Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Colbie
The pain was gone, but so was my buzz from the nano-meds.
Now all I felt was acute embarrassment.
Kissing Marc…
Hell, what a mistake. Mortification squirmed through me, but it was more than that… It hurt like hell.
I’d seen him accept kisses from plenty of flirty women at Hemi’s bar, but my kiss had turned him to stone and horrified him.
I wanted to cry.
“You okay?” Jess asked.
I smiled at the woman. “I’ll be better once I’m home and in my own bed.”
She nodded. “I’m so glad we found you.”
“Me too.” I gestured to the bushes, then ducked behind them to relieve myself.
I wasn’t going to think about Marc. I shoved the hurt down deep. I’d avoid him for a while, then things would go back to some sort of normal.
“So, how is it being shacked up with a hot guy like North?” I asked, reappearing from behind the bush.
Jess’ smile was wide and happy as she handed me some hand sanitizer from the pouch on her belt. “The best. Falling in love was the last thing I expected when I moved here. He’s thoughtful, respectful, smart—”
“Not to mention hot and handsome,” I added, rubbing my hands together.
She laughed. “He’s those as well, and he’s good with his hands.” A look crossed her face. “And he loves me. Just for me.”
I felt a pang of envy. “You’re a lucky woman.”
“I am.”
Resolve hardened inside me. I wanted that. I deserved that.
Not someone who looked horrified when I kissed him.
I’d find it one day.
How about you survive the monster-infested forest first, Colbie?
Suddenly, the whine of carbine fire ripped through the night.
Jess’ head snapped up and she lifted her weapon. “Come on. Stay behind me.”
We hurried back to the clearing. As we approached, I heard the sound of branches snapping. We arrived just in time to see a tree falling to the ground.
Jameson and Kai sprinted into the clearing, a large monster chasing them. It charged into another tree, branches crumpling.
Marc, Zeke, and North opened fire and shouted.
I had absolutely no idea what had gone into making this monster.
It was almost the size of a car, and had four powerful legs and a wide body that went from sharp jaws, curved up along its strong back, and then ended at a strong tail that raised up behind it like a scorpion.
It had a hard black shell covering it. It made some deep grunting noises, and it appeared the laser fire was making no impact.
The tail shifted, flaring open at the end, then fired projectiles.
“Watch out!” Marc yelled.
I watched the soldiers dive and roll. I ducked down, watching the bony projectiles slam into a tree trunk nearby.
Jess fired on the creature.
“I need a weapon,” I cried.
“Take my blaster,” she called back. “Left side holster.”
I quickly pulled the weapon free of the holster on her hip.
The monster scuttled our way. The others fired again, but they weren’t having any effect, except to make it angrier.
“Jess, any weakness?” Jameson yelled.
“Not that I can see. This one is new to me.”
“Sasha says there’s a waterfall close by,” Jameson yelled. “We can lure it there, and try and get it over the edge.”
“Sounds like that’s my cue.” Marc leaped in front of the monster and waved his arms. “Come on, you ugly fuck. Time for a little trip. Hope you can’t swim.”
My heart lodged in my throat. He was always the first to throw himself in the line of fire and act as bait. The last time, he’d been dangling under my Talon and had almost been eaten by a deadly kraken-like monster.
He waved his arms, yelling some more, and the monster darted toward him.
“That’s it,” Marc cajoled. “Come to papa.”
Zeke and Kai fired on the creature’s back. It made several low, angry grunts and followed Marc.
“Keep up,” Jameson yelled. “Get to the waterfall.”
“Come on, Colbie,” Jess urged me on.
I awkwardly jogged behind her. My leg felt a little weak and wobbly, but it held. I fired my blaster with the others.
The monster shot more projectiles, but Marc dodged them skillfully.
A few minutes later, the roar of the waterfall carried on the air. Then the dense trees petered out.
The river gleamed silver in the moonlight, before it tipped gracefully over the edge of the mountainside. The monster was agitated and locked on Marc. As they neared the riverbank, it didn’t seem to be paying any attention to the noise.
“Concentrate your fire,” Jameson ordered.
The laser wasn’t penetrating the hard shell, but the creature was still going wild. It didn’t like it.
It jerked around, pawing at the ground.
“Come on, ugly,” Marc yelled. “Just a little closer.”
He waded into the river, waving at the monster.
It scuttled closer, pausing at the water’s edge. It wanted Marc, but it wasn’t sure it wanted to get wet.
I pulled the trigger, firing my blaster. The others concentrated their carbine fire on the monster’s hindquarters.
“Hey, monster breath,” Marc lit a flare and waved it.
The monster fixated on the red glow.
“That’s it, come on,” he coaxed. “Come eat me. I’m a tasty snack.”
The monster stepped into the water, then froze. Its tail went rigid and flared out.
“Watch out!” I screamed.
More bone projectiles fired.
I gasped. Marc had no cover in the middle of the river.
He dropped the flare and dived under the surface of the water. Projectiles splashed into the water.
A second later, he came up, shaking the water from his hair.
Relief punched through me. Thank God.
But the monster’s tail kept vibrating. Then, it released one final projectile.
The bone spike hit Marc in the gut, and he flew backward with a splash.
“Marc!” I screamed.
Marc
Fuck, that hurt.
I tried to sit up, thrashing in the river, trying to keep my damn head above the water. The projectile had pierced my armor and hit my stomach.
I could feel blood soaking into my shirt under my armor.
But I had bigger problems. The monster was wading across the damn river, coming straight for me.
The squad sprang into action, Zeke leading the way. My brother was firing on the monster, trying to turn it away from me. Jameson was bellowing, trying to get its attention.
I splashed through the water and made it to the opposite riverbank. I dropped onto the rocky ground, heaving in some air.
Looking down, I stared at the ugly piece of bone protruding from my stomach. I gripped it, dragged in a deep breath, then yanked it out.
Fuck.
My vision wavered, and I fought the urge to vomit. I dropped the bone on the ground.
There was splashing close to me, and I jerked my head up. Colbie was making her way over.
“Get back,” I growled. “You’re supposed to stay with Jess.” She’d circled around the monster and crossed the river.
She dropped to her knees beside me. “She’s a little busy.”
The monster let out a loud, angry grunt. I saw Kai dive out of the way of more projectiles.
“You’re bleeding.” She touched my stomach.
“Pull the small first aid kit off my belt.” I watched as she did. “I need the sealant bandages.”
She fished out the adhesive bandage and ripped it open. I pulled my chest armor plate off and dropped it beside me.
I had a large tear in my khaki T-shirt and the bottom half of it was soaked in blood.
Colbie’s face paled and she hissed out a breath.
“I’ll do it.” I took the sealer and shoved the bandage through the hole in my shirt. I didn’t want to see just how bad the wound was. I felt the adhesive stick to my skin and plug the wound.
“Injector,” I gritted out.
She fished it out of the pouch and held it up.
“Dial up a painkiller and a stimulant.”
She did, then I took it and jabbed it against my neck.
Instantly, the pain melted away and energy filled my veins. The stimulant would pump adrenaline into my system and help me get out of here. Help me get Colbie to safety.
The monster thrashed around in the water.
I rose, Colbie hovering close by. I knew I’d hurt her earlier, but she hadn’t hesitated to rush to help me.
That was Colbie. Loyal and fierce.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked.
I gave her a chin lift. “I’m not dying today, birdie.”
She rolled her eyes. “Unless I kill you because of your lame nicknames.”
“Come on, let’s—”
“Marc, watch out!”
Jameson’s warning shout came through both my earpiece and across the river.
I jerked around and saw the monster charging straight at us.
I grabbed Colbie’s arm. “Run!”
She took off, and I fired my carbine behind us. I followed her along the riverbed. Dammit, we were close to the waterfall’s edge, hemmed in by the dense trees, and the rocky ground was slippery.
There weren’t many places to go.
Colbie stopped, whipped around, and fired her blaster. “Hurry up, Marc.”
My chest swelled. Shit, I knew that stubborn, focused look. She got the same look on her face when she was flying through a storm, or swinging around to pick up the squad during a hot evac.
The monster cleared the water and made a series of low grunts. Its red gaze was locked on us.
“We need to lure it to the edge,” I told her.
She nodded.
It was the only option. Send the damn thing over the waterfall.
I grabbed my last flare and ignited it. I waved it around and the creature’s gaze locked onto the red light.
The squad was still firing on the monster. I saw one of its legs falter, and its body lurched.
Yes. It was injured.
I touched my ear. “Front left leg is injured. Concentrate fire there.”
In a seamless move, they did. I waved the flare again, and the creature hobbled close to me and Colbie.
Dammit, I had to protect her.
“Come on, monster,” she yelled. “Time to go for a swim.”
She walked right to the slippery edge of the rocks, waving her arms.
Shit. I watched the creature dart in closer, but it wasn’t going back in the water.
Suddenly, its body started shaking.
I frowned. What the hell?
“Marc, Colbie, watch out,” Jess yelled. “I’ve seen this before. It’s going to—”
The creature opened its jaws and vomited out a dozen smaller monsters. All of them were smaller copies of itself.
Oh, fuck.
I tossed the flare into the river. “Colbie, back up,”
“There’s nowhere to go,” she cried.
The smaller monsters raised their tails, waving them behind them aggressively. Shit.
I grabbed Colbie, wrapped my arms around her and spun, trying to shield her with my body. The waterfall was right below us, flowing down into the darkness.
Smaller projectiles slammed into the back of my armor. Colbie screamed.
Thankfully, these ones weren’t big enough to penetrate my armor.
She looked back over my shoulder. “They’re coming,” she rasped.
I swiveled my head. In a second, I took in my squad rushing toward us, Zeke in the lead. He was wading through the river while still firing his carbine. The large monster was scuttling closer, trampling some of the smaller ones.
The guys wouldn’t reach us in time.
I wasn’t letting these monsters hurt Colbie.
I looked down at the rush of the waterfall beneath us. I sucked in a breath. “Colbie, do you trust me?”
Her gaze met mine and she swallowed. “Yes.”
I wrapped my arms tightly around her, then jumped.
Colbie’s scream echoed in my ears as water hit us.
Then we fell into the darkness.