The Songs of Fate Page 2

  The moon was hidden by the clouds. A few stars peeked out over the coast as I made my way to the shoreline. The city lights dampened the views of the constellations, but it didn’t make the night sky less blissful to stare at. The hope of seeing a falling star never faded, even after becoming an adult. The stars made the long night runs even more soothing.

  If Jason saw the waves tonight, he’d be begging me to join him for a nighttime surf. Screw the danger–the perfect swells under the stars would be too much for him to miss. And he would lure me into the cold water with sweet kisses and promises of a night I’d never forget.

  But he wasn’t he here. His memory wasn’t even a ghost anymore.

  No waves for me tonight, only the moonlight and a run. I quickened my pace on the boardwalk.

  Over the past few years, the dreams had gotten worse, my dreams of the gray-eyed man. They felt like such a betrayal to Jason, to crave another man, even if he was only a phantom. The dreams used to only be occasional, maybe only once a month, or every few weeks, while I slept. At first, they were foggy, and hard to remember when I woke up, but now I swore I could see the gray-eyed man every time I closed my eyes. This was the first dream during the day, while sober.

  I knew what his kiss would taste like.

  My feet paused on the sidewalk.

  As if he was standing in front of me, my fingertips twitched, needing to trace the outline of the mark on his chest in the night air. He felt real. Powerful and tangible.

  A small tingle of a spark slid down my neck. It buzzed over my chest and tightened my stomach in a warm glow.

  Stop it!

  The electricity was a weird bonus, attaching itself to every dream. It must be some part of my brain making me hallucinate. That was the only scientific explanation I could find on the internet.

  My feet padded on the sand-covered concrete, leading me past the pier, further toward the cliffs. The smell of saltwater became tinged with putrid grease. I turned my nose away from the water. An acidic tang slicked over my tongue. The weight of the air became heavy on my shoulders. I took another slow step forward.

  I paused and craned my neck to look around the shoreline. No one was on the path tonight. The smell of saltwater vanished under the surge of thick tar.

  That’s not right.

  The smell was unbearable, excruciating to my mouth, to my nose, to my ears—

  Shrieks pierced the air.

  The air was too thick to breathe in. Beads of sweat trickled down the hollow of my throat. The sounds were impossible to ignore. I cupped my ears, crumpling away from the cries.

  Jerking my head around, I concentrated on the direction of the wailing, squinting into the reverberations, and began running toward the howls filling the air.

  What are you doing?

  My legs jolted to a stop.

  The cries became louder, consuming the shore, vibrating my chest.

  Run away, you moron! You don’t know what’s out there.

  Wrenching around, I regained control of my body and raced back toward the pier, away from the shrieks clawing at my mind.

  It’s just in your head. It’s not real. It can’t be real.

  And yet my heart felt the panic, the rage, and the truth. The horrifying cries were all too familiar. They were calling to me, seeking something forbidden rooted deep inside.

  Chapter Two

  Dust and Blood

  I dug my toes deeper into the auburn dust, tackling the steep rocky incline. Sweat burned my eyes and soaked through my blue tank top as I neared the hardest part of the trail.

  I still couldn’t escape last night. The screams were a sound I couldn’t shake. Nor the taste of tar that coated my tongue all night. The howls were so painful. Nothing animal or human made that sound in nature.

  I got four total hours of sleep before waking up to the sun streaming through my windows. Opting out of reading, I drove two hours west to a new trail. I’d never been here before, but it seemed to be calling my name when I was scrolling the various websites. Since it was Saturday, and I wanted to ignore every strange part of last night, I abandoned home. Now, I was four miles into the glorious desert mountainside.

  The sun heated the rocks, and the weather made for a perfect day in southern California. The early morning haze had burned off, and now late in the afternoon, I could see the distinct juts of mountains in the distance. The trail would eventually lead through a valley, but right now, the hillside became sheer crimson, soaring into the heavens.

  I unzipped my backpack and withdrew one of the bottles of water. Drawing small sips from the top, I paused to look over the ledge. Panting, I quickly stepped away and veered my eyes back to the opposing mountains in the distance.

  I stowed the water in my pack and began munching on a protein bar as the trail winded upwards. After a few more miles, hiking groups and couples disappeared altogether. Most people seemed to have turned around after a few miles out and doubled back. However, my plan was to continue until it looped back around. The hike was only supposed to be eight miles total. I could do that, hopefully.

  Except, if the website was right, I should be starting to loop back around now. Peering down at my watch, I hit the screen a few times. “Are you sure you’re right, little guy?” I whispered into my wrist. A few more weeks, and I would have enough money to buy the top-of-the-line GPS watch I’d been researching. It was way better than the version I had now, especially if my current version wasn’t calculating my mileage correctly.

  Well, I guessed a few extra miles wouldn’t hurt. If I for sure wasn’t looping around in another mile, then I would turn around.

  Skirting over a few overgrown shrubs, I slipped over a stray pebble, caught myself, then decided it was obviously time to turn around. I grabbed another bag of peanuts and started my descent back toward my car.

  After another hour, my legs began quaking as I squatted, climbing over boulders down the mountainside. I didn’t remember the terrain being this difficult on the way up. Wiping my dirt-encrusted hands over my shirt, the air stiffened.

  I swallowed and peeked behind me.

  Various forms of cactus and a few massive burnt rocks stood behind me.

  Turning, I pivoted and crouched closer to the heart of the hillside. The tinge of acid burned my throat.

  I smelled decaying flesh as a mass struck my shoulder, tossing me to the ground. The serrated rocks sliced into my arms. My head cracked onto the earth with so much force, my teeth clacked together.

  Razors sliced into my skin with such ferocity, I couldn’t breathe.

  The light inside me rippled, streaking across my fingertips.

  I whipped my head up, flailing at the pain streaking into my leg. The creature looked half-man, half-wild animal, on its hands and knees. It sank its serrated teeth viciously into my leg. Dark black tar spilled from its mouth. The creature latched itself onto my thigh and clenched into the muscle beneath my fragile skin.

  Its skin was a sickly gray, with blood-red tattoos swirling over its face.

  Sticky syrup blurred my vision. The teeth bore deeper into my flesh. It burned like wildfire.

  A scream erupted from my chest, searing my raw throat. “Get it off! Get it off of me!”

  The strange lightning surged forth, crackling down my legs, giving them strength.

  Kicking my legs uncontrollably, I made contact and thrust again. I repeated my kicks in the same place. I couldn’t see where I was striking. I just prayed each blow would deter the animal.

  I wiped at my eyes and tried to see where I was kicking. I panted, continuing to lash against the teeth sinking deeper into my leg. The light surging from deep inside me fed my adrenaline, increasing with every kick.

  The screams weren’t mine now. They were coming from the thing attacking me. The howls weren’t of pain, but of growing rage. It didn’t wince or crane back as if affected by my strikes. They only egged it into a heightened frenzy. The creature shook its head with my leg in its jaws.

&nbsp
; My hands swiped my eyes once more and then punched at the creature on top of me. My fist hit leather-like skin thinly stretched over a sharp skull.

  Blinking my eyes, they watered, clearing the dirt and blood out.

  I seized my chance to look at the image in front of me. The animal wasn’t an animal at all, but something else. Its teeth were tiny daggers, sharpened into bloody knives. Its eyes were a void, solid black, not a speck of white surrounding the darkness. They radiated fury without any recognition of pain, and yet I continued to strike its skull.

  My fingertips brushed a long, serrated rock at my side and gripped it, plunging it into one of the black eyes devouring me. The creature hissed, baring even more deadly teeth, while recoiling backwards.

  My fear amplified the crackles of light from my limbs. The light felt good, despite the pain raging down my leg. The light soaring from inside me dared me to be reckless, to be ruthless. I had never been either before, but I chose to accept the urging from the pulses of light.

  I lunged, throwing myself toward its chest, rolling over the creature, dragging it with me. Careening over a boulder, we tumbled toward the precipice of the cliff.

  I sank my nails into the earth, embedding them into the dried dirt as I shoved my legs into its torso with a rapid thrust. The creature disappeared below.

  It was gone and with it the shrieks of fury.

  Scraping my forearms and palms on the final edges of the cliff, I stilled my body. Oh, God, that worked… Oh, God, I’m at the very edge of the cliff!

  The fire in my leg seeped into my veins, burning through the rest of my flesh. It scorched the surrounding muscle, like a black venom seeping into my pores. I’d never felt pain like this.

  The light within me bubbled forth, even stronger. It wanted to take away the dark poison.

  I inched myself away from the ledge on my stomach, trembling so furiously my teeth audibly chattered. My fingertips groped for the shrubs lining the mountain wall. I clenched them in my fists and gasped for a breath of clean air. My chest rose and fell so rapidly, I started choking on the dust. Tears streaked down my cheeks. I clung to the earth, flattening my body tightly into the crevice behind my back.

  The light was so thrilling, and merciless. It bounded down my leg, seeking to erase the pain.

  Gravel crunched under boots to my right.

  Oh, no, please, not another one. I can’t move my legs. I can’t breathe.

  I curled into myself, getting closer to the boulder at my back. I couldn’t move any further away from the precipice.

  “Is someone over there?” a male voice boomed from further up the path.

  A human man?

  Frick, not now!

  I closed my eyes and parted my lips. A small wheeze escaped my chest.

  Please don’t see me. Keep walking. I’m begging you. Go away.

  I couldn’t have anyone see me like this. The light. Oh no. He couldn’t see this. No one could see this.

  “Shit,” a muffled male voice sounded from above me.

  I opened my eyes. The mountain in the distance seemed further away now. The edge, however, appeared even closer. I pulled my knees tighter into my chest and watched a stream of blood flow down my torn pants onto the dirt. The pain was so overwhelming, but I needed to hide the light.

  I clamped on it, and shoved it down. Like I had done for years, I pushed it back, deep within me.

  My eyes followed the trail of smeared blood snaking over the boulder I had flung myself on to. It’s not that bad. I’m okay.

  Shaking my head, I closed my eyes again.

  A soft thud vibrated the ground in front of me. I shot my eyes open, clenching tighter into the plants at my back.

  Dark olive pants encased in large tan boots landed a foot directly in front of my face, inches from my nose.

  “What the hell happened here?” the voice growled as it came closer. The enormously tall, broad-shouldered figure bent down, putting his massive sweat-soaked shirt and tan arms in front of my face.

  My eyes followed the voice, peering up at two vibrant green eyes.

  Holy crap. He seemed very human. Actually, the most gorgeous human I’d ever seen and he’d almost landed in my lap… and he was about to see my crazy. You were attacked by a creature, and then the light inside sprang forth.

  Hide the crazy!

  His green eyes met mine and then dipped lower, past my shredded shirt to my legs, tucked tightly against my chest.

  “You’re hurt. Let me see,” his voice rasped softly. He frowned, waiting for me.

  I shook my head fiercely and tried to control my trembling lips.

  The man gently lifted my arms curled around my thighs and eased my mutilated leg out in front of me. The trickles of blood formed a crimson pool around my right side.

  “Fuck, you were attacked,” he whispered as he stared at the remaining scraps of my pant leg. Effortlessly, he unstrapped his pack and withdrew a small gray towel, placing it over the deepest bite wound. Drawing his mouth into a hard line, he hurriedly covered the cloth with his hand.

  He sees the bite marks too?

  This isn’t good. You need to get far away from him.

  “What are you doing? Don’t do that!” I hissed when the cloth made contact with my skin. My glance at the raw flesh was quick. I couldn’t see how deep the marks bored into my leg.

  “Sorry, it’s not very clean.” He pressed harder into the wound.

  “Ahhh, could you please not do that?”

  “I need the bleeding to stop. Do you have a better idea?” He grimaced. His palm pushed further into my thigh and a small moan involuntarily slipped from my lips.

  “It’ll stop on its own. Just leave it alone.” It hurt way more when he pressed the black tar into the wound.

  “Yeah, when you finish bleeding out,” he said.

  I tried to move my hands to push his off my leg. I had to see if I was healing, my own, freakish way of healing. Over the past few years, I’d been hurt, but never seriously injured. The weird thing was when I got hurt, I had gotten better in record time. Almost too fast to be believable.

  When I fell while running last year, I had scraped my knees and hands; some gravel even imbedded itself into my palms. I thought it would take weeks to heal the scrapes, but once I was home, they were almost gone. My skin had pushed out the tiny pieces of grit and began forming over the cuts. However, that had been scrapes, nothing like this. I couldn’t tell my beautiful stranger I might just need time and for the love of GOD… stop rubbing the dark acid into the wound. It’s making it worse!

  I reached for his shoulder, weakly, to shove his arm away. He ignored my feeble attempts and then glanced at my blood-covered fingertips.

  “We need to get you off this mountain,” he said as he reached for his pack and pulled his cell phone from the side pocket. He held it up.

  “No!” I yelped, careening forward, grabbing for his phone. More people learning about whatever just happened could only make the problem worse. I needed time to figure it out first. I didn’t need expert medical professionals looking too closely. I’m afraid of what they might find.

  “Oh, yes. You need a hospital.” He held the phone out of reach, thumbed the screen, and cursed.

  “No service?” I asked.

  “Nope.” He exhaled and flicked his green eyes to my forehead. “Let me see your head. I think you have a gash, but I can’t tell with all of the dried blood.”

  I leisurely turned my head to meet his stare. His face was covered with a week’s worth of scruffy blond stubble. His wavy hair was tied at the nape of his neck, appearing completely in tune with the desert landscape.

  “My head is fine. I just need a little help up to the trail, and then I can take it from there,” I quipped, peeling his hand from my thigh.

  He paused, flicking his eyes to mine in disbelief. His eyes sparked with disapproval as he shook his head.

  I shed the cloth and studied the wound. It had stopped bleeding, despite the immense a
mount of pain from the thick, dark substance. Now it only stung like a freshly-popped blister instead of throbbing like something had tried to gnaw it off. At least my body hadn’t betrayed me this time.

  “See, it’s not that bad,” I said, trying to pull the remaining pant leg over my upper thigh. Maybe I could make him believe it was only a minor puncture wound to begin with.

  The man tilted his head and raised one blond eyebrow slightly. “I think you and I have different opinions of not that bad.” He leaned back on his heels, studying my forehead.

  Noting the direction of his glower, I brushed my fingertips over the crown of my head and winced.

  The giant man, still crouching over me, swiftly lifted my hand away and then frowned. “Don’t break the clot, it’s not bleeding anymore. And, surprisingly, you’re still conscious, so let’s not mess with your head anymore.”

  If only he knew how screwed up my head was before the injury. This little incident might actually improve the wiring up there. I’m still not sure what just attacked me. The therapist said psychotic delusions could feel and look real, so maybe I imagined the animal was something it wasn’t.

  I shrugged and exhaled. “You were the one who wanted to look at it.”

  A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. “Yeah, but I wasn’t going to touch it. It doesn’t matter anyways. I can’t do anything about it now.”

  I heaved a sigh and pressed off my hands to get my feet underneath me.

  The man must’ve understood my intent because he moved forward, sliding his shoulder toward me so I could grip onto him.

  Every part of me would rather push him away, but I wasn’t entirely sure I could make it to my feet on my own. Hesitantly, I wound my arm around his shoulder and gripped his thick shoulders as he eased the weight from my legs.