He punched her in the kidney, knocking the wind out of her. It hurt, real bad. She blinked, struggling to focus through the pain.
“I guess you haven’t heard about mine.” She brought her heel down on the top of his foot as hard as she could and gasped in surprise as her heel met ground.
“I know all the moves, honey.”
This was bad. I’m-gonna-get-my-arse-kicked bad.
Star twisted in his arms and made a grab for his family jewels. Her hand hit a wall, literally, and he cackled in her face.
“Cock shield, honey.”
She was screwed.
“Let the games begin!” He slammed a fist into her face. The world exploded in pain, a bellow ripped through the air and her hand was on fire.
And then the ground was rising up to meet her, a foot was connecting with her abdomen.
Too much, too quick. No time to breathe, to think, to act.
Ryder…
Chapter Thirty-Eight
“STAR! NO!”
Ryder could feel her pain, every blow was like a punch to his gut. The fucker wasn’t holding back. He was laying in and Star wouldn’t be able to take any more. He had to get to her. He had to reach for her.
“Star! Come on! You can do this!” The rage was a red haze on the periphery of his vision. He had to hold it at bay, needed to focus, to get to Star before it was too late, before he lost control and took out the whole room with him.
She was crawling across the floor toward him and the fucker was letting her, strolling alongside her, humouring her, and just before she could get close enough to reach Ryder the bastard slammed his foot on her back, squashing her to the ground, grinding her like a bug.
Her scream almost undid him. He grabbed the rope, ready to duck under it, but Terry grabbed his arm.
“Give it to her.”
“What?”
“Your rage, give it to her.”
“Wha-” and then he understood. He could feel her pain, and if he could feel her then she could feel him. All he had to do was let go.
“Star!” He held out his hand, stretching as far as he could. She looked up, bloodshot eyes, bleeding mouth. She reached for him, her fingertips a foot away. There was no chance of a tag so this had to work or else he would break, he’d have no choice but to break.
“Do you feel it, Star? Feel my fury!” He allowed it to boil up, tip over.
Her eyes widened, her jaw clenched, and then she was screaming, bucking so hard that the fucker David flew off her back, landing on his.
She was up and striding toward him, landing on his chest, fists flying so fast it was almost a blur. Blood sprayed, thuds and thwacks. Ryder felt her elation, her liberation, her hate. He allowed it to wash over him bathing in it and then a ripple of unease washed over the crowd as the feeling spread, the anger, the hatred, the need to hurt.
It was out of control.
She had to stop, he had to make her stop but he couldn’t. He didn’t know how, he didn’t have the switch. She did!
“Star! You have to stop! Star, he’s out, Star!” The bell tolled. The man with the megaphone shouted for attention and then just shouted because he could, the words turning to curses.
“Get her out of here, both of you get out!” Terry pushed Ryder into the arena, toward Star.
He didn’t hesitate. He scooped her off an unconscious David, slung her over his shoulder and legged it.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Ryder laid Star on his bed as carefully as he could.
“Hurts, make it stop, please.”
What could he do? How could he help her?
“I might have something back at the library.” Terry rushed off.
Ryder sat on the floor beside the bed. Her eyes were closed, teeth clenched, breath shallow and fast. Broken rib, busted lip, cut to the brow and a couple of shiners. Her nose was a mess, probably broken. Dammit, he needed to get her to a medic, not wait for Terry to come back with bandages or whatever he’d gone to retrieve. If only they were in City, the settlers had a cure for everything and this, this was minor. One injection would speed up the healing process and put her to rights in a matter of hours.
He stood up. He’d do it, he would take her into City, give himself up in exchange for them fixing her.
The door opened behind him and Terry rushed back in and he had another idea.
“You work for the insiders. Can you get us into City?”
“What the hell ya wants to go there for?”
“They have serum that can heal her.”
Terry folded his arms. “And what makes ya think they’ll hand it over to you.”
Ryder pulled himself to his full height. “I’ll make them a deal. Me in exchange for the serum.”
Terry’s laughter was a sharp bark that cut through the air. “You do gots it bad anitcha, but yous forgetting one thing, we had a deal. I help you and you help me. Yous no good to me in settler’s clutches.”
Ryder grabbed Terry by the collar lifting him off his feet. “You think I give a crap about our deal? All I care about is her!”
Terry held up his hands. “Okay, okay, which is why it’s just as well that I haves a vial of that serum ya were talking about.”
He had the serum? “Why the fuck didn’t you say so?” Man, the bloke had a death wish.
“Ya didn’t exactly give me a chance with ya googly-eyed rant.” Terry huffed, adjusting his collar. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out the vial and a sealed syringe.
“You wanna do it or shall I?”
“You do it.”
Terry tore open the syringe and drew from the vial before injecting the serum directly into Star’s vein. She didn’t even flinch, probably on pain overload.
After a few minutes her body relaxed and she fell asleep.
“Thank you,” Ryder said.
Terry reached into his back pocket and withdrew a wad of cash. “You earned it.”
Ryder stared at the money, more money than he had seen in one place in a long time. He took it gingerly.
“Look, that little girl, she needs help fast, and Star ain’t gonna be up to shit for at least twenty-four hours. I know you don’t know me too well, but if ya trusts me. I’ll sit with her while you go fetch that medic.”
He was torn. He didn’t want to leave Star like this, but he knew what she would say, she’d tell him to put Midge first.
“You touch her, and I will kill you,” Ryder said.
“I ain’t stupid, ‘sides, I need you on side.” He winked. “Sleeping beauty is safe with me, you gots my word.”
“I’ll be back in a few hours.”
Terry’s eyes widened. “Optimistic, aintcha? The medical centre’s a days walk away.
Ryder grinned. “Who said anything about walking?”
Terry let out a low wolf whistle as Ryder uncovered the kart he’d been building for the past few months. Parts had been hard to come by, but he’d been patient, put out feelers until he had everything he needed. It was beautiful, a work of art, and would eat up the miles between Rubble Town and the medical facility.
“You shady devil. She’s a beaut alright. Yous gonna have to let me take her for a spin once ya get back.”
Ryder chuckled. “You think you can handle her?”
Terry rubbed his hands together. “I know I can. Hey, what’s that?”
He’d seen the smaller kart, the one for Midge. Ryder moved over to it, running his hand over the smooth surface.
“It’s for Midge.”
Terry was looking at him strangely. “After everything that happened to us, after what ya people did to us, I wanted to hate ya. Even when the insiders sent me on a mission to find your kind, the Horseman, I didn’t allow meself to believe that you could be anything less than evil.”
Ryder didn’t like it, the awe in Terry’s eyes. He didn’t deserve it. “I may not be evil, but what I have inside me is, never underestimate that, Terry. And if I get out of control you have to promise me you’ll
shut me down, whatever it takes.”
Terry held up his hands. “Hey, I said I misjudged ya, not that I was stupid. If it comes down to it and you go psycho, trust me, I will put ya down.”
It was only when he was driving out of Rubble Town that Ryder considered Terry’s words, the confidence in his tone. A Horseman was a formidable opponent and yet he had been certain that he could shut Ryder down it led to only one conclusion: the insiders had a weapon of their own.
Chapter Forty
Star opened her eyes to an absence of pain and Terry’s smug face.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hello to you too, girly. You took that beating like a pro, really made Ryder squirm. I’m proud of ya.”
Star sat up. “What are you on about?”
Terry grinned. “You can cut the act now. We’re on the same side, remember?” He leaned in and winked. “We’re on the Inside.”
Had he gone nuts? “I thought I was the only one with the blows to the head,” she glanced about. “Where’s Ryder?”
Terry was frowning slightly now. He leaned in. “I sent him to fetch the medic, thoughts we could do with a moment alone.”
He was going to kiss her. Star slapped him.
Terry rubbed his cheek. “What was that for?”
“Seriously? You’re asking me why I slapped you?” Her voice was rising and she couldn’t help it. “You tried to….to…” She waved her hand in front of her face. “Hang on, why aren’t I in pain?”
Terry rolled his eyes. “I gave you some special magical serum to make you all better and I wasn’t tryin’ ta come on ta ya, you’re not me type—too young, too skinny, not enough tit. Nah, I was inferring a secret shared.”
“We don’t have a secret shared.”
Terry stared blankly at her. “You mean you don’t…they never…ah fucking hell!” He threw up his hands. “A double blind.”
“You lost me.”
“Listen, girly, the insiders sent you here for a reason, to connect with Ryder, to make him your bitch and you fucking did it. He’s in love with you.”
“No…no he isn’t…he…it’s not like that.” Was it? Her chest felt warm, a girly glow of possibility.
“Really? Have ya seen him look atchya? The man is gaga and when you was getting your arse handed to ya, I thought he was gonna explode, and then when you were in pain, the guy was ready to give himself up to the settlers if it meant saving you pain and getting you some serum. Good job I had some on me or else the plan woulda been fucked.”
He was rambling, but she was starting to understand. Garret’s sudden order that she touch base at home, the lack of radio contact. He was also the only one she’d confided in about her experience with the Horseman, about the thing lodged in her palm.
They’d used her to get to Ryder.
“What do they want him for?”
“Exactly what I told him at the library. They want him to work for ‘em, to help ‘em and you, my dear, are an insurance policy. People will do anything for the one they love. At first we thought about using the girl—ya sister. But then the powers that be wanted something stronger, a plan b, and what better choice than the luscious older sister of the sick little girl? The sister who just happens to have a piece of the puzzle lodged in her palm. Of course we didn’t know he was the same Horseman who’d attacked ya as a child. That part was a beautiful coincidence. We’d hoped that the switch in your palm would somehow connect with him, but this...this worked out so much better.”
“But Ryder...he’s a good man, he would have helped us regardless.”
Terry smiled wryly. “Oh, I know that now, but we had ta be certain. After the other one told us ta fuck off and come back later, we realised we needed some kind of insurance on each o’ them. We need him to help us. The Raven checked in an hour ago. Settlers are on the move. By sunset tomorrow, Rubble Town will no longer exist and the only person that can help us stop ‘em is Ryder.”
“Was that part of your plan too? To use him to stop the settler attack?”
Terry shook his head. “Nah, those are recent developments, but now we gots him we may aswell use him.”
“But what if he can’t? You saw us in that arena, we barely controlled the rage inside him.”
Terry sighed. “But he channelled it to you. If he can manage that, he can manage the fury. He just has to-”
“-believe,” she finished. “What if he can’t?”
Terry’s expression grew tight. “Then we make him…”
And then it clicked, why they needed her. She was their leverage. They threaten her and he dances.
“No, I won’t let them use him like some…some puppet.”
“And how do you intend to stop them?”
“By telling him the truth.”
“You could lose him, Star.”
“Yes, but I can’t keep him on a lie.”
“Yous good people, Star, that’s why I’m sorry I gots to do this.” He stood and began to advance on her.
“What the… hey! Gerroff!”
A sharp prick in her neck and darkness claimed her.
Chapter Forty-One
A medic willing to come all the way to Rubble Town in the middle of the night wasn’t hard to find when he waved the cash. Ryder made it back to Rubble Town in record time with the guy who’d agreed to accompany him, clinging to the kart seat with his stubby nails.
He dropped the guy off at Star’s home to allow him a chance to examine Midge and rushed back to his home. He couldn’t wait to check on Star.
He sensed her absence as soon as he stepped into the workshop. A quick inspection of his living space confirmed it.
Star was gone.
“Where is she?”
Terry stepped outside the library and closed the door behind him.
“She’s safe…for now.”
“You little-” Ryder took a step toward him, but Terry held up his hand and six large men dressed in black shirts and trousers appeared as if from nowhere. They carried weapons and trained them on Ryder. The men were soldiers, insider soldiers. What the hell were they doing here?
He felt the ball of fury in his breast expand. He could take them all down if he wanted. He could do it in the blink of an eye, but if he unleashed his personal arsenal then there was no slamming the lid back down on it. If Star was in the building she could get hurt.
He closed his eyes and exhaled, pressing the rage down, keeping it in check.
“Do you want to see Star?” Terry asked.
Stupid question. “What have you done to her?”
“Nothing. Listen, Ryder, yous a good guy and I hates to do this, but we need ya help and I promise you Star will be fine as long as you a do as we say. The settlers are coming and they’re gonna raze this town to the ground, kill every human they can find. We need you ta stop ‘em, slow ‘em down, whatever you can do while we evacuate.”
Insiders… They were blackmailing him, using Star. All these years he’d been a man apart from everything, holding back, never getting too close and the one time he let his heart rule… How had they known?
“You’ve been watching me?”
“I’m gonna be straight with you, Ryder. We’ve known about you for some time, but your kind, they’re unpredictable, so we scoped you out, and with Star we tested you.”
A dark weight descended on in his chest. “Star knew about this?”
Terry shook his head. “No, she didn’t. It needed to be real, you see. What you two gots is real. I like you guys, you got balls.”
“Then why do this? You don’t need to take her. You don’t need to threaten me. I said I’d help you and I will.”
Terry looked torn. “Man, I know that, but the powers that be, they need to feel in control. Can’t have you waking up one day and changing your mind, can’t have you turning on them, so they gets to keep Star until you complete the mission.”
The sincerity in Terry’s tone was clear as a bell. This wasn’t his call and Ryder felt the bite of t
he shackles on his wrists because they had him.
“Hey! Ryder! Everything okay?”
Ryder glanced over his shoulder to see Stone and Brim ambling up. He frowned. They never hung around on this side of town. What had drawn them today?
“You okay, man?” Brim addressed Ryder, but his eyes were fixed on the men in black.
Stone raised his chin. “You guys new in town?”
Ah, they must have heard about the small army driving into town. Giselle must have sent them to investigate.
The men in uniform glanced at each other, showing the first signs of uncertainty.
Terry cleared his throat. “They’re here by my invitation, and, trust me, you’re going to want them here. Shit’s gonna hit the fan and you don’t want to be in line for the splatter.”
Brim’s lips curled in a sadistic smile. “I ain’t afraid of no flying shit.”
“Ryder? Do we have a problem?” Stone asked.
Yeah, they had Star. He wanted her back and he knew that if he told the guys this they’d do whatever to help him and it’d get them killed. The guys were tough, one on one, fists to fist, but insiders had guns and bullets and, fuck, he couldn’t do it.
“I got it under control,” he said to them. To Terry he said, “Fill them in on what’s going on. They can help with the evacuation.”
He felt the tension at this back as Brim and Stone realised what kind of shit was going to be hitting the fan.
“Where are they gonna hit us from?”
“The east side of town,” Terry said.
“I need her. I can’t do this without her.”
“Do what, man?” Stone was at his side.
“You can. You just need to believe.”
“What the fuck are they making you do?” Stone said.
Terry leaned forward. “He’s gonna save our arses, that’s what. Ryder here is one o’ them. He’s one o’ the Horsemen.”
He felt Stone tense, expected an exclamation of horror, something. Instead he felt Brim flank him and he felt Stone’s hand on his shoulder.
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