Dawn of Darkness (Daeva, #1) (24 page)

"The
Silver Dawn's onto us. Daniel sensed one of their vehicles while he
was out patrolling. He's out there now with Violet, trying to find
out what we're up against."

Before I
could open my mouth, the others came running upstairs. "We got five
or six foot soldiers at the most," Violet said.

"Does the
Sunreaver squad mean anything to you?" Daniel asked, looking over
at me.

The world
appeared to come to a stop. A lump formed in my throat.
"Sunreaver?"

"Yeah.
That's what I overheard one of them say."

"Second
or Third Sunreavers?"

Daniel
shrugged. "Sorry, I didn't find out. Why?"

"The
Sunreaver squads are made up entirely of Daeva. My squad was the
Third Sunreavers. Ash was our captain."

"Shit,"
Nate cursed. "You think he's here?"

"It's
possible."

"Look,"
said Violet. "If we stay here, they'll find us and we'll have no
choice but to fight. I'm sure you don't want that. The weather's on
our side with all this fog. If we leave now, they'll never know we
were here."

"That's
not entirely true," I said, shaking my head. "Ash is an empath. If
he's there, he can track us."

"Double
shit," Nate muttered.

"Then we
need to go now," Violet said. "Grab the stuff and let's go. Mik,
I'm sorry, but we need to retreat for now."

"And do
what?" asked Nate. "If the empath is with them, they'll just follow
us."

"Let me
talk to him. If I can explain, I know he'll understand. Maybe he'll
even come with us."

"Whoa,
slow down," said Sebastian. "We don't even know for sure if he's
with them. For now, let's get out of here."

"Sebastian's right," said Daniel. "We need to move somewhere
safe, until we can figure out our next move."

Everyone
else agreed, so, against what every fibre of my being was saying, I
conceded. Nate put his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the
eye. "You'll get your chance," he said. "But we need to know he's
here for sure first."

"Okay."
He was right. Safety had to come first, because what was the point
in explaining if we all ended up captured or dead? We grabbed the
luggage and headed outside, into a thick fog that lingered over the
ruins, making it impossible to see more than a few metres in front
of us. We trusted Daniel's nose and ears to lead us away from any
potential danger. As we approached the edge of the ruins, the fog
began to grow thicker, and colder. A violent shiver ran down my
spine.

"Ice
fog," said Sebastian.

It was
then I knew Ash was there. "Ash can control ice too."

"And with
all this water in the air..." Violet said.

"Two
abilities?" Nate said. "Lucky git. So what now?"

The
others were discussing what to do next, their eyes and ears focused
on each other, and not on me. I took a step back, then another. The
fog was beginning to obscure them from view when Violet's head shot
up, her eyes fixing on me. She started to move when Nate's arm
blocked her.

"Thank
you," I mouthed, and he nodded. I turned and ran back into the
ruins. This could be my only chance, I thought. This was something
I had to do. What I had forgotten was that I could hardly see a
thing. Finding Ash in the dense fog would be impossible. But then
an idea came to me. Ash would be as blind as the rest of us,
relying on his empathy to search for us.

With this
in mind I chose one of the larger buildings and hid inside, near an
open window on the second floor so I could watch the path below. I
dropped my shields, praying with every ounce of my being it would
be Ash who came looking. Lucas would be the worst possible match. I
wouldn't even see him coming. As for the others, I could always
paralyse them long enough to escape, and then we'd be back to
square one.

It only took a minute before I
saw someone walking slowly down the street to
wards
my hiding place. Their gun was aimed,
checking left and right. I could only see the outline, but I knew
it was him. The body was too short to be Brad, and too large to be
Lucas or Katiya. I pulled my shields tight around me and hid in the
next room, waiting for him to come. The sound of footsteps drew
closer, the floorboards of the stairs creaking underfoot, then
further away as he moved to the spot where I stood only moments
before.

"Ash." I
stepped out from behind the door. His body froze. Before I could
reach him he turned, throwing me up against the wall. His lips
pressed forcefully into mine, teeth grazing my lips. I pushed back
against him, my tongue searching for his. I tasted the salt on his
lips, a few tears beginning to roll down his cheeks.

"Mik. I
thought I'd never see you again."

"Me too."
My eyes widened as he began to reach for his headset. "Don't!" I
said, grabbing his hand.

"What?
Why?" Ash said, startled. "We came to take you home."

"I can't
go back there."

"What are
you saying?" he asked, the confusion written clearly across his
face.

"It was
General Marsten. He led me away from Boursac so he could get rid of
me. He said something about protecting the secrets of the
Daeva."

Ash was
shaking his head.

"It's
true," I said. "Think about it. I was starting to get suspicious,
so he made sure I couldn't find out what the secret was, for good.
He left me unconscious, probably hoping a vampire would find
me."

"No. No,"
Ash muttered. He cupped my face in his hands. "General Marsten came
back all bloodied and beaten up. He told us a group of Renfields
ambushed you both and carried you off. A vampire must have
brainwashed you. Come on, Mik. Think! What really
happened?"

He was
rationalising. I should have known it would be difficult for him to
accept the truth, but I hoped he would believe me. Of all people, I
thought he would.

"Let's go
home," he said. "We can be together again. Don't you want
that?"

"You know
I do."

"Then
come. We'll find the vampire and kill it. Then this'll all be over.
You'll see."

"Ash, no.
Listen to me. The Silver Dawn has been lying to us all the time.
They've kept things from us, and they're trying to cover them up.
I'm not the first person they've made disappear to keep their
secrets hidden. If I go back, they'll kill me."

Ash was
still shaking his head. "That's just what the vampire wants you to
believe. I'd never let anyone hurt you. You know that, right?" I
nodded. He reached out to take my hand in his. "So trust me.
Everyone misses you. We just want you to come back home
safe."

"No.
You're not listening. They will kill me. I'm sorry, Ash. I can't go
back. But there's another way, if you'll just trust me."

"And what
way would that be?"

"Come
with me. Leave Rachat and help me find out the truth. We could be
together. We could–"

Ash
dropped my hands. "What have they done to you, Mik? You're asking
me to betray everyone I know. My friends. My family. Can't you see?
This isn't you talking."

"Yes, it
is. I'm not the one that's been brainwashed here. You are! You and
everyone else in the city. Ash, I'm not going back there, and
that's final. Please, I want you to come with me. I need
you."

For a
moment, he said nothing. I thought maybe he was actually
considering my proposal, until I felt the cold in my toes. I tried
to lift my legs, but it was already too late.

"Ash,
no!"

"I know
this isn't your fault, Mik. That's why I want you to know I'm
sorry. You're coming back with us. We'll fix you, somehow. I
promise. And then we can go back to how things were."

"Don't do
this." I pulled harder, trying to free myself from his icy
clutches. There was a noise behind me, followed by the roaring of
flames. They rushed across the floor, melting the ice that bound
me. A wall of fire rose between us.

"He's not
gonna listen," Nate said. "We need to go."

"No!" I
pulled against him. "You said you'd never leave me," I
shouted.

Ash
collapsed to the ground, hunched over. His head shot up at hearing
my words. "You're the one leaving, Mik, not me."

Ice began
to creep across the walls and ceiling. The flames rose higher,
cutting us off completely. Nate was still trying to drag me away
when Daniel appeared.

"Grab him
and let's go," Nate shouted over the blaze. Daniel lifted me up,
carrying me under one arm. I began to scream Ash's name, until
Daniel's hand was smothering my mouth. I kicked and wriggled, but
his arm held me tight as he ran through the fog, with Nate
following close behind. Eventually I gave up fighting, and all that
was left was despair.

We caught
up with Sebastian and Violet, who were waiting with the luggage.
Violet opened her mouth, but Nate shook his head. Whatever
questions she was about to ask stopped there. I sank to the floor,
feeling the pressure start to build behind my eyes. Why did this
always happen to me? No matter what happened, there was always one
constant in my life. Everyone leaves me.

"We need
to move now," said Nate. "I don't know how long my fires will hold
the empath back."

I glared
at Nate, remembering the sight of Ash surrounded by flames. If I
ever found out Ash had been hurt, I wouldn't be held responsible
for my actions. The anger helped fight back the tears, but now I
felt drained. Lifeless.

Daniel
carried me on his back as we set off once more. A few tears soaked
into the rough fabric of his jacket. He whispered to me along the
way, telling me everything would be all right in the end. I didn't
believe him. I'd had my chance, and I blew it.

*****

I must
have fallen asleep without realising, because the next thing I
remember I was laid next to a small campfire, and the sun was
beginning to set. My head rested on something soft, and it took a
moment for me to realise it was Nate's lap. I sat up and he handed
me a warm drink. I'm not sure what was in the cup because I never
drank it. I sat there, absently holding the hot cup that made my
fingers tingle. My body and mind felt numb, and I was glad of it. I
couldn't bear to go through the pain of being abandoned again, and
by the one person I believed would stay with me. Maybe it had been
foolish of me to ever get my hopes up. I should have listened to my
instincts from the start.

"What are
you thinking?" Nate asked.

"That
there's no point any more. I don't know why I even try. Maybe
things would be better if I just–"

"Just
what? I swear, if you're even thinking about what I think you
are..." Nate paused, his hands gripping my shoulders. "Don't give
up. There's still hope."

I looked
blankly into his eyes. "No, there isn't."

"Yes,
there is. All that's standing between the two of you is the Silver
Dawn. Once we get rid of them, and have our revenge, you'll be free
to be with him again. Do it for Ash, and me. We'll make them pay
for using us."

In the
darkness that was my soul at that point in time, there awoke a
small flicker of light. No, not light. Fire. It burned within me,
reigniting my purpose. The Silver Dawn was going down, even if I
had to remove every last one of them myself.

We set
off for Aldar, the hidden city, later that evening. We passed
through hills and woods, stopping only once when Daniel picked up
on the scent of a herd of deer, and demanded we stop to eat. Who
knows how long it might have been before we ran into any more? I
volunteered to help with the hunting, partly because I wanted
something to distract my mind, but also because I had questions I
wouldn't feel comfortable asking around Violet and Sebastian.
Daniel led me through the trees, which were dead for the winter in
this part of the woods. He stopped to sniff the air several times
along the way.

Eventually we came upon a group of deer, grazing on small
patches of grass and weeds. Crouching low to the ground, we moved
as close as possible without disturbing them. I was focused
entirely on the deer, when I took another step forward. The
snapping of a twig beneath my boot seemed almost deafening, and the
deers' heads shot up, looking in my direction. Daniel grumbled
something under his breath and leaped out at one of the larger
females. The deer made a run for it, but with his speed he managed
to catch it off guard and wrestle it to the ground. The animal
bleated, its cries raking against my soul as Daniel pulled out a
knife, and drew it across the throat. Blood poured out, gushing
over the dried dirt and frozen leaves.

Daniel
released his grip, letting his catch slump to the ground. He took
the rope that was slung over his shoulder and secured it around the
deer's hind legs before throwing the other end over what he deemed
to be a sturdy enough branch. He pulled on the rope, hoisting the
deer into the air, and with a little help, tied off the rope around
the tree trunk.