The Gates of Byzantium (Purge of Babylon, Book 2) (79 page)

“Sonofabitch,” Blaine said. “That’s the second Jeep I’ve lost.”

“Should have known better than to leave your car unlocked on the side of the road,” Will said.

“Rub it in.”

They climbed back into the Carver and rode back to the island.

Will watched the house burning, half of the two-story structure already consumed by the large flames. The trucks in the yard had become blackened wrecks and some caught fire, their tanks adding more fuel to the bonfire raging next to them. The small boathouse had gone quickly, along with the garage and gazebo at the marina.

Will turned back toward Song Island and settled down in the stern of the boat, Blaine steering in front of him. He could feel the heat flaring against his back, even from a distance. It felt even warmer than the sun above them.

*

He was short
on manpower, so he gave Maddie first watch, positioning her in what remained of the Tower’s third floor. She was wounded, but she could still shoot, and the painkillers helped. Blaine walked the island, circling it every few hours. Will didn’t know how he was even still up and about after last night, much less still moving. Danny was already conscious, but he wasn’t going to be useful for a while.

The next few days and weeks would be dangerous ones if the collaborators decided to attack again. His only hope was that they didn’t know how much he had lost last night. If Kate decided to risk more of her humans, their ownership of Song Island would prove short-lived.

Will located Danny’s remaining bundles of C4 in the basement underneath the Tower where Tom had left them. He planted them along the beach and kept the detonator with him at all times.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Tonight. He would find out how much Kate wanted the island, how much she was willing to sacrifice.

He was lucky he still had Sarah around. Along with the girls, he and Sarah were able to keep an eye on the wounded—Carly, Danny, and Gaby, now lying side by side on the second floor of the Tower. It was still the safest and easiest-to-defend location on the entire island, even after last night’s grenade launcher attack.

An hour later, Will found Lara asleep in their room.

She was exhausted and slept in the same clothes from last night. Her right arm was covered in bandages she had put on herself—both of her arms were now covered in bandages—and her face was blackened and bruised, as were her legs and, he knew, most of her body.

She was curled up on her side on the bed, sleeping in a pool of sunlight pouring in from the open patio window. There was a light morning breeze, and the room felt strangely cool despite the oppressive heat outside.

He sat down on a chair next to the bed and watched her sleep. It was quiet. So quiet. The only sounds were the birds outside, water lapping against the island, and her soft breathing. He could look at her forever, he realized.

After a while, she stirred and opened her eyes.

She saw him immediately, and a ghost of a smile appeared across her bruised lips. “You’re back.”

“I’m back.”

“How did it go?”

“They were gone by the time we got there.”

“Figures.”

“Yeah.”

“Any signs of where they went?”

“No.”

“What about Blaine’s Jeep?”

“Gone.”

“Thieves.”

“Yeah.”

She lay still, and they were content to look at each other in silence for a moment.

“Carly woke up for a bit while you were gone,” she said. “She should be back on her feet soon, though she won’t be very chatty for a while. Danny’s and Gaby’s wounds aren’t too bad. Nothing life-threatening. And Maddie’s going to be gimpy for a few days.”

He nodded.

“How’s your arm?” she asked.

“It’s fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

She reached out and stroked his cheek with her fingers. “You look like shit.”

“Thanks.”

“But I still love you.”

“You just love me for my body.”

“Who told you?”

“It’s obvious.”

She was quiet again.

“What is it?” he asked.

“What happens now?”

If they attack tonight, we’re probably all going to die,
he thought, but he said instead, “We gave up a lot for this island, so we’re going to make the best of it. They might have lured us here on false pretenses, but they weren’t completely lying. Song Island is a haven, and it has everything we need to live out the rest of our lives.”

“Are you saying you want to grow old with me?” she said, smiling at him.

“I would like to see you with gray hair.”

She laughed. “It’s called Clairol Perfect 10, babe. The first sign of gray hair, and I’m sending you out there to fetch me a box.”

“The things I do for love.”

She took his hands in hers and pulled him onto the bed with her. “Come here.”

“You’re still hurt.”

“So are you. We’ll make it work. Adapt or perish, remember?”

“Adapt or perish,” he repeated, and lay down on the bed next to her.

She slipped comfortably against him and Will wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. He ignored the stabbing pain in his arm. It was a small price to pay for this moment with her, which could very well be their last.

“Will?” she whispered.

“Yeah?”

“If you dream about Kate again, I’m going to kick your ass.”

“Fair enough.”

“We’re going to
need a new leader,” Mason said, grinning through that big black hole in his front teeth.

It was dark outside the kid’s room. Very dark, despite the fact that there was moonlight and the spotlights, and the sound of the generator humming in the background could be heard. But it was very dark in the front yard, though Josh thought that might have been because of the ghouls.

They were everywhere, spread out across the yard, spilling over the driveway, flattening the grass as far as he could see. Their dark skin looked like black oceans of tar swaying slowly back and forth under the window. He wondered how terrified he would be if they turned and looked at him all at once.

He pushed the thought out of his head. They weren’t going to turn. They were focused on what was happening in the middle of the yard.

Josh felt a strange sense of fascination mixed with dread at the sight of
it
moving through the crowd of ghouls. It stood out because the other ghouls were homogenous, devoid of identity. But this ghoul was different. He could tell, even from a distance, that it was female. It walked straight, and if not for the supernatural fluidity with which it moved, he might have believed it was human.

No one had returned from the island. There had been a gun battle the likes of which he had never heard before. At one point he swore he even heard an explosion or two, and all he could think was,
Gaby, please be safe, please be safe…

The gun battle seemed like it went on and on for hours, and it sounded like the end of the world all over again. He wasn’t sure how long it really lasted. Maybe twenty minutes, maybe ten minutes, maybe even less than that. It was hard to tell. He was so far away that the
pop-pop-pop
of gunfire sounded surreal, like listening to a movie. Not even watching a movie, just hearing the echoes of one playing in the theater next door.

She lied to me
.
Karen lied to me. She didn’t go there to save Gaby. She’s throwing everything at the island.

Lying bitch!

And when it was over and no one returned, he heard the loud rustling of movement outside his window and looked out and saw Karen on her knees, waiting, as ghouls appeared out of the darkness and surrounded her. They came from nowhere and everywhere, and he had forgotten momentarily that they were hiding in the night all around him.

No, that wasn’t true. They didn’t really “hide” anymore. It was where they lived. Where they dwelled. It was
their home.
He was the one hiding in a kid’s room.
They
, the humans, were the ones who didn’t belong anymore.

“What’s happening?” Josh asked.

“Karen didn’t follow orders. It told her not to attack the island, but she did it anyway.” Mason smirked. “See, kid, this is what happens when you overestimate your abilities, not to mention your importance in the larger scheme of things. When it’s all said and done, we’re just cogs in the machine. Remember that.”

The female ghoul stood over Karen, and Josh could see
bright blue eyes
piercing the darkness, almost glowing. The blue-eyed ghoul touched Karen’s hair, seemed to brush it like a mother would her child’s.

Karen was talking now. Talking fast.

The blue-eyed ghoul seemed to nod, then it put a hand under Karen’s chin, and Karen stood up slowly. Karen smiled, but it didn’t last long because suddenly the blue-eyed ghoul’s head was pressed against the side of Karen’s throat and Karen’s mouth opened in a wide, surprised O.

The ferocity and speed with which it happened made Josh take an involuntary step away from the window.

“Relax, kid,” Mason said. “If they wanted us dead, they’d have come in and gotten us already. Front door’s not locked.”

Josh didn’t know how to answer that. Was that supposed to make him feel better?

He walked over to the bed and sat down. The mattress underneath him was still damp from his wet clothes, but he hardly felt it. His whole body was numb. Jesus, was he even still breathing?

“Relax,” Mason said again. “You’re going to hyperventilate yourself to death, kid.”

“What if we run?” Josh asked suddenly.

“Run?”

“Sneak out the back door. Run away before they notice we’re in here.”

Mason laughed. “Have you looked outside? There are thousands of those things out there. Where do you think we’re going to run
to
? You got a Batmobile I don’t know about? We wouldn’t last a second outside this house.”

“But we can’t just stay here.”

“Of course we can, and we are. We’re not doing shit—”

He stopped suddenly.

Josh stared at him, wondering why he had stopped.

Mason’s eyes left Josh’s, and he turned his head back toward the door.

Josh felt something seize his chest, punch its way through flesh and bone, and wrap around where he thought his soul was. Josh didn’t use to think souls actually existed, but as he stared at the door, he realized how wrong he was.

We all have souls, because it’s staring straight into mine.

The blue-eyed ghoul stood in the doorway, its long, lean body covered in black prune skin like the thousands of others outside. It was the same, but different. He knew, without a doubt, that this creature—this
thing—
was more.

So much more.

It stood tall, and he could see the womanly curves of its hips, see where its breasts used to be when it had still possessed—and cared about—gender. And when it smiled at him, Josh thought it looked pleased with his response to its presence.

Something inside Josh died.

“Josh,” it said, in a soft, almost feminine voice that traveled across the small bedroom and seized him by the soul and refused to let go. “Josh… We have a lot of work to do, you and I. We’re going to change the world. Are you ready?”

Now onto business! If you haven’t already left a review for
Purge
at
Amazon
or a bookseller of your choice, please take a few seconds to do so. And while you’re at it, why not leave a word about
The Gates of Byzantium
, too? Even a short review would be tremendously appreciated.

The fight continues in…

The Stones of Angkor

(Book 3 in the Babylon Series)

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The Purge of Babylon Series

The Purge of Babylon: A Novel of Survival (Book 1)

The Gates of Byzantium (Book 2)

The Stones of Angkor (Book 3)

The Walls of Lemuria: The Keo Storyline (Book 3.5)

The Fires of Atlantis (Book 4)

The Ashes of Pompeii (Book 5)

The Isles of Elysium (Book 6)

The Spears of Laconia (Book 7)

The Horns of Avalon (Book 8)

The Bones of Valhalla (Book 9)

The Allie Krycek Series

Hunter/Prey (Book 1)

Saint/Sinner (Book 2)

Finders/Keepers (Book 3)