by Dale Mayer
Goran flipped the light switch on and off a few times. The hallway lightened and darkened in rhythm. Tessa turned to search the area closer to the warehouse.
That's when she saw it.
"Stop. Lights off." The urgency in her voice had Goran hitting the switch.
"What do you see?" Serus slipped up beside her. "Tessa?"
She'd crouched down to make sure, then stood and studied the energy patterns up ahead. "I was too tired to see it before, and only caught it when he made the lights flash on and off," she murmured.
"Saw what?" Goran turned to look in the same direction. "Is it that strange energy stuff again?"
"Oh, yeah. And now I know where they are. Or rather, where some of them are." She chastised herself for having taken so long to see it. Pursing her lips, she pointed upward. "Some have gone up."
"Up?" Serus walked to end of the hallway and stared upward. "You mean, like fliers?"
"Not really. Well, maybe. I don't know how they got up there, but I can make out at least four different energy signatures heading in that direction. I can't see where they've gone, but they haven't come back down here. So either they've flown to the far area, or they are still up there."
"Hiding?" Goran growled, flexing his wings. "I'll fix that."
"No, wait. What if they're all fliers? Up there, they don't have to worry about anyone catching them. They can sit up there and watch every move we make. Who'd know?"
Goran's face chilled. "Very few vampires are fliers. I only know four, and they are friends."
"But we've already come up against other ones," Serus said. "Where they are from I don't know. Jacob was a glider. Moltere was a flier. They could be his family."
He glanced at Tessa. "Can you tell us how many went up?"
Tessa walked closer, until she could see the energy separate.
"Two were on the ground." She walked around and frowned, then raised her gaze. "David and Cody. Then someone, or rather, two people, came down and picked them up."
She turned to search for a direction.
"They headed that way." She pointed to the back of the warehouse. "Above the offices. What do you want to bet we missed a set of stairs somewhere?"
"If they're fliers, they don't need stairs."
"I'm going up to see just what's up there." Goran stretched out his wings. "Tessa, lead Serus as close as you can. We'll hit them from both sides."
Tessa raced to catch up with her father, who was already striding away. Behind her, the rush of wings heralded Goran rising above her. She studied the heavy piping, but couldn't see any kind of space that would hold people. The ceiling rose high above them, and with all the pipes in the complex system, she supposed they could have several apartments hidden up there. What an ingenious concept.
And it would explain where the spare men had come from.
"Are we still on the right path?" her father asked.
"Yes," she said. "Straight ahead. I can see about thirty feet of energy pathways, then I lose them among the hanging people."
Her own breathing was the only sound that met her ears as they raced toward the end of the energy pathway. Five minutes later they were on the other side of the warehouse, but to Tessa it seemed like hours had passed. She had a stitch in her side, too. If they'd been watched, they could have easily been picked off one by one.
Frustrated she hadn't seen the pathways before, she shook her head. "We've been through this area so many times already. I didn't see it."
"We all missed it." He strode toward the wall. "Ah ha. Here's a door."
Surprised, she joined him. "Really?
He pulled the door open, revealing a set of stairs. Only...
"Uh oh. Wrong direction." Tessa shook her head. "We're looking for steps that go up, not down."
"We're looking for anything. We need to check out these stairs, too. First, though, we need to find the boys." He closed the door and spun around, looking for another. He stared at her, anger and impatience in his voice as he said, "Why isn't there another door here?"
"I don't know. It only makes sense to have the stairs going up in the same place as the stairs going down. Anything else is just...well, weird."
"They could have been built at different times."
"I suppose." Tessa wandered back and forth along the hallway. "Barely any energy signatures are left now, and those that are still here are mixed up."
Serus walked into the next room. Tessa trailed along behind him and halted at the door. Here, she could see only a faint energy trail.
Serus came back out. "Nothing here."
"I know what I saw." Tessa rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. "But for the life of me, I have no idea how or when they got there."
"It doesn't matter." Serus turned away from the hanging bodies and backed up in between two rows so he could look up. "Might be some space up there."
He wandered up and down the rows, changing his vantage point until he came to a sudden stop.
"There." He pointed upward.
Tessa searched the darkness, but couldn't see much. Only a faint outline of...well, something.
"Stay here." With less effort than Tessa would make to walk one step, her father took to the air. So effortlessly, he soared into the darkness above her. He might not have wings, but damn little would slow him down.
She stared after him in wonder until she abruptly realized she was alone again. A chill washed over her, and she surreptitiously glanced around, hating the bodies silently pumping out blood. The man beside her might have been obese at one time, but he now looked as if he wore a suit of skin one size too large. Liquid had pooled around his lower body. Thankfully, the liquid distorted his genitals, but that only made his situation seem that much more pitiful. With a shudder, she stepped away.
Then compelled by a reason she didn't understand, she turned back. And gulped.
His open eyes stared down at her.
***
Jared peered around the corner. The conflict had him wanting to run for cover. As much as he'd love a chance to fight back at those who had strung him up, he didn't want to get into any more fights he couldn't win.
He straightened and gritted his teeth. He owed Tessa his life. Now she needed his help. He couldn't let her down. He didn't know who might be out there, but there were two sides to every war.
He just needed to find the right one.
Sidling up to the entrance, he paused to let his eyes adjust to the bright light. Tears stung them, and he leaned back, blinking hard. Crap. If adjusting to the brightness after just days underground was this hard for him, how could those other poor people who'd been hanging for much longer ever do it? Or would they simply be blind?
He shuddered. Maybe they'd be better off dead. Then he remembered Bryce, and the short time Jared had spent with him. He was so young. He deserved a normal life. Not this feedlot coma.
Shouts rang out beyond the mouth of the tunnel.
Jared winced. If only he could get out without attracting any attention. Hoping that maybe he could, he slid forward, shielded his eyes, and crouched low in search of the source of the commotion.
No sign of anyone.
Either they were on the other side of the rock face up ahead, or they were above the tunnel entrance. Both were good for him. A dense clump of pine trees off to the left looked to be his best chance. Not allowing himself to question his decision, he darted for cover.
Throwing himself behind the trees, his heart hammering in his chest, Jared closed his eyes. Please dear God, let no one have noticed me.
A few moments later, he peered around the tree. He still couldn't spot the source of the ruckus, and he thought that maybe the fighting had moved further away. Good. He really didn't want to meet anymore vamps.
Straightening, he peered through the woods. Which way was civilization? A road would be good, but might mean more vamps. The way down the mountain through the trees might mean wild animals and given his experiences so far, he'd take them any day.<
br />
He started off.
***
Cody groaned. He hadn't meant to make the sound, but it had just kinda slipped out. He hurt. Why?
"Hey, boss." A male voice rang out behind him. "Sounds like the bigger one's coming around."
"Wait a bit," a dark, deeper voice answered. "He's probably having nightmares."
That voice? Cody recognized it, but couldn't place it. The first man laughed, and it pissed him off for them to assume he was so weak. Lying quietly, he struggled to clear his head and figure out a plan of action.
"Just make sure he ain't moving around," the deeper voice said. "He might need a bigger dose. Tell Rohan to fix another syringe."
Cody's brain froze. Drugs. Like Rhia. God, no.
Before he could latch on to another thought, the guy kicked him in the side. Reeling from the force of it, Cody absorbed the shock and let his body rock. Asshole. I owe you for that one when I get out of here.
"Nah," the guy said with another laugh, "he's out cold."
"Good. Go tell Rohan anyway. We don't want him fighting the programming."
"Right."
A rush of wind told Cody the asshole had left. He didn't understand how. Opening his eye lashes a fraction, he peered around him. He was in a room of some kind with half-walls, if what he was seeing was actually true. A boot lay in front of him. Attached to a jean clad leg he'd seen before. David. Good.
Now if only Cody could figure out who else was up here.
The boot in front of his face swung around. Cody's eyes widened as it barely missed his face. David was waking up.
Thank God.
"Damn it. Can't those assholes do anything right?" That same deep voice spoke from behind him. Sounds of a chair being pushed back and footsteps had Cody stiffening inside.
A second blow slammed into Cody's kidney. He used every ounce of strength he had to suck back a groan of agony. Then he didn't have to try as blackness washed the thought away
CHAPTER TWENTY
Tessa froze, too terrified to tear her gaze away from the man staring down at her from his hook. She gulped and closed her eyes briefly before flashing them back open. He still glared down at her. Was he aware of her? She peered at him more closely and struggled with the horrible concept. Surely the drugs they'd given him had knocked him out. His open eyes had to be just an accident. Maybe they'd shifted when his captors had hung him up.
Gulping harder, she tried to convince herself of that. Then she realized his eyes hadn't moved, not even a little. He hadn't blinked, either. He just stared at her with those blue eyes.
She stepped back as sadness overwhelmed her. Even if they freed the poor man, he'd have no joy in his life. His corneas had dried out. And blindness was likely to be only part of the damage to his system. Anger welled up inside her. How could anyone do this to these people? What had they done to deserve this?
"Tessa?"
She spun around and searched for her father.
"Pssst. Up here."
Raising her gaze, she peered into the dark above her. "Where are you?"
"Damn it, use your eyes."
Crap. She switched to vampire vision and looked again. He stood in the dark, leaning off the platform. He motioned for her to join him. Tessa looked around. She wasn't good at jumping from a standstill. In fact, she didn't think she could do it at all. Rubbing her face hard, she took a deep breath and jumped. And barely got lift off. With a groan, she backed up and studied the long hallway. She could get a running start.
"Hurry up."
Damn it.
She backed up and took a running jump. She went up all right, but came right back down again. She was just too tired. "Shit."
Her father chuckled. "Stop trying so hard."
She stopped and looked up. He was right. She was struggling to force a motion when it should happen naturally. She should be relaxed, settling into a rhythm, and using her natural ability to lift off naturally. And just like that, Tessa soared upward.
She smirked when she landed in front of him.
"About time." He turned around and led the way forward. "Keep up. I found something."
Tessa tucked away her sense of accomplishment and stepped in behind him. She wasn't sure what they were walking on. Not a real floor, more like the roof over the clinical rooms.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
He looked back at her. "Just up ahead."
They came up against the back wall, and her father disappeared around the corner. Tessa followed – and just about slammed into him. He'd come to a dead stop in front of her.
Holding up a hand, he motioned for her to be quiet, and then pointed upward. Tessa peered around his shoulder. Suspended from the rafter beams was a large platform of some kind. From where she stood, she couldn't see a way to access it. Just looking at the hanging chamber gave her the chills.
They had been under surveillance from the beginning.
"That's how they've been tracking us."
Serus nodded. "They must have the boys there. I haven't seen a sign of them anywhere else."
"We could really use Goran right now." Tessa winced. "A flier would be perfect for this."
"I can get over there. Can you tell how many people might be up there?"
"Give me a minute." Ignoring his sharp look, Tessa defocused, pulled both sets of vision back into use, and studied the hanging chamber. "Four, right now."
"Four people?"
"Yes. Several fainter trails of energy show that several people have come and gone over the past few hours, but a hub of energy is sitting low in there right now."
"Can you–"
"Yes," Tessa broke in. She was way ahead of him. "David and Cody are both there…but not Jared."
"Didn't expect to find Jared here. Bart said something about Jared having gone off to explore a tunnel."
"As long as that somewhere doesn't mean he's been hung back up again, then that's fine," she muttered. "What's the plan?"
"I'm going to jump across and take out whoever kidnapped my son." The thick shadows deepened the grim lines on his face.
Tessa shook her head. "You're going alone?"
"Hell, yes. I want you to stay here. Out of the way, and out of sight. I'd like to know that at least one of you is where you're supposed to be. "
"What about Goran? I'll only stay here if he's already up there waiting to help you."
"He is, I can assure you. He's waiting for me to get moving." He stared at her hard. Then he reached out and snagged her to him in a tight hug. "I'll be back soon. I promise."
Releasing her just as suddenly, he jumped. And disappeared into the darkness.
***
Jared stopped to wipe the sweat off his brow. Too bad he hadn't come across a creek by now, because he needed water. He hated to admit it, but he might be lost. Surely when descending a mountain, down was the only way to travel.
He stopped to grab a breath. Again. He'd evaded everyone around the mouth of the tunnel, but now that he'd been on the run for such a long time, where the hell was he?
The tall trees blocked everything, including the sun. Skinny pine trees, growing in dense clutches, that seemed to reach out and snag at his clothing. The sun had to be up there somewhere. Without being able to see it, he couldn't tell what time it was. According to his stomach and shaky muscles, he'd been out here for hours.
Where the hell was he?
***
Cody fought to open his eyes. Splinters sheared through his head with each movement. He appeared to be in the same place wherever the hell that was. He didn't recognize what little he could see. How many other places had they missed when they'd searched the place?
He didn't dare risk taking another kick like the last one. He healed fast. All vampires did. But they could be killed, too. And they could be maimed. Something he didn't want to deal with. Ever. He swallowed heavily but silently and tried to open his eyes again. This time, they parted enough for him to study his surroundings more closely.
The same damn boot lay in front of him. David. At least, he hoped so.
Cody's second swallow went down a little easier. As did the widening of his eyelids. His breath shuddered out. He stilled, afraid that someone might have heard him. When there was no movement, he relaxed again and let his eyes drift closed. Nothing had changed, then. He was still a captive. And so was David.
