Atonement (A Science Fiction / Fantasy Romance)

by Fall, Carly

  She shook her head and covered her breasts with her arms. At least she was acknowledging his presence.

  “No,” she whispered. “It’s his.”

  Blake dropped the shirt, took off his jacket, and peeled off his own T-shirt. “Take this,” he said, handing it to her.

  She took the shirt and looked at the knife.

  “Give me the knife, Sophia,” he said, and finally, she handed it over. She slipped the shirt over her head, the hem coming down to her mid-thigh.

  “Come here,” he whispered, holding out his hand. After a moment, she put her hand in his and he pulled her to his chest, wrapping his arms around her tightly. “It’s okay,” he whispered into her hair as she trembled.

  “Get her out of here,” Nico said in a low voice. “I’ll take care of things down here.”

  “Is that Jael?” Blake whispered.

  Nico nodded. “It looks like it.”

  Blake didn’t know if “taking care of things” meant he was going to hide the body or make sure Jael was actually dead, but his concern right now was getting Sophia out of the house.

  He led her up the stairs, back through the laundry room, and out the front door.

  Sophia walked on unsteady feet, and he held her up by her waist.

  The sunlight blinded him for a moment, but then his vision came back and he focused on the car.

  Micah stood at the back door, his gun pointed directly at Annis. Time stopped for Blake as he moved on pure instinct. He shoved Sophia into the dirt and ran toward the car, his gun in hand. He raised it to fire just as Micah pulled the trigger and Annis slumped in the backseat.

  “No!” he screamed. Micah pointed the gun at him, and Blake pulled the trigger four times. Micah stumbled backward and fell to the ground. Blake ran to the car, his heart pounding in his chest. Not Annis, oh God, please no.

  As he rounded the vehicle, Micah lay on the ground gasping for air, a red stain growing on his T-shirt. In that moment, Blake’s Colonist side took over, and he relished the thought of killing Micah, the need to do so roaring within him.

  He met Micah’s dark eyes and saw a mixture of fear and hate in them. Micah struggled to get up, but Blake stepped on his chest, pinning him to the ground. The Colonist within him spun and morphed, until all he felt was the urgent need to kill—there was nothing else. No demon of addiction clawed at him; there wasn’t any panic or nerves. Rage roared in his system, his focus on ending the mayhem, ending Micah’s reign. He got down on his haunches and pressed the gun against Micah’s forehead.

  “Say goodnight, motherfucker,” he whispered, and pulled the trigger.

  Chapter 59

  Cohen and Hudson came barreling out of the house just as Blake stood.

  “What did you do?” Cohen screamed at him. “Annis!”

  Surveying the situation, Blake realized he was very fucked. The Saviors couldn’t see Micah’s body behind the Hummer, but they could see Annis slumped in the backseat, a large crimson stain moving across her torso, and him standing there holding a gun.

  Cohen took out his gun and leveled it at Blake. “You son of a bitch!” he yelled. “You cock-sucking son of a bitch!”

  “Wait!” Blake screamed, holding up his hands. “Cohen, stop! Listen to me!”

  “No!” Sophia shrieked, getting to her feet and running after Cohen as he came at Blake. “No! Don’t hurt him!”

  Hudson grabbed her and pushed her behind him, his gun also leveled at Blake.

  “Fuck you, Blake!” Cohen spat. He was five feet from the Hummer’s bumper. His finger wrapped around the trigger, and Blake hit the dirt, feeling the bullet whiz by his head. He scrambled around Micah’s body to the front of the Hummer and ran into Hudson’s legs.

  “Hold up, Cohen!” Hudson yelled, as Cohen came around the side of the Hummer. When he tripped over Micah’s boots, he stopped and glanced down at Blake, who was crouched at Hudson’s feet, then over at Annis. He reached into the Hummer and pulled Annis out, cradling her in his arms while Blake got to his feet.

  Noah and Nico came running out of the house. “Oh, hell,” Noah said as he approached and looked over everything. “What happened?”

  “Open the back door to the Hummer,” Cohen commanded.

  Noah did as he was told.

  “She’s hit in the shoulder,” Cohen said, laying her down. “She should be fine.”

  He closed his eyes and laid his hands on Annis’s wound and her abdomen. “Come on, baby,” he whispered. “Let me in.”

  Noah walked around to the side of the Hummer and glanced down at Micah’s body. Running his hand through his hair, he said, “Okay, someone explain to me what the hell just happened.”

  Sophia came over and Blake wrapped his arm around her. “Noah, this is Sophia,” Blake said.

  “What happened to you?” Noah asked, taking in her blood-matted hair and crimson arms. “Do you need a healing?”

  “No,” she whispered, and glanced down at Micah. She stared at him a moment, then turned her head into Blake’s shoulder.

  “Hudson? Can you tell me what happened?”

  Hudson shrugged. “Not sure.”

  “I came outside with Sophia, and Micah had shot Annis. I shot him, and then Cohen and Hudson came out. They couldn’t see Micah back here, just me holding the gun,” Blake said.

  “How do we know you didn’t shoot both of them?” Hudson said.

  “I would never shoot Annis,” Blake countered.

  “Lately, you’ve done a lot of shit I never thought you would do, Blake,” Hudson said.

  “He didn’t shoot Annis!” Sophia yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  “We’ll have to deal with this later,” Noah said, looking around. “We’ve got a lot of cleanup to do.”

  Hudson nodded. “Nico, you go back with Blake, Cohen, Annis, and Sophia. Noah and I will tidy up and head back later in Micah’s car,” he said, hitching his thumb over his shoulder to the gray Honda parked about twenty feet away.

  Blake and Sophia headed to the back of the Hummer where Cohen was just finishing up.

  “She’s safe to travel,” Cohen murmured, leaning down and kissing her full mouth.

  Sophia said, “I never thought I’d see her again.”

  Blake held her close. “Let’s get out of here, Cohen,” he mumbled. He wasn’t in a chatty mood at the moment, and he was glad to see no one else was either. They needed to get Sophia and Annis back to the silo, Sophia needed to wash, and Annis needed her rest.

  “Saddle up, ladies,” Hudson called, strolling back to the house. “Get out of here before I change my mind on cleanup.”

  Chapter 60

  They drove for just under two hours. Blake steered the vehicle while Cohen held Annis in the backseat. Sophia rode next to Blake staring out the window, while Nico rode directly behind Blake, a gun on resting on his lap. She tried not to think of what she’d done, but she couldn’t help it. She’d actually killed a male.

  Her mind swirled with so many emotions. The fact that she could take another’s life sickened her, but she also reminded herself that she had been in harm’s way. It boiled down to hurting him, or being hurt herself, and her self-preservation instincts had kicked in and taken over.

  She’d slain the male who tormented and threatened her, and there was satisfaction in that. The killing had empowered her in a strange way. As for Micah, she felt no remorse for him and his demise. He’d trapped her with fear, and the liberation felt too good to feel any sorrow for him.

  Blake pulled a phone out of his pocket and hit some numbers while he drove. She heard the ringing, and then Blake said, “Hey, Rayner. Listen, I’m on my way back with Nico, Sophia, Cohen, and Annis. We’re about ten minutes away. Corral the kids when we get there. They don’t need to be seeing this shit.”

  As he listened to Rayner, she glanced down at herself. Jael’s blood had now dried, and her stomach heaved at the sight, the need to scrub herself raw a serious priority. Blake was right: she didn’t want Meg
an to see her like this.

  “No, everyone’s okay. Annis has been shot, and . . . well, both women are bloody.”

  Yes, that was accurate, and she appreciated Blake’s forethought of the kids’ reaction.

  “Yeah, I’ll explain later. Just get the kids rounded up, okay?”

  Sophia glanced over her shoulder at Annis, who rested in Cohen’s lap. He never took his eyes off her while running his fingers through her hair.

  Ten minutes later, they turned onto a dirt road and pulled up to a gate, which immediately came to life and moved to the right. Sophia’s heart beat wildly at the prospect of meeting the rest of the Saviors and their mates, but also seeing her daughter. Tears stung her eyes as she thought of Megan, but that reunion would have to wait. She couldn’t allow the girl to see her in this state. She needed time to not only scrub away the evidence of her crime from her body, but also to get her emotions in check.

  They approached a second gate, which also opened right away. They pulled up in front of a metal structure that stood about fifty feet above the ground. The door opened and two large blonde males pounded down the steps along with a blonde female.

  The two males opened the back door. They gave her a nod and a smile, but helped Cohen get Annis out of the car.

  “Be careful!” Cohen ordered.

  “Relax, man,” one of them said.

  “Don’t even go there, Jovan,” Cohen barked. “Don’t even go there.”

  The three of them carried Annis to the house, and her door opened. The blonde woman smiled at her. “Hello, I’m Beverly,” she said. “I’m a doctor and you look like you’re in pretty bad shape.”

  Sophia shook her head. “No, I think I’m fine.”

  “It’s not her blood,” Blake said from the driver’s seat.

  “Really? Well, I hate to see the other guy.”

  “He’s dead,” Blake said.

  Beverly’s smile faded a bit. “I assume he deserved it.”

  “He did,” Sophia said. “He was a . . .”

  “Bastard,” Blake said, finishing her sentence.

  Blake got out of the car and came around. Sophia stepped out, and Blake was there to help steady her.

  “Let me carry you,” he said, picking her up. “I don’t want you to rough up your feet anymore.”

  He brought her up the steps and into a small hall area, then through another door. She gasped as she gazed at the most beautiful kitchen she’d ever seen. Gleaming sliver appliances stood out against black marble countertops. She thought back to her own ratty kitchen and couldn’t believe the difference between the two.

  “Are you sure you aren’t hurt?” Beverly said as Blake set her down. Sophia nodded, feeling exposed and dirty.

  “I’d like a shower, if that’s okay,” she said, meeting Beverly’s eyes, “and then I’d like to see my daughter.”

  Beverly smiled. “Of course. Blake, the kids are with Liberty in her quarters along with Abby and Alaina. Can you take Sophia down to where you’re staying? I’ll find some clothes for her.”

  Blake nodded. “Come on, Sophia,” he said, guiding her to a large steel door. He pushed a button and the door parted in two, opening to a large box.

  “It’s an elevator,” Blake said, stepping in. “It will take us down to . . . where I’m staying.”

  Sophia stepped in and Blake pushed a button. She felt a slight jerk, and a moment later, the doors opened. In front of them was a large wooden door. Blake opened it, and they were in the room where she had seen Megan sleeping on Blake’s phone.

  She gazed at the big bed, the structure with multi-colored blocks on the floor, the plush carpeting. This was a beautiful place to raise a child.

  “The bathroom is through that door. You can shower in there, and then we can go see Megan.”

  She nodded and went into the bathroom. Shutting the door, she hesitantly looked at herself in the mirror and almost screamed at her reflection. Blood caked her hair and splashed her face, her arms streaked crimson. She couldn’t take her eyes off the image as the scene replayed in her mind. It was as if a switch had simply turned off within her and instinct took over as she stabbed Jael over and over, his life force draining out of him.

  His mistake had been that he wanted to fight her. If he’d simply gotten up the first time the knife pierced his flesh, the outcome would most likely have been much different. She touched her cheek where he had hit her, finding it tender.

  She pulled Blake’s shirt from her body and walked over to the black marble shower. Turning the silver knob, she was amazed at how quickly the hot water sprayed the stall. At her home, she sometimes waited ten minutes for hot water to make its way to the shower.

  Stepping into the spray, the hot water stung her skin, but relaxed her muscles. She grabbed the bar of soap and scrubbed her arms, watching the blood dissipate, and finally, disappear from her skin. She leaned back, the water hitting her head. She wet her hair and then shampooed it twice.

  It was as if her past was being washed down the drain. She now had nothing to fear. She and Megan were both safe and the Saviors were honorable males. She needed to believe that.

  Exhausted, she sunk to her knees. Tears stung her eyes, but she turned her head up to the spray and let the water take them away. She would no longer be afraid. She would no longer be caged. Her destiny was to live a full life, to be surrounded by beings like her, and hopefully, one day, think of them as family.

  There was a light knock at the door, startling her.

  “Sophia? Are you okay?” Blake called.

  No, she wasn’t, but she would get there. Blake had done so much for her. He’d opened her eyes to a world she never would have believed existed, and she needed to find a way to thank him. “I’m okay, thank you,” she answered.

  Standing, she turned off the shower and wrapped a lush, black towel around her body, thinking of the skimpy almost-threadbare towels she had. She opened the door and Blake stood in the middle of the room. He turned to look at her, but then quickly averted his eyes.

  “Uh, Beverly brought you some clothes,” he said, bringing them to her.

  “Thank you,” she said, taking the small pile.

  “Noah called, and they’ll be back in about an hour. He wants to sit down with you either later today or tomorrow and talk a little bit. I can be there if you want.”

  “Okay,” she said. “I would like it very much if you accompanied me to talk to the leader of the Six Saviors.”

  Blake smiled at her, and then averted his eyes again. “I’ll be there.”

  She walked back to the bathroom and turned. Blake’s heated gaze bore into her, and it caught her by surprise. It was an unabashed look of a male seeing something he wanted. She’d seen the same thing in Jael’s eyes, but this was different. Blake’s stare felt as though it caressed her skin, sending goose bumps across her arms and a shiver up her spine. Jael’s gaze caused her fear.

  “Um, Blake?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I just wanted to say thank you, and tell you that I’m happy you’re better. You look so much healthier than you did three days ago.”

  Blake grinned. “I owe you my life, Sophia,” he said, his voice low.

  “And I owe you mine,” she countered.

  They stood staring at each other for a moment, and there was an instinctive pull to go to him. She remained where she stood, but she tingled from head to foot.

  “Put your clothes on,” he whispered, and she nodded.

  As she shut the door to dress, her body trembled. Her attraction to Blake could no longer be ignored, and she realized it had been present since the first time she saw him in her astral travels.

  Pushing aside the thoughts, she concentrated on her future. Her new life scared her, but at the same time, she was excited to see what it held.

  Chapter 61

  Blake sat in the War Room waiting for the meeting to start. Annis was absent, but after being shot, it was expected. Jovan was also missing. The door open a
nd Cohen stepped in. His jaw clenched as he took a seat. “How is she?” Rayner asked.

  “She’ll be fine,” Cohen answered. “She just needs to rest.”

  Blake wondered about the baby, but didn’t ask. It wasn’t his place.

  “So, this meeting is about you, Blake,” Noah said.

  Why wasn’t he surprised?

  “Why don’t you tell us what happened back there,” Noah said, sipping his whiskey.

  “What do you mean?” Blake asked.

  “What happened with Annis?”

  Blake looked around the table, unable to believe they would think he shot Annis. He’d been in love with the woman, for God’s sake.

  “You still think I shot Annis?” he asked. He wished Jovan were present, as he seemed to be the only one who believed him these days, and he had the means to prove it with his ability to detect truth.

  Hudson shrugged. “We’re just trying to get a feel for what happened.”

  Blake was about to tell them to go ask Annis who shot her, but then he remembered it had been daylight and she had been blind.

  His monster roared, telling him that he didn’t need this shit, that all he needed was a little H, and all this would disappear. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm the bastard. “I didn’t shoot Annis,” he muttered. “I came out of the house with Sophia and Micah shot Annis. I then killed him.”

  Noah glared at him.

  “It’s the damn truth!” Blake yelled.

  “You can understand why we’re a little hesitant to believe you,” Noah said. “You had it bad for Annis. Annis chose Cohen over you, and then you pretty much went off the rails, Blake. You want me to tick off the things you’ve done that have been less than honorable, starting with almost letting Cohen die at the hand of the Platoon?”

  Blake sighed and rubbed his forehead with the palm of his hand. “What would I gain by killing Annis?”

  “Revenge,” Rayner chimed in. “You get revenge for her choosing Cohen over you.”

  “You’re joking, right?” Blake asked. He watched as Rayner’s eyes slowly turned red.