Reclamation (Book 3 The Ravening Series) (7 page)

Aiden's shoulder was warm beneath my head and his breathing was even when I woke later. I couldn't see him, but I knew that he was awake as he shifted against me. There was a tension in him that hadn't been there before I'd fallen asleep. "Beth..."

"I'm awake," I whispered so low that I was sure it was my breath he felt more than my words he heard.

He lifted his arm and pointed down the tunnel. My eyes narrowed as I strained to see. One of the changes Cade's blood had rendered in me was better eyesight, but sleep was still making my lids heavy as I tried to pick out whatever it was that had caught Aiden's attention.

Then something skittered from one side of the tunnel to the other. My breath froze; I bit my bottom lip as I lifted my pistol from my lap and adjusted my position. I was afraid if I moved too fast I would draw the attention of whatever was out there. A muted rattling noise rolled off the walls as something else skittered through the shadows. It sounded like hundreds of legs skittering over the walls but the concrete threw the noise off and caused it to echo.

Aiden's rifle was still against the wall but he was holding two pistols before him. His breathing was faint but rapid in the close confines. I couldn't move as another creature skittered forth. They were small ones; they had to be in order to make it into the tunnel. They would be easier to kill than the larger ones, but a horde of them would overpower us in an instant. I grabbed hold of Aiden's arm as the hair on the nape of my neck stood up and a cold sweat broke out on my body.

Amongst the shadows there was something hidden as it watched us, and I was gripped by the certainty that it was focused on the back of my neck.

Ever so slowly I tilted my head back. I could almost hear the world grinding to a halt as I fixated on the creature perched above us. Every horror movie I'd ever seen, and there had been many, flashed through my mind; not the horror movies that had a maniacal villain or ghost, or even the ones with aliens, but the movies that contained bugs and creatures far too awful to exist in this world.

A repugnant creature with spiderlike legs and a compact black body was perched above us. Black eyes stuck a good foot off the top of its head, like a crab's eyes, but the eyes at the end of the stalks were segmented into a hundred different pieces, like that of a flies. Even though it was dark I could see hundreds of
me
, staring back at
me,
with a dropped mouth and the cornered look of one who was about to die. Its mouth, if that's what it could be called, was two sharp stinger looking things that jutted out from the sides of what I assumed were its cheeks. As I watched they pulsated and a drop of some milky substance appeared at the end of each stinger.

It took everything I had to force my mouth closed again. I couldn't stand the sight of my slack jaw and bulging eyes reflecting back at me in the creature's own beady eyes. Aiden jerked me out of the way as the thing launched itself at us with a strange hissing pop, the likes of which I'd never heard before and knew I'd never forget. I expected something to shoot out of it, webbing, acid or some other abysmal thing that would melt the skin off our bones and leave us a goopy, screaming mess on the floor. Thankfully, none of those things happened as it landed with surprisingly little noise on the tunnel floor. Those stingers seemed to pulse and throb with more eagerness as its eyes twisted on top of the stalks to face us.

I pressed closer against Aiden as the eight legged monstrosity eyed us from those awful, segmented eyeballs. I'd never seen anything like it and I'd seen some weird and grotesque things over the past couple of months. I'd seen creatures morph from humans into blood sucking monsters that could destroy the human body in an instant. I'd seen giant creatures that could demolish trees in their relentless pursuit of us. I'd seen my own boyfriend turn into something that could explain nearly every horror legend out there, but
this
thing had me gawking like an idiot and virtually on the edge of pissing my pants.

What
was
it!?

Was it simply a smaller version of the larger monsters that hunted us and drained us dry? Is this what they looked like when they were newborn or something? Or was this some new monster that was just waiting to unleash a new host of disasters upon us? Either way I didn't want to be this close to it.

In an instant it launched at us. It didn't hunch down, didn't gather momentum, it simply sprang forward with the speed of a springing mouse trap. My eyes latched onto the jagged points of its mouth as drops of the milky liquid fell off of them in eager anticipation of the kill. A kill that was imminent if my immobile body had anything to do with it.

Cade's blood had made me faster, had honed my senses and my instincts, but faced with this thing I was suddenly the awkward girl I'd been most of my life. Faced with this thing, I found my muscles useless and my body a shaking mass of nerve endings.

Thankfully, my instincts didn't feel the same way. Seconds before that thing could smash into me, stab me with that tusk-like mouth, dig its razor-sharp legs in, tear off my face, and rip out my heart (because I knew that was what it had in mind to do), I swung my gun upward forcefully. An awful noise that reminded me of water bubbling over on a hot stove escaped the creature as my brisk thrust knocked it away. The thing bounced off the wall and staggered drunkenly on its legs before scurrying toward us once more.

"Move Bethany! Move!" Aiden shouted.

I spun and lifted my pistol up, but the thing wasn't rushing down the floor of the tunnel toward us. It was running up the walls at a diagonal angle that was taking it back toward the ceiling. I tried to train my gun on it but it was fast, far faster than I had expected as it reached the roof. It was scurrying over our heads when I finally got a shot off.

The bullet reverberated down the tunnel as it completely missed its mark. The thing hissed again and then launched forward with a scream that I was certain was just within range of human hearing. In fact, I wasn't even certain that Aiden had heard it until he winced against the piercing sound. I fired again and caught the thing in what I assumed was its belly. It squealed as the force of the bullet threw it back. It fell to its feet and scuttled into the gloom surrounding us.

"Run!" Aiden grabbed hold of my arm as the sounds of scuttling feet rapidly approached us.

He fired two shots behind him but I could tell by the ricochet that neither bullet hit one of them. The slap of our feet echoed over the metal and pounded around us. I didn't recall the tunnel being this long before, but it suddenly seemed endless. The others had to have heard the shots; they had to be coming for us, but what good could they possibly do?

Abby
.

The word was a moan in my head. I had to get to her, we
had
to save her. Abby was the best of us and there was no way I would let one of these things touch her. If it was the last thing I did, she would
never
know death by these creatures.

Hands snatched me up, a startled scream half tore from my throat as I was spun around and thrust to the ground. My vision blurred as I tried to get my bearings. Aiden was shoved down beside me, his eyes were just as wide and stricken as I knew mine were.

"Don't move and stay down!"

Though we were trapped in a nightmare, a hot wash of relief filled me as Cade's harsh words and warm breath tickled over me. His hand pressed firmly into my back for a second and then he was gone. Aiden gaped at me for a moment before gathering his arms beneath him and pushing himself up. I took hold of his hand and yanked him back down before he could shove himself to his feet.

"Bethany..."

"You heard what he said," I breathed.

"He needs help." My fingers curled into his wrist as I gulped. Everything in my body was screaming at me to go to Cade, to help him, but he'd told us to stay here and to stay down. He knew what these things were, he knew what he was doing; we would only be a distraction to him. "Bethany!" I closed my eyes against the spine-chilling scream that filled the air from one of those
things
. Cade grunted loudly, the sound was a mixture of pain and exertion that caused my heart to twist as my fingers dug even further into Aiden's flesh and tears burned my eyes. "Damn it Bethany! What is
wrong
with you!?"

I jerked Aiden back down when he tried to lurch to his feet again. I forced my eyes open; I had to make Aiden understand why we had to stay here, why we couldn't look. Everything in me longed to help Cade, but I had to stay here and make sure that my brother didn't do anything reckless, that he didn't see what was happening back there. There were some things that Cade would always try to keep hidden from me, and whatever was happening in that tunnel was one of them. I could feel the hum of violence, the brutality of the battle within these walls even though it was an eerily silent fight that raged on behind us.

"There are some things that we don't need to see," I whispered.

"
What
things Bethany?" I shook my head and closed my eyes again as I labored to keep breathing and not bolt to my feet and rush down the tunnel in search of Cade. I didn't care what I would see, what I would find, but Cade did. He was already standing on a perilous precipice when it came to his control and his sanity. I couldn't push him over it. "Bethany..."

"Aiden stop," I moaned.

"What
things
Bethany?" And then he inhaled a loud breath as his mind finally traversed down pathways I'd hoped it would never travel. "What
is
he?"

I didn't know what to say or do. I loved Aiden, he was more than a brother, he was my friend, and I had been keeping this huge secret from him. I would love nothing more than to unburden myself to him but it was Cade's secret to tell, or not to tell. Yet Aiden was looking at me as if he didn't know me, looking at me as if I'd just kicked his kitten over a cliff.

I released my death grip on his hand and slid my fingers into his as I tried to reassure him that I loved him. That no matter what secrets I kept from him, he was still my brother and I needed him. He didn't react at first and then his fingers tensed around mine. I was just managing a wan smile for him when I heard the sound of slapping feet.

Releasing Aiden I launched to my feet. The others
had
heard the shots and they were coming. I had to stop them, or at least slow them down somehow. I was stepping forward when hands seized hold of my arms from behind. Before I knew what was happening I was pulled backwards and pressed against a solid chest. I knew instantly it was Cade that held me as my skin came alive at the feel of him.

He must have found a smaller tunnel or nook to slide into as he pulled me out of the main tunnel. His chest heaved against my back as his breath sounded ragged and fast in my ear. Even through my turtleneck and sweater I could feel the dampness of his sweat soaked body, and then the tangy scent of his coppery blood hit me. A sense of dread washed over me as I realized that was what was soaking through my clothes.

"Two left. There are two of them left," he grated in my ear. "The others can't see me like this."

My heart leapt as my skin tingled with dread. We needed to get away, I had to get him somewhere that I could look at him, that I could see the extent of the damage that had been done to him. He took another step back and bent to try and hide behind me a little more. I felt walls around me now but my concern for him far outweighed my claustrophobia.

How far back did this small passage go? Would we be safe inside of it? Would
he
be safe and sheltered inside of it? His grasp on my arms became painful but I didn't protest it as I knew he wasn't hurting me on purpose. In fact, I didn't think he was aware of the fact that he was holding me so tightly.

Aiden took a step toward us. His eyes went behind me, but I was certain that he couldn't see Cade within the shadows. "Two," I whispered to Aiden. "There are two left." Aiden's gaze was full of fright and turmoil as he came toward me. "Please don't tell the others we're here.
Please
help us Aiden."

Aiden's eyes closed as the footsteps came even closer. Cade's fingers curled more firmly into me as I glanced nervously toward the sound of approaching feet. We had to get away, we couldn't be standing here when they arrived; I didn't know what would happen if we were, what Cade would
do
.

Aiden shook his head and then began to nod. "Go."

I spun in Cade's grasp and propelled him backwards into the small tunnel. I didn't know where it went and I didn't care. I had to get him somewhere safe, somewhere that I could see the extent of his wounds. Aiden's muffled voice sounded behind us as the others arrived to help him with the monsters. I jumped and urged Cade to go faster as shots echoed throughout the tight confines.

I wrapped Cade's arm around my shoulders as he stumbled and nearly fell.
Please
, I prayed.
Please be ok
. I'd never seen him like this, never known he could be so weak and vulnerable. He was always so strong, so self assured and powerful. I knew he was only mortal like the rest of us, but I'd never expected to see him this way and it spurred me on even faster. I could hear the riotous beat of my heart in the silence that followed the gunshots.