The Coming Storm (4 page)

“Okay,” I whispered, knowing I wasn’t going to get anywhere with him when he was this upset. I was too, but I was scared and worried whether any paranormals would survive. Seattle was pissed because we were failed as a people… And I’m sure he was wondering how much the PP knew the humans had discovered after whatever our parents had told them. I was thinking it after all.

There was thirty seconds left on the progress bar when I saw a file name transferring over that would give us the answer Seattle asked earlier. I quickly opened it up and started hyperventilating, missing the download was actually done. As spots formed in front of my eyes, I realized Seattle was shaking me.

“Chicago, what is it? We gotta go, man!”

“Dates,” I croaked out, pointing to the screen. “I found the attack dates. It starts in three months, Seattle. They secretly take out everyone working in the government and military across the world in two and finalize the details.”

“Jesus,” he whispered. Then he shook out his head. “Okay, that gives the PP time to tell them all and get people into hiding. We get this to them and they have time, buddy. You with me? I need you focused.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I breathed. “I drop the worm destroying my tracks for five minutes to slow the tracer down and we need to
run
, Seattle.”

“Ready when you are.” I nodded, closed the file, hit a few key strokes before pulling the thumb drive out and bolting for the door. I didn’t even put the terminal back in or anything. Fuck it. The clock started from the moment I pulled the drive out because it would track where the files had gone to when I severed the connection with the security I laid down.

“We’re on the move
now
,” Seattle hissed to Boston as we raced towards him. My other brother’s eyes went wide as he realized there was problem. He gave a whistle and Phoenix, Orlando, and Milwaukee came darting out of their hidden positions up ahead and raced to the elevators.

“Take the stairs if we’ve got problems,” Boston said at the last second before Orlando reached to call it.

“No time,” Seattle and I replied together as we hit the button. We were almost on the top level and in a building that had twenty-two floors even with our wicked shifter speed that five minute deadline would come
real
fast. We’d be able to run down them, sure, but we’d have to hustle, especially to get out of the building and to Seattle’s baby, his black Expedition. Plus, what if someone saw us?

I mean six men walking around in black who looked alike might raise an eyebrow or two, sure. But it was the Federal Building. They had all kinds coming in and out of here even after hours like we were. Running and panting our asses off?
Big
red flags, call in the men with guns, cuffs, and cart our hides off to jail.

The elevator came and we got on, Seattle checking his watch every few seconds, which didn’t help.

“Does this building have the ability to even lockdown the elevators?” Phoenix asked as if trying to break the tension. We all slowly turned to him staring at him as if he’d lost his mind. “What? Just wondering if you guys were worrying over nothing.”

“It’s not getting trapped in the elevator we’re freaking out about. We’re not claustrophobic,” Boston growled. “We don’t want to go
prison
.”

“No shit.” Phoenix rolled his eyes at us. “I’m just saying hold off the worrying until we’re done with the elevator ride if they can’t shut it down.” Of course then there was a ding to alert us we were on the right level. “Like now.”

“Just be quiet and act like we belong here.” Seattle shot him a look, and we all swallowed back our nerves, so when we got off seconds later, we had our shit together. We were less than twenty
feet
from the door when a blaring alarm when off. I instantly froze, which of course, was the last thing I should have done.

“Run, dipshit,” Boston growled as he grabbed the back of my shirt and pulled me along. I nodded and forced my feet to work, still clutching tightly in my hand what we possibly were about to lose everything over. I started debating if I should ease up on my grip because I could break it… But then I could drop it… Maybe a pocket? I could drop it putting it in there.

Fuck it. It stayed where it was.

As I carefully watched the floor as we ran, I realized it was marble. The same type of marble, even the right coloring like our parents headstones. It just triggered the image of it in my mind, and I couldn’t help but wonder if we wouldn’t be joining them soon.

“Stop right there!” a man shouted behind us. I saw Milwaukee freeze out of the corner of my eye. Good to know I wasn’t the only one whose instincts told them to listen when sirens or authority told me to do something.

“No, keep going,” Seattle snarled as he shoved our brother along.

Phoenix and Orlando had raced ahead and were holding the doors open that security measures were trying to close and lock. I hadn’t been noticing all of that. Both of them looked ready to pop out their shoulders from exertion. We slid out and they both gave a whimper of relief as the heavy metal doors slammed and locked into place.

That didn’t mean we were out of the woods yet. By running when the alarm went off, they knew who had tripped them now.

We took off to Seattle’s Expedition. It was a miracle we had even been able to find parking so damn close, and hot damn, had we needed that luck now. I had the ludicrous thought as we got closer to it that I was glad I paid for the meter so ours wasn’t flashing
expired
like the others.
At least we didn’t end up with a parking ticket
.

Yes, because
that’s
what to worry about when stealing from the NSA and the federal government was now in pursuit. I had some
serious
issues. I really wasn’t equipped for all of this.

Seattle barked out orders to all of us after unlocking it. “Toss your phones under the wheels! Get rid of anything that can be traced.”

I quickly pulled my cell out of my pocket with my free hand and dropped it onto the ground in front of the rear left tire, watching it splash in one of the remaining puddles from the storm earlier that evening. Then I focused on Seattle as he turned to me.

“I thought you said five minutes,” he hissed as he opened the driver’s door as I did the one behind him. “That was only a couple.”

“I said
maybe
. It’s not an exact, Seattle.” I was going to say more but the sound of sirens approaching started again and we all jumped in. Boston didn’t even get his door closed before Seattle peeled out of the spot, barely avoiding a few vehicles moving along in traffic already.

“We’re going the wrong way to get back on the expressway,” Orlando said quietly as Seattle darted in and out of traffic, making several spectacularly close calls but remaining in control the whole time.

How had he learned to drive like that?

“We’re trying to leave a dummy trail for the cops and probably the feds now in the LA traffic before setting on a real course,” Boston replied calmly as he reached under his seat and started pulling out cases. What were in those?

I didn’t get a chance to look as I was tossed against the window when Seattle whipped into an alley before flying through it and coming out onto another street he turned on. I’d been to LA before, but pressed up against the glass like this as we sped along one of the bigger, busier streets, I couldn’t get over the ratio of cabs to other vehicles. It might have been split down the middle which was nothing like the smaller town we were from.

Was it really possible that only half the people drove themselves in this city? Then again as I sat back in my seat and saw the problems Seattle was having with the traffic, I understood why. Statistically, even more walked too than took cabs always. Might be smart.

Horns went off on either side of us, hurting my ears as the Expedition blew by some vehicles illegally.

“Fucking one ways,” he growled. “This isn’t going to work. We’re going to need help. I won’t be able to leave crumbs for them to chase like idiots.” He glanced at Boston. “You know LA better. What are our options?”

“You mean who do we know well enough to say
Hi, we need to be hidden from the federal government because we stole something from the NSA
and they won’t turn us over themselves?” Boston’s tone was fully of syrupy sarcasm.

“I wasn’t thinking we should tell—fuck!” He swerved, tires screeching when a police cruiser pulled out in front of us. As he changed directions, blowing a traffic light, other cars spun and turned out of the way, making effective blockades against other police cars for us.

“There’s only a few who can hide us from this kind of attention,” Milwaukee said as there was a thunk against the side of the SUV. “What was that?”

“Bullet,” Boston and Seattle answered.

“They’re shooting at us!” Orlando bitched before smacking my shoulder. “What did you do wrong?”

“Hey, this is
so
not my fault!” That didn’t mean I wasn’t freaking out since they were
shooting
at us and all of that. I licked my upper lip as I started to feel a ball of nerves and tasted the salt from my sweat.

“
I’ve got the way to get us out of trouble, guys
,” Seattle mimicked…

Orlando shouted in pain from behind me. I spun around as much as I could in my seatbelt and watched in horror as blood quickly spread over his shoulder.

“What happened?” Boston barked out.

“They shot me! Those fuckers shot me!” Orlando started muttering under his breath as he ripped off his shirt before reaching into the wound and digging around with his fingers. “I’m so biting those assholes. Fucking shoot me, will they?” He wiggled his hand around for a few more moments before letting loose a triumphant sound. “Got it! I’m good.”

“Well fuck me sideways!” Boston exclaimed with a wide smile, staring at Orlando before smacking Seattle on the shoulder. “Little bro’s getting inducted into the club, Seattle.”

“I saw that. Nicely done, Orlando.”

“What club?” He shot them a confused look as he kept pressure on the wound while it took a few moments to close. We healed that fast after all especially if the something like a bullet that prevents the process was taken out.

“The
I got shot and didn’t freak the fuck out
club.” Boston waggled his eyebrows before getting thrown about when Seattle veered around some cars. “You pretty much did what Seattle did the first time he got shot.”

“You were
shot
?” several of us exclaimed. Then it was just a flurry of chaos and voices.

“Who shot you?”

“What’s really on the USB drive?”

“How are we getting away from the humans?”

“Where did you learn to drive like this?”

“What aren’t you guys telling us?

And on and on and
on
until I thought my head was going to explode. Finally I stuck my fingers in my mouth and whistled while waiting for everyone to shut it. When they did, Boston opening and closing his mouth a few times as he gave me a slack look, I stopped.

“Priorities, guys. We’re being shot at. We need safety. Who’s got options?”

“I know Seattle’s not going to like my answer but the only ones around here strong enough to help us with this kind of heat are in the LA vampire coven,” Milwaukee answered quietly. “I was thinking about that earlier, and while vamps always have a price, I think trading sanctuary for the night or until the humans circle back to keep looking for the information Chicago has is a good deal.”

No one said a word, knowing our eldest brother’s dislike of vampires. It wasn’t like he was a bigot. Oh no, he’d known a
lot
of them actually and every one he’d dealt with constantly had an agenda and couldn’t be trusted because they would always,
always
do what was best for themselves even if it meant selling out their allies. And they didn’t do anything for free.

“Seattle?” Boston muttered when the silence dragged on.

“Yeah, fine,” he growled. “Call Julus and tell him we’re coming in hot and we have news his coven director will want.”

“Is that smart? I thought Julus was still pissed at you?”

“He is but the whole coven will be, and maybe the director would deny us entry, if we don’t warn them about all of this. Then we’ll be really screwed.”

“On it.” Boston pulled out one of the burner phones we’d picked up for emergencies, like if this went ass up, and huddled against the window as if trying to keep the call quiet and control what the person on the other line heard.

We flew by a strip of nightclubs then and I saw several groups of people on the street having fun, not a care in the world, as they were coming out or about to go in. But they stopped with open mouths when they saw us and the authorities giving chase, appalled by what they were seeing… I knew the feeling. A few years ago it would have been so easy to have
been
those people, having fun right out of college or senior year.

What had happened to my life that I was here now, my brother getting shot, and the end of life as I knew it looming over my head? Shit. Maybe I needed to talk to Orlando. I was pretty sure this was what going into shock felt like.