Dark Creations: Dark Ending (Part 6) (22 page)

He watched her, rapt by her thought process she was sharing with him. 

“You aren’t saying a word and it’s really freaking me out.  You must think I am crazy,” she said and took her lower lip between her teeth.  “I should join my mom,” she added and reached for the door handle.   

“No, don’t,” Jack said and she turned to face him, surprised. 

“You don’t want me to give you a moment of peace without
crazy
me?” she asked embarrassedly. 

“That’s right.”

“What’s right, that I’m crazy or you want a moment of peace?” she asked with confusion.

He thought he’d been clear, but he added, “I don’t want you to leave.”

“Oh,” she said and her face brightened almost imperceptibly. 

“This has been a stressful day.  And for the record, I’m the only crazy one here, remember?”

“Ha! How could I forget?  Didn’t
I
call you that?” she said and ribbons of scarlet streaked her cheeks.

“I
wasn’t keeping track.  Everyone called me that,” he said and heard himself laugh genuinely for the first time in what felt like forever.

Anna laughed too then said,
“You must be dying to get out of here, to get back to your family.”

“I don’t have
a family,” he said solemnly and gazed beyond the windshield.  “Just good friends who are out there behind enemy lines.”

“I had no idea,” Anna said quietly.

“Oh, and for the record, I am not a happily in love zest-for-life kind of guy.  I am more the turn-that-damn-love-song-off-it’s-making-me-nauseous kind of guy,” he said and one corner of his mouth tugged upward to a half-smile.

Anna tipped her head back and laughed the heartiest laugh he’d ever heard.  Her throaty, rich voice filled the car
.  A woman had not laughed at his dry, self-deprecating sense of humor in more years than he could count. Jack could not help but laugh along with her. 

“Oh jeez!  I haven’t laughed that hard in ages,” Anna said and brushed tears from her cheeks with the backs of her hands.  “We are some pair, huh?”

“I guess,” Jack said and was suddenly nervous, though he did not know why.  

“When all of this is over we are going to get together and have a drink,
preferably beers.  No frou-frou drinks for me, thanks.  Maybe we’ll even make fun of some love songs while we’re at it,” she said and laughed again, only not as loud as before. 

“You got it,” he accepted her invite and hoped she
was serious, that she would like to have drinks with him in the future.  He wouldn’t mind seeing her when,
or if
, they survived. 

“It’s a date then,” she said as she patted his arm and sent Jack’s heart rate through the roof.  His heart
knocked so madly, he wondered whether he were having an episode of some sort, wondered whether it were healthy for it to be tested so.  He felt certain she had not meant to have that effect on him, that her intentions were purely light and friendly.  But it had been so long since he had been in the company of an unattached woman; neither he nor his body knew how to respond.  

With visions
of Anna sitting with him outside of a restaurant sipping beer and chatting on a warm spring night running through his mind, Jack stared out the windshield at the surreal situation unfolding before him.  Dozens of pajama-clad residents had left the comfort of their homes in the predawn light and huddled.  Many clutched weapons, while others clutched their children.  All of them, young and old, armed and unarmed, would run or fight for their lives in the coming hours.  They would all contribute in some way or other to the cause of protecting the town.  He and the sheriff had agreed to assemble everyone willing to fight in the town square.  That was where they intended to engage the members.  But there were thousands headed their way.  Thousands of members marched toward the town as they spoke. 

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Anna whispered.

He could not believe what was happening either.  Most, if not all, of the people he was watching would not make it.  They were preparing for a battle they had little chance of winning.  They were just regular people, teachers, firemen, farmers, parents, not an army.  Terzini’s members were trained killers.  The people of Eldon would be outnumbered and out-skilled. 

Sheriff Baker left a small group and took Joan’s arm.  He walked her back to the car
and opened the door for her.  When she was seated, Jack nodded to him then said, “Sheriff, I have to get to town and set up.  I need to get these people ready to fight.”

The sheriff’s lips compressed to a hard line, regret filling his eyes.  “Yep, I suppose you’re right. 
They need to get ready for this.”

The wheels in the sheriff’s head were turning.  Jack could practically see them.  “
I should go, too,” the sheriff added tightly.

“Have you ever been to war, sheriff?” Jack asked respectfully.

“No, I haven’t,” Sheriff Baker answered. 

“Well
I have, and trust me when I say the people of Eldon need you here evacuating them far more than I need you in town.”

The sheriff huffed through his nose and shook his head ruefully.  “I guess you’re right about that, too.”

“You and the rest of your men need to warn as many people as you can.  Come to town when you’re confident you’ve cleared as many as possible.”

Sheriff Baker nodded.  “Thank
s Jack,” he said.  “If we make it through this, you’ll be an honorary sheriff and have the keys to the town.”

“When we make it through this,” Jack corrected with certainty he wished he felt.
“I’ll take you up on that offer and you can set me up in town.  There’s something about Eldon that’s grown on me,” he added and thought only of Anna.

“Anything you want is yours.  You have my word on that,” Sheriff Baker said then patted the roof of the Bronco.  “Now get out of her
e.”

“Good luck, Sheriff,” Jack said and offered his hand to the sheriff.

The sheriff clasped his hand and pumped it firmly.  “Good luck to you, too,” he said.  “And be sure to take care of Anna and Joan here,” he said and nodded to the women in the back seat. 

“Will do,” Jack said and started the engine of the SUV.  He shifted the gearshift
into the
drive
position and slowly made his way out of the neighborhood he was in.  Joe followed with Daniella, Alexandra and Ryan.

The quiet streets of residential Eldon grew smaller and smaller as Jack sped to the town square.  There, he would assemble every armed and able-bodied man and woman to fight against an enemy unlike any they’d ever been faced with.  They would fight for their future, their families, and their freedom.  He would lead them in a fight for their lives. 

Chapter 18

Lord Terzini stepped into his bedroom on legs that trembled from exertion and excitement.  Strength coursed through his veins. He was intoxicated, half-sick with a combination of exhilaration and the pure thrill of possessing unparalleled power.  Invigorated did even begin to describe what he felt.  His interlude with Melissa had done so much more for him than could be described by a single word.  He wrung his hands in front of his chest, his knuckles tender from pounding them against her.  The mild ache sent a pleasant tingle up his arm.  Every part of him felt cold and eager and ready.  His insides buzzed as if an electric current pulsed through his cells.  He felt it just below the surface of his skin, felt his power swelling inside him, surging up out of the center of his being like an unstoppable force, and rightly so.  He
was
an unstoppable force, and in a matter of days, the world would be his. 

True, concern still nagged at him.  His team had not yet reported which suggested that Gabriel remained at large
, and Melissa’s confidence in Gabriel had caused his own confidence to waver momentarily.  But Arnold had undoubtedly released the virus already and Eldon was under siege.  Such details buoyed any sagging spirits or misgivings he’d been feeling.  All that remained to eradicate his worries was Gabriel’s capture.

When the phone in his pants pocket vibrated and rang, he was certain
the call would divulge just that.  Shivers raced across his skin and he closed his eyes as he reached for his phone.

“Yes,” he said and enjoyed the rich sound of his voice, the voice of a true leader.

“Lord Terzini,” the voice on the other end said.  “This is Michael, member twelve hundred two.”

“Yes Michael,” Terzini rolled
his hand forward as if to move the conversation along quicker.  He knew Michael could not see him and that his gesture was a force of habit, but was eager to hear news the member brought.  “Go on.”

“Yes sir,” Michael continued.  “We are here at the first house, just across the border in
Eldon.  The residents here, an Anna Morgan and a Joan Morgan,” the member said, but growing increasingly impatient, Terzini interrupted.

“Yes, yes,” he said irritably.  “Get to the point.  What about Anna and Joan Morgan?”

“They are gone,” Michael said, and his words had the impact of a blow landing squarely against Terzini’s stomach.  He stood there, still as a statue, clutching his phone in one hand, the other frozen in front of him, pointing to no one. 

“What?” was all he managed, his lungs suddenly burning as if they
’d collapsed completely. 

“Anna and Joan Morgan are not here,” Michael repeated. 

Terzini struggled to breathe.  “How do you know they’re not just away, you know, out of town?” he thought out loud then felt his temper prickle. “Did you search thoroughly?”

“We looked, but,” Michael started, but he cut him off.

“Well look again!” he thundered and yelled so loudly he felt dizzy. 

“Sir, we looked but there was a more pressing issue we needed to deal with.”

Terzini’s temples pounded and his rage flared.  “What could possibly be more pressing than securing the first house on your list?” he hissed.

“The team that went in is dead,” Michael’s words delivered a second blow, on
e that staggered Terzini.  He reeled backward for a moment, his hand searching for the corner of his desk to clutch.  When he’d steadied himself and held tight to the desk, he parted his lips to speak, hopeful that his voice would sound stronger than he felt at the moment. 

“Dead?” he asked and hoped he’d somehow heard incorrectly. 

“Yes sir.  They are dead.”

The room spun for a brief period, swirling in lopsided circles.  “How?” he heard his voice ask mechanically.  “What happened?”

“From what we can see, mannequins had been positioned on the couch with their backs to the window at the front of the house.  The team must have thought the mannequins were the Morgan women and fired on them.”

“So the team mistook two dummies for women?” he asked acidly and felt the rolling of room stop.

Michael hesitated for a fraction of a second before answering.  “Yes Lord Terzini, they did.”

“Continue,” he ordered.

“They entered the home and opened fire then took out who they believed were Anna and Joan Morgan.”

“The dummies,” Terzini spat bitterly.

“Yes, the dummies,” Michael said.  “As they fired on the dummies, it appears they came under fire from an elevated position.”

“And that is your official, initial forensic assessment?” he asked to be sure Michael was confident of the details surrounding the death of the team. 

“Yes sir.”

“The team was ambushed,” he said more to himself.  “They knew we were coming.  The Morgan women knew.”

Silence at the other end of the conversation fueled an already growing fire of rage.  The enthusiastic delight he’d enjoyed moments earlier melted and leaked from him. 

“You and your team are incompetent,” he barked.  “Seize the town now!  Go door to door and kill them all!”

“Yes sir,” Michael said then added, “There is one more piece of information I must share.”

Terzini
, sensing more bad news awaited him, felt ire saturate his blood.  He waited edgily as Michael continued.  “The team that was sent across the lake did not find anyone at the farm.”

“No one, huh,” Terzini hissed and heard the venom dripping from his words.  “The farm was deserted.”
  He balled his fist tightly, curling his knuckles until small scarlet arcs appeared in his palms.

“The two hundred men
you had dispatched to the farm have left the area and are here now, serving with us.”

“They are with you, now,” he repeated, barely able to contain the intense fury he was feeling.

“Yes sir.  We have already begun marching into the town,” Michael answered flatly. 

Terzini
had nothing more to say and ended their call with the push of a button.  He contemplated throwing his phone to the floor and smashing it to pieces.  But that would be pointless, other than destroy his phone and give him a few seconds of pleasure.  And he needed to make another call, one that would likely send his spirits soaring.