After two nights of not hearing the wolves, we began to relax that maybe they'd given up and turned back. We emerged from the mountains to find the remains of a paved road that wound along beside the large beautiful river stretching out in front of us. I understood why Madame wanted to control the bridge. The river was huge and wide. If the dam wasn't there, a person would have to travel far out of their way trying to find a way around. Swimming seemed risky and would be straight-up foolish during the cold months.
The horse’s hooves sounded too loud on the pavement, echoing off the growing cliff walls to our left. It put me on edge. We could see the dam in the distance, but I couldn’t tell what kind of state it was in from so far away. I wondered how long it would last. What would happen when it broke down?
It took half the day to reach the dam. The road had been carved out of the rocky cliffs and fallen rocks littered the ground, ranging from pebbles to giant boulders. We had to dismount and walk for most of it. I went first, trying to find a safe path, and Trey followed, leading the horse. The horse threw her head back and snorted, often fighting to pull away from Trey when rocks would move and shift underneath her hooves, but he coaxed her through it. On the right side of us, the ground dropped into a steep hill down to the river. I tried to ignore my anxiety about being trapped between the rocky wall and the edge of a cliff.
When we got closer, I stared at the giant wall of concrete, speechless at the enormous size of the thing. How had they built something so huge? How had they kept the river back so they could build it?
“How did they—” I started to ask.
The horse turned her head and jumped sideways a second before something leapt out from behind a giant boulder. A giant wolf narrowly missed us with its snapping jaw and the horse let out a terrified noise and took off at a gallop. I shrieked, clinging to the saddle horn, and Trey swore as he grabbed onto me with one arm and fumbled for his gun with the other. Behind us howling and barks filled the air, spurring the horse on even faster, and I managed to glance behind to see more than half a dozen huge grey wolves pursuing us.
“Hold on!” Trey yelled over the sound. “Let the horse go and just hold on!”
He twisted backwards and the first gunshot made my ears ring. One of the wolves yelped, and maybe I imagined it, but the howls and barks seemed angrier.
We flew down the rocky road, and I prayed to any gods listening that the horse wouldn’t fall on the loose rocks. My eyes watered and I squinted through the wind to see the dam rapidly approaching. The horse ran as fast as she could, but the wolves easily kept pace. Trey continued to shoot, and I heard a few yelps, but I had no idea if he’d managed to kill any of them.
“Try to steer her onto the bridge!” Trey yelled in my ear, and then I heard the telltale click of an empty gun.
I knew he had more ammo in his jacket, but I wasn’t sure if he could reach it. I seized the reins. The turn for the bridge appeared, and I started pulling to the side, hoping the horse would understand that I wanted her to turn. She seemed to get the idea and began to turn toward the bridge, but then she stumbled. For a second, I thought she would be able to right herself and keep going, but then we were falling.
Trey grabbed me around the waist and for a sickening moment, we were both airborne before the ground slammed into us hard. The horse screamed, a horrible cry of fear and pain, and I knew without looking that we'd lost her. Trey recovered before I did, hauling me to my feet, but a blur of grey fur crashed into him and knocked him back to the ground. The gun clattered across the ground, and I screamed in terror. Trey grappled on the ground with a wolf that was attempting to rip his throat out. He'd managed to get an arm up so the wolf's jaw crushed his forearm instead of his neck, but blood sprayed, and I could hear the cracking of bone as he screamed. Still, he fought back, attempting to wrestle the wolf to the ground and get the upper hand.
I started to run for the gun but then remembered it was empty. After a frantic glance around me, I grabbed some of the large rocks that littered the ground and threw them at the wolf as hard as I could, screaming. After a few misses, I managed to get the wolf squarely in the jaw, and it released Trey’s arm, turning toward me with a snarl. Trey gasped on the ground, his face pale and his arm a bloody, gory mess. The wolf stalked toward me, its muzzle covered in Trey’s blood, and I clutched the rock in my hand tighter as I raised my arm.
“Get out of here!” I screamed at the wolf. “Get out!”
The wolf didn’t stop and as Trey cried my name and the horse’s screams faded, I knew we were about to die. The smell of blood filled the air along with the awful sound of the wolves beginning to tear into the horse’s flesh.
The wolf lunged at me, and I threw the rock as hard as I could at its head with a scream of helpless fury.
A gunshot rang out and the wolf twisted in the air, the fierce light abruptly extinguished from its eyes. I gasped in a breath and then it hit me, knocking me off my feet and pinning me to the ground. As I struggled to escape from under the dead wolf, more bullets whistled around us. I managed to shove it off and spared a glance at the dam to see a group of people in dark tactical gear approaching as they fired, picking off the wolves, but then I crashed down on my knees at Trey’s side.
His eyes met mine, full of fear and pain. His arm was shredded, and I didn’t waste any time. I ripped my gloves off and wrapped my hands around his arm, the warmth of my healing powers rushing down my arms and into him. I gasped in panicked sobs as I watched the broken bone, ruptured muscles, and torn tendons and ligaments slowly mend.
His good hand suddenly gripped my arm, squeezing, and I looked up at his face.
“S’alright darlin’,” he whispered, which only made me cry harder. ”Bones, it’s alright.”
The wound finally closed into an enormous, jagged scar, but I didn’t let go, running my fingers around it and moving his arm so I could see for sure that it healed.
“Are you hurt?” Trey asked, letting me examine him as his eyes scanned my body.
“No,” I sobbed.
“I’m ok, Bones.” He pulled his arm free from my grip and sat up so he could wrap his arms around me. “I’m ok.”
I clung to him, shaking. I could hear boots on the pavement, and I knew whoever had saved us was approaching, but I didn’t look up. Trey was ok. He was ok. We were alive.
“Don’t make any sudden moves,” Trey whispered urgently in my ear.
I raised my head in alarm. A dozen armed people surrounded us, and while they weren’t pointing guns at us, they also hadn’t holstered their weapons. I scanned their faces, but I didn’t recognize any of them. Their grim expressions made my stomach flip with anxiety but they had saved our lives.
"Thanks for the assist," Trey said carefully.
They just stared at us, and then a familiar voice rang out.
“Angel.”
I twisted in panic, hoping I heard wrong, but the circle of armed men parted and Vulture stepped into view.
He looked the same, but somehow different at the same time. He’d always been wiry, but he seemed thinner than I remembered. His dark blond hair hung long, covering his ears, and his narrow face was still good-looking, but it had a harder edge to it now. His eyes looked almost black. They’d been blue before, hadn’t they?
I stared at him, my heart pounding with fear. This wasn’t possible. I had to be hallucinating. He couldn’t be here, how the fuck was he here? Trey's arms had tightened around me, both of us silent and tense. Vulture stepped closer, crouching an arm's length away so he could peer into my eyes.
“Not expectin’ to see me, were you?” Vulture drawled. “Guess you were probably expectin’ me to be as dead as Juck, huh?”
I couldn’t look past his dark eyes. I expected them to be full of fury and vengeance, but they were strangely empty. It wasn’t reassuring though. It made my skin crawl.
“When I saw the bounty out on your head, I jumped at the chance to track you down,” he said. He glanced at Trey and there, some emotion flashed through those dark eyes.
“Vulture—” I tried, my voice shaking, but he held up a hand, stopping me.
“Nah, I’m not interested in your lies, Angel.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered anyway.
He stared at me for a few breaths. “Which part are you sorry for? For all the lies or for leavin’ me to die?”
“All of it,” I choked out.
It scared me so much more that he wasn’t yelling. I’d seen him angry. He had a temper to rival mine, and I knew how to handle that. I didn’t know what to do with this terrifying blank version of Vulture.
He stood. “So are you gonna come nicely or is this gonna be a fight?”
“Come where?” My voice shook.
He grinned, showing all his teeth. “Back to the Vault.”
I gasped in fast and panicked breaths, trying to think straight. This couldn’t be happening. Gods, I almost wished the wolves had killed us.
“Let’s cooperate for now,” Trey breathed into my ear, his lips concealed by my hair. “Try to relax their guard.”
“I’ll come nicely if you promise you and your men won’t hurt him,” I said, ignoring the frustrated noise Trey made.
Vulture’s grin widened. “Deal.”
"Bones," Trey growled, “the fuck are you doin’?”
I turned to look at him. “I love you,” I whispered.
That muscle in his jaw ticked and desperate fury shone in his eyes. "I love you too.”
I forced myself to pull away, to leave the safety and comfort of his arms, to stand and walk over to where Vulture waited. His men moved in, grabbing Trey, hauling him to his feet, and binding his hands behind his back. I stopped an arm's length away from Vulture, eying him. I'd not included my own safety in that deal on purpose, hoping he would seize on that technicality. I expected him to hurt me. I’d left him to bleed to death in the hot desert, but this was between me and Vulture, and I wanted to keep Trey out of it.
Vulture studied me with an unexpected intensity like he was looking for something. When he stepped forward, I tried hard not to flinch but didn't quite succeed, and he raised an eyebrow with a smirk. He slowly stroked a knuckle down my face.
“I missed you,” he murmured.
My skin crawled, but then a sharp pain stung in my arm and I jumped. I looked down to see that with his free hand, he'd stabbed a syringe into my arm. The icy drug rushed through my blood, and I stumbled back a step, swinging my panicked gaze to Trey. It looked like he was fighting the men holding him and yelling, his furious and worried eyes on me. A deafening buzzing drowned out everything. I tried to get my lips to move, but the ground rushed up to meet me.
The ominous silence loomed over me.
My body floated in darkness, suspended in something not quite like water and not quite like air.
I waited, terrified, for that cold voice to speak. I didn’t dare open my eyes.
The silence stretched on as I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited.
I sat straight up with a gasp of panic.
“There she is.” Vulture crouched in front of me in the snow, that empty smirk still on his face.
I stared at him blankly, still gasping in panicked breaths. He held another syringe, so he must have injected me with something to wake me up. I could feel it, the adrenaline surging through me, but my mind and body felt sluggish, still caught in the narc’s web.
“Get her up,” said a cold voice that I recognized with a rush of terror.
Vulture hauled me to my feet and shoved me forward. I stumbled a few steps, my legs and feet still numb, and glanced around disoriented. A huge crowd of people surrounded us, full of familiar faces. We were back at the Vault. How the fuck were we back at the Vault? My thoughts felt like they moved through thick, sticky honey.
The entire hold appeared to be here, held back by Madame’s men with their guns drawn and ready. My eyes found Mac and the horror and fear on his face felt like a reflection of my own. Griz stood next to him looking panicked, an expression I’d never seen before on his face. Where were the others? They had to be—
“Bones.”
I turned at Madame’s sharp call and my heart stopped.
Madame stood about ten feet away from me and in front of her Trey knelt in the snow, his arms still bound behind him, his eyes fixed on me. In one smooth movement, Madame drew the pistol holstered at her waist and pressed it directly to the side of Trey's head.
You’re gonna wanna pay attention, Bones,” Madame said in that cold voice. “I want you to remember this the next time you think about runnin’.”
“No!” I gasped in horror, lunging a step forward, only to halt when she flicked the safety off the gun.
I could hear people in the crowd also shouting and crying out, but I couldn't make out what they said through my panic.
"Please, Madame, I'll do anythin'—"
“Bones,” Trey interrupted, his eyes never leaving mine, “let ’em in.”
“Madame!” I couldn’t even begin to process what Trey just said, and what it implied. This was all happening so fast—too fast—and I needed to think, but the heavy drugs clouded my mind. “Madame!” I tried to keep my voice calm, but it shook. “Please! Please wait! Please can’t we just talk—”
“Bones, darlin’.”
My gaze snapped back to Trey’s face, and the love and regret and acceptance in his face made the panic roar even louder in my head.
“No!” I cried, terrified tears rolling down my face. “Trey! Please don’t—”
“Darlin’,” he interrupted, his voice rough with emotion, “I’ll find you again in another lifetime. Maybe there we’ll have more time.” His voice cracked. “I love you.”
“Trey, please!” Oh gods, I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t breathe.
“How sweet.” Madame’s voice was ice-cold.
“Madame! Please!” I sobbed. “Just let me—”
“I love—”
She pulled the trigger.
In one blink Trey was looking at and speaking to me and in the next his body jerked backward, slumping over. Half his skull was gone, blood and gore everywhere. Part of my brain couldn't accept what my eyes had seen. I couldn't understand how someone so full of life could be snuffed out just like that. The snow underneath him quickly turned red.
Vaguely I could hear the crowd yelling behind me. People sobbed. Madame spoke to them, her voice harsh, but I wasn’t listening. I forced my body to move and fell to my knees beside Trey, trying to avoid looking at the gaping hole in the side of his head. His beautiful brown eyes stared blankly at the sky, but all the warmth that shone in them had gone out.
“Trey, please. Please, no.” I repeated, my voice cracking, as I cradled his bloody face. I knew it was pointless, but I couldn’t help trying to heal him. The warmth seemed to pour from my hands and then evaporate into the cold air instead of seeping into his skin. No life remained in him for me to heal. I couldn’t bring him back. I’d never been able to bring back the dead, and the gods knew I’d tried.
Something in me broke, and I suddenly understood the woman who had screamed for her child after the Reapers tore them apart from each other. My own scream ripped out of me. I couldn’t have controlled it if I tried. I screamed as the pain tore me apart, as all the beauty and hope Trey had coaxed to life inside of me shattered.
I managed to somewhat silence myself by folding in half and pressing my face against Trey's motionless chest. My hands fisted in his jacket. He still smelled like Trey, like home, even as the metallic tang of blood filled my senses. I heard Madame's men driving the restless, agitated crowd back. I could hear them shouting for a long time, a dull roar in the background. The cold snow seeped into my pants, freezing against my skin until I couldn't feel it anymore.
“Please don’t. Don’t leave me. Please.” I sobbed into his chest. Why hadn’t I told him I loved him from the first moment I knew? Why had I wasted so much time trying to push him away? We could have had more time, gods, I just wanted a little more time.
When a heavy hand clapped down on my shoulder, a feral part of me came loose.
I put my whole body and all my fury into the punch, landing a solid blow to the side of Vulture’s face. He went down with a surprised expression. His men rushed me and I fought them, screaming and clawing and spitting like a wild animal until finally one of them raised a rifle and swung the butt of it hard at my head and then I knew nothing at all.