Resisting Fate (Predetermined) (24 page)

“Don’t fight it Zachary, you know what happens when you fight it.”

Frantically, I watched between them, until Zachary slumped down on the floor again with an anguished cry. I groaned myself, finally able to curl up into a ball, as a lightning bolt of pain surged from my head, back down to my toes. Son of a bitch! What was he doing to me, to us?

“There, much better…” Adrian grinned down at me. Zachary arched his neck off the ground to stare back at me. Adrian grabbed his ankles and drug him away. My mouth was no longer working. There was nothing I could say anyways to make him stop. Adrian had obviously made up his mind.

There’s that moment in time, right before pure and utter despair seems to hit, that moment when everything is at a standstill, unmoving, and out of control at the same time. And as I watched Zachary’s face stare back at me, I experienced it, all of it… Nothing had ever hurt worse.

“I love you, Emmy…” Zachary mouthed, throwing his arm over his shoulder as if he was trying to reach me, even though there was no humanly way possible he could do so. And then he was gone, and so was I. Lost in time where nothing really mattered anymore.

I didn’t wail, nor did I scream. I just laid there, letting the pain dig deeper down inside of my body. And as soon as the loss and ache found a home in my chest, another new emotion decided to battle for control, an emotion that I had almost forgotten I even had.

Determination, a will to go on. And I used it…every damn drop of it. Hell, you could even say I devoured it.

I pulled myself up into a sitting position. My wrists popped as I settled my weight onto all fours. “Shit!” I screamed, fighting the pain that sliced deeper into my core. I found my way, crawling slowly, carefully to the metal of the cage, finding that last pocket of strength inside my chest to pull my body into a standing position. My entire body throbbed with pain, but the pain accompanying my struggling served as the reminder that I needed to get out of there; served as a reminder that let me know I was still alive. That I still had a chance to save Zachary, even if it was the last thing I ever did.

“Helllllp!” I hollered loudly, pounding on the bars, knowing the entire time that it was a wasted effort. The door popped open, revealing a wild and crazed looking Adrian. I couldn’t help but hold out hope that something had changed as he crept in.

And then he opened my cage, scooting towards me with a new look on his face…a look of hope that I hadn’t seen before. My breath hitched. No longer were his eyes clouded over. No longer was there malice in grin. There was a fire in his eyes though. A fire that said he was there to save me.

 “Come on, Emmy, we don’t have much time. Jack’s going to kill me as it is…”

I shuddered and backed away, positioning my hands out in front of me.

“Don’t you dare say his name in front of me…ever again, I
hate
 him!” I spat. Hatred was gripping me once more as I pushed against his nearing chest.

“You don’t hate him, you love him. And he loves you too.” I screamed as he scooped me into his arms, cradling me to his chest as he kicked the gate and the black door open several seconds later.

“Don’t tell me who I love, you asshole.” I growled, squirming in his hold as he made his way down a dark hall. “Put me down!” My voice grew louder, demanding.

He laughed harshly, as he shook his head.

“You are something else.” He barked, breaking out into a sprint up a narrow set of stairs.

My thoughts ran wild as the cemented walls passed us on either side in quick blur. Where was he taking me? Why wasn’t he going back to get Zachary? It was pitch black outside I noted as we made it the upper level of the building. The moonlight shone through a set of windows, acting as an insta-flashlight. Vaguely, I could make out our surroundings. We weren’t in a building; it was more of a cabin like atmosphere. A few sparse pieces of furniture took up the small space around us, and Adrian threw me down on a couch before racing towards the front door. He pulled, trying to yank it open, groaning and cussing when it didn’t.

 I jumped as he pounded against the wood. “Shit, the door is spelled shut! Come on–come on, where are you, Jack?” He chanted as he yanked on the handle again, nervously glancing towards the steps we’d come from, and then back again to the window.

He knifed a hand through his hair and I shivered at his anxious behavior.

“Why are you doing this, Adrian? I thought you were going to get rid of me like the elders did with my dad? And where is Zachary? I need to see him, please!” I stood, fighting through my pain and sudden nausea as the room began to spin around me.

He stopped pacing, hell, he seemed to stop breathing, but the last thing he seemed to care about was that I was talking. His eyes never once came my way. I pressed my hand against the back of the couch to steady my quaking form. If he wasn’t going to watch me, then I was going to take the opportunity to go back for Zachary. My toes curled and tingled as I started to move around the couch. Now I had to pray that I’d finally developed some super ninja stealth skills to get away without his knowing.

“Ah, I see that mind of yours working, Miss Emerly but
you,
my dear, are not going anywhere.” I stiffened. My hands froze in midair as that voice surrounded my very being.

So much for my stealthy escape…

Terror rocketed through me and I fell back against the couch when I spotted the big-warlock Hartman’s face only a few feet from me. His smile was smug, his eyes…glowing. I winced. Oh hell and fish sticks, why were his eyes glowing? This was going to be…not so fun.

“What’s the matter, you little dreaming freak, does the kitty
 
cat got your tongue?”

I snarled, all bark no bite of course. I noticed his eyes were no longer on me, even though I knew I was still the one he was talking to. His glare was focused on his son stepping in front of me.

“No Dad, the game is over. I’m not going to let you hurt her. She’s Jack’s.”

“Ya always
were
 the soft one. Just. Like. Your. Mother.” His words went staccato as a gust of wind blew against my hair, and then my face. Holy hot balls, how in the hell did these warlock freaks do this? Tornado forced winds blew…in the middle of the room.

A powerful thud echoed against the wall. I screamed, scrambling to get to the door towards the basement. My palms slipped as I tried to twist the knob. My arms shook as I stared back over my shoulder. I hissed. I was in the middle of a horror movie, minus the scary ass masks and knives.

The man had his hands wrapped around Adrian’s neck, pressing him against the wall with only one, outstretched arm. Christ, no, not the choking thing… “This will teach you not to mess with your father.” A wet noise sounded from Adrian’s throat, but I couldn’t bring myself to watch anymore. I had a job to do…

I pushed against the door with my shoulder. My feet stumbled as I finally wrenched it open. “Yes,” I whispered, taking the steps two at a time.

Sweat pooled at my temples and between my shoulders, soaking my hair as it suctioned to my face. My shirt was drenched and hanging off my shoulders as cool and unwanted shivers slipped up and down my back. I pressed my hand on the wall, failing to find a light switch as I made it onto a flat, hard surface. The basement was even darker than before, like a dungeon that promised all sorts of scary things that I feared were inevitably about to come true if I didn’t hurry and find Zachary.

“Where are you, Zachary? Come on…come on…give me something to work with here!” I shouted to myself, opening every single door to every singled room I could visibly find.

Finally, I made to the only room left, the one room that had light filtering out from underneath the door. I paused, not really able to afford the moment of thinking, but I allowed it. That way I could mentally prepare for what might be on the other side. My hands never ceased to shake as I placed them onto the cold, metal knob. Slowly, I twisted it open, biting my lip in anticipation as I peeked through the crack.

There were two things I feared most in life. Number one: big, hairy ass black spiders. And the other thing I most feared? The unknown… I’ll admit, right then and there, I’d take a million spiders crawling all over my body, to the not knowing crap.

I slipped inside, with my back plastered against the wall. I clicked the door shut behind me as my heart did an immediate nosedive into my toes. I blinked, then shook my head, then covered my lips with my fingers as I finally rushed forward. “No! Oh, God, no!” I cried. It was Zachary, chained to a wall, bloody gashes ripped across his stomach and chest while his head, legs, and all other body parts hung lifelessly.

“Shit…shit!” I mumbled, running my hands over his arms, his hands, lifting them back up to press against his face even.

I was too late.

“Wow, you are one stupid, little girl. Tsk, tsk, Emerly, don’t back away from me now. You have nowhere left to go.”

I jumped, turning around and throwing my arms out to shield Zachary’s lifeless body. “How could you? He’s your nephew!” I yelled hysterically as he crept forward. Then he stopped, five feet or so away, to lean backwards against a metal shelving unit.

“Obviously my boy didn’t tell you too much now, did he?” He shook his head, moving forward again with malice and craziness in his wide set eyes. He grabbed something long, something metal from a tall container before coming nose to nose with me.

“You see, my dear, this boy that stands before me is not even my nephew after all. Nor is he even a blood relative. His father was only a menace that my wife’s family took pity on as a child.

His eyes grew distant, uncaring as he seemingly drifted off to somewhere beyond my knowledge. He pressed his hands to his forehead, shaking it so fast that he was almost a blur. Then he backed away again, hunching over at his waist, but he wasn’t in pain. He was laughing. God damn him! What could possibly have been so funny? Maybe it was the true craziness Jack had mentioned. Was it showing through? Jesus, this guy really was nutty!

“You didn’t have to hurt him!” I growled, reining in my hatred as I inhaled through my nose. “You could do what needs to be done with me. I’ll pay for the mistakes my father made. Don’t make Zachary suffer when it’s not even his fault!” He sat back up, his laughter turn to spite.

I bit my bottom lip as I pressed my back further into Zachary’s front. I barely noticed how cold he had become.

“Ah, we have ourselves a little hero here. Marvelous. You hear that, boys?” He threw his head back and laughed again, before spinning around with his arms outstretched to the side widely. My brows rose in disbelief. What in the hell was he doing, marveling in the rain? Then he started to ramble something under his breath, gibberish was the best way to describe his new language.

I took the one moment I’d probably have left to turn and face Zachary, even grabbing a wooden dowel of sorts next to his body for protection. I cringed, trying hard not to think about what it was there for in the first place.

“Emmy run…get away from here…now!” Zachary barely mumbled as his one good eye met mine.

Hope bloomed in my chest. He was still alive. He still had a chance! I fiddled with the locks on his chains, determined to get him to safety. Didn’t he know me better than that? I would never, ever give up. No matter what he said or did. I had a moment like that earlier, but I lost it completely this time. And it wasn’t invited back anytime soon. “No, I’m not leaving without you, Zachary. I told you that.”

“You’re so stubborn Emmy…” He choked, coughing again. Even more blood seemed to fall from his mouth. Jesus…where was it all coming from? I used the sleeve of my shirt to wipe it away, smiling at him through my traitorous tears. I may have been strong and a fighter, but I was a girly mess too. Apparently the two went hand in hand.

“Why can’t you shift, Zachary?” I stroked his shoulders and arms, stiffening in panic when I realized that the locks were not going to budge. Shit. Now what the hell was I going to do?

“Crazy…spell.” he gasped, his eye slowly shutting as if it was a chore to keep it open anymore.

“Don’t you freaking leave me again, Zachary Martin! You can’t keep doing this. I need you!” I pressed my hands to his cheeks, and panic consumed me.