Off The Grid (Kindred Series-3)

Off The Grid - 17 - Finale

seriously?

 My fangs bite down into my lip.  My father?  What is this fucking Star Wars?  That thought sends me back to Fritz and I duck my head down. 

The girl, Spencer, shoves Dathan roughly.  "Tact!  You are always telling Rylee and me about tact, well – learn some.  For a guy that's thousands of years old you misplaced yours somewhere."

Dathan opens his mouth but she holds her hand up and snaps her hand together, so he closes his mouth before saying anything.  A new rumble from outside draws my attention away from this weird family reunion.  I hear a piercing scream.  I know that voice.  "Lena," I whisper.  "Get me out of here.  Break me loose, right now!"

Spencer pulls out a knife and cuts the tape that holds my legs in place.  I look down, not even having realized that it was tape that held me there.  Dathan doesn't move.  Whatever, I have enough fathers to last me three lifetimes. Lena's roar rings in my ears as Spencer moves behind me and snaps the wood.  I spin around to see her hands are covered in thick leather gloves.  She lifts her hands, wiggling her eyebrows.  "No splinters."

I shove past Dathan, what sort of name is Dathan, I think. 

"Wait...," he says, grasping my arm and hauling me to a stop.  "You're hurt."

"Don't worry about me, nothing much can kill me," I tell him. 

"But."

I grab his jacket, bundling the leather into my fists.  I drive him into the door jamb.  "Now you listen here, father come lately, someone I love is in danger—"  I'm cut off by the sound of the crowd that was my wedding party.  What the hell was going on out there?

"Fuck this," I growl, pushing him off his feet into Spencer and I rush outside. 

"Go!" I hear a voice.

Stefan!

I see the raging bonfire lighting up the clearing, embers shooting into the sky like fireworks of celebration.  From the pulsing mob I see Stefan, waving frantically.  "Remy, run!  Go!  He's going to kill you!"

My bare feet feel the spike of the grass as I rush towards him.  His face is bloody, his left eye swollen shut and he's limping badly.  I cup his face the instant I am close enough.  "Who did this..."

"Run!" he says, pushing me hard. 

"What is happening?"

"A challenge," he says softly.  His voice breaks.

"Vic..."

"No," says Stefan, shaking his head hard.  I heard Dathan and Spencer behind me. I don't care. 

"Who?"

"Lena, he'll win and then you'll both be dead.  Go!"

pain

The acid in my stomach bubbles and I taste the bitterness at the back of my throat.  What the hell had Lena been thinking?  Maybe she made the challenge to save my life.  I don't know and I don't care.  The cold rivers through me, shards of fear cut through me. 

"Dathan, take her!  Get her out of here and – and I'll find you, Remy, I'll find you," says Stefan. 

I whirl around and look incredulously at Dathan.  Then back to Stefan.  They know each other?  Before I can turn back to Dathan something unyielding and cold hits me hard, my head explodes with pain then I'm down for the count.

bump

The car jumps and bumps and the pain in my head doubles.  I take in a sharp intake of breath and I can still smell the smoke and fire, we haven't gone far.