Fierce Dawn (35 page)

“
I know you will,” Holly said. “You’re too weak to fight. Crusoe will come and take you and it will all start over. Fresh.”

“
What then, Holly?” Sadie needed time she didn’t have. “What if Elijah finds out what you’ve done
?
What if he comes after me?”

Holly hissed, stepping toward Sadie, her hand open like a claw.

Sadie shoved Heather back, facing Holly off. Pulsing energy wound through her like a snake.

Heather fell to the floor and a quick glance confirmed what Sadie feared. A sheen of sweat broke over her sister’s skin. She clawed at her neck. “What’s she doing to me? Sadie? Please. Make her stop!”

The growl came from deep within Sadie. The energy pulsing inside of her locked into place. Sadie closed the space between her and Holly, she leapt in the air and sliced her hands downward at the elemental. Holly faltered, faced Sadie off with a blow that hit Sadie like a sonic boom and threw into the wall.

Holly’s face lit with satisfaction, the flaming circle burned higher. Sadie slid down the wall and crouched low. She didn’t trust her chances at successfully transporting
,
but she did have one thing on her side.

Holly underestimated her.

Sadie tried to appear hurt. Holly walked forward, stopped in front of Sadie. By her hair, Holly forced her up. Anger drummed through Sadie. It took all her will to hang limply, to ignore the pain. Holly brought her to eye level and Sadie unleashed her rage. Good old
-
fashioned human style, she punched Holly’s jugular. Coughing, Holly clutched her throat, releasing her. Sadie side-kicked Holly’s shin with all her force, knocking her back. Heather got to her feet and leapt into the air in a dizzying spin
,
then transformed
…
into Monica!

Sadie gasped, spellbound
,
as the chameleon came down on top of Holly and drove an elbow at her face. Holly screeched, swinging her arm outward, tossing Monica at the wall Sadie’d clamored from. The circle of flames died down but the nearby drapes had caught fire.

Sadie didn’t have time to worry over the burning curtains, though. A blur of movement spun into her vision and collided with her. Sadie landed on her back, her head crashing onto the stone tiled floor. She put a hand to her scalp and found wetness there. The blur came to a stop. “Crusoe,” she whispered.

His dragon-like wings spread out behind him like a demon’s. Long, deep scars marred his jaw. She knew his face. From her dreams. From the hospital. She must have transported Heather just in time.

“
Crusoe, stop,” Elijah called out from somewhere behind the man.

Her heart pounded a new
,
terrified beat. Memories in dreamscapes rushed forth. Elijah and this man. Her vision wobbled. What was her mind trying to grasp? Crusoe swung closer, the high ceiling above him swirled or was it something else? Her memory went blank and white
-
hot pain streaked through her skull as something hard came down upon it.

Sadie shut her eyes and enfolded her thin wings around her body. Groans and shrieks of agony filtered through the roaring in her ears. A snap. Crashing. Her only thoughts were of surviving, of her sister surviving. Of Elijah. She curled into herself and wished she had the strength to get to Heather.

But how? Elijah wouldn’t know her sister was there, somewhere, either. But Holly did. Sadie breathed in and out and forced her eyes open. The scene rioted before her. Suspended mid-air Elijah held Crusoe by the throat. They pushed, rotated, wrestling for control. Holly cast a glowing, pulsing ball at Monica. Lyric intercepted it, shoving Monica back and attacking Holly.

Each swift strike at Holly revealed deadly determination. Despite the piles of flames patch
-
working the floor, Sadie got icy chills. Monica disappeared, mimicking the flames, the floor. Sadie lost track of her. It didn’t matter.

She had to get to Heather.

The hallway stretched out like an uncoiled snake. Why hadn’t Elijah or Crusoe transported? Her only answer forced her to move. Holly was right. Crusoe came here for Sadie. Had Elijah not arrived, the missing and found seeker would have stolen her inside of a blink.

Creeping low and slow, praying no one spotted her, Sadie slinked away. It would take a fraction of a moment for Crusoe to grab what he came for, if he had the chance. If Holly shouted out, if Elijah faltered, seeing her movements.

Her heart climbed into her throat. Where was Monica? Where was Astrid? Once Sadie got to Heather, it would all be okay. The need to get to her gripped her by the throat and guts. Her sister needed her. Now. Fast.

A few yards and out of sight, she could sprint. Sadie pressed low, finding a safe wall and inched down the beckoning corridor. Sweat trickled down the tip of her nose. She kept her eyes on the scene, felt with her hands and senses, willing Heather to be safe.

Elijah and Crusoe careened from wall to wall to floor and back up.

Lyric howled a warrior’s cry, lunging for Holly who evaded him again and again.

A wild thought infected Sadie. What if Heather hadn’t gone back to Elijah’s bedroom? What if Crusoe brought others? She had to get there.

Something hard entwined Sadie’s ankle. She gulped back a startled screech when Monica materialized, winked at her before disappearing again.

Sadie realized Monica was hiding her. The room blurred as the Chameleon masked her. Sadie reached out, found Monica’s waist
,
but dared not speak. Slowly at first, they moved together down the long hallway, breaking into a run once nearing Elijah’s door.

The door was locked. Sadie knocked softly but panic shook her. “Heather?” She knocked again, jiggling the knob. “Heather, you have to open the door. Please. It’s Sadie.” She kept her voice low.

Monica materialized. Watching for anyone coming, though, by the sound of it no one yet saw she’d gone, she pounded as well. But there was no answer.

“
Heather,” Sadie said, more incessantly. “Open the door. Now!”

Sadie opened her wings, wondering how in the world she could ever gather enough energy to push herself through that door. The mere idea of passing through the dense wood particles irritated her skin. Whatever strength she could marshal, she had to save it for fighting.

She had to protect her baby sister, be it with fledgling immortal skill or plain, primal human teeth and elbows and nails.

Monica stepped out and disappeared again. The commotion fell quiet. Desperation coughed through Sadie.

She smacked the door again and again. “Heather! Please! Open the door now!” Footsteps echoed down the hallway. Running footsteps.

“
Heather,” Sadie screamed as Monica blocked out splotches of view from camouflaging their bodies.

The knob clicked and turned. Sadie shoved inside as Monica slipped away and two shadowed forms blurred forward. Sadie slammed the door closed and wrapped her arms around Heather.

“
Sadie,” Heather cried. “Sadie, I’m scared.”

Before she could tell her sister everything would be alright, the door burst open. Heather froze. Sadie whipped about, fists ready—“Elijah!”

~ ~ ~

Chapter Twenty-five

Sadie almost crumbled from relief
,
but Elijah caught her into his arms and crushed her first. A throaty laugh escaped her
,
along with every last drop of fear. “What took you so long
?
” she
asked
, dropping her cheek to his chest.

“
So long?” Elijah said, his voice heavy with emotion. Carefully, he pulled away. He met her gaze. “It isn’t over yet, Sadie.”

Lyric stepped around and, seeing Monica helping Heather sit on the bed, halted.

“
What do you mean? They’re gone
,
aren’t they?”

“
Like demons back to hell,” Lyric said. “But they’ll be back. Leastwise, Crusoe will be.”

Elijah appeared weary
,
yet his stare glittered. The enormity of what happened hit her. She needed to understand the impact of this blow on him. “Did you know…before you saw him…that he and Holly—that he was alive?”

“
I knew he was alive.” Heartache rang in his tone
,
though. He stepped back from her. “I suspected he knew I thought his life was in danger, but this? No.”

It was all she could do not to
fall
back into his arms. But what could she do? Say?

“
Elijah,” Lyric said. “We can’t stay. He’ll come for her.”

As though snapped back to reality, Elijah nodded. “You and Monica go east. Try to create a subtle trail. We can meet up once you know he hasn’t followed.”

“
He has Jen,” Sadie said. “Holly gave him my mother’s journals.”

“
I want to know now, Lyric,” Elijah said. “What have you been keeping from me
?
”

Lyric winced. “You aren’t going to like it.”

“
I think it matters little how much I like or dislike it, if you have a theory, I need to hear it. Now, because Crusoe will be back any minute.” Elijah took Sadie by both arms. “Please don’t think I take your safety lightly, or Jen’s. I need to focus on what we could be up against.”

Sadie focused her attentions on Heather. She sat next to her sister, who stared from one face to another, shaking her head. The tension in the room was dizzying enough without acknowledging the upheaval in her heart.

Elijah was here. Heartache could wait.

“
I left here a year ago because Holly played me. I fell for her.” Lyric kept his eyes on Elijah, gauging his reaction.

Elijah narrowed his eyes on Lyric.

“
I know, I know. Me, in love with anyone
,
let alone my lifelong friend who, by all rights should be like a sister to me
.
The thing is, it made little sense after I left. Why would Holly turn her eye my way when she so obviously preferred someone else?”

“
Like Elijah?” Monica said.

Sadie swallowed.

“
She refused me, claimed to love Crusoe,” Lyric said.

“
She refused Crusoe,” Elijah said, quietly. “She swore it when he left. She chose friendship over love. She regretted it, begged me to find him.”

Lyric took a shaky breath. “Holly has loved you all of her life, Elijah. But when it became apparent that you couldn’t see her as more than a friend, she began a flirtation with me and with Crusoe. When I found her and Crusoe secreting off together, I confronted her. She lied. I confessed to him. All of it. We fought. I left.”

Lyric’s lips curled downward. “I found Charity. Or perhaps she found me. I discovered Crusoe left after I did and I blamed myself. Holly encouraged my belief that Crusoe asked her to choose and when she couldn’t, became enraged.” He paused. “Charity strung me along with lies about Crusoe, and lured me with false hope.”

“
I don’t mean to be caustic
,
but very little of this is new information, Lyric.” Elijah turned to face Sadie. “I can’t delay transporting Sadie any longer.”

“
I think she should stay,” Monica interjected.

“
Absolutely not.” Elijah came to stand in front of her, blocking Lyric access. “You have nothing new to say. I’m taking her. Now.”

“
No,” Sadie said. “I won’t leave Heather. She isn’t taking this well.”

Elijah glanced at her sister and after a moment sighed. “I’ll transport her to safety. To wherever you like. But I will not risk you again. We don’t have time to argue.”

“
I don’t think she can go through that again. I don’t know if I did it right. What if I hurt her? Can Astrid check her
?
” Sadie held to Heather a bit more tightly. Was it shock or the transporting that had put her in such a state?

Elijah shook his head. “She returned over realm lines. I don’t know when she’ll be able to return.”

“
If she stays, Elijah, you and I can take on Crusoe,” Lyric said.

“
She isn’t bait,” Monica said and stood. “We all need to stay. It gives us home field advantage.”

“
Don’t you see, Elijah?” Lyric stepped closer. “Crusoe isn’t merely linked to the Illeautians. He is the Illeautians.”

Elijah scowled. “The answer is no. I’ll find him on my own. Once Sadie is safe, I’ll find Jen, I’ll take care of Crusoe.”

“
The way you did before?” Monica
asked.
“Or have you forgotten that if not for Holly taking off with Sadie’s journal, you’d still think he was missing.”

“
No. Not this time,” Elijah said. “Not now that I know the truth.”

Lyric scoffed. Heather’s eyelids fluttered. She collapsed back onto the bed. “Please, stop. Take Heather, Elijah. Take her to a hospital. Something is very wrong and I don’t care who is coming back for me. I need my sister to be okay.”