Cryostorm (20 page)

But nothing happened. No darts. No bullets. No whirlwind of wind charging me. Where was Nate?

“Original bogey advancing on the southwest marks. They’re scattering. Bogey is pin-balling off each target.” Brandon must be repeating what he was hearing from his earpiece.

I stared at the darkness leaking out from around the building. Where I’d just been with Nate playing in the snow, kissing him, and holding him tight. My heart hammered. I fisted my hands, the ice crackling.

“It’s coming—”

Before he finished, a blur stopped in front of us, but it wasn’t Nate’s tall frame. It was short, cute, and wicked-strong Jasmine.

“So, it’s true. Loverboy wasn’t off his rocker after all.” She smiled. Her hair had grown several inches and swayed in the wind she’d created as she regarded Brandon. “Who are your new friends, Mandy?”

I de-iced and lurched forward. “Jasmine.”

She pulled me into a tight hug. Never one for open sentiment—well other than with Scott—Jasmine buried her face in my neck and swung me around.

“How’s Scott?”

“Pissed. He’s thought you were dead all this time.” She kept an arm around me, then waved Georgia close. Group hug. “By the way, cute guy in the army
costume
, there were seven Agents closing in on you and your team. Step it up if you’re taking care of my girls here.”

Brandon started barking orders.

Jasmine finally released us and stepped back. “But for realz. We should go.”

“Nate—”

“I know. I heard.” She smiled and petted my hair. “Don’t worry. Josiah’s strong. He’ll figure it out.”

Chapter 27

B
randon sat in the passenger side while one of his GEM buddies drove. Tim, Jasmine, and Georgia sat in the row behind them because they wanted to talk with him more. That left Lois and Zach to sit with me in the back.

Lovely
. The Lois part was fine. She’d finally thawed toward me, but Zach... Not so much. He drilled me with question after question about why I had to die. Why I stayed away. And his ever-annoying logic as to why I contacted him, despite knowing I shouldn’t.

Sure. It might be some version of love that compelled me to be worried about him and check on him, but not the
love-love
like I felt for Nate. No, that fire with Zach was long out, but I was still responsible for him. I owed him at least that much.

“Mandy?” Zach’s voice trickled through my thoughts.

“Oh. Yeah?” I sat up.

“I’m sorry about Nate.”

“You are?”

He nodded. “You’re sad. But I’m mad he hurt you.”

“Didn’t mean to.”

“But he did. And not just your face, arm, and whatever he punched or bruised.” Zach snatched up my hand in his. I was too tired to fight him on it. “What happened to him?”

“Someone probably programmed him. It was like a switch flipped. He didn’t mean to do any of it.” I said that, but still, it hurt. Not physically, but my heart ached at the flash of pain I’d seen in his eyes as he fought me. He didn’t want to do what he was doing. I knew that. He resisted so much I thought a vein would burst.

What if he couldn’t get through whatever was in him, or controlling him? What if it was permanent, and he was always going to be after me?

No. He would have come back for me if he wasn’t stronger than whatever had its hold on him. I had to figure out where he was now and how to help him.

“Jas, where’s Scott? Is he coming? Who’s watching him?”

She turned around and rested her arm on the back of the seat, then put her chin on top. “On his way with Martin. I texted him where we’re going.”

“How’d you know where we were?”

“Jess figured it out.” She nodded toward Zach. “You got a pretty bright cousin there. What happened with you?”

I couldn’t hold back a laugh.

“Well, come on. You took off in the middle of the night on your
bike
toward a winter wonderland like this?” She tapped on her temple and rolled her eyes. “Anyway, we’d lost some time figuring out the house scene. Couldn’t really tell if it was forced or what with the Jeep still there.”

“The bike,” I whispered.

“That threw us off a second. I didn’t even know it was fixed from when he crashed it over the summer with you.”

Ugh. The crash. The night Zach first saw my powers. That felt like years ago…

“We eventually figured it out and I zoomed up here, because no flights would have gotten us here very soon.”

I sat up. “Can’t believe you ran all this way.”

“We can run fast for a long, long time, just needed to stop a few times to refuel.

“Where do you think Nate went? He could be anywhere if you guys can run like that.” I shook my head at the thought of him out there, struggling, alone, cold…

“I’m guessing as far from you as possible.”

I sagged.

“That’s good, though. Maybe distance will break whatever thing he’s got going on in that high-IQ brain of his.” She slugged Tim. “Hey, scan-boy, you ever see any computer chips or mechanical junk in Nate’s brain? You guys have been together for a long time.”

“I scanned him pretty good to make sure his brand was free of all tracking systems.”

“Like Mandy’s?”

“They were smaller, and he had about twenty of them. Twined into his muscles, attached to bone, you name it.” He glanced at me. “That’s why his scars are so messy. Didn’t have much time. Had to rip them out while the fire was burning so whoever was tracking him wouldn’t see him move during the flames that supposedly killed us.”

“Shit,” Zach whispered.

The thought of Nate, Tim, and Martin hacking away at Nate’s chest removing that crap… I’d only had six and he, with near surgical precision, sliced them out of me with sharp, clean equipment, and it still hurt like hell. What had he gone through?

“Okay, so you scanned his chest and stuff. What about his brain? Ever scan that really closely?”

“While we were in The Center. We’d connected a couple times while planning our escape. He knew he was bugged, so I’d checked him from head to toe several times in there to locate everything.” He cleared his throat. “Even the brain. Nothing showed. Then, for weeks and weeks after the explosion that supposedly killed us all, he had me scan him to make sure. To be safe.”

“Smart guy.”

“Smartest,” I said. “Cautious, too.” I looked at Tim. “He was afraid he’d endanger you and Martin, wasn’t he?”

Tim nodded. “Always thinking of everyone first. Always has. Especially you, Mandy. That dream he had of you that night he pounded on your door.” Tim shook his head. “I’ve never seen him like that.”

“Me neither. The last couple weeks, even. More fidgety.” Zach released my hand and stretched it over our back seat.

Tim glanced at Zach, then back to me. “That’s because I think he was realizing how much you meant to him.”

“That could have started the dreams and uneasiness.” Jasmine shook her head. “Literally a fight with head and heart, huh? Sick Center bastards.”

Lois gasped.

“Sorry,” Jasmine said.

“It’s okay. I’m still adjusting to everything,” Lois said as she rested her gaze on Georgia. “You two being alive. Having taken such good care of yourselves, considering. You’ve grown in the last months and I’ve missed it. But you guys are doing well. I’ll try and shut the mothering thing off a little.”

“No. It’s nice, actually.” I said it before I could stop it from spilling out. “Er—well, sorry. I haven’t had a mom-type for a long time.”

“Okay, then. Clean up your mouth or I’m getting some soap,” Lois said.

Our laughter bounced off the Hummer walls, and it sounded like music. God I needed that laugh, because if I didn’t, my heart would shatter, and I would fall to a pile of soggy tears. I needed to stay strong for our little Scooby team and for Nate. Wherever he was. I would stay strong for him, like he had for me all this time.

Because no matter what, I would find him, help him, and then this ring I was wearing would be a wedding ring, not just a promise ring.

Chapter 28

“D
ang it, I think we’re going to have to pull over.” Brandon’s loud voice yanked me out of the darkness of a troubled sleep.

The thump of the car hitting something jolted me upright, sending a zinger of a pain through my neck. I’d been resting it on Zach’s shoulder.

Everything fell into focus pretty quickly, though, and it was an ugly sight. No longer dark, but almost no morning sun made it through the thick clouds and massive snowflakes filling the air. I could barely see the end of the hood of the vehicle. How was the guy driving seeing anything?

Brandon whipped out some sort of black electronic looking thing and pressed several buttons. “I think there’s a gas station or hotel up ahead a couple of miles. You think you can make it?”

“We’ll try. Johnson’s behind us still, but I wouldn’t know it if he hadn’t told me he saw my taillights.”

“Okay.” Brandon shook his head. “Sorry, guys. No GEM today.”

“How close are we?”

“An hour or so, but it’s treacherous up the mountainside in good weather, let alone this crap.”

“Great. Stranded in
another
snowstorm at
another
hotel.” I shook my head. “Let’s hope it’s not for three days like last time.”

“Really?” Jasmine said. “Three days? Trapped?”

“It sucked.” Georgia stretched her arms toward Tim. “Well, mostly.”

“So freaking close. Where are Scott and Martin? They stranded?”

“Airport. We were scheduled to meet them when they arrived. We’ve got some local guys who can pick them up and bring them as far as the weather allows, but then they’ll hunker down, too.”

“I know I should love the cold and snow since I can do what I can do, but I so don’t. At least not right now.”

“Maybe I could melt the snow?” Georgia said. “Like, walk in front of the car.”

“Too far. It’s over forty miles,” Brandon said.

I leaned forward, resting my forehead on the back of the seat in front of me. Georgia’s warm fingers slid through my hair, massaging my scalp.

“He’s going to be okay,” she whispered. “It’ll be fine. I’m glad my feeling was wrong about him. He’s not really an Agent after all.”

“At least not by choice, anyway.”

The car jerked forward suddenly, and I sat up, grabbing the back of the seat. The hit had come from behind.

“Whoa, Johnson, what’s the—”

“Hitting a dip here. Too much speed Shane. Back off,” Brandon grabbed the front dash.

“It’s not me. Johnson’s car is hitting ours.” He shook his head. “What? Say again?”

“Shit,” Brandon said. “Hold on.”

I squeezed the seat so hard I think the metal frame bent. Georgia whipped around facing front and grabbed Tim’s hand.

“What’s going on?”

“Johnson’s in a skid, rammed us, already going downhill, can’t see shit, can’t brake.”

“Let’s hope there’s no cliff around the next corner,” I whispered. “Not that we’d be able to see it.”

“Oh there are cliffs all right.” Brandon sat up straight. “I think one’s coming up.”

The back end of our car started swaying, but the added weight of the car behind us wouldn’t let us stop. And then if there was anything behind them, coupled with the decline of the hill…we were screwed.

If only I could catch a freaking break.

“Wait. Georgia and I can stop this hunk of tin. Open the back doors.” I looked at her and smiled. “Ready?”

“No.” She climbed over the seat.

“Georgia. No,” Lois said. Zach echoed that only with my name. Jasmine smiled. That girl was up for anything.

“Need some help?” Jasmine asked.

“Stay close and jump in if we get in trouble.”

I unhitched the back door, but the other Hummer was too close, it wouldn’t open all the way. Georgia and I both pushed. The metal didn’t stand a chance. It crumbled beneath our strength, and I tossed it to the side. I waved to the driver of the other Hummer.

Planting my back on the grill of the car behind us, I braced my feet against our bumper and pushed, dislodging us. Georgia slipped between the two cars, back pressed against the grill, hands on the bumper of our car, and she buried her feet in the snow. Instantly, her body erupted in flames, and she melted all the way through the snow.

Her body flinched, signaling she’d reached the road. Metal groaned as she curled her fingers around the bumper. Her heat intensified, and I iced down to avoid the whole third degree burn thing. Sure, I’d heal, but it still hurt.

Our hummer started slowing so I pushed back to keep the other one from crushing Georgia. “I’m so needing some new boots after this.”

“Fire should protect you if bullets bounce off.”

“True.” Her voice vibrated as her body absorbed whatever her feet were hitting. “Hopefully my teeth…don’t rattle…loose.”

After several agonizingly long minutes or seconds, not sure which, we got the all clear from Brandon. We untangled our bodies from between the two massive machines, crawled over the hood, and flopped into the snow.

My heart thrashed. Georgia and I were probably lying in the middle of the road, but with the amount of snow that had fallen, I couldn’t tell. And there weren’t any cars. Hell, we shouldn’t have even been on this stupid road, even with Hummers.

“Great, so now what?” Snow pelted me in the face, and the cold instantly sifted through my sweatshirt. Georgia must have seen my shiver, because her hand found mine, and instantly, I was toasty warm.

“Okay, so that was wicked-cool.” She giggled. “This was exactly what I needed to be honest. That took some serious power and control. Felt good.”

“I can’t believe how strong you are.”

“Like you.”

“Not quite, little sister.”

“Be nice or I’ll let you freeze.”

“Georgia? Amanda?” The howling wind muffled Brandon’s voice.

“We’re fine. What’s our next move?” I asked.

Doors started opening and slamming shut. Brandon soon stood over us, holding his long rifle. Like that’d do any good in this crap.

Or against Nate.

He smiled down at us. “That was pretty impressive.”