Page 43 of Torn Between Two Worlds

The smile on Leather Jacket’s face said he approved of it.

The plan really was foolproof. He didn't understand all the nuances of it and thought that maybe that would be the most talkative Leather Jacket would be when he was happy. “So, why this Ciara girl? What will kidnapping her and killing her bring you?”

“I do not pretend to care that you are curious. But as you have finally proved to be a useful life force, I suppose a little information on my part couldn't hurt.”

Leather Jacket waved his hand, and Jonathan had a sneaking suspicion he'd frozen the rest of the compound. Oh well, he didn't really care, his men knew what was going on, and as soon as they were successful, so would the whole Initiative.

“As you know, I've explained the concept of Word Speakers and Guardians. What I left out is my good for nothing brother and I are in charge. Supposedly, in our world, Ciara's world, a fight will break out. Not necessarily between good and evil, but the way things have fallen, well my brother and I have distinct sides.”

He grinned and a chill shot through Jonathan.

“Like I hadn't noticed.”

“If you're going to interrupt, I'm not going to explain. Now, as I was saying. Sides are to be drawn, and apparently, we will use those called forth from tales to win this battle of ours. Ciara Miller is one of the most powerful ever. She can open a doorway big enough for your entire army and, apparently, learn skills from those who guard her. That's abnormal, and with her skills, my brother would win for sure. And I'm very competitive.”

He smiled again, and a shudder ran through Jonathan.

The silence retook the room, and they let it. Jonathan's thoughts were a whirlwind. It was apparent that they were nothing more than pawns. It wasn't apparent why he had to kidnap Ciara and bring her there for Leather Jacket to kill her, but he had a feeling he was pissed that she kept getting away and wanted to order some torture. That was fine by him, the little bitch could use a reminder she was a little girl against grown men.

If they pulled this off, if they could launch a literal all-out war, then all they needed to do was keep Ciara reading so they could access the portal when she did. It still bothered him they could only come and go through her. He couldn't help but picture the future. His future. Leader. He'd learned enough from Leather Jacket to have confirmation their worlds were seemingly the same with the only difference being they had confirmed the supernatural in his book based world.

“Well take that, author person,” he grumbled and downed another shot.

The grin that spread across Leather Jacket's face was more like a glowing beacon. “Welcome to a world war.”

That was it. The Horsemen's Second had failed to stop the bombers. “It begins.” The shudder that went through Jonathan was equal parts fear and excitement.

* * *

5DaysLater

The decanter slammedinto the far wall, and the bourbon dripped down the wallpaper, no doubt staining the plush carpet in his office. Jonathan wasn't prepared for the hand that snaked around his neck or the slam into the wall.

They'd, unfortunately, hit a snag. While they'd managed to keep all the Horseman’s Seconds busy, Ciara wasn't reading. No reading apparently meant no doorway for him and his men, which meant no victory for Leather Jacket.

Which might also mean, he was about to get his ass kicked, again. When they first realized the little bitch wasn't reading, he'd been beaten to a pulp and discovered three of his men killed. Leather Jacket's temper was on a short fuse. The media hailstorm was still high, and no conflicts or issues were going to resolve themselves soon. However, Famine and Pestilence were hardly needed, and according to Leather Jacket, the two would be able to leave the fold anytime. That meant that they could technically seek his men out, which would make it harder to get their hands on the girl if she ever started to read again.

Preoccupied with his thoughts, he wasn't watching and didn't see as the hand punched into his face, turning out the lights.

She hadn't been reading since Stryder had left. She wasn't sure why, but it didn't seem like a smart thing to do. She'd learned, over the years with Alcott, that with the good from a book, somehow so came the bad. She didn't get it because she could only pick one, but the other came whenever a doorway opened. The man in the coat had said it was a balance thing, she didn't understand that either, but there was so much that went over her head, she never questioned it. Without a Guardian, she was afraid to read and miserable because of it and him being missing.

Stryder had said it only took a day or two. So was it simply taking longer or had he gotten what he wanted from her and changed his mind?

Quietly, she closed the bathroom door with a click and pulled the white shirt off over her head. Her hand worked on undoing the button on her jeans as she continued to walk to the bath. Stepping out of them, she twisted the nozzle on the tub, allowing the warm water to flow and hoping her neighbors below her didn't mind the noise. It was late, or maybe early in the morning, but she couldn't sleep. It had been almost two weeks since she had last heard from Stryder. So long since he'd teased her, touched her. She was having doubts. A lot of doubts. Maybe once he had gotten a reaction from her, he was done. She knew she could just open the stupid doorway, but she wasn't going to go to him. Maybe he was still fighting for his life while she was there being stupid and selfish.

The water continued to flow into the tub and wash over her, covering her in warmth.

Leaning forward, she turned off the water. Tension rocked through her body. A bath was bath was not going to be an adequate solution to the problem, and she knew it. Pissed, she stood up and didn't bother with a towel as she got out of the tub. Water trailed behind her as she walked through the apartment to the kitchen. The freezer took her breath away as she carelessly flung it open and the ice fell out and slammed into the water on her bare skin.

Shivering, she grabbed the ice cream from the back corner and closed the door quickly. She picked her robe up from where she’d carelessly thrown it on her way to work a few days before and slipped in on before plopping down on the couch. Grabbing the remote off the table, she flipped until she spottedCharmedonUSA.

“I'll give him one more week to come forward. One more week. Then I'll be a smart girl, get the message and let go.” One week to wait because she would know if he had passed, she wasn't sure how, but she just knew she would.

23

Ciara woke up and stretched. A feeling of unease spread through her as she automatically looked down at her cell phone. She had purposefully ignored the call of social media all night, only partially due to the binge drinking that had occurred post ice cream. The notification light was flashing, but she wasn’t shocked. Ever since Derrick had left and Stryder had shown up, she’d basically fallen off the face of the Earth, but she did have friends. Ciara pushed the button and lit up the screen to end her social ban.

Three missed calls from Gina, she’d needed advice anyway and calling Gina seemed like as good a place as any to get it. She tapped in Gina's contact information before hitting speakerphone and setting the phone down on the bed. She went into the bathroom to grab a bottle of red nail polish. She didn't know why, but something about painting her nails always soothed her. Her head was still under the sink digging through the cabinet when she heard Gina pickup.

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