Promises (47 page)

Maes was up ahead, waiting for us to catch up. Colt kept a distance, lingering on our left, his eyes never leaving the surrounding trees. Everyone was focused on one thing: getting out of here safely. Briefly I closed my eyes, flexing my fingers. This wasn’t the time to get caught up with distractions. I needed to be ready.

The snap of a whip made me jump. Callon’s fingers tightened around mine, and he cajoled me into a jog. I ignored the burning in my shoulder, gritting my teeth as I forced myself to keep up.

Our formation tightened and the whip crackled again—closer this time. The Trackers were gaining. Anger bubbled in my veins, feeding the darkness within. I was not going to be pushed around like this! In mid-stride I turned, about to raise my hands.

“
No, save your strength!” Callon shouted. “Keep running!”

He let go of my hand but stuck close. Bracing my arm against my side, I kicked up my heels, aiming to reach Maes. However, the Trackers were already appearing through the forest—they’d found us.

Maes and Callon wrapped around me, shielding me from sight. I heard Colt yell, and then a series of grunts as he took the Trackers out, one by one. Daniel, too, was weaving in and out of sight, doing his bit to protect me. I focused on running—the ache in my shoulder was diminishing, and I needed to be ready for my chance.

An opening in the trees appeared ahead. We were coming to a clearing. My breath caught. We would be exposed!

Callon grasped my hand once more, making sure we didn’t get split up. Maes and Colt were in the lead, Trackers coming at them from all sides. They were trying to surround us.

“
Callon!”

“
I know!” he yelled back. “Just keep moving. We have to make it to the other side of the valley.”

I pushed myself to move faster, catching a quick glimpse of Daniel’s shirt. I wished he could jump with more than one person at a time. I knew Callon wanted me out, but if I escaped, Marcus wouldn’t hesitate to kill them to get to me. We had no choice but to clear a path for ourselves.

We followed a trail of bodies through the grasses. Midnight was trampling Trackers in the near distance, while Koda had picked up a branch and was swinging it like a club. Men went flying in all directions as if they were mere play toys.

Callon stopped abruptly and gripped my wrist.

“
You’ve got to help me now, Cheyenne.”

I nodded, unsure exactly what he was planning.

“
You need to keep moving, but don’t worry about the pace. I’m going to lure Trackers close, and then I want you to shoot them with pockets of air filled with forest debris.”

“
But my arm…”

Callon held my shoulders.

“
You can do this. Just don’t lift it higher than your hip and base your power from your palms, not your fingers.”

“
But I’ve never tried…”

“
You don’t have a choice right now.” His lips formed a straight line. “You can do this, Cheyenne.”

In the next moment, I was left alone as Callon headed off. I let out a shaky breath, my eyes darting around to the fighting. I hadn’t practiced anything like this. I didn’t even know if I could accomplish such a task with my arm still so sore…but I had to try.

I jogged forward, following Callon’s lead as he dodged back and forth between the men, tripping them up. Snarling and shouting, the Trackers would rise again and charge, only to fall over their own feet. Callon was too lithe, darting through them like a nimble breeze. He lured them closer, and I turned, spreading my fingers and waiting for my chance.

Callon ran past and I inhaled, firing out what I thought was a small burst of air. What came from me was a microburst that sent Trackers shooting into the distance. The rebound hit me and Callon, who just managed to grab my arm before we spiraled through the air. We both landed hard on the valley floor, and I smashed my chin against his ribs. Callon spluttered, the wind knocked from his lungs, but lost no time in pushing me off and rolling to his feet.

“
Cheyenne!” He snatched at my arm and hoisted me upright. My shoulder ached, and I clutched at it, wincing. He held my arms, rubbing them gently. “Easy, Cheyenne. I wasn’t expecting anything that strong.”

“
I don’t know how to control it, Callon!” I spat. The men were already regrouping, pushing for another attack. Frowning, Callon shifted his grip and lifted my right arm. I screeched, the sinews crackling.

“
Shoot, now!” he growled.

I sucked in a breath and summoned forth another blast of air. Callon kept a tight hold of my wrist, guiding my palm to strike the oncoming targets. Each burst was short-lived and focused, and every one hit their mark.

I truly was a weapon for him…

Koda and Colt wound closer, switching with Daniel and Maes. Both were dripping with sweat. They were getting tired. Colt turned to me, and his jaw hardened when he saw Callon clutching my arm. Swiftly Callon let go, and the two exchanged a heated glance. Then Callon disappeared into the sea of warriors. Colt brushed my side, keeping our shoulders touching.

“
How’re you doing?” he asked, wiping his slick brow.

“
I’m…”

I was cut off as a whip cracked beside my cheek. I twisted sideways, narrowly missing the scathing edge. It snapped again, but I caught sight of the shimmer in the air and snatched it into my palm.

“
Let me.” Colt took the whip and yanked on it. A shriek echoed, and a Tracker flew past. He crashed into the ground, and Colt stomped on his neck. The Tracker gurgled, and then fell silent. I had to turn away, holding my arms rigid to hide their trembling.

Colt’s eyes met mine. They were filled with cold determination. With a curt nod, he took my arm, and we were moving again.

Smoke started to fill the valley, just off to the south. More Trackers were coming to replace the fallen soldiers, riding on horseback and carrying torches. They were going to burn the grasses to herd us into a trap. Koda instantly set off towards them, but not before I lifted my arms.

The power left me before I had the time to think. In the blink of an eye, I brought down the whole front rank of riders. Their torches hit the grass, and the dry stems began to crackle. Quickly the blaze spread, streaming like lightning across a blackened sky and turning into an inferno. The wind shot back towards us, carrying with it a cloud of smoke. Koda and Midnight were thrown to the side, while Colt pushed me to the ground, covering me with his body.

The blast screamed past my ears, as if a jet engine had taken off. When it was over, I lifted my head. Koda was running towards Midnight, who had fallen on his side. Blood was dripping from the beast’s hindquarters, and he was struggling to stand again. My eyes widened.

What had I done?

Colt pulled me up, and we stood motionless as the fires begin to spread further. Almost half of the grass had been set alight, and my cheeks were flushed from the heat.

“
It’s okay, Cheyenne,” Colt said, resting a hand on my shoulder. “You just have to control the fires to our advantage.”

Midnight’s heavy hoof beats thudded nearby, and he snorted loudly. I spun around. Koda was bleeding from his arms, neck and cheeks, and a nasty burn was imprinted onto the left side of his face. I stared, horrified.

“
I’m…I’m…so sorry, Koda…”

“
Just fix it!” Koda grumbled, before he rode off.

Panic began to set in…how was I going to fix this?

“
Cheyenne,” Colt said. “You can do this. I’ll help you.” He gripped my right arm. “I’ll lift your arm, and you can create a funnel. We can use it to chase the Trackers down and block them in.”

I could only nod slowly. I had no idea how I was going to control this.

Colt raised my right arm, and the pain flared. Taking a sharp breath, I forced myself to push it down. I couldn’t let this distract me. With my left hand above my head, I began making small circles with my wrist. Colt held my right arm steady as I visualized pushing a funnel of air into my right palm. The winds picked up, taking the fires skyward, and soon I had a towering inferno of wind, flame and smoke.

“
We’re going to walk forward. I won’t let you fall. You just keep the fiery funnel intact, and I’ll direct it where it needs to go.”

We moved at a hesitant pace. Colt guided my palm, creating a line of fire that stopped the Trackers from closing in. He suddenly swung my arm over my head, and I yelped as the funnel jumped to the other side of the valley. I took shallow breaths, waiting for the throbbing to subside.

“
I’m sorry,” Colt whispered.

But even without the pain, I could feel I was growing weak. I’d done too much, and without my arm at full strength, my stamina was all but gone. If I didn’t stop soon, I wouldn’t have the strength to remain standing. Colt seemed to catch on, as he lowered my wrist and helped me stagger along.

We regrouped a short way ahead. Daniel flashed beside me and tapped my arm.

“
Nice fire display,” he smiled, though I could see his eyes were weary.

“
It was an accident.” My eyes fell to Koda and Midnight, who weren’t looking quite so badly injured, but I knew it had been my fault they’d gotten hurt in the first place.

Dr. Callon looked me over.

“
How are you holding up?”

“
Fine.”

He was staring at Colt again, his eyes slightly narrowed. Colt bared his teeth, but said nothing. At least, nothing I could hear.

Something shuffled close by, and I snapped my head up, catching Maes shifting into his human form.

“
We’ve got to get to the forest to the west of here,” he said. “Cheyenne, you need to create a whirlwind around us. You’ve got to keep the Trackers off our back until we get closer to the forest. We’ll be able to do more once we’re in the woods. There are just too many of them for us to handle here.” He glanced at the fires. “Use the smoke from the fires if you can. It will cover us.”

I nodded wearily. Knowing what was at stake, and how close we were to freedom, helped push my tiredness away. I couldn’t back down now. I would have to find the strength from somewhere.

“
I’m going to need all of us at the front line,” Maes ordered. “Callon, guard Cheyenne. We’ll clear a path and then you can bring her through.”

Colt tensed. He narrowed his eyes at Callon.

“
Can’t you see how tired she is?” He shook his head. “She’ll drop to the ground if you keep pushing her like this.”

“
We haven’t got a choice,” Callon said.

“
But we can still…”

“
Colt, it’s all right,” I said. “Don’t worry about me. I can do this.”

Colt’s gaze softened, and he pulled me into a brief hug. I knew he wasn’t comfortable with the idea, but at least he realized how this had to be done.

“
All right. I believe in you, Cheyenne.”

He squeezed my shoulders one last time before departing. I turned away and took a slow breath, clearing my mind. I wouldn’t have Callon or Colt to help this time; I’d have to push through my pain and exhaustion and make sure we were kept safe for as long as I could manage.

I closed my eyes, and raised my hands to my chest, feeling the change in pressure of the atmosphere. It was heavy and stifling, like the misery that surrounded me. I clenched my jaw, taking controlled breaths as my bad arm began to shake.

I began moving my hands in small circles, and the wind started swirling around. I watched the dirt and twigs join the whirlwind. I twisted my wrists, pushing the winds into a tight funnel, throwing the Trackers to the side. Biting through the pain, I held both of my arms outstretched, concentrating to keep the hurricane around us.

Callon held my shoulders and slowly walked me forward. I made the whirlwind smaller, stronger, closing any gaps where a stray Tracker might sneak through. Inch by inch, we crept closer to the middle of the valley.

A jolt shot down my spine, and I stumbled. Then the shockwave spread into my skin, and I cried out. It was as if I was being stung by thousands of tiny needles. Callon’s grip tightened as I came to a halt. A burning sensation ran from the top of my head to the tips of my toes, trying to force me to my knees. My eyes widened. I knew this sensation; I’d felt it when Marcus had locked his rings with mine…

Oh no…Marcus was trying to break my powers!

I pressed forward, determined not to lose my hold on the whirlwind, when another bolt of pain blazed through me. I held my breath, close to collapsing, until it finally passed. Callon stepped in front of me, his face intent. His lips moved, but I heard nothing. The rushing wind filled my senses; it was the only sound my ears could catch.

The impacts came faster, hitting deeper. I staggered, my whole body trembling. Each shock was like a punch to the stomach, and I was finding it hard to breathe. Callon tugged me along, leading the way. Every step was agony, sending fresh pinpricks into my back and hips. Then suddenly, something struck me dead in the chest, and I was sent reeling to the valley floor. I struggled to hold on, but the wind escaped, and we were left in the open once more.

As the dirt and dust settled, the Trackers and the smoke moved in. Callon draped my arm over his shoulders and put his arm around my waist as I struggled to stand.