by Leia Shaw
He stared at her in shock. “You love me?” She’d said it out loud. He knew she loved the old Maddox but he never thought she’d love the new version. “You love me the way I am now? Even if I never return to the way I was?”
“Of course. I mean, we need to get to know each other again. You’re not the gangly teenager I remember.” She snorted a teary laugh. “But as I told you before, you’ve always been the only one for me.”
He leaned forward and took her mouth with his. They kissed, slowly, sweetly. He inhaled her scent, then stopped and sighed against her lips. “You’re too forgiving. But I’ll be damned if I complain. Now sleep. If I’m going to get you out of here, we both need rest.”
With a small smile, she nodded and settled back on the bed. Before he could do more than shift to a more comfortable position, she grabbed his arm and hugged it against her as if she were planning to hold him there the rest of the night. He let her, for now, and rubbed her back until her breathing slowed and he was sure she was asleep.
He needed a plan. He couldn’t allow her to stay here even one more day. In his office, there was a map of the surrounding area and what they knew of the shifter territory. For now, she was safe in his room while he took time to think about how he could get her out of here alive. Someone might notice she was out of her cell, but no one would question him when he told them she was his charge. No one but his father. Maddox hoped he was too preoccupied, making deals with dragons, to notice. He’d have to pretend to be Inkman again, just a little bit longer. Then, once Felicity was far away from here, he would burn the place to the ground.
After slipping free from her grip, he kissed her temple. “I’ll be back, love,” he whispered.
***
Pressure on her chest woke her. Felicity opened her eyes then tried to sit up in a panic. Hands grabbed her and pushed her down, pinning her to the bed. Not Maddox. Soldiers in uniform.
One man stood out from the others. Eyes colder than Inkman’s, he smiled down at her. “Hello, dear. It’s been a long time.”
Maddox’s father.
Her muscles felt too heavy to fight. She screamed. A hand clamped on her mouth. Then darkness took her.
FELICITY: If you run, how will I find you?
MADDOX: You won’t. But I’ll find you. When the time is right. Until then, stay out of trouble, little rebel.
Email exchange, September 2004
Maddox sat at his desk, studying the map. He looked at the clock. It had been three hours of going over options and he still felt uncertain. But then life was uncertain. What he wanted was a clear path to safety. A foolproof plan. He sighed and looked over the routes again.
A knock sounded at the door. He didn’t know if he could handle a discussion right now. Still feeling shaken, it’d be hard to put on an emotionless front.
He steeled himself and put the map in his drawer. “Come in.”
The door opened and Grant walked in. Maddox saw red. The last memory he had of him was in Felicity’s cell after Grant had tried to rape her. And the time before that, he’d kicked her in the ribs. He took a deep breath and calmed himself.
“Did you make the bitch cry?” Grant asked with a wicked grin.
Another deep breath. Fuck, he was gonna lose it. He thought of Felicity, sleeping peacefully upstairs, so vulnerable. She was depending on him.
Pull it together.
“I’m busy, Grant,” he said. “What do you want?”
He shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. So he just came to gloat? Maddox wanted to fucking strangle him.
“I just came to find out why you weren’t at the bitch’s execution.”
“The what?” Panic seized him.
Grant hesitated, clearly confused.
“The what?” he yelled, slamming his hands down on the desk.
He flinched. “The execution. Your father… I thought you’d know.”
Maddox jumped from his seat and flew out of the office. Heart pounding in his ears, he sprinted to the interrogation block. If he was too late… Scorching heat shot down his arms and his palms lit up bright green. Wrathful energy coalesced, eager to kill. He leapt over a railing and landed halfway down one flight of stairs. Another leap and he was at the bottom.
In his mind, he pictured the worst case scenario. Felicity lying on a gurney, needle in her arm, empty syringe. He ran faster. Pale lips, limp body. They usually did executions in the first interrogation room.
A guard stood outside. Andras, he thought. It didn’t matter if he knew his name. Maddox flung a Bolt and hit him in the chest then burst through the door.
Several heads turned. He didn’t bother to count how many were in the room, or even who they were. He shot at the two to the side, and one in front. Rage took over and he let it fuel him. Through a haze of red, he registered weapons being drawn. He fought, barely coherent, past the need to kill. Three…four guards. It didn’t take more than a few seconds.
He looked around when everything stilled then zeroed in on the one guard left. The one holding the syringe next to Felicity. Without a second thought, he grabbed the guard and with a shout of rage, he threw him into the one-way mirror. Glass shattered.
Yells came from the hallway. Footsteps. He had to get out of here before they were overpowered. He looked at Felicity. She was tied down to the table but very much alive.
Eyes wide, she peered up at him.
With the knife from his pocket, he cut through the straps on her wrists and ankles. “Hurry,” he said, helping her off the table.
Grasping her hand, he pulled her out of the room then down the hallway, away from the shouts for backup, and toward his private exit. A Bolt soared by his head and hit the wall just in front of Felicity. She screamed and he pushed her ahead of him. Still running, he looked behind them. Three soldiers were on his tail, palms lit up.
“Run!” he yelled, pushing her faster. He was right at her heels but swung around to shoot at their pursuers.
As he got closer to the door at the end of the hallway, he busted the security lock with a Bolt then kicked open the door. Two Bolts barely missed them and pieces of ceiling exploded over their heads. He pulled Felicity through the doorway then shut it behind them. Palm lit up, he burned through the metal railing of the stairwell then shoved the long piece across the door, barring the guards behind them. It would give them a few extra seconds.
With her hand in his, he rushed them down the three flights of stairs. Footsteps pounded above them. On the ground floor, he opened the last door to freedom.
A cool blast hit him in the face as they stepped out onto the windy cliff. He turned Felicity to face him.
She stared up at him, sweating and panting. “What…what do we do?”
Without a word, he used his fingerprint to unlock the bands around her arms. He pulled her to his lips for a kiss goodbye. He had no idea how long it would be until he saw her again so he made it count – branding the memory of her taste, her smell into his mind.
When he broke away, he looked into her eyes, trying to communicate the depth of his love. “I will find you.”
Then he pushed her off the edge of the cliff.
Act 2
Wind whipped past her as she fell. A scream died in her throat. Moments later, wings caught the air and she leveled out. The shift was clumsy – it’d been a while and she was weak – but it spared her from the ocean’s rocky bed. She tried to coast as much as possible so she didn’t wear out what little strength she had left. Having the arm bands off was freeing, even though her flight was shaky. The cool air, the few rays of sunlight filtering through the gray clouds… She never thought she’d feel them again. As much as she wanted to get the hell away from the fortress, she made a circle over the cliff then looked for Maddox.
A motorcycle peeled out of the compound and she zeroed in on the rider, thankful for the falcon’s excellent vision. Blond hair flowed out behind him. Not Maddox? The man looked up and caught her gaze. No, she knew those eyes.
She followed the bike, flapping and blundering after him. Her strength was draining quickly. He weaved in and out of the trees, dirt billowing around him. There was no pursuit. The disguise must have worked.
Coasting lower to keep track of him, she dodged the tips of the trees. But her body ached. Her wings felt like paper against the wind. They wouldn’t hold her up much longer. She sunk lower. A branch hit her. Then another. She started tumbling out of control.
A desperate caw left her throat as she fell downward, crashing into branches as she went. As her vision blanked, she felt her body shift. Frigid air hit her vulnerable skin just before she thumped onto the hard ground.
***
Maddox’s heart stopped when he saw Felicity fall through the branches. Her cry was heart-wrenching. He pushed the bike faster toward where he thought she landed.
Upon seeing her naked body lying limp on the forest floor, he jumped off his bike and ran to her. A small rabbit sat by her feet, sniffing her.
Maddox checked her pulse. She was alive – bruised and probably concussed, but alive. The tan-colored bunny took two timid hops closer.
“You can shift,” he told it in Shifter Tongue.
A moment later, a naked, blond little boy squatted next to him, eyeing Felicity with a frown.
“Do you know somewhere she can hide?” Maddox asked him gently.
The boy nodded, business-like, then motioned for him to follow.
Maddox peeled off his shirt and put it on Felicity, maneuvering her awkwardly as he did. When she was mostly covered, he lifted her into his arms. When had she gotten so light? He followed the small shifter as he nimbly jumped from rock to rock across the falls. Last time he’d been there, the basin had been a sad, dried-up void. Now fresh water poured from the chute, filling the pool with clear water and memories. Skinny dipping – holding Felicity in his arms, her legs wrapped around his waist as they kissed under the falls. It felt like some kind of fucking romance movie, not like his life.
A dark cavern appeared just behind the falls. The boy disappeared inside. From the entrance, it looked too small to fit more than one person. But instinct said it was larger inside. Like the falls, had he been there before?
“Come,” the boy called from inside, speaking in English now. His voice echoed. “You fat. Is bigger in here.”
He sighed at the insult and vowed never to have children. He squeezed through the entrance, careful not to let Felicity’s body scrape against the rock. Once he stepped between the two walls, the space opened. The cave was as big as his chambers at Marwolaeth Du. Sun filtered in from an open canopy in the high roof. It was a perfect hideout, when it wasn’t raining. What did the child do when the rainy season hit?
The boy pointed to a makeshift bed in the corner, under a sheltered ledge. Formed of leaves and a few ratty blankets, it was a sad-looking thing, but it’d have to do. He set Felicity down.
She moaned softly and her eyelids fluttered, like she was trying to come to. He had to leave her for a little while, but he wanted to explain first.
“Felicity.” He tapped her cheek gently. “Wake up, love.”
Her body stilled and she was out again. Shit. They couldn’t stay here long. Even hidden, he was sure his father would find them eventually. They needed supplies, weapons. He looked at the little boy.
“What’s your name?”
“Keyon.”
“She’s one of you. Can you tell that?”
Keyon nodded.
Maddox bent down to look the boy in the eye. With a solemn expression, he explained, “She’s in danger. Sfeeta want to hurt her. Can you take care of her until I come back?”
Keyon puffed out his chest and gave him a proud nod. Trusting his most important possession to an unarmed, scrawny child no taller than his hip? Maddox sighed. If they survived this it’d be a bloody miracle.
Absently, he patted the boy’s head. He’d bring him back a reward if he could. He stooped and gave Felicity a kiss on the forehead then nodded to the boy and left the cave.
Supplies and weapons were his first priority. Later, he’d go back for his father.
Something furry tickled Felicity’s arm as she woke. Though her head pounded and she felt a little dizzy, she forced her eyes open. Sun peeked through a high rock ceiling above her. With a groan, she turned her head and took in the rest of her surroundings. She was lying on a cave floor. Alone.
Her last memory was falling through the trees as Maddox drove away from the prison. Had he been caught? He must’ve made it out or else she’d be back in Marwolaeth Du right now. Someone had taken her here to hide.
“Maddox?” It came out a soft rasp. Her throat was too dry.
Something moved against her side. The furry thing. She lifted her head and looked down. A small bunny was snuggled up against her.
She smiled. “Hey there.” Though it hurt to move, she ran her fingers over its back.
The bunny hopped away then turned to face her. It began to shake. A moment later, in its place stood a little boy, about eight or so, staring down at her.
He gave her a solemn look. “The fat man says he’ll be back soon,” he said in Shifter Tongue.
Fat man? “Long yellow hair?”
The boy nodded.
She chuckled then tried to sit up. A moan escaped her when a stabbing pain hit her in the stomach. She was too sore to move that much. With a sigh, she lay back down.
The boy stared at her with a concerned expression.
“I’m all right,” she told him. “Where did the man go?”
He shrugged.
Apparently he wasn’t the talking type. Did he live out here alone? She knew many shifter children were orphans but she thought they lived in the colony, taken in by other families. Why was this little one out in the middle of nowhere? And only able to shift into a bunny?
“Can you shift into anything other than a rabbit?”
His gaze dropped to the ground and he shook his head. If he truly had no family, they’d have to work on a better shifting form.
“What’s your name?”
“Keyon.”
“Thank you for watching over me, Keyon,” she said, guessing that had been his task.
He lifted his chin at the small praise.
“Do you live here alone?”
He opened his mouth to answer, then froze. She heard it too. Footsteps. Grunting near the cavern entrance. Keyon shifted and hopped toward a crack in the wall. Instinct pushed her to protect the child, but she couldn’t even sit up by herself.
The rabbit disappeared from view. A long moment passed and she tried to keep back the panic. Then Maddox stepped into the cavern, undisguised now. She exhaled a breath and smiled. She’d never have guessed that his bald head and tattooed arms and neck would be a comforting sight.
His cold eyes bore into hers and doubt surfaced. “Maddox?” Was Inkman back? She had no proof he was entirely stable. He’d only gained his memory back a day ago. Who knew if it would even last?
His face crumpled. “Of course it’s me,” he said, sounding offended.
Her muscles relaxed and she could breathe again. “Sorry. I’m just unsure of how this works. The whole memory thing.”
He stepped forward, carrying a large pack. He had all kinds of bags and implements hanging from his belt and stuffed into pockets. He looked like he’d just ransacked an army surplus store. She noticed the first aid kit – maybe he’d raided a pharmacy too.
“Inkman is gone, love. Forever.”
She nodded, hoping she’d believe it one day. For now, it was enough he knew she wasn’t his enemy. Was it only a day ago that he’d cried over her, that he’d finally remembered? It felt like longer. She was emotionally drained. She’d gone from being relieved she had him back to thinking she’d lose him again. This back and forth, being afraid for her life then relieved she survived, was wearing on her. In the rebellion, she’d had her fair share of near-death experiences, but now that Maddox was involved, it changed things. She
had something to lose.
Maddox looked down at the rabbit hopping by his side then gave Felicity a small smile.
“We need to teach him a new animal,” she said to Maddox in English, hoping the boy didn’t speak it.
Keyon shifted back to human form then took up a fighting stance and narrowed his eyes at Maddox. He yelled several violent threats, making Felicity wonder where he’d learned to talk like that.
Maddox put his hands up in a peaceful gesture. “It’s me. The fat man.”
The boy eyed him suspiciously.
With a sigh, Maddox changed his appearance to the blond man she’d seen leaving the prison. Then back to the Maddox she knew.
The boy’s eyes widened and he backed away. “Sfeeta,” he whispered.
“It okay, Keyon,” Felicity said in Shifter. “He’s here to help us. He’s not a bad Sfeeta.”
He seemed to relax a little but kept a distance from Maddox. Then Maddox took a package of candy out of his pocket and threw it to Keyon. He sniffed it, opened it, and sniffed it again. His eyes sparkled with longing. He looked at Felicity, as if asking permission.
She nodded. “Go ahead.”
He devoured the candy with small grunts as Maddox dropped the pack and came to Felicity’s side.
“Can you sit up?”
Wincing, she tried again but stopped when the room spun.
“Never mind. It’s probably better if you stay down for this.” With a sigh, he went back to his pack on the ground and rifled through it.
“For what?” she asked but he didn’t answer, making her suspicious.
The candy must’ve won Keyon over because after emptying the package, he shadowed Maddox’s every move, analyzing the gadgets and things that hung from his pants. He looked like a feral little cub exploring the human world for the first time. How long had he been away from the colony?
