended to Kathie Booloodian for reading an early draft and providing feedback while encouraging me to get moving on AIR II. Also to Sharon Booloodian for providing feedback and encouragement. Also to my beta readers, Oliver and Erica Jones, and Angel Whitaker, I appreciated your help. Many, many other family, friends, and acquaintances have been incredibly supportive. Thank you all.
Most of all I must thank my husband for his continued reassurance, inspiration, and assistance in all m
y writing endeavors.
About the Author
Amanda Booloodian lives in Missouri with her loving, and often times peculiar, husband. In 2006, she took part in Great Beginnings and was awarded first place in the Mystery/Thriller category. Amanda has been passionate about the written word throughout her life. Now, much of her spare time is spent at the computer, delving into worlds accessible only through vivid imagination. In warm weather, when she isn’t pounding on the keyboard, she can often be found wandering through the wilderness. Occasionally she gets it into her head to SCUBA dive or to sit back at home and make wine, which can have interesting results and inspire her writing.
You can find out more about Amanda and her writing, including upcoming releases, on www.Booloodian.com. You can also find her on Facebook: Amanda Booloodian - Author, Twitter: @ajbooloodian, and Amazon: Amanda Booloodian.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Acknowledgements
About the Author
A.I.R. Shattered Soul Page 24