Find Me If You Dare (Dreamcatcher Book 2) (16 page)

“We need to get out of here, love. Come on.”

She didn’t respond.

“Baby, I need you to get up.”

She didn’t move.

I ran a hand down my face. Not good. I lifted Kayla into my arms and carried her, invisible, out one of the building’s side doors. When we were far enough from the building to be free of the spell box’s range, I evaporated to the parking garage.

Seth and Tabbi were already there. Tabbi’s eyes matched the color of her red hair.

Guys, talk to me,
I sent to the rest of my team as I motioned for Seth to open one of the van’s passenger doors. I sat Kayla in one of the seats. She turned sideways and curled into a ball.

Sam’s hit,
Nolan said.
One of Trishna’s recruits is coming to get us.

Seth and I stared at each other. My heart raced, and my eyes burned.
Stay with her,
I replied.
Promise me you won’t leave her side.

Yeah, of course.

A male voice I didn’t recognize—it had to be one of the recruits—called out to us:
Team, Bartholomew’s asking everyone to please return to Caelum immediately. Stay away from the big cities, and keep your eyes, ears, and minds open. Travel slowly, and do not—I repeat,
do not—
evaporate or stop near the gate to Caelum until you’re one hundred percent sure you haven’t been followed.

Why hadn’t Trishna sent that message?

Ivan popped in. “Abigail’s dead.”

Seconds later, Lian and Shawn showed up. Both were bloody, but neither appeared to be injured. I let out a huge breath. Thank God most of us had made it out unscathed.

Lian ran into Ivan’s arms. He dropped his face into her black hair, muttering in Russian.

“Let’s move,” Shawn said, sliding into the driver’s seat.

Nodding, I climbed into the middle of the van, opposite Kayla, then Lian and Ivan snuggled into the back, next to Tabbi. Seth joined Shawn up front, and we raced out of the parking garage.

The city was in absolute chaos. Police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks flew past us. Helicopters soared above, and news crews parked on every corner. People stood on sidewalks, screaming, crying, and clinging to one another. And in sections where many had congregated—like Franklin Square—dead bodies lined the streets, sidewalks, and grass.

Shawn flicked on the radio.

“About twenty minutes ago, across the United States, several major cities were hit in what the president is now calling a massive terrorist attack. Thousands are presumed dead, but the official count will not be available for several days. If you have family or friends in any of these following cities, please contact your local authorities if you cannot reach them: Los Angeles, Seattle, Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, Houston, Denver, Indianapolis—”

A loud wail filled the van as Kayla broke down. She covered her face and sobbed.

“Turn the radio off,” I said, hopping out of my seat to kneel at her feet. I squeezed between her knees, rubbed her arms, and spoke as gently as I could. “Hey, you’re coming out of shock. You need to try to calm down.”

Kayla shook her head, gripping her stomach as she rocked. “They’re all dead. Even the little kids. And my dad… He’s the one… All those people…” As she moaned loudly, her shoulders curled over her chest.

I pulled her to me, and she dug her face into the side of my neck, pulling handfuls of my shirt into her fists. Kayla sobbed, drenching my skin with her tears. I swallowed deep, blinking hard. For weeks, she’d tried so hard to stay strong. There’d been crying, but nothing like this. Her compassionate heart must not have been able to take any more.

I closed my eyes, rubbed her back, and stroked her hair. The sight of all those bodies had made
me
sick, and I’d seen a lot of death. For Kayla to have been witness to genocide… I’d give my right hand to reach into her mind and remove the memory of all those bodies, all that blood, and all those wicked screams.

Kayla rocked in my arms, gripping my shirt tighter and gasping for air.

Baby, breathe,
I said, kissing her temple.

“Daniel, bring her back here so she can lie down,” Lian said. “We’ll switch seats.”

Crouching to protect their heads, Lian and Ivan maneuvered through the van to the other captain’s chair, and when Lian was on his lap, I ushered Kayla to the back. Tabbi moved to the seat opposite Lian and Ivan, and then Kayla lay across the bench, placing her head in my lap. She curled into the fetal position and cried through closed lips. I draped an arm over her shoulders and twined my fingers with hers. With the other hand, I stroked her hair.
Ti amo, rosa mia
.

There was no point in trying to convince her everything would be all right. We’d had a chance to stop all of this, and we’d failed. I clenched my jaw, swallowing nausea. My body felt as if it weighed a thousand pounds, and I sunk into the seat, hopelessness filling every vein—like there was no point in leaving this van again.

With my fingertips moving rhythmically through Kayla’s hair, I tipped my head back, closing my eyes. I let the sound of the tires on pavement flood my senses and closed out every thought and emotion that passed through me. Feeling hurt too much, like knives digging into my gut. Shut down, there was only the hum of the van, the beat of my heart, and the warmth of Kayla’s soft hand in mine.

Eventually, her cries turned into sniffles, and then she was silent. I glanced down. Kayla’s eyes were red and swollen, but the hard lines in her forehead had softened with her slumber. Knowing I couldn’t turn myself off from the world forever, I used the quiet time to check in with Nolan.

How’s Sam?

We’re in Caelum, but it’s not looking good.
His voice was quiet and sad, each word drawn out like he didn’t want to admit the truth.
Trishna’s sick,
he continued,
like you were. One of the other healers was able to close Sam’s wounds, but now Sam’s feverish, too.

I grimaced and dug my nails into my free hand. I’d dreaded the possibility of infecting Trishna, and now her poor health was my fault. To know Samantha was ill, also… At least they hadn’t seized and died like Richard’s Catcher, Alan. Richard said after three days, they’d wake. I’d have to bank on that.

Keep Sam comfortable,
I said.
Hopefully she’ll wake soon. We’ll be there as fast as we can.

Yeah, well, you guys might want to stay quarantined when you get to a hotel, no matter what Bartholomew says. At least for the night. Apparently, this poison shit is more contagious than we thought. There are at least twenty people on cots in here, and two have died.

Every atom in my body turned to stone. Maybe Seth and Tabbi were safe; I didn’t think either of them had come in contact with anyone. I looked up at Lian and Shawn. But both of them had. And Ivan had come in contact with the poison, too, the moment he touched his girlfriend. Lian was covered in blood.

We needed to check for any possible contamination—and fast.

“Pull over,” I said.

“Why?” Shawn asked.

“Because you could be sick.”

Tabbi flipped her head around to look at me, and Shawn pulled off the side of the road. I nudged Kayla awake and told everyone to climb out of the van. By now, the sun was dropping, and above the trees, the sky was a beautiful shade of orangey-pink. Funny how lovely the world could be when it was so close to possibly ending.

“What’s going on, Daniel?” Ivan asked.

“Everyone, look at yourselves. Do you have any open wounds?”

They checked their bodies for marks—and, of course, Seth spun like a dog chasing its tail—but we didn’t get very far. “One of the bullets grazed me before I could take Shawn invisible, but it didn’t bleed much,” Lian said.

My mouth dried. Damn
.
I’d really hoped we’d managed to avoid being scathed. “Where?”

“My shoulder,” she replied.

I approached her, eyeing Ivan for permission to check. When he nodded, I raised her sleeve. Near where her collarbone met her left shoulder blade, a small scratch cut her pale skin. From the wound twisted small lines of dark veins.

Ivan’s breath caught, and my heart leaped into my throat.

“Is that…” Tabbi started.

I nodded. “Lian’s been poisoned. We need to find a hotel. Now.”

e stopped at the nearest Super 8 off the turnpike and paid for two adjacent rooms. Lian was adamant she was fine and didn’t need to stop, but Ivan’s worry for her was visible in every deep line on his face. He wouldn’t contradict her, but I knew if this were Kayla, I’d want to keep her comfortable until I was sure she wouldn’t succumb to seizing.

After getting keys for the two rooms, Ivan and Lian took one while the rest of us squeezed into the other. Not truly understanding how Margaret’s virus worked, the last thing we wanted was for anyone to stay with Lian—except Ivan, who refused to leave her alone.

As soon as I dropped my bag off, I visited her. Not like I could get sick again. Our rooms opened to the outside, and a wave of humidity suffocated me as I crossed to next door.

Lian yelled at Ivan in her native language as I entered the room. Spotting me, she continued in English. Chinese dialects were of the few languages I couldn’t speak. “You, too, Daniel. We don’t need to stop for me.”

I waved her over. “Let me see your shoulder.”

She’d changed into a tank top, and even from the doorway, the dark veins were like tattoos across her chest. Unlike when Richard’s Dreamcatcher had come in contact with the poison, Lian wasn’t sickening quickly. Maybe she’d combat the illness, fall into a coma, and wake up three days later. But she’d also just been grazed, which meant she may not have had as much poison enter her system. Her reaction might just be delayed. I didn’t let my fear show as she neared me, though my stomach felt crushed like a tin can under an elephant’s foot.

Up close, sweat covered her face, and the skin around her eyes had darkened. She might not get as sick as I had, but she was still going to feel miserable. I moved her shoulder, turning it slightly so I could get a better look. She winced.

“Ivan, I don’t want you touching this. Keep an eye on her, but don’t come in contact with her blood,” I said.

“But there’s not even a scratch on my body,” he replied.

“I don’t care. Apparently it doesn’t take much more than a wound the size of pinprick to be susceptible. I can’t risk you getting sick, too.”

He groaned.

“This is ridiculous,” Lian said. “You’re being too concerned. I’m fine.” As if on cue, her eyelids drooped, and her legs buckled. I caught her before she could collapse.

“
Gospodi
, Lian!” Ivan rushed to her side.

I lifted her onto one of the beds. “Cold rag, Ivan. Hurry.” Lian’s forehead was on fire.

She swore in Mandarin then screamed, squirming and reaching to scratch the wound on her arm. I grabbed her hand and held it at her side before her nails could dig into the open skin. Again, she screamed, and Ivan returned with the cold washrag, pressing it to her forehead. Lian locked eyes with him. I could tell by the way his eyes fell that they spoke telepathically. Then her lids fluttered shut, and her hand fell limp in mine. As fast as I’d passed out in Caelum, Lian had, too.