After a few seconds, he pulled his hands away to look at the scar across her stomach. His fingers traced it gently as he examined what wouldn’t have been there had she been born to an immortal line. The clatter of the demo team coming down the alley was the only sound other than Paden swallowing convulsively, as if he couldn’t get himself under control.

“Never again.” With his fingers still tracing the scar, Paden leaned down to kiss Ree. His mouth touching hers the moment the explosives ignited. The ground shook under their feet, but Ree couldn’t tell if that was from the explosion or Paden’s touch. He pulled her against him, his hand moving up to cup her head while he kissed her passionately. As the dust floated down to land on their shoulders, Paden leaned back to look at her before placing a soft kiss on her swollen lips.

“Never again, Ree. I can’t live without you. Do you hear me?” Paden cupped her face with his hands, lifting her eyes to meet his. His voice cracked with emotion. “Do you hear me?”

“I hear you.” Ree stood on her toes and kissed him back quickly. She tried to reign in the tears that threatened to spill at the look on Paden’s face. “We have to go.”

Chapter Twenty

They made it about a block before someone spotted them. The little old woman with her giant hat and knit shawl stopped walked by and openly stared at them. Ree groaned and Paden squeezed her hand. To be fair, they were covered in blood and dirt. Unfortunately, the little old woman’s face lit with recognition as she stared at them, and Ree felt her spike of fear.

“She knows who we are.” Ree whispered quietly.

“We look like we just fought in the battle of Gettysburg. Of course she recognized us.” Weylin shook his head. “We look like the vagrant punks the news has been making us out to be. Weaving destruction everywhere we go.”

Sirens sounded in the distance and Ree felt her heart plummet. No one said anything else, just ran. Ree was tempted to throw in some extra speed, but she worried about the humans that might see them. Paden pulled her towards an alley, where he solved their problem. The group flew through the witness-free alleys and dark streets, only slowing down to cross roads, or where the buildings opened up. The sound of sirens filled the air no matter how fast they ran. The cops were out to find the culprits.

Ree wished she had just let them leave the first time, but they had managed to kill a large group of Dark Ones. She could smell the water and knew they didn’t have much further to go before they were back to the boat. When they neared the shipping yards, Ree skidded to a stop. Power pulsed from the area and she knew what that meant. There was a god waiting for them somewhere amongst the freight containers. To make it worse, she could also hear the crackle of police scanners and the sound of dogs sniffing.

“This day is really starting to suck.” Juliette ran a hand through her hair.

“Tell me about it.” Weylin shook his head.

“What do we do?” Melanie asked.

“There are other ways to the island. We have other boats.” Roland stepped up to take charge. “We just need to get out of here without them spotting us.”

Ree opened her mouth to tell them there was a god with the humans, but didn’t have the chance. Loki appeared behind Roland and smiled.

“Now, that would ruin all of the fun.” Smiling, he pushed his sunglasses back on his head. “I went through all of this trouble to arrange a welcoming committee and you’re just going to skip out?”

“So, you’re just going to come out and admit you’re a traitor?” Melanie pushed around Ree and growled at the god. Ree’s eyes widened, surprised by Melanie’s candor. She reached out to touch her friends arm, but it did no good.

“What’s gotten under your skin, godling? You’re too pretty to be so angry.” Loki’s eyes flashed dangerously and Ree’s stomach tightened.

“You killed my grandmother, you bastard.” Melanie pulled her dagger from the sheath on her hip.

“I haven’t killed anyone.” Loki smiled at Melanie, his perfect teeth glinting in the sun. “Yet.”

“Fuck you! You killed my grandmother! You killed all of those people on the island! You want to kill all the humans. Because you’re a sick bastard and you think it’s fun!” Melanie threw her dagger and it stopped just short of Loki’s face. Something seemed to shift under his skin, making him look far more dangerous than a well-dressed surfer.

The dagger clanked to the ground and Melanie was lifted into the air by an invisible force. Her eyes spit fire at Loki, hate rolling off of her in waves.

“Watch how you speak to me, little girl. I’ve killed better than you in my day for far less.” Loki looked at Ree and smiled. “Alastriana, you’re not doing such a good job of controlling your little ragtag team of godlings.” One of the dogs howled in the distance, obviously smelling something. Loki’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Oh good. The fun is about to start.”

“Put her down, Loki.” Ree moved so she could see the god clearly.

“You’re a spoilsport.” Loki looked at Melanie, and she flew across the parking lot they were standing in. Ree grabbed the power and flung it at Melanie, trying to shield her from the brunt of the impact. Her friend smacked into one of the shipping containers, but was on her feet immediately.

Ree looked at Loki, her own anger getting the better of her. “You need to leave, before you blow your thin cover.”

“Don’t think you can order me around, Alastriana. Besides, the others will assume I was only here to have a little fun. It’s in my nature to make things difficult. I just can’t seem to help myself.” Loki smiled indulgently, his eyes taking on a wild edge.

Ree felt Loki’s magic reach for her, trying to wrap around them all, pinning them in place. Even Melanie had been halted in her progress to get back to them. Ree tried to move, straining muscles she hadn’t even realized she had, but to no avail. He held them tighter than quicksand.

“BRIG—“ Paden’s voice cut off.

“Nah ah ah. No calling your grandparents.” Loki slid his sunglasses back down onto his nose. “That’s just sad.”

Ree tried to say something, but couldn’t get any words to form. Her mind raced, the only thing still free, trying to find a way out. Rage filled her and the power responded. Green energy flooded out of her body, in no way hindered by Loki’s magic. The shell she had been trapped in shattered, the little pieces of his power dropping into the greening swirl of energy to become part of her own.

Loki growled deep in his throat, the sound reminiscent of an angry wolf being challenged. Lightning scored through the sky, thunder rumbled in angry fits. Ree pushed at his power, shoving it away from her friends, sending it flying in thousands of little pieces. Loki raised his hands in Ree’s direction and she felt the hairs on her arms and neck stand up straight. Knowing he was about to strike at her, Ree did the first thing that came naturally. She pulled as much power in as she could and threw a shield between her and the god. She pulled and pulled until the inside of her skull felt raw.

Suddenly the thunder stopped, and Loki’s eyes looked surprised. The sound of running feet echoed off the walls of the surrounding warehouses. Loki dropped his arms and disappeared, but not before winking at Ree.

“Shit, shit, shit.” Weylin’s voice seemed to bounce around in Ree’s tender head. She was holding more power than she had ever pulled before and for a second she thought it might cause her to burst apart.

Ree raised her hands and looked at the empty freight containers. She threw the energy at them, wrapping them in tight bands of power. She jerked her arms towards the alleyway, just in time to see the first of the humans. The containers slammed down with an almighty sound, shaking the ground under everyone’s feet.

Paden wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in the direction Roland was leading. Ree’s head was still buzzing from all of the energy, but despair smacked into her at the thought of what she might have killed. Roland took them down the back streets of the scarier parts of the city, and Ree was forced to focus on their surroundings. The amount of hate and anger in that area was overwhelming to Ree while she was brimming with so much power. She squeezed Paden’s hand and tried to focus on him and her friends. Melanie’s anger hit her like shrapnel every time she thought of her friend, which made Ree do her utmost to block everything.

The group jumped over a small wall that surrounded an apartment complex and dodged into the parking lot of a doctor’s office. Roland pulled his cell phone out and quickly dialed a number.

“We need some help.” He paused for a minute and listened to the other end. “That would work. We’re at Dr. Paulsen’s office.” Roland paused again, the corners of his mouth lifting at something the other person said. “That’s the one. See you in a bit.”

“Who was that?” Ree moved closer to where Roland was crouched.

“Nick.” Roland looked down at the hole in her shirt. “Are you okay?”

Ree jerked her head in answer, not wanting to really talk about it.

“You scarred.” Roland hooked one finger in the hole on her shirt and peered closer. His worry hit Ree like a ton of bricks, and she realized he must’ve been working very hard to contain it. Unfortunately, she could also sense the overwhelming feeling of despair from Melanie and the ping of jealousy from Paden.

“I’m okay.” Ree looked Roland in the eyes. “I guess my human genes aren’t going to work exactly like all of yours.” Very gently, she moved his hand away from her abdomen. “So, why were you laughing?”

“Nick and I met here. Holy water and a cross was involved.” Roland looked away from Ree and sat back on his heels. An amused grin pulled at his mouth. “I don’t think he will ever really like me, but I can’t say I blame him on that account.”

“Holy water, huh?” Ree couldn’t fight the smile that came with that thought.

“Yeah. Needless to say, we were both surprised. And wet.” Roland smiled at her, and Ree felt her stomach unclench a little. With time, she thought, they could be friends. Real friends, not the uneasy truce they seemed to be walking around.

It wasn’t long before Ree saw the flashing lights on top of the ambulance. The large vehicle rumbled into the small parking lot, turning so it could back up toward the building, not far from where her friends were sitting. The red-haired young man Ree had met the first night her group tracked Dark Ones popped out of the driver side. He walked to the back and opened the door before making a small bow in their direction.

“Your chariot awaits.” His voice was calm, an amused smile causing small wrinkly lines around his mouth and between his eyebrows.

“Thank you.” Ree stood up and smiled at the red-head.

“Are you okay?” Nick’s smile dropped and he pointed at her bloody shirt. “Or are you trying to make a statement?”

“I’m fine, thank you.” Ree wished she could change the shirt, but at this point it didn’t really matter.

“Fashion continues to elude me.” Nick held his hand out to help her into the back of the ambulance. She didn’t need the help, but appreciated his offer. Once everyone was in, he closed the doors and the ambulance pulled out of the parking lot. There wasn’t a lot of room for everyone, so it wasn’t the most comfortable ride. Ree sat on a chair that was facing the back doors, while everyone else squeezed onto the tiny bench on one side, sat on the bed, or folded themselves into an uncomfortable space on the floor.

Roland sat on the floor next to Ree and held onto the black net that hung from the ceiling to the floor. He gave directions to Nick, and they barreled off through the city. When Nick turned onto a major interstate, Ree looked at Roland with curiosity.

“Just going a little further away. I don’t want to risk any of the closer spaces.” Roland stared out the front windshield, his eyebrows pulled together.

“Where is Sophie?” Nick asked.

Ree turned in her seat to look at Roland. Her heart clenched at the memory of holding Sophie’s dead body. Roland’s hands clenched convulsively on the black straps and his jaw flexed. Sophie had been his family for centuries. She had been his sister for far longer than Tria had been alive.

“She’s no longer with us.” Roland didn’t look at Nick, and his eyes stayed glued to the street.

“She’s gone?” Nick didn’t take his attention from the road, but Ree felt his shock and sadness.

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry.” Nicks eyes flicked to Roland in the rearview mirror. “She will be missed.”

“Yes.” Roland swallowed. “She will be missed.”

The rest of the ride was quiet, except for the occasional direction that Roland gave to Nick. Eventually, the ambulance ended up on a long dirt road that dead-ended at a shack with an old pier. Nick opened the rear doors for them to exit and looked around at their surroundings.

“Will that ancient bucket get you to where you need to go?” His eyes lingered on the rusty old boat tied at the end of the pier.

“It’s much sounder than it looks.” Roland held his hand out to Nick, who shook it. “Thank you for saving our tails.”

“Happy to return the favor.” Nick smiled sadly at Roland. He waved a hand at the others before hopping back into the ambulance and heading down the old road.

“Are you sure, that thing isn’t going to sink?” Weylin looked down the pier and frowned. “Because, I’m pretty sure it isn’t going to make it very far.”

“Well, I guess we’ll just have to swim then.” Roland smiled at Weylin. He walked over to the time-worn shack and pulled some keys out of his pocket. The rusted old lock fought it, but eventually opened. Roland threw the doors open and stepped inside.

Everyone peered into the door, wondering what Roland was doing. There were boat parts, an old car, and weapons lining the walls. Somewhere just out of sight, soft sounds of scurrying critters had Ree wondering how long it had been since someone had visited this outpost. There wasn’t a floor, just hard-packed dirt and only a single light hanging from the ceiling.

“What was this used for?” Weylin looked around the room and grimaced.

“I believe it was a smugglers’ drop point. Why?” Roland dug through some boxes in the back.

“This place is as old as dirt!” Weylin pointed at the car. “That thing has to have been here for forty years or more.”