Chapter Twenty-Six
Lia
Ichoose my outfit with care: cargo pants, a fitted black tank, and combat boots.
Grabbing my suitcase, I glance around the room one last time.
The place I was desperate to escape when I first arrived has strangely become the closest thing I’ve had to a home in years. Now that I have to leave, a part of me wants to stay hidden within these walls.
I spin on my heels and head toward the parking garage. Zayne and Marco toss bags, weapons, and enough camping gear to survive an apocalypse into Carter’s truck.
Zayne’s Tacoma sits idling next to Carter’s faded Silverado. Carter is hunched over a piece of paper, eyes narrowed as if he’s trying to brand the mission details into his brain.
“Need a hand?” I ask.
“Not right now,” Carter replies. “Did you eat breakfast?”
“Not yet.”
“Fuel up. We move in twenty.”
I step into the kitchen and catch sight of Kylo at the stove, his back to me, shoulders relaxed as he moves with casual confidence.
“Morning,” he says without turning around. “I’m making eggs and potatoes. You hungry?”
“Carter’s orders,” I say, leaning against the counter.
“We packed the coolers, but we’re not stopping for anything short of a breakdown. Eat while it’s hot.”
“In that case…” I slide into a chair, watching him work. “I’ll eat.”
“Good.” He flips the eggs. “We’ll need our energy in case there’s an ambush. Carter and the guys are almost done prepping and loading weapons. We’ll leave soon.”
“You think that’ll happen?” I ask, a tightness winding inside me.
“Unlikely.” He cracks another egg into the pan. “We’re taking back roads and driving Carter’s old truck. That eyesore shouldn’t attract attention.”
He sets a plate in front of me, steam curling off the food. I dig in. “This tastes great. Thank you.”
Leo walks in. “Morning, lovebirds.”
“Morning to you too,” I say, ignoring his comment. “You’re in a good mood.”
“I’m ready to get today over with.”
“We all are,” Kylo adds.
That sinking feeling returns to the pit of my stomach. My knee won’t stop bouncing. I wish I could take a pill.
“Everything’s loaded.” Carter steps into the room, a folded piece of paper in hand. “Once you’re finished eating, we’ll head out.”
Leo nods and trails behind Carter, a cup of coffee in hand.
“Easy.” Kylo places a hand on my bouncing knee. “I heard your thoughts.”
I freeze. He could’ve heard anything.
“What did you hear?”
“You take pills?”
I stare at my plate, heat prickling my cheeks. “They’re for my anxiety.”
He lifts my chin. “That’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“I was making progress in therapy, almost off the pills completely. Then Mom died. Then everything changed.”
“Maybe when this war ends, you can try going without them again.”
That time has come.
“I ran out. I don’t have any more.”
“Can we get you more?”
“It’s prescription only. You need an ID. I tried.”
“You’ll get through this. I don’t doubt that.”
I stare out the back seat window as Oregon unfolds beyond the glass, soaking up every bit of it. Aside from California, it’s the only other place I’ve been.
The sky is draped in charcoal, casting a somber light over the trees and hills. Light rain taps against the glass, streaking down in thin rivulets.
I pretend we’re just a group of friends on a road trip.
No weapons in the trunk.
No blades strapped to our bodies.
Quiet roads, rainy skies, and the hope that there’s a lighter version of life waiting for us beyond all of this.
We’ve been in the car for what feels like an hour. Carter jams out to ‘90s rock, tapping along on the steering wheel, nodding with the music.
His phone vibrates against the console.
He turns down the volume. “Zayne. What’s going on?” His knuckles are white against the steering wheel.
Beside him, Leo shifts in his seat, fingers drumming on his knee.
“He did what? Fuck!” Carter slams his fist against the dashboard.
I jerk forward, the seatbelt catching me. “What’s going on?”
“That son of a bitch sold us out. Marco’s been working with the Aether Hunters. He tried to kill Zayne, but he escaped and is on his way to us now.”
“We’ve got company,” Kylo announces. “I hear them. There’s an SUV behind us.”
Carter adjusts the rearview mirror, scanning the road. “How close?”
“Not far,” Kylo answers. “They’re gaining on us.”
He unbuckles and cranks down the window. A black SUV speeds beside us, tires screeching. Kylo lifts it. The vehicle spirals skyward and crashes with a deafening boom. Flames roar. Smoke mushrooms into the sky.
“Got them!” Kylo shouts. “There’s more following.”
Three, maybe four blacked-out SUVs are gaining.
“Lia, help Kylo. Keep those assholes away from us,” Carter orders.
The truck veers sharply left. My body jolts with the motion as we lurch off-road.
I twist in my seat and grip the headrest, locking onto one of the approaching vehicles. I’ve only ever moved Kylo with my mind. Never something this massive.
What if I can’t do it?
“I’ve seen what you can do. Stop pretending you haven’t,” Kylo says.
Energy surges through me as I picture it taking flight—like it doesn’t weigh a damn thing. It smashes into a massive pine tree, the metal crumpling.
“That’s it, Lia! Show them exactly who you are.” Kylo heaves two more SUVs off the asphalt. They spin like broken toys, crashing into each other.
“Three down, three to go!” Leo calls out over the wind.
Leo grabs his gun, the click of the safety coming off sending a chill through me. I press my palms over my ears as he rolls his window down.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
The SUV’s tires blow, rubber shredding as it peels away like paper. The vehicle skids, spins wildly, and flips end over end in a cloud of dust.
“Nice shot, Leo!” Carter calls out. He weaves us through the dense forest with surgeon-like precision.
“Feel like kicking more ass?” Kylo asks. “We’ve got two left.”
“Let’s do it.” I lock onto one of the SUVs closing in and visualize it veering off course and hitting the thickest tree in its path.
Boom.
“Is that all of—”
A massive force slams into us from the side, ripping the words from my throat. The truck spins like a toy kicked across the floor. I’m weightless for a moment, then jolted back down. My shoulder hits the seat. My head smacks against the window.
Pain blooms across my forehead, the sudden sting radiating above my brow as the taste of metal floods my mouth.
“Are you okay?” Kylo’s outside the wrecked truck, crouched beside my door. I blink through the haze and nod.
“Everyone alive?” Carter calls from the front seat.
Leo gives a thumbs-up.
Kylo gives me a once-over, pausing when he sees my forehead. “You’re bleeding.”
I wipe my brow with the back of my hand. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s not nothing.”
“Time to move,” Leo cuts in.
Kylo brushes my hair out of my face. “Remember what I said during training?”
My brows pull together. I’m still foggy, my pulse pounding in my ears.
He taps his temple, then mine. “Don’t let any hunters in. Block them out.”
“Right,” I say.
He takes my arm, helping me up and guiding me from the truck.
The sound of boots pounding against the earth grows louder. I spot three broad figures dressed in black. Their presence crashes into me, setting my nerves on fire. One of them grins as he runs, like this is a game he’s already decided to win.
Kylo steps in front of me, lifts his hands, then snaps them upward, palms out. All three men are ripped from the ground and flung away.
Dust settles. I look around the area, bracing for what’s next.
One hunter attacks Leo, but Leo moves like he’s been doing this his whole life. He ducks, pivots, and rams his elbow into the hunter’s jaw.
“Lia, look out!” Carter’s voice pierces through the air like a siren.
A man barrels toward me. His hands clamp around my waist, and he hurls me straight at Kylo.
We collide, and the wind is knocked out of me as we tumble backward. Kylo’s body absorbs the brunt of the impact, his grunt muffled against my shoulder as we hit the dirt.
“Stay behind me,” Kylo grits out as we jump to our feet.
The hunter who threw me stumbles toward us. Kylo surges forward, punching him in the chest. A wheeze escapes the hunter’s mouth as he doubles over.
He tries to raise his hand, but Kylo is already there. Kylo launches him into a towering pine. A branch spears through his back. His body goes limp and drops.
Kylo wipes my forehead with his sleeve. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m okay. Let’s help Carter and Leo.”
He slips his hand into mine, and we sprint toward the others.
Carter moves, precise and unyielding, as he grapples with his attacker. Leo dances with his opponent, blade meeting blade, his every movement accurate and practiced.
“Get Lia out of here!” Leo yells across the clearing.
Two hunters rush him with blades raised. Leo disarms one, steals her blade, and drives it into her gut. The hunter grunts and drops to her knees. The second one’s already on his tail as Leo snatches a fresh blade and spins to meet him.
I race toward Leo’s attacker, my hand flinging out. Power bursts from my fingertips—untamed and invisible—and the hunter flies back like he’s been yanked by a wire.
There’s blood on Leo’s cheek, but he’s okay.
A figure sprints toward us.
Kylo pivots and stabs the hunter in the chest. The hunter jerks, then crumples at Kylo’s feet.
Leo catches my shoulders. “You need to go.”
“Why would you say that? We’re not leaving without you.”
“There are more coming. We can’t take them all. I’m going to hold them off.”
“Are you insane?” I hiss, clutching his arm.
“Lia!” Carter shouts. I whirl around and find the hunter he’d been fighting lying motionless in a widening pool of blood. “Let’s go!”
Are they out of their minds?
“Come on, Leo.”
“You won’t make it far on foot,” Leo says. “Zayne’s on his way, but he’s still five minutes out. I need to buy you time.”
“I’m not leaving without you.”
Kylo grabs my wrist. “We have to go.” He looks at Leo. “You coming?”
“No.”
“I don’t leave my team behind. Quit fucking around,” Kylo argues.
“You do today. Carter’s orders. Get Lia out of here!”
A deafening blast erupts behind us.