“You can’t threaten us with a Supreme Court justice.” Senator Wood’s face contorted with rage.
Erica stood and stared down the ugly little man. “That wasn’t a threat to the committee.”
She grabbed her purse and papers. “You’ll be hearing from our lawyers in the morning.”
When she walked out the door, Sol, Titus, and Major Carter close behind. They said nothing as they walked through the droll government building. Once inside the car, she sighed. Titus turned from his position in the front to grin at her.
“Did I mention you are amazing?” He clapped his hands.
“Yes, very impressive, Ms. Scott, but,” Carter started the car and they pulled out of the lot. “I’m concerned with my position here. There is only so far they are willing to let this go.”
“And that’s where Kate comes in,” she said. Titus sighed loudly from the front, and she had to stifle a laugh. “She’s about the best PR person out there. You need an image. Not lapdog of the government or a pity case. People need to see you as the amazing group you are. Someone who will be there when they need someone to swoop in to save the day.”
Erica linked hands with Sol. She found herself doing this often since their confessions. Her need to be connected to him was surprising.
“Not to be mean, but what made you go with the whole lodge thing?” She stared at Titus, who had gone quiet.
“He was trying to model after the Native Americans,” Sol answered.
Erica nodded. “Makes sense, but I think you’ve missed an opportunity here. You can continue to be contractors for the military, but why not expand on that?” She looked between Sol and Titus. “What if you were just contractors in general? Take the ones that mean something.”
The car got very quiet, and she wondered if she overstepped her bounds.
“It’s not a bad idea,” Carter said.
“I’ll think on it,” Titus said from the front, and she wondered if she had touched on a nerve for him.
Sol rubbed a finger on the back of her hand. When she looked over, she couldn’t help but smile.
Things were quiet for the rest of the ride home.
* * *
They parked outside of Sol’s cabin, and she sighed. He walked her inside and checked all the rooms. As much as she didn’t want to admit, she was glad he did. She had tried to remain tough, but things were just going too fast. As much as she tried, the thought of what had happened still frightened her.
Sol stood in front of her, his hands on her shoulders.
“Are you going to be all right?” he asked.
Erica nodded. “I’m going to take a nap. You go have fun at your meetings.”
She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him gently.
“Say it again,” he whispered.
“I love you,” she said against his lips and smiled. “Hurry back and I might show you later.”
Sol grinned. “Roger that.”
She watched him leave and yawned. A good nap is just what she needed.
* * *
“You know she’s right.” Sol paced in the office, his irritation growing. They had been going round about this for the past hour, and Titus just didn’t want to budge.
“I don’t know she’s right,” Titus roared. “I know you and Carter think she’s right, but that doesn’t mean shit.”
“Are you saying your mind is made up, regardless of what we say?” He could feel his temper flaring and took a deep breath.
Titus sighed. “What I’m saying is, I don’t know if I can go back to that way of life.”
Sol stopped and looked at him. It had been different for every one of them, but for Titus, it had meant a life of constant training.
“So don’t,” Sol said. “This doesn’t have to be like it was. We are free men who can chose to live differently,” he said quietly.
Titus nodded and looked away. “I’ll think about it.”
Sol nodded back. That was the best that he could ask for. He looked over at Carter, who had stayed surprisingly quiet during this, likely giving them the space to decide on their own.
“What are we going to do about Woods?” Sol asked.
Carter shook his head. “Not much we can do. It’s likely he’s working with the Group, but without solid proof, we’ve got nothing.”
Titus turned to them. “It’s not going to lead back to him. Even if he is the one making the calls. Woods is too smart for that.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “No, the only way to win this is by taking down the Group.”
“That’s going to be hard to do,” Carter said. Doubt filled his voice, and Sol had to agree.
Titus turned to him. “We have no choice.”
Carter and Sol nodded in agreement. There really was no other choice with this. They were sitting ducks, and it wasn’t a good feeling.
Titus smiled. “So, your girlfriend the heavy weight. Did you know she was connected?”
Sol felt pride swell in him. “We didn’t exactly have those sorts of conversations.”
Titus grinned. “I would imagine not.”
“Do you think she would follow through on the threat?” Carter interjected.
Sol thought about Erica. He had never known her to bluff. “I think she will if she had the right kind of evidence. Should wouldn’t go right now since all was have is speculation.”
Carter nodded. “It’s always nice to have an ace when we need it.”
“What about Mark?” Sol had waited all day for this. He had avoided it around Erica, but he had to know.
“He’s been booked on attempted rape, kidnapping, and a whole load of other money-related charges,” Carter replied. He let out a breath. “It’s good you didn’t kill him. We might get him to roll on someone.”
Sol’s hands clenched in rage. He had wanted to kill him. In fact, if he hadn’t been so focused on Erica, he might have. “I don’t want him to see the light of day,” he said quietly.
“We’ll do our best,” Carter said.
“We still need to address the media on this,” Sol said and looked to Titus. “Are you going to hire Kate?”
Titus groaned loudly. “Do I have to?”
“She is one of the best,” Carter said. “We’ve looked into it, and it’s not a bad idea.”
“Not to mention she’s already here.” Sol grinned.
Titus groaned. “All right, but I’m not responsible if I have to lock her in the closet.”
“Alone?” Sol grinned as Titus flipped him off.
He froze as the sirens blasted through the air. Panic hit him.
“Erica,” he whispered.
* * *
Erica shot up from the bed, disoriented from sleep and slightly nauseous. Alarms wailed through the air, and she wondered what had happened.
Something painful jabbed her arm, and she fell back on the bed. Her vision blurred as the creepy man from the first night came into view.
“Now don’t struggle,” he said from her side. “We wouldn’t want anything happening to our special cargo.”
The room spiraled around her, sending her into a deep sleep.
Chapter Eighteen
“She’s not here,” Apollo said over the radio. “It’s them. I’m sure of it, but I’m not getting anything in scent. There’s an odd chemical feel that’s messing with my senses.”
Sol felt his stomach bottom out when he couldn’t reach her by phone.
“I’m coming,” he said and headed for the door the same time Rachel came charging in.
“They’ve taken her, haven’t they?” she asked him.
“How did you know?” Titus narrowed his eyes at her.
“Her labs,” she said. “They didn’t come in, and so I called. The labs were sent back much earlier, but they somehow never reached me. Someone intercepted the results, and those results were why they took her.”
* * *
Erica groaned. She was groggy from the shot. The earth around her was hard and damp. When she was able to focus
, she could see she was on a blanket on the ground. Overhead was some sort of rock formation, and she wondered if they were in a cave.
“Where am I?” she asked.
“She’s awake,” someone whispered from a few feet away. “Go get the doctor.”
Erica tried to sit up, but chills racked her body. Her teeth chattered so hard that she worried she would break them.
“It’s from the shot,” a man said as he placed the blanket on her body. She looked over to see it was the man from the bar, with his unmistakable ferret-like face. “Don’t worry. It wasn’t enough to hurt you or the baby.”
“Baby?” Her head spun as she tried to get past the aching cold that was hitting her.
“Oh,” the man laughed. “We assumed you were having the test because you suspected. Interesting.” Stethoscope in hand, he took her blood pressure and heart rate. “Good considering the circumstances.”
She placed a hand on her stomach and thought over things. It did make sense, although Sol had been adamant that they couldn’t have children. That might even explain her recent emotional outbursts.
The chills began to fade, and she was able to sit up and look around. He handed her a sports drink and despite herself, she drank it. If she wanted a chance at getting away, she needed to be ready.
“What’s going to happen to me?” she asked. She looked around the dimly lit cave and guessed it was nearly night. A faint light came from the mouth. She could make out two men crouched at the opening. Another sat near her, watching as she assessed things.
“We’ll be out of here soon,” the doctor said. “You are very special. No harm will come to you. We’ll be taking you to our newer facility.” He laughed and clapped his hands together. “We always wondered if things would be different if they were out of captivity.” He smiled at her. “I can’t tell you how excited we were to see the labs. We’ve been waiting for this for such a long time.”
Her stomach rolled at how casual the man was about imprisoning the hybrids. Being near him made her skin crawl.
“You won’t get away,” the guard near hear said, his eyes sharp and knowing. “We’re out of their hearing range. No one will hear you.”
“Oh yes,” the doctor said. “It would be so much better if you just wait nicely.”
Tears leaked silently down her face, as she watched the breeze stir at the front of the cave.
* * *
“Fuck,” Sol bellowed.
They had been searching for the past two hours without any success. The amount of ground to cover was more than they had time for. For all he knew, she had already been moved off the grounds.
Apollo clapped a hand on his shoulder. “They would have to wait till the dead of night to move her unseen.”
Lucius came up next to them. “Maybe we’re thinking about this all wrong. Instead of keeping to the fence, maybe they anticipated our abilities and moved to the center.”
Sol thought on this. It made sense. They knew they were wearing some sort of scent mask and assumed Erica had been carried away. The thought of another man touching her sent white hot rage through him.
“It’s the best bet we have. Call it in to Titus. We’ll go in deep if he’ll have the men canvas the walls.” Apollo nodded and made the call.
“We’ll find her.” Lucius said gruffly, his jaw twitched as he talked. “And when we do—”
“And when we do we’ll bring them in, so justice can be served.” Apollo came back and stared at Lucius and Sol hard. “We need these men alive if we want any chance of taking the Group down.”
“We don’t have time for this,” Sol ground out and raced into the woods.
She needed him and that was all that mattered.
* * *
Erica shifted uncomfortably. She had demanded several sports drinks and something to eat. If they we going kidnap her, the least she could do is be as bitchy as possible.
“I need to go to the bathroom,” she said to the doctor.
He sighed at looked to the leader of the goons, who shook his head. Tattoos littered his body and shaved head, most containing curse words or symbols that reminded her of something you’d see from a neo-Nazi. When he sneered at her, she could see that even the inside of his lip was tattooed.
“Can’t you wait?” He glared at her.
She folded her arms over her chest. “No.”
The thug cursed. “Fine. But you try anything, and you’ll be sorry.”
“Oh no, no, no.” The doctor stood between them. “She can’t be hurt.”
“Relax,” the thug said. He stared menacingly at her. “There are a lot of things we can do that won’t hurt the baby.”
Fear speared through her, but she forced herself to stand. Her legs shook, but it would be better this way. The more fear she had the more likely Sol was to smell her in the air. She wasn’t going to be able to get away with the bulldog on the watch.
“Let’s go.” He grabbed her roughly.
She cried out as she stumbled over the uneven ground and crashed into the wall, cutting her hand. The thug chuckled and yanked her along even harder. Once outside, she sucked in the cold air.
“Make this quick.” He glared at her. “It’s fucking cold.”
They walked a ways from the opening, deep into the thick of the woods. The snow-packed ground crunching underfoot was the only sound as they moved along.
“Here,” he said.
Erica started to move into the woods.
“Stop,” the thug shouted.
“I can’t go in front of you, and it’s not exactly like I’m going to get far before you catch me.” She sighed. “Please, just let me go over there.” She pointed to a bush.
“Fine. But make it quick.”
Erica made her way behind the bush and pulled down her pants. All those sports drinks meant she did actually have to go.
She grabbed a twig and dug into the wound on her hand. It was the best chance she had to them finding her. She only hoped the thug wouldn’t notice.
She pulled up her pants and made her way to him. The blood dropped slowly, and she dug her fingers into the wound to help keep it going.
They walked back in silence, a trail of blood her only hope.
* * *
Sol could smell her in the wind, and had been for the past twenty minutes with no luck. It was driving him insane.
“I think I’ve got something,” Apollo shouted.
Sol and Lucius ran to where he was. He could smell her fear, and it bit through him. She had been here but how long ago?
“Looks like she made a trail for us.” Lucius held up the bloody twig, and they spotted the droplets of blood leading away from the area.
They swiftly followed through the trees, fear working its way through Sol. If she was hurt, he didn’t know if he’d be able to come back from that. The men who hurt her certainly wouldn’t. He’d see to that.
The path wound through the woods and stopped just at the opening of a cave. Her scent was strong in the air.
Lucius put a hand on his shoulder to stop him from moving in. Anger coursed through him. He was right, of course, but that didn’t mean he had to like it.
Apollo and Lucius pulled out their guns. It had been decided earlier that Sol wouldn’t be given a gun this time. He was far more likely to use it, not that it would stop him from ripping a man apart.
Lucius and Apollo flanked the opening and peeked around the corner. They waved him in after a moment.
“They’ve already moved on,” Apollo said softly.
This was their move. He could feel it in his bones. If they didn’t find her soon, they might never find her. He roared with everything in him.
Faint, off in the distance, he heard her reply.
Chapter Nineteen
The leader of the thugs back-handed Erica, sending her to the ground. “Yell again, bitch, and you’ll regret it even more.”
She had heard Sol, and she could only hope he heard her back. Erica spit the blood out of her
mouth and scrambled off of the ground.
“Oh you can’t do that.” The doctor stepped in front of her. “You’ll hurt the baby.”
“I don’t give a shit. I’m not getting locked up or worse for this bitch,” the lead thug said. His two followers closed on her.
She scrambled backwards.
“They won’t pay if she doesn’t make it,” the doctor said desperately.
“Well I don’t think they’ll pay if none of us make it,” he snarled at the doctor. “Tell me, Doc, what do you think those freaks are going to do with you when they get a hold of you?”
The doctor paled.
“Think they’ll kill you quick or stretch it out?” the man said. “Maybe they fuck you before they kill you.”
Another roar made the doctor shake with fear.
“What’s the verdict, Doc?” The man sneered at him.
A flash and bang rang through the air. Erica screamed when she saw the thug lying on the ground, blood pooling around him, a look of shock on his face as he gasped for breath. Another thug stood over him.
“The Group needed a little extra assurance that people would do their jobs.” He chuckled. “Looks like it came in handy.”
The doctor looked from the man on the ground to the one with the gun.
“Doctor?” The gun-toting thug raised an eyebrow.
The doctor looked at her and nodded. The thug held out a hand and helped her up. “No more out of you, or I knock you out.”
She nodded and stood.
It didn’t matter. Sol was close and would save her.
* * *
Sol raced toward the sound of the gunshot. They wouldn’t hurt her, he kept telling himself. She was worth far too much, and they needed her, but her scream kept echoing in his head. He came to the clearing and stopped in his tracks.
A man dressed in black lay on the ground, still bleeding from the shot. Sol breathed a sigh of relief. She was safe or at least hadn’t been shot.
Luna Lodge: Sol Page 13
