’Til the World Ends (28 page)

Chapter Twelve

“One of the stores at the outlet mall used to sell bicycles,” I told Ian as we walked together down the sidewalk. I felt thankful for the light offered by the Night Rainbows.

“It’s dangerous to be out in the open at this time of night,” he said.

“I know, but we need to be mobile soon as possible. How are your hands?

Ian stretched his greased-up fingers. “Not bad. There are only a couple of blisters on each of them, and they don’t burn anymore.” Which was odd considering it had happened less than an hour ago. Maybe it was because the burns were psychosomatic and not physical.

We’d abandoned Nichol’s solar car after retrieving every useful item we could carry. The agent had had two backpacks in the trunk, one filled with clothes and the other with food and water. If we could just find a couple of bikes, we’d be set.

“Discount Mart!” I pointed at the stark rectangular building without a single window intact. “My mom and I used to go there all the time for school clothes when I was a kid. They carry everything you can think of, including bicycles.”

Ian tossed me a quick look and kept on walking. “Yeah, I know. There’s not much left in there now. It’s been ransacked, but we’ll take a quick look. I want to show you something inside anyway.”

“What?”

“You’ll see.”

We stepped over jagged chunks of glass that had once been display windows. Even the carpet inside had been ripped up. However, most of the signs inside were still standing.

I stepped quickly through the women’s clothing department. Broken hangers were strewn across the floor and wedged under display shelves. I had a sudden memory of when my mother and I were browsing through dresses, looking for something new for her to wear for my parents’ anniversary dinner. She’d been so happy back then. “Hey,” Ian said gently. “You okay?”

My eyes stung with unshed tears. I wished I could be strong the way my mother had been, to see the good in everything the way she had, to imagine a bright future when the world would be normal again. My throat clogged with a sudden surge of grief. I grieved for my mother, for friends I’d lost to either disease or disaster, and for the town I’d called home since the day I was born. Most of it was gone now. My sick and confused father was all I had left, and I loved him dearly.

Though I missed my mother, I hadn’t cried for her since the day she died, but Ian’s concern touched me to the core, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. I let the tears flow, silent and hot, and the release was like a long-needed cleansing of the darkness I’d bottled up for too long. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. I buried my face in his chest and sobbed, as if wringing every last bit of loss from my heart.

The pounding of feet brought me up short, and I jerked away from Ian to peer in the direction it was coming from. A small group of half-naked, filthy Berserkers trotted our way.

I’d had as much as I could take from these people. They were pathetic, yes, but they were also dangerous, and I’d be damned if I’d end up collateral damage in one of their savage tantrums. Rage flamed through my veins, and I shook all over. I grabbed a bent clothing pole off the floor and hoisted it over my shoulder like a baseball bat.

I hardly recognized my own voice when I screamed, “Bring it on, bitches!”

The Berserkers gawked at me in surprise. Maybe they thought I’d become one of them, and at the moment, they weren’t far off. All I knew was that I refused to add one more tragedy to the toppling stack that had become my life. I swung my metal pole at the air in front of them.

“I didn’t take your Johnny!” I screamed, then swung the pole in the other direction. “I didn’t burn down your freakin’ house!” I pounded the pole on the floor, releasing the frustration of having lost so much and knowing I’d never get it back.

The little group actually backed up a step. I lunged forward, growling like something feral, and they turned to beat tracks out of the store.

I blinked at their retreat and tossed the pole down, my chest heaving and my blood pounding between my temples. I thought my heart would bang its way outside my chest.

I heard clapping from behind me and twisted around to see Ian grinning.

“Well done. Remind me never to go berserk around you.”

Dazed by my own outburst, I felt suddenly drained. I wobbled on my feet, and Ian rushed over to steady me. “Let’s get you someplace where you can calm down.”

I nodded and let him guide me toward the back of the store and a set of stairs leading down to a stock room. He slid a flashlight out from his backpack and aimed the light at the shadows. There were mostly empty boxes and trash down here, but the smell was horrendous. We came upon a closed door with a metal bar wedged across the frame and a heavy padlock attached to a chain that held the whole thing together. Ian dug in his pocket and withdrew a key that he slipped in the lock. The shank popped free.

He opened the door and ushered me inside. Peering out into the stockroom, he swept the flashlight’s beam from one end to the other before slamming the door shut and relocking it from the inside.

“Wow, you have quite an elaborate safeguard.”

“One can never be too careful when keeping out Berserkers.”

“I’m guessing this place is yours?” I took in the sparse furnishings of a room that appeared well lived in. It was filled with all the comforts of home: bed, dresser, table, kitchen area. “You did this?”

“Yep.” He shrugged off his backpack and gestured for me to hand mine over. He tossed both in the corner of what appeared to have been an employee break room. There was even a three-legged vending machine leaning against the wall. “I lived here before moving to Lodgepole. I had to fight a few Berserkers for it, but I can be quite persuasive when need be.”

I knew that for a fact. “Why did you leave here?”

“I was looking for someplace to call home, a community to live in.” He turned a slow circle where he stood. “Living in the basement of an abandoned store in a town full of Berserkers isn’t my idea of home.”

I couldn’t blame him for leaving. I wouldn’t want to live here, either. “It’s a lot more comfortable than the garage.”

He shook his head. “This place is crawling with Berserkers. I figured a locked car with AC would be safer than this dump.”

I gave him a dubious look. “Really?”

He nodded. “There was no telling what would be waiting for us in here. We’re damn lucky we didn’t get ambushed.” He waved a hand at the chair and the cot. I chose the cot and flopped down onto it with my forearm slung over my eyes. He handed me a bottle of water. “Make yourself at home.”

“Thanks.”

He sat in the chair across from me and pulled the fifth of vodka from one of the backpacks.

“Are you really going to drink more of that?” It bothered me that he felt a need for more alcohol so soon.

“No.” He twisted off the cap. “You are.”

When he offered me the bottle, I pushed it away. “I’ll pass, thanks.”

“I’m not trying to get you drunk, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

I gasped. He presumed way too much. “I already told you I trusted you. What makes you think I changed my mind?”

Ignoring my question, he waggled the bottle at me. “Just a couple of sips. Your nerves are frayed, and you’re wound tighter than Ebenezer Scrooge at Christmas. Consider it medicine.”

I’d only ever had one drink my entire life and that was at my high school graduation party nearly eight years ago. I hadn’t gotten drunk, but I did end up feeling warm and fuzzy all over. I could use some of that right now. “Just a sip.” I accepted the bottle and tilted it to my lips. The vodka felt cool against my tongue and tasted kind of sweet, but once it reached the back of my throat I almost choked on my tonsils.

Ian joined me on the cot and gave my back a couple of pats. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

I shook my head, still sputtering, and thrust the bottle back at him. “Yeah, it was. I’ve had enough, thank you.”

I closed my eyes, and the pounding in my head began to ease. A hazy glow settled in my stomach, making me glad I’d only taken one sip. That was plenty. In fact, it was just right.

“How do you feel now?” Ian asked.

“Mmm...” Thirstier than usual, I gulped from my water bottle. “Relaxed. Fearless.” I took his hands gently in mine and inspected his burns. I ran my finger lightly over one diminished blister. “I think I should tap into the sun again. Want to come with me?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I’ll be gentle. I promise.”

His expression grew solemn. “I believe you. You’re one of the gentlest people I know.”

I felt suddenly less playful than I had a minute ago. The vodka had calmed my nerves, but it wasn’t enough to drive away the sinking feeling in my gut. The world wouldn’t get any better without help. “You don’t want to join me?”

He shook his head, his gaze burning into mine. He skimmed his fingers over my bare arms, and I shivered. “But there’s something I
do
want.”

My heart thudded in my throat. His skin touching mine made me tingle in all the right places, and I wanted more. I sensed his desire, and I felt the same toward him, but I wanted to hear him say it. “And that is?”

His hand slid over my shoulder to my neck, where he cupped the back of my head. Leaning forward, his chin slightly tilted, he pressed his lips to mine. They were firm, yet supple in how they molded to the shape of my mouth, and there was a lingering scent of vodka on his breath that didn’t bother me. I wondered if the smell combined with the small amount I’d sipped was responsible for the dizziness inside my head.

He drew me in like a magnet, but this time I didn’t overthink it. I knew him better now, and I wanted to surrender myself to him. It wasn’t about control or lack of it, but about filling a need we had for each other. I was more than okay with that.

I caressed the side of his face with the palm of my hand, moving my lips against his, as his mouth parted and he stroked me gently with his tongue. Our upper bodies were pressed tightly against each other now, his heart thrumming against my chest. It created a primal melody that quickened my breathing.

A sudden yearning to get closer had me leaning into him harder. He moved backward on the cot, lowering his back to the thin mattress, and I followed. I was on top of him now, and the thin barrier of my shirt lay between my breasts and his naked chest. Unable to stand the separation, I peeled my shirt up over my head and tossed it to the floor. We both moaned as our bare skin slid against each other, our kisses becoming fevered with need.

Our hands roamed over the hills and valleys of each other’s bodies, exploring and pleasing, savoring and wanting. I could get happily lost in time right here and never leave this room. If only I could lose myself in passion, to feel alive and forget the horrors outside these walls. For this moment, it was just Ian and me, in a world inside an abandoned employee break room. A world we made just for us.

My light head felt nice at first, but then it became filled with heat, and not the passionate kind. A poorly timed premonition was on its way.

I relaxed against Ian, letting the sensation wash over me, but I focused on staying in control of it this time. “Ian,” I whispered against his mouth.

“Hm?” His chest heaved against mine, and desire swelled beneath my skin, just as his desire made him hard. But I had to resist. I had to pay attention.

“A premonition,” I said.

“Now?”

“Yes.”

He started to sit up, but I pushed him back down. “Don’t move. I need you with me. I need your strength to tap into the sun before it taps into me.” I laid my head on his chest, letting his heartbeat lull me into a meditative state. I saw the date stamp, two days from now, but the location was unclear. No map presented itself, but the entire Earth loomed like a giant hot air balloon.

“Tell me what you see,” Ian said softly.

I was looking down at the state of Colorado from a far enough distance that the Rocky Mountains appeared as scribbles in the sand. This was well beyond my ability’s two-hundred-mile limit. My focus on the entire North American continent, I held the image in my mind and watched. A solar flare shot through the atmosphere, and I sensed more than saw the surge of energy it sent to the earth’s magnetic poles. That’s how the Bell Ringer had wreaked havoc the first time, only what I was seeing now appeared much worse.

“What’s happening?” Ian asked.

“The apocalypse.” I sucked in a breath as I witnessed the unfolding devastation. The Earth jerked on its axis, causing earthquakes, tidal waves, windstorms, volcanic eruptions and incredible floods all around the planet. Volcanic ash spewed into the atmosphere, blocking the sun. The Earth shook, and chunks of mountains crumbled like rocks made of sand, while giant tidal waves enveloped every shoreline. Massive fires sprang from every location not covered by water, and powerful winds fed the flames to make them ferocious devourers of anything left standing. Nothing could survive such a catastrophe. There wouldn’t be a single living thing left when it was over.

Tears filling my eyes, I told Ian what I foresaw.

Chapter Thirteen

I couldn’t get out of there fast enough, and not because I didn’t want to be with Ian. I wanted him more than anything. But because I felt desperate to return to Lodgepole.

Ian looked bewildered. “Where are you going?” he asked as he watched me tug my T-shirt over my head and shrug on one of the backpacks.

“Back to the hospital for my father’s SUV.” I threw the other pack at him. “We have to get to the base as quickly as possible. If they don’t know what’s about to happen, I have to tell them.” And could they stop it? That’s what I had to find out.

Ian said nothing. He couldn’t tell me not to worry, that I was imagining things, because we knew for a fact it was real. I’d seen it with my mind’s eye, and there was no obvious way to stop it. The apocalypse was coming, and she was a raving bitch with murder on her mind.

“We still don’t have bikes. How do you plan to get there?”

“Walk. Run. I don’t care, I’m just going.” I yanked at the barred door. “A little help, please?”

Ian narrowed his eyes. “Sure.” He brushed passed me and unlocked the door, then opened it wide. Stepping aside to make room, he crossed his arms and waited.

“You’re coming with me, aren’t you?”

Scowling, he said, “Are you inviting me? Or commanding me?”

I massaged my temples and struggled to adjust my attitude. I needed to lighten up. “I’m sorry. It’s not like me to bark orders. You’ve done so much to help my father and me, and here I am being a total bitch. But after what I saw in my premonition...”

He hesitated. His expression softened as he drew me into his arms. “I know, and it’s okay. We’re both on edge. If we start walking now, we should arrive at the hospital in about three hours.”

I heaved a relieved sigh. “You mean more to me than I ever imagined anyone could. I don’t want to lose you.”

He kissed the top of my head. “You won’t. I’m here for as long as you need me.”

I needed him forever, and forever was just about up.

After an hour of walking on the deserted highway, I had to stop and rest. Ian and I hadn’t spoken much since our special time together that had ended way too soon. We both kept our own counsel as we reviewed our separate lives and made peace with a world that was drawing to an end. I had no major regrets other than meeting a man I could fall in love with if given half a chance. But instead we’d be saying goodbye forever.

The two of us sat in silence on the warm asphalt at the center of the empty, silent highway. Night Rainbows lit up the horizon on all sides, and the hypnotic waves of color helped soothe my agitated mind.

“What are you thinking?” Ian asked.

I shrugged. “How tired I am. And that I’m relieved my father doesn’t know what’s about to happen. Ignorance really can be bliss.”

He reached for my hand and pulled me closer so that I could lay my head on his shoulder. He whispered, “Thank you.”

I lifted my head to stare into his face. “For what?”

“For opening my mind to the possibility of a brighter future.”

Nearly choking on the water I sipped, I said, “You do realize the end is coming, right?”

He nodded, and in his usual calm, matter-of-fact tone, he said, “Yes, but you gave me a taste of what the world has to offer, even when there are only a few good things left in it. When it comes to you, Sarah, I’ll gladly take a few days of wonderful over a lifetime of horrible. Now I can die a happy man.”

Why did he have to be so amazing? I blinked and held my breath to stop myself from weeping. My smile wobbled, and I couldn’t control the quaver in my voice. “I...I don’t know what to say.”

“I don’t expect you to say anything. I just wanted you to know.”

I wanted to kiss him again, to hold him close and breathe him in, taste his skin, and do a lot more than touch him. But my fantasy was cut short when a flash of headlights shone up ahead. A car? Here? It was coming fast, too.

Ian and I jumped up and scrambled to the side of the road. The driver had seen us and was slowing down. I had a bad feeling all of a sudden, and from the way Ian gripped my hand, he was feeling it, too.

“Run!” he said.

We tore off into the barren field that ran alongside the highway. The ground was rocky and uneven, and I struggled to keep up. Ian tugged me along, and I knew I had to be slowing him down.

I tripped over something in our path—a stump or a rock, I couldn’t tell—and went flying. I landed on my shoulder. When I rolled onto my knees, preparing to get up and run again, I had an abrupt change of heart. It was pointless to run. There was nowhere to go.

Ian trotted back to where I sat with my arms wrapped around my knees. He helped me to my feet. “What are you doing?”

“Giving up.”

We both glanced back at the highway. The car that looked exactly like the one we’d stolen from Nichol had driven off the road and was rolling toward us at walking speed. The person driving wasn’t too concerned about us running away.

The car door swung open, and a tall man stepped out wearing the same style shiny black raincoat that Nichol had worn. He had on a hat, too, but his was a fedora. His gray chinstrap beard was in dire need of a trim, and he wore a gold hoop in one ear. It didn’t take a mastermind to figure out this was Nichol’s partner, Charles Jaginski.

“You almost missed us,” Ian said, his voice laced with sarcasm.

“GPS tracking is genius. You stopped the signal, but not before I locked onto where it originated. I took a chance you’d still be in the area, and here you are.” The agent held up what looked like a rifle big enough to take down an elephant. “I’m not gonna have to use this on you, am I?”

“Depends,” I said, feeling either brave or stupid. Probably both. “Does it electrocute people?”

“What?” Charles Jaginski looked genuinely perplexed. “Why the hell would I want to electrocute anyone?”

I glared at him. “Your partner is into it, so I thought you were, too.”

“That’s
ex-
partner. Nichol is a damn idiot who’s lost the few marbles he had rolling around that nearly empty head of his.” Jaginski set the rifle on the ground and leaned it against the car. “Stunners are for self-defense only. We don’t hurt people. Our mission is to help them.”

“You’re a funny man, Agent Jaginski,” I said. “We know you’re a slaver. You spilled the beans in the phone conversation we weren’t supposed to hear.”

“Call me Jag,” the agent said.

“You going to sell us to the highest bidder now?” I asked.

Arms crossed, he said, “All depends on what you can do. You’re both Kinetics?”

“You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t suspect we were,” Ian said.

Jag retrieved the rifle from the ground and cocked it. “Wanna see what
this
can do?”

“Sure.” I stiffened, ready for anything. “Shoot.”

“Like hell,” Ian said, standing in front of me to block Jaginski’s target.

Jaginski aimed the gun to the side of me and pulled the trigger. A giant net shot out of the barrel and landed harmlessly on the ground beside me.

“Nichol obviously gave you the wrong impression of our branch of the Secret Service.” Jag spat on the ground. “The net’s for rounding up Berserkers, but I admit to using it on a few crazy Kinetics with delusions of grandeur.”

My thoughts immediately spun back to the run-in I’d had in Denver. I scrutinized the agent. “I thought you wanted to go into business with Nichol, be a slaver like him.”

He barked a laugh. “Sounded convincing, did I? That was bullshit. I’ve been trying to bring Nichol in for months. He wouldn’t listen to reason, so tricking him was my next option.”

“There’s no need,” Ian said. “He’s been exposed to the sparks.”

Jaginski’s eyes squinted in the light of the Night Rainbows that cast eerie lines of color across his face. “Damn. No kidding?”

“No kidding,” I said, feeling a mild twinge of guilt for my part in Nichol’s encounter with the sparks. “So our question to you is, what’s up with the military base in Colorado Springs? Is the government experimenting on Kinetics?”

He grinned, showing brilliant white teeth. “Hell, no. Is that what Nichol told you?”

Ian and I shared a look, then Ian said, “You knew we were Kinetics before you even came looking for us. Why else would you bother?”

“For one thing, I came to retrieve the quarter-million-dollar car you stole. It’s government property,” Jag said.

A quarter-million? Wow. I had no idea my dad’s design was worth so much.

Combing his fingers through his hair, Ian circled in place, which I knew to be a sign of his discomfort. “About the car. It’s totaled.”

The smile dropped from Jag’s face.

“Sorry,” Ian added.

The corners of the agent’s mouth turned down as if he’d just tasted something bitter. He cleared his throat. “Forget the car. I knew you were Kinetics because that’s the only reason you’d associate with Nichol. I suppose you could have been one of his customers lookin’ to hook up with a Kinetic, but those people have all kinds of money and wouldn’t need to boost a car.”

“Deductive reasoning,” I said, admiring how Jag’s mind worked.

“So...” Jag drew out the word as he looked from Ian to me and back again. “You have no vehicle. You’re both Kinetics. Therefore, I’d like to offer you a place to live where you’ll be guaranteed protection from people like Nichol.”

“What would be the point?” I asked.

He looked puzzled. “The point would be a better life for yourselves.”

Ian glared at the agent. “A life that will last only two more days.”

Jag jerked his shoulders back. “What are you talking about?”

From the look on his face, he knew
exactly
what we were talking about. “The end of the world.”

“You shouldn’t know anything about that.” Jag scowled down at the ground as if it had disappointed him. “No one but the precogs know, which means one of you is precognitive if you saw what’s coming. The Bell Ringer is a flash of static compared to this monster.” He lifted his gaze, eyes questioning.

Neither Ian nor I spoke up. Should I trust this guy? I really wanted to. He was the enemy of my enemy, which made him a friend. Right? “I’m—”

“Don’t tell him what you are,” Ian said to me. He looked at Jag. “First, we need proof you’re one of the good guys.”

“I can tell you exactly what you saw in your vision. Will that prove it to you?” So he did. He described the volcanic eruptions, tidal waves, earthquakes and floods, where they would happen and the destruction they’d cause.

My breathing hitched, and I had to sit back down in the dirt before I fell down. It was as if he’d witnessed it right along with me. “You saw it, too?”

Jag shook his head. “We have ten precogs at the base, and they all saw the same thing. They were interviewed separately, and then each agent was briefed with their intel. Our mission is to find the only two Kinetics able to stop it. There’s been a full-scale search for weeks, but no one’s had any luck. We hope to find them before it’s too late.”

Two days isn’t enough time to do
anything
, let alone find two needles in a haystack. The air suddenly became too thin to breathe. “What kind of Kinetics?”

Jag gave me a solemn look and answered, “One who can control weather, and a forecaster who predicts sun storms.”

My stomach lurched. A forecaster of sun storms. A weather Kinetic. He claimed that’s who they needed to prevent the apocalypse, but what did that entail? Hurling us into a boiling volcano? A blood sacrifice to the sun god?

Ian asked the same question that was churning inside my head. “Why only those two?”

Jag sighed and rolled his eyes. “It’s damn spooky if you ask me, but all I’ve been told is it has nothing to do with science.”

“Then what does it have to do with?” I asked.

“Astrology. Numerology. Theology. Mythology. And a few other ‘ologies’ that don’t make any normal kind of sense. In my opinion, explanations should be cut-and-dried, black and white. The only thing gray about me is my beard.” He looked between us again. “So which one of you is the precog?”

I lifted my hand, then dropped it. “I’m not really precognitive. I can only predict...certain things, so it’s not the same.”

The big man held his hands up, as if preparing to give a sermon. “There are several types of clairvoyant Kinetics. Some can forecast earthquakes, tidal waves and volcanoes, but it’s unusual for them to have visions like the precogs do, except that’s exactly what’s been happening. The impending cataclysm is global, and not a single forecaster has been denied a preview. I bet even the forecaster of sun storms got a good glimpse of what’s coming.” He gave me a shrewd stare. “I’ve heard rumors there’s one here in Colorado.”

I swallowed. A deep flush heated my face from the neck up, and I locked eyes with Jag. He knew. He’d known before he even got here. “When did you realize it was me?” I asked him.

“I had my suspicions, but didn’t know for sure until just now.” He directed his attention to Ian. “Weatherman?”

Ian smiled and held up one finger. “The gang’s all here.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Jag opened the passenger side door. “Hop in and let’s go!”

I thought about my father. I wanted him with me. Plus, I doubted Jag realized Nichol was still alive and in Lodgepole. “Nichol’s not dead.”

“He’s not? Good lord,” Jag said and leaned against the car. “Are you telling me he’s a Kinetic now? We’re all in for a world of hurt if he is.”

Well, crap. I hadn’t considered the possibility, but he could be. Nichol’s fever had barely started when we’d left him. I watched Ian circle where he stood and knew he was thinking the same thing.

“We don’t know if he is or isn’t,” I told Jag. “He was very sick the last time we saw him, but that’s how it always starts. I had the fever for a week before I got better and turned into...this.”

“How long’s it been since he was exposed?” Jag asked.

“Less than a day,” Ian said.

“Then we still have time. Get in.” He climbed in the car and started the engine. “He’s sick now, which means he’s weak. I want to get him back to the base before he turns,
if
he turns. Who knows what kind of a Kinetic he’d turn out to be?”