Hunted (13 page)

Will shook his head, a slight movement that tightened his jaw. “No…”

“Why? Because of
her?
Well, lucky for me you’re really not in much shape to argue. I’m taking you anyway.”

“No...” Will panted, his eyes wide and pleading.

“Will, please.” Emma begged through her tears. “
Please
.”

“Fuck this, I’m getting my car.” James stormed out of the room.

Will’s hand gripped her arm, his fingers digging deep and his eye desperate. “Emma.
No
.”

Panic bombarded her limited control. She forced herself to take a breath. “Will, you’re going to die. I need you. You can’t die on me.”

His body shook with his uneven breaths and his face looked more gray than before.

“I found a couple of fake IDs in the bottom of the bag. James can check you in under one of those names.” Her voice shook, revealing her hysteria.

He closed his eyes. “I... can’t… leave you,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Don’t be stupid, Will. If you stay here, you’ll leave me anyway because you’ll be
dead
.” Her words were harsh, but the reality was harsh.
Will dead
. She lost Jake. She couldn’t lose Will too. Her shoulders shook with suppressed sobs.

Other than Jake, he was the only good thing she had in her miserable existence. She might not deserve him, but she refused to lose him this way. The pendant in her skirt pocket burned fiery hot against her leg and she pulled it out, amazed to see it glowing in her hand. Raphael’s words came back to her.

Emma, you can help him. You have power that you don’t even realize. Find your power and you can heal him. Use the pendant
.

Raphael had told her she could save Will. Was it possible? What if it was a trick?

The pendant glowed a brilliant red in her hand, brighter and hotter yet not burning her palm. She had nothing to lose by trying, but she didn’t know how what to do. She gripped the stone tight in her fist.

Heal him
.

Will’s breath gurgled and his hand on her arm grew limp.

Hysteria swept through her mind, stripping away all reason. Then anger replaced it, searing with an intensity that rivaled the stone in her hand. I can’t lose him. A blaze filled her chest, electricity rushing behind it. She gasped in surprise.

Will turned his head toward her, eyes wide.

The fire and electricity built into a raging inferno until she felt herself burning on the inside. The power was going to kill her. She reached out her free hand to Will’s side, his abdomen jerking as he fought for breath.

She concentrated on his breathing. “Heal him.”

Electricity burst from its dam and raced through her arms and legs, through her left hand into Will’s side. His body jerked in response and his wheezing stopped.

She snatched back her hand, leaving a red mark on his chest.
Oh my God, I killed him
. The room spun and blackness closed in around her.

***

“Emma,” someone said her name softly. “Emma.” It grew louder and more insistent.

It was Will’s voice, but it sounded so far away. She stirred, her eyes fluttering open in her confusion. Will leaned over her, his grim expression relaxing as he studied her face.

“Thank God. You scared the hell out of me.”

“Are we dead?” she whispered.

He cupped her cheek. “No, far from it. You healed me, but you nearly killed yourself in the process.”

She remembered the electricity coursing through her body. Into him. “I thought I killed you.”

His face softened and his eyes filled with love. “No, Princess. You saved me.”

She sat up and pain ricocheted throughout her head. “Oh.”

Will wrapped an arm around her back. “Are you okay?”

“I just need a minute. I feel like I have a massive hangover.” Her tongue lay thick in her mouth and her head throbbed.

“Emma.” He gently lifted her chin, searching her eyes. “What did you do?”

She stared at him in confusion.

“Do you remember what happened?”

“I thought it was a dream,” she whispered.

“It wasn’t a dream. What do you remember?”

She closed her eyes. “My head... just give me a moment.”

Will handed her the water from the nightstand.

She took a sip and handed it back. “Seriously, Will. What are you doing out of bed? James is going to kill me. Where is he, anyway? He was supposed to be getting the car to take you to the hospital.”

“James walked in and saw what you did. Once he realized I was okay, he left. What you did completely freaked him out. What
did
you do?”

She told him what happened, and shook her head in disbelief. “I was sure it was a dream but it seemed so real. Like my other one.” Her body tensed at her mistake.

“What other one?”

She ignored his question. “It really happened? You don’t have any pain?”

“Yes, it really happened. You healed me.” Will looked down at her trembling hands. “Emma when was the last time you ate?”

“I don’t know… dinner before you got attacked?”

“That was over twenty-four hours ago.”

“You haven’t eaten either.”

“Yeah, but I was unconscious a good portion of it. I’m going to get you something to eat. I’ll be right back.”

Emma watched Will leave, the room spinning. Did she really heal him? That was impossible.
Impossible
. Yet, so many crazy things had happened over the last month, it was conceivable. And undeniable.

But why now? The obvious answer was the pendant. Jake said Will made everything change and while he started it all, the pendant continued the evolution. The Vinco Potentia thought her only purpose was to have the baby, but Will always insisted there had to be more. Even Raphael said she had powers.

Raphael
. Just thinking of him made her stomach twist with dread, but if she was honest with herself, something else happened inside her too, adding to her growing anxiety.

Will handed her a sandwich. “Emma, eat this.”

“I should be taking care of you, not the other way around,” she said, taking a bite.

“I’m telling you, other than feeling exhausted, I’m better. My broken ribs are gone.”

She looked up at him and shook her head. “How can that be possible?”

“I don’t know, but it’s true.”

They ate in silence until Will said, “Emma, what other dream? You said it happened in another dream.”

Stuffing the sandwich in her mouth, she chewed slowly, stalling. There was no way she could tell him, especially after her encounter with Raphael. She could try to change the subject again, but Will was smart; he’d figure out what she was doing, which would only make it worse. Maybe she could tell him part of it.

“I dreamed I had electricity flowing over my skin, just like I felt when I touched you.”

“And?”

“I was outside, in the woods. In front of a fire.”

“And?”

“I told you, I dreamed I had electricity covering my skin.”

“That’s it? What were you doing when this was happening?”

“I don’t know, Will, it was a friggin’ dream. Everything’s all weird and crazy in dreams.”

His eyes narrowed, but he didn’t say anything.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you. My head hurts and it’s making me cranky.” She reached out her hand and laid it on his arm. “I still can’t believe you’re okay.”

She scrutinized his face, noticing the cuts and swelling was better as well, his face covered with only mild bruising. Her fingers gently caressed his cheek as she searched his eyes. He sucked in his breath, covering her hand with his.

“How do you do that?” he whispered.

“What?” she asked, lost in his steady gaze.

“How do you drive me crazy with just a single touch?” Leaning down, Will brushed his lips on hers as he wrapped an arm around her. He pulled her tighter, deepening the kiss.

Emma braced her hands on his bare chest and pushed away. “Will, we can’t do this.”

“I’m sorry. I forgot about your headache.”

“No, it’s gone.” she said, surprised it was true. The pain in her head faded when she touched his cheek.”But you...”

Will kissed her again, more insistent and she sank into him, needing his reassurance. That he was here and she hadn’t lost him. “I’m fine so I don’t see a problem here.” He pulled off her t-shirt and tossed it to the floor as he gently pushed her down.

Would she ever get used to the way he looked at her, a mixture of adoration and hunger? “James will—”

“I don’t give a shit about James.” He growled, lowering his mouth to her breast.

She gasped and arched her back, her stomach tightening.

“You’re what I need, when will you realize that?” His eyes narrowed as they pierced hers. “You’re mine,” he said with a guttural sound.

Emma’s stomach dropped. Did he know about Raphael? Did he suspect? But his mouth and his hands assured her that she was his. She belonged with Will. He entered her possessively and she answered with a possessiveness of her own. She needed him, needed his claim to drive away her demons.

They lay together when they were done, Will’s arm tight around her waist, holding her close. She breathed in the scent of him, pushing away the memory of someone else.

***

Will held Emma’s naked body flush against his, marveling that she was his. Had he imagined the flicker of fear in her eyes when he told her that she belonged to him? He wondered again about the man who helped them and Emma’s reaction to him. He looked down at the profile of her face, lying against his chest. He pulled her closer, telling himself Emma was here with him.

He was being paranoid.

***

Jake lay on his bed with his eyes closed, but he wasn’t sleepy. His days were boring.

Even though Alex told him that he was going to find his mommy, he didn’t trust him. The man in his dreams had told him to trust no one. So he didn’t. But he was tired of waiting.

Mommy had called to him again in that afternoon. She felt so sad and hopeless that he almost talked to her. But he stopped in time. He didn’t want Alex to find her.

Jake buried his face into the dog that he had renamed Rusty and cried. He missed her so much that his stomach had a constant ache, like part of him was missing.

He fell asleep, his cheek pressed into the damp stuffed animal. Once the darkness enveloped his mind, he dreamed of her. But it wasn’t a real dream, it was like the dreams
he
showed Jake after Will showed up.

Mommy ran down a crowded street at night, wearing a blue skirt with tiny white flowers he’d never seen before. She never wore skirts unless they were part of her waitress uniform. She was so pretty and her hair was down, not in her usual ponytail. She stopped on the street corner next to him, looking over her shoulder. Her eyes were hard, the way she looked when the Bad Men showed up. She was so close he could hear her panting, close enough to touch. He wanted to hug her and tell her he loved her and how pretty she looked, but he knew she couldn’t hear him. His chest burned. He was this close yet not close enough.

She ran again and another man pulled her into the shadows and kissed her. Jake was confused. Where was Will? But Mommy held onto the man until she fell backward and the man held her arm.

The scene changed. Mommy stood in the woods. A fire lit her face, but something else shone in her eyes. Her face glowed, a golden light shining around her body. Her hands reached toward the fire. She was pretty in a white nightgown that fluttered in the wind, and her hair blew around her. A man appeared from the darkness in the trees. He crept behind her and kissed her neck. Someone else stood on the opposite side of the fire, watching. The shadows covered their face but the figure’s hands clenched at its sides.

Everything faded to black and Jake heard
his
voice. Finally. After all these weeks,
He
had come back.

“Jake, I’m so proud of you. You have been so patient, but you must be patient for a bit longer. Soon we will all be together.”

“Alex said that, too.”

“Yes, Alex wants your mommy to be his, but he is a bad, bad man. You saw that when you touched him, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” Jake whispered.

“You must not help him. Do you understand?”

“Yes, but I want my mommy.” Tears stung Jake’s eyes and burned his throat. “She keeps calling to me. Can I talk to her?”

“No, your mommy isn’t ready yet. First she has work to do and then you can see her. But I will give you a gift for being such a good boy.”

The darkness gave way to a bedroom he had never seen. Mommy wore a t-shirt and slept next to a man, curled up into his side. Jake released his breath, happy to see it was Will.

“Would you like to stay with your mommy tonight?” the voice asked.

Jake nodded, in awe that he stood next to her. He climbed onto the bed, pressing his tummy to her back. He breathed in the flowery scent of her shampoo as the warmth of her body seeped into his. Tears ran down his face and wet the sheet. This was only a dream, but it felt so real.

“Thank you,” he whispered, wrapping his arm around her stomach. He touched her belly, knowing a baby grew inside her. Would she love the baby more since he was gone? Would she love the baby more since Will was its daddy?

Even in her sleep, she sensed his arm and reached down, grabbing his hand in hers. He closed his eyes grateful that he could be with her, even if it was while she slept. Even if it was just a dream.

Jake fell asleep, wishing the morning would never come.

Chapter Eleven