Darkness Falls

by A C Warneke

  “You look beautiful,” Malorie said, a little envious of the girl’s generous curves and flawless skin. Pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, she grinned as she called out, “Toby! Jack!”

  The males stopped playing and trotted over to where the two of them sat. Toby plopped down in Malorie’s lap while Jack sank onto the blanket a little further away. Brushing the mop of hair out of her son’s eyes, she asked, “Are you having a good time?”

  “I am,” Toby said with a happy sigh. “Daddy is so much fun.”

  Looking up, she caught the happy sheen in Jack’s eyes that he was quick to wipe away. Reaching over, he ruffled Toby’s hair and grinned, “It’s because I have a fun kid to play with.”

  Ginny delicately cleared her throat, never taking her eyes off Jack. Wrapping her arms around Toby, resting her chin on the top of her head, Malorie smiled at Jack, “I’d like to introduce you to my friend.”

  “You don’t have friends,” Jack teased with an easy grin, though his eyes were desolate as he stared at his son on her lap. “You have minions.”

  “I used to have minions,” she taunted back with a grin, remembering the old joke between them, especially when she was the only female in the group. At first, his teasing words had disturbed her because they were true but she didn’t see that there was anything wrong with not having friends. But then he had become her friend, her best friend, and his teasing had only gotten worse. A great sorrow pressed in on her chest over what he had lost, but he seemed to be adjusting the best he could. “Now I have friends.”

  “Have the mighty fallen so far then?” he grinned as they fell into their old banter. His gaze touched on Ginny before he returned his attention to her. “Though I must say that the company you keep is much lovelier.”

  “Jack,” Malorie grinned. “This is Ginny. Ginny, Jack.”

  With one last look, Jack tore his gaze away from Malorie and focused on the redhead. “It’s a pleasure to finally have a name to go with the girl.”

  Ginny blushed to the tips of her ears but she couldn’t wipe the ridiculous grin from her face as she held out her hand, “The pleasure is all mine, I swear.”

  The color deepened as she heard the words that had come out of her mouth but her hand didn’t waver as Jack took it and brought it up to his lips. The courtly gesture was something he learned when he was a vampire and it was a reminder of all that he had lost and it made her stomach hollow out. Did he want to return to his own time, his old life? Well, a new version of his old life since his old life was dead and buried. She could give him the papers meant for her brother and he could start fresh and the Aradians would never know about him becoming a Breeder.

  “Jack, if you could, would you wander the wilderness?” she asked, holding his eyes to see if he understood what she was really asking.

  His eyes were so much older now, filled with regret and guilt and experience, and when he looked at her, she realized she no longer knew him as well as she had once. She didn’t know the man he had become and she regretted it. Licking his lower lip with the tip of his tongue, he slowly shook his head no, “I’ve been in the wilderness for too long, Mal. I think I want to sit a spell before I wander back out there.”

  She nodded her head, impulsively leaning across and taking his hand in hers, “I’m glad you’re back, Jack, I really am.”

  Turning his hand over, he entwined his fingers with hers and squeezed, but his eyes were saying goodbye. Letting her hand go, letting her go, he swallowed and said, “It’s good to be back. Thank you.”

  “I trust you with our son, Jack,” she said softly, unconcerned by Ginny’s presence. “If anything happens to me, I want you to protect him and if that means finding a way off this island then do it.”

  “Malorie,” Jack protested but closed his mouth when she shook her head.

  With a shaky smile, she nudged Toby off her lap and stood up. Still smiling, she took Toby’s hand in hers and murmured, “We’re going to take a quick walk so the two of you can get to know one another a little better.”

  “I can go with,” Jack offered, staring to rise when she held her hand out to stop him.

  “Please,” she whispered, her smile wavering as she looked at the boy she had once loved and the boy she had lost. He nodded his head, turning weary charm on Ginny as Malorie and Toby turned to walk away.

  A few hours after they returned from their walk, Malorie pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed the number that was becoming a curse. Waiting for the familiar message, she watched with a smile as Toby grabbed an apple from the fridge, reminding her that she needed to eat something otherwise the morning sickness was going to clobber her.

  “The item you ordered is available for pick up at our Urbana office,” a new message said in the Jersey accent. “Call once you have received it and let us know if it meets to your satisfaction.”

  There was no beep as the message abruptly ended and she stared at her son as butterflies took flight in her belly. This was it. Shaking off her nerves and doubts, she smiled at Toby and said, “We’re going to be going on a trip.”

  “Again?” he asked in exasperation, taking a bite of the apple.

  “Yes,” she nodded, trying to get her trembling under control. Stuffing credit cards and cash into her back pocket, she reached a hand out towards Toby, “We’re going to stop by Jiro’s place first and I need you to trust me.”

  With a heavy sigh, her son slid off the stool and put his hand into hers, “When will we be back?”

  “We’ll only be gone a few hours, a day at most,” she promised, giving his hand a little squeeze. “I know that you have plans with your father this weekend and I promise we’ll be back in time.”

  A sigh of relief slipped past Toby’s lips as he smiled up at her and her heart broke a little bit in her chest. His world was so much bigger and now she had his father and she was no longer sure of her place in it. Her son was changing before her very eyes and self-recrimination bit into her because it shouldn’t have taken an Aradian to show her the life they could have had. It shouldn’t have taken Jack coming back from the dead to give Toby a better life.

  Hopefully it was a better life but hopes weren’t guarantees and that was why she had contingency plans. At least Toby had more opportunities available to him and he’d be able to make his own choice when he was old enough. Her brother deserved the same consideration and if the Aradians weren’t going to give it to him then she would. She’d do the same for Jack.

  By the time she arrived at Jiro’s place, she felt better about what she was about to do, even if she purposely chose not to think about how Feryn was going to react. A huge man stood outside the door, his arms crossed across his broad chest, and as Malorie and Toby approached, he eyed them suspiciously. Luckily, he was a human and not an Aradian or, worse, a vampire. Pasting a smile onto her frozen face, Malorie thrust her hand out, “Hey, I’m Mal and I’ve been told I could see the, er, guest.”

  Almost reluctantly, he took her hand in his, dwarfing it, but he didn’t speak, just shook his head no. Letting out a nervous laugh that she had hoped came across as more flirtatious than it sounded, she explained, “Feryn arranged it because, well, the boy is my brother and mom told me to look after him while we were away and she’s going to be pissed if I don’t at least check in on him.”

  As he continued to be uncooperative, she looked up at him through narrowed eyes, her lips pressed in a firm line, “Do you really wish to go against Feryn’s orders? He could make your life miserable.”

  His eyes dropped to Toby, as if just now realizing she had a child with her. When he looked up, he arched an eyebrow and she flushed. Wrapping her arms around Toby’s shoulders, she explained, “This is my son, surely you know that? He wishes to see his uncle because the two of them are very close.”

  She ignored the way Toby stiffened, knowing that he was confused by the lies slipping so easily from her lips. He had never had to deal with reconnaissance or hostile interrogations or subterfug
e. It scared her how easily she fell back into that role, though it was what her life had been until Toby came along. She should have been amazed that she was able to get out of it at all, no matter how unnatural fighting had always felt to her, even against the vampires. But someone had to fight and she would rather it be her than unprepared innocents so she had sucked up her fears and doubts and fought.

  “Please,” she pleaded, afraid her plan to save Hunter was doomed to failure because she couldn’t get past a lone guard. Catching her lower lip between her teeth, she continued, “My brother is probably terrified and I just want to ease his fears. If you let me talk to him for five minutes it would mean the world.”

  The sincerity of her words worked and in the lowest, deepest voice she had ever heard, the man said, “Five minutes.”

  A slow smile spread across her lips and she wanted to jump with joy but she managed to rein that impulse in. As the door creaked open, she slid past the behemoth, pulling Toby with her into the unfamiliar rooms. Her pace slowed as she looked around with wide eyes, feeling her lips part. Everything was dark, from the walls to the furniture, with blood red accents that made her think of sex and sin and high class bordellos, the kind with stunning women willing to do anything for a price. She had the urge to slam a hand over Toby’s eyes so he wouldn’t see.

  “What the fuck are you doing here?” Hunter growled from one of the deep chairs. Slowly coming to his feet, he never tore his fiery glare away from her face as he stalked towards her. “You’ve cost me everything so why are you here?”

  “I can give some of it back,” she said. Her mouth was absurdly dry as she tried to think of what to say but her brain had disappeared. “If you want out of here, I can take you back, give you a new identity and everything you need to start over. In time, you might even be able to visit your mother.”

  A wealth of pain flashed in his eyes before he shuttered them and looked at her with hatred, “She no longer remembers me, you bitch.”

  “That wasn’t my fault,” Malorie protested, the words falling like dust from her lips because it was her fault. She should have left him alone instead of trying to keep an eye on him. Clearing her throat, she murmured, “Look, we don’t have a lot of time. If you want to escape, I can get you out of here and then you can decide what you want to do. But we have to leave now.”

  His lower lip trembled as he nodded his head once. Pulling the key stone from her pocket, she held her hand open to let him see it. Cocking his head to the side, Hunter asked, “What’s that?”

  “It’s going to get you home,” she said softly, pulling Toby up into her arms. Holding the key, she slid her hand under Hunter’s so the stone was sandwiched between their palms. Concentrating on the small town in Illinois, she closed her eyes, feeling the ground shifting beneath her feet. Her mind automatically went to her first solo trip through Netherspace and how it had taken an angel to get her to where she needed to go.

  “How?” he asked, disturbing her concentration. His groan filtered through her thoughts and her concern for him doubled. If only Hunter had a guardian angel then she knew he would be safe. If only he had someone like Scott Macintyre to keep an eye on him.

  Opening her eyes, she wished she had kept them closed as the Netherspace pressed in around them, the familiar pitch and sway of being in nothing making her ill. Tightening her grip on her son, she squeezed Hunter’s hand and managed to gasp, “Close your eyes.”

  “Will it help?” he asked, sounding like a scared, sixteen year old boy.

  “No,” she answered honestly. “But it won’t hurt.”

  A startled laugh came from him but he did as she asked even as his grip on her hand tightened, pressing the stone into her palm until she thought it was going to break through the skin. As the trip ended, they landed with a plop and it felt as if the world was still moving. The energy build up was threatening to burst through her skin and somewhere along the way she had lost her hold on Hunter’s hand.

  “Jesus Christ!” Scott’s familiar voice said in a panicked growl. “Get the fuck out of my car!”

  Ah, the world was still moving. Reluctantly, she pried her eyes open to find Toby sprawled on her lap, fast asleep, and Hunter in the back looking bewildered and terrified. That was the extent of her body check before she groaned, “Pull over, I’m going to be sick.”

  The tires squealed as Scott slammed on the brakes and did as she asked. Scrabbling for the door handle, she managed to get the door open before she poured from the car, desperate for some soil to sink her hands into. Blindly groping the ground, her fingers met barrier after barrier until her abused mind registered she was sitting on concrete. Scott’s warm hand massaged the back of her neck as he whispered, “We’re in the middle of the city, Malorie. There’s nowhere to discharge your power.”

  Her body was pulled tight and her head was about to explode as she stumbled to her feet, Scott’s hand under her arm to steady her. Words were forgotten but it didn’t matter because her tongue was too thick in her throat, choking her. The energy continued to build and build, pushing at her skin, her cells until she was sure she was going to explode and there was going to be bits and pieces of her all over the city.

  At the moment it became too much, the moment she knew she was going to explode, the energy pushed through her skin. Pain lanced through her as her body stiffened and her arms flailed to the side and her back arched until she was staring up at the night sky. The world around her lit up in brilliance for a full minute before it was thrust into darkness. It was a half a heartbeat before every car on the block began honking madly, a cacophony of sound that hurt her head.

  Gasping, she would have collapsed to the ground had Scott not been there, his arms wrapped around her as he gently set her back into the car. Weakly, she asked, “Toby?”

  “The little boy is in the backseat,” Scott assured her, his voice warm and calm as he pushed her hair from her face. “What the hell are you doing here, Malorie? I thought I got rid of you for good.”

  She almost smiled but she was too weak. “I have a favor.”

  “What’s that?” he asked and she heard the reluctance in his kind voice.

  “My brother,” she said, tilting her head to the back of the car. At Scott’s soft gasp, she continued, “He needs a guardian angel more than anyone I know right now.”

  Scott squeezed his eyes shut, his fingers curling into two fists. He wasn’t aware of the fact that his fingers were in her hair and he was pulling it out of her scalp. But when she winced, he immediately released his grip and stood up, slamming the door shut before making his way around the front of the car. His expression was grim as he slid behind the wheel and started it up, muttering to himself as he started driving once more. “I should have transferred after I dropped you off.”

  “We’re in New York?” she asked in a panic, sitting up before sinking back in her seat as the world spun around her. Pressing her hand against her rebelling stomach, she groaned, “I need to be in Illinois. All of Hunter’s paperwork is there.”

  “I can take care of it,” Scott said darkly but with resignation.

  “Wait,” Malorie said, pulling a switchblade out of her back pocket and turning around in her seat, glad that there were no bars in the car. Oh, wait, he wasn’t in uniform. So that had to mean he was off duty and this was his car. Well, she was glad. Taking a quick peek at Toby to make sure he was okay, she turned to Hunter, “Hold out your right arm.”

  Reluctantly, his eyes still wide and shell-shocked, he did as she asked without question. When she pressed her forefinger along his arm searching for the chip, he just looked on with a blank expression. He didn’t even flinch when she pressed the tip of the blade against his tender flesh. It wasn’t until he saw the drop of red that he released a blood curdling scream and tried to pull away from her.

  The car swerved as Scott swore, “What the hell, Malorie?!”

  “Sorry,” she grunted, grabbing Hunter’s wrist and plucking out the small tracking device.
Rolling down the window, she tossed it out knowing that it would be crushed in a matter of minutes. After she rolled the window back up, she put the blade between her teeth and grabbed the bandage she had in her other back pocket and gently put it over the small wound.

  Hunter was panting madly, the color completely gone from his face, and she was certain he was on the verge of fainting. Patting his hand, she muttered something that almost sounded reassuring before turning back around in her seat. Scribbling out an address on a piece of paper, barely aware of Scott’s cursing, she tried to figure out her next move as she spied the stone on the floor of the car.

  She quickly slipped it into her pocket, somehow knowing that there was just enough juice for one more trip. For one person. She could send Toby back so he wasn’t there when Feryn discovered them missing and came for them. Of course, Feryn wouldn’t take his anger out on the small child. He would save that for Malorie... well, if he chased after her. After this, he might decide to wash his hands of her for good. No, he’d come after them if for no other reason than the baby she carried.

  Whatever happened, she had to get as far away from her brother as possible before Feryn came for them, whether it was in a day or a month. Writing down her phone number beneath the address, she started to hand the paper to Hunter but then thought better of it when she saw his wide, frightened eyes. Instead, she handed it to Scott, who automatically took it, raising his eyebrows when he saw what was on it.

  “The address is where you’ll find everything he needs to start a new life,” she explained, knowing that she wouldn’t be the one to get her brother situated. If she had just concentrated on the small town then she could very well be standing with her father while they figured out what to do. But, no, she had to go and think about a guardian angel at the exact moment the stone decided to read her thoughts and send her through the vortex.