The Barrier Between (Collector Series # 2) (33 page)

“Okay, it’s time.” Maria swung away from me and
opened the curtains.

The rush of blood to my ears almost drowned the
cheers. Hundreds and hundreds of people jumped up and down,
creating rolling waves. Signs and hands jostled around, making me
nauseated with adrenaline.

This was all for me. Well, not for me, but for the
hope I gave them.

The poor girl they had me fighting stood to the side,
adorned only in a red cape and mask, in some pathetic excuse for a
superhero. She was tall, lean, and fit, but her body didn’t look
like being this thin was natural for her. Her sharp cheeks
protruded as if malnourished. She pinched her mouth together and
raised her shoulders with determination. But there was no denying
the terror in her eyes as she watched me walk toward her, my green
eyes ringed with black kohl and my wings flapping behind me like I
was about to take off into the air.

I had seen her around the warehouse. Duc owned almost
all the underground fighting girls. We ate, slept, and trained
together. Some becoming friends. Then we would have to turn those
feelings off and become machines, tearing each other apart in the
ring. In this modern day, we were no more than gladiator slaves,
fighting for the money and amusement of our “owners” and the
masses.

This girl, whose named I never learned, was nowhere
near my league. It was exactly how Duc wanted it. My first fight
was merely pageantry. Over time he would build up my opponents,
wringing money from the spectators as excitement grew.

Duc walked to me with his two henchmen who kept their
eyes roaming for any sign of a threat. “You make this fight last.”
Duc tugged at his shirt cuffs, keeping his voice low and
threatening. “People paid good money to see you fight, and I want
them to keep paying.” His dark gaze took in the hordes. “Next week
I will introduce my companion girls for the top donators. Give them
a show so this crowd and the bets will double.”

Annabeth
. My fists clenched until my nails cut
into my palms. Biting words rolled around on my tongue. What he was
doing to all of us was bad enough, but I was disgusted by his
attempts to groom naïve, sweet girls like Annabeth into
escorts.

Duc walked away.

The light around the warehouse from the generators
darkened as the spotlight on the ring intensified, and I stepped
inside. Maria came to my side, liberating me from my mask and
wings.

The ground shook as people pounded their feet on the
cement, crying out as I stepped into the ring.

Then the tall brunette strode to the opposite side,
bringing up her arms in defense.

The two of us circled each other. The adrenaline from
the crowd, now running in my blood, bounced my feet excessively. It
took all my concentration not to take her down right away. She had
several weaknesses, which were like beacons. Comparable to a bad
poker player, she did a double bounce and hesitated every time she
went in for a hit. To keep the fight going, I let her get in a few
strikes. Never fun, but it was something I was used to.

The crowd gasped when she clocked me in the eye and
then split my lip. My retaliation caused her ass to hit the floor
with a thump.

“Get up,” I mumbled to her when she didn’t jump back
up immediately.

She slowly climbed to her feet, the fight gone from
her shoulders. She put her arms up, with little effort to block me.
“Hit me,” her soft voice pleaded.

My gaze turned to her. “What?”

“Hit me.” Her expression held a sadness. “Just end
this. I am
so
tired of fighting.”

My gut wrenched. Something in her demeanor told me
she wasn’t merely talking of this match.

“Just end it. Give them what they want and Duc a good
show. Make sure it’s a good hit.”

I heard a lot of talk, excuses, taunting, threats,
but never had someone’s words knocked me off my game. Staggering
back, I let my arms drop.

The girl glanced around nervously. “What are you
doing?”

Low booing hummed in the air.

“Come on. Do it. Now,” she hissed. Her forehead lined
in frustration. “Hit. Me!” She stepped into my face, shoving
me.

“No.” Normally I would have no problem, but her
sorrow ripped the bloodlust from my chest. It felt wrong.

“Come on.” She pushed me again, her brown eyes
narrowing. Then she did something I wasn’t expecting. She grabbed
the back of my head and pulled my face into hers, our heads
touching. “
Pleeease!
”

The desperation in her voice tapped at my heart.
“Okay.”

“Thank you,” she whispered and pushed off me. The
crowd’s boos turned to cheers as the fight looked to be
resuming.

While she bobbed around me, I shut my eyes and
swallowed before I lifted my lids. I didn’t have it in me to truly
hurt her. I never “professionally” fought someone this far below my
level and who didn’t want to be in the ring. This entire fight sat
wrong with me.

My punch was light and only knocked her to the side.
I dug my elbow into her gut, crumpling her to the ground, and
leaped down, looking like I would continue to hit her.

“I’m sorry,” I leaned over and whispered into her
ear.

She snorted, blood pouring from her nose. “One more.
Duc won’t be happy until you knock me out cold.”

I bit down on my lip and nodded.

I was about to strike one last time when I felt a
sensation come over me. The awareness of one pair of eyes, among
masses, on me, like the last fight when I looked up to see Ryker
standing there, still alive. My head jerked up, my gut twisting
with hope. Did Ryker find me?

My gaze locked on a pair of familiar
green
eyes.

Oh God.

I blinked, wiping the blood and sweat from my face.
Please, no
. But there was no denying it. Garrett stood
across from me at the edge of the ring, his gaze fastened on me, a
rolled flyer in his hand.

Of course. How stupid of me to think it was only Duc
and Maria I should be afraid of here. Flyers adorned with my
picture filled the city. Even with wings and a small mask, it was
not hard to make out my face.

The redheaded Irishman worked for Vadik as his lead
henchmen. No one had met Vadik in person; he used Garrett and his
men as his face and muscle. It had been more than a month since I
last saw Garrett searching for me at a Red Cross. I’d gotten away
only by luck and glamour.

Both of those had run out...

Finding me was surely Garrett’s big break. Now he
could locate the Wanderer. Ryker might not be physically in
Washington, but if Garrett captured me, he would find a way to let
Ryker know he had me. If Garrett caught me, it was all over.

A slow smirk twisted Garrett’s lips; his eyes ignited
with delight. There was nothing that would get in his way of
acquiring me. Not even Duc could stop Garrett. No human could.

He nodded and his men stepped to the boundary of the
ring. My skin prickled as fae surrounded me.

“Finish her!” some of the crowd barked at me. The
other half were chanting, “Angel.”

Their words fell off me as I blocked out anything but
the fae coming for me. It was now or never. They would only wait
until the fight was over to grab me, so I had to move immediately.
I took one last breath, then bounded up off the girl and darted
into the throng of onlookers. The disbelief at my irrational
behavior only lasted a beat before the place broke out in chaos.
The slight advantage was not something I could waste. I shoved and
elbowed my way through the first layer of bystanders. Most stood in
shock, but I felt Garrett’s men moving, propelling quickly toward
me.

“Hey, the fight is back there.”

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Finish the fight. I’ve got a lot riding on
this!”

Voices bombarded me as I pushed through the crowd and
veered and wiggled through the mob blocking my getaway. Shouts
reverberated out from the speakers, but it was all white noise to
me, my heartbeat thumping in my ears.

Fingers grazed my elbow, a body moved in close behind
me. “I’m looking forward to killing you, like I did your human
partner,” the voice mocked in my ear. My neck twisted to see a man
with long blond hair and blue eyes behind me.

Maxen
. The fae who killed Daniel.

He reached out for me, his hand brushed across my
shoulder blades. I twisted and curved in a different direction,
ducking between two large men and knocking over their beers. Cold
liquor dumped down my shirt, the sharp tang rising up my nose. They
turned, yelling at me, blocking Maxen’s direct path to me.

A small victory, but I was grateful for any extra
moment I could break away from them. I looked up to see the exit
sign only yards away.

They would pursue me to the ends of the Earth, but if
I got through the doors, at least I had the chance to lose them in
the streets, dissolving in the evening darkness and between the
fortresses of buildings. I barreled for the doorway. The density of
people thinned a little, and I impelled my legs toward my escape.
Whatever Maria injected in my system pumped into my feet, driving
them harder into the ground. The taste of hope dusted my tongue.
Only a few more feet, Zoey. You can do this.

Suddenly several of Garrett’s men stepped in front of
the door, blocking my way. Panic boiled in my head as I peered
around seeing another group coming in behind me.
Shit!
They
were surrounding me.
Noooo!
A bellowed scream shook inside
my head. I would not let Garrett beat Ryker this way. I would not
be his downfall. I would do
anything
to protect him.

Something deep in me broke. Pain and fire combusted
inside, taking me to my knees with a cry. A scorching inferno
sliced throughout my body, like a hundred branding tools. My back
hit the concrete and my head bounced on the ground, but I didn’t
feel anything but the scalding lava. It expanded, consuming every
inch, until I thought I would melt.

“Grab her,” a voice yelled, and figures moved for
me.

I’m sorry, Ryker.

The room spun and my lids fastened together as
everything whirled around me. A scream budded at my lips, but
nothing came out. All my senses disappeared, and I felt like I was
no longer in my body.

Then a tsunami of emotions and sensations flooded
back in, and I screamed. My eyes shut from the onslaught of pain.
The roar of the crowd exploded then went silent.

The heat quickly evaporated, and I felt myself gasp
for air. I could tell I was lying on a floor. Uneven wood planks
dug into my shoulder blades. My lashes fluttered open and my vision
adjusted, focusing clearly on a chipped white ceiling.

“Holy fuck,” a deep voice spoke from somewhere close
to me.

“What?” a woman’s voice asked.

“Look,” the man said.

There was a squeak of metal. “
La naiba!
” The
woman swore, her voice coming from somewhere above me. “You better
go get him.”

I rolled my head toward the speaker. Sitting on the
edge of the bed, leaning over, a stunningly beautiful woman with
plum-colored hair stared at me. A sensation of familiarity tickled
in my mind.

I knew her.

The animosity I felt for her was instant, but it was
diluted with so much jealousy. I knew she was not a physical threat
to me.

“Yeah.” A man’s face peered over me. His dark hair,
eyes, and beard hit a memory. I also recognized him.

Pirate
, was my first thought at seeing
him.

“Damn, she looks like she’s been beaten up. A
lot.”

“Go.” The violet-haired beauty pointed to the door.
“If he finds out we didn’t go get him the minute she returned, he
will kick both our asses.”

The man frowned. “She’s human. I don’t see what has
his panties in such a twist. But if her being back makes him a tad
more pleasant, I’ll take it.”

“It’s not
her
. It’s because of the powers.”
Hurt colored the woman’s face and words.

The pirate man snorted. “Okay, Mar. You keep holding
on to your delusions.” He turned and left the room.

The woman’s eyebrows furrowed as she glanced at the
ceiling and let out a long exhale. Then she unfolded herself off
the bed and came to my side. “Can you sit?”

I stared at her.

“Zoey?” Her voice was sharp and rung crisp in my
ears. “Hey,” she shouted at me again. Loose strands of indigo
tresses trickled my arm.
Her hair is so beautiful
. Unlike
mine, her hue was naturally that color.
There is a reason my
hair is a similar color as hers, I know it
.

“Zoey!” A hard slap zinged across my cheek. Like
being dunked in ice water, my mind was shocked out of its
anesthetized state, letting images and memories flood back in.