Guardians (Chosen Trilogy Book 2) by David Leadbeater Read Free Book Online Page B

the road.
    I turned desperately, Asmodeus already forgotten. “Cheyne!” I screamed, pointing at the skies. If anyone could save Johnny now, it would be the witch.
    Cheyne looked up, but there was no stopping the bullet that plummeted toward her. Barely one word crossed her lips before Johnny Trevochet’s wheelchair smashed into the ground at intense speed. Steel , plastic and metal parts blasted away from the point of impact, a blizzard of sharp parts and zipping fragments. I barely managed to lift my arm up before several particles tore into the sleeve of my jacket right in front of my face. The sharp sting of broken flesh made me wince. Several other objects pierced my jeans, but thankfully none of them drew blood. The crash and reverberation of the wheelchair’s landing blasted our eardrums, but mercifully masked anything else until I heard Natalie Trevochet’s screams split the night apart.

SIX
     
     
    Ken strode ahead through the acerbic byways of hell, a mismatched group of warring heroes at his back.
    Past abandoned building after abandoned building they walked, treading carefully through the wild foliage and sometimes having to walk through entire derelict structure s. Within the crumbling walls were strange skeletons, terrifying skulls and vertebras, all made oddly even more chilling by the presence of shattered glass everywhere—the human touch. An empty elevator shaft. A boiler house. Once, even a battered desk. The group’s mood quickly changed from one of optimism to fear and quiet fatalism as they walked through the cataclysm that had once been a form of earth.
    The miles passed beneath their feet. The somber mood stopped all conversation and Ken was soon left with his own uncharacteristically muted thoughts. Of course, they centered around the petite lycan and her killer body. His mind wandered, and when he once noticed Mai the vampire send him an appraising look the next sixty minutes passed in a blur. Still, when Eliza suggested they stop for the night her words sent a tremor of fear through him.
    A small deserted house stood off to the right, pretty much covered by wildly growing foliage but at least offering a smidgen of comfort. The rest soon brought another matter to the forefront of Ken’s mind, one that he would probably have thought of earlier if he’d had room for any other considerations.
    “Our food supply ain’t exactly inspiring,” he said, turning out his pockets and finding three crumpled energy bars.
    “There are places you can barter for food and water,” Lilith told them. “But not here. There is a grand bazaar on the fifth level and another on the third. If that is all the food you have I would say we need to reach it by tomorrow.”
    “We need no food ,” Milo said with typical vampiric arrogance. “At least, not for several weeks.”
    “I could murder a royal stag,” Felicia breathed hotly, then snapped her gaze to Ken. “Or a stallion.”
    The Californian almost blushed. He hadn’t been expecting that. And exactly how did she mean it anyway? Good murder or bad? And did she mean to eat or something else? Bah! Why are there always so many connotations?
    The house held no surprises : full of debris and dust, slowly being eaten by age. A dreary, forlorn wisp of wind blew through its open windows. The vampires chose a room then turned their backs on the rest. Ken found himself with Lilith and Felicia. They chose the next room and each plonked down with their backs to a corner away from the empty doorframe.
    “How did you survive down here?” Ken asked Lilith, knowing that she clearly didn’t want to reveal her past and her problems, but now even more amazed and full of admiration for her. “Especially alone.”
    “I moved slowly,” she said. “Careful never to reveal my passing. Always . . . cautious.”
    “You sound like me ,” Ken began, then stopped as Felicia snorted.
    “You!” She guffawed. “You shout your thoughts every minute for all to see!”
    Ken