The Everly Davis chronicles Page 9
“Leyland...” I've never had to comfort one of the guys over the phone before. In the past, if one of us needed comfort we would hug it out. “Brother, we’ll find her. I have an idea. She has half your soul, Le, you can find her.” I hope this works; I pray he can pull himself together so he can try and locate our girl. “Where are you? Meet me at the house, Ok? We can do this, I swear.”
WE ALL MEET IN THE kitchen. Both of them look as upset as I feel inside. I make my way around the counter to Leyland and wrap my arms around his thick body.
“Leyland, she has half your soul. Cupids are connected to their consorts in a way no human could ever be,” I say as I rest my chin on his shoulder. Then, I grab him by the biceps and look into his eyes. “Concentrate, Le, find the other half of your soul, brother. Take us to our girl.” He nods, and I rest my forehead against his, cupping the back of his head. He screws his eyes shut and for several long heartbeats, no one says a word.
“Shit, Gar, it’s not working! I can't concentrate with her out there on her own.” Tears are streaming down his face. Out of the corner of my eye, I see things floating around the kitchen, feel the ground rumbling beneath our feet. My heart feels likes it's being ripped out of my fucking chest. All three of us are losing control of our emotions, and with them, our powers.
“Guys, I blacked out in the woods. Everly was unconscious. I tried to tell her to use the Selkie’s trident if she came across one of the creatures out there. I've never tried to communicate with her through dreams though, so I hope to God it worked because just before I lost the connection and woke back up, her fear lanced through me.” Karl’s voice echoes around the now silent room. Without a single word between us, Karl and I take hold of Leyland's hands grounding him. The sound of shit dropping to the floor makes us jump. The house stops shaking and the squeezing of my heart eases off. The sudden noise breaks our concentration, just for a second. We each take in a sharp breath as we both feel what Le's feeling. Everly. Her sweet soul, her big heart so full of love, her strength and determination. It's like we’re connected to an angel. Her fear! Oh, there is so much fear. But also, a huge amount of bravery. Our girl is strong.
“There, I feel her. Oh, fuck! She's scared.” The break in his voice has us jumping into action instantly. We pick up our weapons off the counter and dash out the front door. As soon as we step over the threshold, we’re confronted by five Selkie. Shit, we don't have time for this!
We spring into action. Karl takes the two up front while Le and I go for the three further back. I swipe my sword through the arm of the one closest to me. It falls to the ground, the stump left behind spurting blood onto the grass. The creature comes at me with the arm that’s left, and grabs me by the hair. Rows of razor-sharp teeth, dripping poison, snap at me. Trying to take a bite out of me while attempting to stab me with a small silver trident.
Oh fuck, these are Poseidon's Legion. We haven’t seen these beasts in many years. Not since the journey to Scarborough. What are they doing here? Usually, it's foot soldiers who carry swords we have to defend our town against. These are the Elite of Poseidon's army. Out of the corner of my eye, I see two more race towards Leyland. He lets out an almighty roar. We've fought a lot of battles together, but I've never heard anything like that come from him. I tear the breastplate off the Selkie in front of me and impale it, stabbing my sword through the heart, causing its blue blood to splash my face. Before it hits the ground, I’m by Leyland's side. The two selkies in front of us each have the same trident in their freakishly long hands as the one I just fought. I turn to see how Karl’s getting it on with his two. As is our normal fighting style, Le and I work together while Karl fights a bit further away. If he were to use his Earth Elemental power too close to us, we could end up being sucked into the ground or crushed by a rock. One foe is on the ground already, a bullet hole through its chest and a tree branch impaled through its head. The other is on the ground being straddled by Karl across the chest.
He’s pounding its face with his fists, his gun forgotten on the ground beside him. Not a blade of grass out of place, no gaping holes in the earth we have to watch out for, making it obvious that he's not using his powers. It's not the most efficient use of his strength, but I can see it’s helping him deal with Ever being missing. I know he's got this; Leyland and I can handle two... I don't get the chance to finish my thought or even turn back around because a Selkie jumps on my back and bites down on my shoulder, sending its poisonous venom into my bloodstream. A scream of absolute agony tears from my throat.
Chapter Twelve
LEYLAND
Oh God, Garrot’s wound won't stop bleeding no matter how much pressure I put on it. Luckily he’s passed out, but the pain will wake him back up soon and then he’ll start screaming.
“We need to get him back into the house, Karl. We need to get Ever, but we can’t leave him here. Grab his feet, I've got his head,” I shout at Karl, as I stare open mouthed at Garrot laying on the ground with a bite wound on his shoulder. Together, we carry our fallen brother back into the house and set him on the dining table. He starts to writhe and cry out almost immediately. Karl puts his hand in mine, watching helplessly as our brother is eaten from the inside out. A jolt of terror slams into me, taking my breath away.
“Ever...” Shit, we need to find her, but Gar needs us. “Something’s happening with Ever, I... It feels like, almost like she has...” I turn on my heel and bolt out the door. Karl is close behind me. and we run full pelt through the trees once again.
Everly
“Ever, grab... trident... it.... heart...” a familiar voice comes out of the darkness. What? It sounds like bad radio reception fading in and out. The darkness fades away and I become aware once again. Who was that? Ugh, my head. Something warm is dripping down my face.
Did I get drunk last night or something? I'm pretty sure I’m still drunk because it feels like I'm moving. Peeling my eyes open, I see trees passing me by. What the fuck? A sharp pain around my left ankle makes me look down. Holy mother of God! What. The. Fuck. Is. That?
To my absolute horror, I’m being pulled along by one leg, by what I can only describe as a nightmare. The thing’s body is unnaturally thin, like skin on bones kinda thin, and it’s blue! It stinks so bad I retch. The thing turns towards me and a scream rips from my throat.
Rows of thin, pointed teeth line its massive mouth, dripping a slightly green slime. It’s oversized black eyes stare back at me, rage written across its fish-like features. It shrieks out a high-pitched noise that makes my ears hurt. I throw my hands over them, but it doesn't help. My self-preservation instinct finally kicks in and I scramble to grab hold of something to stop this thing from dragging me any further. With only the pale moonlight to see by, I manage to snag a small bush and hold on tight. We jolt to a stop and the thing digs its creepy, long fingernails into the flesh of my calf, making me cry out.
Ah, shit, that burns! I kick out with my right leg, just managing to clip what I presume is the thing's knee. A loud snap echoes around the forest. Before it hits the ground, I'm on my feet. Weapon, I need a weapon.
The blue freak is writhing on the ground when I spot something shiny in the grass. Trident! My mind replays the voice I heard while I was knocked out. I bolt for it, only to have the fishy whatever-it-is grab ahold of my hand with its freaky fist. Just as I reach the shining object, the damn thing bites down on my wrist. I scream so loud; the trees play it back to me over and over. That painful sound comes out of its mouth again as it takes its teeth out of my arm. I swing my hand up, hoping that whatever I've just picked up isn't a child's toy or made of tin foil. It connects with the thing's head, causing its bald head to whip to the side, sending blue blood flying across the dirt ground.
I look at my hand. Holy Moses, is that a trident? Did I just kill Aquaman? No, no, that thing slithering on the ground is not Aquaman. This creature is nowhere near handsome enough to be my Jason. Focus,Ever. Planting my foot on the monster’s chest, I jab the three-
pronged weapon in my hand straight at its chest. Putting all of my emotions leading up to today into the thrust: losing my mother, moving to a place I knew nothing about, meeting Leyland but not having the balls to ask him out. My first time meeting Garrot and falling in love with them both, but not knowing how to express what they’ve come to mean to me because I'm damaged goods. I do fucking love both of them, and loving two men I've known for only a week is filling me with confusion. My dreams are scarier, the feelings in them are becoming real, tangible. The incident on the beach where I almost thought I felt the sea trying to pull me into its inky depths. Karl being a prick, but also being a total sweetheart to me, even though I've been a bitch to him. Garrot floating off the floor, and me running like a bloody child. It all comes flooding back to me like a flashback in a film, a battle cry heaves through my mouth, forcing itself out of my throat as I arch my hands down, straight into the chest of the creature beneath my foot.
It connects with bone, sending shockwaves through my arm. It actually feels kind of good, in a weird way. A jolt of electricity travels through my body and I gasp in a breath. Oh, what is that? As it zaps through my limbs, I hear something thud in front of me. At some point, my eyes have closed in pleasure. I pull the trident out of its chest and drop it on the forest floor. My eyes pop open, the sound startling me. I stand there in the dark, staring at the blue monster in the dirt at my feet. My foot on its chest while the strange blue blood continues to ooze from the gaping wounds I created. I stare at it for what has to be ten minutes to make sure it’s not getting back up and eat me. When it doesn't move, I sag to my knees beside it. I pick up the shiny, stained weapon, and poke the creature's side with the middle prong on the trident. It doesn't jump up and take a bite, so I let myself fall to my arse. “Oh, fuck me sideways.” Blood is running down my arm, I watch as it drips off my fingers, landing silently in the grass.
Karl
Bursting through the trees, Leyland and I skid to a stop. Everly’s sitting in the dirt, her skirt bunched up around her hips and her hair a mess with branches and leaves tangled in it. Her knees are bent with her arms resting on them. In one hand I notice the trident of the Selkie while the other is dripping blood onto the ground. Shit, she's hurt. I immediately drop next to her. My knees hit solid ground but I don't feel it, and I don't let go of my shotgun. All I see is our girl bleeding. Leyland kneels next to me, dropping his weapon.
“Everly, my love. Thank god you're ok. What happened?” Leyland finds his voice before I do. She doesn’t take her eyes off the falling blood. He reaches forward and takes her hand gently, turning it palm up.
“Shit!” I blurt through clenched teeth. She's been bitten! Ah, fuck me, she's going to die!
“Heal her, Karl! Now for fuck's sake, before she dies!” Le shouts at me. I turn to face him and take his hand in mine.
“Le, look at her, really look at her, man,” I urge him gently. He swings his bloodshot eyes back to her face and I hear the breath leave his lungs.
“She... she's not in pain? What...?” he stumbles around the words, not quite believing what his eyes see. Selkie bites are poisonous to humans and immortals alike. Whoever’s bitten dies a horrible, slow death. As the poison pumps through their veins, it attacks organs and cells, melting their victim from the inside out. It’s as painful as it sounds. We've watched many humans end their own lives after being bitten by a Selkie, desperate to end the pain. But Everly is sitting here, yet to say a word since we burst through the forest, seemingly without pain. She hasn't even taken her eyes off her arm, let alone acknowledged our presence. Shit, I think she’s in shock. She's not going to die?
“Le, we need to get her back to the house. There could be more Selkies around here. We can't risk them finding us. One of us needs to carry her, she's in shock and it’s freezing.”
Leyland puts one arm under her legs and the other around her waist. I pull her skirt down over her legs as best I can while she's in his arms. Leaning down, I plant a soft kiss on her forehead. “Ever, we need to get back to the house, baby. Jesus, you're freezing cold.” I take my shirt off and try to wrap it around her shoulders. The three of us set off back to the house, my eyes scanning our surroundings in case there are more Selkies out here. All I can smell is Everly’s blood; a hint of orange and the ocean mixed with how I’d imagine the sun would taste.
Fifteen minutes of winding through the forest, a group of ten Selkies crash through the bushes. Shit, shit, shit. Garrot isn't here and Everly’s hurt. We can't just drop her on the ground and leave her in order to fight. With this many at once... it would be suicide. We’re totally fucked! I raise my gun and shoot at the group, not even aiming. I turn to look at Leyland, about to tell him to get back while I open the earth beneath the creature’s feet, only to be blinded by a soft pink glow.
The Selkies all stop their advance as one. They halt, staring at Leyland and Everly as the glowing pink light grows in intensity. Just as I think I’ll be blinded by it, it bursts out of their bodies like a tidal wave. It crashes into me, knocking me on my arse and ripples out into the trees. As it hits the Selkie, their bodies burst into flames. I watch in fascinated horror as their huge mouths gape in soundless screams as the flames consume them, turning them to ash where they stand.
Chapter Thirteen
LEYLAND
As we come out of the forest to a small dirt clearing, my eyes dart around seeing too much for my fear-filled brain to comprehend at the same time. Ever is on her arse in the dirt and next to her is a dead Selkie, a trio of stab wounds above its heart. Did Everly do this? She killed a beast on her own, something that took us years of training and practice to be able to kill?
Their chest plates are thick, and it takes a lot of strength to pierce them. The only one of us who can do that is Karl. I look down as he falls to his knees beside her. She just sits and stares at her arm. Shit, she’s bleeding. Kneeling beside her, I take her hand in mine and turn it over. There I see the familiar sight of a Selkie bite. The edges are torn, and a chunk of flesh is missing. Oh, fuck me. “Heal her, Karl. Now, for fuck's sake, before she dies!” Hot tears stream down my face.
“Le look at her, really look at her, man,” Karl orders me. When I look at her again, the breath leaves my lungs.
“She... she's not in pain? What...?” I pick her up. Karl wraps his shirt around her. We start running as fast as we can go. When a group of Selkies burst from the trees, time stands still. I vaguely hear Karl shooting as if it’s far away from where I stand. I look down at my fated Consort and time just stops; a drop of her blood has fallen into a small wound on my hand, the feeling electrifying my whole body. Her eyes meet mine, mine cling to hers. She looks into my soul. Something presses the spot over my heart and the world disappears.
It's just Everly and me, my heart and hers as one. Our hearts beat as one, slowing down to a crawl. I waver on my feet. “Everly Davis, I LOVE YOU!” I shout as loud as my lungs allow me. Blinding pink light radiates off both our bodies. With it brings an absolute pure feeling of love, so much that my heart feels like it would burst with it.
“I love you too Leyland!” she says just as loudly. The pink light explodes from our bodies and shoots out into the inky blackness around us, lighting it up with our love for one another. Our lips crash together as light spreads outwards. I'm only half aware of the screams that rend the air. My eyes still on Everly’s as our lips meet and I feel completely at peace. This is not a dream, it's not an illusion. My fated consort is in my arms and together we have just decimated ten Selkies’ souls with the light of our shared love.
“Leyland! Everly!” It's Karl, he’s closer now. I break the kiss and look in the direction his voice came from. Just as I spot him, Everly goes limp in my arms. Feeling spent, my legs buckle and my knees meet the ground with a bruising thud. The last thing I see before my eyes close is black dust swirling in the wind. I kneel there with my Everly tightly clutched to my chest, my eyes closed for what feels like an age before Karl’s voice breaks t
he spell.
“Le, we have to get to Garrot before... we have to move now.” He sounds calm, but his tone holds an urgency I feel in my bones. I look down at the other half of my soul in my arms and I feel renewed. Energy, like I've never felt before, courses through my veins. An itchiness between my shoulder blades starts. Shrugging, I stand with ease and nod my head. Time to get back to our dying brother. Grabbing his phone, Karl phones Gar’s dad, Alan, and gives him the bad news.
GARROT
Acid flows through my veins in place of my blood. It burns and destroys as it passes through my organs, melting and destroying. I can feel every second of it. I’m barely aware of my surroundings. I don't know where I am. There’s only pain. I scream out again, but no one answers my cries. I don't know how long I've been here like this, but it feels like an eternity. The pain never ending. Out of nowhere, maybe hours ago I have no idea, I felt something other than the pain. A tiny millisecond of reprieve, as a flash of pink light crept in under my eyelids. But it didn't last long enough to give me any true sense of relief. Everything went dark again. For a short time, I felt no pain.
The next time I open my eyes, I see three blurry figures standing over me. Are these the reapers that will take my soul to the other side? I wonder if I'm going up, or down. Doesn’t matter, heaven would feel like hell to me without Everly and my brothers anyway. Just fucking take me already! I can't take the pain much longer.
Silk glides along my arm. Oh, I feel that! It carries electricity with it, making the hairs on the back of my arms stand up. A sweet melody begins to play through my mind. A soft yet powerful voice lulls me into peace. Trumpets play as she sings about not wanting to hurt anymore and asking someone to stay in her arms. I'm pretty sure if I wasn’t dying in agony right now, I wouldn’t normally listen to this song. Its subject is something I couldn't identify with, until now.