Deathmarked, p.1
DeathMarked, page 1
DEATHMARKED
The EverMarked Series Book Two
Copyright © 2020 by Amy Eversley
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
The Watcher Series:
Watcher
Carbon
Savior
Kenzie Novella
Max Novella
Coleman Novella
Aelish Novella
The EverMarked Series:
EverMarked
DeathMarked
ShadowMarked
FateMarked
For Lisa and Ian, the best friends anyone could ask for. Thanks for keeping me sane.
CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Epilogue
About the Author
SIENNA
The moon and stars provided a dim light over the dark, beautiful forest. Trees swayed in the subtle breeze, as if trying to lull me back to sleep, but I knew I wouldn’t sleep tonight. I’d hardly slept in days. It was always quiet here—artificially created silence. I didn’t need to hear the sounds outside the glass window I stared through to know they were filled with terrors and nightmares.
Our first night here, I’d thought, for just a split second, maybe this wasn’t that bad. Maybe this place was a step up from the cement prison of the DEZ I’d spent my entire life in. But then they came. Like a wave of living darkness, they hammered against the glass wall separating us from the forest. Separating us from them.
The glass held strong that night, as it has every night since. But it didn’t stop the pounding in my heart or the breaking of my soul. The fear inside of me swelled when the sun set, and I knew it would be too much to hope this nightmare didn’t become my reality, but wishing and praying were useless now. It might be too late for Vic, if she were in that forest already. Who could survive those monsters alone?
My gaze fixed on the forest—Theo asleep at my side—and I waited. My fists clenched in the blankets, and tightness spread across my chest. Breathe. They can’t hurt you here, I reminded myself. But still the panic and fear palpated through my veins because they would come. They always came, and there would be no escaping them.
The clouds parted and the moon shone brighter, just as the black figures approached and consumed any beauty the forest once held.
JAYLA
My fingers rapped impatiently against the table as we waited. For an hour, Emery and I sat in a conference room at Watcher Headquarters in hopes we’d get to see Commander Reyes this time. It was the fifth day in a row requesting a meeting with her. This was as far as we’d gotten. The first days we were turned away politely. In the last few days, however, we’d been manhandled out the door and told not to return until Commander Reyes contacted us.
I couldn’t stop the fear coursing through me, even while I kept my calm demeanor and confident swagger on full display. I would wait here for hours if I had to—for Cas I would wait forever—because we needed to get him back.
When we’d arrived this morning to seek an audience with Reyes, I was surprised to find Officer Cortez waiting for us at the front door to Watchers Headquarters.
“You can’t keep coming here,” he’d said.
I shrugged. “Sure, I can. There’s no law against standing outside a building.”
“She’s busy. She’ll get to you when she has time.” A vein at his temple looked ready to burst. Cortez was a short, stocky man, a lot of muscle to push around, but he was the last person I’d fear.
At this point, nothing scared me except not knowing. Not knowing if Caspian had survived. Not knowing where he was or what we were going to do to get him back. It had been a week since I’d last seen him, since we’d barely escaped the Void and whatever they were doing there. A week since I’d last touched his skin, warm against my own, and felt his lips pressed against mine, igniting that fire inside me I’d ignored for so long. It felt like a lifetime.
Now, all that remained was a hollow wound, and an ache I couldn’t ease.
“If you won’t let me see her, at least give her a message for me,” I had told Cortez. Em couldn’t hide the little smirk spreading across her face. We had hoped Reyes would eventually send someone of importance down to shoo us away, and this morning we’d finally got our wish. The receptionist was useless; any message we passed along through her would mean nothing.
But Cortez…
From our last mission with Reyes, when we had stolen secrets on behalf of Governor Wallace from Marc Holden, it had been clear Cortez didn’t know Reyes was working with Simon. But he would know who Simon was. Cortez would recognize his name in an instant. So, the message we gave Cortez for Reyes was bound to stir up a few questions. “Tell her if we don’t see her soon, we’ll send Simon over to say hi… well, his head anyways.”
Cortez’s face hadn’t shift with even the slightest glimmer of recognition at the name, but the tightened fist at his side told me we’d hit our mark.
He had returned ten minutes later, claiming Commander Reyes suddenly had time for us. But still, she made us wait.
When the door finally swung open to the small conference room Cortez had unceremoniously shoved us into, I didn’t bother hiding my annoyance at being forced to wait. “We were beginning to think you’d forgotten about us,” I said dryly.
Commander Reyes glanced to my feet propped up on the table, then to Em who was using a knife to file her long nails into sharp points. “What part of our arrangement didn’t you understand?” she hissed. Her voice was low and laced with anger she barely held back. “I told you before you agreed to any of this, that if anything went wrong, I would deny any knowledge of it. That includes helping you find a way to fix whatever you messed up.”
“Did dear old Simon even tell you where he sent us?” Em paused, waiting for Reyes to respond, but when she remained silent that gave us our answer. She was well aware of the shit show Simon brought us to—and she wasn’t about to help fix it. Em hardly looked up from her nails as she said, “They have Caspian.”
Reyes paused. I had known it was a risk coming to Reyes for help, and I knew she would turn us away, just as Simon had before he disappeared. But I wouldn’t stop trying. And now that she knew why I wouldn’t stop, her expression softened a little.
“I’m very sorry, Jayla, but if they have him, then he’s as good as dead, if he isn’t already,” Reyes said.
My throat was dry, but I swallowed back the lump lodged there and looked her dead in the eyes. “You don’t know Caspian as we do. He can survive and he will survive. But we need to get him out of there. I’m only asking for your resources, not your help.”
“Simon—”
“We didn’t touch him… yet.” Em cut her off. “The little weasel has gone into hiding. Last time we saw him, he was only able to let us know that all transports to the Void have stopped. And with no other way in and no information…” She waved her hand as if to say, so here we are.
Simon had also warned us that if we got too close to the Void, especially on an unregulated shuttle, we’d be shot down before we could even attempt to search for anyone.
“I can’t provide you with much more than that. Whatever you did spooked a lot of people, even our usual sources aren’t talking.” Reyes finally took the seat across from me. “I can only offer you whatever information we get, when we get it.”
My lips pursed, and I tilted my head. “See, that’s just not good enough.”
“I am trying—”
“No, you aren’t.” I stopped Reyes. Her mouth gaped open at my tone. I had never been disrespectful to the Commander of the Watchers, the woman who’d taken me in after I was so broken by the loss of my own mother. She had given me purpose, and now I was using it, even if currently it was directed at her. I had always kept my temper in close check with her, but not today. “We need names. We need people to find and get answers from. And we need access to everything you have.”
Reyes’ eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to speak, but again I stopped her.
“And we don’t mean the information you have on this We mean everything. We want to know what you know.”
Commander Reyes shook her head, as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Who do you think you are coming in here, demanding full access of everything I have?”
“Someone who has lost their patience.” I cocked my head like a predator assessing its prey. “And I’m done following your rules. You said we were the only ones you trusted, so trust me now. I won’t let this go; you know that. But if you play nice, I promise not to mention any involvement you willingly—or unwillingly—had in all this.”
“Is that a threat?”
“Yes. It is.” Em placed her knife on the table and inched in closer. “That is merely the first of many if you choose to not cooperate. We played by your rules, and so far we’re the only ones who’ve gotten burned. There was once a time when you promised never to keep a secret from us, yet I get the feeling you’re hiding more than a few things.”
Reyes swallowed, her gaze firm on Em. The two had been close once, before I joined the Watchers, but that was no longer the case.
I took my time sliding my feet off the table before I stood, circling around to where Reyes sat. I placed my hands on the back of her chair. “We expect to hear from you in the next twenty-four hours.” I patted her shoulder. “Have a good day, Commander.” And then we were gone.
We didn’t have to wait long for Reyes to contact us. And from the look on Cortez’ face as he handed us the tablet outside of the Watchers Headquarters, he had been informed of what was on it.
“The Commander has made a lot of sacrifices for all of us. You might want to remind yourself of that before blaming her for your mistakes,” Cortez said, voice hushed.
“We don’t blame her for our mistakes. We just ask that she helps fix the ones she was a part of.” I shrugged, tucking the tablet in my jacket.
“From the way I hear it, you got your mate captured all on your own.”
I had to stop Em from wiping the snide smirk off Cortez’s face, and he flinched back from her.
“I’d be asking her how we got to the Void—and what we saw there—before you start pointing fingers,” I said over my shoulder and pulled Em with me.
“I don’t believe in rumours and fabled stories,” Cortez said. “Any information you see on that tablet is speculation at best.”
I stopped at the bottom of the stairs, turning back around. “They aren’t rumours. Or fabled stories. They’re living nightmares… and nightmares don’t just go away. They keep coming back, night after night, until that nightmare becomes your reality, and there’s no escaping it. That’s what you have to look forward to.”
SIENNA
Death. That’s what waited for us in the forest. Death and horrors and nightmares.
Dr. Merinda stood between two guards wearing the same fake smile she had on the day we’d arrived—that was the only time we’d seen her since we got here just more than a week ago. Her grey-blue eyes were as cold as her heart. A deep rumble filled Theo’s chest at the sight of the woman, and his hand tightened around mine. He subtly positioned himself in front of me.
Dr. Allard had led us here moments ago, down the endless white hallways, into room after room with the same glass wall looking out to the forest, until we were in a new area I had never seen before. He motioned for us to step forward, but we froze a healthy distance away, and he reluctantly took his place beside Dr. Merinda. The guards, dressed in the same green, brown, and black camo-colored clothes we now wore, stepped forward and held out a small bag for each of us. I glanced inside. A small ration of food, water, and a medical kit.
“Looks like you’re all ready to go?” Dr. Merinda smirked, glancing down at our attire.
Theo glanced over his shoulder at me, his fingers contracting against my own. His jaw was tight, but he held his rigid posture and turned back to Dr. Merinda.
Only a few hours ago, Dr. Allard had shoved the new clothes we now wore in our hands, ordering us to change and wait for him. He hadn’t returned for four hours—making us wait was one of the games he loved to torture us with.
“Allard has explained the weapons I assume?” She paused, as if waiting for a response. We glared in reply, and Dr. Allard nodded in confirmation.
Theo and I had been hesitant to put on the stretchy leather pants and jacket we’d been given. A thin shirt hugged my body, and a jacket of the same fabric fit perfectly over my shoulders. It zipped up high, just under my chin, covering my neck, and something strong, like steel, slid down the sleeve at my forearm. We both understood what the implication of this change meant and what the colors of our new clothes closely resembled. Brown and green and black, they reminded me of the forest I watched every night—and we were about to enter it.
I stared at Theo’s back, trying to gulp down breaths. I couldn’t go in there; I knew what was in the forest. He was in a similar outfit—the same color as mine—and the jacket was zipped up to his chin as well. My gaze focused on the patter, trying not to think about what was coming. The fabric covered the jagged scars filling his entire upper half, scars I had caused back in the DEZ during our graduation test. They weren’t repulsive, he was still beautiful even with the marred skin, but I had caused it, and that made me sick every time I saw them. He’d healed, thanks to Dr. Allard, but the reminder of what’d we’d been put through was a permanent scar.
With his jet-black hair and vibrant, amber-mahogany eyes, Theo looked like a soldier or assassin. No. He looked like a Watcher—like Caspian and Jayla. I wondered if any of them knew where we’d gone, if they were still looking for Vic.
“Your weapons,” Dr. Allard had explained, tapping the hard sleeve of my jacket. “You’ll need them, trust me.” He smirked. “Press your fist together and they’ll slide out. Press again and they disappear. Simple, right?”
I was having trouble standing, my knees weak and wobbling, so I held on tight to Theo. His own hand trembled. I can’t do this. I can’t go into that forest. Sweat was beading at the back of my neck.
“As you have likely noticed, there are some awful pests living in this forest.” Dr. Merinda drew my attention back to her. “And unfortunately, we can’t get through them on our own. That’s where you guys come in.”
“You’re sending kids into the forest because you’re too scared to go yourself?” Theo said, a new kind of fire burning from him.
My head spun, and little black spots sparked in the corners of my vision. I couldn’t see straight, and I was breathing way too hard.
“We’re not scared… we’re terrified. And you should be, too.” Merinda sneered. “These things are in our way, plain and simple. There is something within this forest we need you to collect for us, which is why we are so kind to send you in armed.”
“Why not send an army? Or Carbons? What good will we be?” I asked, finding my voice shaky and a pitch too high as fear threatened to take over. I’d already noticed not one Carbon was here. All the guards, the doctors, were humans.
“Oh, we’ve tried it all, trust me… and they have all failed. Our government refuses to send any more soldiers our way, on account of us losing so many of them. And the Carbons, as you already know, are susceptible to the virus these black creatures hold.” Dr. Merinda stepped forward; her voice was soft and sugary sweet. She slid past Theo who stood an inch ahead of me, but he’d gone utterly still. She reached, and ran a hand down the long, braided red hair resting over my shoulder. “So, we began training our own army. A group of kids with strength and abilities from the Carbons, but without the worry of being infected. You’re immune to whatever the virus is. And so you are the only ones who can go in there and stand a chance of living longer than one day.”
