Angered Seasons: Volume Four (I Will Survive) Read online

  “Take it easy,” he warned with a grin. “You’re not all fixed.” He pulled his shirt over his head and fashioned a sling for her arm. “I was able to get the major stuff, but you’ll still have a bump on the head and if I saw correctly, there’s a hairline fracture in your arm.”

  “You saw?” I gawked at him. “You saw in her?”

  “Yeah. It was kinda like a fluorescent x-ray. I could see where the worst of everything was and, I don’t know. I moved energy to those spots? No… that just sounds cheesy. Not energy. I don’t know. All I know, is I remembered how to do it.” He helped Jenny stand before hugging her close.

  Lane smiled and went to catch the horses who were now grazing quietly near the fence.

  “Come on.” I took Vader from him and gave Jenny a hug. “Let’s get you back to the house so Marie can patch you up.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  “We need to catch a Yellow Eyes.”

  Everyone stopped talking and stared in shock at Max.

  “I’m serious. I need to find out what I can do. I need to see what I can remember. We can’t just hide away forever. Glade will be back and when he shows up, I need to know how to deal with him.”

  “Speaking of your darling big brother, where the hell has he been?” John looked outside as if to make sure the subject of conversation didn’t suddenly appear.

  “I have no idea. The only thing I’ve felt around is the dogs.” He reached down and gave Riley a pat on the head.

  “Though I can see the positive aspects of having a couple of Yellow Eyes at your disposal for training, I’m a bit worried as to how we’d keep them here safely after the fact.” Shawn looked around to see if he was the only one on this wavelength.

  “We could lock them in the basement.” Jenny gestured toward the door that led to the room in question.

  I shook my head. “I am not having those things in the house. What if they got out?”

  “What about the shed?” Robbie suggested.

  “That might work.” Lane, Robbie, and Jason headed outside to see if the shed would make a secure enough prison.

  “If we do this, you have to stay here,” I announced to Max.

  “No way.”

  “Max, it’s not up for discussion. If we come across more than a few of them and some get away, the first thing they’ll do is tell Glade and Terra where you are. If it’s just us, they’ll have no clue who we are.”

  Grant nodded. “Gabby’s right. You need to sit this one out.”

  Riley barked and Max glared at him.

  “Fine. But you go with them. You can let them know if they’re close.”

  The dog’s tongue lolled out of its mouth and I was sure he was grinning.

  “Do we have a plan?” Lane came back into the house and pulled his bunnyhug over his head. “It’s getting hot out there again. It actually feels like August in August.”

  “I suppose if Mother Nature wants to save this planet, she has to take it easy with the weird weather. There’s only so much the plants and animals can take.”

  Jason grunted. “I don’t care what her reasons are. I’m just happy it’s nice out. Now. Let’s go find us some Yellow Eyes.”

  Riley barked and bounded out the door and into the back of the one ton.

  “You’ll need ropes, the guns just in case, some duct tape…” Shawn was coming out of the barn, shoving things inside of a duffle bag.

  Lane and I jumped into the truck and were joined by Grant, Robby, and Jason.

  “Which way should we go?” I watched the trees go by as we pulled out of the yard.

  “I think we’ll have our best luck right in town.”

  I shivered. “I was afraid you’d say that. If there’s more than two, it’s a no go, got it?”

  He nodded.

  It had been so long since we’d been to town I was scared of what we’d see. There had been a few decent sized fires a month back; they’d been big enough we’d been able to see the smoke from the farm.

  Lane kept going straight off the highway so he was driving along fifteenth street.

  “We’ll go check around the Gateway Mall. If there’s nothing there, we’ll head up second avenue.”

  “What happens if we find other people? I mean, we can’t be the only survivors, right?” Jason never took his eyes off the buildings we passed. “Hang on. Stop.”

  Lane did as instructed and we all looked to where Jason was pointing.

  “Over there. By the Walmart.”

  I squinted. “In it?”

  “No. By the seasonal part. Where they keep the plants in the summer.”

  I gazed to the other end of the store and saw what he was seeing. My stomach dropped at the sight of a dirty and thin little girl. Her long blond hair was matted to her head, her yellow eyes sunk into her face. “No.” I reached over and put a hand on the steering wheel as Lane started to pull into the parking lot. “Lane. No.”

  His dark blue eyes met mine and I could see he wasn’t very happy about what he was about to do. “We don’t have a choice, Gabrielle.”

  “She can’t be more than six or seven! How the hell does Terra justify this? There’s no way that kid had anything to do with activists or anything like that!” I could feel the tears welling in my eyes and I blinked them away angrily.

  Robby reached over the seat and put a hand on my shoulder. “We need to bring her home with us, Gabs. Maybe Max can fix her. Maybe he can get the sprite out of her.”

  “Fine.” My voice broke and I cleared my throat. “Just… don’t hurt her.”

  Lane gave my leg a squeeze before putting the truck back into gear and driving toward Walmart. The girl bared her teeth and came at us. Before I knew what was happening, Riley was jumping out of the box and racing past us.

  “No!” Lane slammed on the brakes and jumped out as the border collie knocked her to the ground. The dog clamped his jaws around the girl’s neck and she went still.

  “Riley, damn it! We need them alive!” Lane knelt beside them and relaxed. “Jason, bring the rope!” He reached over and gave Riley a pat on the head.

  “She’s okay?” I stood just behind him and watched as the girl’s chest rose and fell with her breaths.

  “I think she’s fine, you know, considering she’s possessed by an evil sprite.”

  Jason quickly tied her legs then her hands. Riley pulled back gently and sat back, his head cocked to the side as he gazed down at the girl who lay motionless, her eyes never leaving his.

  I took a deep breath and had to bite my tongue not to object while Robby taped her mouth shut.

  “Christ, she’s skin and bones. Don’t the sprites have to eat?” Jason looked like he was about to be sick.

  “Let’s get her back right away.” I took a step back as they stood her up. Lane cradled her in his arms, holding on tightly to keep a grip on her now squirming form.

  “Man, is she ever strong for such a tiny thing.” He grunted and handed her to Grant who was sitting in the back seat of the truck.

  Riley gave a bark and ran off around the corner of Walmart, heading for the back alley behind Subway and Booster Juice.

  “Robby, wait up!” Lane ran off after Robby who had taken off after Riley.

  I jumped as first one rifle went off and then another. I got on the running board, my gun aimed over the top of the cab.

  “Gabby?” Grant was struggling to hang on to the girl. Jason was on the other side of the truck, his gun aimed at the corner of the building.

  “Just stay in!” I glanced a Jason and saw him inhale deeply, calming himself in case he had to take a shot.

  Riley yelped and another couple of shots rang through the air.

  “Gabby! Get in the truck!”

  I couldn’t see Lane and if he said anything else, it was lost in the next round of shots. Jason kept the two doors on the passenger side open and I put the truck in gear, ready to go.

  “Go! Go! Go!” Lane was bleeding, his T-shirt ripped along the side. He dove into the
truck and slammed the door behind him. Jason paused, unsure if he should close his.

  “Go! Now!”

  I floored the truck and heard Jason’s door close.

  “Fuck!” Lane punched the dash. “Fuck! Swear to fucking god, Gabs, they were waiting for us! She was bait!”

  I sped back onto the highway, trying to put as much distance between us and the city as quickly as I could.

  Jason and Grant were pale, both of them catching my eye in the rear view mirror. When Lane didn’t elaborate, I put a hand on his leg. His fingers gripped mine and he hid his face against his window. I could see the tears running down his face in the reflection. I gave a slight shake of my head at the pair in the back. He’d talk when he was ready.

  “How is she doing?” I glanced at Grant who was starting to sweat with the effort it took to hold the girl.

  “She seems just peachy.” He glared at her. “Sit still now.”

  Lane choked down a sob then turned violently, his fist raised and aimed at the yellow-eyed girl. He stopped himself less than an inch from her face.

  “Lane.” I pulled the truck over on the gravel road. His eyes never left the girl’s. “Lane!”

  He finally blinked and sat back into his seat. “They’re gone.” I barely heard his whisper. He cleared his throat and repeated the statement. “By the time I turned the corner, Riley was already running back toward us. There were at least twenty of them. Robby tripped and fell so I started shooting. Riley got one down but there were too many…”

  I swallowed hard.

  “What the fuck am I going to tell Jenny and Shawn?” Lane’s voice was muffled in his hands.

  Knowing I didn’t have an answer that would make him feel better, I put the truck back into gear and started for home.

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  Shawn looked up from the book he was reading on the porch as we pulled up. He grinned and jogged to the truck.

  “That didn’t take long!” He pulled the back passenger door open and frowned. He took a step back and looked into the box. His jaw tightened.

  Lane went to stand by him. “I’m sorry. We walked into a trap. I…” He cleared his throat. “He tripped. There were too many…”

  Shawn closed his eyes, his entire body shaking.

  “Shawn?” I could tell by the fear in Jenny’s voice she already knew what she was about to find out. She ran to her brother and wrapped her arms around him, her tears soaking into his t-shirt.

  Jason and Grant moved by them as quietly as possible with the struggling Yellow Eye.

  Jenny’s hand flew to her mouth at the sight of her. “She’s just a baby.” She wiped the tears from her face though not fast enough to dry the ones still flowing down her cheeks. Her eyes found Max’s who was staring, shocked, at the child.

  He turned his attention to Jenny. “Jenn… I’m sorry. About Robby.”

  She shook her head. “It’s not your fault.” She attempted to stop her tears once again. “Terra needs to be stopped, Max.” She gestured toward the house as Grant, Jason, and the girl disappeared inside. “This needs to end,” she whispered.

  Max nodded and walked into the house. A few moments later, Jason and Grant were back outside.

  “Maxy says to stay out here for a bit.” Jason was frowning.

  Grant ran a hand through his hair. “He says to stay out of the house no matter what happens.”

  “Holy fuck!” Pete pointed to the house and we all gawked at the silver light filling all of the main floor windows. It disappeared for a few seconds then started up again.

  The silver retreated slightly and a yellow wave of light pushed against it.

  “Dude!” Granted glanced at Lane. “Maybe we should go in.”

  Lane was already walking toward the house. “Max!” He grabbed the handle and swore. “Maxy, unlock the door!”

  Silver and yellow mixed and danced, the light coming out into the air around us. I took a step back involuntarily.

  “Lane! Get away from the house!”

  The light pulsed and I ran to stand behind the truck. “Lane!”

  Yellow seemed to push over the silver before being completely engulf in one final silver pulse. We stared, unsure of what to do next.

  The front door opened to reveal Max carrying the little girl, her head resting on his shoulder. I ran to them and brushed her hair back from her face. Crystal blue eyes blinked at me through dirt encrusted lashes.

  “Jenny, can you get a glass of water? Grant, um… crackers. Something light. If we’re out of crackers then a piece of bread. Jason, we’ll need to fill the tub. Can you start heating some water?” Everyone scurried away to get things done. “Hey, sweety. My name’s Gabby. What’s your name?”

  “Taylor.” I barely heard her whisper.

  “Alright, Taylor. Can you tell me how old you are?”

  She nodded shyly. “Eight.”

  Jenny appeared with a glass of water and some whole wheat crackers. “Grant went to help Jason.”

  Max sat on the step and Taylor wiggled so she was sitting beside him.

  “Try to drink slowly, alright, honey?” Jenny handed her the glass of water. Taylor closed her eyes in pure delight as the first sip of water ran down her throat. She took a few big gulps then took a couple of crackers. One cautious nibble was followed by another.

  I dreaded asking her, but the next question had to be asked. “Do you remember anything, Taylor?”

  Tears streaked down her dirty cheeks. She nodded. “Everything. I fell asleep. When I woke up, my mom was screaming. My dad…” She choked back a sob and put the crackers down. “I ran and hid in the tree house. Some people found me and everything seemed like it was going to be okay.”

  Max put his arm around her and gave her a squeeze.

  “But then one day, I fell asleep and when I woke up, I was stuck.” She buried her face in her arms but kept talking. “I was still me, but I wasn’t. I did things I didn’t want to..” She ran off the step and puked up the little bit of water and crackers she’d had.

  I knelt beside her, rubbing her back. “Ssshhhh. It’s okay, sweety. It wasn’t you. You’re not the one who did that.”

  “Sometimes… sometimes, I almost made myself stop.”

  I thought back to the Yellow Eye who had hesitated at the sight of my gun pointed at his chest. He’d known I was going to shoot him. He’d known he’d been about to die but the sprite had managed to override his better judgment and he’d come at me anyway. I felt the bile rising. All of those people we’d killed…

  Lane knelt beside us, his eyes wide.

  “They were still people,” I whispered before running to hide behind the truck as I heaved up everything I’d had to eat that day. When I returned, I looked from one pale face to another. The realization of what we’d done had us all shocked into silence.

  “Come have a bath, Taylor.” I decided the best way to deal for the time being was to do something else. I showed her the bathroom and where shampoo, conditioner, soap, and toothpaste were. “Hand me your clothes when you’re undressed and I’ll get them cleaned up.”

  She nodded as she closed the door between us.

  “Why don’t you give them to me, Gabby.” Marie took the clothes from me as they came through the crack in the door. “I have a couple pairs of pants I can take in. I’ll use hers as a model for size. She shouldn’t wear these again.”

  “I’ll go grab a couple of mine you can convert, too.”

  I waited until I heard the water splashing before heading off to my room to find some clothes for Taylor.

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  “Gabby?” There was a soft knock in the darkness. “Are you sleeping?”

  I sat up in bed and lit the candle on the night stand. “Taylor. Are you okay?”

  “I… I can’t sleep.”

  I smiled, not surprised. After her bath, she’d slept for over twenty four hours, only getting up once to have a drink of water and go to the bathroom.

  Lane rubbed his hands over h
is face. “What’s wrong?” he asked sleepily.

  “Nothing.” I kissed him softly. “Go back to sleep.”

  Taylor and I made our way into the living room where I stoked the fire so I could boil some water for tea.

  “Are you having bad dreams?” I sat beside Tay and both of us stared into the flames.

  She shook her head. “No. I thought I would, but no.”

  “Well, that’s good.” I got up, took the last two bags of chamomile tea out of the box, and added water to the cups.

  “I’m scared that if I fall asleep, it will happen again.” Her voice trembled.

  “It won’t happen.”

  “How do you know?”

  I smiled. “We have Maxy. If he could get the sprite out of you, you can be damn sure that now that you’re here with us, not one of them is going to try and show its face again.” I tried to sound confident thought it had occurred to me that now that her sprite was free, it might go back to Terra and tell her where we were.

  “I thought you said Max killed it.”

  “Right. See, I thought he had, but Max isn’t sure if he killed it or if he sent it back to its own realm.” There really was no point in lying. The girl had been through hell and back. Though she might be young, she wasn’t stupid.

  “And Max is going to save us?” She took a sip of her tea, cringed, and blew on it.

  “That’s the plan.” While she’d been asleep, another Yellow Eye had wandered near the farm. Grant and Jason, who’d been out hunting at the time, had managed to bring it back to the house in one piece. Silver and yellow light flashes later, we’d welcomed a mid-forties woman named Kathrine to our group. It was now her turn to sleep off the exhaustion.

  “And he’s going to do that by getting rid of all the… the Yellow Eyes?” Taylor tried her tea again, smiled, and took a bigger sip.

  I nooded. “When he’s strong enough, he’ll try to stop this completely by killing his brother, Glade. He’s the one in charge of the sprites.”

  “You know, if this was a movie, it would be awesome.” She smiled.

  “Fucking zombie apocalypse.” I squeezed my lips shut. “Sorry.”