Crimson

by Jordan Summers

  Morgan kissed her. “Agreed,” he said. “Now let’s go.”

  They crept out of the campsite as silently as possible. Red’s heart was pounding so hard she doubted she’d hear it if anyone sounded an alarm. When they got a hundred yards away, they ran for foothills, reaching them in minutes.

  “Keep going,” Morgan said, as he began to climb.

  “I’m really worried about Demery. What if they kill him when they find out we’re gone?”

  Morgan frowned. It was obvious from his expression that it hadn’t occurred to him. “I don’t think they will. He has some kind of deal going with them, remember? He was the one who wanted to find Reaper. It was sheer luck that they found us first.”

  “Bad luck,” she muttered.

  Red understood, but she still wasn’t convinced that the deal was enough to keep him alive. She had no doubt the situation involved Melea. What she couldn’t figure out was where they’d factored into it. They didn’t have anything to bargain with other than their pistols, and the Sand Devils had plenty of weapons. They didn’t need more.

  Damn it, Demery! You should’ve explained the situation you were in.

  The mountains grew rapidly steeper and Red had to pull herself up to reach the next outcropping of rocks.

  “You doing okay?” Morgan asked. Sweat dripped down his rugged face, leaving his hair curling into his neck. His amber eyes watched her closely as he gave her a leg up here and pulled her up there.

  “I’m fine. Just a little winded. Not used to this altitude. Do you have any idea where we’re going?” It had dawned on her an hour ago that Demery was the only one who knew the exact location of the outpost. The thought of wandering around the desert for days, weeks, or months in search of it was decidedly unappealing.

  “The Sand Moles had said it was located southwest of their position. I figure as long as we keep traveling in that direction we’ll run into either it or another group who can help us pin down the location,” he said.

  “Those are a lot of ifs,” Red said, straining to climb.

  “What choice do we have?” Morgan asked.

  “We could’ve located Demery and found out what was really going on. He’d said we’d be leaving today. I don’t think he meant without him.”

  Morgan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry. I really tried to find him. I told you. I snuck all around that place and didn’t see him anywhere. The suit would’ve stuck out against the sand if he’d been there. Maybe he went off with one of the women.”

  “Without telling us? Seems unlikely,” she said.

  “Not sure if you noticed, but he wasn’t exactly acting normal once we ran into the Sand Devils.”

  She grasped the rock above her. “It was obvious that it had been awhile since he’d seen Melea, his blood. Maybe he was nervous.”

  “Possibly, but we gave him every opportunity to come clean. Nerves alone do not explain his odd behavior. He was up to something. I don’t know what, but I smelled deception on his skin when he took the protective suit off. Staying in the Sand Devil camp any longer was not in our best interest,” he said. “Now keep climbing.”

  Red scowled, but did as he suggested. It was too late to turn back. By now they would’ve discovered them missing. She hoped that Morgan was right and that Demery would be okay. If not, she’d never forgive herself.

  Morgan struggled to pull himself up onto the next cliff face. He hated mountains. He’d been camped in them, when his wife and child were killed. He could still remember the helpless sensation of trying to get down from the ridge he’d been on and reach his family in time. It had taken so much longer than it should have. That mountain had been covered in trees, back when real forests still existed. It hadn’t been dead like this one. He’d been too late. They’d died waiting for him to arrive. He wouldn’t go through that with Gina.

  His hand slipped, slicing his palm on a jagged rock. Morgan grunted, then forced his arm to change. Claws and fur appeared, then disappeared quickly, leaving a pink line where the cut had been. He continued climbing.

  “We’ll stop at the next outcropping of rocks,” he said. “Make sure no one is following us.”

  “What if we spot Demery?” Red asked.

  Morgan grunted. “As long as he’s not with friends, we’ll wait.”

  She looked over her shoulder at him. “And if he is?”

  “Then we’ll keep moving and pray we can outrun them.”

  They reached a small ridge that gave them enough flat space to stand on, but there wasn’t room for much more. The sun was higher now, but the mountain kept them from being exposed. That would change once they reached the top and had to make their way down the other side.

  “How long until we get out of here?” Red asked.

  “No idea,” Morgan said. “I’m not sure how wide this range is.”

  “Do you think we’ll make it out before dark?” she asked. Red looked at the tiny ledge they were standing on. It was a sheer drop on one side and a rough slide on the other. Both would ensure injury if they fell. There was nowhere to sleep and no way they’d be able to traverse the terrain in the dark.

  “I sure as hell hope so,” Morgan said.

  They had at least thirteen hours of daylight to make it to the other side. “Let’s get going. No time to lose.”

  Red and Morgan reached the top of the final mountain. They stood looking out at the valley below. Much like the one they left, the desert had taken over everything, leaving slopes of sand behind. At least these dunes didn’t seem quite as high as the ones they’d traversed.

  A warm breeze blew over them. Red closed her eyes and inhaled, taking in everything around them. The mountain had an earthy smell, almost as if water clung to it, when there hadn’t been rain in months. She didn’t scent any people or death, even though it waited for them around every corner.

  She opened her eyes. In the distance, something glinted, flashing in the sunlight like a diamond faceted by fire.

  Red shielded her eyes and peered at the object. “What’s that over there?” she asked. It flashed again, bursting with life in the valley of the dead.

  Morgan grabbed a monocular and pointed it at the shiny object. “It doesn’t look like much. Hang on.” He adjusted the lens. “I think we may have found the outpost.”

  “Are you serious?” Red asked, clapping her hands and squealing, unable to contain her enthusiasm. They’d made it. Somehow they’d managed to find the elusive outpost.

  She almost wept in relief. Her body ached from all the hiking and climbing. She never realized how easy she’d had it at IPTT. Given another opportunity, Red would never take her boring life for granted again. They’d still have to get down and hope the place held the equipment they needed, but at least they’d made it this far.

  “Don’t get too excited,” Morgan said, squashing her enthusiasm. “That’s a lot of open space to cover. A lot can go wrong. We still have to get from here to there without being spotted by the Sand Devils.”

  “Do you think they’re following us?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder at the route they’d taken through the mountains. Her muscles trembled from exertion.

  His lips thinned. “If they aren’t yet, they will be soon. We just haven’t spotted them yet.”

  Demery awoke on the ground, sprawled out next to the woman he’d fucked the night before. Her blood had fed him, while he sated her needs. She was naked. Her ripe nipples stabbed skyward, a bountiful offering if he’d ever seen one. Too bad the suit prevented him from taking advantage. Light splashed her skin, making it appear striped. She was making tiny snuffling sounds each time she exhaled. Demery smiled in remembrance, then stretched, rolling his stiff muscles.

  The ground was harder here. He’d gotten used to sleeping on the sand. His head ached from the Sand Devil wine, leaving him woozy. Demery couldn’t remember the last time he’d drunk so much. He’d spent time with Melea, making sure she was okay. He had only taken a little of her blood. Just en
ough to test their connection. It was still intact, even though he’d hoped otherwise.

  Demery hadn’t wanted to be greedy, so he’d sent Melea away before his body could make further demands and found another willing donor. She was now lazing in the sun like a satisfied cat. He’d even managed to win a few hands of zigzag quartz. Luck had been on his side.

  All and all it was a good night with the Sand Devils. Reaper had been surprisingly hospitable given the debt he owed him. He supposed he would be, too, if someone laid a gift of powerful blood at his feet. He knew he had to find Morgan now and explain before Reaper got to him.

  Demery inhaled deeply and froze. No, this couldn’t be happening. Not when he was so close to gaining everything. He inhaled again, seeking the slumbering wolves, but his senses didn’t lie. Red and Morgan were gone, leaving him and Melea as good as dead.

  chapter nineteen

  S

  taring at the endless sand only brought home how vast the world was and how many places there were to hide. Red was out there somewhere. Perhaps shielded by misguided individuals who’d fallen prey to her lies. I feel helpless. It doesn’t matter that I’m doing everything I can to find her.

  Surrounded as I am by curious eyes, I can’t make any sudden moves. The men are skilled and could easily stop me. Even if I managed to lose them for a time, they’d eventually catch up with me. I wouldn’t be able to travel fast enough over the terrain to outrun them.

  It was definitely hard to wait. Seems like all I’ve been doing these past few days was bide my time. My hand moved to the laser pistol strapped to my thigh. My palm itched to pull it. I caressed the stock with my fingertips. So cool and deadly. It would be easy to pick them off. I drew back appalled by the direction my thoughts had taken. The guilt didn’t last long.

  Soon, I thought, picturing Gina “Red” Santiago in my mind.

  If I concentrated hard enough, I could see myself pulling the weapon, taking aim at her chest, and firing. I could almost smell the seared flesh as the laser shot out from the muzzle and blew a hole in her body. Red wouldn’t have time to respond because she’d never see it coming. She would never suspect a thing.

  Robert Santiago sat behind his desk at IPTT headquarters blindly staring at synth-reports. He hadn’t heard from his granddaughter, Gina. Catherine Meyers notified him she’d crossed into no-man’s-land. Given the place’s reputation, he didn’t know if Gina was alive or dead. He shook his head, sending white hair onto his forehead. That wasn’t true. He’d know if she was dead, but that didn’t stop the worry or the fear of losing her.

  He had to do something to clear her name. He felt helpless sitting behind his title, doing nothing. Robert thought about Private Catherine Meyers. He shouldn’t have let her go after Gina. She wasn’t experienced enough to head into no-man’s-land alone. It was only desperation that had made him say yes and now he deeply regretted it. If anything happened to Meyers, it would weigh heavy on his conscience.

  The door to his office chimed. He hit a button on his desk and an image of one of the tech support men came into view. Robert pressed another button and the door opened.

  “Sir,” the young man named Tucker said.

  “Do you have anything for me?” Robert asked, dispensing with small talk. The tech department had the remains of Gina’s navcom, Rita, for several days now, and surely they’d been able to come up with something in that time period.

  Tucker looked pinched in the face like his pants had shrunk. “Nothing yet, sir.”

  “Then what are you doing here?” he asked, barely leashing his temper, which had gotten worse in Gina’s absence. She was the only family he had left. The thought of losing her forever was unthinkable. He’d already lost his daughter due to her love of an Other. He wasn’t about to lose his granddaughter, too.

  He fidgeted. “We aren’t sure we’re going to be able to fix the navcom, sir.”

  Robert rose, towering over the much smaller man. “What do you mean you can’t fix it? I thought you were the best.”

  “I am,” Tucker said. “I mean we are. The thing is, the navcom is pretty banged up. Crushed really. Red has broken Rita plenty of times, but never like this.”

  “Gina didn’t break Rita,” Robert bellowed. “Not this time.”

  He swallowed hard. “If you say so, sir.”

  “I do.”

  Tucker shuffled his feet and looked at anything but Robert Santiago. “We have one more thing to try, but if that doesn’t work, then there’s nothing we can do,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

  “Did you bring me any good news?” Deflated, Robert sank into his chair.

  “We can tell there is something on it. We don’t know what it is yet, since we haven’t been able to retrieve the recording.”

  “I suppose that’s better than nothing.” Robert perked up, feeling hope for the first time in a week. “Keep working on it. Let me know when you have something.”

  “Yes, sir,” Tucker said, then turned toward the door.

  Before he could reach it, Robert stopped him. “Oh, and Tucker.”

  “Sir?”

  Robert leaned forward. “This project is considered top secret. No one but you and the other tech guy working on the navcom are to know what you find. As soon as you have the information, I want you to come to me immediately. Day or night. Understood?”

  “Understood, sir.” Tucker nodded, then left the office.

  Robert knew there could be anything on the navcom. It wouldn’t necessarily be something they could use. He just had to hope that Gina had been smart enough to try to record her last moments with Roark and that Roark wasn’t smart enough to watch what he was saying.

  How likely was that? His head dropped into his hands. Those were a lot of ifs and maybes. Too many for his peace of mind. There had to be another way to catch Roark Montgomery in his lies. He just wasn’t seeing it because he was too close to the situation.

  Robert stacked the reports he’d been reading. The buzzer at his office door went off again. He looked down at the monitor and saw Bannon Richards standing outside.

  “You may enter,” he said, pushing a button.

  Bannon strode in as cocky as ever, wearing a shit-eating grin on his face.

  “Lieutenant, how can I help you?” Robert asked.

  “I was wondering if you have any new orders for my team, Commander.”

  Robert tilted his head. “Such as?”

  Bannon cleared his throat. “We still haven’t located the fugitives. I thought maybe you had a new area in mind for us to search. Roark says he’s covered everything to the west.”

  Robert’s eyebrows shot to his hairline. “Since when do you work for Roark Montgomery? I had the impression that you were a decorated tactical team officer under my command. Did you resign from your post without my knowing it?” He clasped his fingers to keep them from shaking. Anger vibrated through him, tensing his muscles. Robert was well aware that some of his men moonlighted for Roark on their days off. He also knew that Roark’s IPTT record garnered him a lot of respect and adulation. But he didn’t like the idea that Roark had somehow infiltrated IPTT and had started taking command. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out, hoping to stave off a migraine.

  “No, sir. I didn’t resign my post.” Bannon’s jaw jutted. “I just thought that pooling our resources would allow us to cover more ground.”

  “You aren’t paid to think, Lieutenant. You have your patrol orders. I suggest you get back to work, unless you want to find yourself busted back down to private.”

  Bannon’s square face flushed and his blue eyes chilled to ice chips. “Yes, sir.” The words dripped with so much venom that Robert Santiago found himself leaning back.

  “Dismissed,” he said, watching Bannon stride angrily to the door. He made a mental note to keep an eye on him.

  The lieutenant slipped out, shooting him a dirty look before the door closed. Robert had known about the rivalry between Bannon and Gina. He’d had no idea that the animo
sity ran so deep until now. Bannon was a good officer, but he was going to be a problem, especially if he’d already started taking orders from Roark Montgomery. His ambition must have gotten the better of him. He still couldn’t believe the gall of the man. How dare he come in here and question his orders. Who did he think he was? Commander?

  His head began to pound. Robert pinched the bridge of his nose and rubbed his temples. This was one more thing to worry about on top of a mountain of others. He opened a drawer, brushing aside his toiletries, and took out a dissolving patch to slip under his tongue. The headache would be gone in a matter of seconds thanks to the medicine. If only his other problems could be remedied as easily.

  Gina and Morgan descended, then kept to the base of the mountains, slowly making their way west. It had taken all day to get down. They’d double-checked coordinates and determined the exact location of the outpost. Now all they had to do was reach it without getting caught by the Sand Devils or shot by the people living in the outpost.

  Morgan led the way, keeping Gina close to his back. He’d changed into his Other form to prevent a surprise attack. He felt like shit dragging her into this mess. Her life had been so orderly before she’d shown up in Nuria on the hunt for a killer.

  Both their lives had changed that day, but neither could’ve anticipated how much. Morgan had lost his cousin, Kane, a man he’d loved like a brother, and Gina had lost her innocence. She’d discovered that her entire life had been built around lies. Her father had been killed because he’d been an Other. And now her life was in danger for the same reason.

  And it was his fault.

  Had Morgan just run her off when she came to town none of this would’ve occurred. She’d still be a lieutenant with the International Police Tactical Team and he’d still be sheriff of Nuria.

  Morgan’s heart wrenched. Who was he kidding? The thought of not having Gina in his life was too painful to contemplate. He loved her like he’d loved no other. Not even the woman he’d once called his wife. Their love was what brought them here, had them running for their lives. He hoped that in the end, she’d think it was worth it as he did.