She turned the page in several directions and studied the wiggly line for what felt like a long while. Finally, she understood she was looking at a map, and recognized one set of numbers was a highway that bisected the city and led toward a popular ski resort about two hours away. A darker squiggling line marked with the number three seemed to contradict that theory by curling around the backside of what would have been the southern slopes, where surely there wasn’t much of anything but fire roads and wilderness.
Could the guys be going flying? But why did Beau sound so dour? Not to mention the fact that with so much suspicious activity, this was the worst time to shift and fly.
She sensed something had gone wrong and glanced out the window at a gray December afternoon that was hurtling toward a winter night. Barring the real possibility of holiday traffic, if she left this minute, she might arrive in the general area by sunset, and she wondered if she could locate whatever it was she was looking for before dark. At worst, she could be stranded on the far side of a slippery mountain road, driving aimlessly until she ran out of gas. She questioned if attempting to follow Beau wherever he and Jace were going was such a great idea.
Just remembering the heavy undertones in Beau’s voice left her uneasy. I can’t ignore this. I’ll go crazy if I do. She gathered the contents of the envelope and stuffed everything inside. A moment later she was digging through her closet, searching for warm boots and appropriate clothing.
Devon tossed a few necessary things like a toothbrush, flashlight, and a handful of granola bars into her purse. Out of habit she grabbed her camera and a fresh memory card. The little amethyst Beau had given her before the trip to Africa sat on her nightstand. She’d almost forgotten about it until a couple of weeks ago when she’d found it in the pocket of her jacket. She was grateful she’d not buried the stone next to the dragon tree because, aside from the photos in the cave, it was her only true memento from Beau and the trip.
Hoping against hope, she brought the tiny stone to her lips and gave it a kiss. “Connect to Beau.” She whispered a soft prayer. “Help me find those guys.” She slipped the stone into her coat pocket and left the apartment, carrying only her purse, the manila envelope, and car keys.
She took the elevator to the building’s underground parking structure and got out on the second level below the street. As she approached her car, she was irritated to see that some inconsiderate asshole had parked their massive SUV so close to her car that she would need a shoehorn to squeeze into the driver side. A cement column blocked the passenger side of her car as well. Short of turning to vapor and sliding through the air-conditioner vent, how the hell was she going to get into her car? Adding insult, she paid rent on this space, and this was unacceptable.
Fishing into her purse, she fetched her phone. “Security.” She tried to sound patient and polite, but she didn’t feel that way. “I’m the resident of apartment D3.”
“Yes, miss, how can we help?”
“Someone has wedged a big black tank into Mrs. Murphy’s parking stall, completely blocking me. Can you find out who it is and ask them to move their car?”
“Yes, miss, we have a patrol car at street level. I’ll send a man down now.”
“Thanks.” She tossed the phone back into her purse.
The headlights on the black SUV lit, blinding her. The engine gunned. The tires spun, and the vehicle barreled straight at her.
“What the fuck!” She dodged aside, feeling the bumper brush against the edge of her coat. “Look where you’re going!” The envelope tumbled from her hands and slid across the concrete floor. Chasing after it, she bent down to pick it up.
The SUV screeched to a halt. The brake lights flashed crimson. The tires squealed. The huge vehicle reversed and sped toward her.
“Holy shit!” She leaped between two parked cars.
With a deafening crunch, the SUV struck the cars hard, crumpling the front ends of both and shifting their positions in the parking stalls. A hail of alarms echoed through the parking structure. The SUV rolled forward a few yards, reversed, and rammed the cars again putting her in danger of being crushed. The little space she was standing in had already shrunk, and the next hard strike would close it.
With brutal persistence the SUV rammed the cars again, displacing them further. Devon clambered onto the trunk of a parked car before leaping to the next car and the next, but the SUV rammed every car she touched in an attempt to trap her or knock her off-balance. Like a cat, she scrambled over the parked cars, managing to stay one ahead. Whoever was driving the SUV meant to kill her, and would soon lose patience with hunting her in this manner. She had to reach the elevator before the driver abandoned the vehicle and chased her on foot. As she dashed toward the elevator, the SUV roared forward ready to ram anything she might take shelter behind.
The security patrol car descended into the parking structure with its megaphone blaring. “Police backup is on the way! What’s going on down here?”
The SUV reversed and made a speedy ascent up the ramp to street level. The security patrol car followed in pursuit. Devon was left shaken and alone in the parking structure but even the deafening screech of car alarms couldn’t drown out the wail of police sirens in the distance. She stared at the shattered bits of headlights and car parts littering the concrete floor. Within minutes this would be a sealed crime scene, and she was the prime witness. If she was going to catch up to Jace and Beau, she had to leave now.
The attack was meant to be lethal. There was no doubt about it. It wasn’t safe to return to her apartment, or run to the police and tell a wild tale that would likely be dismissed. She darted to her car, started the engine, and drove like a mad woman on her way up and out of the structure, her clenched hands trembling on the wheel. She had to find Jace and Beau and warn them matters had taken a darker turn. A mile down the road she tried calling Jace, only to discover the voicemail box was full
For nearly two hours, Devon drove in nervous solitude with the car radio tuned to a local news channel. As the foothills grew steeper, the reception faded in and out within the many canyon passes she drove through. She heard nothing about a police call to a parking structure, and assumed it was because she wasn’t there to file a witness report, but she did hear that driving conditions at higher altitude might require chains, which she didn’t have.
At the moment she had the road all to herself, which today didn’t feel like much of a treat. Earlier she’d watched the highway around her obsessively, on the lookout for a black SUV, but all she saw were the many unthreatening vehicles filled with families, and skiers with their sports equipment strapped to the roof as they sped past her underpowered compact. Nothing even remotely nefarious had appeared on the highway, and she prayed she’d escaped the city unnoticed.
The sun was low in the sky, and she had no idea how far she was from the vague Junction 3 Beau had scribbled in the notebook, and God only knew how much farther she’d need to drive beyond that. On this section of highway, the road had become a mountain-hugging set of sharp curves that revealed little either ahead or behind.
Devon dug into her pocket and hunted for the tiny stone Beau had given her. She found it beside the velvet box containing the three gold rings, squeezed the stone and thought of the guys. “A link would sure be good right now.”
Almost holding her breath, she half expected Beau’s presence to miraculously appear in her mind, but it hadn’t in many weeks, and it didn’t now. As the road grew ever steeper, she was left completely alone with her worries.
A green road sign alerted her to a scenic turnout a quarter mile ahead. The road was so twisty she could not yet see it and hoped the point would also provide a clue to the mysterious Junction 3 that didn’t show up on Google Maps. She planned to pull over and take another glance at the hand-drawn map, but when she rounded the corner a hopeful sign appeared; a fork in the highway with a narrow fire road leading into the mountains and a large boulder with the number 3 painted on it in fluorescent yel
low. The fire road appeared to be a potholed, single-lane affair leading into another steep canyon pass. She hesitated, wondering if her car could handle it, but turned onto the road anyway.
A couple miles up the road, the many ruts in the neglected pavement deepened, along with her sense of concern that she had made a huge mistake. She was barely driving fifteen miles per hour, but even that modest speed felt reckless on this crumbling cliffside road and it was getting dark fast. If there had been any room to safely turn around and go back to the highway, she would have.
A flash of headlights loomed behind her on a slight rise and disappeared into a dip in the road. Devon glanced into the rearview mirror as a monstrous black SUV crested the rise and sped toward her.
“Fuck!” She hit the gas, feeling her car lurch forward and bounce hard over the pitted surface of the road.
Within seconds the more powerful SUV bore down on her, ramming the compact’s back bumper and thrusting Devon forward.
“Damn you to Hell!” Devon jolted and struggled to steer the car back onto the road. The SUV rammed her a second time and accelerated, pushing her lightweight compact closer to the edge of the steep slope. She turned the wheel sharply toward the uphill side of the road and scraped along the cliff face. The vehicle struck her again. The compact slid sideways before nearly plummeting off the side of the road; another hard hit would take her over the brink.
The SUV backed off, falling behind a few yards, and then accelerated, smashing into the back of her car and locking bumpers. For a gut-wrenching moment the two cars were fused and Devon was completely out of control as the heavier vehicle forced her sideways. She smacked into a boulder and her back tire burst, and sounded like gunfire. Not that she had had a chance before, but now there would be no outdriving the SUV. Her compact was doomed, but their bumper was hooked to hers and they were in trouble too. Making a split-second decision, she released the seat belt, hit the gas, opened the car door, and jumped. It was done in a fearless moment of commitment.
Devon hit the dirt and rolled. The SUV plowed past, pushing her compact over the edge and following it down a steep slope to a ravine below. She scrambled onto her stomach and watched the back of the vehicle disappear over the side. The smell of burning brakes, the sound of car struts snapping, and the climactic crash of metal striking stone assaulted her senses.
She pulled herself upright on shaking legs and peered over the side. Both vehicles were wedged hood down between the boulders, and would require a hefty commercial crane and a miracle to get them back on the road.
The door of the SUV opened and a man in camouflage khaki clothing stumbled out, cursing loudly. He immediately fell to the ground, clutching his knee in agony. He looked straight at Devon, rage burning in his eyes.
She recognized Commander Vorden and turned to flee.
“Wait!” Vorden called in his distinct accent as he began the laborious climb upward, almost scraping his belly against the slope on hands and knees. “Cooperate with us and you’ll survive. We want to help you. You can’t be blamed for what has happened. Perhaps you don’t fully comprehend what you are dealing with. Stop resisting and the OKSG will be lenient.”
“Fuck off!” Devon shouted. Wanting to run, she took a painful step, winced, and stumbled.
Vorden’s expression became one of ravening determination as he clawed his way up the slope. “I’ve seen this situation many times. Don’t fool yourself. You are being used by a reptilian race, doesn’t that disgust you? If you stay with those creatures, you won’t be allowed to keep any of the abominations you might be unfortunate enough to breed! Is that what you want for yourself? Think about what you’re doing. I don’t want to hunt and slaughter your future children but I will! Don’t you understand, I don’t want to do it but it is my sworn duty.”
“The Marduko are peaceful. You’re not serving a higher good by killing innocent people!” Devon turned and hobbled uphill.
Vorden shouted after her. “They’re not innocent and they’re not people. They’re lizards! And you lie with them like a whore. Womankind is so very weak and easily led astray.”
“Enough!” If she had a gun, she would have already shot the bastard. Leaving the road, she climbed higher, clumsily scrambling upward into a steep wilderness of rocky outcroppings. Realization dawned that she didn’t even know what she was looking for. Night was falling. Her gear was in the car at the bottom of the ravine, and her ankle was killing her. Even if she could climb with ease, how could she hope to survive a winter night in the mountains? She had to seek cover and make Vorden’s job as difficult as possible. If he wanted to capture her, he’d have to sweat and bleed for it. There was no way she would quit, cry, give up, and make it easy for him. For Jace’s and Beau’s sakes, she’d give Vorden the nastiest fight she could offer. As she scrambled higher, she scanned the ground for sharp stones to throw.
17
Jace and Beau lay huddled in the corner of the cave. Beau had started a small fire to keep Jace warm and piled him high with blankets, but it didn’t seem to be doing much good. Jace’s hands felt icy, and his face looked waxen.
Time seemed to stand still as they awaited their fate. Beau wasn’t sure how much longer they had. He’d heard tales of a failed alpha lingering in limbo for weeks, but Jace seemed to be fading away so quickly, it could be hours. It was all a matter of wait and see.
“How do you feel?” Beau slipped another blanket over Jace. “Any better?”
“I’m okay.”
It saddened Beau to see all the spark had left Jace’s eyes.
“The last shift and flight up the cliff were draining,” Jace grumbled. “I’m glad it’s behind me.”
Beau held on to Jace’s hand. “You did it, and I’m proud of you.” Seeing Jace emerge from the car after a long ride up the mountain, staggering half-blind and confused, had been devastating. After they’d shifted to dragon form, he’d had to lead Jace in the air with the tip of his wing and guide Jace toward the cave’s opening.
Today had been a heartbreaker, and he wasn’t ready to face the possibility that their time together was brief. He wanted to hope, but Jace’s decline had begun in earnest and showed no signs of mercy. “Would you please try to eat something?” Beau pleaded.
“Later.” Jace turned toward the fire.
Beau wanted to shout, There’s not going to be a later! but thought better of it. He knew Jace was deeply frustrated and depressed that Vorden and his zealots were stalking Devon and there was nothing they could do about it—or was there?
The OKSG operated in obscurity. To be successful, the OKSG counted on the Marduko need for secrecy, and above all, the desire to protect family.
“Jace, maybe it really is time to go public,” Beau blurted. “What if we are the last Marduko and there’s no one left to protect? I’m worried about Devon. I thought of her the entire car ride. This isn’t right, to be separated. We haven’t had contact with our parents in years. I don’t even know where mine are anymore.”
Jace looked sullen. “My mother ordered me to break our family link, and I did it out of a sense of honor, but I ask myself every day if I made the right choice. I hate wondering if they are dead or alive, or God forbid, in a situation where they need me. They can’t pick up a phone and ask for help—they’d never risk it. It’s not right that the OKSG has scattered us and forced the Marduko to live underground for so long. We’re human too, but that counts for nothing.”
“Half human is meaningless to the OKSG. They’ll never change their minds about us. They’re homophobic and misogynistic too. The Marduko lifestyle represents everything they find detestable.”
Jace’s chin sank. “Well, they won’t have to put up with us much longer, will they? I feel terrible about leaving Devon unprotected and alone. It’s the worst thing a Marduko could do to a mate. I failed both of you so badly.”
Fate had been unfair with them, that was for sure. “Please don’t say that.”
“Beau, you still have time.” Ja
ce’s voice had been reduced to a dry whisper. “Promise me you will not lie down and die at my side. Live what’s left of your life fully. Go back to the city. Tell Devon everything and give her all the love she deserves. I’d give anything for more time with both of you. Don’t waste a minute of it.”
He felt a touch of guilt for not telling Jace that he had hidden a map to their cave among the keys and legal papers before driving them up the mountain. “I love you. You did your best. Taking a human female mate is always a gamble.”
“Which the intimidation of the OKSG makes nearly impossible to succeed. What kind of woman would choose to be persecuted?”
He was quick to answer. “Strong women like your mother, my mother, and Devon.”
A faint smile lit Jace’s lips. “Devon was the right choice, wasn’t she? She really surprised me. I couldn’t boss her around at all.” He laughed for the first time in days. “And I tried. At least we had a brief taste of what could have been.”
A burst of gunfire and a woman’s screams echoed between the cliffs.
Beau leaped to his feet. “What the hell’s going on out there?” He ran toward the mouth of the cave.
An enraged male voice rang against the stones below. “Stop throwing rocks, you stupid bitch, and I’ll let you live.”
“Fuck off!” an enraged woman shouted.
“Ouch!” the man screamed. Gunshots ricocheted between the boulders below. “My head’s bleeding, you slut! You’ll leave this mountain in a body bag.”
Beau turned toward Jace. “That’s Devon.”
“Go to her!” Jace tried to stand but only stumbled onto his hands and knees. “Help her.”
Devon hunkered down behind a jumble of boulders, searching for more rocks she could throw at Commander Vorden to keep him at bay. It was getting dark, the temperature was dropping fast, and she didn’t want to be trapped where she was all night. Any distance she could create between them would be a good thing.
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