Black Ruins Forest (The Elder Series Book 1)

by Karen DuBose

  Chapter Thirteen

  Bruno walks through the door. “We’re back! Hope everyone is hungry. I think we got more food then we should have.”

  I watch the guys walk in with bags full of food. My stomach makes it known it wants food as soon as the smell hits me. My mouth starts to water. I run over to Kiernan and take the food from him, giving him a kiss.

  “My hero.”

  I walk back to the bed and start getting the food out.

  Kira bats her eyes at Bruno. “Thank you for the food.” Shes totally flirting with him. Looks like she is going to figure out if he likes her or not. I wish her the best of luck and hope they hit it off. I leave them to talk. I’m starving and all I can think about is food. Kiernan sits next to me and takes some food out for himself.

  “I have never seen a woman eat like that.”

  I feel awkward after that. Am I eating like a pig? Probably. I am starving.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Women I know eat salads and rabbit food. I like it⸻the fact that you eat like a normal person. At least I know you eat and are not afraid to hide it.”

  He has a lot to learn. I can eat a lot.

  Mom comes in to get her food. Nessa comes with her and looks at all the bags. She picks out what she wants.

  “That bag is Kira’s,” Kiernan says to Nessa.

  “I thought we could pick what we wanted? Why does the princess get her own order?”

  I’m too tired to even deal with her right now. I walk over to her and take the bag out of her hands and hand her another one. The bitchiness can go away already. How hard is it to just get another bag?

  “There’s enough food in the bag. You can pick and choose. I don’t know why you’re acting like a whiny brat.”

  She storms out of the room without the food. Oh well, she can just go hungry for all I care. Maybe we can starve her to death.

  Mom turns to me. “You need to be nice to her. At least think about being nice to her,” she says, as she walks out of the room.

  I stand there, mouth open, shocked she even said that.

  What is my mom thinking? There is no being nice to her! She would just throw it right back at me and make my life cycle even more hellish. I don’t even know if I can be nice to her. She makes it impossible. Well, I’ve thought about it like my mom asked, and the answer is; not going to happen.

  We finish our food and get our things ready to go. The boys gather our stuff and take it to the blaster.

  Kira stands by me while the guys load up the blaster. “How long do you think it will take us to get there?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never asked anyone. I just hope it doesn’t take long. I want to get rid of our trash.”

  “She does need to leave before you end up killing her. I’ve noticed that your patience with her is null.”

  “You have no idea what I feel every time she’s around. It’s like I have no control over what comes out of my mouth.”

  “Oh, I’m sure! I know how you feel. I just want to slap her every time she’s in the room.”

  I laugh at her, because that is the way I feel too.

  Mom yells from the blaster. “Come on girls, the guys are waiting for us.”

  I hope this trip doesn’t take forever. I don’t know how much longer I can take her being with us. Walking out to the blaster, I notice Kiernan and Bruno in a deep conversation. I wonder what they’re up to. Knowing those two, they’re planning. Hopefully, it involves Nessa and dropping her ass somewhere. One person can only handle so much of her bitchiness before they snap.

  I walk over to Kiernan and Bruno. “Hey sexy, what were you to talking about?” He pulls me into his arms, leans down, and kisses me.

  “I’ll tell you later, love. We do have a lot to plan.”

  I get on my tippy toes and kiss him. It wasn’t the kiss I really wanted to give him, but it would do for now. We all get back into the blaster and head into the unknown again. I sure hope we can find answers, because I am so lost right now. I really wish I knew what the elders wanted from me, besides putting my head on a stick or locking me in a dungeon somewhere and keeping me there for all of their pleasures. I grimace just thinking about it.

  We aren’t even on the road for ten minutes before Bruno says that we need to get ready.

  “Get ready for what?” I look behind us. There’s a huge blaster following us. Just great. That’s just what we need. Maybe they want Nessa. I would be fine with that. “Are they the same men as last night?”

  Bruno looks in the side mirror. “It looks like it. What I don’t understand is how they found us.”

  We all look at Nessa. We have gotten rid of everything that can trace us.

  Kira’s Pdat can’t be traced. She made sure of that when she started hacking. So, there’s only one person left.

  “This better not have been you. Because if it was, I am going to throw you out of this blaster while it’s still moving.”

  The vehicle gets closer, until it’s right on our tail.

  Bruno warns us. “Brace yourself.”

  He barely gets the words out before we’re rammed. We start to fish tail. The other blaster is not giving up; they hit us again.

  Bruno slams on the breaks and swerves so that we won’t get hit again. He takes a sharp left and then a right. He’s trying to lose them. After he turns another left, he turns the lights off and pulls into an ally. We wait for them to come after us, but they never do. I’m hoping we lost them. None of us move. I think we’re all even holding our breath.

  After a few minutes, Bruno speaks. “I think we lost them, but I want to stay here for a few more minutes just in case.”

  “I think that’s an excellent idea,” Kiernan agrees.

  So, here we wait. I have a feeling I’m not the only one who thinks that Nessa somehow told them where we were. I have a feeling that things are about to get heated. I look over at Kira, but she’s staring daggers at Nessa. I look to see why. Nessa has her hand on Bruno’s arm. Aw, hell no! She’d better remove that hand before she doesn’t have one.

  Nessa speaks up. “I know what everyone is thinking. I didn’t call anyone. Have you forgotten that I don’t have a DC? So, don’t blame me for this. Maybe you should have traveled further.”

  Is she kidding? Bruno can’t even keep his eyes open. I can tell he’s mad.

  Bruno stares at Nessa’s hand. “Get your hand off my arm⸻now.”

  She removes her hand while giving him a ‘what the hell is your problem’ look.

  I’m so mad I’m shaking. “I better not find out you were the cause of this.”

  “Like I said, I didn’t do it, but even if I did, what are you going to do about it?”

  “Smash your face in so a surgeon wouldn’t be able to fix it.”

  She looks at me, jaw drops. She turns around and doesn’t say another word. She is smart after all.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Bruno looks around. “I think it’s safe to leave.”

  He pulls out of the ally and we see that the coast is clear. We head an unusual way, hoping to lose them for good.

  Nessa leans into Bruno. “So, Bruno, where do you work out?”

  Bruno looks at her like she’s a bug he wants to kill.

  “Why do you want to know?”

  “I was hoping you could teach me a few moves, so I don’t get my butt handed to me,” she says, flirting.

  This is going from bad to worse in a few seconds.

  I can see Kira is about to knock Nessa out. “Don’t you dare talk to him like you know him.”

  Like I said, from bad to worse.

  “You can’t tell me who I can and cannot talk to. You are neither the boss of me nor Bruno. So, sit back there and hush up.”

  Before any of us can react, somehow Kira has Nessa in a headlock and Nessa is starting to turn red from lack of oxygen. I try to get a good hold on Kira, but there’s no way to do that. Bruno pulls over. We jump out of the blaster to pull them apart. I grab Kira
by the belt loop and try to pull her off. Bruno gets her arms from around Nessa’s throat.

  Kira somehow gets out of my grip and goes after Nessa again. Kiernan and I get out and try to catch her before things get worse, but we’re too late.

  Kira punches Nessa in the face and we hear her nose break before Bruno has time to get in between them. How did she get so fast and strong? When we get to Kira, she’s kicking Nessa in the ribs and back. She is pissed. I have never seen her this mad before.

  “You ever talk to him again, I will end you. You have no right to talk to him!” She’s yelling, and with every word she says, she kicks or hits Nessa.

  Nessa’s curled up in a ball, crying and begging for Kira to stop.

  My mom finally gets a hold of Kira and holds her back. “What is wrong with you? Does it make you feel better to beat the hell out of a girl?”

  Kira is shaking so bad I think she is going to convulse any second. “You wouldn’t know what it is like to have to be on the same planet as her. She makes our lives a living hell and gets away with it. It stops now! I will not have her here if she keeps it up. If you value her life keep her away from me.”

  She walks away from all of us and heads down the road.

  I grab my mom’s arm before she could say anything to make this worse. “I’ll go talk to her. She won’t listen to any of you right now.”

  She is a half-mile away before I could catch up to her.

  Without even turning around she says, “Don’t you start with me, too. You of all people know I’m right.”

  I don’t let her attitude deter me.

  “I know you’re pissed. I’m not stupid enough to get in your way. I figured you would like company. Besides, I didn’t want to be the one to clean her up.”

  “How could this get so bad? I have never lost it like that before.”

  “Nessa has a way of getting under people’s skin and knows exactly what buttons to push. Girl, if she can see out of her eyes when we see her again, it’ll be a miracle.”

  Kira gives me a sideways look. At least she isn’t as pissed. “I don’t feel bad for doing it. She’s had it coming for far too long. I just didn’t expect to go off like that. I don’t even know what came over me. It was like I had no control whatsoever.”

  We walk for what feels like forever. It’s a good thing we’re headed in the right direction. It would suck to have to walk back. I’m sure they’ll come and pick us up soon. I know the guys wouldn’t want us out here alone.

  She turns to me. “To tell you the truth it was like my animal came to life when she was touching him and talking to him like that. I’ve never been like this over a guy. What the hell is wrong with me? I don’t even know if he likes me or not.”

  If I told her what I’m predicting, she would deny it right now. I think she’s found her true mate, and that is rare. What can I tell her that won’t upset her? Instead of answering her, I just shrug.

  I knew they won’t let us stay gone for long. I hear the blaster pull up and Kiernan is out of it before it even stops.

  He comes up to me and lifts me up into his arms. “We’ve got to go now.”

  I shriek before I’m whisked away and put into the blaster. A guy could give a woman some advance warning. “What’s going on?”

  Bruno squeals the tires as he takes off. “Those guys spotted us when we went to get fuel down the road.”

  Kira sits back in her seat. “Where is my VIP treatment? Dariya is the only one that can get whisked away?”

  I look in the rearview mirror and see the look on Bruno’s face. He rolls his eyes. I giggle.

  Bruno answers her question. “If you want the VIP treatment, you should have asked for it.”

  Her eyes are as wide as saucers. “I’m asking for it now. Are you willing to give it to me? Or am I going to have to ask Kiernan for it after he gives it to Dariya?” she says to him sarcastically.

  “You wouldn’t be able to handle this,” he says back to her.

  I burst out laughing. I can’t help it. He doesn’t know what he is getting himself into. Kira elbows me in the rib, which makes me laugh even harder. She glares at me. I can’t help but laugh harder at her. My cheeks and stomach are hurting so bad. I guess lack of real sleep can do that to a person. I hear mom and Kiernan giggle as well.

  Kira puffs out a breath and crosses her arms over her chest. “I’m glad you all find this funny.”

  I even see Bruno’s shoulder’s shake a little. I know he’s trying to hold back a laugh.

  It’s been an hour since we got back into the blaster and we haven’t seen those goons following us. I hope we’ve lost them for good. We’re taking diverse ways, so they can’t follow us. We don’t need any more roadblocks, but I’m prepared to take them out. I look at the clock to see what time it is. We have been driving for twelve hours straight. I don’t know about anyone else, but my stomach is about to eat itself again. On cue, my stomach growls loudly.

  “I think it’s a suitable time to find a place to stay and eat.” Kiernan pulls me closer to him.

  I’m so cramped that my legs and butt are numb. We really need to get a better blaster. One that has more room.

  I try to stretch to get some feeling back. “I have a suggestion. We need to ditch this blaster and get something bigger. It’s uncomfortable. Plus, they’ve seen this vehicle. They’ll be looking for it.”

  “Already ahead of you. I’ve been planning to ditch this thing as soon as we can,” Bruno says.

  I almost jump up for joy. This thing is too cramped for sustained periods of time. After another thirty minutes, we come into a small town.

  We drive down main street. There’s nothing here⸻literally. I’ve seen a gas station, a café, a drug store, and a post office, and there the town ends. I sure hope we’re not stopping here. This is a town a ghost would love to hang out in. Not that there is ghosts, but this would be their town if they existed. Bruno keeps on driving past the town. I read a sign as we drive toward the outskirts. The next town is twenty miles away. I sure hope my stomach can wait that long before the pangs start, and my grumpiness makes an appearance.

  “How are you doing, love?” Kiernan asks me.

  I snuggle closer to him. I could stay in his arms forever.

  “I’m doing dandy. I’m about to eat my own stomach. I’m getting grumpy, and I can’t feel my ass or my legs..”

  He holds me closer and sighs.

  “I’m sorry, love. I should have had him stop sooner. We wanted to lose them before we stopped again.”

  “I know. I’m just complaining. I need to let out some of this pent-up frustration and anger. The more I think about all of this, the more I wonder what they really want. What are the Elders plans? Are all the elders in on it, or is it just some of them? How can we find out? What would happen if all the elders did find out? Would that help us or screw us?”

  He lays his chin on my head. “I don’t know the answer to that. I don’t even know if we can find out.”

  I wish we had some answers. I know we’re headed to get answers, but what if the people we’re seeking out want to use me to do their dirty work too? I don’t want to be a pawn to anyone or bow down to anyone.

  I start to see lights up ahead. Finally, we can eat and sleep! Tomorrow, I’m sure will bring more questions, but right now, I want food and lots of it. We drive around looking for a place to stay before we eat. I’m fine with that. I just want to get out of this sardine can.

  We pull up to a public house that looks promising. It’s not a four or five star, but it will work. It has a bed and a shower. That’s all I cared about. Bruno goes and checks us in. I get out to stretch my legs, but I end up falling over. My legs are completely asleep. Kiernan catches me before I face plant.

  “Thank you, green eyes,” I say, flirting.

  He pulls me into those strong arms. I’m lean back against his chest. Then we start walking. This makes the feeling come back a lot faster. I’m just glad to have some feeling back.
>
  “How are your legs not asleep?” I inquire.

  He laughs and hugs me. “Mine are asleep. I’ve just learned to balance myself.”

  We’re away from the others. We actually have some privacy for once. I wonder if this is his plan all along. He turns me around and pushes me against the wall of the public house.

  “Now that I have you alone for a little bit, what are we going to do?” he says to me.

  “I can think of a few things, and all of them have to do with those lips on mine.”

  “Your wish is my command.”

  He slowly brings those sweet lips down on mine. I hop up, so my legs are around his hips. My arms are wrapped around his neck. He deepens the kiss. I’m lost in his scent and the taste of lips. His taste drives me crazy. It’s somewhere between honey and brown sugar⸻but different. I can’t get enough. He’s kissing me passionately and with urgency. I’m kissing him back just as passionately.

  All I have to say is that I most definitely will never get sick of his kisses. He kisses my cheek, then my chin, all the way down to my shoulder. I want so much more. The heat in my body is like lava. I’ve never felt like this before. I’m nervous, but I don’t care at this point. He knows that I’m not ready to have sex with him yet.

  He must have read my mind. He pulls my shirt down, so he can kiss my chest and neck. I pull at his hair to bring his lips back to mine. I want to taste his lips, also telling him without words that we need to slow down. I want to be mated first. But that’s not going to stop me from making out with my man. We pull apart to catch our breath, both panting. My mind says one thing, but my body says another. I just hope my mind wins and my body will accept defeat. I truly do want to wait until I’m mated.

  “You know I’ll not push you to do anything you don’t want. If I do something you don’t like, just tell me.”

  “I know you won’t. I just want to wait until I’m mated. The way things look now, there’s a fifty-fifty chance that won’t happen. Which makes me want it even more. So, with that said, you might have to pry me off of you once in a while,” I say jokingly.