Hope (The Descendant Trilogy Book 2)

by Theresa M. Jones

  I pulled him closer to me, and he moaned against my lips. His hands were around my waist, pulling me closer still. Though I didn’t see how I could even get much closer unless we were naked.

  And when I thought about David and I naked, an even warmer feeling filled my chest and tummy. A yearning so deep and passionate broke forth it nearly consumed me.

  He pulled away from my lips, only to kiss me down my cheek, to my neck. To that perfect spot right in between my ear and shoulder. A ripple of pleasure shot through me and my body shuddered at his touch.

  For a minute, I thought about ditching the dinner idea and just staying alone with him in bed all night. But then my phone did a little jingle and brought us back to reality. It was Valentine’s Day. We had to go have dinner.

  I looked into his eyes, so full of love. When he had any strong emotion, they grew greener, the browns and yellows faded into the distance. Right then they were shining bright green. Truly like emeralds.

  I took a deep breath to steady my nerves, and grabbed my phone off the counter.

  “Sharon says to have fun and be safe.” I told him after reading her text. He nodded his understanding.

  “I can think of many ways we can have fun together.” At the innuendo, my cheeks warmed to the point that I didn’t even need the blush Sharon applied.

  “Are you ready to go?” He asked, changing the subject.

  “Yeah. Sam is with Sharon and Rick. She will stay at Sharon’s tonight, when they are done.”

  “Great!” He said it with more enthusiasm than I expected. But since Sam was such a light sleeper, we always had to be so quiet together. Tonight we would be alone. Just us.

  I couldn’t help the sigh that escaped my lips.

  We had to take the helicopter into town, since the Compound was so buried. Sometimes when I left, it made me realize just how secluded we really were. We didn’t have to witness the hysteria that was outside. The chaos and looting. The famine and disease. All the horrible things that affected most of the world right then.

  We were so lucky.

  I just didn’t realize it until we came to a little Mexican food restaurant in town. There was almost no one around. It felt like a ghost town. No people, no cars driving. Not even any looters.

  When I got out of the car, I shuddered. Yeah, it was a little chilly out, but I wasn’t shivering because of the cold. Things felt strange there.

  “Babe, I haven’t seen even one person since we left the helicopter pad.”

  He looked at me. I could tell he felt the same wariness and concern that I did.

  “Do you want to go back?”

  Obviously we could handle ourselves. It wasn’t like we couldn’t. Just why risk it? Then again, I was never one to run away. This was my night. My first Valentine’s Day with him. And I was selfish enough that I didn’t want to give up so easily, especially not just because of an eerie feeling. I would make that night special anyway.

  “No.” I shook my head to emphasize my answer.

  He nodded, and held my hand as we walked up to the restaurant. It looked open. But when he opened the door, the most disgusting smell assaulted my nostrils. A smell I had smelt before.

  Death. Evil.

  I stepped back and placed a protective hand on my belly. While at the same time, David pushed me behind him. We both readied ourselves for an attack. My internal shield was up, as was instinctual anytime I left the Compound. But this time I released a little Power into the air, to test it. To search out any foes nearby.

  “I don’t sense anyone.” David said, while I had just come to the same conclusion.

  I reached further. No Rising members anywhere in the town at all. Then again, I couldn’t really feel any humans either. It made me wonder if my Power was off. How could there be no one around in an entire town?

  I walked passed him, keeping my Power at the ready, just in case. I looked around. Nothing was in huge disarray or anything. Yeah, it was kinda dirty, like it was midnight and they were closing, but no one had cleaned up yet. But nothing crazy. No broken glasses, no cobwebs or anything.

  “I haven’t heard of anything happening here?” It was a statement, but I said it like a question. Maybe he had heard of something. But really, what could have happened that could make this beautiful small town turn into this?

  “Neither have I. But I really wasn’t paying to close attention to here. My concerns have been further away.” Of course they had. David had been working with the Council to try and convince the Russians and the Americans to not release their biological weapons and destroy the freakin’ world. What was one town compared to that?

  We walked out together, but I wasn’t ready to leave. I went to the next building in the strip center, the one to the right of the restaurant. The sign read Polly’s Pet Stop, and had a fake snake worming its way through each letter. I walked in. Again the doors were unlocked. The sign read OPEN. But there was no one around. The smell was still present though. What was even crazier was that all the animals were gone. No chirping birds asking for escape. No cats and dogs, trying to get out, or even just playing. It was only 7:00 at night.

  What the hell?

  David was checking in the building to the left of the restaurant. He walked out and shook his head. No one was there either.

  We walked to the car, got in and left. “I’m going to drive around, see if we can see anything.”

  I nodded. I wasn’t ready to leave until we figured out what had happened. We drove away from the strip center, to the main grocery store. The lights were on, and there were even cars parked in the parking lot. But no people. No one anywhere. I almost felt like I was in an episode of The Walking Dead and a mob of hungry zombies was going to come out and try to eat us.

  But there were no such things as zombies.

  Horsemen? Yes. Demons? Yes. Zombies? No.

  Ugh.

  We drove through a neighborhood. Some cars parked in driveways, others not. Some lights one. Others not. Nothing was broken. Nothing appeared to be vandalized or looted. But it was empty. There was no life there.

  “What do you think happened?”

  “I don’t know.” That wasn’t good enough for me.

  “What could have happened? There is no life here at all.” I said.

  He shook his head. He didn’t have the answers any more than I did. But then I felt something different. A different kind of pull.

  “Stop.”

  He did. The car stopped almost instantly. I loved those rich cars; they always went so fast and had great control, so he could take action on my demand immediately.

  “Take that right turn, go that way.” I pointed out my window, indicating the direction I wanted him to go.

  He did but still asked, “Why?”

  “I feel something.” What I felt, I wasn’t sure. But it wasn’t good. If I were any newer or less capable of controlling my Power, my shield would have flamed up all around me, covering me in purple fire. But I held it at bay.

  “Something is not right here.” He said. I wondered if he could feel it then too.

  “No shit.”

  The closer we got to it, the more the feeling grew. It was like…like a disturbance in the force. Like some part of the atmosphere had been shattered. Like something terrible had happened that could never be undone.

  And then I saw it. Smoke billowing up in gray clouds in the distance. It covered the beautiful Nevada sunset, hiding the oranges and reds from my sight and leaving only gray in its place. He drove faster, now that he knew where to go. But the closer we got, the more I felt it. But then I knew what it was.

  Death.

  We turned down a gravel road that led to a wire and wooden fence. It appeared to be a farm. But again, I felt no life. David got out of the car to open the gate and we drove through, toward the death.

  He stopped the car when he saw it. I’m glad he was driving, because when I saw it I almost stopped functioning completely.

  In front of us was a large mass
on fire. It was huge, probably a half mile in diameter. The smell was more potent there, seeping in through the air vents. A metallic burn formed on my tongue and the all too familiar yet hated smell of sulfur infiltrated my nose.

  I gagged and opened my door. I spewed my lunch from several hours ago all over the dead grass. David got out and ran to my side. He held back my hair, and then wiped my mouth with his sleeves. Though it was sweet, it was totally gross.

  He pulled a water bottle from behind my seat and offered it to me. I swooshed it around in my mouth before spitting it back out. Then I got out and started walking toward the mass.

  “What are you doing?”

  “We have to pay our respects.”

  I walked up and noticed the little old lady that ran the grocery store. I didn’t remember her name, but I had seen her many times. Behind her was one of the waiters from the hotel, from my wedding night. And behind him was a child, no older than Samantha.

  My chest grew tighter. Tears sprang forth and trickled slowly down my blushed up cheeks. How selfish we had been, hiding away from this destruction. How naïve we had been to think things were ok. I knew it wasn’t like this everywhere, but it was still bad everywhere.

  This was different. This was a slaughter. This was evil. The sulfur confirmed it. The Rising had been here, right on our doorstep, and we had done nothing to save these people.

  “What good is it if we don’t help? What good are we if this happens so close to home and we didn’t even know?” I shouted the words at him. It wasn’t his fault, but I didn’t care. I was angry. Angry at the world. Angry at them.

  “This just keeps happening again and again. Whether its bombs, or guns or whatever this is. It’s death. And it everywhere! And I don’t know how to stop it.” The tears came more freely now.

  David came up to me and pulled me into his chest. Now the tears were accompanied by heavy sobs and disgusting noises you only make where you’re really, really sad.

  “It is not your job to save the world.”

  I pulled back. “Why the hell not? Whose job is it then?” I placed a hand to my tummy. “Our baby? Would you leave this all to our baby to solve?”

  “Of course not. But there is only so much one person can do. This is not your burden to carry.”

  I shook my head and turned back to the burning, lifeless bodies. Their scent filled me up to the core with anger and hatred. With sadness and defeat. This was their victory. They were taunting us, showing us what they could do, what they enjoyed doing. It was disgusting.

  “In nomine Patri, et Filie, et Spiritu Sancti…” I whispered a prayer for them in Latin as I had been raised and then turned back to the car. We drove back in silence. Valentine’s Day officially sucked.

  Chapter 17

  The Beginning

  By the time we got home it was after 8:00 at night and even though this was supposed to be a special day, it wasn’t. Any romantic feelings we once had were gone. David immediately went to find Rick, and I followed quietly, still stunned at our findings.

  Rick and Sharon were still with Samantha. We walked in quietly, so they didn’t notice us at first. Samantha was incorporating a dance that Sharon had taught her with telekinesis, moving things around her as she twirled around moving her feet and arms in enthralling movements. Her dance was hypnotic. I stopped and just watched.

  I wasn’t 100% familiar with all the dances, but this one I knew. It was for strength, usually for others, but sometimes for yourself. The objects she twirled around her were all different. One was a flower that was beginning to bloom before my eyes. One was a candle that flickered in the wind, but stayed lit. Another was a pencil that was writing her name over and over again in the same spot.

  I was in shock. This was several different forms of Power all at the same time. And she was doing it all on her own. My breath caught in my throat as my chest swelled with the knowledge that she was mine. I was so proud. But at the sound of my gasp, they all turned to look at me, and the objects dropped.

  I telekinetically caught them before they smashed to the ground, and moved them all to a table in the corner. She looked up at me, with those big blue eyes, waiting for me to say something. But David beat me to it.

  “Wow. I’m speechless, Sam. That was amazing!”

  She beamed at his compliment, then looked at me expectantly. She obviously wanted the same reaction. “David is right. You were amazing! I don’t even think I could do all that at the same time.”

  Her smile grew, as did Sharon’s and Ricks behind her. “Well, the dance helps. Like, I don’t think I could do all that without the dance, it just makes me stronger.”

  “I am so proud of you, my Sammy girl!” I went to her and pulled her up into my arms. She wrapped her skinny little legs around my waist and kissed my cheek. She didn’t understand how amazing it was that she was able to control her power, even being so young. Or that she was the first child to not be bound in… I don’t know, centuries?

  David spoke to Rick, “We need to talk.”

  Rick nodded, as he said, “I figured as much. We weren’t expecting you back for several hours.”

  “Can I still stay with Sharon tonight? Please. She was going to let Amber stay too and we were going to have hot chocolate with marshmallows.” Samantha asked immediately after I set her back down.

  I looked to Sharon to see if she was still okay with it, and she nodded her agreement.

  “Sure, sweetie. I need to go talk to Rick anyways.”

  She jumped up and clapped, just the way Sharon had the day before. I laughed and hugged and kissed her once more before we left to follow Rick to his office.

  Rick sat behind his desk after we went in, and I sat in front of him. David didn’t sit. But he explained in detail what we had seen in town. Rick was aghast, he had no idea either.

  “It’s not only sad something like this happened without notice. But it is the nearness to us that really worries me.” Rick explained.

  “You should have seen it. You should have smelt it! It was horrible.” I shivered again at the memory.

  “I’m sure it was, darling. I suppose we need to stop planning and actually do something about this.”

  “But what? What can we do that we aren’t already doing?” I asked.

  Rick looked at me like he loved me. Like I was really his daughter and he truly feared for my life. The way I could only imagine looking at Samantha when she is my age.

  “Unfortunately, Allison, you will not be doing anything except staying hidden, here in the Compound. We cannot risk you leaving again. We cannot risk anything happening to you or your baby.”

  “What?” I couldn’t believe what he was saying? Sit on the sidelines and not help? “There is no way I’m not going to help! I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself and I’m even stronger than I ever was before.”

  He knew I was serious and only spoke the truth. My Power before was strong, almost unbearable. But now it was worse. It was constantly bubbling just below the surface, searching for a way out.

  David sat next to me and placed his hand on my clenched fist. “We don’t think you incapable, but we don’t want any harm to come to you. It’s a risk I’m not willing to take.”

  I leaned away from him. “You aren’t willing to take? Well, it’s my decision. Not yours.” I almost screeched the words at him.

  He sighed and looked down, then at Rick. Maybe searching for his help. They would not sway me on this matter. I would not stay hidden while they went off and risked their lives. But I wasn’t going to keep arguing about it. So I would change the subject.

  “Anyways, what’s the plan then? How do we stop them?”

  *** Lilith***

  Damn. I was so tired of this thing inside me. Yes, I was Powerful. Yes, I could incinerate a whole city, a whole damn state if I wanted to, but it was so big. I had to pee every five minutes. It pushed up under my ribs and tried to break them. And it was trying enough to actually do it and truly break them all if
I didn’t stop it from happening.

  According to the healer, I had about a month left of this left to endure. But it didn’t matter anymore. Today was the day that my tribulation would begin. Today was the day they would release their toxic virus into the world, and the Americans would reciprocate. Today, I would win.

  A sharp pain sliced through my back. The little fucker. Ugh. I no longer was certain I would even last another month. The thing was so strong, pushing and kicking me all the time.

  I was leaning back against the couch, trying to lay flat, only to realize I couldn’t breathe with the weight squishing my lungs, when I heard a quick knock on the door. I hadn’t been paying much attention to my surroundings so I didn’t even hear anyone come near my door. I quickly released some Power to check who was outside.

  I could almost taste his Power on my tongue, the delicious taste of evil and excitement. I could imagine so many things about him. I could remember things that had happened, and things for some reason I wanted to happen again. I imagined, just briefly, his muscles around me and grabbing me in the right places, his smooth head glistening in the dim light while he lay atop me, and his darkness mixing with mine.

  I closed my eyes and leaned my head back on the couch, letting my mind wander with images of things I wanted almost unbearably. I allowed myself to smell his sweat, as it dripped down his smooth head down to my own face. I allowed myself to bask in the glory of the level of fun we could really have.

  He knocked again and shouted through the door, “Leader, I have news.”

  I sighed, hopefully loud enough for him to hear. Then smiled, because I knew I would make my fantasies a reality before the end of the day.

  “Come in, Nigel.”

  He walked in quickly, his eyes searching the room until he found me. He walked over, behind my desk to the back of my room, then bowed low.