by Cherie Marks
“It was just a flash of something. I could’ve been mistaken.” This was a voice that sounded younger and female, more than likely a new recruit.
“Or maybe it was an animal. This forest is full of deer, turkey, and even bobcats.” A third person spoke, another female, but she spoke sharper, more authoritatively.
“What about that group of rocks there? Is there a way in?”
Gemma tensed as the original questioner pointed out their hiding place, and she willed them not to see the five-inch opening at the bottom of the rocks.
“Down here, Commander. There’s a small opening.”
“Could a human or any other creature fit in through the opening?”
“I...I don’t think so. It’s not very big at all. Maybe if they were small Shifters.”
“Well, there have to be people here. Someone drove that car up the road recently.”
They grew quiet outside, and Gemma felt the urge to move. She whispered into the darkness surrounding them, “We should move.”
Kylie quietly flipped on the flashlight and pointed it toward the ground in front of them. As slowly and silently as possible, Kylie led them out of the main cavern and back into a smaller tunnel they had to slide through sideways until it widened into a path that all three could stand side-by-side. Gemma eased back to look over the smoothed, backwards C formed in the side wall of the tunnel. On the other side, she saw a bright light shining through the large cavern from which they’d just come. It was more luminescent than their own little flashlight.
The glow of the light passed over the spot where they had been standing before they made their way into the recess where they now hid. As the light swung close to the spot from where she watched, Gemma ducked down and eased backward.
Once she was beside Mav, in a low voice, he asked, “Anyone inside?”
She shook her head, and he looked slightly relieved.
Kylie shone the flashlight into the tunnel ahead of them. “I guess we go that way.”
“If we follow this path, will we come out at the portal?” Gemma needed to get back to Linwyn. It was where everything started, and that was where she would find the book she needed.
Kylie shrugged, and Gemma barely read it in the darkness, but she could sense her doubt. “Only one way to find out, right?”
“That sounds like the mantra spoken before every bonehead move ever taken, but we clearly can’t stay here.” Gemma took a step forward. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 10
Maverick followed behind Gemma, trying not to think about touching her earlier. He knew how disorienting the first spanning could be and had reached out to steady her, but it had backfired on him. He had been the one to feel the earth rattle beneath his feet at the silky sensation of her skin gripped lightly under his hands. It had taken everything in him not to pull her closer and fit her curves to his own hardened body.
But, he hadn’t, and he couldn’t. Any physical interaction with Gemma was out of the question. What would the King have thought of him considering such a thing? What would the Protectorate make of such a breach in conduct? He couldn’t touch her ever again.
Then, why couldn’t he think of anything else?
“I’m getting hungry. When can we stop to eat?” Kylie gave a low whine. She had handed over the flashlight to him and had trudged along reluctantly now that she no longer knew which way to go.
Gemma stopped in front of him and turned to face her friend. “Did you bring food with you?”
“Of course. I never go anywhere without a little something to munch.”
Mav had been toying with the idea of waiting out the guards by hanging out in the cave overnight. He just wasn’t sure that they would leave until the owners of the SUV showed up and drove away. Since that wasn’t going to happen, they had to think of something else to throw off the guards. He still thought it was a good idea to hunker down until they could figure something out.
“We need to keep moving. I have to get back to Linwyn.”
Making his voice as reassuring as possible, Mav said, “We will get back there, Gemma, but Kylie might be right.”
“I might be right? That’s a new one.”
“What I mean is that we should probably camp here overnight and try to wait out the Portal Police. If there is no reason to, they won’t stick around any longer than they have to.”
“So, you want to sleep in this cave tonight? And you think they will leave by morning?”
“That’s what I’m hoping. Otherwise, we’re going to have to fight our way to the portal, and, again, I don’t want to cause any more problems for ourselves or others. The best case scenario would be for them to go before we attempt crossing to Linwyn.”
Kylie jumped up and down a couple times. “I love camping. Let’s do it.”
“It’s kind of cold in here. How are we going to keep warm? What will we sleep on? I seriously doubt Kylie’s few snacks will sustain all of us.”
“All of your concerns are valid, Gemma, but I can span to a nearby store I recently visited. I’ll pick up some camping gear and food and span back.”
“Now that we’ve been here, why don’t we pop out to a nice, warm bed, and pop back in tomorrow morning?”
Mav considered her suggestion but said, “Staying here provides the best chance of keeping track of the movements of the Portal Police. If we leave, we could possibly jump right back into a dangerous situation.”
“Well, we don’t all have to stay here, do we?”
“I am not letting you out of my sight.”
“I was afraid you would say that.”
But he did let them out of his sight as he warned them not to try to start a fire before he spanned out of the cave and returned within the hour with camping gear. He knew he had to be quick because it wouldn’t be long before Gemma considered making a run for the portal. His only hope was that Gemma knew deep down that he was right. In order to get through the Portal Police, she’d have to break about five more laws just to make it happen. Of course, she probably knew she was already looking at a death sentence, but if he could convince her he would help her find the book she was looking for, she might not do anything crazy...yet.
Mav spanned back into the cave, relieved to see both Gemma and Kylie sitting on low boulders, talking and laughing with each other.
“Glad to see you’re still here.”
“I considered making a break for it.” She shrugged and sat back, stretching out her long, shapely legs that he shouldn’t be noticing. “I didn’t want to get Kylie caught up in my delinquent behavior. I’d never be able to live with myself if Kylie were injured or thrown in jail. Worst of all, I didn’t want to be responsible for anyone’s death.”
“That’s kind of out of character for an assassin, isn’t it?”
Again, her response was a shrug. Why did he feel like he’d barely scratched the surface of who Gemma actually was?
Kylie clasped her hands beneath her chin and asked, “What did you bring us to eat?”
Mav set some grocery-type bags on a waist-high boulder beside where he was standing. “There should be something edible in these.” He began unloading boxes and small, aluminum-type packages. He ripped one open at the top, grabbed a plastic spoon, and handed it to Kylie.
She sniffed it hesitantly and Gemma watched her nose wrinkle. “What is this, Maverick?”
“Um...can’t say for sure. It’s a camping ration. I picked up biscuits and gravy, spaghetti, and chicken fried rice.” He pulled a small canister out of another bag. “After we add a little water to it, I can heat it up if you want.”
They dined on mushy, somewhat flavorful food-like meals, with boxes of crackers, and bottles of water. It wasn’t the best dinner Mav had ever eaten, but he’d had worse.
Throughout the makeshift dinner, Mav watched Gemma interacting with Kylie. He could tell there was a strong bond between the two women. He thought it was another unusual characteristic for someone who had been trained to kill people. He
just couldn’t seem to reconcile what he’d been told about Gemma and the woman sitting with him. He wanted some answers, but with Kylie here, he wasn’t ready to ask the hard questions. He’d have to get Gemma alone somehow.
Once they’d cleaned everything up, Mav quickly spanned the trash to a receptacle and spanned back into the cave within a matter of minutes. The girls had already laid out a couple of sleeping bags beside each other, and they’d placed his several feet away on the other side of a large boulder. It wasn’t going to work.
He moved his sleeping bag on the other side of Gemma’s instead.
“A little close, Mav. Be careful. I might get ideas.”
He wasn’t sure if she was threatening him or suggesting she’d developed an attraction to him, but he chose to ignore the comment.
“If I want to get sleep tonight, we will lay next to each other. No exceptions.”
“Fine. But I must warn you, I snore. Loudly.”
“Good. Then, if the snoring stops, I’ll know you’re try to leave without me.”
Gemma laughed lightly, and he loved the softness of her eyes as the humor filled their depths. His chest tightened as he met and held her gaze. She was beautiful. And dangerous, he reminded himself.
Kylie yawned loudly, drawing their attention away from each other.
“I’m kind of sleepy. I’m not trying to be the person who gets her hand dipped in warm water at the sleepover or anything, but I’m going to have to say goodnight.”
“Your hand dipped in water? Why would anyone do that?”
Kylie turned to her side, her back to Gemma and Mav as she answered, “To make them pee the bed, of course.”
Mav heard the same confusion he was feeling reflected in Gemma’s voice as she asked, “Why would anyone want to make another piss the bed?”
Yet, Kylie didn’t answer. She’d drifted off to sleep before explaining such a strange practice, and Mav was thankful that it wasn’t a thing in which anyone in his own realm ever participated.
Mav and Gemma laid in the dim darkness side-by-side, each on their back, listening to drips coming from a nearby cavern.
“That’s one interesting friend you have there.”
“The people I’ve met in this realm are an interesting breed. Most are quite emotional, and they like to touch each other. They literally wrap their arms around each other and squeeze. It’s called a hug, and it is a way to show affection.”
“A...hug? How odd? And they wrap their arms around each other and squeeze. It sounds more like an attack.”
Suddenly, Gemma shifted until she was on her side. “No. The touch is firm, but it’s more...comforting.”
He turned on his side to face her. The air between them grew thicker. There was only a foot separating them, and Mav let his gaze trace the curvature of her body. It was a beautiful combination of hills and valleys he desired to explore.
He had the urge to get closer. His heart raced as he said, “Show me.”
“Show you a hug?”
With a nod, he felt the anticipation of her touch send an electrical pulse swimming throughout his body. He wanted to feel her hands on his skin. It was dangerous, but, in that moment, he needed her touch.
His breathing picked up as she wiggled toward him, reaching her right arm to wrap over his torso.
“Lift your head, and I’ll put my arm under you.”
He followed her direction and found the distance between them cut to nothing. They were connected, body to body, and he had never felt such an urgency to meet another’s lips with his own. This was not completely foreign to him. Of course, Linwynians procreated and even had sex recreationally, but he had never felt this level of intimacy.
Then, she squeezed her arms tighter, pushing her breasts into his chest, and he felt her warm breath on his neck. It was nearly his undoing as his body reacted. He barely suppressed a groan as he felt his cock swell. It took everything in him not to grind against her. He hadn’t lost his mind completely...yet.
Showing how close he was, though, he ran his lips along the crown of her head, feeling the silky slide of her hair beneath his skin.
“Now, wrap your arms around me and give me a hug.”
He gathered his wits about him and controlled his breathing enough to wrap his own arms around her body and squeeze. He wondered if she could feel the rapid pounding of his heart.
Despite his natural aversion to touch, he had to admit, he liked this. Perhaps it was only because it was Gemma. Perhaps it was being in this realm. No matter what the reason was, he felt like he could hold her like this throughout the entire night and never grow tired of the feel of her in his arms.
Gemma tipped her face up, and he looked down into her eyes. His gaze dropped lower—to her mouth. It looked soft and inviting. He couldn’t resist closing the distance between them and running his lips over hers. It was light at first, but when she returned the kiss, instinct took over and he deepened the connection. Their mouths moved together in a wild dance, and Maverick felt himself losing control.
“It’s all in good fun.”
At the sound of Kylie’s sleepy voice, Gemma pulled back, and Mav reluctantly let her go. He raised up on his elbow as Gemma turned away to see if Kylie had awakened. As she gave a soft snore, though, it was obvious she was still asleep. She might have been speaking in her sleep. Or, she barely woke up and slipped back off quickly. Either way, the moment was ruined, and Mav had to question his sanity.
He’d just gotten physical with an assassin who would sooner kill him as kiss him. Yet, she’d kissed him in return, and he had been so lost to passion, he would have gladly taken a knife to the gut just to continue the kiss. But he clearly hadn’t been the only one affected.
In the darkness, he heard the air working in and out of her lungs rapidly. She was feeling as out of control as he was. And probably just as confused.
Yet, she kept her back to him. “Goodnight, Maverick. See you in the morning.”
He ran a hand down his face to clear his brain. With another lower stroke of his hand, he adjusted himself and turned over.
“Goodnight, Gemma.” He wanted to say how much he liked the hug and, especially, her kiss, but he was confused by his reaction. He vacillated between wanting to take her in his arms again and wanting to shake himself for allowing what happened to happen.
He knew it was the wrong thing to say the minute he said it, but he couldn’t seem to stop the words from rushing out of his mouth. “Don’t try anything.”
She didn’t reply, and he hoped she was already asleep. He might have imagined the tightening of her shoulders, but he ignored his instinct to soothe her, turned over, and tried to slip off to sleep.
It took a lot longer for sleep to overtake him. His final thoughts continued to turn back to the kiss, and he could still feel her touch on his skin. Yet, the thought that kept him awake the longest was knowing that he would betray her tomorrow once they crossed the portal.
Was it the right thing to do, or was he just being an asshole? He was pretty sure he knew the answer.
Chapter 11
Gemma must have drifted off for a short time, but when she awoke sometime in the night, she knew what she needed to do. It was time to leave Maverick and Kylie behind. She knew she couldn’t wholly trust Mav, and she still didn’t want to mix Kylie up in the kind of trouble Gemma was truly facing.
She eased up from her sleeping bag as the other two slept on. As she made her way toward the passage that Kylie said most likely led to the cavern with the portal, she noticed movement on the floor of the cave. The dim light was enough for her to recognize the cat Gaston.
With a low whisper, she asked, “Where did you go?”
He yawned lazily and said, “If you must know...”
But she cut him off with a hurried shush. “Keep your voice down. I’m not trying to start a party.”
His voice was a whisper as he said, “Oh, I see. It’s an escape.”
She paused before asking, “Are you
going to rat me out?”
“First of all, don’t...ever...use the word rat around me. I’ve had too many bad experiences. Second, snitches get stitches, and I’m no snitch, witch.”
“Bad experiences with rats? Who hasn’t? Oh, never mind. Just, thank you for not waking Mav. I need to go through the portal alone.”
He approached where she stood and rubbed against her feet as he walked through and around her legs. “Rats are freakin’ perverts, and I will...never...be able to unsee what I’ve seen. That’s all I’m going to say about that.”
“Okay. I don’t need to know any more about that at all. What I do need to know is if you’ve been in the cavern with the portal, and, if so, what you saw there?”
“I’m just saying that rats will fuck anything and everything. If you really want me to paint a picture, I can.”
“No!” Her whisper rose, and the others shifted restlessly in their sleep. Once she was sure they were sleeping deeply once more, she said, “I don’t want to know about the rats. I just need to know about the Portal Police.”
“I really don’t know about their sexual habits.”
She rolled her eyes and breathed in slowly through her nostrils. “I don’t care about their personal lives. I just want to know how many are around the portal.”
Gaston yawned again. “This conversation is boring me. I think it’s time for a nap.”
“Can you help me first, please?”
“I suppose I can offer a little information...if you tell me a secret of yours.”
“What? I don’t have time for this. Just tell me how many.”
If a cat could shrug, Gaston did. “You heard my price.”
She could feel her face warming with her irritation. She whisper-shouted, “Fine! I’ve never enjoyed being an assassin. My father forced me to go to the Assassin’s Academy, and for a long time, I hated him because of it. I’ve never before felt the satisfaction I get from removing cursed objects. That’s what I want to do for the rest of my life.”
