War

  War

  R.S. Broadhead

  Contents

  1. Savannah

  2. Reese

  3. Reese

  4. Reese

  5. Harley

  6. Reese

  7. Reese

  8. Reese

  9. Shayla

  10. Raven

  11. Reese

  12. Reese

  13. Reese

  14. Reese

  15. Reese

  16. Reese

  17. Dax

  18. Reese

  19. Jace

  20. Reese

  21. Reese

  22. Reese

  23. Masey

  24. Reese

  25. Reese

  26. Reese

  27. Reese

  28. Reese

  29. Reese

  30. Reese

  31. Reese

  32. Reese

  33. Reese

  34. Reese

  35. Reese

  36. Steele

  37. Reese

  About the Author

  Also by R.S. Broadhead

  1

  Savannah

  My back popped, sending a searing pain shooting up from around my hips all the way to my shoulders. I froze and waited for the nagging impulses to subside before continuing my efforts. War wounds, and they only got worse as I got older. Back then, I thought my body was invincible. That it could bounce back from anything. It felt that way years ago, but now it wasn’t uncommon for me to pull a muscle shrugging out of a sweater. Ugh. It really sucked.

  The yellow bulb in the back of the dryer burned my retinas as I stared at it with tear-stricken eyes. These were my invisible scars that had marred me for life, something I wouldn’t trade for anything despite the problems they were now causing me in my adult life. I bit my lip and suppressed the need to cry. Instead, I reached for the tangled mound of clothes that had knotted in the process of the tumble. One by one, I shook the articles of clothing to free them of wrinkles and then deposited them into the basket waiting at my feet.

  “Babe, I told you I’d do that,” Lance said, coming into the small laundry room and slowly inching his rough fingers underneath my shirt and across my skin. “I know you’ve been going at it all day with the kids, so you need a break.”

  He placed a small kiss on my side of my neck. Involuntary palpitations drummed within my chest. I closed my eyes, enjoying how he still made me feel. The moment only lasted a breath. As if on cue, the pounding of two pairs of feet came barreling down the hall and within seconds, the source of the commotion burst through the door. He backed away, only putting a small amount of distance between us. “Whoa, whoa. What’s with all the excitement before bedtime?”

  Ignoring him, our oldest daughter directed her attention to me. “Momma! You said you would tell us another story tonight,” Laney whined. Her small fingers wrapped around the doorknob. Using it to hold herself upright, she tilted her head back so far tendrils of long, chestnut colored hair dangled over the floor. “We’ve been waiting all day to see what’s going to happen. Isn’t that right?” she asked her sister Mallory.

  Mallory hugged the fuzzy blue blanket locked in the nook of her arm tighter to her body as she gave us a slight shrug. “I guess.” She quickly looked down at the floor and pushed the corner of the rug I was standing on with the tip of her Sponge Bob slipper.

  Laney straightened up and took a step toward her. “You lie! You’ve been talking about what was going to happen to Reese the entire day. You want to hear the end just as bad as I do.”

  “I didn’t say I didn’t want to hear it.” She shuffled closer to Lance and wrapped her arms around his thigh. “I’m just worried it will end bad. I don’t want anything bad to happen to her.”

  Lance opened his mouth, but closed it after a second and patted her on the back instead. Our eyes locked. We both knew the story well. We had lived every excruciating moment. All the way to the end. Not everyone was so lucky to come out of it and have the life we did now. But these girls would never know the pain this story held. At least not until they were older and able to handle the previous life their momma once had before they arrived and changed her world for the better.

  I dropped the rest of the clothes in the basket and kneeled so I was eye level with her. “Would I ever tell you a story that would end bad?”

  The corners of her mouth turned up slightly, creating that toothless crooked smile that made my heart sing. “You promise?”

  I returned her expression. “Would I ever lie to you?”

  She blinked rapidly and put her finger to her lip. After a few taps, realization widened her eyes. “There was that one time you told us the store didn’t have a restroom and made me use the portable potty in the trunk of the car.”

  My chin dropped. She had me there. I’d had no problem telling them this same story over and over again until they had learned to read and saw the sign for the bathroom in Walmart.

  “That’s because Mommy has a crazy obsessive weirdness when it comes to germs. Public restrooms top her list,” Lance said with a laugh.

  I tilted my head back and narrowed my eyes in his direction. It was true. Some might call it a crippling problem. I called it smart logic. I didn’t want anyone’s ass or cooter germs on me or my kids. “I’ve gotten better. You have to admit that. At least now I don’t make y’all use the trunk potty anymore.”

  Laney thrust her hip out dramatically. “Only because now you carry a cleaning kit in your purse. You spray so much stuff on the toilet it burns my eyes!”

  My shoulders sagged. I gave up. There was no point in reasoning my madness with them. On the outside, they shared a laugh, but I knew deep down they saw where I was coming from and that I only wanted to protect them. Sure, it was definitely over the top, but it was the way I had always been. Going through what I had been through only heightened my fear of the world for them. I dreaded the day they would be grown and leave my side. I had seen the worst out there. It was the last thing I ever wanted for them.

  So why was I telling them the story about us at bedtime? I had wrestled with that question several times. In lots of ways, it didn’t make sense. Why dredge up things that still gave me nightmares? Why not leave the past in the past? Especially since it was such a brutal tale. But I knew the answer without a shadow of doubt.

  I stood and pressed my lips together as I watched Lance laugh along with our two daughters. It was because without all the hard times and bloodshed, I wouldn’t have found him. And without him, I wouldn’t have these two girls who called me Momma. Not to mention, not all the memories were bad. It made me feel close to the girls that were once my best friends. After all the years, I still hurt not seeing them anymore.

  “Are you going to come finish telling us what happens?” Laney asked, interrupting the thoughts prodding my mind.

  I forced a smile and focused on her. I pushed the sad feelings deep down, refusing to let them see how these memories made feel at times. “Sure, since your daddy said he’d finish up the laundry.”

  “Yay!” they both yelled in unison. With one on each side, they grabbed my hands and pulled me in the direction of their room.

  “Don’t keep me waiting in bed too long alone, babe. It gets cold without you,” Lance called out. I glanced over my shoulder to catch a wink from him as I was dragged around the corner.

  I stopped in their doorway as they both raced to their twin beds on opposite sides of the room. After scampering across the plush comforters, they eagerly tucked themselves in and stared intently in my direction.

  I licked my lips. “Ready?” Both nodded. “Okay, you asked for it.” I took my normal spot on the beanbag I had pulled in between their beds. “Can either one of you tell me where we were the last time?”

  “There wa
s a fight with a lot of monsters,” Mallory squealed, burying her face behind a stuffed teddy bear.

  “That happened quite a bit. You’re going to have to be more specific.” I knew exactly where I had left off. We were at the hardest part of this story, the one I had been dreading telling them about.

  “Reese and some others had just come in like the heroes. They had dragons with them,” Laney added.

  “Ah, yes. That’s right,” I said.

  She suddenly sat up and looked at Mallory before turning to look in my direction. “I thought about something just now.”

  “What?” Mallory asked.

  “You know how we were talking about Momma and the toilet stuff earlier? Doesn’t that sound a lot like Swayer in the story?”

  Mallory’s hand shot to her mouth before looking at me. “Is this story real? Are you Swayer?”

  My mouth dropped open and then slowly closed as I regained my composure. “Really?” I was about to add to my pile of lies. It was going right alongside of the stores not having bathrooms. “Do you really think, me, your momma, would ever fight against the monsters I’ve been telling you about?”

  They glanced at each other and without saying a word, both silently seemed to come to a conclusion. “Nah,” they said together.

  I sighed as relief washed over me. One day I would tell them it was me, but not today. That would end up with too many questions and things they weren’t prepared to handle at their ages. “That’s what I thought. Now let me see where to start... Ah, yes, Reese pulled her sword out as the dragons flew overhead. The enemies had no idea what was coming their way. She was back for vengeance. She was back for blood. She was finally back for us all…”

  2

  Reese

  Their stares were too much at the moment. Judgment was written over each feature within their wide-eyed gazes. Emotionally, it was difficult to accept. What I had done to Varcies was a grisly act, one that I thought might suppress the blood lust I felt inside, but now that he lay dead behind me it wasn’t enough. I wanted Dermetheus. I wouldn’t be satisfied until I stood over him.

  Still, the old me struggled to come to grips with how things were handled. I grappled for control, unable to stop the uneasiness that tightened my chest. I dropped to my knees and fell forward bracing my body with my palms as I gasped for breath. Damp tresses of hair swayed against my cheeks. At that second, I was thankful for the cover. The adrenaline in my veins was gone and with it my confidence. Now I was vulnerable and needed to compose myself before I faced them again.

  I pulled in an agonizing slow breath in a sad attempt at calming the rampant nerves pulsating through me and stared at the gritty ground beneath me for a few long moments. I felt alone even though I knew those I was close to surrounded me. Why did it feel this way? I was home.

  Home.

  It was only a word now that meant nothing to me. I was different. I could feel it infecting my body like a sickness. It was something that I desperately wanted to rid myself of, but I knew the inevitable. There was no getting rid of this, no turning back the clock to the carefree person I once was, no looking at life like I had any other purpose now. I leaned back on my heels, my back ramrod straight as I stared in front of me at nothing in particular. The bodies that stood within my peripheral vision were a haunting representation of the past I wasn’t quite ready to face now that I was here.

  Harley crouched beside me, staring at the mess to the side of us in shock and awe. His hand softly touched my shoulder. Though I knew it was meant for comfort, it was anything but that. I wasn’t in a place that could be consoled. My hands were stained. Slick blood covered every inch of my skin, a substance that up until a few seconds ago I couldn’t care less about being on me. What had I done? My mind had gone to a place that was dark, emotionless. But now I had snapped out of it, and the sight was disturbing. My stomach turned. I closed my eyes and opened them once more, feeling shaken.

  He deserved this. He deserved this.

  The longer I repeated those words, the more I trembled. Vulnerability was something I couldn’t afford. I came back here to fight. I knew what I was getting myself into the moment I made the decision to return to Jackson, the heart of the impending war looming before us.

  “Damn, Reese. Way to make an entrance,” Shayla said, circling us.

  It was a blatant invitation for lighthearted banter in a dark situation. It was clear she felt the same thing I did. The atmosphere was so palpable it was practically insatiable. Even though we all went way back and had been through so many things together, things had changed. I was a stranger to them now, one who obviously scared the shit out of them. Who could blame them for feeling that way? I had basically filleted the Demon King in front of them.

  Only for a second, my gaze flicked in her direction. A small smile graced her lips, which I didn’t bother returning. She was trying to ease the tension, test my mood. I strained for words. So many times I could’ve used my best friend while I was away. Sadly, I knew she was better off not knowing that part of me.

  Unwanted memories crept up. I had killed people, and come close to killing several other times. No. She was better off not knowing. I couldn’t bear the look she would have once she learned about those horrible acts. It would confirm the rampant thoughts prodding her mind now. They were things I was ashamed of. Things I could never go back and redo. Those people were dead because of me and my actions. Sure, they were bad, but who was I to judge them and decide they didn’t deserve another breath? No. It was best I stayed away from all of them on a personal level. I had come back to end this fight and make sure they didn’t die in the process, but it didn’t mean I had to let any of them know what I had turned into.

  My face grew cold as I forced myself to stand, shedding Harley’s hand along the way. Shayla’s expression was one that I wouldn’t soon forget. It held equal parts of bewilderment, confusion, and even terror. It proved me correct. If she appeared this shaken now, learning my dark truth would forever change our friendship. Pain twisted my gut at that thought. Did we even have a friendship anymore?

  I had been gone for a long time. Things could change. I had left them in the middle of this mess to venture out on some self-discovery trip. Not that I’d had a choice. It was the only way I could actually find my way back to them. But it wasn’t like any of them knew that. The sad fact was they might not even care that I was here now. Regardless, they would have to deal with it until this was over. No matter what they felt toward me, I came here for one thing only, to kill the man who was my enemy.

  Chest tight, I focused on the figure behind Shayla. “I think you should get everyone back to the training facility,” I directed toward Fuzz.

  Memories flooded me. Nabea had said Lavarus was the reason all of this started when he released the Darkness, killed her parents, and fled to this realm. Was Fuzz in on it too? He had sent Steele to Thailand. Maybe it was to find Lavarus. Could I really trust him? Right now, the only choice I had was keep a close eye on him.

  I waved a flitting hand over the group of familiar faces around me without staying on one in particular too long, shocked to see a few I wasn’t expecting to see. “They look a little exhausted. One hell of a night, I guess.”

  Raven stepped forward. “One hell of a night?” she asked almost comically. She shook her head and then looked down at the ground before meeting my gaze. “Try one hell of a year. If no one else will say it, I will—”

  Savannah grabbed Raven’s shoulder and twisted her with hostility. “Don’t. You have no idea what she’s been through, just like she doesn’t know what we’ve been through. There’s no need to point fingers at anyone.” She waved her arms out to the sides. “This isn’t because she wasn’t here.”

  Raven shoved Savannah back as her chest puffed out slightly. “I’m not saying it’s because she wasn’t here. I’m saying we’ve been through all kinds of shit. Searching for answers, almost dying, having our facility blown to pieces…”

  I held up a hand
. “Wait. The facility was destroyed?”

  There was no need for words. The expression on each of their faces confirmed the question. I said nothing, simply tightened my fists into a ball. I was away for nearly a year. What did I expect? Things would change. They were in an unpredictable environment. Hell, I was surprised I hadn’t come back to find one of them dead. Wait… I quickly glanced up. Someone was missing. My mouth went dry. “Where’s Abby?” I managed to get out.

  Shayla’s shoulder rose. “We don’t know. Before we came here, we were attacked at Devil’s Den. A Banshee took her.”

  My heart dropped as I remembered all the creatures I had studied during my training. Banshee. They usually didn’t appear unless there was an omen of death. Did this mean she was— I didn’t want to think that way. No. I wouldn’t until I knew for sure. Despite wanting to get my hands on Dermetheus, Abby had to be the first priority right now. The longer she was missing the more likely it would be that she would never return.

  “While you were gone doing God knows what,” Raven started, giving Harley a smug expression, “with God knows who, we were left picking up the pieces.” She rolled her eyes and turned her back to me like she couldn’t stand the sight of me. It hurt. It hurt bad. But I kept my demeanor nonchalant, putting on a brave face for their sake. I had to be strong for them. I had to lead by example.

  “Yeah, we’ve been struggling, but we’ve managed without you. What makes you think we even want you back? Doesn’t even look like you’re one of us anymore,” Masey voiced. Her tone was menacing, full of hatred. She looked between Harley, Hollywood, Freeman, and Zeke before returning to me. “What? Were we not good enough? You had to break out of the hospital and find these guys instead of coming back here to help us?” She crossed her arms and tapped a foot against the floor.