The Chosen Ones (13 page)

“It is a big deal.” He lifted
the hem of his shirt and ripped a strip clean. “This will work, at least for
now. We’ll have to clean it later.” He was worried. “Even a small cut…” He
shook his head. “I should have known you weren’t ready.”

“Will,” I snapped, flushing.
“It’s not your fault. I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, but—”

I slapped my uninjured hand over
his mouth. “Enough!”

For a minute we just stood there,
the entire world, including Thane, forgotten. I was completely aware of his
warm lips on my hand, the memory of that kiss came painfully back into focus.
Slowly, I removed my hand. I might not be able to trust many, but Will was
right…I could trust him.

“It’s not your fault,” I
repeated.

“If anything, it was my fault,”
Thane interrupted.

I glanced over my shoulder, confused.
Why was he taking the blame? I was no expert on the man, but even I knew that
wasn’t like him at all.

“I do apologize.” His dark brows
were drawn together in concern. “I should have known you weren’t well enough to
fight.”

And there it was, the tone in his
voice, the implication that I was pathetic… My ire grew, replacing any
embarrassment or unease. He knew. Somehow he knew my Achilles heel…my weakness.
“I’m fine. Really. Don’t bother yourself.”

“You forget we can sense these things,”
the vampire had said in
those woods during the attack.

Had she been serious? Could
Thane sense my feelings? My thoughts? It was a suspicion that wouldn’t let go.

His lips quirked, the amusement shimmering
in his glowing gaze. “Surely you should rest.”
 

“I’m fine,” I said warily. “Let’s
continue.”

“Jane,” Will started.

“I’m okay.”

The sound of snapping branches
was followed by Tony and Kelly’s appearance along the outskirts of the clearing.
Great, even more people to witness my utter humiliation. Ignoring them, I
focused on Thane. He shifted his body toward the right in a natural stance. I
narrowed my eyes, my mind spinning. It was all too easy. He was playing with
me. Had he heard Will’s instructions? If Thane’s senses were better than ours,
maybe he had heard our conversation. If so, he would expect me to go for his
right side.

“Ready?” he asked calmly.

I didn’t respond. Instead I went
with my instincts and lunged left immediately, dagger extended. Thane was a
blur before me, spinning out of the way just in time. As I stumbled to regain
my balance I realized I had judged correctly, and I’d actually almost cut him. Shocked,
I met Thane’s gaze. Will hollered, laughing loudly, thrilled with my success.

“Well done, Jane!” he called
out.

 
Thane merely quirked a brow. “Almost took out
my kidney.” He bowed low. “Good job. Can’t outsmart you.”

Why did I have the feeling he
was mocking me? I didn’t have time to decipher Thane’s reaction for Kelly was
suddenly at my side, her arm sliding through mine. “Smart move, Jane.”

I gave her a grateful smile,
noticing that while she and Will seemed happy for me, Tony merely glared from
the outskirts. Would the man ever accept me as one of the group? Or would I
always be trying to prove myself to them? I shook off my unease and focused on
the thrilling sense of victory. Tony couldn’t get me down. No one could. I’d
finally proven myself.
 

“Told you she’s ready,” Will
said.

“Ready?” I slid the dagger back into
the sheath, trying to regain control of my breath. “For what?”

But no one was paying attention.
The fight was over, and I apparently, was no longer of interest.

Tony’s brows drew together. “You
can’t be serious.”

“For what?” I asked Kelly.
 

“Please, Will, most of us have
been training for years,” Tony added, not only sounding bitter, but angry. “She
caught a lucky break, that doesn’t mean she’s ready.”

“You can’t deny she’s smart,”
Will said. “Smarter than most of us. Her instincts are spot on.”

Thane didn’t bother to reply; he
merely crossed his arms over his chest and stood there watching them argue, as
if he watched some silly play between humans who were so far beneath him. He’d
distanced himself from the group once more.

Tony’s hands fisted at his
sides. “Intelligence isn’t everything. This is a stupid plan.”

I swore I could hear Will’s
teeth grind together. “I’m aware of your opinion.”

“Are you?” Tony shoved his hand against
Will’s chest, sending him stumbling back a couple steps.

Kelly gasped and I was just as
shocked.

“Tony,” she called out. “Stop!”

But Tony ignored her. “I know
why you’re doing this. You’re putting everyone in jeopardy for her.”

Will shifted, bracing his legs
apart in a commanding stance. He had enough discipline not to shove Tony back. “You
don’t know anything. It’s time we stopped running from them.”

Startled, I glanced at Kelly. “What’s
going on? I don’t understand.”

Tony snorted, his glare coming
to rest on me. “Will’s trying to impress you.”

Kelly released a nervous laugh.
“No, he’s just realized it’s time to act.”

“You’ve always said it was too
dangerous before. We all agreed. So, why now?” He jabbed his finger toward me.
“Because you want to impress her.”

“Kelly?” I demanded. “What’s he
talking about?”

“We’re leaving,” Will said,
interrupting. “But not for the reasons Tony believes.”

Confused, I glanced around the
group. Kelly was looking at the ground, everywhere but at me. She knew
something I didn’t. They all did. Tony was glaring at Will. And Thane merely
looked amused by it all.

“Where are we going?” I demanded.

“To your compound,” Will finally
explained. “You’re getting what you wanted. We’re going to try and save your
friends.”

Chapter
8

“You sure you wouldn’t rather go
to your home compound where you were born?” Kelly whispered as she lay beside
me in the vegetation. “You have a sister and brothers there, right?”

Home? I had never felt at home
there behind those walls.

A gnat swarmed my face, but I didn’t
dare reach out to slap it away for fear the movement would draw unwanted
attention from below. “No. We need Tom on our side, and his compound is closer.
It just makes sense.”

I’d told her about my family one
sleepless night, but was surprised she remembered. She’d had an older sister
who had been killed before her, so she probably didn’t understand why I
wouldn’t want to save my family first. But Tom was my family; I was closer to
him than I’d been to anyone else. Besides, I had a bad feeling this wasn’t
going to work.

Below, Tom’s compound lay
nestled between two hills. We could see into the fenced area, the people
milling about, doing their jobs. They were ants down there, just waiting to be
crushed by the beautiful ones. So completely clueless. They had no idea what
was to come. We were far enough away that none of them would notice us, but for
the dhampir standing guard with their super human senses. It had been almost a
month since I’d seen Tom, but it seemed like years and years ago. A dream.

“This is a damn suicide,” Tony
muttered next to Kelly.
 

Part of me agreed with him.

“We’re tired of sitting around
waiting to be killed,” Will snapped back. Things had been tense since their
argument the other night and I couldn’t help but feel responsible. “It’s time
to act.”

Will had been short-tempered and
nervous on our day-long hike, making me wonder if he’d second-guessed his
decision. Did he really want to do this? But now that I was here and Tom was
down there somewhere, I couldn’t seem to voice my concerns. I took my lower lip
between my teeth. Yes, I was being selfish, but I needed to see him.

The dhampir patrolled the area,
casually strolling back and forth in front of the gate. They held no weapons;
they didn’t need them. Their arrogance, I hoped, would be their downfall.

“Would they help us?” I asked. “The
dhampir?”

“No.” Will didn’t even bother to
glance my way—he was too busy studying the scenery as if he expected to be
attacked at any moment. I wondered if he’d ever been this close to a compound
before. “We already tried. In the end, Thane had to kill the guy so he wouldn’t
squeal.”

I slid Thane a glance. He lay on
the other side of Will, quiet, unconcerned. Sunlight pierced the leaves above,
highlighting the hard planes of his face and that pale scar. As if sensing my
attention, he turned his head and caught my gaze. I flushed, looking away. Of
course he’d killed him. Why did every story to do with Thane end with him
murdering someone?

“We need to act,” Will
whispered. “Might as well be now.”
 

I curled my fingers into the
dirt, eager to go. There, amongst the throng of people somewhere, was Tom. I
tried to decipher his red hair from the light and dark brown, but couldn’t tell
if any men were him at that distance. The urge to race down there was
overwhelming, but I knew I had to be patient.

“Once you do this,” Will
whispered, glancing at Thane. “There’s no going back. You will be a traitor,
and they’ll most likely find out what you’ve done.”

In other words, he would not be
rescuing anyone else. I stared at the dirt I lay upon, watching an ant weave
its way around grass and pebbles. Never before had I wished to be an inconsequential
insect as much as I did at that moment. Thane wouldn’t be able to save anyone
else, and if Tony was right, it would be my fault.

“I know,” Thane replied.
 

A wave of guilt hit me hard.
Tony had implied we were here because of me. I hadn’t thought much about it. I
hadn’t wanted to. No, I’d selfishly accepted that this was Will’s decision. But
now the importance of what we were trying to do overwhelmed me. Thane jumped
gracefully to his feet and moved down the hill, leaving us without another
word.

“Will?” I shifted closer to him,
so close I could smell his musky scent, see the scruff along his jaw. “Are you
sure now’s the right time?”

He gave me a reassuring smile,
those dimples flashing. “It’s time.”

“But--”

“Jane.” He leaned closer so I
could hear. “Despite what Tony thinks, I’m not doing this just because of you.”

I flushed, but forced myself to
hold his gaze. “Then why?”

He glanced at the others, as if
to make sure they were out of hearing distance. “I received a note the other
day from Raven and he said it’s time to act.”

Surprised, I glanced toward the
compound, but Thane had already disappeared. So, we weren’t here because of me
at all, but because of this mythical Raven. I was relieved, but slightly
annoyed at the same time. Why hadn’t Will mentioned it before now? “And he said
to act?”

“Yes. Although he left it up to
me to decide exactly when.”

“Will, Thane’s getting ready to
attack at the front,” Tony whispered the warning.

Will pulled away from me, our
leader once more. “Remember the plan: once Thane kills the few guards posted in
front, we act.”
 

I wondered what Tom would think
when he finally knew the truth. Wondered how they would all react. But mostly I
wondered how we could possibly get them through the woods and back to camp
without being caught. I took in a deep, trembling breath. For now, one step at
a time. We needed them, needed our own army, if wanted any chance of fighting
the beautiful ones.

“Jane?” Kelly whispered.

I scooted closer to her. “Yeah?”

“Are you afraid?”

“Yes.” She nodded, reaching out
and grasping my hand.

A few minutes later Thane
strolled toward the front of the gates, so casually that for a moment I’d
forgotten he was on our side. I shivered, watching him work, knowing what was
to come. “He’s like an animal. He kills with no conscience.”

Kelly glanced at me. “There’s
more to him than you realize.”

Reluctantly I tore my gaze from
Thane and the gates. “What do you mean?”

She shrugged, looking
uncomfortable. I’d realized early on they didn’t like to talk about him, as if
they were betraying the blood drinker by divulging his past. I found their
loyalty honorable and frustrating. “He had a love at one time, you know.”

Shocked, I found myself actually
speechless for a few moments. Thane had loved someone? That seemed impossible.
“A vampire?” Is that why he hated them so? Had she broken his heart and this
was his form of revenge? That, at least, made some sense.

“Not a blood drinker,” Kelly
said, surprising me for the second time. “Not even a dhampir. But one of the
servants at the castle.”

“A human?” I glanced at him
again. He’d managed to talk the guards into opening the gates. They trusted him,
but wouldn’t after today. That man had loved a human? Impossible. “What
happened to the human?”

“They killed her. Drank her
dead.”

Suddenly Thane’s comments came
rushing back to me with new meaning.

“We are servants to them. Just as some of your people are.”

“Those who are lucky,”
I had said, so completely stupid at the time.

“No,”
he replied
. “Not lucky.
Far from it.”

They’d killed his love. I
swallowed hard over the lump of emotion suddenly clogging my throat. I didn’t
know what to think anymore. So, he did know what it was like to merely wait for
those you loved to die. And this was his revenge. So be it. I could live with
that. And I could certainly understand.
 

“He was out at the time,” Kelly
continued. “He’d always been able to protect her while at the castle, but he
was sent to his first compound, and that’s when it happened.”