The Brightest Night

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Gazes left mine and were exchanged all along the table until, one by one, they nodded. My breath halted as I shot Luc a nervous, hopeful look.

  Luc winked.

  “How many children are there again?” Cekiah asked.

  “At least twenty. There could be more. They are all very skittish and move around a lot. Hard to keep track of,” I answered. “If we do help them, and I am hoping that we do, a large group can’t go in there. There can only be a few of us. Otherwise, I’m afraid some will bolt even if Nate has rounded them up.”

  “Finding lodging for all of them will be difficult.” Zouhour was looking at Cekiah. “But we could set up temporary housing here until we figure out what to do with them.” She glanced over at me. “How old is the youngest you’ve seen?”

  “Five or six,” I said, and Dee visibly paled.

  “There are families I know who will be more than happy to take the young ones in. Even the older ones. I can name several off the top of my head right now,” Viv said, sniffling. “And if there are any that are sick, I can house them at the med building.”

  Jamie was nodding. “We have to do something. They are just kids.”

  “Agreed,” Quinn said.

  Cekiah sat back. “We will help. We will do everything we can to help them.”

  39

  Only a short time later, we were standing in the living room. I’d changed into leggings and a long-sleeved black shirt that belonged to Luc, thinking less restrictive and lightweight clothing would be a better choice.

  There was going to be a lot of running in our near future.

  “Is everyone about ready?” Eaton asked. He was going to wait for us at the warehouse, the closest point to the city. Cekiah, along with Zouhour and Viv, were getting the library and med building ready. Jamie and Quinn were handling notifying the community, both confident that by the time we returned, they’d already have homes for most of if not all the kids.

  God, I hoped so.

  But I mostly hoped that whoever stepped forward to take them in was patient. These kids had been through a lot, many even before the invasion. This wasn’t going to be a Disney movie come to life.

  “Yep.” Daemon finished lacing up his boots. I hadn’t expected him to volunteer, but he’d insisted on it. So had Kat.

  Luc nodded. “Been ready. Just had to wait for Daemon to figure out how to tie his shoes.”

  Smirking, Daemon straightened and then turned to where Kat stood, holding a rather alert baby Adam. He took the small child from her, cuddling him close as he kissed the baby’s cheek. “Can you say, ‘Uncle Luc is a dick’? Huh? Say—”

  “Daemon,” Kat admonished, eyes widening.

  “First off, I’m not his uncle. I am his godfather, thank you very much.” Luc arched a brow, and I felt like I’d missed that announcement. “Secondly, I’ll teach him better insults than that.”

  Kat whipped around. “No, you won’t.”

  The kind of smile that crept across Luc’s face said he was so going to do exactly what he said.

  I honestly couldn’t even begin to figure out Daemon and Luc’s friendship. They went from throwing punches to joking around like nothing had happened. It had to be a boy thing.

  Or an alien thing.

  “That kid has no chance,” Archer said from where he sat with Dee. They’d be joining Eaton at the warehouse.

  I cracked a grin even though my stomach was in knots. So many what-ifs were circling around in my head. What if Nate changed his mind? What if he couldn’t convince all the kids? What if Morton—

  “It’ll be okay.” Luc draped an arm around me, tugging me into his side. “We’re going to get them out. All of them.”

  Kat took the baby back from Daemon, and Adam promptly dropped his chubby cheek to her chest. “It’s time to talk about what we are going to do with this guy. If he is using those kids and hurting them? If he’s possibly killed others? He can’t come here.”

  There was a reason why everyone waited until Cekiah and everyone else was busy to bring this up.

  “I know,” said Luc. “He’s not coming back here.”

  “Zoe and Emery are going to lead the kids back here. We’re hoping they’ll go with them,” I said.

  Plastering a giant smile across her face, Zoe clasped her hands together. “They will. I have a very trusting face.”

  Heidi looked up at her from where she sat on the arm of the couch. “Please do not smile like that when you see them. You’re going to scare them.”

  Zoe’s eyes narrowed.

  “If not, I’ll have to go with them,” I added, thinking that would be a high likelihood if Zoe did her flailing-arm thing.

  “And then what?” Dee asked, her long, dark hair swept back from her face.

  “And then we handle Morton,” Luc said. “One way or another, he will not be a problem.”

  Kat looked around the room as she folded her hand behind her son’s head. She nodded, and just like that, everyone here, including Eaton, accepted the inevitable.

  Blake may not die tonight.

  But someone would.

  I stopped my mind several times over from really thinking about it. Morton may deserve it. Just like Blake. But killing someone was still ending a life, and a twisted part of me really hoped Morton gave us a reason to do it. Killing someone in self-defense was a whole lot easier to swallow.

  “Still not a fan of any of this,” came a mutter from the corner of the room. I didn’t have to look. It was Grayson, the final member of our six-person crew.

  Frankly, Grayson was the last person I’d take if I didn’t want to scare anyone.

  Luc snorted.

  I looked up at him, and he grinned as he said, “I don’t think you’re a fan of much, Gray.”

  “We don’t know these kids.” He peeled away from the wall and stepped forward. “Where they’ve been or where they’re from.”

  Kat lifted her brows. “You make it sound like they have cooties.”

  “Well, there’s a good chance they may have lice,” Luc said, and my stare turned into a glare. “Hey, it’s possible. No judgment here.”

  “He’s right,” Dee said, dropping her elbows to her knees. “There’s a lot we don’t know, but you know they’re human, and if this is somehow some sort of trap, those kids are still being used and they still need our help.”

  “What kind of trap could it even be?” Kat asked, gently bouncing the baby. “If it was the Daedalus, do you really think we’d be standing here having this conversation?”

  Daemon shook his head. “It’s one thing to have kids hidden in the city and entirely another thing for people to get into that city without us knowing.”

  “Nothing is impossible,” Grayson replied.

  “Didn’t say that it was, but we would’ve seen them,” Daemon replied.

  “I’m not suggesting it’s the Daedalus. I’d hope you all would be able to see that,” Grayson replied. “Doesn’t mean that these kids aren’t going to be a problem.”

  “Have you even been around kids?” Eaton asked as he laid a map out on the coffee table. “I’m thinking not, because they are always a problem.”

  Grayson’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve seen kids. There’s one right there.” He gestured at Adam.

  “That’s an infant,” Luc explained. “Vast difference between that and an actual kid, my friend.”

  “I know that.” Grayson folded his arms. “Whatever. Let’s go play Big Brothers, Big Sisters of the Alien World.”

  “Uh-huh. You see this?” Eaton tapped a line highlighted in blue. “This is the metro system. Runs aboveground mostly, but there are underground access points that lead to the walking tunnels about twenty feet below the downtown area. Those tunnels connect about ninety-five city blocks. Now, the wall cuts through one of the tunnels built below the metro,” he explained, and I remembered him mentioning the tunnels the first day we’d talked to him. “One of the first things we did is close that tunnel off from the inside. We blew t
hat section of the tunnel. It would take years for anyone to remove all the debris to make it remotely passable, and we would’ve seen activity coming from outside.

  “We may have made some mistakes, but we’ve done our best to cover our bases. Now.” Eaton moved his finger to the left, tapping a line labeled Westheimer Road. “This is where the Galleria is. It’s in uptown, and the quickest access point from there is the warehouse. You’re going to get on the 610. Daemon knows the quickest way to get there. The Galleria is right off an exit. In a car, with a clear road, it would take a good thirty minutes, but we’ve gotten most of the highway cleared enough that travel on foot or in a vehicle shouldn’t be an issue.”

  “It will take us minutes,” Daemon said, fixing the sock on Adam’s foot. “The hard part is to get the kids back here.”

  “Jamie and Viv are going to meet me at the warehouse. They’re rounding up every available vehicle that still runs,” Eaton explained.

  “We’ll keep them moving,” Emery assured. “And when we’re ready for you guys, we’ll send a signal.”

  “We’re going to light up like—” Zoe stopped herself as I raised my brows. “We are going to light up in a manner that will not scare the kids.”

  “Then we come in and get the kids,” Eaton finished. “Do you know what side they will be on once they’re at the Galleria? That place is the largest mall in all of Texas. Three levels and a skating rink below.”

  “He said they’d be near the main entrance,” I said.

  “That’s close to the tower—the big building you can see from here. Well, one of them,” Daemon said when Eaton looked to him. “I know which side that’s on. We can get right onto that one street. What’s it called?”

  “I think it was Hidalgo,” Archer answered.

  “That’s it.” When he saw my expression, he added, “We were in and out of the mall for a while. Got a lot of really nice supplies from in there.”

  “Ah, yeah.” A dreamy look swept over Dee’s face. “That’s where all the Chanel came from.”

  Kat grinned at her. “I think—”

  Without any warning, the map lifted up in the air and spun.

  “What in the world?” Eaton leaned back and looked at me.

  “It’s not me!” I threw my hands up.

  “Luc?” Archer asked.

  He shot the older Origin a bland look.

  “Sorry. It’s Adam.” Kat patted his back as Daemon snatched the still-spinning map out of the air and handed it over to Eaton. “He’s been doing a lot of that lately.”

  “That must keep you on your toes,” I said, thinking that I had, in fact, more control than a baby Origin.

  “It does.” Kat kissed Adam’s cheek. “Especially when they’re sharp items.”

  “Oh my,” I murmured.

  Luc slid his hand over my back as he looked out the window. “It’s dark,” he said. “It’s time.”

  * * *

  The six of us walked past where Eaton waited outside the warehouse, along with Dee and Archer. Soon others would join them, and hopefully, the group that would wait wouldn’t be in vain.

  “The terrain through here isn’t bad, but it’s uneven,” Daemon said. “When we hit the highway, you want to stay in the center. All the unsalvageable cars have been moved to the side. It really should only take us two minutes tops.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Emery said, the breeze lifting the strands of hair on one side of her head.

  I stared out over the field. It was a clear night, and the moonlight cast enough light that between it and the new-and-improved eyeballs, I wasn’t worried about running into a tree. My gaze tracked to one of the darker, thicker shadows that seemed to loom over the rest of the skyscrapers. The tower.

  “Any questions?” Daemon asked.

  Luc raised his hand.

  I reached for it, because I had a feeling it would be utterly irrelevant, but I wasn’t fast enough.

  “Yes, Luc.”

  “Are you sure you’re against me getting Adam a llama?” Luc asked. “Like, really sure?”

  Daemon sighed. “Yes. I’m sure.”

  “Life ruiner,” he muttered, lowering his hand.

  I couldn’t help it. A giggle snuck free.

  “Don’t laugh,” Daemon said. “It just encourages him.”

  Biting down on my lip, I managed to stop the next one from slipping free.

  “Any actual important questions?” Daemon asked.

  Grayson started to raise his hand.

  “Yes, Grayson, all kids are dirty, and they all smell funny,” Daemon said before Grayson got the question out there.

  Emery snorted-laughed from where she stood.

  “Thanks for the heads-up, but that wasn’t my question,” Grayson drawled. “I was going to ask what is the plan in case Morton shows up and pushes back while the kids are still there? I’m thinking we don’t want to fry him in front of a bunch of impressionable youngsters who are already terrified of us.”

  Impressionable youngsters?

  Grayson had a good point, though. “We don’t want to do anything to him while they’re around,” I said as I tightened my ponytail. “I could freeze him until we get the kids out.”

  “Yeah, you’ve gotten really good at that.” Daemon stared pointedly at me.

  I gave an awkward smile.

  “Sounds like a plan,” Luc said, reaching over and tugging my hair. “No matter what, we all stay together. The same goes for you two.” That was directed at Emery and Zoe. “Don’t separate when you’re taking the kids out.”

  Everyone nodded, and it was time. Daemon slipped under the opening he’d created. Zoe and Emery followed, and as I stepped forward to do the same, Luc caught my hand, stopping me. I turned back.

  Before I had a chance to speak, Luc kissed me, and it was sweet and slow, like we had all the time in the world. And I wished we did, because when he deepened the kiss, I wanted more. But we didn’t have time, and there would be a later where we would.

  Luc pulled back, his hand sliding from mine, and when he nodded, I took a breath and then slipped through the fence, the touch of his lips against mine lingering. Grayson was the last through, and then Daemon, Emery, and Grayson slipped into their true forms.

  It didn’t matter how many times I saw it, my breath still caught. Light spilled from them onto the ground. Daemon’s burned more brightly, and it was hard to look at him without my eyes watering. My gaze shifted to Emery and then Grayson. It still wasn’t pleasant to look directly at them, but if I looked close enough, I could see them behind the light, their skin soft and almost translucent. They looked like ethereal beings, raw and beautiful.

  Then they were running, moving so fast they looked like lightning arcing across the ground. I glanced over at Zoe and Luc, and then I was racing across the field, keeping track of where Daemon was going.

  Who needed a flashlight when they were around?

  Wind picked up with my speed, tugging at my shirt and hair. Under my feet, the ground was uneven and rocky and the reeds reached my thighs, but the faster I went, the less my feet seemed to touch the ground.

  Catching up with the Luxen within seconds with Luc right behind me and Grayson keeping pace, we moved farther down the highway, toward the quiet, looming city. The abandoned cars sat all along the shoulders, and the asphalt of the road had already begun to see the wear of lack of upkeep. Cracks had formed, and potholes riddled the whole way. Up ahead, the building that seemed as tall as a mountain grew closer and closer. Only a few minutes later, Luc held up a hand, and we slowed.

  “The exit is there,” he said, and I saw the sign for the road Daemon and Archer had mentioned earlier. It was cockeyed and rusted, probably days away from falling over. “All you Lite-Brites should dim down. A small herd of Luxen racing toward the meeting place isn’t going to set anyone at ease.”

  One by one, the Luxen dimmed, and as the light receded, they had returned to their human forms.

  Luc fell into step besid
e me as we made our way down the road. There were more cars here, and I doubted anything larger than a sedan could squeeze through.

  “This is creepy,” Zoe murmured, looking up.

  She was right, and even though I’d already seen the city at night, it was no less unsettling. The tall buildings blocked a lot of the moonlight, and Daemon and Luc turned their hands into Source-powered lanterns. This area of town had fared far worse than what I’d seen. Windows in nearby buildings were busted out. Several storefronts and offices carried scorch marks. A few of the cars had been turned upside down. Bullet holes were scattered along a few windows that remained.

  Following Daemon, we hung a right and the intersection—

  “Wow,” Emery murmured, stopping. “Look.”

  Ahead of us, movement stirred around an area that must’ve been a park or some sort of green space. A deer stepped out, its antlers enormous. Hoofs clanged off the asphalt as it moseyed across the road. It wasn’t alone. An entire flock of them followed. Or were they called a herd?

  Herd, answered Luc.

  I smiled as I watched fawns amble after the adults, their legs not nearly as sturdy. Why am I not surprised you know that?

  None of us spoke or moved until the last one had passed, disappearing from our sight.

  “I bet Luc wishes they were llamas,” I said.

  Daemon groaned.

  “You have no idea, Peaches. I would’ve befriended one and led it back to Daemon’s house—”

  “Dear God,” groaned Daemon.

  Luc looked at me. “And then the others would miss it and they would come, too.”

  I started to smile.

  “Before Daemon knew it, he’d have a herd of llamas,” he went on, and Daemon started walking. “Kat would be thrilled.”

  Laughing, I took his hand. “You’re so bizarre.”

  “If wanting a herd of llamas makes me bizarre, then I lace up those shoes and rock it,” he replied.