Chapter 99: 99-Finding Clementine
Troy:
It felt like watching a horror movie, seeing Clementine locked out of the mansion. This white squad had barged in, claimed the place we found and opened, and then did the worst thing, they threw out our squadmate. And not just anyone, but Clementine.
I released Jack and rushed toward the door to let her back in, but before I could get far, Jack grabbed my leg, stopping me.
"Don’t let them open the door, they’ll bring the monsters in!" Suki shouted.
By now, I couldn’t stand her voice. She wasn’t just irritating, she was unbearable, and she was the reason Clementine wasn’t safe with us anymore. I kicked Jack off and bolted for the door again. By then, even Haiden had shoved Joshua aside. He dashed over to me and pulled the door open.
"You guys are gonna get us killed!" Jack shouted, while another annoying girl from their squad sobbed as usual. But it was too late. The door was already open, and right in front of us was a huge swarm of monsters. They were chittering and darting around with their necks stretched high.
"Shut the door!" Suki came from behind us and slammed it closed.
We froze. There was no sign of Clementine when the door had opened. Haiden and I stood rooted to the spot, staring at each other. It lasted only a second, but it felt like an hour.
"I’m going out," I told Haiden, refusing to stay inside now that Clementine was gone.
"Yeah, me too," Haiden replied. I caught the look on Suki’s face as she stepped in front of the door again.
"Are you two crazy? You’re gonna die, she’s probably already dead." She tried to sound like she was on our side.
"You’re the reason she’s out there on her own." The moment I realized she was the one who had kicked Clementine out, my hand clamped around her neck, slamming her head against the door.
"Ouch!" she gasped.
"Hey! Let her go!" Joshua yelled, rushing toward us.
Jack lunged too, but Haiden moved behind me, shoving them away as they tried to get to me.
"If anything’s happened to her, you’d better believe you won’t make it home alive," I snarled at Suki, tightening my grip on her neck and staring straight into her eyes. "Now move, because we’re not staying here with you."
She looked stunned, and when I finally released her, she darted to Joshua’s arms. But for a split second, I saw her glance at Jack like she had almost run to him instead. Maybe I imagined it, though, I had heard they were friends before all this.
We shoved her aside, threw the door open, and rushed out. We knew it was a suicide mission. People from the white squad were whispering that we were making a mistake, that it was too late for Clementine. If that was true, then we had failed her.
Now we were outside again. The door slammed shut behind us.
"Get to the top of the mansion, quick!" Suddenly, Haiden tapped my shoulder and hissed as the monsters started coming toward us.
We spun around and began climbing the mansion one step at a time. We were fast, faster than the monsters. Soon, we were on top, scanning the area in sheer panic. The number of monsters was overwhelming.
"Can you spot Clementine anywhere?" Haiden asked.
I shook my head, unable to say it aloud. We were looking for a body. But there was none either. At least none we could see.
Unless...
’No, no, no, no, no,’ my wolf muttered inside me, refusing to believe the monsters had taken her body.
"She’s alive," Haiden told me. I raised an eyebrow at him.
"I can feel it," he said, patting his chest. "The mate bond is stronger than ever. She’s fine." He gave me a look, then turned his eyes toward the full moon. A smile curved his lips.
"What?" I asked, wondering if he’d thought of a plan.
"Nah, nothing. Every time I think about the full moon night, I think about the night I felt the mate bond with her. It’s crazy how we turned out to be mates, you know."
Haiden went on, probably wanting someone to share his mate bond story with. Normally, that was something for royal betas, but we didn’t have any left.
And I wasn’t happy for him.
’Because we are jealous,’ my wolf grumbled.
I ignored the voice. I wanted to focus on the moment.
"Sitting on top of this mansion means nothing, Haiden. We should be out there looking for her. Otherwise, we should have stayed inside." I completely sidestepped his topic. I didn’t want to hear him talk about Clementine being his mate. That meant nothing to me, so why waste time on it?
"Yeah, you’re right. You go this way, I’ll go forward," Haiden said, pointing toward the houses we hadn’t crossed yet.
"Okay!" I agreed.
But then he seemed to change his mind. I saw him try to leap toward a tree, then toward another house, but instead he headed toward the trees. Maybe he was looking for another route. The houses ahead were far, and he’d have to get down to the road to reach them, which meant facing the monsters.
For me, it was easier because the houses we’d passed earlier were close together. I could jump from one roof to a tree and then onto the next house, like crossing a bridge.
All this time, I hadn’t spotted Clementine, and with her red hair and black outfit, she was usually hard to miss. Once I couldn’t find her, I started wondering if I should keep moving forward.
By now, an hour had already passed, but I wasn’t slowing down. I was determined to find her no matter what.
Just then, a loud scream echoed from the backyard of one of the houses. It was the cry of a woman.
"Somebody please save me and my baby!" the woman shouted. I jumped down from the tree and hurried toward the back of one of the houses. Once there, I turned to see a woman lying on the ground, one hand raised to stop the monster in front of her while holding her baby tightly to her chest.
"No, please! Please don’t hurt my baby!" she pleaded as the creature kept moving closer. They looked like animals, but even without eyes, I could tell this one was sensing her fear—and enjoying it. Before I could rush to help her, the monster tore off her head within seconds, right in front of me.