A Man of Honor (A Young Adult Paranormal Romance) (The Honor Trilogy) (17 page)

Adrenaline flows rapidly through my body, causing my heart to feel like it’s going to flee from my chest at any moment. Honor’s life depends on this mission, and I’m doubting myself –
not
a good sign. Where there’s doubt, there’s room for error.

There
is
no room for error.

Closing my eyes,
I try to breathe out all of my fears and instead welcome the sounds of nature. If I can tune into the rustling of the leaves and the calls of the animals, I will be able to decipher the noises that don’t belong. When my stomach calms, I open my eyes and take out my phone. In order to let Tom and my brothers know where I’ve hidden my wooden stakes, I send them all the pictures I took yesterday. I inform them of what I hid where and press send. Then, to make sure Honor is not mad at me for walking out on her during lunch, I send her an apology text and ask her to please stay safe and stay at Tamlin’s. Without waiting for a response, I slide the phone back into my back pocket and take hold of my gun.

With a slow and cautious gait, I make my way towards the bridge. Under the rocks, on the outskirts of the brook, I reach for my stake and place it upright, point pierced into the ground and ready to grab hold if needed. I text Moore and tell him we’re here.

I hunker down beneath the bridge and hide for the time being. If there’s a chance Asa and his men will see me now, it may ruin everything. So I wait, rapid heartbeat and tense muscles not lacking, for Moore to alert me what to do next.

Tom’s group text alerts us that Moore is here
. Asa too. Though Moore hasn’t seen him yet – only his car. Great. That means he’s here somewhere in the woods. Confused, I ask Tom if he’s talked to Moore himself. He assures me he has and that we should head toward the swim team’s side of the pond. In an attempt to stay hidden, instead of taking the trail, I walk through the overgrown brush that parallels the trees. That’s when I see Ethan walking the trail in plain sight. Stupid boy.

Staying within the brush, I keep my eye on Ethan, j
ust in case he needs my assistance. Fortunately, he’d grabbed a stake on his way down. When Ethan meets Moore, I see Hunter and Elijah with him. They’re stiffly turning their heads, either searching for me or for Asa. Or Tom, wherever he is. With a few waves of his hands, he instructs my family to disperse. Each one takes a different direction and finds a tree to hide behind.

Just then a text comes in. Moore.
–
stay hidden. He’s here. I feel him. I’m sure he feels y’all too. When I told your brothers to head towards the pond, the assholes didn’t think of staying out of sight. Fuck.

Moore puts his phone to his e
ar. I don’t need to read lips to know he just let out an exclamatory “fuck” when he runs his hand through his hair and starts pacing. His brow furrows and he rubs it with his phone-free hand.

Something’s happened.

Something bad.

As Moore paces the beach area, I get a sickening knot in my stomach. Approaching Moore is out of the question, so I text him. When he looks at his phone, I’m surprised when he doesn’t acknowledge my text. Shit. What’s happened?

Staying cautious, alert, and out of sight, I head to where I watched Ethan hide. I stay low behind a bush, but Ethan catches glimpse of me.

“What’s up?”
he whispers, not turning to look at me.

“No idea. But I need you to go back out there. If
Asa’s here, he’s already seen you. I’m sure he knows exactly where you’re hidden.” I keep my voice as soft as I can, barely whispering the words so that only Ethan can hear me.

With a nod of his head, Ethan’s gone. I get a better look so I can witness whatever’s being said.

My pulse races. My knees go weak. Ethan collapses on the bench, his hand on his heart. I’m dizzy and I’m hyperventilating.

Forcing my feet to move despite my legs’ unwillingness to follow, I bolt down to the beach and grab Moore by the collar.

“Where the fuck is she? How’d he get her?”

Moore looks at me with bated breath and bulging eyes. “You said…she wasn’t coming?”

“She wasn’t!” I yell, shaking the hell out of him. “Tell me where she is!”

He shakes his head.

“Get the fuck out here!” I yell to whomever will listen. “Get out here now.”

I guess I’m signaling for my brothers, but I want
Asa to hear me. “Asa, you old fuck. Get out here now. Make this a fair fight. You hear me, you fucking old man.”

Tom puts his hand on my shoulder. I brush it off.

“What direction did you see him come?” I ask Moore, still frantically exclaiming my words.

“I didn’t. I only…I only saw his car…and got his call.”

If I’d only brought her with me, she’d be safe by my side.

Tamlin. I phone her.

It goes to voicemail.

“
Feel
your way to her,” I tell them all. “You guys are empaths, right? Well use your fucking superpowers and find Honor.
Now.
”

Closing my eyes, I reach deep inside my gut to listen to what it says. I head back towards the bridge and hope to God that my instincts are right.

My gun clutched in my right hand, I worry that my trembling hand will cause me to miss my shot. Though my empath abilities are gone, my bond with Honor is so strong, that I know she is near. And in danger.

Taking a hidden path all the way back to the bridge, I must show myself in order to reach the part of the bridge I left my stake. Ducking as I maneuver my way down the rock decline,
I see Tamlin rushing down an unused trail.

Huffing, she drops her hand to her thighs, be
nding over to catch her breath. “Storm, help,” she says between breaths. “He has her…he took her…and…”

“Where?” I beg.

She points into the trees. “He…he’s lost…he doesn’t know his way…around. That’s…”

“What, Tam? Hurry, I need to go after her.
”

“Go that way.” She points again. “I got away because he was trying to get his GPS to work.”

Taking her by the arm and hiding her beneath the bridge, I tell her, “Stay here. Don’t move. Call Eli, tell him where you are and take this.” I hand her the stake I had hidden.

Not looking back, I race back up the trail Tamlin just came from.
When I come to a fork, I need to rely on gut instinct to tell me which path to take. I choose the one on the right and say a quick prayer that I’m headed in the right direction. I follow the path up another steep incline and hit a dead end. Though my instincts are to scream for Honor, I don’t. Instead I text the guys and tell them what’s up.

Rather than return back down the trail, I cut through the woods hoping…praying…
I’m on the right track. The adrenaline takes over my body and I can’t help but run. Though running will get me there faster, my reasoning will be impeded. I want to break down and cry. This evil man has Honor, and I feel so helpless.

Suddenly it occurs to me what Tamlin had said.
Asa is lost. He can’t find his way out. I know that there are only two ways out of Mahlon Dickerson. The way Ethan and I came in and the way Tom and the others entered. I am nowhere near either. I text Moore and tell him to guard the front entrance, then I run for the path that leads to where we parked. When I reach the lot, Ethan’s car is there. And Tamlin’s is parked next to it. I remind myself to kick her ass later for bringing Honor here.

Taking the trail back this time, I don’t stray from the path. B
ut I do, however, take it slow, scaling every inch of the woods around me for any movement. Not even an animal scurries through. A new text comes in and it’s Eli. He’s with Tamlin and they’re staying put. He lets me know that Ethan is on his way up the trail heading out to the lot, while Hunter and Tom are headed up the trail that circles behind the lake. With all four pathways surrounded, the dread inside my chest lifts a little.

Gripping my gun, my eyes are peeled on everything around me. When I’ve combed every inch of woods on the outskirts of the trail, my hope diminishes and I wonder if I need to travel inside of the woods as well as the paths. Acre upon acre of rock, brush, and trees lie before me and I think,
it’ll be dark before I’ve even searched a tenth of the place.

Fatigue takes over
. My desperation heightens and no longer do I feel the hope I had in finding Honor before she’s harmed. Not one for giving up, I trudge forward, vowing to die before giving up on finding her.

As the bridge where Tam and Eli are enters my line of sight, I hear a shuffle in the woods beside me. Shaking off my weariness, I stride up to
where I hear the noise.

And there she is.

Her back against the chest of a lithe Asa.

A gun to her head.

“Storm,” she cries.

“Honor,” I cry back.

Holding my gun in his direction, I hesitate to shoot, fearing I’ll clip Honor instead.

“Drop the gun,” he commands, while
still holding his gun to Honor’s head.

“You won’t shoot her,” I reply, hoping he won’t. “You won’t be able to dr
ain her blood if you shoot her.” I try to stall. “It won’t hold her powers if she’s dead.” The chill in my voice betrays the heart that’s pounding at my chest, searching for a way out.

I can’t know what he’s feeling, but I can certainly read the resignation on his face. He won’t shoot her. My gun remains in my hand. If only I could trust my shaking ha
nd to shoot him in the head while sparing Honor.

His smirk lets me know that he’s read my thoughts. “I’ll just shoot
you
. Now that I got what I need, who the hell needs you, Sutherland.”

“Go ‘head. I’ll trade my life for Honor’s any time. Just know though, there are others here who will fight you just as hard to save her.”

Asa walks forward, his gun now held on me.

I don’t back down.

“I’ll be long gone,” Asa says.

“You’re wrong there,” Moore says from the brook behind
me.

Asa
turns, leaving a gap between him and Honor.

“Storm,” Honor cries when
Asa loosens his grip.

“Well I certainly don’t need you anymore,”
Asa says.

And just
as I aim for the gap between Asa and Honor, Asa aims his gun at Moore.

Right through the heart.

Mr. Moore goes down just as my shot reaches Asa’s shoulder.

He lets go of Honor to reach for his wound and
that’s when I shoot him again, this time shooting him in the chest. To be sure, I shoot him again in the head. He’s down after my second shot, but Honor surprises me by running for Moore.

“No!” I yell. “Don’t.”

Ethan is running down from the upper trail, and I quickly get him to help me hold back Honor.

“Honor, no. You can’t,” Ethan demands.

But before we grab her, smoke rises from both dead men, halting Honor from touching Moore.

Making my move, I wrap both my arms around Honor. “You can’t save him. You don’t have the energy left. You’ll kill yourself.”

“I won’t,” she cries. “He helped us. How can we just let him die?”

Tamlin and Eli head up from the bridge.

“Honor,” Tamlin cries, still holding the stake that I gave her.

“Stay back,” I tell her. “She’s trying to save Moore.”

Hunter and Tom, their makeshift stakes in hand, make it down from their trail, running and out of breath.

Behind me, footsteps plod down the hill. Turning to look but keeping my hold on Honor
, two armed men approach us – the men who paid me a visit when Asa did. Thing One and Thing Two. But when they see what appears through the smoke, they come to a full stop.

My attention returns to Honor, who is still struggling to release herself from me. “He’s a good guy,” she cries again, tears falling down her face.

Ethan runs to my side and holds her with me. “Honor. Look. They’re killers. Look at all those souls vacating their bodies.”

Hundreds had to be rising up into the sky.

“Why would you want to save a mass murderer?” Hunter asks.

Still pushing to break free from my grasp, Honor cries, “
Noooo. Noooo. He can’t die like this. He helped us.”

While she cries on about saving Moore, the rest of us are stunned into silence by what appears before us.

One soul manifests itself from Moore’s body.

A transparent male image.

Rugged and middle-aged.

Honor gasps, and halts her efforts to release from my hold.

Of course, keeping my arms wrapped snugly around her, I hold her more affectionately.

When the image has transformed into a solid figure, he smiles.

At Honor.

“Do you know him?” I whisper in Honor’s ear.