Reckoning

by Sonya Weiss

  “I’ll take the first shift,” Stone said, turning his back on Riley without giving him a chance to respond. Another insult.

  Though his jaw clenched, Riley didn’t address it.

  When Riley looked at me, I said, “I feel like the war is changing us.”

  He didn’t deny it. “We’re both fighting to throw off the constraints living among the humans placed on us. We’ve adapted to their ways, to their emotions. Felt things we were never meant to feel. We’ve become accustomed to downplaying who we really are, convincing ourselves we can play nice with other species.”

  “I don’t understand,” I said, sucking in a breath when I moved and my injured leg connected with a small rock.

  Riley frowned and moved the rock away from me. “We’re not a species that gives leadership of a planet over to others.”

  “But Earth isn’t ours,” I protested.

  “It will be once the war is over.”

  “I’m supposed to protect the humans,” I reminded him.

  He didn’t bother to hide his annoyance. “The humans lied to us, and now they want to destroy us, and you still feel empathy toward them. Your emotions have made you weak.” He stretched out on the ground with his arms behind his head. I imagined he would be cold after giving up his shirt to stop my leg from bleeding, but he didn’t act like it.

  I processed his words. “You think loving someone makes a Supernatural weak?”

  “Before you, I never would have chosen the Void. I would have died rather than surrender to Ide. Before me, you never would have rushed to face down the leaders. You knew you weren’t prepared. So yes, loving someone makes a Supernatural weak.”

  I briefly closed my eyes and sighed. “I didn’t realize you saw me as your weakness.”

  “I don’t mean it in a hateful way. If anyone wants to control a kingdom, they go after the person the king loves. It’s that simple.”

  “You regret falling in love?”

  He glanced at me and his expression softened. “Regret loving you? That’s something I’ll never do. We were meant to be.”

  I slid closer to him, and he opened his arms. I settled in with my head on his chest. I traced the fresh cuts and bruises from his fight with the crocogon. The injuries overlay the older ones where the leaders had beaten him. My hand tingled and I wanted to heal him with a touch, but that wasn’t one of my Supernatural gifts. “I wish I had the power to erase your injuries.”

  “I can handle this kind of hurt.” His throat worked as he swallowed. “The only kind of hurt I couldn’t take would be losing you.”

  “Same here,” I said, hoping I’d never have to find out what that felt like. I chuckled at a thought.

  Riley peered down at me. “What?”

  “I was remembering how it was when we first met. You were full of yourself.”

  He didn’t deny it. “Try growing up with my father. At least you knew you were loved.”

  The sadness in his voice made me rise up on one elbow. “Was it hard? Growing up with King Dacce?”

  “He was difficult.” His lips pressed into a flat line.

  I touched the tip of my index finger to his lips. “Maybe he didn’t say he loved you, but showed it when he gave you things for Christmas or on your birthday.”

  “On my seventh birthday, I asked for a toy I’d seen advertised on TV. Human children received gifts and a cake. I didn’t see anything wrong with the custom.”

  “What happened?”

  “My father flew into a rage. He said, ‘We are kings, and kings do not play with toys. We do not accept the ways and rituals of these pathetic humans.”

  “How awful.”

  He nodded, still lost in the memory. “He lifted me up by the back of my shirt, pulling the material tight against my throat. I couldn’t breathe. After he dropped me on the castle’s floor, he sent for the instructors. Instead of that toy, I received hours of lessons in the art of diplomacy among the galaxy leaders.”

  Him sharing part of his past gave me insight into why Riley struggled to feel the same empathy I had for the humans. He’d been taught to hate them. “Is that why you were hard with me all the time?”

  He raised his eyebrows and I blushed. “Stop teasing. I’m serious.”

  “I left childhood behind and was well on my way to becoming a mini version of my father. I focused on the kingdom and my future place in it. I thought I had it figured out. Thought my father was right in his beliefs until I saw one of our leaders attack a human woman.”

  There was no way Riley would stand idly by when someone needed help. Whether he realized it or not, his father had failed to eradicate the sense of right and wrong he had. I licked my lip, wanting badly to tell him my secret, but my mother had shown me what happened to people who talked about the destinies detailed in the Untolds. She’d smuggled the ancient writings out of the alien archives room in the castle. Making me watch through the window of our basement, she’d had a colleague of my father’s read aloud the words concerning me. As the man had spoken, it had stirred the curse, and the man had died instantly. I could still see the surprise on his face as he’d clutched his throat and gaped for oxygen.

  If I told Riley what was contained in the Untolds, I would free the curse, but I wouldn’t be the only one to die. My shudder at the thought of the Untolds traveled through my body, and Riley misunderstood.

  “Are you afraid I’ll change? That I’ll become as cruel as my father did?”

  I didn’t say it, but I’d always suspected Riley’s father was several hundred stars short of a galaxy. “No. You’re not like him. You’re kind and heroic.”

  He grinned and waved his hand playfully at me to keep going. “And?”

  I laughed and pressed a kiss against his jawline. “You’re hot and sexy. You kiss amazingly well, and you’re not bad at other things, either.”

  He drew his lips into a prudish circle. “You only want me for my body.”

  “I’m a shallow girl.” I gave him a long, lingering kiss that left us both breathless.

  He grinned and threaded his fingers through my hair. “I can live with shallow.” He kissed me gently. “But I can’t live with hurting you, which is what’s going to happen with your injury if we don’t stop right now.”

  I smoothed away the worry lines on his forehead. “When we get out of the Void and I heal, we’ll make up for lost time.”

  “You can count on it,” he promised.

  I closed my eyes and drifted. In my dream, I didn’t kill Riley and the Night of Grief released. I was on a hill running toward Maisy and the virus hit. She screamed, a piercing sound, jarring me awake.

  Breathing hard, I glanced at Riley. He was asleep. How can I raise my hand to him? Please… If there is anything or anyone listening who has any pull in the universe, please, don’t make me have to kill Riley. Please. Take my life if you need to. Let us never be together but I beg you, don’t force me to betray him. I silently begged until I fell asleep again.

  * * * *

  The pain pulled me out of sleep. I touched my aching, swollen leg and eased into a sitting position, surprised that I’d managed to sleep hard. When I glanced over to my right, the space where Riley slept was empty.

  He leaned against the wall opposite me. I gave him a sleepy smile. He shifted away from the wall, moving to kneel beside me. With his gaze on mine, he placed his hand on my leg and instantly looked worried. “It’s getting hotter.”

  Emma shuffled over with a yawn and held the fire-rock over my leg, inspecting the damage. She looked like she wanted to hurl. “We’re supposed to head out. Can you walk on it?”

  “I’ll carry her,” Riley said, and reached for me.

  Based on the rumors about the Void, I knew we were in for a long trek trying to get out. I didn’t want Riley to exhaust his strength carrying me. “I can walk.” I dismissed the offer and looked around. “Where’s Stone?”

  Emma shuddered. “Killing an ugly creature.”

  Instantly alert,
I staggered to my feet, nearly face planting when my bad leg protested the sudden movement. Riley slipped his hands around my waist, his fingers resting on the strip of skin above my jeans where my shirt slid up. Fireworks ignited across my stomach, and I could tell what he was thinking. He released me slowly, dragging his fingers away from my stomach with reluctance. “What kind of creature was it?” I asked, more to get my thoughts off Riley and my body’s response than wanting to know.

  Emily’s eyes went as wide as a spooked horse. “Nasty looking. Had a huge eye in the center of its forehead.”

  “Cyclops snake,” Riley said.

  “I found this when I leaped away from the snake.” She opened her hand, and a brass button from a Guard’s uniform rested there. “It wasn’t there when we went to sleep. What does this mean?”

  Riley took it from her, examined it, and quickly slipped it into his pocket. “Probably nothing.”

  I told myself I imagined the flash of guilt on his face. “You were in the Void before. Do you remember the way you were brought out?”

  He shook his head. “By the time my father discovered Nisher had tossed me into the Void, I had hypothermia and was in and out of consciousness. I don’t remember much until after I was back in the castle.”

  When Stone rejoined us, Riley said, “You’ve been in the Void before. How’d you escape?”

  Stone wiped blood from the knife onto the thigh of his pants. “I knocked a Guard out and stole his uniform. When the other Guards made their rounds, I fell in with them and followed them out.”

  “Do you know the path?” Emma asked.

  “No. A rope ladder was dropped into the opening from the palace where we were all dumped in. I climbed out along with the other Guards. When we reached the castle, the ladder was pulled up.”

  “That’s not an option, since there are no ladders handy.” I limped forward, moving carefully over the uneven ground, ready to get started on my way back to my sister.

  “Hold on.” Emma stepped in front of me. “The Guards are still patrolling. Maybe they were nearby as we slept and that’s how one of them lost a button. What if they’re waiting ahead on the trail to kill us?”

  “You can all stay here if you want. I’m leaving.” I took the fire-rock out of her hands, holding it in front of me to light the way. My leg hurt and I thought I’d go mad from the pain, but as long as I kept my focus on Maisy and getting to her, I’d be able to push on.

  RILEY

  There wasn’t room to walk in twos on the trail. We had to walk single file. Juliet tried to take the lead, but I cut her off, blocking the trail by stretching out my arm. “If there’s trouble ahead, I’d rather be the one to encounter it first.”

  Her face flushed. “You don’t have to protect me,” she said softly.

  “You’re not as strong because of your leg. The strongest one should be in the front. First rule of war.”

  “Oh.” She bit her lip. “I see.”

  “And because your safety is my first priority.” Tired, injured, and wearing dirt stained clothes, Juliet still managed to be beautiful. I held up my hand. “Don’t bother to argue. I won’t change my mind.” I thought she would snap out a sharp comeback but she didn’t. Instead she simply said “thank you,” and I knew how badly she was hurting. I turned my head to scan the area around us as we moved forward.

  The trail narrowed as we walked, and Juliet’s breathing quickened. Part of that could be the injury, but it could also be because she hated heights. All I had to do was move my head a little to the right and there was a sheer drop off.

  Every time Juliet moved her feet, her bad leg dragged a little and small pieces of rock bounced off the trail to fall over the edge. I would give anything if I had the power to trade places with her. I would a thousand times rather hurt than see her in pain. The deeper into the depths of the Void we traveled, the colder the air became. Her teeth began to chatter. After we’d walked several minutes, Juliet said, “Wait. I see a piece of paper lying beside the trail.” Carefully inching forward, she kept her hand on the wall for leverage and stooped to pick it up.

  “What is it?” Emma reached over Juliet’s shoulder for the candy bar wrapper.

  The scent of chocolate clung to the paper. The brass button from the Guard’s uniform and now this. A taunting hint from Ide that he was in control. No matter when we escaped the Void, Ide would be there. According to Mallen, he wanted to kill the girl I loved and make me witness it.

  I exchanged a look with Stone, and he nodded in understanding. Once we were out of the Void, I would tell Ide Juliet hadn’t survived. Hopefully Stone would play the part of grief-stricken friend well enough to fool my half brother.

  “Do you think Ide was here?” Juliet asked.

  “We would have heard him.” The lie fell easily from my lips and I motioned with my head. I didn’t like lying to her but in this case, it was a necessary one. “Keep going.” I drew closer to Juliet. “You sure you can do this?”

  “Yeah.”

  Of course she’d say that. Juliet hated to show weakness in front of anyone, even me. Her father had drilled it into her to be strong no matter what happened, taking it too far in my opinion. I bit the inside of my lip to keep from saying anything about that to Juliet. I didn’t want to upset her.

  “I can carry you,” Stone offered with a wink as he rubbed Juliet’s arm, letting his hand linger.

  I walked off to keep from punching him hard enough to give him raccoon eyes.

  “No thanks, Stone. I’m good,” Juliet said with a warning in her voice.

  We pushed on until we rounded a slight curve and were forced to stop. The trail ahead was blocked by a large boulder. Scuffmarks marred one side, indicating someone or something had crossed it. I rubbed at the line of marks and glanced at Juliet. I wished I had the ability to identify the origin, but she was better at it. I held out my hand and drew her closer, steadying her as she moved. After studying them, she shook her head. “No idea.”

  I rubbed the back of her neck with my other hand as I considered our options. She leaned against me and sighed.

  “What about going over it?” she asked.

  I looked up at the massive height, searching for footholds. “We’ll have to. There’s no way we can go around it. I’ll go over first.”

  Juliet tried to give me the fire-rock, but I wouldn’t take it. Instead, I took the flashlight from Stone. The creatures were afraid of the fire, and if I took it with me and an animal came at her, she’d be defenseless.

  Putting my hand on the wall, I braced my feet against the boulder and slowly alternated walking and lifting myself up the side of it. Once I was on the top, I slid from view, then called, “I’m over.” I waved the flashlight around but didn’t see anything waiting to dine on us.

  On the other side, something slid against the boulder and landed hard, followed by a groan that sounded like Juliet.

  “Juliet’s leg wouldn’t hold her weight,” Stone called.

  Thoughtless idiot should have helped her. Maybe I should have punched him. I returned to the top of the boulder. “Stone, put her on your shoulders. Juliet, hold out your hands once you’re up. I’ll pull you over.” I lay on my stomach and lowered myself as far as I could without falling off.

  “No, stop,” she cried out when Stone lifted her. “It hurts too much. Leave me here. You three go on ahead. Find Henry and bring him back.”

  “Henry could never make it across the boulder. Come on. You have to get up.” Stone lifted her. She cried out in pain.

  He put her on his shoulders and leaned against the boulder. She raised her hands, and I locked on to her wrists, hauling her up. I didn’t let go right away.

  She clung to me and tried to inject a cheerful note into her voice. “I’m fine.”

  I could hear the lie. I turned and went down the boulder first. “I can’t see you, but I can hear you. Slide to the edge and let go. I’ll catch you.” When she didn’t speak or move, I said, “I won’t let you fall.�
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  She blew out a breath and let go. I caught her, then eased her to the ground. Her leg trembled, and she lifted the heel of her foot to keep from putting weight on it.

  “Hold on.” I checked her leg. The edges of the wound were bright red and seeping pus. “Juliet…”

  “I can do this,” she said.

  I glanced away to hide the tears I blinked back.

  Emma came over next, followed by Stone.

  “If we do escape the Void, I’m getting far away from it. Out of this city. Away from the war,” Emma said.

  Fleeing would be useless, but I didn’t try to discourage her. Though the point of origin for the war was our hometown of Cane Creek, a tiny city not far from Washington, D.C., the Great Extinction wasn’t limited to the area. My father had made sure of that. Groups of Supernaturals in every city and town in every state and country were fighting the humans. There was no place of refuge for anyone to run to.

  We started moving again, and the agony on Juliet’s face increased with each step. When she choked off a whimper, I’d had enough of her trying to be brave to protect everyone else from worrying. I swept her into my arms.

  “You’ll wear out your strength,” she said, pushing against my chest.

  I tightened my hold. “Don’t fight me. You won’t win.”

  She gave up and settled in a huff against my chest. “You can be stubborn, did you know that?”

  “I’ve been called worse.”

  I stumbled and she gasped.

  “Sorry.” I clenched my jaw.

  “I’m okay.”

  “Stop lying. You’re afraid to tell any of us how much you’re hurting.”

  She ran her hand up the length of my bare chest. “I don’t want to be a burden.”

  “You don’t have to be strong all the time. Let me be your strength. You can trust me to carry you through the Void and anything else life throws at us.”

  She grimaced when I used the word trust and averted her gaze. Was that a hint of guilt I saw flash in her eyes? What would she have to feel guilty about? There was no way Mallen was right when he’d said Juliet was my enemy. Granted, we’d been enemies in what seemed a lifetime ago, but I loved her and she loved me. Didn’t she?