57. Fifty Four #2
“This is even more exciting than I had hoped.” One of his hands land on my shoulder. Hard. “But I guess I have you to thank for that, don’t I? You gullible thing, you.” He shoots me a wink before beginning to pace in front of us, the click of well polished boots grating on my already flayed nerves.
“You’re probably wondering what all of this is about, huh?”
“I have a few guesses,” I reply smoothly. Unwilling to show any sign of worry, I keep my expression bored and my posture relaxed. I won’t give him the satisfaction of knowing the effect this has on me.
AJ carries on as if I hadn’t spoke at all.
“It was after the Night of Indulgence. Curran had asked Richie and I to keep an eye on you, said he had some ‘suspicions’. Poor thing was worried about you; thought you might have succumbed to the seduction of Darkness.
Of course, we assumed it was the old man's paranoia talking. Or the gin.” He snickers to himself, glancing at the hulking, dark haired man for approval.
There’s a twitch of a lip, and then the stoicism returns.
“So imagine my surprise when I noticed how cozy you were with that… creature. I know times are tough, Bastien, but really? Screwing that? What ever happened to self respect?” His shrill voice carries throughout the vacant building, an echo of nasal arrogance.
If he expects an answer, I don’t give him one, but I do catch the way heads from my own group turn to me. Sylvie faces forward, but she peers at me from the corner of her eye a few times. The thumb and forefinger of her left hand rub together idly, itching for a trigger to pull.
AJ steps in front of me, lips pursed like a scolding mother.
“So he has you followed. And what do we find?” He motions to those standing beside me.
“A traitor. Under our nose the whole time. And as the lucky bastard to tip Curran off about you, I was given your assignment. Can you believe all of this was my idea?” Yellow teeth flash.
“I might just be the new golden boy when I deliver you two over to Curran.”
My neutral expression falters, and I have to take three steadying breaths before I can speak.
“Who two?” Even asking the question makes me appear weak, but I can’t stop myself. Panic cracks the walls, beads of terror seeping through.
AJ’s smile grows, and he steps closer until I can smell the sour stench of his breath. The rest of the Brother’s appear just as delighted, grinning to themselves.
“Why do you think we brought you all the way out here? Use that big brain of yours.”
Dominoes fall into place, though I don’t want to believe it. He had me followed, which means they know where the campsite is. Hell, they probably know where the house is. They know about Eden. And Creed.
And they know where they are.
The edges of my vision blink out, blackness creeping in. “Where is she?” I hiss, stepping forward and peering down at the snake of a man before me. He raises his hand, and the barrel of his pistol comes to rest between my eyebrows.
“Somewhere you’ll never be able to reach her.”
They load us into the back of their SUV’s, wrists bound behind our backs.
The vehicles have three rows of seating, so it’s Sylvie and I along with two guys from the Resistance.
Jeremiah and Linden, both anywhere from eighteen to twenty years old.
Before today, I’d barely spoken a word to them. And now they might die.
Because of me.
With a lurch, the tires roll, our driver none other than the burly man with AJ as his passenger.
The wind outside picks up, lifting leaves and smacking them into the windshield.
My eyes flit around, searching for anything that we might use as a makeshift weapon.
A damn paper clip would be heaven-sent in a moment like this.
Resigned, I lean back in my seat and peer out the tinted window.
Outside the city, the brick road turns to gravel and dirt, narrowing into one lane.
The fields rush by in a blur of beige, but an inky figure begs to be seen.
Wings flapping at an impossible rate keeps speed with the vehicle.
Cocking my head to the side, I narrow my eyes, but it’s no more than dark motion. A bat? A bird?
“What the fuck is that?” AJ blurts, snapping my attention to the front of the SUV.
He stares with rapt attention out the windshield.
In the distance, the world vanishes. From sky to ground is an endless stretch of cloudy brown.
The driver taps on the breaks, slowing our speed as we approach the mass.
“A dust storm,” Sylvie supplies, voice dripping with awe. There’s a sheen to her eyes, and when I glance behind me, both boys seem equally as perplexed.
In all my years living in the swampy lands, I’d never heard of a drought as bad as this one, much less a dust storm.
“Slow down,” AJ snaps, glaring at the man beside him.
“We have to get to the Sanctuary.”
“Yeah, alive. So slow down for fuck’s sake. You can’t even see the road.”
With a disgruntled huff, the brakes are applied and the SUV slows to a crawl. Now, when I look out the windows, my own reflection stares back at me. Our surroundings have disappeared into the dust, the press of the wind causing a slight sway.
The interior of the vehicle is cast in complete darkness.
Beside me, Sylvie shuffles faintly on the leather seat, her knee knocking into mine. My heart rate doubles, and I swallow heavily. Staring straight ahead, I hope the men don’t notice her movement.
Whether it’s luck, a God, or Fate, the storm couldn’t have come at a better time. Sylvie has enough cover to sneak her arms beneath her legs and to her front. Though they’re bound, it gives us an opportunity that we wouldn’t have had before.
A hand grazes my thigh, and I have to squint into the darkness to make out the movement of her fingers.
“Run,” she signs.
That’s the only warning I get before the tiny force of a woman launches herself forward, dropping her bound hands in front of AJ’s face.
He only manages a yelp before she’s crushing his windpipe.
The driver slams on the brakes, and without my hands, I settle for the next best thing.
Bringing my legs up, I slam both feet into the headrest of the seat and knock the man forward.
He shouts wildly, reaching for his gun. A crash hits from behind, one of the other vehicles slamming into us.
AJ squirms in the seat, smacking behind his head blindly. One of his fists catches in Sylvie’s hair and he tugs until her face smashes into the headrest. Determination unwavering, with one final growl, one final jerk, the sickening snap of a neck sounds. AJ falls limp in his seat.
Gun in hand, the driver turns it on us. Sat the way he is, he’s unable to turn and aim properly, and a bullet zings straight out the back window.
Sylvie grabs for the weapon, and another bullet flies.
She grunts in pain, another shot sounds, and a hole appears in the man’s forehead.
I don’t compute his death until Sylvie reaches over his slack body and hits the unlock button.
The boys in the back make quick work of fleeing the vehicle.
“Go!” She shouts, throwing her own door open. Dust billows into the vehicle, scratching at my eyes. It takes a few tries to get my own door open, but once it does, I race into the abyss that the storm offers.
Shouts surround me, and without any vision, it's disorienting. Something slams into my back, and I whirl around. Sylvie shoves at my chest. Blood trails down her shoulder, painting the bare skin of her bicep. Her eyes are wild. I’ve never seen her so desperate.
“Run!” She urges me in an unknown direction.
Spinning in place, I try to make sense of my surroundings.
It reminds me so much of being underwater that night with Eden.
There’s no up or down, no left or right.
Just infinite darkness that swallows you whole.
And you’d be lucky if it spits you back out.
The moment of hesitation is all it takes for a Brother to stumble upon the two of us.
Sylvie tries to hit him, but he’s quicker, swinging a blade towards her face.
She ducks, but barely, and then he’s slashing at her again.
Shoulder first, I bulldoze the man, taking both of us to the ground.
Pain radiates throughout the right side of my body, the air knocked from my lungs.
Sylvie screams. I see traces of her through the whipping grit and grime. The man and I wrestle as best I can with bound wrists until he inevitably comes out on top. His flying fist sends sparks throughout my vision.
“Go!” I bark, my words garbled through blood. “Find them!”
“Cecil!” Sylvie’s voice is panicked, searching.
“Go!” Another hit flickers my vision like a blown light bulb. “Please!”
The man above me snarls. “You’re lucky he wants you alive.”
Before I’m able to tell him that I don’t feel lucky, one more strike plummets me into the abyss.