Atoning Read online

  "Rae?"

  She didn't turn, and, as I ran toward her, I had to entertain the possibility that my fake scenario with Derek wasn't totally fake after all--that Rae had a doppelganger in North Bay, Ontario. But when I darted into her path, there was no doubt. She was standing three feet from me, and I knew her as well as if it were Tori standing there.

  "Rachelle," I said.

  She screwed up her face. "Huh?"

  "Rae, it's me. Chloe."

  "Do I know you?"

  I hesitated. "You're Rachelle Rodgers, right?"

  Quite possibly the easiest question in the world to answer, but she stood there, giving me this look like I'd asked her to name the capital of Liberia...and getting the right answer was a matter of life or death.

  "I...I don't think so. I...can't remember."

  "What?"

  She looked around. "I don't know what I'm doing here. The last thing I remember..." She shook her head. "I don't know. I think there was a man. Maybe a truck? A van? I...I don't remember."

  Amnesia? They were seriously going with the classic--and classically overused--amnesia plot? The chances of someone wandering a street honestly not knowing who she was were--as Derek would point out--statistically improbable. To the nth degree.

  She peered at me. "Did you say Chloe?"

  "Right. Chloe Saunders. We--"

  "I know you, don't I? It's..." Her eyes went wide. "Oh my God, yes. Chloe. Lyle House. We..." Her eyes rounded, and she grabbed my arm. "We need to get out of here."

  Uh-huh. I saw that plot twist coming.

  She continued. "There are men. They...I don't remember--" She looked around. "Where are we?"

  "North Bay, Ontario."

  Her face screwed up. It was a good try, but her acting ability is strictly small-town community theater.

  Her eyes widened again. "They put me here to find you. Or so you'd find me."

  Yep, that'd be my guess.

  She looked around, still grasping my arm. "Come on! We need to get out of here!"

  I cast a glance down the darkened street. No sign of Derek, but I had to trust he was there. I took off after Rae.

  Six

  I followed Rae, our footfalls echoing down the empty street. It had rained while we were in the theater. The light drizzle had cleared up before I'd come out, but it had left the road shimmering under the streetlights. Droplets plinked into puddles, adding to the air of desolation. A noir crime-thriller stage. Silent, vacant and hazy with the gauzy sheen of rain.

  We passed shop after shop, all of them closed, some permanently. When I strained, I could make out distant music, maybe from a bar, but it was far away. The only place open on this block was the movie theater, and once the shows were on, the streets emptied. I was sure they weren't completely empty, though. Someone was watching us. And I had a good idea where he or she waited: in the direction Rae was leading me.

  I fake-staggered, as if I'd slipped on the wet pavement. I went down on one knee, crying out.

  "Come on!" Rae said.

  I rose, took a step and stumbled, wincing and inhaling a sharp breath.

  "Chloe!" Rae said. "Come on. They're--"

  "I need a sec," I said. "Let's duck in there."

  I pointed at a narrow passage between two buildings. She opened her mouth, as if to argue, but I was already lurching toward it.

  I hobbled into the alley and lowered myself to the pavement, grimacing as I did. "Just give me a moment."

  She looked genuinely torn now. She had a duty to lead me to whoever was holding her captive, and she probably feared whatever punishment awaited if she failed. But I was injured. So she hesitated while looking anxiously toward the street.

  "You stand guard," I whispered. "Just two minutes. That's all I need. I banged up my knee last week, and that got it going again."

  I waited until she got into position, crouched, peering out at the street. Then, I motioned to the figure I'd spotted, which I really hoped was Derek. While I could take down Rae myself, this would go a lot more smoothly with the guy who had supernatural strength.

  When Derek stepped from the shadows, I exhaled in relief and hobbled up beside Rae.

  "Do you see anything?" I whispered.

  She shook her head.

  "There!" I gasped and pointed at a random store. "I saw something moving."

  She leaned over to peer out. I kept pointing, jabbing my finger at the shadows in a doorway. Behind her, Derek slipped out, moving soundlessly our way.

  "I don't see anyone," she said.

  "There, back in the shadows. I saw a hand move."

  And a hand did move as Derek seized her from behind and covered her mouth.

  "Her hands," I blurted. "Grab--"

  He cursed as he remembered Rae's power. Fire. He wasn't fast enough, and he hissed as she burned him in her struggles. We caught her hands. She fought in earnest then, fighting and kicking and grunting. Behind us, a stray scrap of paper burst into flame.

  Derek pinned Rae against the wall, her face pressed to it hard enough to make me wince. He held her there, her feet dangling as he leaned down to her ear.

  "Remember me?" he whispered. "I remember you, Rachelle, and exactly what you thought of me. Except now I'm not just some big, ugly brute. I'm a big, ugly, werewolf brute. Which means I'm even stronger--and more dangerous--than you thought. A lot more pissed off, too, because you betrayed Chloe, and that's worse than anything you did to me. The harder you struggle, the more I'm going to remember what you did to her. Understood?"

  She still gave a few token kicks and squirms. He tightened his grip until she gasped. Then, she went still.

  "Now we're going to take you someplace where we can talk, and you can tell us why you tried to lure Chloe--"

  His head shot up, and I knew he'd heard something I couldn't. His gaze swung toward the street. I hurried down the alley and peeked out. A dark shape moved along the buildings across the road. Another followed. Two figures. Both dressed in black.

  "We have to move," I whispered.

  He nodded, hefted Rae over his shoulder and started down the alley. I went ahead and scouted. A couple walked along the road. As always, I took a closer look in case they were ghosts. That had become second nature now--assessing clothing and actions, checking for some sign that I wasn't seeing living people. These two were dressed in modern outfits. The woman circled past a pop can in her path. Living people, then. Just an ordinary couple out for...

  The woman lifted a two-way radio to her lips. Okay, not so ordinary. Damn.

  I backed up fast, bumping into Derek.

  "We're surrounded," I said. "We'll have to--"

  "Chloe!" a voice called from the street behind us.

  I turned that way. The voice came again. "Hey, Chloe! You out here?"

  It was Daniel. And there was no way in hell he was actually walking down a deserted street yelling for me. I took out my cell phone. Derek and I had silenced them so we wouldn't blow our cover. I had a string of texts from Maya.

  9:15. Maya: Hey, guys. If u r just 'busy,' let me know. Concerned.

  9:20. Maya: OK, not in the bldg, grabbing D.

  9:23. Maya: D's picking up 1/2 demon. Not M. Guessing u know that. We're out & about.

  Daniel was a benandanti--an Italian witch hunter with supernatural powers, including the ability to sense half-demons, because their demon blood tripped his "bad-mojo" sensor.

  "Chloe? You out here?" Daniel called. "Oh, hey, you there! I'm looking for my friend."

  I peered out to see Daniel hailing one of the guys in black. The guy had decided to play it straight and had come out of hiding, his hands in his pockets, just a random dude out for a stroll.

  "My friend wandered off," Daniel said. "We're not local, so I'm worried she got lost. She's about this tall. Blond hair. Ponytail."

  "Wearing a pink hoodie?"

  "That's her."

  "I just saw her over here, not two minutes ago. I'll show you."

  "Thanks, I appreci
ate that."

  They set out toward a side street.

  "Hey," Daniel said. "While we're at it, you haven't seen my cat, have you?"

  "What?"

  "My cat. She took off, too. She's brown, about this tall, really cute, with--"

  A scream cut through the night. And no matter how often I hear that sound, I jump every time. Rae's eyes went wild, and she started struggling as Derek pinned her to the wall. The man talking to Daniel wheeled toward the noise. Daniel shouted, "No!" and the guy flew clear off his feet--literally knocked over by that sonic boom shout, another of Daniel's powers.

  Daniel dove for the guy, and I heard the skitter of a gun hitting the ground as Daniel yanked it out and tossed it aside. The man's partner was running to his aid when a tawny shape leapt from atop a building. A mountain lion. A hundred-and-twenty-odd pounds of muscle, fangs and claws. It fell on the second man, dropping him to the pavement.

  "Good," Daniel said between swings as he battled his opponent. "You found my kitty."

  Maya snarled at him. She easily pinned the second man while the first fought Daniel.

  One thing a benandanti is really good at? Fighting. Yet it looked as if Daniel was just toying with his guy.

  "Come on," I whispered. "End it already."

  "He has a reason," Derek rumbled beside me. Which was right. Daniel's benandanti blood meant he had a tendency to lash out, but he'd gotten that under control months ago.

  Derek's head shot up as if hearing something again. He shoved Rae to the ground and pinned her there, and then he said to me, "Can you hold her?"

  I nodded and moved onto her back, my knee against her spine, my hand on her neck. As Derek took off, I heard what he must have: the sound of running footsteps.

  Seven

  Daniel had been toying with his opponent to flush out the man's allies, who were now joining the fray. I listened to the fight with relative calm. Daniel's opponent was obviously no skilled assassin. I won't say we were but...well, the Nasts weren't training us for desk jobs. We all got private lessons with world-class instructors, who had determined the best mix to suit our personality and size. I got jujitsu and aikido, plus archery and marksmanship.

  My dad nearly had heart failure the first time he saw me fire a gun, but I embraced the lessons because our months on the run taught me I needed to be able to defend myself, by any means necessary.

  This fight was four average supernaturals against a benandanti, a werewolf and a mountain lion. Even without training, I think we could have taken them. Maya and Daniel had disabled their adversaries as soon as they heard the others coming. Then, Derek joined in, and I sat on Rae and relaxed as I listened for it to be over.

  "You've changed," Rae said, her first words since Derek had captured her.

  "Uh-huh."

  She tried to rise. I held her firmly, being clear that escape attempts would be frowned upon.

  "You're as bad as he is now," she said.

  "No, I'm as good as he is. Which doesn't mean being able to fight makes me a better person. But I've adjusted to the situation, because the situation is unlikely to adjust to me."

  "You've really changed."

  I have. But Derek says I'm still the girl he fell for, because when he fell for me, I'd already been evolving. So had he, learning to be less angry with the world and more a part of the world. That doesn't mean he'll ever be a cheerful extrovert like Simon. No more than I'll ever be a cold-hearted bitch like... Well, Tori's not what I thought she was at Lyle House either. None of us are. A couple of adjectives can't define anyone. In the right situation, I can be a cold-hearted bitch. Or at least I can play the role.

  "You don't need to live like this," Rae said. "Always on the run, always fighting."

  "We don't."

  "Because you think you've found a safe place. Badger Lake. It's not real. You know that, don't you? It's just brainwashing. They've convinced you that you're happy."

  "I am happy."

  The words came without hesitation, and I paused after I said them. Was I happy? Yes. There's part of me that feels I should be pacing like a caged lion, looking for a way to escape, but even Derek isn't. That's not brainwashing. We know we're living in a cage, and we wouldn't want to live there forever. But for now, it's kind of like being in an amazing boarding school, and we know that's intentional--Sean pampers us to show us how good Cabal life could be--but if we keep our eyes open to the truth, I think it's okay to say "I'm happy."

  Rae kept going on about brainwashing and the evil Cabals. I let her, because, as long as I didn't argue, she thought I was listening and hoped I'd "escape" with her. I wasn't listening, though. I was focused on the others as they disabled their attackers. The second the fighting stopped, the thump of running footfalls followed. Derek appeared in the alley mouth, blood on his T-shirt.

  "Not mine," he said, catching my look of alarm.

  As he walked over, Daniel appeared, Maya beside him. Rae saw Maya and let out a shriek that had me scrambling to cover her mouth.

  "She's with us," I said. "She's a skin-walker."

  Rae's expression said she had no idea what that was and didn't really care, because there was a mountain lion padding straight for her. Maya surveyed me, looking for signs of injury. Then she lowered her head to peer at Rae. Her lip curled in a snarl, showing off fangs as big as my forefingers. She stretched out her oversized front paws, claws flicking out like switchblades.

  Rae yelped. I tried not to chuckle. A wolf is an impressive sight, but a mountain lion at close range is terrifying, especially when she's showing off her weaponry.

  Maya leaned against me, and I gave her a quick scratch behind the ears. Then, she bounded off.

  "Back in five," Daniel said, and he went after her.

  It really would only be a few minutes before she returned. While the shift from cat to human is as physically demanding as wolf to human, Maya gets a pass on the pain and agony part. She used to lose consciousness. Now it's more of a trance state, which still means her shift is much easier than Derek's. He tries not to grumble. He still does. I don't blame him.

  "You're making a mistake," Rae said as Derek hauled her up.

  "You can tell us about it in a few minutes," I said. "We need to get farther from those guys before we chat."

  "And if you try to call for help?" Derek said. "I've got a sock that'll fit in your mouth. Been wearing it all day."

  I texted Maya, and we arrived at Daniel's truck at the same time. She was still catching her breath. She might be spared the pain of the transformation, but she still has to deal with the aftereffects.

  Maya and I patted Rae down. She had a cell phone. We left it behind. We also made her leave her jacket and sneakers, which were the most likely places to hide a transmitter.

  Maya climbed into the truck bed with Daniel. Rae sat in the middle of the front seat. I drove. Derek rode shotgun, which made it easier for him to subdue Rae if needed. It wasn't needed. She sat quietly until we got out of the city and pulled onto a dirt road. Then, she said, "What exactly do you plan to do with me?"

  "That depends. I thought you were being held captive by those guys, so this was supposed to be a rescue mission, but, obviously, I was wrong. You were trying to kidnap me."

  "For your own good."

  "Naturally." I pulled into a wooded lane leading to a trail. "Just like with the Edison Group. You tried to keep me in the laboratory for my own good. How'd that work out?"

  Silence. Then, her voice lowered. "I made a mistake."

  Derek snorted. When she turned to him, I said, "Glaring at him isn't going to help your case. He's the friend who stuck by my side. Just like Simon and Tori. Yes, Tori. The girl who nearly got me killed at Lyle House turned out to be a better friend than the one who pretended she was my friend."

  "I was." There was no anger in her tone, no defensiveness. Her voice was soft, almost inaudible. "I was your friend, Chloe. I made a mistake. I want to fix that."

  "Yeah," Derek said. "By kidnapping
her again. Either you're a whole lot dumber than I thought--"

  "I'm not stupid, Derek," she said, anger flaring. "I admit I made a mistake, and now I want to fix it by rescuing Chloe." She lifted a hand as I opened my mouth. "I know you think you don't need rescue, but you do."

  I looked at Derek. He rolled his eyes.

  "All right," I said. "Let's get out and talk."

  Eight

  "We have a problem," Maya whispered as we headed into the forest. The trail was closed at dusk, but there was no one to enforce that. It's Canada. They expect you'll understand that the rule is for your own good, and they leave the rest up to you.

  The guys walked behind us with Rae between them. Maya had suggested she and I go on ahead to find a good spot to talk, but it seemed the person she wanted to talk to first was me. She passed over her phone, text messages displayed.

  When I read them, I cursed under my breath.

  "Uh-huh," she said.

  9:47. Moreno: Hey, movie's over, Miss Maya.

  9:52. Moreno: OK, I give up. Where r u? 5 sec to reply or I come hunting.

  9:53. Moreno: Maya? Answer. Now.

  9:54. Maya: Sry! Didn't u get txts? Had problem. Jerk talking in movie. Guys abt to cause scene. C&I got them out. Pizza.

  9:55. Moreno: OK. Where r u?

  She'd dragged out the conversation after that, taking longer to reply. She'd said we'd gone for pizza, and she had no idea where, because Daniel had seen a sign on the way in, but, when we went back, it was out of business, so we'd driven around and around...And all she knew was that we were having pizza somewhere in North Bay. Give us a half hour, and we'd swing back and meet them.

  Moreno grumbled, but he trusted Maya. The problem was that we couldn't trust him.

  "Someone knew we were at the movie," I said. "And the only people who knew are Moreno and Luke."

  "I know. I really don't think..." She inhaled and put her phone away. "Moreno is a mercenary son of a bitch, so he should be at the top of my list..."