~Maddie~
Being captive wasn't that bad. Catherine wasn't very smart. She had changed the vehicles but she hadn't hidden her face. She'd taken me from my bed and hadn't really covered my face either. The jacket had been barely over my head. It hid my hair but nothing else. My best guess was she was scared of Casey. All I had to do was find what it was and exploit it. I had an inkling, but there was no point in accusing her without evidence.
I looked down at the snacks in front of me. Someone had been doing some research on me since all my favorite snacks were here. I didn't argue; I sat and munched away while they plotted and planned. If they were going through all this trouble, the least I could do was be a good hostage.
Bless Catherine, and if you knew Southern terms, you would know it was not a good endearment. Whatever it was, she hadn't been thinking. She hadn't tried to cover her tracks. Anyone else who had taken a hostage would drive straight to a hideout. No, they would zig zag all over to make sure they weren't followed. Well, she hadn't done that.
It had given me time to figure out how to get a message to Drew. I wasn't proficient in magic, but he had shown me a thing or two privately. Most of it had been in case of an emergency. Being kidnapped fell into that category.
It had taken a couple of tries and memorizing the route, but I had finally gotten through. It had helped that I'd seen Sam riding his motorcycle behind us. Drew had been relieved but had gotten right down to business. With extreme discomfort, I'd allowed him to take over my mind just to figure out where I was. I was nursing a headache still but I knew they were coming.
I sat and ate while the others talked. I didn't make a disturbance except for a couple of bathroom breaks. I memorized faces, shooting them out on whatever frequency Drew was using. Names were a little sketchy, but there were only four people that mattered.
Obviously, Casey, Nathan, Catherine and the gaggle of friends she'dbrought were too many others to keep count, but one face stood out. There was a genteel young lady with them. She probably wasn't much older than me, but she was shorter than me. She watched with big honey eyes as everyone talked around her.
She seemed easy-going, but I could see the underlying issue. Whether it was the magic from Excalibur or Drew's still lingering, I knew who this girl was. I didn't know her current name, but I knew her past name. Guinevere was hard to miss.
Her showing up wasn't a surprise, but her being with Casey was. I wasn't dumb enough to play my hand so I opted to wait. Hopefully it won't kill me.
The one thing that surprised me was Catherine only took me. Beca had been asleep across the room, but I had been the target. Up until several hours ago, I hadn't figured out why. As I'd listened to their banter and discussions over the last several hours, I'd realized what was going on.
I wasn't the target. Darren was. I wasn't sure who would take him because he wasn't a small guy, but he didn't need to be taken out. He would voluntarily turn himself over just to see me go free.
With that knowledge, I was glad I left Excalibur with Beca. If they had it, there was no telling what they would do. I knew it would be bad and damn near impossible to get it back. I was very glad I left it with the others. Hopefully they wouldn't bring it with them.
I cracked open a bottle of water and sipped it slowly. The farmhouse was dusty, and it made my throat dry. It was a fun place to hide. They could have cleaned it up a bit more, but there weren't any rats so I didn't complain.
It was faint, but I heard a howl. My skin prickled in recognition. I hid my smile behind my bottle. From the sound, they were close. It'd been a little distorted, but I figured it was magic. Casey had erected a barrier so the sound wouldn't be as clear. The barrier would absorb it. It was a good thing I wasn't yelling. No one would hear that either.
I looked out the window and saw the backup partly shuffling outside. Casey had opened a focal point in the barn and another in the old mill. Shades skulked up and down the property. No one was attacking the group gathered so they were at peace. The creatures still weirded me out with their humanlike bodies but obscured faces. Their eyes glowed blue when they were fighting but were black pits as they stayed dormant. I almost wished they looked like the wraiths from Tolkien's world.
There was a spark that caught my eye. I didn't doubt who it was, but I didn't look out the window. Drew always had a way of doing things covertly. I hoped no one saw it. The spark wasn't very minute. It was bright and blue. If anyone had been paying attention they would have seen it. From the looks of it, no one had been.
"So when they get here, what's your plan?" Nathan asked. I liked how he said when and not if. He knew they would come.
"The barrier would give us plenty of warning," Casey said. She glanced out the window. "Plus there is a whole lawn of Shades for them to get through. Once they breach the barrier, they will be overwhelmed. It'll be easy pickings."
I wanted to say everything that was on my mind, but I couldn't give the others away. This was going to play out either way. I couldn't stop it, but I could keep my secrets. What they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.
Nathan ventured over and sat across from me. He picked up a chip and shoved it in his mouth. He met my gaze evenly. I knew he'd be a good guy if he could get out from under Casey. If he believed her reasonings for doing this, there was nothing I could do. But there was also the case that he believed in this more than she did. That was a truly terrifying concept.
"You're very calm for a hostage," he mused.
I shrugged. "What good will it do me to cause a ruckus? You'll just gag me and make things worse."
He smiled. "You know we can't harm a hair on your head right yet."
My smile mirrored his as I leaned forward on the table. "Darren is coming, and I'm pretty sure he's not going to be as keen on giving himself up."
"Unlike you?" I shrugged again but met his eyes levelly. No point in arguing with him. "You already know what's going on, don't you?"
I leaned back and popped a chip in my mouth. "Catherine was the cause of my dad's wreck, and if I'm going out on a limb, I'm saying you were involved as well."
His face closed off. I knew I was right. Nathan and Catherine had talked long before they'd planned this. Casey had helped by giving Nathan a free pass to handle it. That was why she had Catherine on her side. She was blackmailing the older woman witht the guilt she had for killing her husband. My best guess was she was still mad about ebing divorced and written out of the will. Anger made people do irrational things.
I looked over at her. Catherine's hands trembled as she lifted the wine glass to her chapped lips. Guilt was a funny thing, and it was eating her alive. I didn't have to do or say anything to make her feel worse. She was doing well on her own.
Drew's voice in my head warned me minutes before intense magic swept through the area. The Shades that had been moping about were suddenly gone. I could feel the focal points roaring to life to replace them. Casey would have them heavily guarded which meant Drew would have to split everyone up.
Nathan stood in front of me just as the door slammed open. I couldn't see around him, but I didn't need to. I could feel those who'd come through the door. Darren, Drew, Simon and two others stood over the threshold. I didn't have to see those three faces to know their oppressive presences.
The guy in front of me wasn't bad looking but I didn't want his ass in my face. I punched him in the kidney. He grunted and stepped aside but not before shooting me a death glare. I stared at him until he turned back to the door. He wouldn't lay a hand on me.
Darren looked haggard, but that was to be expected. He hadn't looked all that great when I'd last seen him. He was as frantic this time though. An eerie calm had settled over him. I didn't like it, but I wasn't about to rile the lion that was barely contained under the surface.
"Are you okay?" he asked. I nodded but didn't say anything. His gaze shifted to Nathan. "Why the hell would you do this? Don't you know it's kidnapping?"
"Breaking and entering is illegal too," the girl said.
"That's only a misdemeanor. Kidnapping is a felony," Simon said. He met the girl's gaze with a drawn face. "Hello, Lyla."
I looked over at her. She was looking directly at Simon and Darren, her honey eyes focused. She knew them, but I hadn't seen her before. I'd been here a year and she never rang a bell in my memory. Simon knew her so it could mean anything, but Simon also knew a lot of people outside of the school. Whatever was going on between them was far more than school.
Darren and Nathan started arguing. They inched closer together as more profane words flew between them. Casey got involved, and the three of them stood toe to toe spitting fire at each other. It had everyone gathered in shock, but those on Casey's side shifted uncomfortably. They weren't used to this.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a brief movement. Drew's finger twitched ever so slightly. I stretched and stood. No one other than Nathan was near me. I slid behind the table next to the wall. Casey's people were too engulfed in the yelling match to see me moving. By the time they did, I was already a foot from Drew.
I grabbed Drew's hand and wedged myself between him and the door. Drew's shoulders sagged, and I knocked my head into him. He shook my arm in consolation. He was relieved.
"You might as well know how pitiful you truly are," Nathan goaded. We stared at him, at them. "A baby abandoned at birth because he was unwanted is now a man unwanted by the girl he loves, a girl he could never have. That is pitiful."
Drew took a half step back to keep me from moving again. I would have defended Darren but this was his battle. And the hand on my wrist was biting into it so hard I was sure I was going to have bruises.
"What do you know?" Darren demanded. I couldn't see his face, but his voice was tight. He was trying to hold it together.
I could see Nathan's face. His mouth twisted into a wicked smile and his eyes were hooded over. He knew he was playing his trump card. He'd waited a long time for it by the look on his face. It also made me realize who was truly in charge of all of this.
He looked at Casey. "Casey, meet your long, lost twin brother Darren."
I wasn't very convinced with Nathan's acting, but Casey's reaction was genuine. She hadn't known about Darren. I figured she knew she was adopted but finding out she had a twin was different. They'd been under each other's noses the entire time, and she hadn't realized it. Now she was face to face with the truth, and it wasn't sitting well with her.
She took a step forward and ran her hands over his face. Hers was open for a brief moment before all those emotions faded. She closed herself off to protect herself, and it also meant I couldn't tell what she was planning.
"Now, what would an unwanted child do with a sister he just found?" Nathan continued.
Drew turned his head as they jabbed at each other. "Tyler, meet up with Max and get her out of here."
Tyler's hand closed my other wrist securely just as Darren shoved Nathan. I didn't hear what was said, but they were fighting in the middle of the dusty living room. Darren landed several direct hits before Nathan launched him into my snack table. I briefly mourned those uneaten snacks as they scattered on the floor, but my attention was drawn back to the guys.
Magic swept through the room as Casey walked forward. She wrapped her entire body around Darren. His eyes turned hazy and he stared off into space.
Drew's magic flared. He turned to Tyler and nodded. I was jerked backwards as they backed slowly out of the house. Soon they were followed by Casey's crazies. The Shades started popping up faster. Casey must have put a spell on it for it to multiply at an exorbitant rate should she be attacked.
"Max!" Tyler called.
Somehow the other man popped up out of nowhere. I wanted to stay and fight, but Tyler's hand was strong as he pulled me along. Max urged me to move faster so I did.
"What's going to happen?" I asked. I slid into the backseat and hunkered down.
"I'll catch you up on the drive back," Max said. He ran his hand over my head then smiled before slamming the door closed.
He hopped in the front seat and Tyler peeled out. Once again, I was left watching as the others fought while I was whisked away to safety. It wasn't fair. I was supposed to be fighting alongside them. Drew must have a specific reason for keeping me away.
The last thing I saw before the farm faded was Drew's barrier falling back into place. There was no way in or out until he took it down. That made me more concerned than anything else. As long as they were on the winning side, it wouldn't matter. But what if niggled in the back of my head. What if they lost?