“So what do we do now?” Travis asked, ignoring the images.
Cole hesitated. He hadn’t had a lot of time to think this out, but it didn’t matter. He knew what they had to do.
“We need to disappear. Lily and me.”
Travis hesitated, and then let out a baffled chuckle. “What? Wait a minute, I can help. I mean, you can’t just–”
“You saved our lives, Travis,” Cole said seriously. “Multiple times. If you hadn’t been there with the truck…” He let the rest go unsaid. “But it goes both ways. They’re killing people to get to us. You got to let me watch your back too.”
Travis looked down, the desire to argue clear on his face.
“Please, Travis.”
A moment passed. “So that’s it then,” the boy said.
He glanced up from the carpet.
Cole shrugged. “We couldn’t have done it without you.”
Travis nodded and then chuckled ruefully. “Right,” he agreed. “Yeah.”
Seconds crept by in silence, and then the boy pulled out his wallet and keys. “Keep the truck,” he said, tossing the keys onto the bed. “And this should last you a while.”
He handed Lily some bills, and Cole saw several hundreds from the corner of his eye.
“I’ll take the bus home,” Travis continued. “And then wait a couple days. Tell my parents I gave the truck away. They won’t care.”
He grinned.
Cole hesitated. “Thanks.”
“It’s been fun,” Travis answered with a candid shrug, and then he paused awkwardly. “Or… you know… whatever.”
Cole nodded.
Pushing to his feet, Travis headed for the door. One hand on the handle, he glanced back. “You’ll call if you’re ever back around though, eh?”
Nodding again, Cole didn’t know what to say.
The boy echoed the motion, a hint of regret flashing over his face. And then he left.
“What now?” Lily asked into the quiet.
Cole didn’t answer. He knew they needed to go. To get away from the war and everything it’d done. It was the smart thing. The safe thing.
But it felt like saying his parents’ deaths were fine. Like agreeing with Melissa. Like Clara and Victor Jamison just meant nothing.
Like running away.
Lily’s hand found his own. “It’ll be alright.”
He glanced down. She gave him a hesitant smile.
And he sighed.
He’d find a way to make the wizards pay for what they’d done. He’d find something, do something, to be strong enough to face them. It’d happen.
Even if it took time.
And would never fix the fact they’d taken his parents away.
Drawing a breath, he squeezed her hand and then rose to make certain the door lock was secure. It wouldn’t stop wizards, but at least it’d give the two of them some warning.
And tomorrow, they’d head west, away from the wizards, the Blood, and the war. They’d run.
For now.
Chapter Seventeen
By the porch window, Ashe blinked and then rubbed a hand over her eyes when the fog didn’t clear. She’d just been watching the yard for a few hours this afternoon, in between pretending to read, but it felt like a lifetime when the only change had been the occasional bird eyeing her quizzically from the deck railing.
On the couch, Elsa crocheted an afghan while watching the latest in an endless stream of daytime television shows. The woman hadn’t left the spot since Ashe woke earlier that morning, and seemed determined to hold onto her illusions by willpower and soap operas alone. In the kitchen, Bus studied the street while Carter talked quietly with Spider, making plans for the next steps they’d take.
Because the Blood wizard hadn’t returned. And it was nearly four in the afternoon, and thus long past the time Elsa said she’d seen him on the previous days.
For her part, the old woman seemed to be growing more and more content as the hours passed. Her peaceful world was resuming. Seeing a Blood wizard had simply been an anomaly, and therefore nothing that required any more of her concern.
Sighing, Ashe leaned forward, peering around the edges of the yard to see if anyone was sneaking along the sides of the neighboring houses. It’d become apparent from the comments she’d overheard that hoping the Blood would return had been one of the better options available. Very few cripples remained in this part of the country after years of war and ravaging by ferals, and consequently the Hunters had limited sources upon which to draw for information. Going into the city to track the man down was riskier by far than simply hiding here till he returned, but it was starting to look like that was what they’d be forced to do.
Bus made a warning noise and instantly, Carter and Spider fell silent. “Someone’s coming,” the old man said. “Could be a wizard.”
Elsa paled, looking torn between fear at the approaching person and the tremors in her tranquility. For their part, Spider and Carter drew their guns.
The doorbell rang. From her prison in the basement, Mitzi erupted into furious barking.
Carter glanced to Mischa and Tala, but the dogs were silent.
“Elsa?” came a voice from outside.
Rising hastily, the old woman shuffled toward the door. “Oh, put those away,” she said, waving her hands ineffectually at the guns. “For pity’s sake, it’s only Norman.”
Carter nodded to Spider, who turned and motioned for Ashe to follow her into the other room. Ashe’s brow furrowed in confusion.
“You don’t want to make yourself popular, girl,” Bus said from his post by the window. “Human or wizard.”
She blanched, suddenly remembering the news. The arrest at the train station. She hurried after Spider as Bus quickly turned down the police scanner.
As the bedroom door shut behind her, she could hear Norman come in. His surprise at the others was apparent in his tone, though she heard Bus attempting to allay it with a story of being an old friend, road-tripping with his buddy across the country.
By the closed bedroom door, Spider adjusted her grip on the gun, listening intently. Warily, Ashe drew her own weapon, barely breathing as she waited.
A minute passed. The front door shut.
“All clear,” Carter called quietly from the hall.
Putting the gun away, Ashe followed Spider back into the living room. The girl eyed Carter questioningly and a hint of exasperation crossed his face, making his opinion clear. In the kitchen, Bus grimaced and then turned back to the police scanner, letting the static bursts of intermittent voices fill the room again.
Without a word, Ashe headed for the porch window, grateful to see Mischa trail after her. Ignoring them all, Elsa sank onto the couch, her attention returning to her crochet.
Bus made an alarmed noise, but the front door swung open before anyone could move.
“Elsa, I forgot to ask if–” Norman started, pulling his key from the lock.
His brow furrowed at the sight of the two girls.
“My granddaughter and her friend,” Bus said, rising to block his view.
By the window, Ashe ducked her head, letting her hair fall around her face.
“Oh,” Norman said. Clearly still thrown from finding Bus and Carter in Elsa’s home, he paused, taking in Spider’s appearance. Blinking briefly, he extended a hand to the girl.
“Nice to meet you,” he said, trying to sound pleasant.
“Likewise,” Spider said easily, stepping in front of Ashe and motioning to the door. “You live down the street?”
“Yeah. Past thirty years. You know, Elsa never mentioned you.”
“Eh, you know how it is with old friends,” Bus said. “Years go by.”
Norman nodded distantly, his gaze sliding to Carter and away.
“You were going to ask me something, Norman?” Elsa prompted.
“I was just planning on heading to the store and wanted to know if you needed anything.”
“Oh no, I’m fine.
Thank you so much, though, for checking.”
He nodded again, seeming unconvinced. “So you’re sure you’re alright?”
“Norman,” Elsa said patiently. “Don’t be rude. These are my friends. They just stopped by for a quick visit on their way through town.”
The man glanced over them again, leaning slightly to look past Spider at Ashe.
Blanching behind her curtain of hair, she snatched up the book and turned to set it on the shelf. When she looked back, his gaze had moved on to the others.
“I’ll come by tomorrow then,” Norman said, starting toward the door.
“Looking forward to it,” Elsa said, escorting him.
“Right,” the man said uncomfortably. “Okay.”
Elsa shut the door behind him as he left.
“You didn’t tell us he had a key,” Carter said quietly as she returned to the couch.
“Of course I did.”
“Elsa.”
“Well, I meant to,” she amended primly, taking up her crochet again. “Anyway, Norman’s just protective. I don’t see why you have to be so worried.”
“You know why.”
“It’s fine, Carter,” Elsa said, her voice becoming firm, and Ashe could see the woman trying to make herself believe the words.
Not answering, Carter walked into the kitchen and joined Bus by the window. Swallowing hard, Ashe followed, while Spider wordlessly took up position where she’d been.
“Are we still okay?” Ashe asked.
Pulling back the curtain slightly, Carter didn’t answer. Bus just rose and headed for the living room, leaving the two of them alone.
“Carter?”
He glanced at her, and she could see him evaluating the factors. If they missed the Blood wizard returning, it could be months before anyone spotted him again.
But if Norman had recognized her… if he called the police…
With the exception of Elsa, every person in this room was probably wanted for murder in one city or another, even if their faces hadn’t been plastered all over the news like hers had been.
“We’ll find him,” Carter said gently, his hand resting on her shoulder.
Air escaped her.
“Get your stuff,” he continued. “I’ll call Serenity and Blackjack before we leave. Check if their people have seen anything.”
Trying to be comforted by the gesture, however useless she suspected it’d be, she forced herself to nod. She walked back into the living room, and Bus gave her a sympathetic look before reaching for his bag.
Carter cursed. “He’s coming back again.”
“What is it with this guy?” Bus asked, shoving his bag under the couch and then rising. Ashe ducked behind the hall corner while, by the window, Spider shifted slightly, clearly wanting to reach for her gun.
“Elsa,” Norman said as he pushed open the door. “There’s just one other thing.”
Ashe stopped breathing as his gaze slid past her. He recognized her. She was certain of it.
He continued into the living room. Carter followed, glancing between the man and the open door.
“You’re being rather rude, Norman, just barging in here,” Elsa protested, rising from her seat.
“I just need to ask you something. I’m planning on bringing food to the senior center for the Fourth of July, and I was wondering if you would–”
“Norman!” Elsa cried.
He spun to face them, an old pistol clutched in his shaking hand.
Everyone in the room froze.
“Think about what you’re doing, buddy,” Bus said carefully.
“Shut up,” Norman snapped. He sidled between Elsa and the others, half-turning his head to the old woman as he continued. “I don’t know what they’ve told you, Elsa, but these people–”
He cut off, his hand jerking in alarm as the police scanner squawked. Ashe flinched at the motion, and then felt the blood drain from her face as the scratchy words filled the room.
“All available units, please respond. We have a report of a hostage situation at 1512 East Pine. At least four suspects, potentially armed, holding a seventy-year-old white female. Suspects are a white teenage female wanted for homicide in Montana, black male approximately fifty years old, white male approximately–”
“You son of a bitch,” Bus growled.
The gun twitched toward him.
“I’m taking her out of here,” Norman said, his voice trembling. “I’m not going to let you hurt her.”
“Norman…” Elsa started fearfully.
“Quiet.” The gun moved toward Ashe. “Get away from the door.”
Barely breathing, she slid from the hallway into the living room. Nervously, her eyes went to Carter, and she saw him nod slowly to the old woman.
Elsa slumped to the floor. Startled, Norman turned to her, taking his eyes from the room.
Bus slammed into him. Clutched in Norman’s hand, the weapon swung toward Spider and the girl hit the ground.
The pistol fired, the sound deafening in the crowded living room. Smashing his elbow into the man’s side, Bus sidestepped and then sent the weapon clattering to the floor.
Norman choked. Hand outstretched, he stumbled toward his pistol, and then froze when he saw Carter’s gun.
“Don’t,” Carter said quietly.
Scowling, Spider shoved up from the carpet and then crossed the room, retrieving the pistol while Bus patted Norman down.
Carter glanced to the kitchen window, his gun still leveled at the other man, and Ashe followed his gaze.
Her breath caught.
Four wizards stood outside the bar.
Panicked, she looked to Carter. His eyes narrowed and then he swore as the men started for Elsa’s house. “Go! Out the back. Now!”
Bus and Spider didn’t hesitate. Tossing the pistol behind the couch, Spider headed for the porch door and yanked it open. Taking Elsa’s hand, Bus hurried the old woman outside.
Ignoring Norman’s objections, Ashe rushed after them, Tala and Mischa on her heels.
“Mitzi!” Elsa cried.
With a fluid motion, Carter ripped open the basement door, and then strode across the room. Grabbing Norman by one arm, Carter spun him around, jabbed the muzzle of his gun into the man’s side and then forced him out onto the deck.
“What do you want?” Norman protested as Carter muscled him down the stairs. “Money? Just let Elsa go. Whatever you want–”
“Shut up,” Carter growled.
Unlatching the chain-link gate, Bus held it wide as the others hurried into the utility easement between the yards. Sirens shrieked in the distance, coming closer. Scooping the little dog into her arms, Elsa hesitated at the gate, her gaze going back to her house.
“Elsa…” Bus urged.
Clutching the animal, she left the yard.
“Which house is his?” Spider asked.
Norman made a protesting noise as Elsa pointed. “The blue one.”
Three houses down, Carter shoved open the gate in the tall wooden fence surrounding Norman’s property. “Go,” he told Elsa. “They’re after us, not you.”
Releasing Norman, he propelled him through the entrance after the old woman.
“Get her inside,” Carter ordered. “Keep her away from the windows and don’t answer the door for anyone. Her life depends on it.”
An explosion thundered from the yellow cottage, punctuated by the sound of shattering glass and wood. Elsa cried out and staggered back toward her home. Dumbstruck, Norman caught her.
Carter motioned the others to run. “Go!” he barked at Norman.
As she started after Spider, Ashe caught a glimpse of the old man hurrying a sobbing Elsa toward his house.
They ran down the easement and skirted the opening to the street. Police sirens blared in the neighborhood behind them, joined by the howl of fire engines racing to the scene. Darting across the road, they cut through the space between two houses and swiftly scaled the fence separating the yards.
> “Split up,” Carter said, pausing for the dogs to leap the barrier. “Head for Pepper.”
Spider jerked her chin at Ashe, and then clicked her tongue at Mischa before taking off. Ashe followed, looking back to see Carter and Bus disappear around the corner with Tala.
She ran after the other girl, dodging between the houses and parked cars lining the streets. From one road to the next, they emerged into a business district, but Spider didn’t slow, veering between two buildings and then across the parking lot behind them. A gap in the fence cordoning off the lot gave them entrance to the next street, and a space in the row of office buildings that followed let them into the alleys behind.
Heart pounding, Ashe glanced back as they dashed between the brick buildings. The sirens were growing fainter, trapped by the need to check the neighborhood before moving on. Smoke from Elsa’s house billowed into the sky, but the clouds were growing thinner with every moment. Mischa panted heavily at her side, and the sound of her own breathing drowned the rush of traffic in the streets.
Spider raced around the corner, Ashe on her heels.
Energy slammed into her, propelling her back into a dumpster, and Mischa yelped as she crashed down beside her. Gunshots rang out, the bullets pelting the brick walls.
Dizzily, Ashe pushed up from the concrete, blood dripping down her face. Darkness swirled across her vision and then pulled away.
A wizard had Spider by the throat. His other hand gripping the girl’s wrist and his knee crushing her chest, he pinned her to the ground, and as she fired desperately at his defenses, his mouth curved into a smile.
Magic rose around him. Above him.
And swung down.
Ashe screamed at the fires inside.
White heat turned the air to flame as it raced over her body, her arms, her hands. Ripping past Spider, the magic slammed the wizard and threw him backward. Shoving to her feet, Ashe strode down the alley, her eyes locked on the man.
Burned and bleeding, he tried to rise.
Fire met him.
He couldn’t even scream. Flames tore into him, raking his body till only a blackened corpse dropped to the ground.
The Children and the Blood Page 29