Legend of Michael (31 page)

The two of them spoke, their voices low, too low for Michael and Sterling to make out what they were saying. Long minutes passed before Adam faded into the wind, the wolves howling with his departure.

Caleb turned and walked back to them, a grim expression on his face, a hard set to his jaw. He said nothing as he joined them, stepped between them, and lifted his hand to signal their departure. The three of them faded into the wind—the Renegades’ leader and his two most trusted soldiers.

Words were not necessary. Michael and Sterling knew all they had to know. The war had not ended. In fact, it may well have only just begun.

***

Hours after his promise to Caleb that he would destroy the Renegades, one by one, until his brother joined Zodius Nation, Adam sat at his coliseum table and waited for the main event to start. Ava sat by his side. Dr. Chin and Tad sat across from them.

“I’m so excited you’re here, Dr. Chin,” Ava said, rubbing her belly. “Now I know I will deliver a healthy baby.” She smiled at Tad. “And I have you to thank for bringing him to us.”

Tad inclined his head. “I am your loyal servant as always.” Ava beamed with delight, which pleased Adam. Ava’s happiness over Chin’s arrival had made any failure on Tad’s part easily overlooked. For now. So did the extra GTECH serum that Chin had brought with him from Powell’s lab, though it was still limited. Losing the immediate implementation of Red Dart had been disappointing, but they would eventually make it work.

“Perhaps your child,” Chin said, “will hold the secret to re-creating the serum.”

His child, Adam thought. Yes. His child was the future. There was greatness in the air tonight, Adam thought, as he lifted his glass to Chin and then to everyone at the table. “To the future of Zodius Nation.”

He knew that the Renegades believed they’d achieved a victory by destroying Red Dart, but they would soon discover they were mistaken. Adam’s plans to spread his Zodius movement had only just begun.

The weak would be destroyed, and Adam would lead a world like none anyone had ever imagined. A world free of divisions. One nation under his command. One
Zodius
Nation.

Epilogue

Cassandra stood inside the conference room staring at the many maps pegged with colored stick-pens only moments after her group of women, the “Wardens” as they’d begun calling themselves, wrapped up a meeting. Pride filled her that in only a month the Wardens had found a definite trend to the abductions. They had worked through Caleb to set up civilian and military alert systems to act on those trends, and they were only getting started.

Michael’s mother was here too, quickly becoming a part of the scientific team. Her father… well, he was missing. The government swore they hadn’t heard from him, but none of the Renegades were convinced that was true. She tried not to think about it. And the crystal—locked away somewhere rather than destroyed. Caleb wasn’t willing to relinquish a weapon that might one day be needed to save the world.

As for the effects of lifebonding, Cassandra had yet to develop any special gift, like Ava’s ability to brainwash others, but she would welcome any skill she could use to aid this war against Adam.

“I have something I want to show you,” Michael said, appearing in the doorway, his big body shrinking the small space. She inhaled at the sight of him, always amazed at how easily he impacted her senses every time she saw him. Surprised to find him without his army fatigues, he was dressed in faded jeans and a snug blue T-shirt that hugged his broad chest.

“You aren’t dressed for work,” she said.

“I took the afternoon off,” he said, holding out his hand.

A few minutes later, they were at the peak of a magnificent mountaintop at the edge of the Grand Canyon, a blanket beneath them and a picnic lunch that Emma had packed for them ready to enjoy. Cassandra looked out at the view with wonder, thrilled at the world that wind-walking was allowing her to enjoy.

“It’s magnificent,” she said, forgetting the war raging around them and embracing this moment with the man she loved. She laughed. “Somehow I doubt anyone but me would believe you would pack a picnic lunch.”

He didn’t laugh as she’d expected him to, and she did so love making him laugh. Instead, he eased her onto the blanket and leaned over her, raw emotion glistening in his eyes. “You have changed my life in ways I cannot ever explain.”

She touched his jaw, her heart squeezing with emotion. “As you have mine,” she promised.

He kissed her then, a gentle kiss that filled her with love. Michael made her whole.

Acknowledgments

There are so many people who helped me make this book and this series come to life. First and foremost, thank you to Deb Werksman and the entire Sourcebooks team for their enthusiastic support. It has shown in every step of the process from submission to print. Rachel Dawn Carrington and Cathryn Fox—you are great friends who make the twists and turns of publication a straighter path. Thank you to Janice for living the deadlines with me and reading my work over and over. You make it better. And finally, importantly, a special thank you to Donna Grant for the many special ways she helped this book make it to the shelves. You rock, that’s all there is to it.

About the Author

Award-winning author Lisa Renee Jones has published more than fifteen novels in several different languages, spanning multiple genres of romance: contemporary, romantic suspense, dark paranormal, and erotic fiction. Her awards include first place in the Romantic Times Aspiring Writers Contest 2003. Before becoming a writer, Lisa lived the life of a corporate executive. Her successful company LRJ Staffing Services was recognized by
Entrepreneur
magazine in 1998 as one of the top ten growing women-owned businesses. She often uses her sales and marketing background for consulting jobs within the publishing industry. She currently lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.