Chapter 17
Damien
DScreams and shouts blare around me like alarms, even though they’re the joyful kind.
Flashing lights dance across my vision, and the cool air is seeping into my bones.
I had completely forgotten about the Fall Festival.
It used to be one of our busiest times of the year, but life outside of our home has seemed so irrelevant until now.
I can only imagine the confusion that spread through DH when Alex called off the public safety operation for tonight, but he was careful not to let me hear any argument.
Especially from Satori.
Zeke is having a field day. He’s eating a corn dog while we’re propped up against one of the ring toss tents, acting like this is just some normal night for us.
I keep checking my phone, hoping to see a message from Ashia.
The unfamiliar area is stirring the thoughts in my head, making my paranoia even worse.
She’s at home with Victoria and Dr. Von, and Carter is in the room right off the garage.
She’s not alone, but this feels like a mistake—a trap.
I almost think the voices did this on purpose, just to lure me away, but Ashia seemed so confident in me.
I can’t back down. The moment acceptance dawned on her face, elation and relief filled my chest.
I thought the car ride was going to kill me.
My eyes were glued to the back of the passenger seat until we arrived, and I all but burst through the doors the moment Alex cut the car off.
Now that I’m on my own two feet again, and have been for a while, I’ve been a little steadier.
I feel so damn weak. We all used to speed down the road with music pouring out of the windows, and this time, I couldn’t even look outside.
“How long is this damn thing running ‘til?” Alex asks, obviously bored. A part of me hates him for it. He’s standing around like this is any normal Saturday for him, and I’m stuck trying to keep my shit together.
“Until midnight, since it’s the last night. So, you’ve only got a couple of hours left,” Carter says in our earpieces.
“Has the rest of the festival been this uneventful?” Zeke asks Alex with a mouthful of half-chewed food. I can’t help but laugh as Alex rolls his eyes and snarls his lip in revulsion.
“Apparently. There haven’t been many reports from out here.” He shrugs his shoulders to try and deflect, but there’s an annoyance that creeps into his eyes.
“Well, who was covering it?”
Alex grits his teeth.
“Satori and Andre.”
“That explains it.” Zeke rolls his eyes and throws his corn dog stick into the nearby trash can.
“You’re still fighting with him?” I ask him with a raised brow, not all that surprised.
“Please, I’d kill that mother fucker for a Klondike bar. Don’t fuck with me.” Alex and I laugh, even though he isn’t joking. Zeke would do just about anything for nothing more than a promise of a lollipop, but that's why we keep him around—among other reasons, of course.
I take another look around, unable to rid myself of the static feeling on the back of my neck. This is taking too long for my liking. My paranoia is building and starting to snake its way through my veins.
“Is Ashia okay?” I ask Carter in a hushed tone, not wanting the other two to hear me.
“Yeah, D. She’s fine,” Carter replies endearingly. “There haven’t been any disturbances, and I keep poking my head in to check on her. She’s still in the living room.” I hum in response, trying like hell to believe him.
This was a bad idea. She’s probably staring out of the windows with her eyes locked on the driveway, waiting for me to come back.
When I opened my mouth, I didn’t think of how this would affect her.
Her pleas wouldn’t allow me to. The moment her hand found my skin, I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold it together.
I could hear the desperation in her voice, and I thought I was going to die when she started to cry.
I know how hard this is on her. She hates when I'm gone, but she stood there and watched me walk away, giving up her needs for my own. I don’t want this to amount to nothing. It has to mean something for us both.
The cool breeze swipes across my face, and I turn my head to avoid it, catching an entirely different scene.
A man, probably about six foot tall, is walking alone towards the outside of the festival limits.
There isn’t much else to indicate there’s anything wrong, and he’s dressed nicely enough.
His button-down shirt is complete with a tie, and his slacks and dress shoes don’t make me think he’s going to be doing anything illegal.
However, when he shoves his hands into his coat pockets and takes a look around before sneaking past the boundary line, the breeze hits me again, almost sounding like a whisper and urging me forward.
Without glancing back, I push off the wall and head in the same direction.
His suspicious stance only intensifies as he continues to walk, looking side to side to check for wandering eyes as he passes supply tents and unlit spaces.
My palms start to sweat and my heart thumps in my throat.
This guy is definitely looking for trouble, and my assumption is proven as he slips between two semi-trucks, trudging deeper into the darkness.
This is more than someone getting turned around, and it’s clear he doesn’t work for the entertainment company.
He doesn’t wear a badge like the other festival employees, and he’s not adorning the same branded T-shirt either.
Tingling slithers through my arms and into my fingers, almost knocking me unsteady.
I can faintly hear Carter through my earpiece, but he’s muffled past my racing pulse.
Sinful…
Another man turns from the back side of the trucks, looking more unsavory than the guy I followed.
He’s definitely skinnier, shorter, and his clothes are worn and much too big for him.
His gaze darts all over the place, and he’s scratching every inch of skin that he can reach, sweating profusely even though it’s the coolest it’s been all season long.
I think I know what is happening here, but I don’t know for sure until the man in the peacoat pulls a bag out of his pocket.
Even though there isn’t much light, I can see the powdered substance weighing the clear plastic down.
Corrupt…
Just as the short one—clearly the buyer—pulls out a wad of creased bills, the taller man pulls out a pistol and aims it at him.
Noises ring out from behind me, rooting me in place.
Kids. Laughing kids. Playful screams turn into blood curdling ones in my mind, giving me a glimpse into what could happen here.
They chose to do this here? Around families, children, and innocent lives?
That bullet could lead astray and impact more than just them.
Dishonorable…
The voices urge me forward, demanding action.
Any fear that I previously had dissipates, and I’m left with nothing but fierce protectiveness.
Not for me, though—for everyone around us.
The world didn’t stop while I was away. If anything, my absence only allowed evil to flourish.
I’ve seen the reports and the rise in crime.
Alex’s debriefing on the Attic’s statistics were simple, but disturbing.
We didn’t operate like we should have been, and now criminals are back to running amuck.
My wife worked hard to ensure we didn’t miss a step, but she was fought at every turn, and the evidence shows.
Even since I’ve been home, Alex has received nothing but pushback.
Satori will be dealt with, but for now, I have to show that my wife’s work, and my men’s determination, wasn’t all for nothing.
That tingling behind my head explodes behind my eyes, releasing my pent-up rage. The world goes black, only misted by a red heat. Darkness swallows me as my feet move on their own, carrying me towards the two men.
Foul…
Before they can get a word out, my hand grips the hair of the seller and slams his head into the wall.
His skull vibrates against my palm, sending shocks into my joints.
It’s liberating, like I’ve set a dislocation back into place.
The air around me stabs my lungs, turning to ice as I grasp the handle of my knife.
It manifests itself, like there was never a time I went without it.
The handle is warm and welcoming, even though I haven’t touched it in weeks.
I don’t even feel it when I sink the blade into the buyer’s neck, but the ripping of his skin hits my ears in the most disturbing, pleasurable way.
I shiver at the sound, a euphoric feeling crashing into me.
He doesn’t make a sound, he’s not able to.
His body drops to the ground without even a punch back, lying limp in the grass.
Shuffling comes from behind me, and I waste no time.
I snap around, immediately setting my sights on the whites of the seller’s eyes.
He slashes out with a knife on his own, abandoning the gun that’s now on the ground.
My instincts click into place as I grab onto his arm and twist back, pulling his limb behind him as I thrust my blade into the middle of his back.
He screams as his legs give out, pulling an alarm in my head.
Flashes of stone and gray blind me, and I seize.
I release him, trying to make sense of the world spinning around me.
The flashes of light turn white, playing the screams over again in my head.
Whimpers pierce my ears as I fall to the ground, barely able to catch myself with the tightening feeling around my neck and wrists.
A reel of faces flip through my mind, coming at me with everything they’ve got.