Shadowed (27 page)

"Your death will come at the hands of one you know," Hilbah said softly, his eyes glowing strangely in the lantern light. The gun was in Pierce's hand and Hilbah was dead before Pierce even realized what he'd done.

"That saves us having to kill him; he was worthless anyway," Diamond handed over a bag from the restaurant. Pierce pocketed the gun he'd stolen from Nick Lawford and accepted the bag of take-out without a word.

* * *

"Is the ghost still here?" Sali asked as they watched five dark SUVs drive toward the entrance to Cloud Chief.

"It got in the car with Luanne," Ashe said, shaking his head over the oddity.

"Son," Aedan's hand dropped onto Ashe's shoulder, "Take Sali to the gate but not beyond, hear me? You can wave good-bye from there."

Ashe searched his father's eyes. "You mean I can mist us there?"

"I'm giving you permission," Aedan smiled.

"All right," Sali pumped his fist. In seconds, Ashe and Sali were mist and blazing toward Cloud Chief's hidden entrance.

* * *

"This is Sorrel's work. Strong, but it won't keep us out," the warlock muttered, pulling back the dark magic he'd employed to detect the barrier. "Ready?" he glanced at the line of six others, male and female, that stood beside him. "Then let's begin," the warlock said as each one nodded.

* * *

Ashe kept pace with the lead SUV, where Winkler and Director Jennings rode with Philip and Jackie Raymond, before ranging ahead to rematerialize beside the gate. The vehicles were nearly there and Ashe and Sali had hands raised to wave good-bye when the witch's shield fell and the first hurled firebomb upended Director Jennings' SUV.

Chapter 18
 

Aedan barely had time to register Ashe's mindspeech as he and Nathan raced toward the blast. Marcus and many other werewolves were running as well, but they were far behind the two vampires.

"The shield is down!" Adele shouted to others who'd ran or driven up. "Marcie's on the phone; she and Jason heard the blast in Cordell and the Cordell Fire Department is on the way. This is awful," Adele waved her cell phone in the air.

"Come on, we may need to help," Denise DeLuca drove up and flung a car door open. Adele climbed inside Denise's small car and held on while Denise sped toward the gate.

* * *

Sali went to werewolf, Ashe turned to mist. Winkler was climbing out of the overturned SUV and Ashe registered that he was swiftly turning to wolf as well. Two warlocks hurled more fireblasts at the SUVs, but those vehicles were attempting to get around the one that carried the Raymonds and Director Jennings.

Winkler tore into one of the warlocks and Sali, seizing the opportunity, leapt at the witch who was attempting to help the warlock against Winkler. Aedan and Nathan ran up at that moment, even as a hurled fireblast hit another SUV.

Think fast, Ashe
, filtered into Ashe's misty brain—it was a voice he didn't recognize—it sounded adult, and Ashe only knew of one adult with mindspeech—Edward's father, Steven Pendley. This wasn't Steven Pendley. Making up his mind swiftly, Ashe flashed from one SUV to another, lifting all the teens and their parents inside his mist.

Jason, Trace and the other werewolves, along with Director Jennings' agent-drivers, pelted from SUVs, the werewolves turning to wolf, the agents with guns drawn. Director Jennings was the only one who didn't move; he was unconscious, his head cut and bloody. At the last moment, Ashe lifted the unconscious Director in his mist as well. Unsure where to take the children and adults he carried at first, Ashe turned in a complete circle while he desperately searched for a solution to the dilemma.

* * *

"The plan's been compromised!" Wildrif's voice screeched into Diamond's cell. "The warlock and his people are fighting for their lives. You'll have to take the children away yourselves."

Diamond nodded to Ruby, and he and his brother each grasped one of Pierce's arms and disappeared before Pierce had an opportunity to shout at either of them.

* * *

"We're on our way." Rend, the Dark King's Destroyer, ended the call he'd gotten from Wildrif—it was almost identical to the one Diamond had gotten from the wild-eyed clairvoyant. "Come on, those stupid spell-casters have managed to muck this up," Rend informed his three brothers. "Sorry, it will expend too much energy if we take you along," Rend informed Josiah and the six werewolves that stood before him. "Here's your money," Rend tossed a heavy bag to Josiah. "We'll be in touch." Rend, Slash, Grind and Crush all disappeared before Josiah could say a word.

* * *

"Quick, get in the storm shelter," Ashe had carried all his passengers to the shelter between mobile homes. They'd never used it until now, but it was built of strong material and buried in the ground, with a thick door that could be latched once they were inside. Ashe could still hear the noise of fireblasts being hurled at the entrance to Cloud Chief, while werewolves, vampires and a few shapeshifters attempted to fight off rogue spell-casters. Steven Pendley and Rocky Hill carried Director Jennings between them; the Director still hadn't wakened.

"Hurry," Luanne and Edward were lifting the shelter's heavy door so the others could get inside. Bryce, Keith and Macy helped shaky mothers down steep steps after Director Jennings was taken in first.

"Son, shouldn't you come with us?" Michael Caldwell, Keith and Bryce's father placed a hand on Ashe's shoulder.

"I need to check on Sali," Ashe winced as another fireblast exploded at the gate.

"I'm not going in there," Philip Raymond announced as his mother attempted to pull him down the shelter's narrow steps. Smoke from burning grass filtered past as Ashe stared at Philip Raymond. Philip backed away from the shelter entrance, refusing to go inside with his mother.

"Dang," Ashe breathed and prepared to mist Philip inside the storm shelter.

"You stupid," the sentence wasn't finished as a voice shouted directly behind Ashe. Jackie Raymond screamed as a bullet tore through her shoulder. Ashe whirled to find the man who'd attacked him and his mother inside Cordell Feed and Seed. Behind that man stood two others Ashe didn't recognize, and both were just as shocked at what the man had done as Ashe was. None of them, however, were expecting what happened next.

Philip had been angry for a very long time, and his anger found an outlet that night. Turning to mountain lion, Philip hurled himself at the one who'd once called himself Philip's father. Philip Raymond Sr. had been a CIA spy for many years before going rogue and acting as a double agent. Until he'd been discovered. He'd disappeared after that, and Jackie Raymond had tearfully lied to her son, telling him that his father was dead.

Now, Philip slashed and clawed at Philip Raymond Sr.'s throat, even as the gun his father carried fired. Ashe and the others watched in horror as father and son fell to the ground, dead of their wounds. Jackie Raymond kept screaming as four more men appeared from nothing, immediately engaging the first two strangers in a firebombing battle. Only these blasts were fifty times more deadly than those hurled by the warlocks and witches at Cloud Chief's entrance.

A mobile home behind Ashe was hit and tossed high into the air, exploding with a resounding boom that flung Ashe to his knees and forced him to cover his ears. Michael Caldwell dragged a weeping, bleeding Jackie Raymond toward the shelter as the battle continued around them. Another mobile home blew apart as Ashe struggled to stand. The remaining homes were hit and exploded while Ashe watched the battle between Dark Destroyers and Bright Jewels. He ducked flaming debris as it blasted outward and rained from a smoke-filled sky. A fireball was aimed directly at him and he was prepared to turn to mist when everything slowed and then stopped in midair.

"What the?" Ashe could move, but everything else had stopped where it was. Ducking away from the fireball that had almost reached him, Ashe studied it in terrified curiosity. He could have walked between other fireblasts if he'd chosen to do so; the fireballs hung in midair between combatants.

"We must hurry; there is little time. If I suspend everything for more than a few of your Earth minutes, others might suspect and attempt to undo what I have done."

Ashe nearly jumped at the eight-and-a-half-foot blue giant that appeared at his side. "Ren?" he whispered, stunned at the sight of his friend, who was now an adult.

"I have always been your friend, Ashe, and always will be," the adult Ren smiled, flashing brilliant white teeth at Ashe. "But we have little time. Bring your friends out. You are going to save them."

"But how?" Ashe stared at Ren. "How are you here and doing this? And how can I save everybody?"

"Adult Larentii are quite powerful, Ashe, but even they might not do this," Ren swept out a hand, indicating the suspended action surrounding them. "You might say I've grown past their expectations, although time holds no constraints for any of my race." He smiled again. "Come, you will do this. We must hurry."

"Do what?" Ashe still didn't understand.

"Open a gate, young Ashe. I believe you concentrate on making the gate, while sweeping your hands like this," Ashe watched in wonder as Ren imitated the very movements that Elizabeth's ghost had been making for days. "And no other living Elemaiya is capable of making a gate anywhere they please; only you have that talent. The others must rely on fixed gates that exist upon certain worlds. There are two of those on Earth. Come now, time is ticking away. Make the gate Ashe, and call the others out of the shelter. We will send them away tonight."

"Send them where?" Ashe asked as he attempted to do as Ren instructed.

"Trust me, friend. All you have to do is open the gate. People will be waiting on the other side to take these to safety."

"All right," Ashe drew a shaky breath, concentrated as hard as he could, mouthed the words "
Open Sesame
," and pulled his arms up in an arc over his head. Shocked beyond comprehension, Ashe stared as a bit of light formed and then spread until a twelve-by-twelve portal opened before him. Even more shocking was what he saw beyond that portal—several people waited there expectantly, one of them a woman made almost entirely of light. She shone so brightly that Ashe couldn't make out any features; he could only see a female outline.

"Call them, Ashe. Command all inside the shelter to come out. Tell them it is safe," Ren instructed.

Come
, Ashe sent mindspeech.
You will be safe. We will send you to a safe
place
, he added.

In twos and threes, the families came forth, led by Edward. Stunned parents were helped along by determined half-Elemaiyan children, all of whom seemed to recognize the gate Ashe had created. A beautiful woman; perhaps the most beautiful woman Ashe had ever seen, with black hair and piercing blue eyes stepped to the line where the gate stood, the edges of it glowing and crackling with energy. "Hurry, come quickly," she said, her voice musical as she beckoned the children and their parents forward. Two more who stood behind the woman quickly took adults and children aside as they crossed over. Ashe, watching his friends leave, noticed for the first time that behind the people on the other side stood trees, seemingly planted in neat rows. They reminded him of photographs he'd seen of lemon groves.

It didn't take long for the children and their parents to walk through the shining gate and stand among those trees. Luanne, Macy, Keith, Edward and Bryce turned to wave at Ashe. Ashe lifted his hand in farewell when Director Jennings' voice spoke behind him.

"Wait! Wait," Ashe turned to watch as the aging Director, with blood soaking his white hair and covering the side of his face, reached out a hand toward the gate. Ashe was worried at first that the Director wanted to stop the others from crossing to safety. That wasn't the case. The shining woman stepped forward and held out her hand. Bill staggered the last few steps through the gate to take it, and the two embraced.

"They are old friends," Ren said softly. "She came for him. Close the gate, Ashe."

Ashe was about to close the gate, making the opposite gesture and reaching high over his head to create a sweeping arc downward, when two things happened. Elizabeth's ghost ran lightly through the portal, closely followed by the ghost of Philip's mountain lion. The beautiful, dark-haired woman watched silently as the ghosts swept past, and then sent mindspeech as Ashe's gate closed between them.

I love you
sounded softly in Ashe's mind as the portal disappeared. Ashe gaped, openmouthed, wishing for another glimpse of the woman, but only the Oklahoma prairie surrounded him, along with suspended figures frozen in mid-battle.

"There is one last thing you must accomplish, young Ashe," Ren said, making Ashe jump. For moments, he'd been lost in the music of the woman's voice and the burning desire to know who she was. Ren pulled him away from that brief and lovely reverie.

"What?" Ashe looked up at Ren.

"Turn these to mist and drop them several miles away," Ren indicated the four Dark Destroyers and the Bright Queen's Jewel Sentinels. "I have removed the memory of this place from their minds," Ren added. "They will not find it again."

"Want to come with me?" Ashe shook himself and grinned at his tall, blue friend.

"Of course," Ren chuckled.