by R. A. Gates
her right halted her. Shuffling sounds
came closer and she hoped it was the
dragon searching for any signs of food.
The scent of beer and cheap cologne
drifted on the breeze and assaulted her
nose. Unless Sparky is really a lounge
lizard, their camp was being invaded.
Her whole body tensed with fear. But
she wasn’t going to be an easy target.
She was a fighter; a good one.
As carefully as she could, she
wrapped her hand around the hilt of the
dagger lying next to her and waited. The
sound of heavy breathing was practically
on top of her. She held her breath in
order to concentrate on exactly where
the intruder was, when something
touched her wrist. Instincts kicked in and
she immediately elbowed whoever was
kneeling over her, right in the head.
“Son of a bitch!” Some guy in a
dark hooded sweatshirt fell back, his
hand pressing on his right eye.
She jumped up, dagger in hand,
and surveyed the area quickly for any
other threats. Thane frantically searched
for something in his pack but no one else
was close by. The guy she hit stood up
and charged her.
Big mistake.
She dodged his body and spun
around to kick him in the back of his
knee, successfully knocking him down.
Grabbing his left arm, she pulled it
behind his back and shoved him into the
dirt, face first. “Who the hell are you?”
He lifted his head to speak. “I am
Batman,” he said.
She pushed his arm farther up his
back, causing him to cry out in pain. She
sat on his butt, her feet hooked onto his
thighs to keep him from thrashing around
and knocking her off.
“Okay, okay,” he said. “We were
just looking for some beer and thought
you might have some.” He dropped his
head back to the sand, his breathing
labored from his struggles.
“Jeff!” a female voice screamed
in the distance. She forgot about the girls
flirting with Garren.
Man, I’m losing my edge.
“Garren, tie them up,” she yelled.
“Thane, go help him. I've got this one
under control.”
Thane grabbed his bag and ran
toward Garren and the girls. She needed
to get the truth from this guy, and if her
instincts were right, she didn't want the
others knowing yet.
“Jeff, huh? I think I like Batman
better.” She eased off his arm a bit.
“What are you really looking for? And if
you give me any crap about alcohol or
drugs, I'll break your arm.”
Grunting, he turned his head to
look at her over his shoulder. “Some
dudes offered us a hundred bucks to hike
up here to see if there was a curly
headed girl with a tattoo on her wrist.”
Anxiety pooled in her belly.
“Did they have this mark, too?” She
snapped the leather band off and shoved
her wrist in his face.
He nodded.
Damn it! She peered into the
dark forest, searching for any sign of
waiting Eradicators. It was too dark to
see anything, but her gut was telling her
danger lurked beyond the light. “Why
didn't they come themselves?”
He shrugged. “Hell if I know.
So,” he shifted a bit to get comfortable.
“Who are you?”
“Wonder Woman.”
He smiled. “Cool.”
“What did these 'dudes' look
like?”
“One was bald and the other had
red hair and a beard.” He thought a little
more, but then nodded.
“How are you supposed to
contact them to tell them what you
found?”
“They said they'd come back to
our campsite in the morning.” He eyed
her up and down and frowned. “You're
not going to let us go, are you?”
“Wow, Jeff. You're not as stupid
as you look.” She glanced around for
anything she could use to tie him up and
spotted a roll of Captain Burgandy’s
duct tape that washed ashore.
After making sure Jeff was
securely restrained, she ran over to the
see how Garren and Thane were
handling the girls. They managed to tie
them up, back to back. One of the girls
glanced up to her and gasped. “I bet
that's her.”
Garren's brow furrowed as he
looked from Ivy back to the girl. “What
are you talking about?”
“Nothing. They got me confused
with someone else, but we need to go.
Now.” She gathered up her stuff. Thane
did the same without question.
Garren stood there, watching
them in disbelief. “Ivy, what the hell is
going on? Who are these people?”
“I don't have time to explain right
now. If you're coming with us, get
packing. Otherwise, sit down and keep
your girlfriends company while Thane
and I leave to finish our mission.” Her
voice was steady, unlike her nerves. Her
hand was shaking as she ran it over her
hair.
She’d
only
been
out
of
Salmagundi’s wards for less than a day
and already they found her. But why
would they send Banes to look for her?
Realization donned on her and
she could’ve kicked herself. It was a
trap. Her mark would’ve alerted her if
an Eradicator was near. Banes had no
effect on her. They could successfully
sneak up on her. Well, better trained
ones than the idiots currently tied up by
the fire.
The mark on her wrist wasn’t
burning, so the hunters weren’t near, yet.
She palmed the sapphire still hanging
around her neck and whispered the
incantation to activate it. Now they had a
chance to sneak out without being
tracked.
She nearly fell on her face when
she tripped on her way to talk to Thane.
The baby dragon had wandered over and
sat in the shadows. It stuck its head out
of some bushes, watching the excitement.
“Hey, Sparky, you better take off,
too,” she whispered. She shooed it away
with one hand, trying not to bring extra
attention to herself. It snapped its head
back into the bush, growling. She didn’t
have time to concern herself with orphan
dragons.
Garren apparently decided to
leave because he was gathering up his
stuff while muttering something about
bossy witches. If she wasn't in a hurry to
get out of there, she might have let
herself be offended. As it was, there
wasn't time.
&
nbsp; Thane ran up to her, over-stuffed
pack on his back, and pointed to the
others. “What are we going to do with
them? We're not just going to leave them
tied up like that, are we?”
The girls struggled to get untied,
but the magic duct tape wasn't budging.
“Actually, that’s exactly what
we’re doing. Someone will find them,
eventually.” She continued to walk away
from the beach, trying to get the show on
the road.
“Ivy—”
“Look,” she whipped around to
face Thane and Garren, who looked
uneasy about either leaving or leaving
the others behind. “I'm not staying here
another minute. You can either come
with me, or not.” She wasn’t about to get
captured by Eradicators because they
had second thoughts.
Garren stood straighter and
crossed his arms over his chest. “Not
until you tell us what's going on.”
She couldn't help but laugh at the
way he was putting his foot down.
“Okay, have it your way.” She turned
and walked away. Staying here wasn't an
option but she didn't think they were
stupid enough to stick around. Maybe
she was wrong. A few seconds later, the
sounds of footsteps followed behind her
as she stalked away from the beach.
The night trekking through the
forest was the longest of her life. With
absolutely no light to guide them, they
had to feel their way around the trees.
Every snap of a twig brought them to a
halt. They froze, waiting to see if an
Eradicator pounced on them from behind
a tree. The pattern of advancing and
stopping made for an agonizingly slow
pace. Between the sapphire draining her
magic and the stress of possibly being
discovered, her nerves were shot.
Chapter 9
“Are you ready to explain?”
Garren asked as they finally found a
paved road after many hours of trekking
through dense forest.
“Explain what?” Ivy opened her
last bottle of water and took a sip. The
sun was still below the horizon, but it
brightened the sky enough for her to keep
an eye on her surroundings. The threat of
discovery from Eradicators didn’t go
away with start of a new day.
Garren rubbed his hands over his
face and sighed. “Why were Becky and
Sarah looking for you?”
“Becky and Sarah? On a first
name basis already? Exactly how long
were you flirting with them while Thane
and I were left vulnerable?”
“Hey, how was I supposed to
know that other guy was with them? And
stop trying to turn this around on me.”
He was yelling now.
“Keep it down,” she whispered.
Adrenaline rushed through her veins,
jolting her nerves like a spike of
caffeine. Her gaze darted all around,
scouting for enemies in the trees.
Thane
maneuvered
himself
between her and Garren as they walked
along the shoulder of the road.
“She has a point,” he said,
lowering his voice at her raised
eyebrow. “That guy could've slit her
throat before you realized someone was
there.”
“Hey, that'd never happen. No
thanks to you,” she told Garren. “What
was it, anyway? The estrogen induced
giggling or the C cups that drew you into
their trap? I know it's been a few hours
since you hit on anyone, but seriously,
put a lid on your libido before you get us
all killed.”
“Jealous I never hit on you?”
“If I recall, you did hit on me
when I first came to town and I told you
to get lost.”
Thane snorted. “So that's why
you don't like her? Because she turned
you down? Classic.”
“I believe his exact words were
'Hey baby, don't be shy. You can ask me
out.' So I said, 'Great, get out.'”
A snort escaped Thane’s attempt
to stifle his bubbling amusement. Garren
shot her a glare that was probably
supposed to scare her. She’d seen
worse. At least the topic of why Jeff and
his bimbos were looking for her was
forgotten.
“You couldn't keep your eyes off
me,” Garren said. “So I thought I'd help
you out.” He kicked a rock down the
road, the sound of it hitting the pavement
echoing off the trees.
She tamped down the urge to
smack him upside the head for
broadcasting their location again. With
the mood he was in, he might hit back
and then she’d punch him and then he’d
do the same and then pretty soon a huge
brawl would break out for anyone within
a half-mile radius to hear. So she kept
her hands to herself.
“Don't get too excited,” she said
instead. “I was also staring at that kid
with the huge boil on his neck.”
“Whatever. I know you think I'm
hot and you know you think I'm hot.”
Garren shrugged his shoulders and
smiled as she stared at him with her
mouth wide open.
“Does your arrogance know no
bounds?”
“I'm not arrogant, sweetheart.
Just honest.”
A retort died on her lips as
Thane interrupted. “Will you two give it
a rest already? We have a long journey
ahead of us and your bickering is going
to drive me crazy.”
They trekked the next mile in
silence. Her feet dragged along the
pavement, energy draining away with
every step. The soft dirt on the side of
the road beckoned her to lie down and
rest her head.
Five minutes. I only need to
close my eyes for five minutes and then
I’ll be as good as new.
A scraping along the asphalt
behind them cleared the fog from her
brain. When she glanced over her
shoulder, nothing was there. At first, she
blew it off as her overactive imagination
and exhaustion. But after about the tenth
time, she stopped and turned around to
find out once and for all what was
following them.
“Ivy, why did you—?”
“Shhhh!” She frantically waved
her hand behind her to shut up her
cousin. She needed silence. The wind
rustled the trees and a few birds sang
out. She stood perfectly still for many
minutes, waiting for the scraping to start
again. It didn’t. Whatever it was, she
must’ve scared it away.
She turned back around and
strolled down the road along with the
guys. When another scrape sounded right
behind
her, she whipped around, ready
to catch the culprit in the act.
“A-ha!”
Still, there was nothing there.
She took a couple steps forward and
heard a new sound— a low growl, like a
gargle.
“That sounds like the baby
dragon.” Her eyes searched all along the
road and the nearby trees, but she
couldn’t find it.
“Good going, Ivy. It probably
followed us,” Garren said.
“But I don’t see it.” She could
hear it right in front of her but no matter
how hard she squinted in the dim light,
she couldn’t find it.
“And you won’t. That breed is
exceptional at camouflage. They have
the ability to become completely
invisible,” Thane explained.
She squatted down and reached
out her hand. She moved it back and
forth, hoping to touch the dragon. After
a few moments of doing nothing more
than fanning the air, she stood and
shrugged. If it wanted to follow them,
there was nothing she could do about it.
The morning sun was climbing
higher, but in the shadows of the trees
lining the road, the air was still cold. In
the distance, the sound of a large engine
grew louder. They needed to put as much
distance between them and the campsite
as quickly as possible. Hitching a ride
was their best option at the moment.
Walking backwards, she stuck
her thumb out like she'd seen people do
on TV and waited.
“What are you doing? Taking
rides from strangers is dangerous. Don't
you watch movies?” Thane asked.
“I'm tired of walking and I'm
hungry. Unless you're hiding a car in
your pocket, stop that truck.”
“Who made her boss?” Garren
asked Thane.
As the truck slowed down to a
stop, she huddled them all together.
“Remember that the driver’s a Bane. No
magic.” She made sure to meet them both
in the eye. She wasn’t sure how much
exposure they had of the world outside
Salmagundi, the world where magic only
existed in books and movies.
Garren rolled his eyes and
stepped back. “We’re not idiots.” That
wasn’t reassuring.
Thane opened the door and a
billow of cigarette smoke hit them in the
face. She stepped up to talk to the driver
and was surprised by what she saw.
A middle-aged, bottle-blonde
woman smiled from the driver's seat.
“Hey, missy. Where you kids headed?”
“I don't suppose you're going to
Sacramento?” she asked, already getting
queasy from the tobacco fumes.
