The Keepers Book Two of the Holding Kate Series (15 page)

“Do you remember the time Ash and Jose had a contest to see who could cut the tree down the fastest?” She touched my arm, eyes shining with laughter.

“Oh, yeah. The raccoon family!” I snorted.

Kate dropped my hand and leaned into Trip. “Come on Trip, the old fogies are reminiscing again. I’ll race you to that cliff face, see it?” She pointed.

Trip tossed his sword and scabbard to Tara and she slung it over her shoulder. “On the count of three. One, two...” Trip took off running.

“Cheater!” Kate called after him and sprinted away.

Tara and I laughed.

“It’s good to see Kate somewhat recovered from her grief.” Tara found a clump of tender shoots that were sturdy, but thin and cut two of them.

I watched Kate disappear into the forest.

“These will make awesome spears!” Tara began sharpening the end of one and tossed me the other.

With a tiny pocketknife and my short sword, we whittled the saplings into sharp spears within a few minutes. “We have spears back at the campsite, Tara. Why exactly are we—”

A blood-curdling scream interrupted me.

“Kate!”

We tore into the direction of the scream but slid to a stop after a moment to listen. The yelp of an animal came from slightly to the right, so we adjusted our course and ran as fast as we could, cutting in and around tree trunks. The cliff face loomed ahead of us through a break in the trees.

Tara and I stepped out of the bracken just in time to catch a sight that punched through my gut and liquefied my insides.

QUANTUM PERSPECTIVE SOURCE (QPS): TRIP CARSON

Trip slammed his fist into the maw of the demonic jackal, and it staggered back. The bash gave Trip a satisfying jolt. He smirked. The beast shook his head, streaming splatters of blood onto the boulder beside him. He peered down his snout and snarled, shifting his feet to pounce.

Trip shoved Kate behind him. “Get back.”

The jackal launched toward Trip’s neck, and he swung his fist, connecting to the mangy skull with a crack. The beast yelped and flopped to the ground as Trip closed in on him and smashed his head with a rock. His body convulsed and then stilled as his last breath rasped out.

Trip turned to see Kate crumpled on the ground, her expression wild, tears streaming through the dirt on her cheeks.

“Trip,” a fragile whisper rasped as Kate’s whole body shook with tremors.

Trip’s heart lurched in his chest. So frail. So delicate. Every protective instinct in him swelled, and he rushed to her and took her into his arms.

“Katie girl, steady there, it’s over. It’s dead.” She clung to him. Vulnerability shifted to overwhelming need as she trembled. Staggered by the intensity of her emotions, he tightened his hold.

He could face giants, dragons, ferocious beasts and armies, but this one small girl had a power over him that he could not overcome. She lifted her eyes to his, and with trembling hands touched his face, his shoulders, his arms, taking inventory of any injuries.

Soft and delicate, her body leaned against his sturdy frame. The familiar intensity spiked between them and the air grew thick. Trip, inescapably drawn by her need of him, stared into her tender gaze. Powerful emotion erupted in his chest.

She was not his. He was not hers, but they were connected by a cord that could not be severed. He leaned toward her and she closed the distance and their lips met. Immediately fire sparked and they were kissing like they hadn’t since the night of the tornados. Unreservedly, Trip kissed Kate with all of the pent up passion that he had subdued.

She responded with fire and strength. In his arms, where she truly belonged, Trip sensed her surrender to her need. She pressed her body close and latched onto him with vigor.

“Trip!” A familiar voice called. Kate and Trip fractured apart, snapping their heads around.

Tara and Corey stepped through a hedge, their faces drawn tight in pain and horror. Guilt flashed through Trip as he took in Tara’s broken expression and Corey’s unfathomable sadness as he gazed at Kate.

Trip started to move toward Tara, but she held up her hand. “Don’t move!” He froze in his tracks. Her palm shifted, and she pointed over his shoulder.

Kate and Trip slowly turned to look behind them, and the sight melted all emotion into one tangible feeling.

Fear.

Hundreds of demonic jackals lined the ridge and boulders, their fangs bared and their haunches raised. As one they lowered into attack poses for a split second, and then a massive wall of matted fur and dripping fangs flew toward them.

Trip jumped in front of Kate pushing her behind him. In one swift motion Tara tossed him a spear and snatched another over her head as she leaped to Trip’s side. With her empty hand she arrowed the pocket knife into the eye of the lead jackal, and then whipped out her sword. Shoulder to shoulder in specific synchronized harmony, they battled, slicing and jabbing, killing with every stroke.

Corey ran to Kate’s side, snatched up a branch and pressed it into her hands. He drew his short sword and cut a swathe through the demonic jackals as they encircled the quartet.

“There are too many of them!” he shouted. “Kate, on your right!”

Trip heard snarling on his left. He ripped the spear out of the eye socket of the demon-dog he fought and whipped the butt end around in time to cut off the advance of the pack to Kate’s right. Out of the corner of his vision, he saw her clubbing everything she could.

“Trip!” Tara screamed, but too late. Two huge hairy beasts were on him, one at his throat, the other clamped his teeth around his wrist. Blood spurted across his chest and the smell and taste of blood seemed to drive the dogs insane. They converged on him.

He refused to go down and used the body of the one clamped on his wrist to beat off three others. He jerked his spear up to guard his throat. A lunging jackal caught it between his teeth, shaking his head back and forth. Trip swung the dog on his wrist into the point of the spear. The beast yelped, let go, and crumpled to the ground. Before he could wrestle the spear loose another demon-dog flew at Trip from the ledge above and clawed into his back.

A whoosh of air pelted him. He heard a thump, then a yelp, and whirled to see Kate’s fierce expression as she beat the dog’s skull in with her club. Corey waged mayhem on the other side of her, fighting to protect her back. Trip smirked, impressed. The dude had skills.

Tara lodged her spear into the throat of a jackal and took the split second to toss Trip his sword. Then they stepped back into their familiar rhythm, slicing and maiming anything that came near.

“We’re drifting!” she shouted. “Back to Kate!”

They moved in orchestrated rhythm until they were back in front of Kate, who fought wildly, dark hair fanning around her.

Corey, fending off a group of three jackals, allowed a huge gap to emerge between him and Kate. Trip moved to close it when Tara cursed.

He snapped around. Her spear had snapped off in the mouth of one enemy. Another had latched onto her leg while a third snapped at the jagged stick remaining of her spear. The demonic prey, latched to her elbow, hampered her sword arm.

Trip killed the one on her leg and kicked the teeth in of another in one fell motion. Tara flipped the butt end of her spear over and jammed it into the eye socket of the third, then smashed her fist into the one on her elbow.

A scream pierced Trip’s soul and he jerked around to see Kate being dragged into the forest. A jackal, jaws clamped down on her shoulder, hauled her away. The others stopped their attack and created a wall between the three warriors and Kate as they backed into the forest.

“Kate!” Corey bellowed and started after her.

Tara grabbed him. “Wait.”

Trip launched his spear into the heart of the dog that dragged Kate. He fell over with his jaw still clamped to her shoulder. Another one grabbed her by the other shoulder, shook her loose, and wrestled her away. She screamed in agony as blood poured from both shoulder wounds.

Corey shook loose of Tara and plunged into the mass of matted fur and snapping jaws, swiping and killing with every stroke. Tara wrenched both pieces of her spear out of the dead jackals and launched them into the broiling mass. Then she jumped in after him with sword flashing and slinging blood.

Trip snapped attention to the ledge above. It ran along the trail that they were dragging Kate. In three leaps he climbed to the top, and ran along the ridge keeping her in sight. Like a rag doll, limp and lifeless, Kate bobbled as the hound dragged her across the terrain.

From his height, he could see the jackal angle toward a black lake and had no way to escape. The ridge pierced the surface of the water. Trip smirked, the jackal wedged himself into a corner. The tar black ooze of the muddy sludge would trap him against the ridge and Trip could take him there. He pumped his legs, racing to overtake them.

The remainder of the pack had stayed back to deal with Corey and Tara, so it would be Trip and this one hound, no contest.

He dragged Kate to the edge of the tar pit and his back legs broke the surface. Trip smiled
. You are trapped now, mutt.
Trip ran to the precipice and prepared to launch himself at the jackal since he was trapped by the ridge wall on one side and the black tar pit on the other. But Trip stumbled when the dog slipped into the tar pit, anchoring Kate to sink to the bottom.

Trip couldn’t believe his eyes! He jumped to the shore and skidded to a stop at the edge of the lake. Paw prints and body drag marks went right into the black ooze. Dirt floated on the foul surface where they had entered.

He dove, feet first, into the black viscous fluid and immediately sank. He felt around to see if he could strike against Kate’s body but there was nothing. The weight of the sludge began to press him further down.
How deep is this thing
? He struggled to get back to the surface. Kicking and clawing through the muck with all his might, Trip fought to reach air. Just when it seemed he would run out of energy and breath, his hand scraped against the side of the bank and he heaved himself up and over the edge. He collapsed onto the dirt and wiped the foul muck from his face and sucked in air.

Kate! Gone! God, no!

QUANTUM PERSPECTIVE SOURCE (QPS): COREY CHASTAIN

I heard Kate scream and jerked around to see one of the huge jackals dragging her away. Trip killed the beast with his spear, but another foul monster jumped into his place and dragged her into the bracken.

I went insane.

I plunged into the wall of shrubs and began hacking at anything with fur. I tried to see where the one had taken Kate, but the wall of pelt surrounding me demanded my sole focus. Tara fought nearby, and I assumed Trip was near too, but didn’t have time to confirm that assumption. I fought for my life. Twenty jackals fixed their attack on me. Tara screamed and my sword became a flashing weapon of justice, showing no mercy. Twelve demon jackals took turns finding some of my flesh to rip away. I swung my sword over and over killing with each stroke until my arm wouldn’t lift anymore.

Then suddenly, the whole pack broke the attack and backed away. I ran to the place I had heard Tara screaming and saw her lying in the dirt and a pool of blood under her leg. Some vital artery had been severed. Blood soaked the sandy ground and began to puddle. I had to staunch the bleeding immediately. I ripped off the sleeve of my jacket and pressed it over the wound.