Wayward Son (14 page)

Lilith stared off to the west and considered the physical things she would need. “A white dove. A raven. Two runestones. A silver chalice. A dagger. Four black candles. Salt. Lots of salt.” She turned quickly to Damien’s prone body. Can you remember that?”

“Yes, m’lady. I have it.” He began crawling away from her and toward the door.

“Stand like a man or you’ll be baked in the sun before you can finish.”

Damien pulled himself to his feet and bowed deeply to her. “As you will, so mote it be.”

“And hurry, Damien. My legions await.”

8

Tracy slipped back into Mark’s room and quietly shut the door behind her. She leaned against the cold metal and stared at his still form on the bed, her mind traveling back to the first time they met. The first time he screwed up the courage to ask her out. Their first kiss. When he asked her to marry him. Their first child…his travels with the Corps. She lowered her head and squeezed her eyes shut. Her hand slipped into her coat pocket and her fingertips brushed the cold metal of the revolver.

“I didn’t hear you come back.” He sounded as if he had been swallowing sand. She lifted her face and tried to hide her grief.

“Let me get you a drink.” She stepped beside his bed and poured a cup of water. Placing a straw into the cup, she bent it so that he could sip from it. “Drink it slowly.”

He stared at her a moment, refusing to take the straw. “Did you get it?”

“Drink the damned water, Tufo, before I shove my foot up your ass.” She pushed the straw closer to his mouth and watched as he swallowed a mouthful. He choked slightly and coughed, then went back for more.

Once he had finished and she had retaken her seat he turned rummy eyes to her again. “Did you?”

“Maybe I’m not ready to let you go that far.” Her voice was firm, her jaw set. “If Matt can live with this…whatever the hell it is, then you can, too.”

Mark shook his head slowly, his eyes closing. “Matt doesn’t have a family that he could infect.”

“So don’t bite anybody.” She sat stiffly in the chair and stared down at him in his bed. “It’s really not that difficult. It’s not like you’re home that much anyway, are you? You’re always here with your nose up Matt’s ass and…” her voice cracked and she choked up. Her hand went to her mouth to stop her from saying anything else she might regret.

“No, don’t hold back. Tell me how you really feel.”

“Fine. Maybe I will.” She refused to look at him and stared at the bag of saline hanging from the hook above his head. “I’ve decided that even though you’re a major pain in my ass, I’d rather keep you around.”

Mark grunted and she wasn’t sure if it was a laugh or a grunt of displeasure. “Pain in your ass?”

“Besides, Tufo, you’re worth more dead than alive.” She finally cracked a sarcastic smile at him. “Remember, we cashed in your life insurance years ago to pay for college tuition, and now that you’re back with the squads, your military life insurance isn’t squat.”

“You can’t be serious.” He slowly rolled a bit on the bed to better see her. “This isn’t a game, Trace. This is the real deal here.”

“And what you’re asking of me is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.”

“Temporary?” Mark’s voice rose to almost a shout. “There’s no cure for this. This is anything
but
temporary.”

“You know what I mean.” She pointed a finger at him. “I’m not letting you take the coward’s way out. There has to be ways to deal with this.”

Mark sighed and slumped deeper into the uncomfortable mattress. “Like what? Lock myself in the silver cells downstairs every full moon?”

Tracy turned and stared at him. “There are silver cells downstairs?”

Mark’s eyes widened as he realized he had just stepped in it. “No.”

She started slapping at him, causing him to wince as he tried to defend himself from her blows. “You son of a bitch! You had me thinking you were going to be tear-assing through the house and hiking on the furniture, and biting people. And all this time there are silver cells in the basement?”

Mark groaned as he did his best to defend himself from her blows. “I’m hurt here. Please—”

“I’m gonna kill you, you goofy…” she stopped hitting him and pulled him closer, wrapping her arms around him. “You, stupid, selfless, goofy…” she cried as she started kissing him about the face.

“So you’re not going to shoot me?”

“Pull something like that on me again and I will.”

*****

“We’re about ready to leave. Has anybody seen Kalen?” Jack asked as he turned a slow circle in the middle of the courtyard.

“Last I saw, he was walking the majority of the others back through a large boulder.” Gus pointed to the boulder that the group had come through earlier.

“Have everybody gather their gear and muster out here. We’re gonna travel back through the portal.”

“What about the chopper? It’s inbound now. Should be here any time.” Gus glanced out over the ocean in the general direction of the shore. “There should be plenty of room for who’s left.”

Jack shook his head. “I’m going to direct them to strip the bodies here of weaponry and anything that might help point us to who sent them. By the time they bag what’s left, that transport will be stuffed with gear.”

Gus scratched at his chin. “Do you really think we can track them down just off what these guys might be carrying? Most mercs strip themselves of anything identifying.”

“Do you really think these guys were mercs? I mean, did any of them fight like they were trained soldiers?” Jack pointed to the sheer number of dead that the wolves were now stacking behind the castle proper for burial and disposal. “They nearly overwhelmed just because there was so damned many of them. But I’d bet a month’s pay, none of them were pros.”

“Point taken,” Gus agreed. “And you said something about their weapons?”

“Sigs are primary weapons all over Europe and some areas of South America. There’s a slight chance we can trace them by the serial numbers.” Jack nodded to where the weapons were stacked. “It may take a while to find a trend or commonality, but once we do, we’ll track down who was behind this.”

“Too bad Apollo bailed. He could have just told us.” Gus spat on the ground as if the name had left a bad taste in his mouth.

Jack paused and lowered his head. “I don’t want to think what could be going through the big guy’s head right now. How he could turn against the squads and do something like this…it’s just beyond me.”

“Chief Jack.” Azrael pointed out over the water. “Another of those flying machines approach.”

Jack noted the apprehension in the young gargoyle’s voice and placed a hand on his arm in an attempt to calm him. “Easy there. These are the good guys.” The gargoyle turned questioning eyes to him and Jack gave him a reassuring smile. “They’re with us. They’re coming to help.”

“If you say so.” Azrael seemed to stand down, but kept his guard up.

All eyes suddenly turned toward the large boulder as a golden light shone from the edges and it slowly opened revealing the tall Elf standing within. Kalen stepped through and waved his hand over the stone again, sealing the doorway behind him. “They are safely home once more.”

“The chopper is on its way,” Jack stated as he approached him. “Once we get them briefed, you can escort us to the base.” Kalen nodded his face somber. “Is something wrong? Did Horith take a turn for the worse?”

“No, he is improving. The Wyldwood is caring for him well.” Kalen stared off into the night sky. “She simply passed on some disturbing news.”

“Care to spill it?” Jack suddenly felt perturbed. He was starting to not like the idea of being the last to know things. “This whole ‘getting information second hand’ is getting really old, really quick.”

Kalen turned to Jack and took him by the arm, leading him aside so that they could speak quietly. “What did she say when you last spoke?”

“Not much really. Care to enlighten me?” Jack crossed his arms, his jaw set.

Kalen exhaled slowly and leaned against his bow. “She has informed me of our fate.”

“Our? More visions I take it?”

Kalen shook his head, his eyes downcast. “Mine and the others.” He finally lifted his face and met Jack’s hard gaze. “We are to follow you unwaveringly.”

“I should expect so.” Jack’s voice took a tone that he hadn’t intended, but the message was clear. Neither was happy about the situation. “She’s pretty much left me standing here with my dick in my hand. I mean, I’m stuck with the graduating class and from what I understand, these guys may be warriors, but they’re just kids.”

Kalen nodded, not quite understanding everything he said, but understanding the gist. “There is a reason for her actions Chief Jack, but she did not offer an explanation. She simply said that our youth is necessary to complete the mission at hand.”

“And what exactly is our mission? I don’t guess she bothered to inform you, did she? Because the last I heard, I requested back up in dealing with the vampire council and those plans pretty much blew themselves up.”

Kalen slumped his shoulders and shook his head. “She did not enlighten me. She stated only that the mission would soon become clear. The darkness would—”

“Hold on,” Jack interrupted. “Your youth is necessary but she won’t say why. Our mission would soon become clear, but she didn’t say what. I hate to say this, but I’m getting a distinct feeling that we’re being played.”

“Played?” Kalen turned a quizzical look to him.

“She’s messing with us. She has no clue what’s going on so she tells you what she thinks you want to hear.” Jack snapped his fingers and rolled his eyes. “Dammit. That’s why she pulled the older, more experienced fighters home. She’s expecting the shit to hit the fan in her realm, and she wants the biggest and strongest there to defend their homes, isn’t it?”

Kalen shook his head. “She has assured me that the darkness cannot reach our realm. The elder warriors cannot assist in our battle. I do not know why, but it must be the youth…”

“Bullshit.” Jack turned and started to stomp away. “Hey, you know what? It doesn’t matter. If she doesn’t want her people to help, we don’t need you. The squads have dealt with bad asses before, we can keep on doing it.”

“Chief Jack!” Kalen shouted to get his attention. He quickly shot a furtive glance to either side to ensure he hadn’t caught any undue attention. “There is more.”

Jack crossed his arms and stared down at the Elf. “So spill it, Spock.”

Kalen didn’t grasp his sarcasm but continued in a more quiet tone. “There will be others who will join us. But…they aren’t from the Middle Realm.”

“Oh, do say,” Jack huffed. “And where the hell are we supposed to find these other ‘others’?”

“She did not say. Only that we are to expect two more others to join us.”

“Sure we are.” Jack turned at the sound of helicopter blades slicing the night air. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to deal with this. Then you can open us a doorway to the base. You can do that, can’t you?”

Kalen sighed at the chief’s exasperation. “Yes, I can do that.”

“Good. Try not to screw it up and send us to Greenland.”

*****

Little John jumped a short fence and rolled to a stop in front of Brooke, his hands out in front of him trying to stop her. “Brooke! Please, just wait.”

She faked left, then right, then tried to leap over him. John jumped with her movement and caught her leg, dragging her back to the ground with him. “Dammit, stop!”

She kicked out at him and rolled away, coming to her feet and ready to bolt once more. She raised her eyes and stared down the barrel of a carbine. “I wouldn’t,” Lamb deadpanned. “You’re not that fast.”

She spun to the side and came up facing yet another barrel. “Nope, wrong again.” Ing wiggled the barrel of his rifle under her nose. “I really wouldn’t do that.”

Brooke slowly turned her head and felt the blood drain from her face as she realized that she was surrounded. Her eyes darted back and forth as she looked for a weakness in their line. “Don’t even think it, sweetheart.” She looked up and saw Donovan standing on the rooftop, his rifle leveled on her as well. Her shoulders slumped as she raised her hands in surrender.

“Why did you run?” John asked as he tried to catch his breath.

She turned and gave him a ‘duh’ look. “Aren’t you part of the famous ‘Monster Squad’?” Her voice instantly took him back to his youth. It really was Brooke. “I may stay below the radar, but even I have heard of your exploits.”

John felt the tension slip from his body as he tried to find the words to explain. “Brooke…I…”

“It’s Raven.” She shot him a dirty look. “I haven’t gone by that name in nearly a lifetime.”

John stared at her open mouthed, unsure what to say. “I’m sorry. I know you as Brooke. My big sister.”

“She’s dead.” The woman stared at him with such anger in her eyes that he nearly cringed. “She died a long time ago.”

“Look, missy,” Spalding stepped between the two siblings, “I don’t give a tinker’s damn what you call yourself. Either you’re John’s sister and we give you a chance, or you’re not and we ash your ass right now.” One look at his face convinced her that this man was all business, regardless of what her brother may or may not want.

She took a half step back, her hand moving toward the blade strapped to her back. She paused as the carbines leveled on her registered once again. “At one time, I was.” She looked away from the two men and cast her eyes to the ground. “That was a long time ago.”

“So why were you in the mission killing those vamps?” Spalding’s tone made it clear that she had better come clean the first time. He wouldn’t tolerate being lied to.