Infinity Chronicles of Nick

chapter 14

Nick got out of the SUV in front of Bubba's store and checked the time on his cell phone. Ooo, he was cutting it close. So much for food....

"Hey, guys? I need to be heading up to my mom's club before I get grounded." Again.

Mark, who was standing on the sidewalk, shot his head up in a gesture reminiscent of a spooked deer. "Hey, Bub? You catch a whiff of that?"

What? Had someone ripped one in the car?

Nick was just about to blame Caleb when Bubba froze. Two heartbeats later, he tossed keys at Nick. "Kids, get in the store. Now!"

He started to ask them what was up when he saw something that left him stunned. Zombies.

Not like the ones who were his converted classmates. These were the real thing. Flesh rotting. Bad smelling. Limb losing. Eye jelly oozing ...

Zombies.

And they were coming at them with speed a puma would envy. Madaug let out a yelp as he ran to the door. Nick and Caleb followed while Bubba and Mark pulled out two baseball bats from under the seats of the SUV in an act that strangely reminded him of Mary Poppins and her bag of goodies.

Simi came out of the SUV and acted like she was going to head for the zombies until Bubba caught her arm.

"Get inside with the boys, Simi."

She actually pouted. Nick could tell she wanted to argue, but with a curt nod, she ran to them.

Bubba cursed. "Tell me again why I put the flamethrower up in the store?" he asked Mark.

Mark hefted his bat over his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure the cops had something to do with that."

Bubba popped the first zombie to reach him in the head with his bat. "Well, the next time I decide to do something so stupid, remind me it's better to be in jail than dead."

"Hurry, Nick!" Madaug pushed up against him as Nick fumbled with the keys and lock.

Nick ground his teeth. It was hard to do this with only one hand. "I'm trying. Dang, Bubba.

How many keys you got on this ring, anyway?" He'd already tried a dozen and not a one worked. He only had ten more to go.

"It's the one with the green rubber piece around it." Bubba knocked the head from the zombie closest to him. "Green." Strike two. "Rubber." Strike three. "Piece."

Caleb pulled the keys out of his hand so that he could open the door. "They're getting through, Nick. We gotta hurry."

"I knew I should have left that duck urine on!" Mark snapped. "That'll teach me to bathe when I know better."

Nick could feel the putrid breath of the zombies on his neck when he finally slung open the door and fell into the store. Simi ran inside, Madaug started in, then cried out as one of the zombies grabbed him and yanked him back toward the street.

Caleb had to force himself not to expose his powers and use them as he fought the zombies off and let the other two into the store. He could feel the stank of dark magick. It permeated even the air he was breathing. Whoever controlled the zombies was a force to be reckoned with.

An ancient force.

Not as old as him by any means, but still someone comfortable with their powers who knew them intimately.

He'd fought it earlier. This time, the bokor had reinforced his or her strength. And because these zombies had no living force or will of their own, they were far more dangerous than the students had been.

Unlike the students, they had no attachment to life anymore. No lingering compassion or reason. They were evil souls summoned into the bodies of the dead.

This was the blackest of magick. The kind that not even he dealt with. Only a true dark spirit like the Malachai could summon an army this size and control it.

These were mindless killing machines.

Kind of like the Charonte, though Caleb had to give Simi credit. Unlike the others of her species he'd known in the past, she was holding her human guise and not breaking it to chow down on the zombies. Someone had trained her well.

Growling low in his throat, he hit the zombie holding Madaug. The zombie's skull broke, leaving its mandible to hang from a strip of tendon as some kind of cold green ew slimed his hand. It felt like two-day-old snot.

"Oh, gross!" Caleb wiped his hand against his shirt. "Zombie goo."

"Ooo," Simi breathed. "I wonder if it tastes like chicken? What do you think?"

Caleb scowled. "I think I'm never eating guacamole again as long as I live."

Ignoring them, Nick beat the other zombie back until he was able, with Simi's help, to shove Madaug into the store.

"Hey!" Caleb snapped as he realized Nick was about to lock him on the outside with their attackers. He pushed the door open and glared at him. "No man left behind."

Nick scoffed. "This ain't the army, boy. It's every man for himself. Fall behind. Get eaten."

"I'll remember that the next time you're the one on the outside and I'm the one in the store."

Nick flashed an evil grin at him. "Yeah, but then the rules will change." He grabbed the door as another zombie tried to open it. "Ah no."

"What?" Caleb asked.

"You left the keys outside."

Caleb groaned at his stupidity, then helped Nick hold the door closed as more zombies swarmed. "What kind of idiot doesn't have one of those flipper lock things on their door?"

Nick gave him a duh stare. "Bubba. 'Cause all someone has to do is break the glass and then they can switch it open and be inside the store. You know Bubba's Code: Always use keys." Which was why he had so many on his key ring.

Caleb felt his muscles bulge as he held the door tight while the zombies tried to pull it open. "I swear, Nick, I should throw you to them. After all, I don't have to outrun the zombies. I just have to outrun you."

"That's cold, dude."

Maybe, but if the zombies got in, he was going to sic Simi and her barbecue sauce on them, humans be damned. "Stand back," Madaug said.

Nick looked over his shoulder to see Madaug with a rocket launcher. Oh, no way. Where on earth had he found that? Was it loaded?

What a stupid question. It was in Bubba's store. Of course it was loaded and functional.

And probably modified to take down half the city block whenever it was fired.

Nick widened his eyes. "That's not what I think it is, is it?"

Madaug shrugged. "I don't know, but I think you better duck."

They'd barely moved before Madaug fired at the zombies outside. The rocket exploded in the door, sending glass and zombie parts everywhere. Green and red ooze streaked through the night.

Simi actually licked her lips as if dying for a taste of it.

Nick gaped as more zombies headed for them. "Dude, for a genius that was really stupid.

Now we have no door and, I could be wrong, but they look to be multiplying."

They heard the zombie converts they'd locked in the hidden room earlier—yelling for release—from the surveillance monitor Bubba had turned on earlier to make sure they were all right. Well, some were. Others were in the room crying for their mamas.

Meanwhile Bubba and Mark were outside whooping and hollering in all their glory as they-foughtoff the undead. Nick ran to the back to get the ax.

/ really need my arm functional again. Or better yet, a genetic implant that left him with one arm as a chainsaw like Ash in Army of Darkness. Now that he could definitely use right now.

Then again, he'd settle for both arms working.

A chill went through him as an image flashed in his mind of him being attacked by...

Not a raven, but the raven had been there, watching like a freaked-out guardian. And Nick's arm had been whole and working.... The images were in the back of his mind, but he couldn't focus on anyone of them in particular. Just fleeting glimpses that were gone as fast as they'd appeared.

Had it been a dream?

But the memory felt real.

"Yee frickin' haw!" Bubba shouted.

Running back to Madaug and Caleb, Nick looked to see Bubba stunning the zombies with the cattle prod before he beat them with his bat. The man was having way too much fun while Nick was still worried about dying.

The zombies closed in.

Nick swallowed his fear and pulled Simi behind him to protect her. "Why hasn't one of the neighbors complained about this? Where are the cops when you need them?"

Caleb snorted. "Probably eating beignets. As the old saying goes, when seconds count, the police are just minutes away."

And it was looking like a killing field out there as panic took hold of Nick. Bubba and Mark were driving the zombies back like psycho ninjas, but even so the sheer number of the zombies was going to overwhelm them sooner or later.

Terrified, Nick watched as more came from the shadows. These seemed to be created and sent in....

Not for kidnapping. These were here to murder.

Nick kept Simi from running around him to join the fray. She might be tall, but she'd be no match for the zombies, who continued coming while Madaug tried to reload the rocket launcher with another round.

He wasn't going to be satisfied until he blew all of them away.

Nick saw a flash of silver. Afraid it was more undead reinforcements, he kicked back a zombie, then froze as he recognized what was out there in the night.

Ash and Kyrian.

And as they joined the fight, he realized another thing. They were the ones who really fought like ninjas. Ash with a staff and Kyrian with a sword. It was incredible. While Bubba and Mark were fierce, Kyrian's moves were so graceful, they were like a violent ballet as he twirled, sliced one zombie, and then pivoted to catch another.

Nick kept waiting for Ash to use his powers, but for some reason he didn't. He merely used his staff to bash and deflect the zombies. Then he remembered whatAsh had said. No doubt he was trying to remain incognito while there were witnesses around.

Though that didn't make sense if Ash could mind-wipe everyone. Could it be he simply enjoyed the fight like Bubba and Mark?

Between them and Bubba and Mark, the zombies didn't stand a chance. In only a few minutes, there were green bodies of ew littering the street.

Kyrian looked at Ash. "Too bad they don't disintegrate into dust, huh? I have to say I much prefer the monsters who clean up after themselves."

Ash laughed.

Bubba and Mark surveyed the damage. "I wonder why no one called the police about the rocket launcher? God knows my neighbors usually report it if I so much as fart in my backyard."

Ash planted the end of his staff into the ground. "Good question."

Kyrian pressed a button on his sword and compacted it down to the hilt. He slid it into his pocket. "I have a better one. How are we going to clean up this mess?"

Nick scoffed. "Nah, mine's even better. How do you hide a chainsaw in your locker at school?"

They all stared at him.

Nick gestured to the zombies that lay in pieces on the street. "I'm thinking they're not going to stop, and while the school has a strict no-weapons policy, I don't think the plastic sporks in the cafeteria are going to do much to combat them. I need protection, man. Serious protection." His gaze went to Madaug, who was still cradling the rocket launcher. "Okay, maybe not that serious. But still..."

Mark wiped the sweat off his brow. "It's like a friggin' zombie apocalypse. I always knew we'd have one in my lifetime. Everybody, but Bubba, told me I was crazy. Well look ... who's crazy now?"

Nick had to bite his tongue to keep from saying it was still Mark who was crazy.

Caleb ignored Nick as he felt something peculiar in the air. ... His gaze went to the two newcomers. He didn't know them, but he could feel their powers.

Like him and Simi, they weren't human either.

If he didn't know better, he'd swear the tallest one was a god, and as that being turned his head to Caleb, he was sure of it.

The other...

He was a powerful warrior—a servant of the goddess Artemis. One of a long line of ancient protectors who'd sold their souls to keep mankind safe from creatures like him.

Oh yeah, any other time and the two of them would be going at it like two women over the last gown left in their size at a bridal sale.

"Hey," Nick said, looking around. "Where's Simi? Anyone see where she went?"

Before anyone could answer, another wave of zombies appeared out of the darkness.

These were even faster and uglier.

Ash looked at Bubba. "Get everyone out of here." "And go where?"

"My house," Kyrian said. "It's on First Ave. Nick knows the way. I'll have someone there to let you in."

As they ran for the SUV, Nick saw Simi coming out of the store. She joined them and plopped down in the seat beside him.

"Where'd you go?"

"I'd tell you, but then I'd have to eat you and since the Simi likes Nick, she don't wanna hurt him." She grinned. Okay...

Madaug dialed his phone as everyone belted themselves in. "I can't get Eric. You don't think anything's happened to him, do you?"

"He'll be all right," Bubba assured him. "Tabitha might be a little out there"—boy, wasn't that the kettle calling the pot black. / guess everyone is someone else's weirdo. "But she's good in a fight. They can take anything the zombie world throws at them. Vampires too."

"Oh, wait!" Nick panicked as he remembered his mom. "I'm supposed to be at my mom's club. She told me if I wasn't there by now, she'd come find me."

"And become a zombie hostage," Mark said. "I've seen it before. Countless times. The well-meaning hapless woman out to save her kid. Taken and eaten."

Bubba scoffed. "In the movies, Mark."

"Yeah, well, sometimes that happens in real life too, and this is definitely a time for it to happen 'cause that'd be just our luck. They take her and we all die trying to save her because she did something stupid."

Bubba turned his SUV around. "Let's go get her. 'Cause Mark's right."

Nick checked the time. "She still has four hours of work left." Mark held up a gun. "It's all right. We'll get her one way or another."

Nick was horrified at the mere suggestion of pulling a gun on his mom. "You can't shoot my mom, Mark! Are you out of your mind?"

"I'm not going to shoot her. Calm down. I'm just going to tranq her a little."

Before Nick could protest, Bubba had the SUV parked. "Mark. You and the kids stay here."

Nick shook his head. "It's my mom, I'm coming."

Bubba started to protest, then must have thought better of it. "We don't have anytime to waste. C'mon."

Nick led him to the back door of the club and knocked until John answered it.

The bouncer shook his head. "Boy, your mama is going to kill you."

"Where is she?"

"Green room."

Nick led Bubba down the narrow hallway until he reached the dressing room. He knocked on the door and waited.

His mom opened it. Her hair was teased out and her makeup thick while she was dressed in her bathrobe. The look on her face made his stomach head south.

"What have you got to say for yourself, Nick Gautier?"

"That I was attacked by zombies?"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't hand me that ridiculous story."

"No, Ma, I swear. Really!"

But she wasn't about to believe him. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Obviously time for me to get grounded again." He let out a deep sigh. Some days, it really didn't pay to be honest.

She narrowed her gaze at him. "That's right. I'm going to ground you until your grandchil-dren are old."

Bubba stepped forward, cutting her off. "Uh, ma'am? We do have a situation and we need for you to come with us."

She furrowed her brow as she looked at Bubba like he was crazy. "I can't leave. I have another set in a few minutes."

"With all due respect, ma'am, the zombies won't care and they won't wait."

"Oh good grief, Bubba. Would you stop filling my boy's head full of all that garbage?

You've already got him fully convinced of everything but the tooth fairy and I'm waiting for him to come home with wings on, telling me that even it's real." She grabbed Nick's good arm.

"Get in here and sit in the corner until I decide how much restriction I'm giving you."

"But Mom—"

"Don't you 'but Mom' me."

Nick looked at Bubba as a wave of helplessness consumed him. Why would he have thought for one minute his mother would listen? Not like she made a habit of it.

Bubba shrugged and before Nick could stop him, he shot her.

"Bubba!"

His mom let out a sharp cry before she staggered back.

Bubba scooped her up in his arms as she swooned. "Dang, Nick, your mom's a tiny little thing. Weird. When she's awake, you forget she don't weigh nothing at all."

"It's 'cause she's so fierce." He'd seen her stand toe to toe with his father, who could dwarf a mountain, and never blink or back down.

"She's going to kill us. You know that?"

Bubba ignored him as he carried her back toward the entrance.

John scowled at them as they walked past. "What's going on?"

"She fainted," he and Bubba said simultaneously. "We're taking her to the doctor," Nick lied as he brushed past John. He hated that he had to say that, but John would never believe the truth and it'd probably get her fired.

"Boss ain't gonna like this. Not a bit."

Nick shrugged. "Can't help that she got sick. It happens." He ran ahead to get the car door for Bubba so that he could put his mom in as quickly as possible.

He fastened her seat belt before he took a seat next to her, while Bubba got back in the front.

Simi frowned. "She picked a fine time to take a nap. Was she really sleepy?"

Before Nick could answer, Bubba's phone started ringing.

Bubba pulled away from the curb before he answered it. "Ye-llo?" A dark cloud came over his features as if something bad had happened.

Nick's stomach tightened to the point that he half expected a diamond to form. What was going on now?

Gah, couldn't they catch a break tonight?

At least my mom's safe.

Bubba looked in the rearview mirror at Madaug, who visibly paled.

"What?" Madaug asked, his voice filled with the same dread Nick felt. "What's happened?"

"Yeah," Bubba continued, ignoring Madaug's question. "I'll tell him. Is there anything we can do?" He paused as he listened, and they all waited with bated breath. "I'll see you there."

He hung up.

Nick leaned forward in his seat. "What happened?"

Bubba sighed before he answered. "We have another situation."

Great, just great. At this point, they really should be selling tickets for pay-per-view. "That was Eric, Madaug," Bubba said.

Madaug swallowed as fear darkened his blue eyes. "They get attacked by the zombies?"

"Yeah, but they fought them off."

Madaug let out an audible sound of relief. "Then why you look so upset?"

"Eric went to your house and the front door was standing wide open."

Nick gasped in alarm.

Madaug's features turned to stone as his entire face blanched. "And?"

"He said it was a real bad scene."

Tears gathered in Madaug's eyes as he glanced around at all their faces. "My mom and Ian?"

"No sign of them. But Eric said he's calling the police right now to report it."

Nick's stomach tightened as he saw the raw agony in Madaug's eyes. "Dude, I'm so sorry."

Madaug didn't seem to hear him as he hung his head in his hands. "It's all my fault. All of this. Oh God ... I just wanted them to stop picking on me. That's all I wanted. I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt. I didn't. Now my mom and brother are gone ... probably eaten. What have I done? What have I done?"

Nick couldn't imagine how bad it must hurt to know he might have caused the death of someone he loved. Surely there was no worse pain in the world.

Madaug's agony tore through him and choked him up. He wished he knew what to say, but words wouldn't come.

Simi sat forward and patted Madaug on the back. "I'm sorry, little human. The Simi lost her mama too when she was little, but maybe your mama okay. She might be looking for you."

Madaug turned and hugged her.

Simi's eyes widened before she hugged him back. "It okay.

You'll see. Just when you think nothing get better, it always does. Trust me. My akri says that tragedy and adversity are the stones we sharpen our swords against so that we can fight new battles. This just a minor skirmish and you'll be back in the fight. You'll see."

Madaug nodded, but as he pulled back, Nick saw the tears he was trying to hide. He lifted his glasses and swiped at his eyes. "I need to go to my house."

Bubba nodded as he headed that way.

They were all subdued the entire time it took them to reach Madaug's quiet upper-class neighborhood. On the outside, everything appeared calm and peaceful.

Just another night.

But there was nothing normal about any of this. Nick's gaze went to his mother's unconscious form. She was going to be so angry at him when she woke up. But better that than she be like Madaug's mom and be taken from him. He'd kill anyone who touched her, and that wasn't an idle threat. He knew he had it in him.

After all, he was his father's son.

As they approached Madaug's house, the police were everywhere. Lights flashed through the darkness as spotlights lit the entire street. Yellow tape cordoned off the yard, along with police barricades that had been set up to keep people back while they investigated the mess.

Caleb let out a low whistle as they left the SUV. 'Anyone else getting tired of seeing the cops camped out?"

Nick didn't comment, but he couldn't agree more. "Simi? Would you mind staying in the car and keeping an eye on my mom?"

"Sure."

Tabitha came forward to meet them as they stayed back behind the police line. Her face grim, she pulled Madaug to her. "I'm so sorry, little guy."

"Where's Eric?" Madaug asked.

"He's inside with your dad."

Madaug left her to go to them.

Bubba looked at Tabitha. "What happened?"

She raked a hand through her hair as she glanced around the yard of police conducting interviews. "There was a really bad fight in the house. Madaug's room was ransacked and the kitchen's all bloody. The police think that someone broke in and killed their mom and Ian.

They've called in cadaver dogs to start searching for them."

Nick winced at what she described as a wave of sympathetic pain flooded him. For a moment, he thought he might be sick.

"How's Eric doing?" Bubba asked.

Tabitha swallowed. "He's really messed up over it. He keeps saying that he should have been here to protect them." She sighed again. "What about Madaug?"

Mark shook his head. "He's been reallyquiet. Freaky, scary quiet. Like Eric, he's blaming himself. He keeps saying that if he hadn't created the game, none of this would have happened."

Nick met Caleb's gaze. "You feel as bad as I do for them?"

Caleb nodded. "I just can't figure this out. Where are all these living zombies coming from? If Madaug only had the one game ... surely they're not all coming from that."

Nick scratched at the back of his neck. "Like Bubba said earlier, someone must have made a copy of it."

"Yeah, but doesn't it seem like it spread a little too fast?"

"What do you mean?"

Caleb narrowed his eyes on the cops. "I think there's something else at play here.

Something just doesn't feel right about any of this."

Nick gave him a droll stare. "You mean other than the dead zombies who tried to eat us a few minutes ago?"

"That's my point, Nick. This isn't just a game gone awry. I smell the hand of evil. Real evil."

Nick started to make a snarky comment at the hokiness of his tone and words, but thought better of it. While he still believed Caleb was a head case, in this he might, God forbid, be right.

There was something terribly wrong here. Even he could feel it.

Wishing he could help Madaug and Eric, he glanced over to the crowd of gawkers who'd come to see what was happening. A tall man in black who stood apart from them caught his eye.

He knew him in an instant and that recognition slammed into him like a fist in his gullet.

Ambrose.

Nick watched as the flashing light from the police car highlighted his sinister face. It cast shadows across the planes of his cheeks, making his eyes look inhuman. And I thought my father looked evil____

Adarian had nothing on Ambrose.

With that thought came a bad feeling that Ambrose might be behind this. Wanting to get to the bottom of it, Nick started toward him.

Ambrose turned and his gaze locked with Nick's. In that single heartbeat, Nick swore the man's eyes turned a deep bloody red that glowed in the darkness. One second Ambrose was staring at him like he could kill him and in the next...

He was gone.

Nick came to a halt as he looked around the yard. No one seemed to have noticed the man who was now missing. "What the heck?"

Caleb came up behind him. "What's wrong?"

"Did you see ..." What was he supposed to say? Did you see my crazy uncle, Jason Voorhees? Do you think he could kill someone's mom and brother?

"Did I see what?"

Nick shook his head. "Never mind. It must have been a shadow."

Caleb scowled at him. "You all right? You look kind of pale."

Nick wasn't sure anymore. Suddenly, he felt dizzy and weird. For a second, he thought he might be sick until he felt a soft hand on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Nekoda behind him. Her pale face was gorgeous and she was the best thing he'd seen all day.

"What are you doing here, Nick?"

He'd never been happier to see anyone in his life. Before he could think better of it, he turned and hugged her close.

Nekoda froze at the unexpected contact. Never in her life had anyone held her like this.

Never had they greeted her as if they were thrilled to see her. A wave of foreign emotion ripped through her entire body.

What was it?

And it wasn't just the emotion, it was the sensation of his arm around her. Of his breath falling against her cheek and the warm smell of his hair. It made her entire body hum and gave her an insane desire to bury her hand in his soft hair. Most of all, it sent a wave of chills over her. "Nick?"

Nick couldn't answer as he let the heat of her body comfort his ragged emotions. How strange that in a night of chaos, she seemed to ground him.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, before he let go and stepped back. "I didn't mean to assault you. It's just been a really, really bad night and I'm glad to see a friendly face."

Nekoda trembled as he put his hand on her cheek. He's my enemy. A creature she was sworn to kill. But looking into those blue eyes, she didn't see a monster.

She saw...

Something that scared and shocked her to her core. Dont let him charm you. It's not real.

It's his powers. Nothing more. He is evil to the center of his soul.

But her compulsion toward him didn't feel like it was coming from him. It felt like it was coming from deep inside her. As if some part of her just wanted to be closer to him.

How utterly peculiar.

Unable to stand it, she pulled his hand away from her face and put enough distance between them that she could think straight. "You didn't answer my question."

He gestured over his shoulder, toward the house. "We brought Madaug home. What about you? What are you doing here?"

"I live nearby," she lied. She'd been summoned here by a violent wave of magick. It was like Nick's powers on steroids. If she didn't know better, she'd say it was him at his full strength, but he was still weak.

Still human.

And what she'd sensed had been mature and ready to take lives.

"I saw the police and came to investigate," she said. "You shouldn't be out here. It's dangerous." She frowned at him. "How do you mean?" Nick glanced over his shoulder to where Caleb was staring at them with an odd look on his face. "There are things out here ..." Dont say zombie, moron. She'll think you're a loon. "It's just a bad scene. Full moon and all. You should go home where it's safe."

"Are you ..."—she narrowed her eyes as if searching for a word—"trying to protect me?"

Oh, he knew that tone. It was dangerous. "I'm not being a male chauvinist. I know a woman is just as capable of taking care of herself as a man, but there are things ... I'm sure your parents are worried about you and—"

"You are trying to protect me." A broad smile curled her lips and did the strangest thing to his stomach. "That's so sweet."

Instead of slapping him, she actually kissed his cheek.

Nick's entire body erupted the moment her lips touched his flesh. Now he felt like the one in danger.

For the first time in his life, he didn't mind being called sweet. Not if it meant he got kissed with it. Of course, on the lips would have been infinitely better than the cheek, but so long as she wasn't slapping him and calling him an insult, he wasn't arguing with the location.

When she pulled back, her eyes sparkled in the low light. "Thank you for caring."

"My pleasure." Idiot. What a stupid thing to say.

But she didn't seem to notice. "All right. I better go. You watch yourself."

"You too."

He didn't move as she withdrew, and he took a second to savor her scent that lingered around him. She smelled all womanly and good. And all he wanted to do was follow her home.

Caleb snapped his fingers in front of his nose. "Dude, she's not what you think." He turned his head toward Caleb. "What are you talking about?"

"You need to stay awayfrom her, Nick. Trust me. Girls ain't nothing but trouble."

Yeah, but it was the only kind of trouble he wanted to launch himself into headfirst and wallow there until he was prunyfrom it.

However, he wasn't about to admit any of that to Caleb, lest he revert to kindergarten and start telling her that Nick had a crush on her. Oh, the humiliation of that. "She's all right."

Caleb's eyes flashed with deep sincerity. "No, she's not. You need to listen to me, kid.

That girl is your death."

Nick blew off Caleb's sinister Vincent Price tone. "You're an idiot." He headed back to the car where his mom was.

But as he reached it, an unbidden image went through his head. It was Nekoda ...

Only she wasn't the girl he knew who made him laugh and who kissed him on his cheek.

She was something else entirely. Dressed in armor, she looked like an ancient warrior, complete with a helmet and shield.

And a sword she was driving straight through his heart.