chapter 14
Darrton
It took all the strength in me to walk away from that house. Elizabeth was biting back tears and I could feel her heart beating erratically. We all knew that if worse came to worse, Scotty would not be able to protect her from both of them. Ian said there would be no way for them to get in without Scotty seeing it or the alarm going off. So what? The alarm would go off and they would have her with them in less than two minutes. Before she could see straight.
My stomach was full of bile and it was trying to push into my throat. Ian walked silently down the pavement toward the limo. He was quiet because we both knew. He had been drinking because he knew there would be a chance of something happening. I prayed they would follow our trail to Ferdia and think Elizabeth was with me. That was the prayer that had been in my heart since the moment we left.
Ian opened the gate and I braced myself. The driver opened the door. We both slid into the back.
When the driver was behind the wheel again, he asked, “Where to, boss?”
Ian was chugging down another shot. “To the nearest cliff, Evan.”
“Yes, sir.”
Ian crossed his legs and looked at me over a narrowed glare. “We will find Ferdia and we will fight them, Darrton.”
“I know. But that doesn’t necessarily mean we will win.”
He tipped an imaginary hat at me. “That is something we will have to risk. Do you love her enough to fight for her?”
My heart thudded. It almost hurt to hear that word. Love. Love wasn’t something that we thought of as Horsemen. We thought of disaster, death, winning, bad and monstrous things.
“I will take that as a maybe...” Ian trailed off, taking another swig.
“I’m not supposed to get distracted. That was God’s rule.”
Ian cocked an eyebrow. “I believe God had a rule about waiting on His call to start The Apocalypse, too, right?” He leaned forward, a serious expression on his face. He had stubble growing on his cheeks and I knew he was tired. He was scared, he was helping me, and he didn’t have to. “We all make mistakes, Darrton. You’ve made a handful. You’ve been damned to earth because of it. You don’t have to make any more. We can fix this. It won’t be easy but we will have to fix this. And I don’t mean this in an overdramatic kind of way, but the fate of the world depends on it.” He managed a smile and leaned back.
“That’s what frightens me. We could lose and everything would go to hell. It would all fall on my shoulders because I did not stop them. I shook hands with them and promised my loyalty to them. I’m just as involved in this as they are.”
Ian stroked his chin and shrugged his shoulders. “Where I’m from, promises are meant to be broken.”
“Where I’m from, promises not kept, end in death.”
Ian cocked a brown eyebrow. “Why would you have to worry about Death? You are Death.”
We arrived at the cliff. The driver pulled slowly up to the bare, desert-looking sand. The mountains were huge in the distance and the air was crisper, here up this high. Ian leaned over to his driver and said, “I have bags in the back. Have them sent to this address.” He handed him a piece of paper. “And when you get back, if Scotty or Lizzie want to go anywhere, take them. I want her to feel at home, and I want her to not worry, is that clear?”
Evan, the driver, nodded and the window rolled up.
Watching the black limo drive away, I asked, “How much does Evan know? He seems rather calm about dropping us off at a cliff and leaving.”
Ian shrugged. “He never asks any questions. I treat him well. His kids are set for life and he and his wife are happy and have plenty. That was our bargain. He doesn’t ask questions and I will take care of anything he needs.”
A cold shiver shot through my arm and grabbed my ring. “Damn.”
“Which one?”
“Cold...I would say Caden. He has always had ice in his veins.”
“That, my dear friend, means we’d better gettin’ goin’. We have a Horseman to find.” He walked to the edge and looked down. “Are you sure he will be willin’ to help us, Darrton?”
I shrugged. “I’m hoping he will be. That isn’t a promise I can make you, but I can say that if any of them would help, it will be him.”
Ian nodded. “Well, that’s good enough for me, partner. Let’s fly,” he said, winking and stretching his arms out. His shirt ripped from his body and his wings sprang out in a gush of wind. His wings, like mine, were black. Being damned will do that to an angel. Ian smiled at the wind and looked over at me. “Beat you there.”
Smiling, I watched as he bent his legs and soared up toward the sun. I felt my wings ripping from my back before I even realized they wanted out. My body always felt free when my wings were open and I was flying. But as I bounded off the cliff and soared toward the sky, I had a sick feeling in my stomach. This time, “free” wasn’t a part of my mind. Saving her was.