Page 118 of Malachi
They stood near the totem, the light of day passing into golden hues filtered by the thick expanse of the treetops above. My heart thundered in my chest, threatening to break ribs on its way out of my body.
“Mr. Jacobs, lower your weapon and release the woman,” Agent Driscoll yelled as he moved closer cautiously. My eyes scanned over the scene, trying to find anything that would help us get the upper hand. It was difficult to trust the agents. All I wanted to do was run in and take the motherfucker down, but he had an eerie calm that terrified me. His hand wasn’t even shaking. A bloody scrap of clothing covered the hand he held Talia with. It matched his clothing. He must have torn it off to use as a bandage at some point.
“Don’t come any closer or I’ll pull the trigger,” the Reverend barked back. There was no remorse in his eyes. Nothing but pure, unfiltered evil shone in their dark depths. Bile coated my tongue, and I swallowed quickly, barely holding onto the contents of my stomach.
“Mr. Jacobs—” the agent called again.
“My name isReverendJacobs,” he spat back. Talia flinched as spittle sprayed over her face as he spoke. I could see her trembling from where I stood.
“Reverend, lower your weapon and we will all walk away from here,” the agent stated calmly.
“You think I’m that stupid? I know that the second I release her, all those guns will go off, all aimed at me,” Reverend Jacobs sneered, gesturing to his chest with a bob of his head towards the red laser dots. The gun never wavered from Talia’s temple. Not for a single moment.
“I promise you, that won’t happen,” the agent promised, lowering his own weapon as he took another cautious step forward.
“That’s fucking rich,” the reverend jeered with a snarled expression.
“Just lower the weapon. Release the girl and we can talk. That’s all. No guns. Just talking,” the agent said.
“Not on your life,” he spat.
“Then let’s make a deal. You let her go and we can negotiate your release. The guns go away and you walk away from this. Just let her go,” Agent Driscoll tried with a conciliatory gesture.
“You wouldn’t do that.” I couldn’t believe it, but I actually heard the tiniest bit of pause in his voice. He was considering it.
“I would, and I will. Just let her go. Or take me instead. These agents will go to bat for that woman, but they would die for me. They’ll do anything I say. Let me take her place,” he tried again.
“Not a chance,” the Reverend hissed, pulling the hammer back, engaging the trigger.
“Let’s all just take a breath,” the agent stated, stopping in his tracks.
“That’s the problem with you people. You act like you’re so superior, when in reality, you’re just a bunch of lying bastards. You really expect me to believe you’d risk it all like that? And for what? For this fucking useless excuse of a woman? Don’t make me laugh. No man is that stupid.”
He shook his head, chuckling his disbelief. In the next moment, he was all business again, shaking Talia to emphasize his threat. His voice was getting progressively more crazed and out of control as he raved. It was obvious he was really losing it. “Now all of you, drop your goddamn weapons, unless you want to see her brains scattered all over these fucking rocks. I am the one in control here. I am the one with the power. You are all going to do what I say. Do you hear me? All of you are going to fucking list —”
Bang!
Red blood sprayed, covering Talia as she screamed.
It happened in a flash, yet things moved in slow motion.
Agents rushed forward.
Zeke pulled himself from my grasp with a scream of her name.
And in my peripheral, I saw it. I sawher.
Eden.
She dropped from the tree branch to the right of where the Reverend had just fallen, my rifle still clutched in her white-knuckled hands as she collapsed to the ground.
“EDEN!” I roared. My feet were moving before the sound of her name had fully left my lips. Almost stumbling ass over teakettle, I ran to her.
Everything around us ceased to exist as I pulled the rifle away from her, checking the safety that she already had locked in place as I threw it to the side and pulled her into my arms.
“Malachi,” she cried, her voice breaking into sobs that wracked her body.
My hands flew over her, my eyes taking in every inch of her as I scanned her form.
