Reality Hero (27 page)

“We all want vengeance, but right now Ian is a much more serious concern. Did he do anything to hurt you?”

Dina knew that her sister meant rape, but didn’t want to come right out and say the awful words. “No, thankfully all he did was creep me the fuck out. I think he genuinely thought if he kept me long enough, I’d fall madly in love with him and never want to leave. I’m so glad I was able to get out of there, but I know someone on the inside helped me. I pretty damn sure it wasn’t Ian.”

Ella lay down on her couch. Dina could see how tired and pained her sister appeared.

“Are you okay? They did more to you than cut off your finger, didn’t they?”

Ella pulled up her sleeve, displaying rough and violent stitches and confirming her sister’s suspicions. Dina gasped at the sight. She was so angry with those men and with Ian.
I want them to suffer the pain they put my sister through and then some.

A cheerful little ringtone radiated out of her purse, making her jump. It was the ringtone she’d set to her studio contacts. She went over to where Zane had left her things by the door. She answered it on the last ring. “Hello.”

Vinny was on the other line. Dina couldn’t understand him at first. She heard a lot of noise in the background and assumed they had a bad connection. “Vinny, I can’t understand you.” Dina shouted the words into the phone.

“Dina… Attack… Help us... He wants… Dina…please help me.” Vinny’s call ended with the sound of his scream.

“Vinny! Are you there?” Dina cried into the disconnected line.
Fuck.
She looked at her sister and Zane helplessly. Zane took the phone from her hand. She was shaking badly.

“I think I know where Ian is. I’m sorry, Dina, but I think Ian did what the paparazzi couldn’t. He found your production site.”

“Zane, take me there. We have to help,” Dina pleaded.

Ella didn’t move off the couch. “If I go I’ll be more of a hindrance than a help. I’m still weak. I’ve developed a new power too, and it’s not controlled yet.”

Dina was terrified. Her only power was being powerfully sarcastic. She knew Ian was brutal. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill Zane.

* * * *

Zane looked down at the woman he loved. She loved him. The thought of losing her before they had a chance to be happy made him crazy. He took her by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him. Ella was right to sit this one out, but he wanted Dina to stay with her. He held her there for a moment, just looking at her beloved face. “I don’t want to lose you. I’m going alone.”

“No. Those are my people. I might have abandoned the production, but I won’t abandon my friends and those girls. It’s my fault they’re in danger.”

“I’ll only take you if you tell me you’ll listen to every direction I give you. You’ll leave the stubborn Dina here. Do you understand me? No heroics or I
will
pop you back here before you can tell me no. Promise me you’ll let me keep you safe.”

“I will, but we need to hurry.”

Zane left the room for a moment, returning in his Mind Man costume. He glanced at Ella. She gave him a firm nod.

“Take care of her,” Ella said.

“Hold on tight,” he whispered in Dina’s ear, wrapping his arms around her. She clung to him tightly.

They arrived in what was left of her RV. It looked like a tornado had ripped it in half. With the roof crumpled backward and the right side just gone, it took him a moment to recognize where they were. Dina jumped down from the twisted metal that had been her RV to the ground. Zane watched her looking over the destruction. Her lip trembled. Ian had thrown a serious temper tantrum.

* * * *

Ella lay on her couch, worried about the two people who mattered most to her in the world. She knew of only one person who might be able to stop Ian. She didn’t know if she could trust him, but right now she didn’t have a choice. Closing her eyes, she focused her thoughts on Caspian’s hazel eyes. She knew he could hear her. “
Please go to Love Lake Campgrounds up by the mountains. The monster who sold me to your employers is there killing many innocent people. Only you can stop him. My sister will die if you don’t help her.
”

Ella waited for his response. It was slow in coming, and she wondered if she only imagined he’d heard her.

“
Why should I help anyone? I don’t know your sister. That guy is twisted. I don’t want to get on his bad side unless I’m sure I can stop him.
”

“
You owe me. You know you do. You owe her too. She could’ve died because I wasn’t able to help her. Show me you’re worth forgiving. I need you. Meet me in front of Fast Fry Diner.
”

“
Why would you trust me? Aren’t you worried I’ll just bring you back to the men who took your finger?
”

“
You need people who understand you. We can help each other. I love my sister more than my own life. Please help me save her.
”

There was a long pause. Wasted minutes ticked by slowly. Ella’s impatience grew, but she didn’t want to piss him off and lose her chance to save Dina.

“
Give me twenty minutes.
”

“
You have fifteen.
”

He didn’t reply in her head again, but she felt the connection. He hadn’t let go of her this time. Getting up, she put on her costume. She didn’t want Dina’s friends to realize her twin sister was Rain. Closing her eyes, she knew she had a few minutes to rest before she had to leave to meet Caspian.

Chapter 21

Farrah was the first person Dina saw when she peeked around the corner. Farrah was hiding under her mobile studio, and Dina motioned for her to stay where she was. It looked like she was going to try to make a run for them. Zane motioned for Dina to follow him. Dina gave her friend the thumbs up and followed Zane. Farrah stayed hidden, and Dina felt guilty for leaving the woman alone. She knew it wouldn’t help to have one more mere mortal for Zane to try to protect, so she followed him silently.

When they arrived at the spot where cabins two and three once sat, she saw Ian had destroyed everything. Dina hoped none of the girls had been in them when he turned the log structures into toothpicks. It was early in the morning. Cool dew still lay on the grass. There was an unnatural stillness. No birds chirped. She didn’t hear as much as a bee buzzing. It was so quiet amid the destruction.

Not finding any bodies was a good sign no one had died. They explored what was left of the campgrounds before arriving at the top of the hill. The entire lakefront was visible from their vantage point. Zane pulled Dina down low to the ground. She peered down cautiously, while staying hidden. The spectacle below left her on the verge of tears.

Ian, in full costume, had the terrified contestants tied to the boat dock at the lakefront. The poor women stood in water up to their waists. They had to be freezing. One of Ian’s goons was holding the cameramen at gunpoint while forcing him to film the scene. Ian held a ball of electricity in his hand. He kept threatening to release it into the water. He was laughing as the girls squealed fearfully in unison. His spandex pets stood at his side. Dina could see that the one he’d beat looked terrible. The bruises were a sick, greenish color now. Her heart went out to the poor girl. Dina suspected one of those girls had unlocked her door so she could escape. She owed it to them to stop Ian before he hurt them again.

He had to be using some sort of mind control, as he did with his sunglass-wearing zombies. She couldn’t imagine they’d stay for any other reason. Suddenly, something touched Dina’s back, and she jumped, making the bushes shake. Ian looked up, and both she and Zane lay still, not even breathing. He turned back to his hostages. She ventured a look back to find out what had touched her, and she was relieved to see Vinny and the makeup artist. She put her finger to her lips then jabbed it in the air at the direction of the lake. They cringed. It couldn’t be easy to realize how close they were to the maniac. She watched them back away, stumbling in their hasty escape. They ran in the opposite direction.
So much for reinforcements, damn it.

Ian spoke to the camera, and Dina knew he planned to air himself killing. She was very worried about the girls. She only counted six of them, but whether some had left during the taping or Ian killed them, she had no idea. She exchanged a worried look with Zane.

Ian scanned the area as if he were looking for something. “Dina, you can stop this. Come home with me, and I’ll let them all go.”

Her heart stopped at his words. She shook, remembering the nasty sensation of his touch.
Does he know I’m here?
She clutched Zane’s hand tightly. Zane squeezed her fingers back reassuringly.

Suddenly, Ian looked right in her direction. “Dina, come down here to me. I’ll let all of them live. Stay where you are and watch them all die.” He shouted right at her as if he could see her.

He raised his hand so she could see the ball of electricity better. Then he extended his arm as if he was going to release it into the water. He began to let it go. Without thought to her safety or the consequences, Dina jumped up and started to run down the hill.

“Fuck!” Zane cursed.

“No, Ian, please. You need to stop this. I’ll do whatever you want, just don’t hurt anyone.”

He let go of the ball. The orb hit a tree some distance away. A big, burnt hole smoldered in the center of the trunk.

Dina skidded to a halt, stumbling. “Please, Ian, don’t do this. Let them go and I’ll come with you.” She and Ian stood looking at each other. Dina hoped he’d stop his insanity and realize what he was doing was wrong.

A rustling noise caught her attention. She noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and held her breath. Mateo was leaving his hiding place in the bushes. He rushed Ian with a large tree limb, hitting the unstable villain in the side of the head. Using the distraction to catch him off his guard, Dina ran toward the dock. Mateo was very brave, but Dina knew he’d soon be very dead if she didn’t do something. Dina finished running down the hill, pushing reeds out of her way as she splashed into the water.

Her foot slipped and she twisted her ankle, but she ignored the pain. Every single second mattered. Ian raised a ball of his electricity. He appeared ready to unleash it on the helpless man. She focused on the terrified women. Her mind scrambled to make a choice. She could keep going and try to untie them or she could help Mateo. In the last moment before Ian let go, she splashed back to shore—jumping in front of Mateo. Putting her hands on his shoulders, she pulled him down with her.

Somewhere in the distance, Dina heard Zane roar with rage. At first, she felt nothing. Then it hurt. Burning radiated over her entire right shoulder. Dina shrieked, losing consciousness.

* * * *

Zane watched the electricity hit Dina. Ian’s face twisted in horror. The regret in Ian’s expression wouldn’t save her. She’d managed to keep the man safe, but at the expense of her life. Zane’s hearing picked up one thing in the chaos. Her heart. He knew the sound of her beating heart so well. When they’d been younger and he’d fought to keep the sounds of the city under control, he’d laid with his head on her chest as she slept. Each beat kept him centered. He’d been able to shut out the world and focus on nothing but her. Dina had kept him from going crazy. Now he heard that precious sound stop. Dina was dying.

“No!” Zane roared. Dina could
not
be dead. He willed himself next to her without a thought to the danger.

Ian gaped at Dina as if he couldn’t fully believe he’d hurt her. Zane gathered her in his arms. Her heart wasn’t beating and she wasn’t breathing.

“Don’t die on me,” Zane whispered, cradling Dina to his chest. He knew Ian watched. The man was unstable and could kill them all at any moment. Zane picked her up, ready to poof to a hospital. He didn’t care about anything but getting her help.

“No!” Ian’s shriek caused the women at the dock to scream and thrash. They splashed and struggled. Ian turned to them, glaring, and then his head whipped back in Zane’s direction.

“Put her down. Now,” he ordered and held a ball of electricity in the air. “I’ll kill every last one of those women if you don’t put her back down.”

The man’s voice was scary calm and deadly serious. Zane wanted to take Dina away, but he knew she’d never forgive him if she survived and the others didn’t, so he reluctantly lay her down.

Ian rushed over and pushed Zane away. His hand went down and pressed against her chest. The instant he touched her, the force of his electrified hand caused her body to buck. He waited a second and pressed his power against her chest again. Her back arched.

A beat, then another, she was alive. Zane let go of the breath he’d been holding. Her heartbeat was the most wonderful sound he’d ever heard. His body sagged with relief.

The sensation was short-lived. Ian sprang to his feet, holding his powerful electricity in the air. Zane realized his feet were in the water. Even with all his strength he’d never survive even a small blast of electricity.

* * * *

Ella and Caspian arrived at the destroyed campgrounds. They saw no one. Only the destruction was there to greet them. Looking at the handsome man driving, she was still a bit surprised he’d agreed to help. Caspian. The name fit him, although she still found herself thinking of him as Hazel Eyes.

She saw a man and woman running toward the entrance to the campground. “Stop the car. I see people.”

Caspian hit the brakes, and Ella jerked forward roughly. She gave him a quick dirty look as she undid her seat belt. Jumping out of the car, she ran to the terrified couple without waiting for him.

“Run. Get out. The Electrocutioner is here.” Panting, the man screamed it as he ran past. Ella saw him slow down to a jog before turning around. Then he stopped. “Dina, is that you? I just saw you on the hill. How did you beat us down here and what are you wearing, girl?”

Ella realized she’d forgotten her mask in her hast. “I’m not Dina. Where is she? I need to help her.”

“She and Mind Man are up on the hill. It’s not safe.”