Fractured Truth (23 page)

“Cyrus isn’t going to be happy,” Danny said.

Christian straightened, paused, then turned around and approached Danny. Before anyone could do anything, he removed a blade from behind his back and sliced Danny’s head off. The other two quickly backed away. “Someone’s going to pay for this,” he said while wiping the ash from his blade against his jeans. He came back to me and pressed the cold steel of the dagger to my throat.

It was in that moment when my darker half kicked in, and this time it was me who moved faster than he could blink. I knocked the blade from his hand, moved behind him, and wrapped my arm around his throat. Using both Light and strength, I brought him to his knees. The other Vykens rushed forward, but, using my free hand, I shot a spray of Light at the nearest one, knocking him ten feet back. This gave the other pause.

Christian tried to laugh, but it came out all wrong on account of me squeezing his throat.
I could kill him now
.

I squeezed harder. A small part of me, a part I didn’t think I had left, remembered all the times he had protected me and made me feel loved. It begged me to stop. I loosened my grip while my darker half cursed me for being weak.

“This is what’s going to happen,” I said. “You are going to take me back to wherever May and the others are being held. That’s the only way I’ll go back with you, do you understand?”

Christian nodded, but it was more of a shrug, like he didn’t care what happened.

I let go of him and backed away. He stood up slowly and rubbed his neck. Turning around, he said, “I am so turned on right now.”

“You disgust me,” I said and brushed by him into the car.

“Not so fast, Llona.”

I slowed up.

“Grab the ropes,” he said to the other two, motioning his head to the rear of the vehicle. “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this, although I must admit it’s always been a fantasy of mine. Bet you didn’t know that, did you, Llona?”

A Vyken with short red hair handed Christian a thin rope.

“Turn around,” he said and walked over to me.

“That’s not necessary. I’m not going anywhere.”

“It’s not to keep you with us. It’s for our protection.”

“What do you mean?”

He jerked me around and yanked my arms behind my back. “This is special rope made out of silver that’s been cursed by witches,” he said as he tied my arms. “It will prevent you from using Light.”

“I told you I’d go with you. This isn’t necessary.” Before he tightened the rope, I thought of Liam. Would I still be able to contact him? I pushed a thought quickly:
They are stopping my Light, I—

Christian cinched the rope tight, cutting off my message. I was alone.

We ended up exactly where
I thought we would: the warehouse. It was still dark when we arrived, and the air was cool, much colder than it had been earlier. The hole May had blasted through the side of the building had been patched up with plywood and thin metal sheets.

Christian hurried me into an alley and through a side entrance, placing me deeper into the great room, opposite of where Liam and I had entered previously. Lights high on the ceiling were turned low, but they were bright enough to expose the extent of Cyrus’s plan. I backed up, frightened by the sheer number of Vykens.

“Don’t be afraid,” Christian said, placing his hand on the small of my back. “No one will hurt you. They know you’re my girlfriend. Plus, I’m kind of a big deal around here. Cyrus really likes me, and he’s hoping things work out for us.” He took hold of my arm and pulled me forward.

The warehouse was larger than I originally thought, with three levels. An atrium-like center provided a view of all three floors. Several Vykens looked down at me from the third floor behind a metal railing, making me think of inmates in a huge prison. But they were hardly prisoners. That was to be my fate.

In the center of the atrium on a concrete floor was a boxing
ring. Larger than normal, it looked like. Three Vykens fought each other inside while dozens of others crowded the ropes, cheering for their favorite victor.

“It’s quite the operation Cyrus has built, isn’t it?” Christian asked. “Did you see the weapons?”

I glanced around until I saw what he was talking about. On the far side, an entire wall was covered in shelves, each of them full of what looked like swords, bows, guns, anything that could kill. The entire scene, the reality of how destructive Cyrus’s plan was, hit me all at once. Blood drained from my head, making me light-headed. I didn’t mean to, but I fell back against Christian. His arm came around me.

“I got you,” he said, his voice gentle and sweet, which made me even more ill.

“How do you guys think you’ll get away with this?” I asked. “With those kinds of weapons, the police are bound to find out, and then you’ll all be exposed.”

“And?”

My heart skipped a beat. “That’s what Cyrus wants, isn’t it?”

“Not just Cyrus. All of us, including other mystical races . . . Furies, Diablos—”

“But humans will overrun you! You’ll be hunted and killed.”

Christian ushered me forward again. “Not if Auras are out of the picture. Really, they’re the only ones who truly threaten our existence, but by our growing numbers, and the Auras’ lack of commitment to their abilities, you girls are screwed.” He opened a door. “Watch your step.”

He guided me down a long flight of stairs to a basement. It was dirtier down here than upstairs and smelled bad too, reminding me of the time my father took me to a horse stable to go riding. It was just after my mother had passed away. I never forgot the smell.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“I call it the basement, but others call it the dungeon.” He peeked in through a small window of a nearby door. I moved
to look through it too, but he pushed me forward. “Keep going,” he ordered.

I walked down the long hallway, taking in as much as I could for when I escaped. Every twenty steps or so, the hallway intersected with another just as long, and all of them looked alike. The place was a giant maze with locked doors everywhere.

“What’s in all these rooms?” I asked and glanced back at Christian.

“See for yourself.”

I moved to the nearest door and peeked through a dirty glass window. A girl with light brown hair was facing away from me, on a bed, an IV hooked to her arm.

“Oh no,” I whispered, one of my fears confirmed.

“We treat them well enough,” Christian said, picking at his teeth. “They get food every day, fresh water. We even let them bathe.”

“They’re not animals!”

The girl inside stirred and turned over. Air caught in my chest. “Valerie?”

“Let’s go,” Christian said, nudging me forward. “Your room’s on the end.”

“Where’s Sophie and May?”

“You’ll see them soon enough.” Christian stopped me when we reached the end of the hall. A photo of us was taped to the door. “Do you remember this?” he asked.

The photo was of Christian and me at the high school dance back in Utah. That felt like years ago. “Open the door, Christian.”

“But do you remember?”

I leaned my forehead against the cool wood of the door. “I remember being there with a boy I loved. I remember dancing with him, the little air between us, the way he looked at me as if I was the only girl in the world.” I leaned back and looked at him. “That boy wasn’t you. Now open the stupid door.”

His lips tightened, but he did as I asked. Inside was a small space, much like the room Valerie had been in, but this one
had a painting of the Cliffs of Moher hanging on a wall, and on another one, a poster of Batman.

“I tried to decorate it with some of your favorite things,” he said, his voice proud.

In the corner was a basket full of books. Why would he go to so much effort? I spun around, startling him, and searched his eyes, looking for any hint of the boy I once loved. “Leave this place with me, Christian. Maybe there’s still hope.”

He reached up and touched my cheek. “I’ll leave if we can disappear together. No Auras, no Vykens, just us.”

“But you know I can’t do that. I have to help May, Sophie, the other girls who are trapped here.”

He dropped his hand. “I don’t care about them.”

“I do.”

He looked at me for a few seconds, then lowered his eyes to my neck. “My necklace. Where is it?”

“I took it off.”

His face scrunched as if in pain. “Why would you do that?”

“Because the man who gave it to me is dead. It’s time I move on.”

His pained expression turned to anger. “You won’t be moving anywhere. This is your home now.” He turned around and slammed the door, leaving me alone in the cold room.

I sat on the bed, my wrists still bound behind my back. If I could just get untied I could contact Liam. I closed my eyes and moaned. And tell him what? To come save me? The place had at least four Vykens for every one of us that could fight, and that included those I knew of at the Deific, the Lycans, and even the Auras who were half ready to fight. We were outnumbered, but that wouldn’t stop Liam. He would storm the place to find me. Once upon a time Christian would’ve done the same thing.

I went horizontal on the bed, squirming until I found a semi-comfortable place to lie. I had to find a way out of here and fast. Only then would I be able to help the others. If I could just get the ropes off, then I could turn invisible. That would give me
a chance to get away, but not the others. There had to be a way to sneak them out, though.

A long time passed. I thought of every possible scenario, but they always led back to the same ending: there was going to be a fight.

I was pacing now while trying to stretch my arms behind me. I’d already searched the room looking for anything that might get the ropes off me, but found nothing. Even the glass in the small window turned out not to be glass, but a hard plastic I probably wouldn’t be able to break through without Light’s strength. I needed these stupid ropes off quick!

I paced again, up and to the side of the bed and then back again. It was a small bed with a metal frame. I stopped and stared down. Possibly. Maybe. One way to find out.

Using my feet, I slid the thin mattress from the bed, and stepped up on the very end of the metal rails. I bounced once. It groaned under the pressure. I bounced harder. Between each jump, I glanced toward the door and listened carefully. No one was coming. Using all the strength I had, I jumped one last time. The frame snapped into three pieces. Two of them broke at the joint, but one bar had splintered altogether, exposing exactly what I needed: a jagged edge.

The sound of footsteps had me scrambling for the mattress. I turned my back to it and with my fingers pulled it back onto the broken frame. I used my hips and legs to shove it all the way on, just as the door opened.

Christian stepped inside. Two Vykens, one in a striped shirt, the other wearing a yellow collared shirt, stood behind him.

“What did you do?” Christian asked, staring down at the bed.

I followed his gaze. The bed clearly looked broken, but at least the mattress hid the rail’s jagged edge. “You got me a cheap bed. It broke.”

He seemed to consider this. “We’ll get you a new one.”

“That’s okay. I can just put the mattress on the floor.”

“Not my girlfriend.” He glanced back at stripes. “Get her a new bed.”

Stripes grimaced like he’d just been assigned the worst job ever, but he didn’t say anything as he slinked back into the hall.

“Did you get some rest, Llona?” Christian asked.

“Kind of hard to do with my hands tied.”

“They won’t be like that for long. Come with me.”

“Where?”

He took hold of my arm and pulled me forward. “I’m taking you to see someone special.”

My heartbeat raced. “Is it May? Sophie?”

“Patience.” He steered me down a side hallway. The drywall on each side of me had what looked like water stains and mold growing up the sides. At one point the basement must’ve flooded. In the distance I still heard water sloshing.

Christian stopped at two double doors and pushed them open. This room was bright, with florescent lights instead of single bulbs. A long, white counter was just inside, lining the far wall. On its top were all sorts of lab instruments, and not far from it was a gurney, half of it stained a dark crimson color. I didn’t need my nose to tell me that it was blood.

“What is this room?” I asked, but a second later wished I hadn’t, especially when I saw a bloodied hammer lying on the counter.

Christian crossed the room to stand in front of two white curtains like what you’d see in a hospital. “Which one?” he asked.

“I don’t understand.”

“Pick curtain number one”—he held out his left hand—“or curtain number two.” He held out his right. “I’ll let you hug whoever is behind the one you choose. Oh, wait. Your hands are tied.” He chuckled. “I guess you can snuggle them.”

I thought of both Sophie and May. “I don’t want to play your game, Christian. Just open them both.”

“Go back to your room then.” He motioned for the collared-shirt Vyken to grab me.

“No, stop! I’ll play.” I looked at both curtains. “The right one.”

A smile played at the corners of his mouth. “Are you sure?”

I nodded.

Christian pulled back the curtain. Slumped over in a chair with a face almost unrecognizable was Jackson. His hair was matted with blood, and the right side of his face was swollen, the same color as his navy-blue shirt. A pool of blood lay beneath his chair.

“Go on now,” Christian said. “Give him a snuggle.”

Air caught in my lungs. As much as I despised Jackson for betraying Auras, he didn’t deserve this. I stumbled forward and fell to my knees in front of him. “Jackson?”

One of his eyelids opened; a bloodshot eye stared back at me. “Llona?” His voice was hoarse.

“You’re a monster, Christian,” I said, horrified.

Christian spit on the ground in front of me. “He got what he deserved.”

I looked Jackson over. He wasn’t bound, but his right thigh was completely open, exposing meaty flesh and muscle. He couldn’t get away if he had wanted to.

I wished there was something I could do for him, but just then Christian jerked me backward. “Don’t you want to see who’s behind curtain number one?” He flung the thin material back.