Page 37 of Raven’s Claw (Raven’s Cliff #2)

Chapter Eighteen

Light.

Cutting through the darkness in random flashes.

A wall. A boat. The unmistakable roll of the ocean. There’d been gravel and metal, then the whir of a ceiling fan spinning endlessly above her.

Jordan blinked, groaned at the crushing pain moving through her shoulder and into her chest. Derailing any effort to suck in more than a sip of air. She turned her head, blacked out, then resurfaced to that same red-hot pressure. The only indication she wasn’t dead.

The room spun, again, nearly took her back down, but she pushed through. A hum sounded in the distance. A generator or maybe a boat. Some kind of engine chugging along. The deep vibration shaking the entire room.

A voice mumbled off to her left. Disjointed. Obviously distressed.

She managed to twist just enough she could shift her gaze — focus on the silhouette hunched over a table. A hint of light illuminated his face, the familiar curve of his jaw hitting her hard. “Tucker?”

He froze, some kind of tool in his hand before he turned — looked at her. His eyes widened, all that white seemingly glowing amidst the muted light. “You’re alive. That’s… good.”

Jordan let her head roll back, the strain of simply holding it to the side draining her. She closed her eyes, prying them open after God knew how long. That fan still spinning above her.

Tucker sighed. “I hooked up a generator. Not too big. Just enough to move the air around…” He tapped the desk. “Provide a bit of light. Do you know how to rig a generator?”

She did her best to focus on him, blinking when everything kept shifting. “I do. Did Rook teach you?”

That set him off. Had him jumping up — raging around the room. Kicking the heel of his palm against his forehead as he shook his head. “Don’t say his name. Don’t say it! He’s…” Tucker cackled, shushing himself before staring down at her. “I saved you from him.”

She nodded. Nothing more than an inch up and down, but he understood. “Where are we?”

“Somewhere safe.”

“Are we by the ocean?”

She smelled it now. The heavy scent of brine, mixed with rust and day-old sweat. Something coppery. Maybe blood. Or maybe just years of decay on the metal walls.

Tucker looked around but didn’t answer. Instead, he lowered onto the edge of the cot. “Do you know who I am?”

“You’re Icarus, right?”

He grunted. “No. Icarus…” He swallowed. “He’s away. I mean me .”

She frowned. “Tucker?”

“No! Yes! Damn it.” He jumped up, chewing on one thumbnail as he shook his head. Body shaking, eyes wild. “Do you know I’m your brother?”

“You’re my…” She coughed, closed her eyes against the pain, then pried them open. “Brother?”

He nodded, leaning in so close she tried to push into the cot.

“Not by blood. But after…” He snarled, glancing over his shoulder as if someone stood in the far corner, watching.

“ My father got me out of that hospital, he told me he wanted me to be just like you. That you were my big sister, and I needed to mimic everything you did.”

“Rook told you that?”

“I told you not to say his name!” He pounded his fist on the cot then raked his hands through his hair, looking as if he was going to pull it out.

“But that’s why…” She wet her lips. “Why you went on all those missions.”

“I had to prove myself. You’re nothing but a hack! Am not!” Tucker pointed to the empty corner. “Don’t listen to him. He hates us.”

Jordan glanced at the shadows, wondering if she’d imagined Tucker’s voice dropping an octave — the way he’d stilled, seemingly in complete control for those few moments — or if it had been real.

If he was in the midst of some kind of psychotic break.

Just like that night in the café. “Is that Icarus?”

Tucker’s eyes darted back and forth. “You see him, too?” He glared at the shadows. “ He didn’t want me to bring you here, but I had to.” He nodded several times. “I had to.”

“Can I… I need to talk to him.” She pushed out a breath when he glared at her. “Just for a moment.”

“I… I don’t know. He’s… He’s not very nice.”

“It’ll only be for a minute, then you can come back. You’re my brother, right?”

Tucker stood, paced the room for a minute then stopped and stared at her. Eyes focused. Completely distant. “What the hell do you want?”

She pursed her lips. “Is Rook dead?”

The guy, Icarus, she assumed, shrugged. “No idea. I hope so. The bastard’s lost his edge. Ever since you left, it’s been find Ember. You have to locate Ember. Ember, Ember, Ember.” He lunged at her, getting in close. “I fucking hate Ember!”

Jordan breathed through the surge of pain when he jostled her, doing her best to hold his gaze. “Me, too.”

He tilted his head, then eased back. “You look like her, but Tucker says you’re not.”

“I’m not. Not anymore.”

“We’ll see.” He glanced at that table when something pinged. “Looks like we’ve got company. They made better time than I thought.”

“Who? Who’s here?”

“Who do you think? That bastard, Kash and his teammates.” He laughed.

“I had the asshole right where I wanted him. Strung out on the side of a cliff. Nothing but honor between him and death. Then, Tucker had to get all sentimental. Wanted to save him.” He rolled his eyes and slammed his fist against the wall, a dull thud echoing through the air.

“He wouldn’t let me finish him. But he won’t stop me, this time. ”

“Icarus, please…” She tried to push onto her elbow — fell back without gaining more than an inch. “You don’t have to hurt them. You can leave. You’re free.”

“Free?” He laughed harder. “That’s the illusion. None of us will ever be free. Whether Rook’s alive or dead — whether we’re with Scythe or Sandman. We’re just pawns. But if I kill everyone…” He smiled. “Then… Then I might escape. Wait here. I won’t be long.”

He walked out then shut the door, the metallic clang resonating through the room. A series of chirps sounded beside her, what looked like a monitor panning parts of the building.

Talk about a screwup.

She licked her lips — took stock. Her right shoulder was useless. Nothing but pain and that numb feeling she knew stemmed from a traumatic injury. The vague recollection of a gunshot. Or had there been an explosion?

It hurt too much to puzzle it out. Not that it mattered. Either way, just moving would take all her focus and a healthy dose of luck. Maybe some kind of sacrifice because it seemed beyond her.

She tried.

Clenched her jaw, palmed the cot with her left hand and shoved.

It took several tries repeating the same motion before she stayed upright — swung her legs over the edge.

Another half a dozen of trying to stand before she did more than just rock back and forth — finally got her feet beneath her enough to trip her way over to the table.

She crashed into it when the scenery swam, everything sliding left and right.

But she breathed through the worst of it, leaning against the wall when it all stopped moving.

She wouldn’t get far. She knew it. In fact, she’d consider it a miracle if she did more than kiss the floor the moment she opened the door.

But she’d go down fighting. She’d do everything she could to warn Kash and his teammates before Tucker unleashed some kind of attack.

He’d obviously been here a while. He could have IEDs or traps set all over the area.

And with the generator only powering the emergency lighting throughout the building, they’d be lucky to spot anything before it was too late.

Jordan sighed. She’d push herself one last time. Then, she could rest.

The place was a maze.

Whether it had always been like that or Tucker had been there long enough to do some rearranging, Kash wasn’t sure. Just that every room led to two more.

He stuck to the edges where the shadows were thickest. Anything to stay hidden.

There wasn’t much light, but even the dim glow of the emergency bulbs could give him away.

Tucker was watching. Not that Kash had spied any cameras, but his shoulder blades twitched.

The same kind of warning he’d experienced in the service.

And he wasn’t about to ignore his training, now.

Nyx stopped, ears twitching. Back rigid. She didn’t growl, but something had her attention. He gave her some slack, following her as she sniffed the floor, stopping at the next door. She sat, looking back at him as she gave a hushed bark.

“Wired, huh?”

Which they’d already suspected. He just hated being right.

Kash bypassed that exit and headed for the other, allowing Nyx to take lead — steer him around any other surprises. There were two more hidden wires, but he made it into the adjoining corridor without setting anything off.

The whole building creaked, the howling wind echoing through the hallways. Some kind of motor hummed in the distance, suggesting Tucker had hooked up a generator. Which made sense if he’d been living here for a while.

A hint of movement stopped him cold, Nyx pressing back against his legs. Kash waited, breath held, gun at the ready. He wouldn’t take a lethal shot unless he had no other options. Not until they’d located Jordan.

The floor creaked as a shadow moved beyond the doorway.

Slow. Methodical. Disappearing off to the right.

Kash shuffled forward, boots silent against the weathered flooring.

The scenery dipped a few times, but he pushed through, stopping at the threshold.

He drew a breath, then slipped inside and cleared the area, when Nyx backed into him.

He hit the ground, covering her as bullets cut the air, ricocheting off the metal walls — whizzing way too close to his head. He laid down a few cover rounds, grabbed Nyx and retreated back into the other room.

“Hey, Kash. I know that’s you, buddy.”

Kash cursed under his breath. “Tucker?”

“Sorry, Tucker’s not here right now.”