The Chosen Ones Read online

Chapter 2

  “You want to live?” Suddenly Will loomed over me, sword in hand. His appearance jerked me from my stupor. He tore Jim from my grip and shoved the boy down the hall. “Get off your ass. You don’t, you’ll die under their hands.”

  The sound of terrified screams startled me. The noise was too much like the killings that had happened at the castle, the shrieks I’d heard when I’d lived in the compound. Fear held me immobile and all I could do was stare down that dark hall, waiting for the beautiful ones to appear and destroy me for good.

  Will shoved a sword into my hands. “Jimmy, find Kelly and gather the kids.”

  I fumbled to grasp the cumbersome, unfamiliar weapon. “Wh…what do I do with it?”

  “Cut off their heads,” Will explained. “It’s the only way to make sure they’re dead.”

  I stared unblinkingly at him. “Cut off their heads?”

  The words made no sense to me. Before I could ask him to repeat his command, because surely I’d misheard him, he spun around and raced toward the great room, into the fray. I wondered, for a brief moment, if I would ever see him again. It was an odd disconnected thought, like wondering if it would rain that day, and not really caring either way.

  “Run!” someone cried, the high-pitched scream raising the fine hairs on the back of my neck.

  Slowly, I lowered my gaze to the sword. It might as well have been one of the computers I’d read about in my books, for it made about as much sense. I didn’t know how to fight. I, apparently, didn’t know much of anything. The absurdity of it all had me laughing for the first time in weeks: a harsh, dry cackle that made me sound more like a witch than a human.

  Shaking my head, I tried to clear my muddled mind. I wasn’t sure which terrified me more, my crazed, wayward thoughts or the idea of the beautiful ones arriving. One thing was clear…I needed to move or I would die. Somehow I managed to tuck my feet underneath me, and using the wall for support, I stood. The sword began to slip from my damp hands. I caught it just before it clanged to the floor. But I didn’t have time to breathe a sigh of relief. The screams and shouts of those in the great room echoed like an endless nightmare down the hall, rolling toward me and vibrating against my skull. The attacks were happening all over again. But this time, I had a feeling I wouldn’t survive.

  “Run!” a nameless human cried out, a shadow that darted by me.

  Run where, I wanted to scream back. Instead, I squeezed my eyes shut, and tried to pretend I was anywhere but there in that crumbling building. Why couldn’t that mind-numbing darkness come now? But no, I was left with only cold, harsh reality. I gripped the hilt of the sword tighter. I’d hide until they left. They wouldn’t make it down here, this far into the building. Will would stop them, wouldn’t he? Another cry echoed down the hall. I cringed, sweat breaking out across my forehead. The scream was closer. Too close.

  The beautiful ones had arrived, and they were headed my way.

  The sudden pounding of footsteps had me pushing away from the wall, sword gripped tightly in front of me. Jim burst from the darkness, followed by five other children.

  “Hurry, Jane,” he panted, the look of terror in his innocent eyes almost my undoing. “We’re headed to the children’s ward to hide. Come with us!”

  But he was gone before I could question him further, the other children following his lead, melting into the shadows toward some unknown destination. They’d done this before, they knew where they were going. I knew nothing.

  “Wait!” I called out, but my cry was lost within the screams of those from the great room.

  Terror gripped me in its icy clutches and wouldn’t let go. It took all the strength I had to move, my legs shaking so badly I thought for sure I’d trip and impale myself on the sword. I didn’t know where the children’s ward was located and could no longer hear their footsteps over the cries of those dying down the hall, but one thing remained first and foremost in my mind…if they were headed into a room here with no windows and only one exit, then they were as good as dead if the beautiful ones broke through Will’s defense.

  “Go!” Kelly suddenly appeared, grabbing onto my arm and pulling me down the hall. She looked as frightened as Jim, and her terror disturbed and terrified me all at once. I had counted on them to lead the way, to know what to do, but I was left with the disheartening realization that Kelly, Will, all of them, weren’t any more prepared than I was.

  “We have to hide with the children.”

  “But, Kelly…”

  She ran too fast and my weak body couldn’t keep pace. My hand slipped from hers. She didn’t look back, but raced ahead after the children, assuming I’d follow. Using the wall as support, I somehow managed to stumble forward, moving in a daze. But my muscles trembled from disuse, and my mind was beginning to shut down, the light fading, that blissful numbness calling to me.

  I turned the corner, hoping my legs wouldn’t give out. The group was gone. Two long, dark halls remained. Panting in indecision, I merely stood there, the sword hanging heavily from my fingertips. I could hide. It would be easy…so easy to fall back into that world of nothingness, a world without pain, without fear.

  Shouts rang out, startling me. The noise came from nowhere and everywhere at once. Left and right, it echoed against the stone walls so I wasn’t sure which direction they were headed.

  Dropping the sword with a clang, I pressed my palms to my ears and squeezed my eyes shut. “No, no, no.”

  A place to hide. Rationally, I knew I needed somewhere to hide. Shoving aside the numbness, I scooped up a lantern in one hand and the sword in my other. There was still a tiny kernel of fight left within me. I needed to try, at least, to live. I shuffled down the hall, searching the darkness, hoping to find some hidden door where the real world couldn’t penetrate. The further into the bowels of the skyscraper I traveled, the softer the sounds became, giving me hope. Maybe the children were right to come this way, maybe they would be safe deep within the earth. Holding the lantern high, I turned a corner and paused. There, on the ground, a body lay sprawled across the corridor. I recognized him as one of Will’s men, but didn’t know his name.

  “Hey,” I called out in a harsh whisper. “You need to get up!”

  He didn’t move.

  Gingerly, I inched toward him, his pale hair shimmering in the lantern light like the golden necklaces I’d seen the beautiful ones wear. Surely he couldn’t have been sleeping through the attack. I knelt and reached out, pushing on his shoulder. No movement. Strange. I grabbed the lantern, bringing it closer and it was only then that I noticed the dark red pool of blood surrounding his head and shoulders. Surging upright, I tripped over my own feet. The beautiful ones had made it to the children’s ward.

  My heart leapt into my throat, my mouth going dry. Frantically, I searched the area, attempting to decipher man from shadow, to hear the sound of unwelcome footsteps over the rapid beat of my heart. But I could barely hear anything and my mind refused to think.

  Go! Run! My instincts screamed at me.

  Stumbling, I stepped around the body, not daring to give it more than a glance. Some sort of metal desk blocked the hall. Clutching my sword, I sat on the discarded furniture and scooted over the top, making sure not to cut myself on the rust. One cut and the injury could become infected. I’d seen it happen more than once. Not that it would matter if a beautiful one found me.

  Where had the children gone? Were they already dead? The sound of laughter, a merry chuckle, floated down the hall. A beautiful one. The constant fear I’d felt fled. I had to find Kelly and Jim before it was too late.

  Like the very world mocked me, a high-pitched scream rent the air, a terrifying wail that sent chills over my skin. Searching for Kelly and Jim would be suicide. Stupid. And I’d never been stupid. I slumped down against the wall, hidden behind the desk. I would survive this. I had before. I would hide here until they left. Besides, even if I wanted to leave, I couldn’t. My body was trembling
so badly I wasn’t sure if I could move, let alone run or swing the sword. Still, I clasped the hilt like it was my only link between life and death.

  “Fire!” someone yelled.

  Fire? For a brief moment my confused mind couldn’t process the thought. Then it hit me…they were going to smoke us out. Tom had done it before with the rabbits when they were eating the crops. Sure enough, moments later I smelled the telltale scent of smoke drifting down the corridor. Clutching the sword, I lowered myself to the ground where the air would remain fresh. There was no choice, I had to find a way out. Gingerly, I slid the sword into the back of my shirt, using it as a makeshift sheath, the cold blade resting against the skin between my shoulder blades. On my hands and knees, I started crawling away from the desk, hoping there would be an exit ahead.

  “Leave her alone!” Jim’s voice pierced through the surge of cries, a tiny voice within a sea of monstrous growls.

  “Jim?” I whispered.

  “Help!” the boy screamed, as if sensing me. “Help us!”

  I glanced back, hoping to see Will charging through the smoke, but I was alone. Utterly alone. I forced my legs to hold me and stood, pulling the sword from my shirt and stumbling toward Jim’s cry. As much as I was loathe to admit it, the cowardly part of me wished I could run the other way. But the children were being attacked and no one was coming to their rescue. Racing down the hall toward Jim’s scream, I realized in the deep recesses of my mind that I was most likely running toward death. My footsteps slowed. Sally had died alone because I’d been too much of a coward to help her—I would not make that mistake now.

  At the end of the hall I paused for a brief moment to catch my breath. The smoke, at least, had not reached this hall yet. Taking in a deep breath, I peeked around the corner and studied the children’s ward. Not quite as big as the great hall, but it was a wide, open space with cots and lanterns for the children. They’d done their best to make it a home. And now it was a trap, a coffin.

  Kelly stood in front of the children, a useless dagger in hand as she tried her best to protect them. A tall man with long, dark hair and clothes of colorful silk had them cornered. My fear gave way to anger. What had Will been thinking to send one person to protect a group of little ones?

  “Please,” Kelly whispered, her wide eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “They’re just children. They aren’t ripe. You have no use for them, let them go. Take me instead.”

  I pulled back, hiding behind the wall, and staring up at the dark ceiling in indecision. Could Kelly and I take the man together, or was he stronger than even the both of us combined? I closed my eyes, sucking in a reassuring breath. They had saved me. They had brought me here. Fed me. I owed them.

  “Shut up, cow,” the beautiful one growled.

  I opened my eyes, my hands tightening around the hilt of my sword. How I hated him. Hated that perfect face and fine clothing. Hated that he controlled whether we lived or died.

  “Not today,” I whispered.

  Today I’d save Kelly and Jim even if it meant giving up my own worthless life. I swiped the sweat from my brow. If I raced into that room and attacked, he would most likely end up killing us all. My body was too weak to fight him. But maybe…just maybe I could lure him away until Will and his friends got there.

  I focused on the area around me. Something. I needed…

  A piece of cement lay only a few feet away, a chunk that had fallen from the decaying walls. Determined, I drew back my leg and kicked the small rock. It went skittering across the floor, hitting the wall with a ping. Not loud, but loud enough for the beautiful one to hear.

  I didn’t wait around to see if he followed. If I wanted any chance at all to survive, I wouldn’t have time. Using what little energy that remained in my body, I raced down the hall, into the darkness. The sound of my own exhausted pant made it impossible for me to hear if he followed. Part of me hoped he did, the other part, the cowardly part, hoped he hadn’t.

  As I turned the corner I dove into a wall of smoke. Lanterns that had been left behind gave the corridor an eerie yellow haze, only adding to the nightmarish atmosphere. I coughed, covering my mouth and nose with the neckline of my shirt. At the end of the hall I turned left, away from the smoke burning my eyes and choking the air from my lungs. Seeing that familiar desk, I dove over it and fell to the ground. The body of Will’s friend lay just a few feet away.

  Terrified, I huddled behind that desk, clutching the sword against my chest, and waited. As the minutes ticked, I had the unsettling realization that the screams had stopped. Silence meant one of two things…either the beautiful ones had killed everyone, or Will and his men had won. Sweat trailed down my forehead, stinging my eyes, but I didn’t dare move to brush it away.

  “Please, please let them be alive,” I whispered.

  “This way, I’m sure of it,” a man’s melodic voice echoed down the hall.

  Not Will or any of his friends. No, this voice was too perfect, too beautiful. I cringed, biting my lip to keep from whimpering. The man from the children’s room. A beautiful one. He had followed me after all. Elation fought with terror. I gripped the sword with damp palms.

  Cut off his head. Cut off his head.

  Will’s words of wisdom repeated over and over through my mind and I almost laughed at the absurdity of it all. Right, I’d merely attack him, cut off his head, and then we’d all live happily ever after.

  “Roman, you idiot, you’re just hearing things,” another man muttered.

  I stiffened in horror. Two beautiful ones?

  Footsteps thudded against the floor, vibrating the very hall. I was going to die. Sally flashed to mind, beautiful in her white gown right before the beautiful ones had attacked and murdered her, draining her blood…

  “I can smell you,” Roman said, chuckling as if it was all some game.

  The acidic taste of bile surged up my throat. He knew I was here. The idea of a surprise attack fled just as quickly as it had come.

  “It’s all right,” Roman said in a soft, kind voice that mocked the horror of my situation. “Everything will be fine. Just come out. We will forgive you.”

  His friend started laughing, the joke apparently highly amusing. Just like that my fear gave way to anger, a burning hatred that pulsed through my veins. My grip tightened around the hilt, and the urge to jump to my feet and swing that sword overwhelmed me. But I wasn’t trained to fight, and so I would have to use my brains instead.

  “Come, my dear,” Roman’s friend called out. “The waiting will only make it worse.”

  How little he knew. The waiting was all I had. His sweet scent floated toward me and I realized just how near they were. Their footsteps thudded close. So close that dust and debris fell from the ceiling, pattering to the ground at my feet.

  “She’s here,” Roman whispered. “I can smell her.” He jumped atop the desk with a thunk, a dark shadow that suddenly hovered over me. “Hello, my love.”

  I didn’t scream, I didn’t cry. Instead, I grew oddly calm. As he leapt from the desk I did the only thing I could—I lifted the sword. The entire world seemed to slow down. Instinctively, I closed my eyes as he fell upon the blade. I could hear the swoosh of the steel going through his torso and then suddenly he landed atop me, flattening me to the ground. Shocked, for a long moment I merely lay there under his weight, the hilt of the sword digging into my gut while his warm blood poured down around me, soaking my silly ruffled shirt.

  “Roman?” his friend cried out, followed by the thunder of feet.

  I used what little strength I had left to push him off me. He rolled onto his side, my sword still piercing his torso. With my heart hammering wildly against my rib cage, my body and mind screaming at me to run, I pressed my feet into his chest and pulled the sword free. It was as the blade was back in my hands that I heard him groan. I froze for a split second, realizing he still lived.

  Behead him. Behead him.

  I jumped to m
y feet. I didn’t think, merely lifted the weapon and swung. The blade sliced through his neck, only to come to a stuttering halt as it hit bone.

  “Ahhh!” he cried out, clawing at the weapon.

  Determined, I shoved my foot into his chest for momentum, and pulled the blade free.

  “You bitch!” his friend screamed.

  As the other beautiful one jumped at me, I swung the sword for a second time, this one harder. The blade sliced through Roman’s neck, hitting the cement floor with a thud. His head tumbled away, rolling down the corridor like a ball. It was done. Before I could lift my weapon again, the other beautiful one was over the desk and on me. We fell to the ground, my skull slamming against the hard floor. Pain shot down my spine. A startled cry escaped my lips as the world around me wavered in and out of focus.

  Weak and stunned, the sword slipped from my grip, clanging across the floor. In the low lantern light I could see the hatred in his gaze, the look of pure determination to take my life. He gripped my neck with his strong fingers. The air around me fled. My head pounded, my lungs burning.

  Something…I needed something. Frantic, I swung my arm wide, reaching out… My fingers brushed the cold metal of my sword. I gripped the blade, not even pausing when it cut into my hand, and swung it toward his head. The hilt of the sword hit his temple. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make him loosen his hold. Wonderful air seeped down my throat and into my lungs. Gasping, I sucked in as much as I could.

  “You’ll pay, cow.” Hands raised, he started toward my throat once more.

  Whimpering, I shoved my feet into the floor, trying to throw him off, but he wouldn’t budge. Those strong fingers caught my neck again. I clasped his wrists, digging my nails into his flesh. It did no good. I was going to die after all. The light faded, and my lungs burned with an intensity that had tears blurring my vision. I shifted my gaze, refusing to look into his eyes when I died, and that’s when I saw Will standing on the desk.

  For a brief moment I thought I’d imagined him…until he jumped. With a cry, he leaped down, swinging his sword in a great arc like one of the warriors I’d read about. The blade hit the vampire’s neck. It didn’t pause as mine had, but swiped cleanly through the animal as Will landed nimbly on his feet beside us.

  The beautiful one collapsed onto his side, his head rolling down the hall and into the shadows. I was barely aware of the blood splattering across my trousers. Because as that head rolled to a stop against the wall, I was reminded of Thanatos and the way he’d ripped that man’s head from his body the night he’d saved me. The night I’d realize just how strong the beautiful ones really were.

  Thanatos.

  I hadn’t thought about him in days. Suddenly, the entire skyscraper faded. Will, who was checking the bodies to make sure both beautiful ones were truly dead, no longer mattered. The smoke curling down the hall wasn’t important. All these days while I’d been half-dead, the memory of Thanatos had been like a mere dream, something that tempted me when I slept. Had he been enemy or friend?

  Lantern light suddenly flashed across my face, momentarily blinding me and bringing me back into reality. “You okay?” Will asked, kneeling in front of me.

  I nodded, although I wasn’t sure. Physically, yes, I supposed I was well enough, although my throat hurt. Emotionally, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be okay again. I swallowed hard, daring to look at the two bodies, still unmoving. So much blood. Thanatos was a beautiful one, he belonged with them, yet he had saved me, hadn’t he? I wasn’t sure anymore. The entire time at the castle was a blur.

  “Jane?” Will watched me with a critical eye, as if he searched for something, yet wasn’t quite sure what he looked for. “You saved them.”

  I didn’t respond. There was a question to this statement, although what he asked I didn’t know, nor did I care. My gaze dropped to the two bodies near my feet; they were beings who had been breathing only moments before. I had killed one. I had taken a life. Oddly, I felt numb about the whole thing. There was no sense of vengeance or relief, only nothingness.

  “Kelly and the children…you saved them. I saw you.”

  “Yeah,” I whispered, my throat painfully sore. I swore I could still feel his fingers around my neck. I crossed my arms, hoping Will didn’t noticed how much I trembled. “I couldn’t let them die. Not like that.”

  He nodded like he understood. And he did. Will had saved me. He’d saved hundreds in this never-ending battle. “They’re dead, the few blood drinkers who found our lair. But we have to leave the city. It’s been compromised.”

  I didn’t protest. There was nothing here for me. I belonged nowhere. He reached out his hand. I hesitated, staring at his strong fingers and thinking of the beautiful one who had tried to choke me. But Will wasn’t a vampire. He was human, like me. Steeling my nerves, I slipped my hand into his. He pulled me easily to my feet but didn’t release my hand.

  “Are you back now?” he asked, his breath warm across my face.

  I wanted to shrink away. “I don’t know.” I wasn’t sure. “Maybe.”

  “Good.”

  “They’re here!” Kelly called out, her voice echoing down the hall, followed by the thunder of footsteps. I’d never been so happy to see her.

  I pulled my hand from Will’s just as she came running up to the desk, Tony behind her.

  Her wide gaze followed the pattern of blood covering my clothing, then jumped up to my face. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded, watching them warily as they climbed over the desk. Being this close, having them stare…it was all too intimate.

  “Did you…” She looked down at the mess of blood and body parts littering the ground. I knew what she was asking. Funny, how only two weeks ago death, destruction, and blood had sent me into a tailspin. Now I could look at it without flinching.

  “I only killed one,” I replied, feeling slightly uncomfortable under their intense scrutiny. They were looking at me differently. Shocked, yes, but something else…as if they expected more from me now. I wasn’t sure I could offer more.

  “Just one?” Kelly laughed and wrapped her arm around my shoulders, pulling me close for a hug, despite my bloody clothing. I remained stiff, counting down the seconds until she finally released me and I could breathe again. “Just one?”

  “Holy crap, she killed a beautiful one?” Tony said, looking at Will for confirmation.

  I didn’t bother to explain that my killing had been more about luck than strength or cunning. Will picked up my sword, swiped the blood off with his shirt, and then handed it to me. “Well done. It’s yours now.”

  I took the weapon, the weight reassuring in some way. When my sister was little she’d made herself a doll out of wheat stalks and a dried apple. She’d kept that doll with her until it had fallen apart. She said it made her feel better, safe. Holding the sword, I finally understood.

  “We have to leave. They’ve found our base,” Will said, leaping over the desk with the agility of a guy who’d been running his entire life. “It’s time to move before they return with reinforcements.”

  He and Tony started back toward the main room, dismissing me and the killings. It was back to business. This was my new normal. I had no friends, no family. I had nowhere to go but with them.

  “Congrats.” Kelly grinned, helping me over the desk. “Not only did you save a room full of kids, you also killed your first beautiful one.”

  I didn’t respond. As we made our way down the hall I couldn’t help but glance back. I couldn’t see the bodies, but I knew they were there. Like ghosts, they followed me.

  How quickly my life had changed. They’d murdered Sally, and now I had gotten back at them. An eye for an eye—I supposed I finally understood that saying. It had taken the death of a beautiful one to bring me back to life. This was what revenge was all about. So why, then, didn’t I feel any better?

  Chapter 3