Page 59 of Blood Illusions

He studied my weary face. “You should get some rest before tonight’s mission.”

I shook my head. “I’ll be fine.”

Yet my body betrayed me, and I couldn’t stop glancing at the soft-looking blanket on the couch. My muscles ached from today’s activities, and anticipation for the upcoming fight weighed heavily on me.

“I promise I’ll wake you,” he reassured me as he followed my gaze toward the inviting couch.

I cocked my eyebrow, not sure I should trust him since he was reluctant to go ahead with my plan.

He sighed, and hurt flashed in his eyes. “You still don’t trust me, do you?”

I yawned and covered my mouth. “Now that’s a scary proposition.”

He towered over me. “One of these days, you’ll need to have faith in me.”

I sat on the couch and wrapped the blanket around me. “Only if you stick to the plan.”

“I promise you I will.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

I settled onto the couch, determined to stay awake and watch my favorite television show. But the soft glow of the TV and the comfortable warmth of the blanket proved too tempting. I dozed off, only to be gently awoken by a familiar voice.

“Sawyer,” Justice whispered, leaning in close. His warm breath tickled my cheek as I groggily opened my eyes.

He tilted his head toward a grandfather clock in the corner of the room. “It’s eleven o’clock, remember? You asked me to wake you up.”

I grumbled but begrudgingly sat up. “So I did. Thanks for keeping your promise.” I yawned. “Gimme a minute.”

“I made some coffee for you.” He came back from the kitchen with a steaming cup of coffee.

“Thank you.” I took it gratefully from him.

He peered out the Venetian blinds. “There’s no lights on in the house, so we might be able to dig up the grass without being noticed.”

I joined him at the window, pulling the blanket tightly around myself. “That’s some good news.”

The moon cast an eerie glow on the large, dark house beside us.

Justice sighed. “Let’s hope they’re deep sleepers.”

I sipped the coffee and returned to the couch. “Do you have any empty bullet casings here that we could load with the phoenix feather grass?”

“Yes, I gathered some empty casings. They’re on the kitchen table, but we have to dry out the grass before we can use it.”

I put the coffee cup down and stretched my arms wide, feeling the satisfying pop in my back. I folded the blanket and tossed it onto the couch. “Yes, I know. We need to get started right away.”

Justice stared out the window as worry etched into his furrowed brow. “Let’s go, then. It’s going to take a few hours to get this done. I don’t know if we’ll have enough.”

“We need some garden tools to dig up the grass and a container to put it in. Are there garden tools in the garage?”

“Yeah, but I’m still worried we won’t have enough to take on that horde.”

I gathered the casings, grabbed my coat, and headed toward the garage. “Have faith, Mr. Eeyore.”

I flipped on the light. There was a garage bench, and I put the casings there. I scanned the shelves, looking for supplies. I found a rusty shovel, a hoe, and a rake. They weren’t in the best of shape, but they would have to do.

Justice came up alongside me, his footsteps clomping on the cement. “These were here at this place when the PMC bought it. We never replaced them.” He sounded sheepish as if he were embarrassed about the tools’ condition.

---