The house we’d stayed at the first time in Porto was a small dark dot past the rows of grapevines, and we stared at it, trying to look for signs of the Believers. Tripp pointed to the left, where a shed stood a half mile away. “That’s it.”
On the right were a barn and a processing facility. Both were dark as well. I spied a white truck near the barn and had an idea. “Dad, this truck was here before, wasn’t it?”
“That rusted thing? I doubt it runs. We’ve been up there, but it’s never moved. Not since we came through the Bridge,” Dirk said.
“Dad, go with Tripp to grab the guns. Veronica, want to come with me?”
“Be careful. Meet us at the gate in ten.” Tripp crept silently, crouching low to keep out of sight from the house. Dirk trailed after him, duplicating his actions.
Veronica and I huddled in the shadows, hugging the edge of the vineyard land, and the moment I saw the truck up close, my shoulders sagged.
“This may have been a bad idea.” I glanced at the house and waited to see if I could hear anything. It was silent, with the exception of an owl hooting somewhere behind us. The passenger door opened with a squeak, and I checked the ignition, finding it devoid of the keys. I searched the console, glove box, and visor, coming up empty.
Veronica was at the barn, tugging the side entrance wide. Her phone was out when I followed her, and its flashlight glowed brightly in the dark space. There were a few old machines inside, along with an assortment of hand tools from another era. I walked over to the bench, scouring through the mixture of screwdrivers and wood planers, searching for keys.
I found them the moment I heard the voice carry through the barn.
“The prodigal son returns,” the man said with a Portuguese accent.
I shoved the keys into my pocket before spinning around. I couldn’t see Veronica anywhere, and her light was off. The newcomer shone a powerful flashlight over the ground, striking me in the eyes with the beam. I tried to cover them, spreading my fingers apart as I attempted to gauge the situation.
“Hi there. My car broke down, and I hoped there was someone here to help,” I said, trying to sound even more American.
“I know who you are, Mr. Walker. I just didn’t think you’d be stupid enough to return to the scene of the crime.” The light lowered, and I was able to see the guy. He was tall, wide at the shoulders, with a brown bushy goatee. He had a patch over his right eye.
“What happened? Walk into a doorknob?” I asked. It was a bad time for jokes, but I couldn’t help myself. I was trying to delay him, hoping Tripp would realize what was happening and come to the rescue.
With the man’s flashlight on, the barn was illuminated, showcasing the old rifle hanging on the far wall. It might be loaded, but even if it was, would it be safe to fire after sitting gathering dust all these years? I hoped I didn’t need to find out.
“You have quite a smart mouth, don’t you? Where is the Bridge?” He stepped closer, and I realized he was even bigger than I’d thought.
“We avoided the bridges. Not a fan of tolls,” I told him.
He rushed at me, his gun small in his grip. His palm flew out, slapping me across the face. “Enough games, Walker. Where is the Bridge? You’re going to show me the device and where the entrance is.”
He hit me again, my arm coming up too late. Blood welled inside my mouth, and I stood, head lowered. I spat on the dirty floor and looked him in the eye. “It’s too late. They’re already through.”
His face lit up, and I caught movement behind him. It was Veronica.
“You should think twice about harming me, pal. My new friends will be here any moment. They’re going to…” He swung again, and I ducked.
I heard the tool hit the man on the head and I dove away, watching as Veronica lifted the old metal hoe again. It dropped, hitting the ground as he rolled to the side. His gun was on the floor, and I went for it at the same time as him, but he was closer.
We struggled on the dirty wooden floor as he tried to aim the weapon at me. Veronica couldn’t get a good strike in. Not with me all over the guy, but I couldn’t let go.
“Give it up!” I shouted, but he was far bigger and stronger than I was.
There was one shot at this. I used every ounce of my strength to keep my right arm across his shooting hand, and snatched the truck keys. With all the force I could muster, I jabbed a key at his face. He screamed, arms flailing as it sank into his good eye. I turned over, rushing away from him as I grabbed the gun. He sat up, pulling the key out. He dropped it and shouted in pain. He was blinded, but the man was an ox.
He barreled into Veronica, knocking her and the hoe to the ground. I fired, hitting the huge target, and he staggered over to Veronica, stepping on her arm. She let out a yelp and jarred the hoe between his legs, pulling hard. It tripped the man up, and he tumbled to the ground. I shot him in the back, and he finally stopped moving.
I helped her to her feet and hugged her close. “We need to leave. If there are more around here, they’re coming after the gunshots.”
She got the keys, wiped them on her pants, and tossed them to me as we ran for the exit. Flashlights jostled from near the house, and I counted three beams bobbing toward the barn.
I tested the first key, and it didn’t fit the ignition. The second slid in, and I turned it. The old starter made a clicking sound.
“They’re getting closer.” Veronica’s voice shook as I tried again. Nothing. “Pump the gas. It’s not fuel injected.”
I grimaced, tapping the pedal a couple times to prime the pump. It worked. The truck lights shot forward, and the vehicle rumbled as I threw it into reverse. Someone shot out, hitting the tailgate.
“Duck!” I told Veronica, and crouched as low as I could while gaining distance from the barn. One of the Believers had cut through the vineyard, and I noticed the flashlight beam.
He shot at us as we drove past, hitting the passenger window. The glass spider-webbed, shattering as it fell apart. My heart pounded as adrenaline coursed through my veins. My headlights aimed at the shed Tripp and Dirk had gone to, and I sped for it.
“Why aren’t we leaving?” Veronica asked.
“The Case. It’s in the rental car,” I whispered. An eager cultist was already rushing from the land, sprinting to the gate.
I finally saw Tripp, and my dad jogged behind him. The ex-SEAL had a large handgun in his grip and a duffel bag over his shoulder. He tossed it into the truck bed and climbed inside, Dirk joining him. I spun the truck around, knocking over a section of the vines and their wooden trellises.
Dirk knocked on the window, and I shouted as loud as I could. “Three of them. Maybe more. Running for the Case!”
His voice carried through Veronica’s open window. “We can’t leave them alive.”
I understood. I’d been forced to kill too many times, but Tripp was right about this. We were only getting started. Veronica reached out the window, and Dirk passed her a 9MM. She checked the magazine and glanced at me, fear spread across her face.
“We’re going to be fine. I promise,” I said, using the words for her benefit as much as my own.
“Okay.”
Two of the men were blocking the makeshift road, and the gate was ahead. They held automatic weapons, deadly black guns that would tear us apart. I considered driving through them, but knew they’d be able to kill me before I ran them over. I slowed, stopping fifty yards away.
I rolled my window down. “Tripp, go into the vineyard.” I spoke just loud enough for him to hear over the roar of the ancient engine. I saw him in the large side mirror, planting his hands on the box. I flashed the brights, blinding the two Believers, and he hopped from the truck, silently stepping into the cover of the vines.
With the engine on, I scrambled from the truck. “Stay here,” I told Veronica, and she shook her head, shoving her gun into the back of her pants.
“No way. We’re in this together.” She climbed out, and Dirk jumped from the truck bed, la
nding in a plume of dust.
“All of us.” He nodded at me, and we marched forward, meeting the cultists.
“Here we are!” I called.
“Drop your weapons,” a woman said. The truck lights glowed behind, giving us the benefit of observing them, where we were nothing but dark shadows. She was young, wearing all black. Her hair was tied in a bun, her expression grave.
“How about you let us go, and we’ll give you the Bridge? Hell, I’ll bring you there this minute.” I hoped if I offered the Bridge, they’d ease up on their trigger fingers. Even if they found the Case, they’d be under strict orders to determine the access point as well. Jessica had sworn they didn’t want anything to do with Rimia, but she would be too intrigued to let us all die before learning what lay across it.
“Why should we trust you?” the woman asked. The thin man beside her stayed quiet. She was in charge. The third was still out of sight, and I assumed he was trying to break into the rental at this moment. It wouldn’t be long before the cult had hold of the Case and Tokens.
The seventh Token was tucked into my pocket, safe and sound, but that granted me little solace as I faced off against this pair.
“Trust? We’re not the ones trying to invite an alien invasion,” I shouted.
“You don’t understand, do you? We’re here to save the world,” the woman rambled on with conviction. “Everything is so black and white to you all. What if there’s a reason the Bridge has been so difficult to access? What if our salvation is already coming to Earth in the Objects?”
I wasn’t buying it and tried to guess where Tripp was currently hiding. I watched for a sign.
“You can have your beliefs. Like I said, I’ll show you…” The woman was gunned down, a bullet hitting her in the back of the head. The man spun, firing behind him, and all three of us shot at him. Veronica darted to the left, Dirk to the right, and I stayed in the center of the path, firing until the gun clicked empty.
“Tripp, are you okay?” I called, and saw the figure step onto the dirt road. Dirk aimed, and I urged him to lower it. I went to the bodies, taking the flashlight.
“I’m fine. Was almost hit in the crossfire,” Tripp said, and he was off, running for the gate and the road where the rental waited.
“Veronica, bring the truck with you.” She didn’t hesitate, turning to jog to the vehicle.
Tripp was ahead, but we kept pace, practically catching up to him by the time we passed the closed gate. It was only meant to keep out cars, not people, and the rusty padlock wasn’t even secured. I tossed the lock to the ground and shoved the barrier forward, giving Veronica a clear path.
The yellow car looked burnt orange in the darkness of the valley, and we slowed as we approached it. The rear window was busted, the hatch open. The duffel bag with the Case was gone.
Tripp held his gun up, scanning the area. “He has to be close. I guarantee he waited to see if his allies could fend us off before he scattered.” The trees were dense to the east, and I knew there was a chain-link fence there to keep animals from wandering in and ruining the vineyard. I looked west and saw there was a clear line for the property over. The house was dark, probably a vacation home for some rich European.
“There.” I pointed up the hillside, and Tripp nodded, agreeing.
Someone had the Case and Tokens, but not for long. We’d been foolish to leave them unguarded, but maybe one of us would have been killed defending them.
We were met with a short wooden fence past the road, and Veronica drove the truck behind us. I walked to the open window and stuck my head in. “Keep watch. There could be more of them nearby. We think he’s up there.”
“I’ll meet you around the other side,” she said. She’d been studying the map earlier, so would know where the entrance to this property was.
“Take Dirk. We’ll corner this guy,” Tripp suggested.
Dirk grabbed the rest of our bags from the rental car, chucking them into the back, and leaped in. I watched as they drove off.
Tripp pointed to the vineyard. “The nuke is missing.”
“That’s not good.”
“Nothing we can do about that. We have more urgent matters.” Tripp climbed over the fence, and I hustled after him.
We made quick work of the vineyard. This place was less maintained than Hunter’s, the ground uneven between the rows of grapes. We were close to the house, at the edge of the crops, and Tripp slowed, crouching at the clearing’s entrance. The villa was nice, with two smaller guest houses and a sprawling garage, separate from the main house.
We waited in silence, and finally spotted movement between the two guest residences. I saw the duffel bag over his shoulder as the man ran toward the road. I went before Tripp, aiming for the garage. I didn’t think we’d been spotted, and I was trying to use the advantage.
I bet there were more Believers in Porto, waiting for our arrival, and assumed this guy had already contacted backup. I glanced over, seeing Tripp running for the main home. He was aiming to corral the cultist. My legs burned, and my chest heaved while I hid beside the garage, waiting for the man to show his face.
No one came. I walked forward, gun ready, and rounded the corner. Still nothing. A motion sensor flashed on, and I almost fired, but it was just Tripp.
“Where the hell is he?” Tripp asked.
Headlights shone over the driveway, and I heard the truck’s door open.
“You get him?” Veronica asked.
“No. He has to be here somewhere.” Tripp nodded at Dirk. “Stay put. He’s in one of the buildings.”
I tested the garage, finding it locked.
Tripp was at the first of the smaller houses, and he tried the door. It was unlocked. I turned on the flashlight and held it up in my left hand, holding the gun in my right. I’d forgotten it was empty until that moment and wished I’d found a spare magazine. I kept it raised, hoping the intimidation would be enough.
The place was small, and we made quick work of it, searching the rooms and closets before returning outside. Veronica guarded our backs.
He had to be inside the next house. It was bolted, and Tripp sighed before shifting his stance and kicking out with all his strength. The door held but fractured slightly. He did it again, and a third time, before it opened. A bullet struck it as the slab bounced, and we stayed out of sight while the Believer shot repeatedly.
Tripp took a deep breath and shoved through the door while I aimed the flashlight inside. I saw the duffel bag behind a brown leather couch.
“They’re on the way,” the man said.
“Who is?”
“The rest of us.”
Tripp glanced at me, his gun poised to shoot, and he pulled the trigger, hitting the couch. The bullet did as he intended, firing through the soft center of the cushion. The guy shouted in agony, and his breathing was ragged.
“Hand it over, and we’ll let you live. Do you really want to die so close to their arrival?” I asked, trying to use his beliefs against him.
“I won’t let you have this.” The duffel slid from view.
Tripp crept further across the room, and the moment the Believer rose, Tripp took him down from behind a floor lamp. The man coughed out, trying to speak, but it was too late. I waited to make sure he wasn’t going to return fire, and went over, prying his tight grip off the duffel’s strap.
The guy was still alive, but we left him there, not wanting to waste any more time. We found Dirk nervously watching the grounds, and returned to Veronica and the truck.
Tripp and I piled in and drove off, leaving four more victims in our wake.
4
Veronica took a winding route to our destination, ensuring we weren’t followed. It felt like a year had passed since we’d first come to this location, not under a month. My dad was still a stranger, but we’d tried to connect over the course of the seventh Token’s recovery.
He was energized now, excited to be returning to Rimia. I was nervous as we exited the truck, Vero
nica killing the engine.
Tripp glanced down the road and shoved the duffel bag at me. “Rex, I hope this all works. What a mess this turned out to be.” He clapped me on the shoulder, smirking despite the situation.
“Hunter was right to trust you. It’s been a pleasure.” I shook his hand, and he laughed gravely.
“Don’t worry. We’ll see each other again, and soon.” He said it with a certainty I didn’t mirror.
“You’ve been a good friend, Tripp. When this is over, you better invite me to your beach house.”
“Anytime, Rex.”
I stepped away, letting Veronica and my dad say their goodbyes while I put the Tokens into the Case. I slid them into their allotted slots, and almost freaked out when I couldn’t find the sixth one. But there it was, on the bottom of the bag, tucked into a fold in the fabric.
“You have food for a week or so, and don’t forget the guns.”
I found a spare magazine and replaced the spent one, slipping the weapon into my pack. They each had emergency supplies, simple things that could make it through airport security, and I remembered seeing a dull blade in the truck. I went to it, flipping the rusted blade out. It would help start fires with the flint I’d packed in the States.
Entering the cavern was far different this time. I glanced at the path taken and could hardly see the truck through the mist. We were above the clouds again, and the stars shone brightly high overhead. Was any of them Rimia’s star? Where was this planet in relation to Earth? We knew so little about it, even after my father had lived there for eight years of his life.
The cavern looked the same, with the rough drawing on the wall, the pedestal centering the space. Veronica stayed close as we walked inside, and I set the Case onto the flat stone table. Tripp was outside, not wanting to be caught in the sweeping light.
“Why didn’t we travel through when we were last here?” Veronica asked. That was a good question, one I’d asked my dad in the early days. He only had a theory.
Lost Time (The Bridge Sequence Book Two) Page 25
