The Price of Knowing: A Powers of Influence Novel (The Powers of Influence Book 2)

by C. B. Haight

  Collett even let out a poorly-concealed laugh when, almost at the same time, they thought about how confining and rigid the SUV was. Cade and Jarrett both looked to her, but she offered no explanation for her chuckle and only waved them away with her hand. Though still curious, they both eventually went back to their own ponderings.

  Before long, they drove into the campgrounds near the cliffs that visitors stay in during the summer months. Nearing the end of January, the campgrounds were empty. It was a relief that the group would not have to contend with large crowds. The only people they would likely see were the occasional hikers.

  The temperatures were chilly, especially in the evenings, but not uncomfortable and would suit their needs well enough. The rain was worse. During the winter months, rain here could be substantial; yet another reason the average tourist waited for summer.

  Massive Redwood trees and different types of foliage surrounded the area in all directions, and fog came in and went out as well. The brothers worried those elements could trap them, but Collett saw both problems more as a source of protection than anything.

  The afternoon they arrived was filled with a low fog that made it difficult to pick an ideal location. A few times, the group exited their vehicles and searched for a suitable spot then decide to move on. On the fourth time, they deemed the area workable and began to settle in.

  Planning as much as possible, they’d brought all the gear they deemed necessary, and everyone pitched in to set up for the undetermined amount of time. Making camp kept them busy and calmed their nerves.

  The next morning was different. Smart enough to know this would be a setup, Jarrett, Cade, and Delphene spent the day as wolves scouting the vicinity around camp. While they did, Collett explored, following one of the many trails and taking in the sights.

  The majesty around them was something one could not take lightly. She considered the natural beauty of every tree and flower. Before long, a midnight-black wolf materialized through the fading fog not far from her. She knew he was there and sensed his disapproval of her wandering alone.

  It was heartening to know he cared at all. Jarrett watched her as she placed her hand gently on the trunk of a mighty redwood that stretched so tall it seemed as if it would reach upward to touch the sun before much longer.

  “I think I’ve been here before,” she confessed.

  Jarrett cocked his head to an angle, listening carefully.

  “I’ve wandered these woods before,” she paused and looked around slowly.

  Jarrett padded to her and nudged her hand with his head, urging her to continue.

  “It was different then. These trees—I don’t know, maybe it was somewhere else,” she said, turning to meet his eyes.

  He didn’t move, she knew he didn’t agree.

  “Cody told me to go back,” she said, as if in agreement. “But if I’ve been here before, it must have been a very long time ago,” she told him, looking up at the giant tree.

  Jarrett used his large wolf’s head to indicate the direction of camp. She patted him softly and began walking, but she stopped after a few steps. Turning to look at him again, she confessed, “I wanted to save her, Jarrett.” He looked away. She knew he didn’t want to talk about it. “I don’t understand much about who I was, who I am, but I know I wanted to save her.” Collett looked to the sky above her. “I can’t explain the feelings I have or what they mean. I know though, I couldn’t save her. It wasn’t meant for me.” Looking back, she saw him staring at her again, and she met his soul piercing gaze once more. “Somehow, I understand that I would have made things worse, but I’ll forever be sorry for the little boy it hurt.”

  Jarrett kept eye contact with her for several heartbeats.

  “With everything—in case I don’t— I thought you should know,” she said with a sigh.

  She felt his sorrow as a result of bringing the subject up, but she also felt his acceptance wash through her. It offered her a sense of relief. He jerked his head in a form of assent and then padded off toward camp, indicating he was finished with the conversation.

  That night was quiet, and it made everyone feel edgy. None of them could predict how or when Niall would find them, and not knowing was the worst part. After almost everyone settled in their respective tents, Jarrett sat outside by the small fire with Delphene to keep watch.

  “Do you think the boy is still alive?” Delphene asked him quietly with her thick accent more prominent because of her low tone.

  Jarrett only shook his head. He didn’t think Cody would still be alive.

  “Maybe we’ve made a mistake. If he is dead, then what do we gain? She is not ready,” she told him.

  It wasn’t anything he hadn’t already thought about himself. “Because he’ll find another victim and do it to her again,” Jarrett answered, knowing Niall’s threat was real.

  Delphene said nothing for a while after that. “If he knows her so well, better than she herself, can we have a hope of outsmarting him?”

  Jarrett did smile then, a wicked, cocky smile that sent a shiver down the she-wolf’s spine. “We don’t have to. All we need is an opportunity, and that arrogant bastard is going to give it to us.” Jarrett looked back to the flickering flames in front of him and watched them dance and sway. “I’ll find a way to end him. Even if it isn’t this time. I fully intend to make sure that, one day, Niall will regret ever crossing my path.”

  “At this point, wolf, that is something I do not doubt he does already,” she replied.

  Early the next morning, the fog was once more thick and enveloped the area. Rederrick and Nate moved about early, collecting wood for the day. They stayed fairly close to camp for safety reasons, but it was still a good distance between them and the others. Searching for dead branches and fuel had them about 20 yards apart from each other and weaving in and out of trees.

  Nate heard a shuffling emanate from behind a tree not 10 feet from his position. He covertly bent as if to retrieve wood, but instead he dropped all but one branch. He mimicked brushing at his pants, but silently pulled the dagger from his boot in the process.

  “This wood’s got ants in it,” he called loud enough for all to hear. “Big ones. They must be crawling all over our camp.” Luckily, Rederrick understood his meaning and moved his direction. He only hoped the rest of them heard.

  Nate moved forward as if nothing changed, and as he passed the tree, the man struck. Or at least, he tried to. Nate dropped low and swung the fist-thick log around, making contact with the attacker’s stomach.

  He heard an audible grunt as the wood hit his opponent, but Nate wasted no time thinking about it. Commotion erupted around him. He ignored it. Using his momentum, he swung up and around, landing several blows to his victim's face and a heavy kick to the gut. Grabbing the attacker's arm, Nate yanked him forward and threw him off balance. As his enemy began to stumble, Nate forced him back with a jab at the man’s throat.

  The quick actions were a blur of movement and impressive by any standard. Over years of training, Nate had learned how to use every muscle as a weapon, a weapon so efficient that he could even make it past Cade’s defenses on occasion.

  Nate forced his opponent against the very tree the attacker had hidden behind. With his forearm arm bunched and pressed tightly against his neck, Nate assessed the situation. Cade stood, sword in hand, not far away. Demon remnants scattered the ground around him, and Jarrett stood nearby in much the same manner. Thick fog made it hard to see, but he managed to make out the rest of the group, alert and in defensive positions.

  He turned his attention back to his would be attacker, and realized it was the man from the warehouse where they found Jarrett. It took Nate a second to think of the man’s name. “Victor?” he questioned, then his lips curled and he accused angrily, “You are Victor.”

  “I calculated you’d be the easiest and least likely to kill me,” he rasped through his constricted windpipe.

  Bringing his knife within the man’s view, Nat
e replied, “You should recalculate, and fast.”

  “No, wait!” Collett shouted.

  Nate made sure to display his disappointment. Even though he suspected someone would stop him, he figured there was no sense in letting Victor know that. Cade approached with Victor’s imminent death displayed in his eyes, but Jarrett’s expression promised much worse than death.

  “On second thought, considering those two, maybe you were right,” Nate implied.

  “I have a message,” he rasped out desperately.

  “Well you better deliver it quick, otherwise you’re not gonna get a chance,” suggested Nate with dead seriousness.

  Cade arrived first, and placing the tip of his sword against Victor’s chest, ordered darkly, “Talk.”

  “You can’t scare me. I’ve been around my master far too long to be afraid of you. Could someone retrieve my glasses please,” Victor replied defiantly with a cool, snide tone.

  Moving up to them, Jarrett nudged Nate aside and stood in his place in front of the prisoner. Nate only grinned knowingly as he shifted from view.

  Victor tried to stare Jarrett down as he had Cade, but failed miserably. He swallowed hard at the promise of violence evident in The Hunter’s eyes.

  “Talk,” he said with complete calm.

  “My message is for her,” he said pointing to Collett. “I am to deliver it and return with her response. You can’t kill me, or he’ll kill the boy,” Victor told him.

  Jarrett lifted a brow, “That’s unfortunate, because you won’t be going back.” He lifted his sword eyeing the length of it.

  “Why should I tell you then?” Victor questioned.

  “You might live if you do,” Cade injected with venom.

  “How do I know you won’t kill me anyway?” Victor asked.

  Bending in closer so that they were practically nose to nose, Jarrett said in a low voice, “I suppose you’ll have to calculate the odds. You seem to be good at that.”

  Victor heard the deadly threat lacing every word. “The cliffs not far from here,” he started to say, but hesitated.

  Jarrett gave him a hard look.

  “The cliffs. Tonight he will meet you on the cliffs. Right up that trail there,” he said, pointing to one of the many trails. “If she comes to talk with him, then you can have Cody back.”

  “Yeah, right,” Nate replied.

  “He says to tell her he knows who she is. He can help her remember, but she has to come alone.”

  “That’s not going to happen,” Rederrick said from behind them.

  “When?” Jarrett questioned in a low tone.

  “Tonight.”

  “When?” Jarrett replied more firmly.

  “After the sun is gone from the sky,” Victor said.

  Jarrett tore his attention from Victor to look at Cade. Without any words, Cade understood Jarrett’s intent. He hesitated, but seeing no alternative, he grimly agreed with a nod. Jarrett lifted his sword.

  “No!” Collett shouted.

  Cade and Jarrett both looked back to her as she ran to them. “No!” she repeated with a firmness that surprised them. “You can’t do this.”

  Jarrett glared at her.

  “Will you be like him, then?” she accused, propelling Jarrett back to his memory of her standing proud and strong, dressed in white, between him and the preacher that ordered Rowena killed.

  “He would have killed any one of us,” Jarrett replied, wavering. “If we keep him here, he still could.”

  “Maybe, but you are not his judge. You have no knowledge of what his crimes are, or what brought him to this point.” She lowered her voice, taking on a softer tone. “You are not like him. Don’t act as he would.”

  Cade and Jarrett both felt the guilt of her accusation. “What would you have us do?” Cade asked, “We have no safe way to keep him, and if he goes back to Niall, he may have the chance to kill any one of us when our back is turned.”

  “There is always a solution. We only have to think of it,” she promised. “For now, we’ll have to keep him unconscious. It’s the safest way to keep him. Jeffery, can you—” She stopped her request mid-sentence, when she heard the awful sound of Victor's head smacking into the tree.

  “Unconscious,” Jarrett confirmed, releasing Victor’s shirt. The knocked out Faction member crumpled as Jarrett strode away.

  Cade couldn’t help it. He grinned, but covered it when Collett glared at him.

  Nate moved up to the body and smiling openly rolled him over. “That looks pretty unconscious to me.”

  As the day passed, the group spent time scouting and making plans. Cynda concocted a tea that should keep Victor asleep for the rest of the night. When they tried to convince him to drink it, he obstinacy refused, until Jarrett grabbed him, implying his alternative. After he was out, they tied him to a nearby tree. Secretly, Jarrett hoped a bear would happen by.

  The plan they made was fairly simple. Collett would not face Niall alone as he wished. Cade and Jarrett would stay with her on one of the higher peaks of the cliffs they had decided was the best possible position. Jeffery insisted on coming along with them, but he would use his magic to stay invisible. Everyone else would stay in pairs and find lower areas out of site. They sought out places that could give them access to each other in case the brothers needed backup.

  They were anxious—everyone but Jarrett. Jarrett was eager for a chance to face and defeat Niall. They all walked in silence late that afternoon. As they were hiking up to the cliffs, everyone took that time to mentally prepare for what was to come. Quicker than they wanted, the group arrived at the first trail that Nate and Delphene would take to reach their position.

  “Be careful,” Delphene said somberly.

  Jarrett nodded, “Watch your backs.”

  “I’ll save a few for you,” Cade told Nate, grabbing his offered hand in a firm, wrist-gripping shake.

  “Make sure you do,” he replied with a grin.

  Collett hugged them both. “Thank you,” she whispered to each of them.

  “Non fret une petite," Delphene soothed.

  Soon enough, Nate and Delphene were making their way down the path away from them as the rest of the group move on. A few minutes passed, then they all heard, “Radio check, testing. Can you hear me?” Nate said.

  “We hear you, Nate,” Rederrick answered back.

  “Oh good, because there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you,” Nate replied.

  “What’s that?” Rederrick asked.

  “If we live through this tonight, I intend to marry your daughter.”

  Rederrick’s grinned, and Cynda’s eyes lit up. “Really?” she asked with excitement.

  “Well, I figure I deserve something here since I put my life and limb on the line and all.”

  Cade smiled, and grabbed Collett’s hand. “What do you say, Rederrick? Is the risk of life and limb enough to steal your daughter away?”

  “Not for the likes of that one,” said Jarrett.

  “Well, it’s a good thing I don’t need to ask you then. Huh, Cowboy?” Nate teased over the radio.

  Cade laughed, and Jarrett turned to him with a quirked brow. “Cowboy?”

  Still chuckling Cade said, “What can I say, I admire his bravery. Not many would dare call you, Cowboy.”

  “No. Not many,” Jarrett agreed.

  Nate came through the ear buds again, “Well?”

  Rederrick smiled at his wife, “I suppose if you manage to see the sun in the morning, and you somehow manage to talk your way out of the Cowboy thing, you’d have earned my blessing,”

  “No pressure then,” Nate joked.

  Jarrett shook his head and actually smiled.

  They reached the place where Jeffery, Jarrett, Cade, and Collett would wait to confront Niall. It was a big area with room enough to give Niall a good fight. Collett thought of the dream she had of Jarrett and trembled. This is where her dream had taken place. Cade rubbed her back with a comforting hand, unaware of wh
at she knew. She squared her shoulders, and swore to herself, she would not let him die.

  “I guess this is where we split,” Cynda said reluctantly.

  Pulled from her thoughts, Collett hugged her friend as she had the others. “Be careful, okay?”

  Cynda nodded. “You too.”

  Rederrick gave her a tight bear hug, lifting her, then set her on her feet. “Watch your back, little girl, and give ‘em hell.”

  She nodded and stepped away so Cade and he could grip hands, and share a manly embrace. “See you in a bit, old man,” Cade said affectionately.

  “Don’t do anything stupid,” Rederrick replied. They broke apart and Rederrick put a hand on Jarrett’s shoulder, “You either. I’m kinda starting to like you.”

  Jarrett gave a quick nod, “I’ll do my best.”

  “You stay out of sight, Jeffery,” Cynda admonished in a motherly tone. “You betrayed them just as Jarrett, and I don’t want him to know you’re here. I don’t want to see anybody else like we saw Cody. Do you understand me?”

  “Yes ma’am,” he replied and was warmed by her concern.

  Dropping their supply packs near a tree, the four of them walked toward the center of the area, and Cynda and Rederrick continued to the other side. Collett looked at the people surrounding her and tried hard to think of ways to keep them alive. She knew that whatever occurred, it would not be an easy battle to win.

  Chapter 30

  The cold waves crashed against the base of the cliff where they stood. The violence of the ocean was a direct contrast to the descending sun that had shone with exceptional brilliance, and now tinted the sky a multitude of reds, purples, oranges, and gold’s. The view supported the myth of warmth and life.

  When they reached the center of the bluff, the four of them stopped simultaneously, and looked from one to another. Jeffery tiled his head taking in the sunset, then glanced back. He offered them a mock salute and disappeared.