“You’re going to kill me?” I scoff. “I’d say, try not to be too disappointed when you lose, but feeling anything will be a bit beyond you when I’m done, James. I’m through listening to you, you piece of dirt.”
James nearly throws Annabelle into a wall in his effort to get at my throat. Standing inside the cell, I can only watch him act like the idiot he his.
Until David hits something on the wall… and the gate begins to slide open.
Just when I think James is about to launch himself at me, David clamps down on his shoulder. “Not. Here.”
Infuriated, but too well trained to disobey, David’s mongrel backs off and grabs hold of Annabelle again. There is panic in her eyes, but she lets him yank her around with a plastered-on neutral expression. She’s had to defend herself against her psychotic cousin more than once, but she’s never had to worry about trying to protect someone else at the same time. She stands still, locked against James’ chest, eyes glued to me.
David steps into the empty space the cell gate used to occupy and glares at me. “You have two choices, Zander.”
I seriously doubt I have a choice about anything.
“You can take your chances with James and attempt once more to prove you are worth my time, or you can tell me what Oscar is hiding.”
His words sink into me like an assassin’s blade. The physical reaction is too obvious to hide. I can barely think, but terror like I have never known before shoves words into my mouth before I can give everything away. “You’re going to let him kill me?” I demand. “You know I’m the Gift, David! Van or me! It isn’t him. It will never be him!”
David seems just a little bit confused by my reaction. Clearly, he expected my first words to be something about leaving my brother alone. Inside, I am quaking with fear that he already knows. Emily admitted to calling him the night Oscar went after my parents, but when I questioned her about it further, she never gave him her name, never met him, and never gave him any indication of how he might find her. She even called him from Oscar’s phone, left behind in his frenzy to get answers out of someone.
He can’t know where Emily is, or about Joshua, or they would already be under his control. He can’t know about them, but he knows Oscar is keeping something from him. David’s eyes narrow as he considers me. “What is your brother hiding from me?”
“How would I know?” I snap. I try to force enough irritation into my voice to cover the fear, but his eyes narrow even more. “He’s probably hiding a lot of things! He’s Oscar! He’s not going to tell me, though. In fact, I’m the last person he’d tell!”
David shifts his feet, not moving forward or backward. “Then I suppose I’ll just have to ask Van once I have her safely in my grasp again, won’t I?”
“She doesn’t know either!”
“I doubt that very much,” David sneers. “She’s the one who visits him most often. He’s the one she turns to for help. She’s the one he trusts. She’ll know, and I’ll drag it out of her.”
“You can’t. She’s too important to you. You can’t hurt her!” I scream.
His sickening laugh echoes through the cell. “Pain will only fuel her. You know that, Zander. She’s a Godling. She’ll heal, she put up more walls, and she’ll turn herself into exactly what I want her to become.”
“You only think you can control her,” I spit. “How’d she end up escaping, huh? That part of your infallible plan, David?”
David’s arm shoots out from his body at incredible speed. He has hold of my shirt in an instant, throwing me out of the cell and into the wall. Before I can even think of getting up, two massive Godlings drag me to me feet and begin hauling me through the corridors. I know fighting against them is pointless, so I save my strength and try to keep sight of Annabelle.
I don’t realize how dark the cellblock must have been until I’m thrust into the full light of day. The brightness stings my eyes, and I have to close them against the light. Only the shouting of a crowd of people yanks them back open. More than a little shocked, I stare at nearly every Godling who lives at the compound circling me with eager, vicious looks slapped across most of their faces. Only a few in the front ranks look leery or disgusted by what they know is about to happen.
The two brutes throw me to the ground at James’ feet. I push up to stand slowly. James makes a show of rolling his shoulders and stretching his neck. The only thing I roll is my eyes. This is by far the most pointless thing David has ever forced me into. Does he really think James can kill me? Does he even want him to? I can’t imagine he would, because even as much trouble as Van and I can be, he needs us to win this war and he knows it. What is his real goal in all of this?
Clearly, James doesn’t have the same thought I do. He just wants to kill me. His fist comes flying in before I even have my hands up to defend myself. Not a big surprise, but it really annoys me as I dodge his blow much easier than last time. He takes a few more swings before I actually make a move to counter him. As soon as I do, he kicks one of my legs out from under me.
Immediately, I can tell this will be different from before. Last time we fought, he was pure viciousness. This time, it’s desperation through and through. I realize then that killing me is only a perk of this fight. David had made it clear to him that he’s lost faith in his abilities. This is James last chance to become David’s right-hand man. He will stop at nothing to prove himself.
That’s good.
I need every ounce of pain I can get from him.
Timing my next strike, I throw my fist into the side of his head. The crack of bone on bone makes the crowd flinch. James stumbles back, dazed, as I shake out my broken knuckles and send hunger down my forearm to heal them. James must be together enough to be doing the same, because he shakes his head a few seconds later and launches himself at me again.
This time there is no cage wall to break my fall. We crash to the ground as his hands wrench one of my arms, flipping me and pinning me beneath his weight. His weight alone isn’t hard to throw off, but getting leverage is. I scramble and buck until I get my knee wedged under my body to push off. James tries to shove me back down, but I get my toes turned under and push with everything I have without trying to get my arm free.
He’s too tangled up with my limbs to extract himself before I shift my momentum mid-flip and slam him down to the ground, landing on top of him in a massive, cartilage-snapping blow. He’s too stunned to keep me from pulling my limp arm free and rolling to the side. I hate that I have to use my hunger to heal the injury, but I have no other choice.
My plan was fairly vague when I was dumped into this fight, but now it begins to solidify. Letting James hurt me wastes my hunger, but I can’t completely dominate him or David will figure things out too soon. I partially dodge another blow. It glances off me, stinging, but doing no real damage. Before he can regain his balance, I attack, thrusting a fist into his ribs and then chin. Easily, I could go for a third strike, but I hold off. I need him to rebuild my hunger and energy. I can’t destroy him too quickly, or I’ll fail.
From that point forward, every move is calculated, every dodge deliberately too slow to really let him miss. I take blow after blow, feigning that they are doing more damage than they really are. After what feels like an eternity, I stop healing the cuts and bruises to make James think he is wearing me down. Outwardly, I am exhausted and close to breaking, but inside, I am simply biding my time. Nothing else matters until I miss a dodge more than I meant to, and James slams me into the ground at Annabelle’s feet.
There is a brief second where I look up at her tear-streaked face and feel guilt for letting her believe I am so weak. Before James can drag me away, I risk a smile at her, winking so she knows it’s largely all an act. I only see a flash of confusion before James tosses me across the courtyard. I slam into a wall of people, rolling away from them with a grunt.
I want to end it, to take James head and slam in into the ground until every ounce of fury built up inside of me is f
inally released, but I can’t. Not yet. So I continue to fight, to feed, to store the pain and feel the energy rising in my core. I relish the feeling of inevitability seeping into every fiber of my body. Every hit I take fuels my hatred for these people. Every blow I deliver resonates within me. I’m so close. I can do this. All I need is a little more pain, a little more desperation, and a little more power.
But James is flagging.
“Is that really all you’ve got?” I taunt him. “No wonder David ditched you for a little girl.”
Furious, James bolts up from the ground where he had fallen a moment earlier and pile drives his head into my gut. I knew exactly what he would do, so I fold under the blow to lessen the impact and pummel his sides with everything I have left. He screams under the barrage and struggles to get away from me, but I swing one arm over his shoulders and close down in a brutal headlock.
“David always knew you would fail him,” I hiss. “He never believed you were the gift. Why else do you think he kept my siblings and me alive for so long? He knows it’s one of us. He would have never let wildlings like us live if he didn’t.”
Rage blasts through James’ body. He rips himself out of my grip in an inhuman show of strength and madness. There is nothing left in his eyes but insanity as his poisoned eyes stare down at me. “You three were an experiment to him! Nothing more! You’re nothing! None of you mean anything!” James screams.
People in the inside of the ring press backward, as far away from him as they can get. It honestly surprises me to realize all the sick smiles of satisfaction when I first fell into the circle were to see James broken, not to see me dead. Understanding that, I haul myself back up to my feet and face James.
“If I’m nothing, then why haven’t you killed me yet?”
James completely and utterly loses it. He flies at me in a rage. His attacks are so fragmented and unpredictable that I take more damage than I meant to, but I know this is the end. I let my hunger run wild, gobbling up every hit, every cut, and every broken bone. It soaks into my soul like honey, and I find myself grinning as it fills me to the absolute breaking point. My skin erupts into flames felt but not seen. I stop trying to dodge his fists and press my hands to my head in agony as the power waterfalling into me threatens to crack me open. The scream wrenched from my lips has little to do with James and everything to do with the awful power straining against its mortal cage.
When I can hold it in no longer, I shove it all into my hands with a scream that leaves the entire courtyard in silence, slamming my fists into James’ chest. The eruption of light blinds everyone and blasts through both of us without care for who it damages. My broken, numb body slams back into the ground, blasting the air out of my lungs as the dust and debris floats down like confetti.
It’s painful to move, but I scramble back up to my feet. I have to be sure. I nearly fall as soon as I get my feet under me, but I half run toward James, hoping, praying he is dead. I had wanted my first show of power to be directed toward David, but I had no choice. I stumble to a stop next to James and peer down at his body. The entire crowd gasps when he convulses and begins to push himself up to sitting. Falling back, I stare at him in defeat.
He isn’t dead.
I took in as much pain as I could hold, but it wasn’t enough.
It will never be enough.
I played my hand and lost.
Hope that we will ever escape David crumbles as reality crashes down around me.
Chapter Thirty-Three: Priority
(Vanessa)
Ketchup’s car screeches to a stop in an empty parking lot. She’s already here. Her silhouette is backed by the fading sun, making her look like the sadistic angel of death I always thought she was. I’m shocked to realize she isn’t alone. Standing next to her is Noah, only recognizable in the fading light by his ever-fashionable and unwavering hair. Ketchup bristles next to me at the sight of him, but I put a hand on his forearm to calm him back down.
“What is he doing here?”
“I don’t know, but maybe we should ask before jumping down their throats, okay?”
He doesn’t look happy about it, but he nods. I’m not particularly thrilled either, but we have no clue what we’re about to walk into. Even though I know we need Ivy’s help, nothing will ever make me happy about it. She came to us, though. She knows something about Zander, about what’s going on and why. Even after we risked putting the batteries back in our phones, he isn’t answering and neither is Annabelle. What Noah has to do with all of this, I have no idea. It’s hard to deny that having one more body as backup is a little bit of a relief.
Something isn’t right. In reality, something hasn’t been right since the day David showed up in our lives, but something really isn’t right today. I despise having to ask Ivy for help, but what choice do we have? Hopefully, Noah can at least temper her presence.
“Come on,” Ketchup says. “Let’s get this over with.”
I only grunt in response, but I do unbuckle my seatbelt.
“Don’t worry so much. You’ve still got your knives,” Ketchup teases, a devilish smile creeping onto his lips.
It’s enough to make my shoulders stop trying to squeeze me in half. I shake my head at him, though the prospect does sound rather tempting. At this point, who cares if I kill her? Pretty much everyone is trying to kill me at this point, why not Isolde too?
Ketchup and I get out of the car, slowly approaching Ivy and Noah. She startles me into stopping when she bolts across the empty space and skids to a stop mere inches away from me. Noah follows more sedately, but just as grim. “Zander, David took him, and Annabelle, too. We have to save him, please, Van, you have to help me save him. Please, you have to.”
I’m too stunned to react to her words, let alone the tears pouring down her cheeks.
“Please,” she begs, “this is all my fault.”
While I don’t doubt that, I need a few more specifics. “What happened, Ivy? Why did David take Zander and Annabelle?”
“I don’t know.” She sniffs and wipes at her eyes. “There’s no way he could have known already. It must have been something else.”
Ketchup and I glance at each other. We both know exactly what the something else is. By the stoic expression on Noah’s face, he has at least some idea as well. While he can’t know about me and my Houdini act at the compound, he’s knows his leaders are dead and that the Godlings are responsible. My heart aches thinking that my actions have put Zander and Annabelle is harm’s way, but what else could I have done? Regret for any hurt I caused Noah last night is buried too deeply to really feel right now.
“What?” she begs. “What happened? Why did he take them? It can’t be because of the Gift. He couldn’t know so fast.”
“Wait. What?” Ketchup demands. “What Gift?” He looks over at me, and then back at Ivy. “You don’t mean he did it finally, do you?”
Ivy nods, her head wobbling like a deranged bobblehead doll. “It was his idea. He said he had a theory, and he begged me to help him. I didn’t want to because I was scared, and I thought using his hunger as a weapon wasn’t right, but he said he didn’t have a choice and it was the only way to kill David, so I agreed to help him, but it was wrong. It was all wrong.” Her head falls into her hands, and she starts crying all over again.
I look over at Ketchup in confusion. He seems as clueless as I am. We both turn to look at Noah, but he only frowns even deeper. None of us moves to comfort Ivy, but knowing what to say next seems completely beyond any of us.
Slowly, Ivy looks up from her crying and tries very hard to calm herself back down. “I tried to tell him not to do anything rash, but he ran off when he couldn’t get a hold of either of you. I followed him, because I didn’t know what else to do, but he just went home. I thought everything was going to be okay, but then David showed up and they fought. Annabelle tried to help him, but they caught her too, dragged them both into black cars, and sped away. I don’t know where they took them.”
>
“I do,” Ketchup says with a grimace. That piques Noah’s interest, but he doesn’t say anything.
I shake my head, knowing they’re back at the compound, that David is holding them there as bait. I also know it will work, because I can’t walk away from my brother. I don’t want to see Annabelle hurt either, but Zander is my main concern.
“How long ago did they take them?” I ask.
“Just before I called you.” Ivy bites her lip, twisting her hands in worry. “It took me a few tries before my call went through, so I called Noah for help because I didn’t know what else to do. Even though he works for a different Eroi group, I knew he would help you, Van, and he came right away.”
For a moment, I manage to smile at Noah. I’ve gone back and forth on whether or not to trust him so many times, but it was always hard to ever lose faith in him completely. I mentally cross my fingers, hoping my trust in him is justified, and turn my thoughts back to the task at hand.
The timeframe gives us a few hours before they’ll attempt anything. The trip to the compound during Christmas was much longer than the drive just yesterday, which leads me to believe David had purposely tried to mislead and confuse us on the first trip. If they have almost an hour lead on us, we’ll be hard-pressed to catch up with them. I’m guessing, though, that whatever it took to capture my brother wasn’t pretty. He’ll likely be unconscious for a good while even after they get to the compound, which might just buy us enough time.
Ketchup must be secretly training to be a drag racer as well as a cat burglar. His driving skills were the only thing that got away from the Godlings in the first place, and he’s going to need to put them to use again to get us back to Zander in time.
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