The Light, the Dark and the Ugly (28 page)

Erica ran the length of the room, shooting as she went. She evaded half a dozen blasts and took out three more guards as she leapt over the piece of statue and landed next to Natalie.

Erica's adrenaline was through the roof. "That went better than expected."

Natalie breathed heavily. "Speak for yourself. I thought we'd have killed 'em all by now."

Erica grinned, but her smile slowly faded as the sound of footsteps took over the room. While they'd successfully thinned out the guards on hand, reinforcements had arrived – and plenty of them. A quick glance over the statue showed that more than 50 soldiers had come to replace their fallen comrades.

Erica felt empty for what she was about to do. She tossed her weapon over the statue and put her hands over her head. "We surrender."

* * *

Dhiraj could barely believe what he just saw. In front of what must have been dozens of television cameras, Kable gave himself up as Adam. Between the shock of the takeoff and how close he'd just felt to death, Dhiraj was surprised to find that his brain was clear as day. He winked at Jennifer and tipped his chair completely over.

He screamed. "Ahhh! He's in my head. Kable's in my head!"

A guard who'd been eavesdropping in the hallway came running in. As he knelt by Dhiraj's side trying to figure out what to do, Jennifer relieved the guard of his sidearm.

She pointed the gun directly between his eyes. "How about you get my boyfriend out of those handcuffs before I blow your brains out?"

Dhiraj kept himself in check despite Jennifer's sexy tone of voice as the guard undid his cuffs. Dhiraj slapped the one end of the handcuffs on the guard's wrist and placed the other on the window bars.

As Dhiraj fiddled with Jennifer's restraints, he watched the guard's face turn sullen. 

"Don't worry, man. It's all for the greater good."

There were surprisingly few guards left inside, as many of them had been dispatched to handle the growing crowd of people outside. In all the insanity of the news crews and spectators, Dhiraj never expected to see a familiar face. Two, actually.

There they were, in low-cut tops and body paint. Beth and Winny were screaming for their attention from the other side of a metal police gate. Dhiraj and Jennifer shared a look as they hustled over. Beth and Winny both squealed as they wrapped their arms around Jennifer.

So much for being inconspicuous.

Jennifer's eyes were wide. "How the heck did you guys get here?"

Beth saw something over Dhiraj's shoulder. "We'll explain. Hop over!"

Dhiraj turned back to see several guards running in their direction. He nodded. "Best idea I've heard all day."

Dhiraj helped Jennifer clear the gate before he took the leap himself. The crowd filled around them as they moved, making it nearly impossible for the guards to penetrate once they reached the barrier. Beth and Winny led the way out of the parking lot and to a car just down the street. It was orange. It was flashy. And it looked incredibly fast. Winny squeezed in back while Beth took shotgun. Dhiraj hadn't even realized someone was sitting in the front seat.

Beth beamed. "Guys, I'd like you to meet Detrick Van Housen, the wealthy German benefactor of the Free Ted Movement."

Dhiraj had seen Van Housen's face on the news whenever they were able to check the Internet. He knew from his mental Rolodex of the richest people in the world that the Van Housen family was worth billions.

"But how?"

Beth smirked. "It's Housen."

Jennifer rolled her eyes. "How did you–"

Van Housen started the car and looked into the rear view mirror. "These lovely ladies emailed me after your Treasure heist. They've been with me ever since."

One look to the front of the car told Dhiraj just how smitten Beth was.

He huffed. "I apologize on behalf of all Americans." Dhiraj took Jennifer's hand. "Mr. Van Housen–"

"Detrick."

Dhiraj nodded. "Detrick. We need to get back to Treasure."

Winny's mouth hung open. "Why? What's happening in Treasure?"

Jennifer sighed. "Nothing good."

Beth put her hand on Detrick's leg. "Step on it, honey!"

The car accelerated with a blast of power as they exited onto the highway.

Jennifer gave Winny a dirty look. "Honey?" 

Winny returned the glance. "Let her have this."

The DHS detention center was only a few exits away from a small airfield. It turned out that Beth and Winny were able to get to Chicago so quickly because of Detrick's private jet. Dhiraj wondered how many millions the man had blown on such a thing of beauty. Within half an hour, the entire gang was airborne.

After a few minutes of conversation with the German billionaire, Dhiraj noticed Jennifer had gravitated toward the other side of the plane. He excused himself and walked across the aisle to sit beside her.

"You okay?"

She rubbed her nose. Her cheeks looked more pink than usual. "I shouldn't have riled him up."

Dhiraj linked his fingers with hers. "He's a psychopath. He knew what he was going to do when he walked in."

Jennifer's face showed concern. "Did you call home?"

Dhiraj chewed the inside of his cheek. "No answer."

He hoped beyond hope that his father had watched the news and gotten as far away from Treasure as possible.

Jennifer pursed her lips. "Do we know what we're going to do when we get there?"

Dhiraj shook his head. "No. But we'll figure something out."

Jennifer laid her head on his shoulder for the rest of the flight.

Detrick had another speed-demon of a vehicle waiting at the military airbase about 20 minutes from town; Detrick got to Treasure in eight. As they entered the city limits, Dhiraj could see the smoke floating up into the air. He barked out driving directions to Detrick. A few turns later and they saw the source of the smoke.

Every single house, from Ted's to Dhiraj's to Natalie's, was completely engulfed in flames. Treasure was burning.

* * *

It took a second for Ted's eyes to adjust to the light when his hood was finally removed. When he could make out more than vague shapes, he saw a holographic display before him. The image clearly showed Natalie and Erica surrounded by dozens of armed guards.

"It's a shame it has to end like this," a familiar voice said.

Ted didn't need to take his eyes off the screen to know the room's other occupant. The General sat in a chair beside him. "They're waiting on my order, you know. But I could just as well tell them to stand down." Ted wanted to tear the General's head from his body, in the same way he'd ripped the statue apart.

He shook his head. "I know what you want and you're not going to get it."

The General gasped. "What? You presume I want to trade off a planet for the lives of the women you hold most dear?" The General stood up and paced the length of the room. "It's a tempting offer to make, but I've decided compromise is the best way to proceed."

Ted smirked. "Do you just want Greenland then?"

The General chuckled, and Ted wanted nothing more than to stop the sound with his bare hands.

"Here's my proposition, Ted. I let your friends live. Yippie!" He crouched down in front of his doppelganger. "And I give you the end of the war. In return, you give me permission to inhabit one tenth of one percent of the Earth's dead. Point zero zero one."

Ted looked more closely at the screen. Erica and Natalie were dead for sure. Unless he agreed to the General's terms.

Ted sighed. "How many is that?"

The General's eyes brightened. "My dear boy. Does this mean you're actually considering it?"

Whoever was operating the camera zoomed in close on Erica and Natalie's faces. Ted didn't know how he could bear to lose either one of them.

He tried to steady his breathing, but he wasn't successful in the least. "Just tell me."

The General was having way too much fun with this. "About 150 people every day."

Ted's head began to ache. Would he be damning billions of people on Earth by saving the lives of just two?

"The villagers only. No troops."

The General nodded. "Of course. They're the ones in the most need. We'll start with the children and work our way up. It'll take years before we even get to our first troop."

Ted's heart pounded. "And they'd keep things secret? And they'd be forbidden from attacking humans or otherwise subverting the planet?"

The General's eyes grew brighter and brighter. "They wouldn't hurt a human or a fly so long as they live. As long as you agree that it continues indefinitely."

Ted's insides tore at him. Here was a chance to end a thousand-year conflict by what seemed like a peaceful solution. Erica and Natalie would live, and people like Razellia and Vella would have a second lease on life. On the other hand, the concept of humanity would change forever. It'd be impossible to tell humans and dark souls apart for the rest of time.

Sacrificing his own life was one thing. He'd be willing to do that in a heartbeat. But he couldn't let Erica and Natalie die.

Ted nodded. "Let them live. I agree to your terms."

The General started clapping. He hopped up and down like a boy who'd just gotten everything he wanted for his birthday. "Ted, this is going to be the best decision you've ever made. For all parties involved."

Ted's body shook with worry, but within moments he felt everything start to grow calm.

The General put his hand on Ted's shoulder. "By the way, there's just one more provision you have to agree to. At this point, it's just a formality."

Ted heard someone else enter the room. When he looked over, he saw a large, muscular man matching Natalie's description of Pluric. As soon as Ted had a grasp on that memory, it seemed to slip right out of his head. That's when his mind went completely blank. 

Chapter 46

Natalie was tired. She'd run from the dark soul rebels. She'd defended herself from dozens of attackers. The sweat from all the effort made her shirt stick to her skin, and the quickly filling room of soldiers turned her adrenaline into dread.

She looked to Erica for some sign of hope. The protector's posture reminded Natalie of the teams they'd trounced in the playoffs. Erica's body language said defeat, and Natalie's heart sunk.

In the midst of all the hubbub, Travis had snuck across the room and found them. There was a massive bruise on the side of his head, but he appeared to be lucid and concussion-free.

Travis didn't seem to notice Erica's stance. "What's Plan B?"

Natalie scrunched up her nose. "Seeing as Plan A involved you taking a nap, we're gonna need a hammock to make Plan B work."

Travis gave her a dirty look and tapped Erica on the shoulder. "Come on, LaPlante. You've gotta have something to get us outta this."

Natalie looked left and right. There were now over 100 guards. Some of them kept an eye on the trio. Others were milling about as if this were some kind of cocktail party. All of them seemed confident that any sort of uprising would result in their immediate deaths.

Erica let out a deep exhale. "The only thing I can think of is to offer my life for yours."

Travis grumbled. "Is that always your plan? Sacrifice yourself for us?"

Erica threw up her hands. "I get to come back! I get to do this all over again. You don't."

Travis raised his voice. "We're not letting you die."

Erica faced off against him. "You don't have much of a choice."

Natalie couldn't handle the idiocy of either side. She pulled them apart. "Why don't you two just shut up? We've got enough crap to deal with."

The squabblers took a step apart.

Travis crossed his arms. "All four of us go home, or none of us. That's why I came here."

Natalie patted his head. "You're honorable. Nobody could claim otherwise." She kissed his cheek. "They'd have a case for stupid, too."

As he smirked, a voice piped out from an unseen speaker. The cadence and intonation sounded oddly like Ted.

"Troops, this is your General speaking." The conversation in the room ground to a halt. "Please report to the West Hall for a very important announcement. Take all prisoners of war to holding cells along the way, with three exceptions. The humans are free to go."

Natalie was puzzled. Judging by the looks of the soldiers on hand, she wasn't the only one. The troops who'd had their weapons trained on them lowered the guns. It took less than a minute for the soldiers who surrounded them to vacate the room.

Travis nodded and pointed at the last remaining troops, as if his team had mounted some kind of comeback victory.

Erica didn't look nearly as enthusiastic. "I don't like this."

Travis huffed. "You'd rather we faced a firing squad or something? Seriously, Ted's got his work cut out for him trying to make you happy."

"I like the challenge."

The three of them turned at once to see Ted standing there. Aside from a few bumps and bruises, he appeared to be safe and in good spirits. When Erica didn't run to him right away, Natalie decided to pick up the slack.

She hugged him hard. "We had no idea where you were."

He smelled cleaner than she expected, but it was probably better than the alternative. "It's okay. We can go home now."

Travis tapped Natalie on the back. "Give him some space."

When Natalie complied, Travis gave him a manly hug with a pat on the back. "Glad you're safe, man."

Ted returned the gesture with extra oomph. When they pulled away, Ted turned toward Erica, but her feet remained planted.

Her eyes seemed to probe his for information. "What did you do?"

Ted pursed his lips. "I bought us some time." His eyes darted nervously from left to right. "I'm not sure how much, though. We better get outta here." 

Judging by the tension in her face, that was not the answer Erica wanted to hear. "They could've killed or captured us. They didn't. Tell me why."

It was a good question. Natalie knew that Ted had struggled with the power to end the war in one fell swoop. Had he actually pulled the trigger?