Saven Disclosure (The Saven Series Book 2) (42 page)

Some people take off running, though most are transfixed, staring at the mindboggling view above.

Blaring music streams from the spacecraft, and Jarod and I exchange WTF looks as the strains of REM’s
It’s the end of the world as we know it
reaches our ears. If this is Dante’s idea of a joke, then he’s more of a sick, depraved bastard than I thought. A memory of Will Smith as Captain Hiller in
Independence Day
springs forth. I can picture the scene in my mind—the exact one that was the backdrop to this song. How I wish he were here today, a bundle of hyperactive excitement, chomping at the bit to whoop ET’s ass.

Darting silver shapes spill out of the ships at enormous speed, like giant metal birds. Hundreds hurtle through the skies, dipping and diving, soaring and maneuvering. The crowd is moved to action below. Panicked screams and shouts can be heard as they flee in all directions. The destroyer spacecraft come closer and open fire, shooting strips of blue lasers indiscriminately. Buildings explode, sending massive fireballs soaring into the sky, as they crumble into mounted piles of broken stone, concrete, glass, and mirror. Heavy dust clouds make visibility poor.

I’m frozen stiff as I survey the horrific scenes outside. People evaporate into thin air the minute the laser beam touches their skin. Others are flattened by falling wreckage. Some emerge from the dense smog coated in ash and debris, blood streaking their faces, clothes torn, and missing footwear as they try to stagger away.

A spacecraft lowers into our block, and Jarod and I meet eyes in shared understanding. We’re darting for the door when Logan materializes in front of us. “Quick, both of you,” he says, arms outstretched.

We teleport to a small military hangar in the middle of nowhere. It’s a high-ceilinged steel-constructed warehouse. A supply of military planes and other unidentifiable aircraft surround the large sleek spacecraft over on the far side of the hangar. Miles and miles of barren, sandy terrain stretch out in front of the warehouse. Logan grips my hand and starts walking. “Wait,” Jarod implores. “I need to get back to my apartment. I need my technical equipment.”

“That’s way too risky,” Logan says, shaking his head as he propels me forward.

“Just get me home, and I’ll take it from there,” Jarod pleads.

I want to tell Logan to stop. That Jarod is going to look for Ella, but I can’t be that selfish. I can’t ask Jarod to head back into that. He could easily get killed. Besides, I can’t tell Logan the reasons why it’s so urgent now, because he can’t know what the VP has asked of me. The responsibility he shoulders is too onerous as it is.

My limbs ache, heavy with pressure, lined with the weight of my decision. The VP is forcing me to pick a side, and I guess I’ve just chosen. Except the choice isn’t simply the sister I cherish or the boy I love. It’s personal sacrifice versus the fate of the world. I know what Ella would say: That I have to think of the bigger picture. And if the choice were offered to her, she wouldn’t hesitate.

Tears threaten to put in a performance, but I swipe them away before either boy notices.

My heart is a corrosive lump in my chest, and I falter, trying hard to resist Logan’s indomitable allure.
No. I can’t do this.
I need to go back for my sister.
It’s my fault that she’s in this predicament. I have to try to save her. “Logan, stop. Wait.” I tug on his hand, trying to pry myself free.

He turns and looks at me, frowning. “I can’t g—”

“No.” Jarod levels me with a ferocious look. “
I’m
doing this. You are getting on that Goddamned spaceship.” He stabs the air with his finger. “I’m the only one who can do this. You’ll be more of a hindrance than a help. Go with him,
please
. I’ll find her. I promise.”

That sounds familiar. The penny drops with Logan and his face softens. “Ella.” I nod.

“Can you teleport me or not?” Jarod demands, slanting an “I’m not to be messed with” look his way.

Logan scrutinizes both of us. “I’ll have Rylan bring you. I need to get the engine started. Ships are moving in over various states, and we only have a short window to flee.” Rylan emerges from the craft, walking in quick, long strides toward us.

“Here,” Logan says, removing a small black pouch from his back pocket. “This should come in handy. The circular discs are powerful bombs. Moisten the underside to activate, and you have thirty seconds to get the hell away. The vials are sleep smoke. Throw one and it’s enough to cover a two-mile radius. Ensure you have the silver rod between your teeth or you’ll black out too. Good luck.”

Jarod takes the pouch. “You too.” He turns to me, yanking me forward. “Look after yourself, and I’ll see you soon. Don’t worry, I’ll find her, or die trying.”

I almost choke on my fear as I cling onto my best friend. “If you get yourself killed, I’ll personally track you down in the next life and make you pay,” I threaten. Jarod nods with a weak smile, and then he calmly hands me over to Logan before walking to Rylan’s side. They are gone in a flash.

Logan hands me a tissue as we dash across the warehouse.
“He’s a born survivor, Sadie. He’ll be okay. And if anyone can find your sister it’s him.”

I sniffle. “
I know. But I feel so guilty that I’m leaving her behind.”

He stops dead in his tracks. “
Please don’t do that. I know I only met her one time, but it was enough to see the love shining in her eyes. She wouldn’t want you risking your life to save hers.”

Neve sprints out of the ship as we approach, pulling me away from Logan and up into the cabin. Logan strides confidently into the ship, tossing Haydn a wordless command as he passes. Haydn acknowledges me with a cautious look before he gets up, following Logan into the cockpit. Rylan pops into the cabin with Fern and Alex. Neve visibly relaxes in her seat. Logan looks back, pursing his lips at the new arrivals. “They’re safer with us than out there,” Rylan offers by way of explanation.

“Good call,” is all Logan says as he refocuses on powering up the craft.

A few minutes later and we’re soaring swiftly through the sky, up beyond the clouds, out through Earth’s atmosphere and into the strangely comforting blackness of outer space.

It’s quiet up here. Too quiet. There’s more than enough time to chastise myself for my selfish decisions. I’ve left my sister and my best friend behind, abandoned New York to its fate. I know what we’re doing is important, and if Logan succeeds, we can call a halt to the attack, but those thoughts do nothing to appease my conscience.

I feel like the biggest coward in the world.

The worst sister in all of mankind’s existence.

Logan emerges from the cockpit. “Everyone okay?” Several heads bob up and down, but no one speaks. It seems I’m not the only one struggling to deal with recent events. “Rylan, can you disable the hyperdrive ID now?”

“Of course.” He scrambles up, unearthing a wide bronze box from an overhead press.

“Can I talk to you for a few minutes? There’s something I need to ask you.” He extends his hand, and I let him pull me up.

“Sure.”

Haydn shoots a curious look our way as we step out into the narrow corridor. Logan leads me to a small bedroom on the farthest side of the ship. “I need a hug, first,” he says, hurling himself on the bed. He stretches out fully and widens his arms. I crawl into his embrace, craving the feel of his arms around me. His lips nuzzle my hair. “That was some heavy stuff back there. Are you okay?”

“Are you?” I deflect the question back at him as I angle my head so I’m looking directly into his eyes.

He moves me over onto my side, both our heads resting on pillows, as we face each other. “I’m not okay with any of it, but we are doing the right thing. We had no choice but to leave. I know you’re worried, and you feel guilty, but this is the best course of action. The Saven loyal to me are already working with your government, and Dante’s attack confirms my initial suspicions. That was a soft approach. He wants to terrorize humans into submission, but he won’t risk too much destruction, or risk too many lives. I wouldn’t be surprised it the attack has already ceased.”

If that’s a soft approach, I’d hate to see the alternative.

“Can I ask you a question,” he asks, threading his fingers through my hair.

“You can ask me anything.” I close my eyes and savor the wonderful sensations coursing through my body at his touch. Logan has always been my ideal kind of distraction.

“Did you ever seriously wonder why or how your appearance changed?”

My eyes flash open, and his fingers pause in my hair. “Not really, no,” I admit truthfully. During difficult periods at home, I actually rejoiced in the fact that I looked nothing like my family anymore, using it to distance myself further. “Why do you ask?”

He sweeps his lips against my crumpled brow, removing the edge of my apprehension. “When I first saw you—besides noticing how stunningly gorgeous you were—I thought your look was a little … recognizable.” His statement triggers an instant reaction as my cheeks burst cherry red, virtually matching my lips. He cups my face and kisses me gently. His shirt bunches in my hand as I lure him closer. Clamping my mouth on his, I deepen the kiss, wanting so badly to lose myself in the taste and feel of him. I want to forget everything else, if only for a few minutes.

His tongue flicks against mine and an involuntary moan sneaks out through my lips. He pulls back, eyes sparkling with burning desire. Every part of me is super-charged with alarming need. “You. Are. Too. Distracting. By. Far.” He peppers my lips with barely there kisses in between each distinct word. Lust writhes in my chest, demanding attention. He sits up, and I collapse spread-eagled on the bed. He chuckles as he trails the tip of one finger up and down my arm. It truly feels like I’m in heaven.

When he rips his finger away, I emit a lonely, frustrated sigh. This time he pointedly clears this throat. Comprehending the signal, I shove all lustful thoughts aside and pull up into a cross-legged position. “It seems I’m not the only one who had the same thought,” he says, totally serious again. “It’s what lay behind my father’s reluctance to approve you as my Eterno and his demands for those tests. What’s been behind Win’s distrust of you. I wasn’t convinced. Not until we were in Rindyar, and Dr. Zuma ratified it. I guessed there had to be an underlying explanation for the Eterno connection, but the discovery still blew me away. There’s no easy way of saying this, Sadie, but …”

My mind empties as all my senses go numb. I think Logan’s mouth is moving, but I can’t hear anything over the cognizant whispering in my ear.
“Now! Fulfill your legacy! Do it! Now!”
A heavy glaze spreads over my eyes, altering my vision. The world presents in a multitude of different shades of pink. The chanting in my head grows louder and more insistent. I try to expel it as tiny pinpricks poke holes in my brain. I open my mouth to scream but nothing comes out. A torrent of hot, molten liquid spreads rapidly throughout my body, rendering tissues and muscles with concentrated force and strength. I twitch violently as the strange sensation consumes me. It creeps over every inch of my body, hardening tendons and ligaments, infusing my limbs with astounding power. My fingers flex at my side as I spring up.

Holy hell.

Logan looks at me as if I’m a complete stranger, his face a frozen mask of horror.

A woman’s determined face and controlling voice sneaks through every part of me, occupying and seizing, eradicating my independence and my ability to think and act for myself.
It’s her!
That’s the last conscious thought I have before she completely hijacks my mind.

Logan seizes my shoulders as I stare at him, watching as his eyes grow steadily wider in alarm.

“Sadie. Talk to me. What’s happening?”
His question is a distant echo in my head, like words murmured in a dream or a long-lost memory hidden in the very depths of my mind, barely registering, just out of my reach.

I’m completely powerless to stop what happens next.

“Logan,” I purr, in a voice that barely sounds like my own, pushing him forcefully back on the bed. I crawl up his body, straddling him. His mouth is working overtime again, and I attempt to break free of the haze obscuring my mind.

But I hear nothing. See nothing.

There is only my mission. Only ever my mission.

I was created for this. This is my destiny.

I’m going to kill him.

Logan must die.

My hands encircle his neck, and I squeeze, tighter and tighter, feeling the pulsing thrum of his blood shuddering under my fingertips. I snicker as I squeeze again. His hands frantically grip my wrists, tugging to no avail. Power ripples down my arms, supercharging my muscles, and I moan at the exquisiteness of the sensation. Angling my head, I stare into his inflamed terror-struck eyes, while he bucks and thrashes underneath me, trying to flip me off.

I am invincible
.

My hands tighten.

Nothing can stop me
.

I dig my nails into his neck as I increase the pressure.

I will destroy him.

He gasps for air, and I smile wickedly.

Then I’ll exact my revenge on the rest of the Saven.

Logan rears up suddenly, his skull smashing into my forehead, sending me flying off the bed. I slam into the dresser, my forehead impaling the curved joint of the unit. The door crashes open, and Haydn appears in the frame. Whipping my arm up, I blast a steady stream of fire from my hand, forcing him back. Terrorized female screams prick my ears, and I cackle as I stalk to the door and bang it shut. Red strips of light rip from my eyes, sealing the door shut. It rattles as the others attempt to force their way in.

They are wasting their time.

He is mine.

I spin around, piercing Logan with a vengeful look. Blood drips down my face as I lurk toward him with murderous intent. He’s clutching his head in his hands as he eyes me warily.

No!

“Sadie, please. I know this isn’t you.”

“I’m not the same Sadie,” I croon, cocking my head to the side. “She was weak, but I am strong. Stronger than all of them. Stronger than you.” I wink at him as I take a step closer.