Deserted Highways

I'm A Legend

choked the words out. He turned, his back to the room where Kaelie sat, a mistake, he knew, and he ran. He heard the slap of the others' shoes as they followed behind him and he tried to hear if there were others following them and he knew it was no use, the Hunters moved silently when they needed to and he skidded around the corner.

In front of him was the silvery elevator doors, and Michael nearly collided with his back as he came to a stand still in front of them. A key pad to the right of the doors caught his eye and he wanted to scream. "Fuck, of course we need a fucking code," he spat and his mom as pushing him out of the way.

"How do you think I got out? Jordan never thought I'd betray him. He told me the codes, for everything," she muttered quickly. "Don't have time for long winded explanations at the moment, so move."

Jace stepped aside, and his mom moved to the keypad, pressing buttons swiftly, and the doors were sliding open, the metal making a shushing noise as it slid away into the wall. They all clambered in, Lilith pressing against the back wall, pulling Michael with her, Jace could see the exhaustion from his injuries, from everything, pulling at his features. Jace stood in front, his arms spread, gripping tight to his makeshift weapons, widening his stance protectively.

Kaelie stepped into view.

She winked at him, a wicked smile curving the mouth who's touch he missed.

The doors slid shut.

Chapter 21

I'm a Legend

Jace froze, he didn't move, he didn't blink, he didn't know if he even breathed, he felt his heart surely must have stopped. Kaelie's eye still burned into him, the cruel glee, she'd just stood there, watching him, watching all of them, like she was stalking prey, and then the doors had closed and Jace was gasping for air when they clanged back open, revealing the deserted hangar, a few bodies still slumped on the airstrip outside, evidence, he presumes of the battle Michael and that others had been in when Kaelie had been lost.

They took off sprinting across the pavement, he glanced behind him to see Lilith nearly carrying Michael and he dropped his pace back enough for her to catch up, and he looped Michael's other arm around his shoulders, taking some of the weight as the hobbled along.

"Keep going, Run into the brush off the road, about 600 yards, we parked there to hide the car," Lilith called ahead to his mother, and she and Jace lumbered after her.

It was eerily deserted, Jace couldn't hear anything, or anyone following them, the air was still, no noise besides the shuddering of his own breathing, shoes scraping on the asphalt and then dead grass crunching under his feet as they made their way into the brush and out of sight of the hangar.

It felt like too long before they finally stumbled on the old car and it made Jace's heart clench as Kaelie popped into his mind, sitting in the front seat, driving, a smile on her face, laughter in her eyes, a memory nearly buried in grief and steeped with heartache. He shook it off, ripping open the back door, and helping Lilith to set Michael in the back seat.

Lilith clambered in next to him, and his mom climbed into the passenger seat. "I'm just going to assume no one has the fucking keys?" Jace asked sardonically, panic making his heart pound and his voice waver.

"Kaelie had them," she muttered irately and Jace growled as he climbed back out and popped out the panel underneath the steering wheel. It took him a few minutes, and then he'd found the wires he needed, hotwiring the car and the engine rumbled to life.

"Yeah, well at least she taught me a few things before she went full on American Psycho," he muttered, glancing back in the rearview mirror and meeting Lilith's shocked eyes. "Least I don't do drugs, right, mom?"