The Descendants Series Vol. 2

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The four of us all had our weapons up within seconds, pointed at the men.  The one man in the front put his hands up and walked toward us.

“We’re not going to hurt you,” he said, a slight smile on his face.  “We just came to see who was here.”

The man walking toward us was tall with light sandy-blond hair.  He must have been in his mid-fifties, but he still looked fit and able to do anything another man younger than him might have been able to do.  The other men behind him started walking toward us also.  One of the men looked like his was probably in his mid-fifties, too, and also had blond hair. 

Two of the others looked like they were brothers.  They looked a lot alike with their dark blond hair.  They looked a little older than twenty.  The other had dark brown hair and was maybe in his late twenties. 

They were all dressed alike, with their sturdy shirts, pants and boots.  They did have guns though, mostly in holsters on their thighs or shoulders, but I could also see larger ones in their helicopter. 

“What do you want?” I asked.

“Like I said,” the man said.  “We just wanted to see who was in the area.”

“Are you a part of the Directrix?” Kade asked.  He still had his gun to his eye.

“Just the opposite,” the other older man said. 

“Then who are you?” Rowan asked.

“The good guys,” the first man said.

“Names,” I said.

“I’m Luke,” the man said.  He looked over at the other men and started naming them off from left to right.  “And these are Eli, Nash, Dane and Adem.”  He looked back at us.  “Now, can you lower your weapons?”

“Can we trust you?” I asked.

“We said we weren’t in the Directrix,” the man, Luke, said. 

The four of us did, slowly.  But the surprise in the men’s – Luke’s and Eli’s, to be more accurate – was shocking.  They seemed to recognize us.  Well, me and Rowan to be exact.  They looked at each other and then back at us.

“What are your names?” Eli asked.

“I’m Rayney,” I said.  “And this is Rowan, Kade and Xander.”

Recognition flicked in Luke’s eyes.  And when it did, I could see the blue of them, exactly the same color as Grandma’s.  And then I knew who he was, too, and I started to smile.

“Rayney Copper,” he said, smiling.  “It’s been a long time.  What’s it been?  Fourteen years since I last saw you?  You were three, I think.”

“Yep,” I said.  “I was three.”

“Wait,” Kade said, looking over at me.  “You know him?”

“He’s Grandma’s brother, Luke,” I said.  “The only time I’d met him was when I was three, but I still remember him a little.  And I’ve seen the pictures Grandma still has.”  I turned back toward him.  “Why haven’t you tried to contact her?”

“I didn’t know if she was still around,” he said. 

“We were in the same house for the last seven years,” I said.  “Well, up until a couple of months ago when they bombed Chicago again.”

“We didn’t think that you’d be able to get out in time,” he said. 

“We wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for those two,” I said, pointing to Kade and Xander.