Emergence (The Primogenitor Chronicles Book 1) (29 page)

Ian had separated the skin encasing the fragile new appendage and gently pulled the mucus covered limb free of the pocket, laying it across her back, then turned to the second wing.

A flexible barrier stopped his mind. Light flickered in the hazel depths but then sputtered out. In contrast, his own eyes, reflected in the watery sheen, blazed. She shuddered and cried out when the scalpel bit in again; the coppery scent of her blood filled the sterile air and coated his tongue. He pushed harder and popped through the bubble. As fast as a thought could travel, he cocooned her, separating her from what her body felt. He stood between her and the pain. It washed around him, but pain was second nature to him.

*Nicky,*
the thought whispered.
*Come out.*

He pushed it away, but then a giant shove sent him mentally stumbling, and he ripped out of her mind.

He cracked the back of his head against the wall and saw stars. Jessica moaned. Ian hovered over Jessica’s head and stared into his face. Jays had just finished flushing the pockets clear of the mucus and was spreading the membrane of the fragile new wings out to dry.

“Jess?” he whispered but couldn’t tear himself away from the strange look on Ian’s face.

“She’s fine.” The doctor’s clipped words cut through the throb in his head. Ian stood and looked at Jays. “Let’s get the rest of the exam done. We’ve got a busy day.”

Nick looked down at Jessica’s face. Her eyes were closed and tear tracks ran across her nose and down her cheek. His hand trembled slightly when he lifted it up to pet her head. He forced them to subside. Her back wasn’t a pretty sight. The loose skin of the encasing pockets sagged, and the cut edges had been cauterized. The stench still hung in the air. A little surprised that he had missed that, he looked closer at her wings. They were the most well-defined wings he had ever seen at this stage. As her flight muscles bulked up, the loose skin would stretch a little and what wasn’t needed would slough off. Eventually, her back would appear smooth and blemish-free. But for the moment, it looked like a battle wound. The new wings lay like a limp fan down her back. The rope muscles coiled along the twig-like pinion struts, the membrane so thin it was transparent. In a couple of days, the struts would solidify and take on the whip-like strength that allowed them to be so flexible, yet strong. It was amazing that a limb that looked so fragile and skeletal would develop into such a beautiful, strong body part.

The two doctors had finished taking her vitals, and Ian exchanged the last vial of blood for a syringe of amber liquid, which he clipped onto the needle and injected. That got a reaction from Jessica. She flinched violently and hissed, her eyes snapping open. His leg across her knees was the only thing that stopped her from leaping up.

“That was the inhibitor, Jessica,” Ian said. He unclipped the syringe and took a second from Jays. “And this is a radio tracer.”

“What?” they said in unison. Nick caught the fear in her eyes.

Ian slapped a gauze square on the vein inside her elbow and taped it down. Jays pushed the cart toward the door. The no-nonsense look Ian cast him put his hackles up.

“I must have those scans. You have one hour, Nickolas. The tracer will have penetrated all of her tissues by then. One hour to convince her to take a sedative willingly, or watch her get tranked from the door.”

“Damn it, Ian!” he shouted at the doctor’s back. He couldn’t leap up like he wanted to, couldn’t take the chance on damaging her drying wings. He slid out from underneath her, but the door sealed before he reached it. He slammed his fist into it.

“Now will you help me get out of here?” she asked softly.

He spun and raked a hand through his hair. She had sat up, her hair pulled over her shoulders to keep it out of her wet wings. He stalked the short length of room.

“I…” He stopped and stared at the corner. Silence fell heavy between them.

“I’m scared, Nick,” she said in a voice so quiet and full of defeat he could barely hear her.

He turned back to her, his step leaden, then crouched down in front of her. His fingertips brushed the softness of her skin then cupped her cheek. “Please, Jess. Will you do as he asks? I can’t watch them do that. He knows it. So they’ll come in and take me out too. You’re right. I can’t stop them. But I can promise not to leave your side while you are out.”

“I don’t want this.”

“Neither do I.” He dropped his hand to the mattress and looked down.

A touch as soft as butterfly wings slid across his hair.

“Why do you stay here?”

“I don’t know anymore.” His forehead lowered to her knees. “I don’t know.”

Jays steered the cargo van through the gate, topped with razor wire, and stopped on the inside. He jumped out into the weak sunlight and pulled the tall gate shut, then laced the chain through the galvanized mesh. He hooked the padlock in place and twisted it so that it looked locked. His gaze raked the length of forest across the road.

Gravel crushed with each step back to the waiting vehicle. He swung up behind the wheel and looked at Nickolas in the passenger seat.

The Alpha Valkyrie lifted his nose and scented the new air currents that blew in from the opening and closing of the door.
I wonder what it smells like?
The crisp cool air, the brittle scattered leaves, damp underneath the sun-warmed top layer.
I hope Ian’s right that Nick can hold it together for this trip out. He certainly wasn’t pleased to have his routine altered.

Oh no, definitely not. The snarling and snapping they’d had to deal with…

He had not wanted to leave Jessica.

The farther away from the Facility, the quieter he had gotten. And the more fey.

He met Chris’s eyes in the mirror for the millionth time. Then he put the truck in gear and wound through the buildings until he got to the warehouse number he needed, backing up to the loading platform. Nickolas was out before he’d even gotten the engine off, Donald and Chris on his heels.

“Keep those wings furled, Nick,” Chris growled.

“I was just going to stretch,” he snapped back.

“There’s plenty of room inside the warehouse.”

Jays held his breath, but instead of attacking, Nick stalked up the steps. He stood, waiting, by the locked door, rubbing his forehead.

All three of them let out a sigh.

His hand brushed the soft cotton of the cargo pocket on his pants and felt the reassuring shape of the trank gun, then he hurried up the steps and unlocked the door. Mumbling to himself, Nick passed through.

Jays reached to the left of the doorway and flipped the row of switches. Lights flickered on high overhead, gilding the tops of the shelves and casting shadows into the aisles.

Let’s get them busy so I can get on with my job.
He pulled a list out of his pocket. After comparing it to the aisles and some of the boxes, he found what he needed in the middle of the warehouse and called the others over.

“We need all the boxes on this row of shelves, along with those over there.” He pointed to another set an aisle over. “I need to go to the office to see if anything else got scheduled and to record the inventory list of what we take. I’ll let you guys take care of loading.”

A nebulous feeling, something like a brush of wind whispering by, startled Jays, and he whipped a look at Nickolas. The Alpha Valkyrie stood frozen, his face distant. Concerned, Jays snapped his fingers. “Nick?”

Chris and Donald surged up around him, worried frowns on their faces.

Nickolas shuddered, then his eyes cleared and he turned to him. “Is there anyone else here, Jays?”

“No. It’s Sunday.” The piercing blue eyes unnerved him, so he turned away.
At least no one you need to know about.

“We’ve got this, Jays. Go deal with the paper work.”

Trusting them to keep Nick contained, he left them to load the truck and made his way toward the office in the rear. After a quick look over his shoulder, he bypassed the stairs leading to the office and let himself out the back door quietly. Easing the door shut, he jumped down the stairs and entered the neighboring building, leaving that door ajar. He had just started to unlatch the loading gate when the door behind him squeaked. He looked up and smiled at the man who entered. The dark coat covering his wings billowed out behind him as he approached.

“Hello, Jays. How’re you doing?”

“Not too bad, all things considered. A bit stressful though, since you guys failed.”

“Yeah, well, she always did want to go her own way.”

Clasping forearms with Robin, Jays laughed. “True, her temperament hasn’t changed much. She’s still a real pain in the ass.”

Robin’s brow wrinkled and his gaze locked on him. “Is she all right though?”

Jays squeezed the Hunter’s arm then let go. “For the moment she is. But it’s been touch and go. She’s a fighter. She doesn’t want to be in the Facility and refuses to cooperate.”

“You know she wouldn’t have if we’d gotten her to Aurora, either.”

“That’s what Ian said.” He leaned back against the wall. “Really, it’s thanks to Nick that she’s doing as well as she is. Something’s happening between them, but Ian doesn’t know what it is yet. We managed to get in-depth scans on her, finally, a couple of days ago. He’s still interpreting the results, and they are raising more questions. He’s trying to figure out how to get the same scans done on Nick now. Nick’s the only one who she’ll listen to and will allow close to her. She ignores me and is skittish of Ian. He’s the only reason we’ve gotten her condition stabilized. Her test results are off the charts. If Gabriel finds out…”

“She’s exactly the sort that he’d dearly love to get his hands on.”

“Yes. And he’s been around the Hub a lot lately.”

Robin looked up at the ceiling and sighed. “Damn. How’re we going to get her out of this?”

“That’s Ian’s job.”

“I know. But this is my baby sister we’re talking about.”

Robin’s neck convulsed when he swallowed, which drew Jays’s attention in the dim lighting of the warehouse. There was an immense purple black bruise and stitches on the Valkyrie’s neck. “What happened to you? Aborted vampire attack?”

Robin snorted and dropped his chin. “Funny. The cost of failure, I guess. Souvenir from disciplining Kelley.”

“She got you that bad?” he blurted.

Crossing his arms Robin smirked. “
She
didn’t walk off the field.”

He swallowed then replied softly, “Oh.”

At the feral light in Robin’s eyes, Jays ducked his head and turned back to the rest of the warehouse.
I have to remember he’s not the friend I played with as a kid anymore.

Robin’s wings rustled beneath the fabric of his coat, then he spoke in a gentle tone. “You mentioned things happening between Jess and Nickolas? I need to know what’s going on with him.”

He looked back at the Valkyrie. Robin slipped the duster off and stretched his wings. “Nickolas took himself off the arresting inhibitor and has started experimenting with his talent. I don’t know what he can do, but he’s unpredictable and extremely volatile at the moment. So be on guard when you attempt the transfer. We don’t know how much longer we can risk taking him out of the Facility, so this may be the last message we can pass for a bit. Ian has included a detailed report on it for Marcus in this data stream.”

“We knew something was going on. Kelley reported that it looked like he’d been using talent during the hunt.”

“Ian’s confirmed that.”

“So what now? How long can you guys keep this hidden? Especially if Gabriel’s coming around.”

Jays just shook his head.

The door creaked again, and Robin’s Flight filed in. Robin closed his eyes for a moment. “Right,” he exhaled.

The enormity of the situation was not lost on Jays. He felt the burden on his shoulders, and his wasn’t as heavy as Ian’s.

“Ian will tell us what to do.”

Robin’s Flight started poking around the stacks of crates and boxes.

“I know. You’re all just in such a precarious position. I worry.”

Jays coughed then cleared his throat. “Well, the stuff we’ve been able to misappropriate is all stacked over here.”