Instinct Ascending: Rabids Book 2 (20 page)

Amiel

“Sure your ribs are fine now?” Harley asked for the millionth time. She giggled when he reached out, poking her in the side.

“Stop that! I’m fine! Except for the sheer boredom of sitting here, of course. I’m going to turn into a petrified statue.”

“Maybe it’d keep ya outta trouble,” Harley mumbled, before sighing heavily. “All right. Let’s go.” She jumped up and down with an excited squeal, and his eyes turned doubtful once more as he took in her sleek catsuit.

“And you’re sure ya wanna go like that? Ya might get cold.”

Amiel put on an innocent grin. “You said this is supposed to regulate my temperature. Besides, I’ll have my jacket on. And I’ll be fighting. What more warmth do I need? Besides, my Robin suit blends in with the night better.” And maybe, just a little, she liked the way he looked at her when he thought she wasn’t paying attention. The Robin suit had magic powers of Harley-head-turning persuasions. She bit her lip, tossing her leather jacket on and doing a little spin.

“See? Perfect. Let’s go, Sir Harley. Off to the battle.” She grabbed his hand, tugging him toward the stairs of the gym. Harley shook his head.

“Yeah, yeah, destiny awaits, blah blah.” He chuckled. “Sure are excited about this. Thought it scared ya?”

Her face only gave the slightest pinch of frustration at being called out on her weakness: she was that riled up. She let go of his hand to bounce up and down on her toes, shaking her hands out in front of her in an effort to dispel the tingles gathering there.

“I can’t help it. I’ve got all this crazy, restless energy pent up inside me, like I’m bouncing around in my head.”

Harley reached out, grabbing hold of her shoulders to still her bouncing. Still she thrummed with energy, and his touch only seemed to heighten it. Her heart flew, pounding so hard in her chest she almost worried she’d pass out. He looked deep in her eyes, and the current of the connection yanked her mental feet right out from under her. 

“Amiel?”

“Yeah?” she whispered breathlessly.

“Calm down. Both of ya.” His words flowed through her, and like some kind of miracle, it flipped a switch within. Amiel hadn’t realized it was her Hybrid side causing all of the trouble. She’d had this restless energy brewing in her for the last two days. The last hour of work tonight, Joyce asked her if she were on drugs. Amiel couldn’t calm the storm within, no matter how she tried. And yet all Harley had to do was give her one look, one simple command, and boom: she was filled with such calm strength, it was like the restlessness never existed. A grin grew on her face as she floated in his gentle current.

“Wow.”

“Calm now?”

She nodded.

“Good. I’m not gonna keep my promise if you’re gonna get crazy like that.” This time, she knew he was talking directly to her Hybrid side. He blinked, and the intense connection was gone. She missed it immediately.

“Think y’all were on the verge of hyperventilatin’ there, kid.”

She giggled, filled with a new sensation: giddy infatuation.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” she apologized. “I still don’t know what I am doing. I didn’t even realize it was the Hybrid side of me. How can you tell when your Hybrid side is acting up?”

He frowned. “I don’t know. It’s just there. I can feel it, just like I can feel my hand. It’s just an extension of me.”

“I don’t feel anything. That’s weird, right? I should feel it?”

He watched her carefully for a minute before looking away. Reaching out, he tugged on the braid that was tossed over her shoulder.

“No worries, kid. We’ll figure it out. We’ll start workin’ on gainin’ that control tonight. I just can’t have ya passin’ out on me.” He offered a mischievous grin. “Now, remember everythin’ I said about patrol tonight?”

“If I see red, pat you to let you know.” She paused, brows drawing down in confusion. “Why don’t you wear your glasses anymore?”

Harley coughed uncomfortably. Still not wanting her to feel badly that his glasses weren’t fixed yet, he brushed over the topic.

“They’re on the fritz. Now, if ya need to stop, just poke me on the stomach or somethin’ that doesn’t require ya lettin’ go of me. I don’t want ya passin’ out and fallin’ off the bike before I can stop.”

She nodded, refusing to blush at the idea of patting his stomach. For goodness sakes, she always had her arms wrapped around him on the bike, what was the difference between patting him on the stomach and holding onto it? Absolutely nothing — they
both
made her blush.

“What else?” He interrupted her thoughts.

“Let you know if I feel a change in the tags, even if I don’t see red.” He nodded. “And stay near you, no running off on my own to fight because you won’t be able to help if I need it. Between each fight, we take stock of injuries and weapons. If I feel uncomfortable or afraid, tell you and we head home. But I won’t.” She added the last bit as a form of defiance, though she also included a grin.

“Stubborn,” he teased. “All right, let’s head out.” At the bike, Harley pulled out a new surprise. A shiny black helmet, exactly like the one she’d lost the last night she’d fought.

“Your other one was pretty screwed up, so I grabbed you another. Can’t let ya fight without your favorite weapon, can we?” He smirked. Amiel grinned, immediately feeling whole. She hadn’t even realized the missing sensation, or what it meant, until that helmet was back in her hands. She assumed that was her Hybrid’s satisfaction she felt radiating through her. She couldn’t help grinning over her Hybrid’s attachment to helmets as a weapon.

They hopped on the bike and headed for their new destination. Amiel’s grin grew as the buildings flew past them. She’d worn her aviators home every night since Harley gave them to her. And every night, she marveled at the colors as they whizzed by. She loved these things. Blurs of red ahead caught her attention, moving quickly toward them, several streets away. They still had enough distance that her tags had just begun to hum. She frantically patted Harley on the stomach. He nodded, already pulling off the road.

Amiel jumped off, rolling her head around on her neck and shaking out her arms. Harley watched her with that same crooked grin he wore when he thought she was doing something particularly goofy. The smile quickly wiped away when her fingers rose to touch the tags as they reached a higher burn level.

“Okay, we need to start makin’ some observations. We gotta figure how far away they are when the tags tingle, how far away they are when the tags take over. Are they just warnin’ ya now, or have they moved into takeover?”

“They are just tingl— ah!” She gasped, falling to her knees.

“I’ll take that for takeover mode now,” Harley muttered. Pulling off her helmet, he pushed one strap into Amiel’s hand for her to hold. Lifting her chin, he slipped the glasses down her nose just enough to be able to meet her gaze. He looked deep into her pain-glazed eyes.

“I’ll hold them off till ya get in your groove, Hybrid. But no kickin’ Amiel outta her head to do it.” Amiel felt a jarring in her mind, a grating sensation, one that Harley felt easily through their current connection.  His eyes hardened, a growl issuing from his lips.

“You heard me. Let her stay.” He pushed the glasses back in place, then turned to drop into a protective stance in front of Amiel. Rabids surged into the street ahead, and Amiel plummeted into blackness.

Harley

The scream ripped from Amiel’s throat at his back. The Rabids ahead faltered a step before rushing forward with renewed vigor. Harley began chucking his throwing knives, turning the Hybrids into pin cushions as they rushed forward. He aimed to slow them down, not kill them. As hard as it was, Amiel needed to be the one to kill them; he just had to keep them back until she was ready. Awareness prickled along his skin as she rose behind him, her hand trailing up his back and across his ribs as she stepped around him.

“I’ll take it from here.” She spoke, voice like black velvet. Harley’s eyes shifted toward hers, and he frowned. She didn’t give him a chance to speak, immediately springing into action. Rabid after Rabid fell to Amiel as she sprang from one body to another, weapons and helmet working deadly magic. Five Rabids were disposed of in as few minutes. She rose from her crouched position, turning toward him with a grin of satisfaction.

“Finally! It feels like forever since I have stretched my legs.”

Harley’s frown deepened. “You didn’t let her stay,” he accused. Amiel’s smile disappeared.

“I cannot.”

“Why not?”

“She cannot handle it.”

Harley’s eyes narrowed. “Who says?”

“Me. I have been her companion for long enough to know. My very being dictates that I cannot let her come to destruction: of body or soul. She cannot fight, because she cannot handle the emotional distress. She will crumble and we will both die.”

“I say y’all ain’t givin’ her enough credit. How can ya know how she’ll react, when ya haven’t even given her the chance?”

“I have not allowed her to stay,” Amiel’s Hybrid conceded. “But she has seen. I have allowed her the memories of our fights in her dreams. She awakens terrified, her heart rate is elevated to dangerous levels, and she is in a state of distress and guilt that would be unacceptable in a true fight. She cannot take the pain. Not yet.”

“That’s because she doesn’t know what’s goin’ on. Those memories hit her outta nowhere; she can’t protect herself in her dreams.”

The Hybrid flashed darkly in the crisscross formations of color in Amiel’s eyes. “She cannot protect herself in waking hours, either.
I
do that.”

“This is
her
body. She has a right to know, to be aware of what she’s doin’!” Harley argued angrily. A saucy grin returned, stretching Amiel’s features in a disconcerting way. It was Amiel, yet not. She sidled up to his side, staring up at him with large, dark eyes. He breathed out evenly as she pressed against his arm.

“We
share
this body.”

“Wrong,” Harley ground out. “It’s hers and hers alone. Y’all just get to come along for the ride.”

Her eyes blinked in surprise and, to Harley’s wonder, hurt. She lifted her chin, Amiel’s trademark stubbornness shining through in that one movement.

“Perhaps. But
I
protect her.
I
keep her safe. And if that means taking control of her body, I will do it.
Every
.
Time
.” She leaned closer. “She was mine to protect before she was yours.”

Harley’s fists clenched, but she was right. Territorially speaking, the tags had been with Amiel long before he was. Yet that didn’t make it right. And it didn’t make his claim on Amiel any less.

“She is mine as well: my friend, my charge. But mostly, she is her
own
self. And you ain’t takin’ that from her,” Harley growled.

“And who will stop me?” The blacks of her eyes suddenly shrank back to normal pupils, and Amiel wobbled, flopping over into his arms. Harley fumed that the Hybrid had left before he could reply. But what could he say? How could he stop her? There was nothing he could do. Force was obviously out of the question. Perhaps he would have to try a different route.

Amiel stirred in his arms, nose pressing to his chest to breathe deeply before pulling away enough to look into his eyes. He wiped the frustrated expression from his face, anger melting with her groggy grin.

“Hi,” she whispered.

“Hi, yourself.” He smirked. Her face suddenly clouded with confusion.

“I feel… frustrated… yet oddly smug.” 

Harley chuckled, knowing those sensations were leftover emotion from her Hybrid side and the argument they had just had. Amiel looked at the ground, eyes widening along with her smile.

“I did it! Well… we did it?” She struggled for a proper way to refer to her Hybrid, and Harley frowned. Without the Hybrid tags, Amiel would have been dead long ago. Yet he didn’t approve of the way they took over Amiel’s life, or their growing confidence in doing so. For now they seemed to have Amiel’s best interest at heart. But how long would that last?

“What are you frowning about?” Amiel poked his nose playfully. Harley jerked from his thoughts, looked down at the small girl in his arms. Looking into her eyes, he knew he would find a way to get Amiel’s life back. He had to. He’d find a way to stop the world from turning if it meant saving her.

“I’m hungry. I get grumpy when I’m hungry.” He grinned. “Let’s call it a night and get somethin’ to eat. I’ve got some delicious frozen meals back at the gym.” He winked, and Amiel burst out in a peal of laughter. It warmed his heart, thawed the ice that had taken residence since the arrival of the Hybrid in her eyes. He wished he could pass over this next step, but it was something important she had to learn in this new life of hers.

“But first. Important lesson of Hybrid 101.” Assured she could stand on her own, he moved to reach in his side bags, producing a small can of gasoline. He handed it to her, and she stared at it uncertainly.

“Douse the bodies. We gotta burn ’em so the risk of infection spreadin’, or drawin’ more Rabids to their scent when we leave, is negated.”

She stared hesitantly at the bodies on the ground. And suddenly Harley knew the first steps to take toward helping Amiel reclaim her life. He stood taller, walking to her side. She needed to gain confidence in herself, her own strength and actions.

“Amiel, I know it feels wrong. I know it feels like it’s goin’ against your humanity, burnin’ ’em. But it’s gotta be done.” He grabbed her shoulders, turning her toward him so that she met his gaze. “Think of it this way. These people had their lives ripped away from ’em. They never got a proper burial, or a way to peace. Now they have peace…”

“And this is their burial.” Understanding flared in her eyes with the new perspective. And in the current of their shared gaze, he could feel her resolve hardening, strengthening.
That’s my girl
, he thought to himself with pride as she walked forward. With a humbling gentleness, Amiel poured the gasoline over their bodies. Harley pulled out his lighter, but paused when Amiel gently clasped his hand.

“Allow me, please.”

Harley silently handed her the Zippo, watching as she flicked open the lid and lit the flame. But she didn’t immediately ignite the bodies. His heart shuddered slightly as he saw her eyes glistening with proud tears, lips parting to speak a eulogy of sorts for the dead.

“I carried the flame for my brother. Now I carry the flame for you. I do not know who you were. But I pray that you now find peace. Sleep well.” She bent, the flames immediately roaring to life. Amiel stood vigil, watching the flames burn for a long moment. When she turned back to him, the smile was fully in place.

“I know my purpose now, Harley. I’ve been thinking of this in the wrong light. I am not the bringer of death, but of peace.”

Harley wrapped an arm around Amiel, crushing her to him. “You’re an angel, kid,” he murmured against her hair. They held each other for a long moment, Harley finding it difficult to let her go. She was something else, this miraculous girl that was thrown so haphazardly into his life. The way she looked at life was beautiful.

A thought occurred to him then. Maybe he and the Hybrid tags were not so different, when it came to their goals for Amiel. They both just wanted to protect, preserve, Amiel’s golden heart. But Harley knew something the tags didn’t. Amiel held more strength than all of them combined. And he was determined to help her find that strength, and bring it to the surface. Pulling away, he wiped the tears from her cheeks. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her toward the bike. He tossed her messy helmet in the side bags before helping her climb on behind him. Amiel leaned close, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her cheek to his back.

“Wait a minute,” she said suddenly, leaning to the side to look at his face. “Do you always carry that gas can in your side bags for these situations?”

Harley froze.

“Yes; and an extra in the other side,” he admitted. His Hybrid twitched around inside, squirming under the mischievous intensity of her knowing gaze.

“That means you had extra gas in your bike that whole time, the first night we met. You could have just put it in my bike so I could go to the station myself, and left me without another word. But instead, you took me on your bike, got me gas, and brought my bike back to me later.” She left the unspoken question hanging in the air:
‘Why?’
Harley turned back toward the road, cheeks burning.

“Maybe I’d used it all by then.” He hadn’t. And based off of the warm change in Amiel’s scent, she knew he hadn’t, either. She lay her head against his back once more, and gave him an extra squeeze.

“Well, for the record, I am glad you didn’t just send me on my way.”

“Yeah. Me, too, kid.”