The Keepers: Declan
Page 28
“Hazel, it’s Mason! Let’s finish the spell!”
The flames flared brighter and Hazel whirled around, shoving her face close to Megan’s. When she spoke, her tone was low, lethal, and Megan went quiet.
“We need to get out of here,” Kate said, glancing at Jenna. Blonde hair and blue eyes. Not quite the Keeper material she was used to – considering the three muscular warrior men back home.
Home. God, she’d begun to think of Rapid Falls as home.
She glanced back at the crowd, wondering if maybe, just maybe, they stood a chance. Because home suddenly sounded like a brilliant idea.
“Feeling stronger yet?”
She looked at her wrist, surprised to see the bleeding had stopped. The dizziness had gone too and although the magical surge she’d hoped for hadn’t happened yet, there was a slight stirring of energy inside that gave her hope.
Megan took a step back, nodding. Hazel turned to face Kate and Jenna, her skeletal expression a tight grimace of rage. She pointed at Jenna, her finger trailing to Kate.
And then she laughed. A tight, high-pitched sound that mocked the tension and sent a shiver down Kate’s spine.
“Kill the Null, Jenna,” she ordered, causing a wave of whispers to break free. “I dare you!”
Another ripple of laughter grated the air.
“I think she’s calling your bluff,” Kate whispered.
“Time for you to pull your weight then,” Jenna shot back and released Kate, shoving her to the side. She stripped off her cloak, revealing a bow and a pouch of arrows attached to her back.
“What’s with the Pocahontas gear?”
“Shut up and get your Keeper on.”
There was a loud crack that tore through the air. In a lightning quick move, Jenna pushed Kate aside, cursing as she took a hit from Megan’s whip. She dodged the second attempt, caught hold of the leather and yanked the whip free from Megan’s hand. She quickly reeled in the weapon and tossed it to Kate.
“Don’t let them reach us!” she snapped, extracting an arrow.
Hazel’s anger flared and she pointed at them. “Kill the girl and bring me that Null!”
With a roar, Rick pulled out a knife and began to run, charging through the crowd of warriors with rage and renewed determination, his accomplices directly behind him.
“Do not let them get away!” Hazel screamed.
A flood of air rushed past Kate as an arrow slammed into Rick’s chest. He froze mid-stride, gaping at them, his eyes wide.
Megan screamed and bolted around the fire, skidding to a stop as another arrow ripped through the air, tearing into her hand.
Chaos erupted as the warriors charged with furious shouts, brandishing handheld weapons.
With rapid speed, Kate lashed out repeatedly with the whip, the snap of leather hissing at flesh, provoking yells of pain. Jenna released another round of arrows, the connection fierce, and in quick succession, she released several more. Her movements were so swift, almost blurry, the arrows erupting from her at a breathless pace.
Painful screams tore through the chaos, feeding the frenzy.
“Stop her, you fools!” Hazel yelled. Sensing she was about to lose her sacrifice, Hazel began to screech, an ear-splitting sound stoking the chaos.
Simultaneously, all the fires that burned in the clearing exploded in a burst of fury. The heat was so strong, the energy that fuelled it so ripe that Kate could feel it from the roof.
A jumper landed on the roof behind Kate, a blade in each hand, but Jenna had another arrow ready to go. “Kate!” she screamed, and took aim. Kate ducked as the arrow flew past her, but his reflexes were quick and he dove to the ground as it passed over him.
And tore through Hazel’s shoulder.
The witch gasped and stumbled backward, the impact interrupting her flow of power. The flames lessened and there was a momentary lull in the fight as Megan and a few other warriors surrounded Hazel, their fear of losing their leader more of a concern than their prey.
“Kill them both!” Hazel shouted, her voice tinged with pain, and shoved her people away.
Fierce warlike cries erupted from the warriors as they charged.
The two women bolted for the nearest exit but Jenna spun around, still moving backward. She grabbed the two remaining arrows from her pouch and readied the first one.
“What are you doing?” Kate gasped but she’d already set off the second arrow.
“A bit of sabotage.”
The two bowls they’d used to catch her blood toppled over on impact, extracting a roar of frustration and disbelief from Hazel.
She went wild.
The ground began to rumble and there was an explosion of glass as the lanterns burst, followed by several nearby windows.
“Time to go!” Jenna snapped, discarding her bow as two jumpers hurtled through the air to land on the roof in front of them.
Jenna propelled herself into the air, her body twisting around twice mid-air, before she lashed out with two powerful kicks that sent the warriors hurtling backward against the ground below.
The crash sparked an explosion of orange embers, their curses drowned out by the noise.
Three more warriors scrambled up the side of the tomb and onto the roof, charging for the women in a roar of swinging punches.
Kate took on the bouncer, refusing to be intimidated by his size or the handheld spikes wrapped around his fist. She ducked his first punch and grunted when the second connected with her cheek. The blades sliced her skin, the impact throwing her backward like a rag doll. With a speed that stunned him, she straightened and bolted forward, jabbing her elbow into his nose as hard as she could. Blood spurted, bone shattered, but he stood his ground.
Jenna launched herself at Kate, hooking their elbows, and used Kate’s body as a brace as she swung toward the bouncer with one perfectly aimed kick. The impact plunged him into his friends and they plummeted to the ground in a spew of curses.
“What the hell was that?” Kate asked between breathless gasps as they both readied themselves for the next attack.
“My dad took me to self-defence classes,” Jenna shot back between gasps of air, holding up her fists in front of her.
“All I learned about was mace spray.”
This was martial arts at their best.
The onslaught of more warriors drowned out Jenna’s reply. Her movements were controlled, her blows delivered with such forceful precision as she fought men far larger than her. Kate fought back with a strength and speed of her own but Jenna possessed fighting skills that Kate had never seen before.
Hazel stood rigid and glaring, a vision of flaming red fury. She clutched the arrow in her hand, blood pouring from her shoulder. Raising her arm, she erupted into chanting and threw the arrow at Jenna.
Kate watched in horror as the arrow changed its shape, taking on a life of its own, becoming a black flying creature. It flapped its wings, gaining momentum. Claws outstretched and screeching loudly, it tore toward them.
Jenna lunged for Kate and leapt onto the adjacent roof, missing the attack by moments.
More warriors charged and Kate and Jenna moved along the rooftops of the tombs, defending themselves with every ounce of fight in them, dishing out as violently as they received.
But their enemies kept coming and the women were exhausted, injured and outnumbered.
Sensing that the fight had turned in their enemies’ favour, they turned and ran, catapulting from roof to roof.
Hazel released another high pitched screech and sent her magical fury directly after them. The trees rustled from the eruption of energy and glass windows exploded.
The earth rumbled with such vicious force that the tombs began to shudder beneath them.
And as though Hazel had sent a flow of rage chasing after them, chaos erupted. Statues mounted on the rooftops of several graves burst simultaneously, fragments of cement flying everywhere.
Holding up her arms to shield her face, Kate glanced over he
r shoulder, a shudder ripping through her as she saw the stampede of warriors chasing them. The jumpers had taken to the rooftops, others ran along the ground below.
An army of skeleton enemies out for their blood.
The bird circled above, squawking with excitement.
The tremor grew stronger, the cement tombs shaking beneath them as they ran.
And one by one, the roofs began to cave in an explosion of bricks, cement and dust.
Kate screamed as the roof beneath her feet gave way and she plunged into the tomb below. It was dark, the small room lit by a thin stream of moonlight. The air was stifling, the stench unbearable, and she shuddered as she struggled to her feet.
Everything hurt, the adrenaline raged, and she groped frantically for a way out. Her hands closed over something round and hard and she screeched to see the skull in her hand, tossing it to the ground as though it had scalded her.
She hoisted herself out of the tomb, gasping air and coughing through the dust, horrified to see Jenna in hand to hand combat with John. He’d shed his mask and cloak and seemed to revel in the challenge.
Their punches were evenly matched, their kicks well timed, but Jenna had the advantage of speed. They fought in skilled movements so perfectly executed that Kate stopped breathing.
The earth tremors intensified, more tombs began to crumble, and dodging Jenna’s punch, John sprang to the roof beside him. The cement gave way, devouring him as he fell.
Jenna scooped up the skeleton mask and cloak John had discarded, grabbed Kate around the waist and took a flying leap across several tombs, landing with a soft thud on the ground.
“How are we going to get out of here?” Kate grunted between gasps of air as they backed up against the wall.
Scanning for warriors, Jenna grimaced, favouring her right arm.
“You’re hurt,” Kate said, casting a quick glance around her.
“We’re both hurt. Time for a new plan.”
Jenna tossed her the mask, readjusted her own, and shoved her arms into the cloak.
Kate grinned at the instant transformation, tracing her thoughts, and pulled on her mask.
Tugging on their hoods, they turned the corner and disappeared into the storm of skeleton warriors.
Anonymous.
CHAPTER FORTY FIVE
Declan’s curse sliced through the silence of the underground storage building that had housed Mason for the past few months.
“There’s nothing here,” he grumbled, turning around in the centre of the room. The air was stifling and the low roof crowded him, making it hard to focus. He’d lit two fire torches, the orange glow dispelling some of the gloom. Overgrown and hidden, this had been the perfect hiding place for Mason’s body. It made sense that Hazel would open the portal close to Mason. Once she’d harvested Kate’s blood, no time would be wasted in using it to break his curse.
Only trouble was, there was no sign of it.
“Maybe if you hadn’t killed Max, we wouldn’t be running around in the dark,” Archer grumbled, knocking on the stone wall in front of him, searching for anything hollow.
“Don’t start with me, Archer,” Declan snapped. “I doubt the witch crap he started whispering in my ear was blessing me with fame and good fortune. If he were still alive, I’d kill him all over again.”
Damn right. They’d taken his woman, threatened everything his sister and parents had died protecting. Hell, they’d all been in danger at one point or another fighting this crazy war.
And it was all bullshit.
He ran his hands through his hair, his movements shaky from the adrenaline and anger that was chewing at every ounce of patience he had left.
He spun around, clenching his fists, and searched out Sienna. “What are we missing, witchy?”
She lifted her gaze to meet his, green eyes worried. “I thought it’d be here, Declan. Unless she closed the portal when she left.”
“There’s no evidence they were ever here.”
Ethan walked into the room, his face a sheen of sweat. The heat in the room was unbearable, the urgency even worse. “If she was planning to return for Mason, why did she go to New Orleans?”
“She lives there, probably has magical roots there,” Declan replied.
And could be sacrificing Kate as they speak.
Shit!
“Declan, wait,” Sienna said, rushing toward him. She reached for his hand, her eyes widening when she felt the tremble in his touch. “I have an idea. You’ve marked her. That gives you a connection with her that no one else has.”
“It’d be peachy if that meant something right now, Sienna.”
But a flicker of hope had taken root in her eyes, her breathing had quickened, and she took his other hand, lacing their fingers. “Close your eyes.”
“What are you doing?” he asked but was quick to comply. If anyone could help them, it’d be Sienna and he trusted her with his life.
Her whispered words sent a jolt of energy through him and his eyes flew open. Hers were closed, her expression calm, and he knew there’d be no reaching her now.
Hope stirred again and he inhaled quietly, trying to calm the rage of emotions inside.
The flames in the room reared to life with gusto, her whispered chant filling the room with energy.
Over and over she repeated the same spell.
With a final glance at his brothers, he closed his eyes and gave himself over.
The blurry vision struck him out of nowhere and he inhaled sharply, confused by the distorted images that seemed to fade just as he tried to make sense of them.
A gravesite. Skeletons. Darkness.
What the hell?
And then he felt her, every ounce of her fear, her shallow breathing, and the rush of adrenaline.
Kate.
She was running. God … Escaping?
Everything went blurry, as if he’d been engulfed by dust.
He gripped Sienna’s hands tightly.
And then suddenly, it was gone.
His eyes flew open as Sienna struggled to maintain the spell, her eyebrows a tight frown. She’d felt the break in connection as abruptly as he had.
“What happened?” he snapped, drawing her closer. “I felt her, dammit, it was as if I was there. Where did she go?”
Sienna had started to tremble.
“Put me back! Do it again!”
“I can’t. I’m surprised the spell even worked. Your connection with her is more powerful than I thought.”
Damn right.
“So do it again.”
She shook her head. “That’s all there is.”
He gaped at her, hating to know what that meant. Turning around he released a growl of frustration, his fury fuelling the flames that burned around them, igniting several more.
Fire ripped through the tunnels, extracting a shout of warning from Archer as he dove for Sienna. The room ignited in a rush of air and roaring flames that chased away everything else.
“Declan!” Archer bellowed, the snap of his name jarring his senses.
Declan reeled in the flow of fury and stared at them, fists clenching, shoulders heaving.
A murmur from Ethan broke the silence. “Declan.”
He glanced at his brother. Ethan stood in the doorway, his back to them as he gawked at something in the tunnel.
“The portal … all we needed was more light.” Ethan looked over his shoulder to meet Declan’s gaze.
And grinned.
****
Kate and Jenna slipped quietly into a small tomb etched with two upside-down trees. The door closed, scraping against the cement floor.
“What are we doing here?” Kate asked, blinking in the darkness, quelling the wave of nausea triggered by the stench of the tomb.
“With luck, about to go home.”
Kate gaped at Jenna and felt the flicker of hope. “Why am I suddenly seeing Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz?”
Even though it was dark, Kate knew Jenna had smiled.
On a gentle movement of air, the swirl of lights sprang to life in the darkness, a steady glow of blue and white flickers. The portal.
“Oh my God,” Kate breathed, reaching for the torch and drawing closer. “Hazel left it open?”
“She planned to go straight back to Rapid Falls once she’d harvested your blood.” Jenna’s face broke out into a grin. Wild and triumphant. “Guess she wasn’t counting on resistance, was she?”
But Kate couldn’t smile. All she could think of was how close she’d come to being Hazel’s sacrificial pawn.
They would’ve killed her, drained her magic, and moved on.
Her shudder was overruled by a flash of fear when the door to the tomb was flung open.
A cloaked skeleton stood in the darkness of the doorway, outlined in moonlight. His shout of warning sent chills chasing down her spine.
A fierce objection erupted within Kate. Releasing a growl, she reached for Jenna’s hand and hurtled toward the portal.
****
It wasn’t the sudden light that flared through the tunnel of the underground storage rooms that triggered the chaos.
It was the bellowing of anger, desperate and violent, as two cloaked warriors erupted from the portal, closely followed by three more.
Skeletal masks and black cloaks.
All Declan’s defensive instincts soared. His vision!
Shoving Sienna out of the way, the Keepers turned toward the portal and charged, the fight a whirl of brutal blows.
With a howl of rage, Declan grabbed the closest warrior and threw him across the room before bolting after him. In a blur of movement, he had his arms around the warrior’s neck.
“Declan!”
The feminine cry that erupted from the cloak bolted through him in horror.
“It’s me!” Kate cried, ripping off her mask, breathless, her body a quiver of adrenaline against his. “It’s me,” she repeated softly, relief flashing through her eyes.
Oh God.
His arms came up around her, hard and fierce, air slamming out of him as a relief he’d never known before chased through him.