James turned to the group by the woods. “We need to move these weapons before the Consulate comes back for them. Can you help us get them on board?”
“Sure, no problem,” said Ollie. He motioned to the others, and they began taking armfuls of guns to the ship. Markus, Bez, and Web didn’t move a muscle. I could tell they didn’t want to turn their backs on Kale. The gun by my toe caught my attention. It would be helpful to have two guns again. I leaned down and casually picked it up.
“I’m going to check in with Markus and tell him the plan,” I said, steering wide of Kale’s group. Sonya eyed me and stepped in my direction.
“We’ll help too,” Kale’s pilot said. He and another of Kale’s men walked toward James and the weapons.
I froze, unsure what to do next.
James raised his gun at them. “That won’t be necessary. We have this.”
“What’s with the lack of hospitality?” Kale asked, his words slurring together. “My men offered their assistance and that’s how you treat them. Haven’t I taught you better than that, soldier?”
My eyes were still focused on Kale’s men when Markus yelled for me to watch out. Sonya whirled and had her arm around my neck and her gun pointed at my head. “You weren’t thinking of leaving here without us, were you?” she asked, ice in her voice.
“Of course not,” I said. “We just have to get the guns first.”
She pressed her gun into my temple and wrenched mine from my hands. “Liar. And I know James didn’t give him antibiotics either.” She tossed the gun to Kale. Good thing the guns were still keyed to my vibration—and James’—or we’d all be dead.
I glanced up. Markus and James had their guns aimed at Sonya; Kale’s men had their guns aimed at James; Web, Bez, and Trent had their weapons aimed at Kale; and Kale looked bewildered. If it stayed like this, it would be a bloodbath.
Sonya pressed my head downward with her weapon, right as a raindrop hit the center of a puddle underneath my feet.
I watched it splash onto the soaked ground.
Unless.
“Okay, you win,” I said. “We’ll take you all with us.”
Kale laughed harshly. “I’m not sure we want to take you with us anymore, not with the way you’ve acted.” He swayed, waving his gun around. “I’ve about had it with you, little Miss I-have-my-daddy’s-guns-and-no-one-else-can-have-them. Fuck that.”
He punched one of his men in the arm. “Let’s do this already.”
“James, shoot!” I yelled.
Kale’s men opened fire and Sonya pushed the trigger button on the gun against my skull. The gun made a whirring sound but nothing happened. Sonya managed to say “Huh?” before she landed dead at my feet. The only laser that fired was from my dad’s gun in James’ hand, and it had hit Sonya square in the forehead. Kale and his men stared in disbelief at their guns and pressed the trigger buttons harder.
Markus shook his gun as he tried to get it to work.
“They’re waterlogged,” I yelled as James fired and took down two more of Kale’s men, saying a mental thank-you to Dad. I don’t know how he’d managed to test that out with the limited water supply on Earth but his hours of experimenting in his study totally paid off.
Markus shrugged and tossed his gun. He turned toward Kale, but Kale’s pilot jumped on him from behind. Markus threw him down and they exchanged punches, and Bez and Trent joined in the pile, while I fished Trigger from my waistband and frantically worked to untangle her from the drawstring. I powered her up and aimed at the last of Kale’s men, who had moved away toward the perimeter. Right as I fired at him and took him down, a knife whizzed by me and hit James.
I screamed and ran to him. Blood oozed from the side of his chest where the knife was embedded. Kale would have hit his heart if not for the med overdose.
In my peripheral vision, I saw Kale scoop up the super-weapon that Sonya had tossed to him and run into the woods. He must have had the knife in his pant leg. James pushed his weapon into my hand and stared into the trees. “Get him,” he said, breathing heavily. “You can’t let him get away with those guns.”
Markus and Web ran toward us as Markus shouted. “Go, Tora! We’ve got James. Our guns won’t work, but you can take him down. Get that burner for me.”
I raced into the woods but felt ill about leaving James. How was I supposed to find Kale in the dark? He might be injured and doped up, but he still had the ability to hit James with a knife from a distance. Hopefully, that had been the only knife he had.
The woods were even darker than the clearing and the ground was just as muddy. Other than the light rain splattering the leaves, there was silence. A faint smoky smell lingered in the air from the fire but the trees here remained unscathed. I ran about twenty paces then stopped to listen. I’d been faster than him earlier when we’d run from the fire and crossed the creek. The pain meds might help him ignore the pain, but he’d still swayed and stumbled in the clearing.
If only my ankle would hold.
A crunch of leaves came from somewhere to my right. Please let that be Kale and not a meat monster. I tried to keep my breathing as quiet as possible. There it was. Another light crunch of leaves. I stepped carefully in the direction of the noise and kept my guns raised, Trigger in one hand, James’ gun in the other.
Kale took off again, a rapid succession of twigs breaking as he ran. I went after him, no longer trying to mask the sounds of my running.
“That you, Tora?” he called out. “You’re no match for me, with or without a gun.”
“Then why are you running?” I shouted back.
He didn’t answer. His footsteps got louder and I knew I was gaining ground on him. I ignored the branches that scraped my arms and face. One branch caught my hair and I cursed softly under my breath. I reached up and tore my hair from the tree before moving on. A minute later, the footsteps ceased.
Maybe Kale was tired and thought he’d hide. I took another step. The sound of his ragged breathing broke the silence of the forest. My own breath came in jagged bursts, and I’m sure he could hear me as well as I heard him. His breathing turned into a chuckle. I aimed Trigger where I thought he was and fired. Lasers lit up a tree and everything went dark again.
I listened for his breathing and he launched himself at me. His body flew into mine, knocking us both to the ground. James’ gun flew out of my left hand. Kale had me pinned underneath him in the mud and his hands closed around my neck. He must have left Dad’s super-gun in the trees. My right hand held Trigger but it was pinned under my own leg and the weight of Kale’s body. I tried to wiggle my hand free but it wouldn’t budge, so I punched at his arm with my left hand. His laughter told me my blows had no effect and he tightened his grip around my neck.
Things started to go black and I saw spots behind my eyes. I couldn’t die like this. Not with James down. With my whole family dead. With Kale getting away with Dad’s weapons. It had to end here.
“Think you’re so tough now, soldier?” Kale asked. “I’m not sure what I’ll do without you and James to fire the guns, but I’m sure as hell safer without you two traitors.” He shifted his weight to bear fully down on my neck.
My lungs screamed for air. The pressure around my throat was unbearable. I made one last attempt to yank Trigger out from under me. It moved a little but I couldn’t entirely free my hand. Though Kale had shifted his weight, it wasn’t enough. Everything faded. As my consciousness drained away, I pushed Trigger up at the highest angle I could manage against my thigh and fired through my own leg.
Kale screamed and rolled off of me. I couldn’t get in enough air to scream myself, though the pain that tore through the laser blast in my leg was excruciating. Air rushed into my lungs and I gasped and rolled onto my side, clutching at my throat. My vision started to clear a few seconds later, but my focus was on inhaling and exhaling. Kale’s yelling continued, and I tried to focus in the dark. At least I knew I’d hit him. If I had to shoot myself, I hoped I’d been able to
turn Trigger enough that it would be a straight shot through him too.
I pushed my hand into the mud and tried to sit myself up. Searing pain shot through my right thigh. Hopefully I hadn’t shot through a major artery, or I’d bleed out pretty fast. My leg wouldn’t hold my weight when I tried to put pressure on it. There was no way I could stand. For all I knew, there wasn’t much left to stand on. I couldn’t think about that now.
Kale stopped screaming. It sounded like he was crawling away, his labored breathing punctuated only by the occasional curse word. Maybe I’d taken out a good part of his leg too.
I flipped over on my belly and bit my tongue to keep from screaming. The taste of my own blood nauseated me, but I dug my elbows into the mud and dragged myself toward Kale. The rain had almost stopped and a small sliver of moonlight came through the trees.
Kale’s form moved about five yards in front of me. He called me names I’d never heard before but I was sure they weren’t complimentary. He left a wide trail of blood behind him as he clawed at the ground in his effort to get away. He wasn’t moving very fast.
My throat burned when I called out, “Where you goin’, soldier?” I coughed hard into the ground. “I’m going to make sure you never kill anyone’s father or girlfriend, again, you burner.”
He turned around, a look of surprise on his face. With great effort, I gritted my teeth and brought Trigger up to aim at him. He tried to scramble faster on his hands and knees to get to the nearest tree, blood pouring out with every move. My finger hovered over the trigger panel when I saw the eyes.
Red eyes just beyond Kale in the trees. Crap. Alec had said they were attracted to blood, and between Kale and me, there was an overwhelming stench of the stuff in the air. Kale looked up as the meat monster pounced. He lifted his arm to shield himself and the animal tore into his arm. It came away with a chunk of Kale in its teeth and went back for more. Kale yelled at the animal while yet more blood drained from his arm. There was nothing that Kale deserved more than getting eaten alive by one of those things.
I should want to watch him get ripped to shreds. Enjoy it even. But I couldn’t.
Kale stared at the monster as it growled and prepared to pounce again. I propped myself up on my elbows, aimed between Kale’s eyes, and fired. The monster jumped back, looking around as though confused. I moved the gun to the right and fired again. It fell without a sound.
It was then that I noticed my own blood leaking from under me. I touched my leg and it was soaked. My head spun. I tried to look up and could just make out part of Alec’s Weeping Boy constellation through the trees. Everything started to fade again and I put my head down, laying my cheek against the cool mud. I’d just rest for a minute and then I’d get back to the others. Besides, I’d earned a short break. I’d gotten rid of Kale and caught dinner. I rocked.
Chapter TWENTY
“JAMES,” I CALLED OUT.
“Sshhh, you need to rest, sweetcakes.” A hand held mine and I struggled to open my eyes.
The light was bright and I squinted as my eyes adjusted. “Markus?”
“Who else would it be?”
I tried to sit up and Markus moved to help me. He put his arm around my shoulders and shifted me until I sat on the edge of the cot. We were inside one of the huts. “Is this our camp?” I asked.
Markus nodded. Reed and Alec sat together on the other side of the tent, holding hands. “Hola, Tora,” said Alec. “Good to see you awake.”
“How long have I been out?” I asked.
Reed counted on her hands. “Five light breaks? Crap, I don’t know. A day maybe.”
My thigh was bandaged in thick layers of cloth. Pain meds must have been involved because aside from a dull throb, I didn’t feel much. At least my leg was still there, which had to be a good sign.
“Did James do this?” I asked, running my hand over the bandage. “Is he okay? Who helped him?”
Markus laughed. “Yes, to the first two questions. As for the last, luckily, I’ve seen James in action enough as a medic that he was able to walk me through it.”
Markus handed me some water. “After I fixed James up, Web and I went searching for you in the woods. We’d heard the lasers and hoped you’d gotten Kale.” He shook his head. “The last thing I expected was to find you passed out in the mud with a dead guy and a meat monster. Thanks for that, by the way, it was delicious.”
I smiled weakly. “Thought you’d appreciate it.”
“Anyway, Web gathered the guns while I carried you back here. James wanted to fix you up himself, even though he wasn’t in great shape. He’s been sleeping ever since. Hut next door. Max is with him.” Markus stood up and offered me his hand. “And I’m guessing you want to head over, so I’ll help.”
“Thanks.” I took his hand and stood gingerly. Fresh pain went through my leg but nothing was going to keep me away from James. “By the way, what happened to Kale’s pilot? Last I saw, you were rolling on the ground with him.”
“He’s taken care of.” Markus flexed his bicep in an exaggerated manner. “Turns out I don’t need a gun with these babies.”
Alec laughed. “Muy valiente, amigo.”
Reed rested her head on Alec’s shoulder. “I’m just glad we’re all okay.”
I smiled at Reed and Alec as I left, leaning on Markus. He helped me hobble to the next hut. “I really am glad you’re okay,” he said. “While you’re visiting James, I’m going to go find you a stick you can use to help you walk.”
“Thanks.” I leaned against the hut flap and peered inside. Max sat next to James, an assortment of vials and gadgets near his side. “Hi, Max.”
Max jumped up and came over. “Here, let me help you.” He brought me over to the cot where James lay asleep. I winced as I sat down on the bed and straightened out my leg.
“I’ll leave you with him a minute,” Max said. “Just yell if you need anything.”
He left and I turned to James. His breathing was soft but steady, and he had a large bandage across his chest. I ran my hand along the stubble on his cheek and leaned over to kiss him gently on the lips.
His eyes fluttered open. “I was hoping that was you and not Max.”
I laughed. “I can’t believe you’re okay.” I looked down at my leg. “Thanks for saving me … again.”
James smiled. “Anytime. You saved us. We’ve got all the guns thanks to you.”
I touched his chest lightly. “We look kind of cute in our matching bandages.”
He pulled me to him, and I kissed him again until he coughed. I’d been pressing on his chest. “Oops, sorry.”
James hacked into his arm. “Don’t ever apologize for kissing me. Just give me a sec.”
I ran my hand through his hair. “Get better fast, okay?”
James raised an eyebrow. “Why? Are you offering to do more than kiss me?”
A flush crept across my face. “Maybe, but I don’t want to hurt you.”
He laughed and coughed again. “You were pretty impressive. I’ll try to heal quickly.” A coughing fit overcame him and I tried to give him water, then called for Max when the cough didn’t stop. “I think he might need something stronger,” I said to Max.
Max grabbed a vial and pressed it to James’ arm. “This will help. You need to rest a while more to heal that lung.”
The coughing eased and James grabbed for my hand. I held it as he drifted off to sleep. “You’re beautiful,” he murmured as his eyes closed.
I sat there with his hand in mine.
Max sighed. “You can stay, but no more excitement until he’s better. Got it?”
I blushed. “Got it.”
Max sat by the door and leaned back against the hut wall. The exhaustion showed in his face, and I knew he was still healing from his own injury. His eyes shut after a bit. I got more comfortable on the cot, careful not to disturb James, and let my thoughts drift. We couldn’t stay here long, not now that the Consulate knew where we were. We’d have to move as soon as possi
ble to a safer location. And somehow, along the way, I’d get rid of the guns once and for all.
James cried out in his sleep, and I stroked his hand until the pain passed.
Chapter TWENTY-ONE
Three Days Later
THE GUNS WERE SECURELY STORED ON MARKUS’ SHIP AND we’d gathered all the final supplies. I hobbled around with the stick Markus had found for me, asking if anyone needed help. Though my leg felt stronger each day, I still needed some assistance with walking.
“Thanks, Gunner. We’re good,” one man responded to me.
After taking down the Consulate ships and shooting Kale, some of the Resistance started calling me “Gunner.” It wasn’t the sweetest term of endearment I’d heard, but at least they were on our side.
We’d head to Dais and hope that the colony there would welcome us with open arms. Or at least not shoot us on sight. Once the Consulate regrouped, they were sure to come back knowing that Dad’s weapons were somewhere within reach. Since nowhere on Caelia was out of their reach, it was decided that no one could remain—for the time being, anyway. The problem was that everyone wouldn’t fit on Markus’ ship, and it was all we had.
James, Max, Markus, Web, and I would go first, along with a few other Resistance members. Max figured that the new colony might be more receptive if we first brought James, a medic, with us, along with some supplies. If they allowed us to borrow one of their ships, then both Markus and Max could return for the rest of the group. Alec and Reed offered to stay behind with the others.
“I’ve heard one of the moons around Dais is made mostly of diamonds,” Reed said, her hand twined through Alec’s.
That got Markus’ attention. “That sounds like an interesting business venture right there.”
I shook my head.
“What?” Markus said. “I’m done with the gun business. Too violent, you know?”
James walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “You ready?”
I smiled. “Ready as ever. I’m just sad to be leaving here. I’ll really miss the beach.”
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