Free Between Light and Dark by Elissa Wilds Page A

toward the creature, emitting
streams of light. The creature writhed and squirmed, letting
out a hideous squeal. Axiom's face contorted, as though the
effort pained him. The creature still reached for her. She
could finally make out its eyes, crimson specks of light, focused on her.
    Someone yanked her to her feet and away from the Umbra and Axiom. Wayne. She'd never thought she'd be so
grateful to see the burly man. She crumpled against him and held on to him tightly. But she couldn't tear her gaze
from the battle being waged in front of her. Axiom grunted
and another burst of light blazed from his hands, thicker
and more brilliant, edged with sparks of silver.

    Finally, the creature retreated. The air opened up and
sucked the thing back into the hole it had crawled out of.
    "You okay?" Wayne stepped back from their embrace and
studied her face, squinting, trying to see her in the darkness.
She shivered and nodded.
    A moment later, Axiom stood next to them, his hand on
her arm, his grip viselike. He was breathing raggedly, his
expression haggard, as if the battle had taken a toll.
    "How'd you do that?" Laurell muttered, her teeth chattering.
    Axiom glared at her, but didn't answer.
    Laurell's brow knitted. Axiom was pissed at her? Bullshit.
She was pissed at him first.
    Silently, the three trudged back to the car, which was
parked on the side of a dark, country road. Laurell didn't
bother to protest. It would have been pointless. She was
shivering hard, and her legs were Jell-O. She stumbled once,
twice. She couldn't seem to keep her balance on the uneven
ground. Eventually, Axiom must have grown tired of her
bumbling. With a low growl he scooped her up in his arms
to carry her the rest of the way.
    Laurell held herself stiffly. "I can walk."
    "No, you cannot," he responded. "And we do not have
time to waste."
    When they reached the vehicle, Axiom tossed her inside
unceremoniously, and then climbed into the front passenger
seat next to Wayne. Axiom threw a blanket over the seat to
her without so much as a word.
    Her eyes shot daggers at the back of his head. She couldn't help herself. Anger was easier to cope with than
the fear she'd experienced at the hands of the Umbra.

    They drove in silence. It seemed hours passed, though it
was probably only one. Finally, she couldn't take the silence anymore.
    "Why did you come after me?" she asked. "Why can't you
just find someone else to knock up?"
    She didn't miss the frustrated shake of Wayne's head, or
the way Axiom tensed at the question. Wayne glanced at
Axiom as though to say, Who's going to answer this ridiculous
question-you or me?
    Axiom spoke, his words flat and measured. "We have discussed this at length. You are the chosen one."
    Laurell shrugged off the blanket, suddenly warm. She
rubbed her fingers over her eyes, exhaustion making her
limbs heavy. The shock was starting to wear off. She wanted
to sleep, but questions bubbled in her brain like a pot of stew
on a hot stove. If she didn't get some answers, she might just
boil over.
    "There's got to be more to it than that," Laurell insisted.
"If this was just about me volunteering for the gig, then I
wouldn't be worth the trouble to follow. You could just go
pick up whatever girl fits the number-two volunteer slot."
    Wayne spoke this time. "You'll understand the rest once
we reach Fiona's. If you can behave yourself until then, we
might just be able to keep you from getting yourself killed."
Laurell's gut clenched at Wayne's condescension.
    "You act like this is all my fault. You kidnapped me, remember? I'm the one being forced to have sex with a stranger.
And you blame me for trying to get away?"
    Neither man answered her question. Wayne watched her
from the rearview mirror. "Has Axiom filled you in on the
Finders?"

    "I don't think so," Laurell said.
    "They are the human tools the Umbrae use to do their
dirty work. The Umbrae can control folks who have let
their dark sides