Vampire Apocalypse #2 Cataylst (25 page)

Cole was hissing at her as they ran, but she
didn’t hear him either. She couldn’t focus. Cole’s words floated
over her like snowflakes lost in the wind. He stopped where he had
a bike waiting. Out of breath, he turned to Kahli, scolding, “Snap
out of it.” When she didn’t blink, Cole grabbed her shoulders and
shook her hard. She felt his hands on her, but her mind kept
repeating
, Will. Will is one of them.
Cole yelled at her,
but Kahli barely heard him. It wasn’t until his palm connected with
her cheek that she blinked. When he raised his hand a second time,
her green gaze focused. Catching Cole’s hand by the wrist, she
stopped him before he struck her again. Kahli’s gaze was blank. She
held his arm and jerked him close, like she was going to snarl in
his face, but she didn’t speak.

Cole ripped his arm away, “You need to drive
us to the others. Now. Snap out of it, Kahli. They need you. I
can’t do this alone. Cassie means well, but she doesn’t know what’s
out here. You do.” His words bit into her like a starved animal.
Each word stung, making her feel foolish for being so shocked.

Breathing hard through her nose, Kahli
nodded. Kahli grabbed the bike and swung her leg over the top as
Cole stood next to her. Kick starting the bike, the engine turned
over and Cole climbed on back. Without a word, the two circled the
palace to survey the damage. Carnage would better a better word.
Kahli knew if she turned around to look at Cole’s face that it
would have a satisfied smile. The palace was burning at both ends.
Only the center seemed untouched. Pillars of black smoke stretched
into the night sky, illuminated by the golden glow of the flames
consuming everything and everyone in its path. It was a moment that
she’d never forget. Everything that place represented was burning,
soon it would be reduced to cinders and charred earth. Kahli
glanced over her shoulder at Cole. He nodded once, and then they
headed toward the others, allowing the wind to cover their
tracks.

Cole clung to Kahli’s back, bouncing around
on the back of the bike every time they hit a bump. When they were
off the palace grounds, they ditched the bike and continued on
foot. Kahli grabbed the contents from the bike’s frame and shoved
the stuff in Cole’s pack. Cole hadn’t said anything to her. They
walked for over an hour in silence, the wind making their faces
raw. Kahli didn’t grab a mask to protect her face from the weather.
It was a novice mistake, but she didn’t think she’d need one.
Kahli’s plan had been to go back for Will after torching the
palace, but things changed.

Kahli’s heart slid down into her stomach like
a piece of lead. The heaviness crushed her chest, making her ribs
feel like they could crack under the weight of remorse. It was all
she could do to make her legs move.

“He’s not worth it,” Cole finally said,
glancing over at her. Kahli stared straight ahead, her face devoid
of emotion. “Kahli—” Cole reached out for her hand and held onto
it. His fingers pressed into her hand. Kahli stopped and glanced
over at him. Cole’s voice was less poisonous than she expected, it
was almost supportive, “I know you feel betrayed, but you can’t
shut down right now. That fire bought us a few days at most. The
vamps were dousing the interior flames before we got off the palace
grounds. You’re the only one that’s survived out here for any
length of time. They need you.” After a moment, his voice softened
and he said something uncharacteristically Cole, “I need you. I
can’t do this on my own. There are too many of them. And the world
isn’t like it was last time. There’s no palace to run to, no safe
place for us. We need you.” He released her hand, allowing it to
drop to her side. It hung there like dead weight for a moment.

His words sank in slowly. Kahli nodded.
Swallowing hard, she finally spoke. Her throat burned from
swallowing so much smoke. It made her voice sound like gravel, “We
can’t go to the safe house. Will knows where it is. I suspect that
he knows where all of the safe houses are.” Cole’s face pinched
together, making him look years younger. Cole was always fighting,
always trying to save himself and Cassie. It wore him down, making
him bone weary. Kahli could see it in his eyes. She knew how it
felt, how desperate things can be. Kahli explained, “Will was
following me, tracking me, before I realized he was there.”

Cole’s eyes widened. Concern made his voice
urgent, “Then where do we go?”

Kahli looked back at the sunrise spilling
over the horizon. Long beams of orange spilled across the white
earth, chasing away the night. An idea formed in her mind. “We have
to go somewhere they’ll never find us. Someplace that never
existed. The place we were supposed to go if we were caught…” Kahli
took Cole’s hand and turned it over. Pushing back his sleeve, she
looked at his wrist, and pointed to the rune. “We’ll go here.”

Cole didn’t blink. He didn’t contest her.
Instead he nodded, and she dropped his arm. “Do you think it’s
still there? The camp, I mean. I was told the same thing. If I was
captured, I was to show them the brand on my wrist. The vamps would
take me home, but they said the brand was fake, that we concocted
it.”

Kahli shrugged, “I was told the same thing,
but it doesn’t make sense. Why would both our parents be so certain
that Section 8 existed, and tell us to get there if there was
nothing there.” She shook her head slowly, her hair floating around
her face, “I believed Will. I believed it wasn’t there and that we
got busted, but maybe that isn’t true. It exists.” Certainty
flooded her body. She felt like the brand was a puzzle piece and
they were holding it upside down. “Maybe the vamps didn’t know
about it because it’s not a farm. Maybe it’s another safe house?
One we missed? Besides, I don’t see another option.” Walking, she
kicked the snow, sending white flakes flying. When she walked
through the cloud of white, snow clung to her collar and stuck in
her hair. Glancing at Cole, she asked, “Were you ever there?”

Cole shook his head, “My parent’s spoke about
it and told us about the rune, but I’ve never been there. Honestly,
I thought it was just meant to keep vamps from realizing we were
wild. After all this time, I thought Section 8 was a
fairytale.”

Kahli smirked, “Same here, but I guess it’s
time for fairytales to come true. Since your crest burned the rune
off my wrist, we’ll have to hope yours is enough. The rest of the
palace humans were raised on farms. They won’t have any idea where
it was. Let’s just hope we can find it.”

Cole looked at his wrist, at the mark he’d
though was a brand all these years, wondering if it was something
more. He nodded to Kahli and said, “To Section 8.”

VAMPIRE APOCALYPSE #3

DECEMBER 2012

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