Untamed

Chapter 19

chapter

nineteen

Haven

Agunshot sounds, and I jolt awake.

Knox is staring around, alarmed. Voices shout in the distance.

That can’t be good.

“Reinforcements,” Knox says with relief. “Ender, my beautiful, ill-tempered friend, has found us.”

The door slams open, and Idris barges in. He’s back in his mask.

“We need to leave, princess,” he says. “Now.”

He unlatches my chains, leaving the cuffs on. I stare at Knox.

“What about Knox?” I ask.

“His friends can have him.”

“Leave her alone,” Knox says, straining against his chains.

A second gunshot tears through the wall, punching into the wardrobe. I jerk backward, knocking a chair over. Knox struggles harder, his face twisted in frustration.

Idris grabs my arm, yanking me toward the door. “Come on! Move!”

My eyes dart to Knox. He could get hit by a wayward bullet and die.

The walls echo with shouts and the blasting sound of gunfire. Whatever is going on outside is going to creep inward eventually, and Knox could die.

My hands fumble at the cuffs, uselessly.

“We have to help him,” I say. “We can’t leave him behind.”

“Princess, now!” Idris hisses, pulling me again.

The sound of a shot cracks directly behind us, and I stumble forward, almost losing my balance. I hear Knox grunt as the bullet tears through the wall where he sat only moments ago. He ducked in time, but what if the next one slides between his eyes?

It is cruel to leave him behind, and my instincts scream at me to protect him.

“Get him,” I whisper to Idris. “Or I’ll do it myself.”

I’m their leverage, and if I die trying to help Knox, Idris will get in trouble. I don’t expect him to agree since he could just drag me along, but he curses under his breath, leaving me in the hallway to unlock Knox’s chain. Just like me, Knox’s cuffs remain on.

My lungs burn from the smoke. My wrists are raw where the cuffs dig in. Smoke thickens my lungs, and mangled screams pierce the air.

Chaos unfolds around us.

I worry for Prue and the others. If Ender is here, there won’t be any survivors left.

Idris leads us to the basement, down a row of crooked stairs. The rebels’ voices are frantic as they scramble to slide into their vehicle.

Prue is standing by a big, black truck, twice the size of her, built for off-road trails.

“We need to move out,” she says. “Now.”

A grenade launches at the garage doors, and the wall caves in. I fall to my knees, my ears ringing. Blood trickles down to my neck, and I taste a film of ash on my tongue.

Soldiers stream into the garage, moving fluidly into the space.

Ender’s voice cuts through the chaos.

“Flank left! Push them back!”

A Kinetic launches a boulder to the left, knocking the rebels off their feet. An Elementalist rebel causes seismic rubble, cracking the ground beneath us and knocking the soldiers off their feet. Deadly powers wage war around us.

I want to run. I want to hide. But I can’t afford to be afraid, not when my allies are losing. I have to help them.

Prue faces the Commandant. His powers won’t work on her, but Ender is an accomplished fighter and a wicked shot. Muscles coat his body like paint, and his hulking size doesn’t slow him down. Somehow, it makes him faster.

“Are you the leader of this pathetic group?” Ender asks.

His dark hair is matted to his forehead. His mouth is twisted in a smirk.

“You must be Ender,” she says.

“I don’t care to make small talk with someone who is going to be dead soon.”

His gun rises quickly, and the bullet is out before she can move. Prue said she was a Shield, but I assumed it was against people’s powers, not tangible objects. That doesn’t mean she can evade death.

I make a split-second decision. I stop time to protect her. I do what I always wished I had done for my mother. I save her.

I cross the space between us and pluck the bullet from the air, letting it fall harmlessly to the ground. Prue’s eyes are wide. I don’t need to touch her and pull her into the time freeze, because my powers don’t work on her.

She stares wide-eyed at the tableau around us.

“I can only hold it up for a few minutes,” I say. “You have to leave.”

“What about you?” she asks.

“Warrick will never bargain for my release,” I say. “It is against the law, and more importantly, he is not that kind of father.”

“Come with us,” Prue says, reaching for my hand and squeezing tight. “Learn your power, fight by us. We’ll find another way to get Victor out.”

“I can’t,” I whisper. “Not yet. My sister needs me. They’ll use her against me to bring me back. I’ll gather intel for you. I’ll climb the ranks, but I can’t live life on the run, not without my twin.”

Prue nods in understanding.

“Do you have a Transporter?” I ask.

“Yes.”

“Find them, take as many as you can, and tell everyone else to run.”

Prue races across the room and stands by a tall woman with dark skin and long, intricate braids. She places her palm on the woman’s shoulder.

“Until next time, Haven,” she says. “It was a pleasure meeting you.”

“You as well.”

I return to my position and lie on the ground, just like I was before, so it doesn’t look suspicious when everything returns to normal.

Prue squeezes the Transporter’s hand. The woman blinks in shock, and then they’re gone in the blink of an eye.

Ender frowns at where Prue was just standing. His mouth tightens, and he glances down at his gun, then at the bullet.

“Where the fuck did she go?” Ender barks at Orion.

“No clue.”

The woman with the braids returns, and slowly she begins to grab onto the shoulders of the rebels and whisk them away. Ender attempts to shoot at her, but she’s too fast.

It takes me a second to recognize the blond-haired boy to Ender’s left.

“Gray,” I yell.

Ender and Grayson both turn to me. I scramble up, excited to see him. My limbs are weak and shaky. I only make it a few steps before Grayson rushes towards me. He catches me in his arms, drawing me in a tight embrace.

“Your sister called,” he whispers. “She told me everything about your little scheme and that you were in danger. I came as soon as I could. Took the first chopper out to North Mire.”

I rest my cheek on his chest, feeling safe in his embrace. Of course, he would fly overnight to come save me. He’s my best friend.

“How did your commanding officer allow that?” I ask.

“Begged my father to call me in for a family emergency,” he says. “It’s a good thing the old man is so fond of you, or he’d tell me to fuck off.”

Across the room, Ender watches us. His intense gaze makes my stomach tighten. Why is he looking at me like he wants to rip me apart with his bare hands? I didn’t ask to be kidnapped. You would assume he would be relieved that I survived, but he just looks pissed.

Gray picks me up and carries me away from the battle. The rebels are fleeing, and the soldiers are fighting in vain to capture as many as they can.

It’s a bit of a walk to the truck. And I take the time to study Grayson. He’s put on a fair bit of muscle since I last saw him, and his hair is longer.

“Thanks for carrying me,” I say. “Even though my legs work perfectly fine.”

“Couldn’t resist playing the role of dashing savior,” Grayson says with a smirk.

Once we reach the military truck, Gray places me in the back seat and brushes back my tangled bangs.

“Where are you hurt, Vee?” he asks.

“You can’t call me that,” I say hoarsely. “Nobody knows.”

Ender is a few paces behind us with Knox. I can’t risk them hearing my nickname.

“Sorry,” he says sheepishly. “Mercy.”

“And you can’t sound sarcastic either,” I say, punching his arm. “Don’t get me killed, Gray. Do you know what Warrick will do to me if he finds out what we did? Let alone that monster Ender?”

“I would scold you for being so reckless, but…”

“But what?”

“I would hate to know you were stuck with that guy. He’s insufferable,” Gray says. “He would suck the life out of your soul.”

“Is it me you speak of, or are you simply describing the worst person alive?” Ender asks.

We both jolt the second Ender slides into the driver’s seat. He only heard the tail-end of that sentence. Because if he learned that we really did switch places, he would be plotting out my punishment as we speak.

“Is that a trick question?” I ask.

“Save your shit-talking for later,” Ender says. “I’m not interested.”

Knox slides into the passenger seat, his cuffs are gone, and he tosses Grayson the keys to unlock mine.

The door to my left swings open, and Spider slips inside.

“Mercy, I thought you were a goner,” Spider says, wrapping his arms around me. “I was worried sick.”

A laugh escapes me as I pat his shoulders.

“I’m okay, Spider.”

“You know I was kidnapped, too,” Knox grumbles. “No one is fussing over me.”

“You’re not half as pretty as Mercy,” Spider replies.

Grayson clicks his door shut.

“Shouldn’t you be riding with your men?” Ender asks, annoyed. “Beta is back there.”

I glance between them, surprised by the air of animosity. Everyone likes Grayson: old ladies, puppies, children, people just don’t dislike him.

“Need to make sure Mercy is all good,” Grayson responds. “Is that a problem?”

From the chilling silence, it seems that to Ender it is a problem.

“Look, boys, I need a doctor. I feel like shit. So, can we quit posturing and take me to the Forge before I die?”

Grayson turns to me with an apologetic smile.

“Where does it hurt?” he whispers.

“My lips,” I say with a smirk. “Do you want to kiss it better?”

Knox snorts from the front, and Spider snickers. I can make out Ender’s disgusted impression through the rearview mirror. I reckon a stiff bore like him finds the very concept of flirting offensive.

“Glad to know nearly dying makes you horny,” Knox says.

“Oh, shut it,” I say. “I was being romantic, not horny.”

“No kissing in my car,” Ender grunts. “Or touching.”

“So straight to fucking?” Knox asks. “Got it.”

I giggle, the sound fading when Ender glares at me.

It’s going to be a long ride to the Forge.