“Go ahead Myla, change quickly. Remove anything they gave to you to wear,” Denise said.
Myla climbed in the back of the van and immediately began removing her clothing. There was still a trace of bruising on the side of her torso. She appeared to show no sense of modesty, as if being nude in front of someone else was perfectly natural.
“My guess would be the shoes, but it could be anywhere,” Layla said as she collected what Myla had been wearing. She folded the pants and laid them in the open shirt along with the panties and shoes before wrapping the shirt around them and tying them with the sleeves.
“You must get off this road. They are coming for you from the north and from Mexico City. It is a beautiful morning for a drive through the mountains. I am going to visit my sister. Her niece may be able to help you get your mind spirit back.”
“Mind spirit. I like that,” Denise said.
“It is not far from here, in Zoquizoquipan.”
“We should dump the clothing here before we head off in another direction,” Layla said. “Wait here, I’ll be right back.” She walked about two blocks down the road and sent the clothes Myla had been wearing flying far over and beyond the roof of what looked like an abandoned mechanics shop.
“You still got it Supergirl,” Denise whispered when she returned.
“Follow us but be patient. Our van climbs the hills slowly,” Maria said, as the young man driving started the van up to the familiar sound of an older VW engine puttering.
With Myla in the back seat and Layla driving, they followed the white van back the way they had came before turning left onto a narrow paved road that would take them west into mountainous terrain.
Chapter 55
Broken
Denise felt better being off the main road. Nothing good would come their way on the main roads, of that she was convinced. She had that gut feeling along with an inner voice in her head telling her this was not over yet.
“She wasn’t kidding when she said it was hilly,” Layla said.
“Does any of this remind you of your world Myla?” Denise asked.
“Yes, quite a bit.”
After passing an open stretch of land being used for farming on one of the hilltops, they started seeing houses scattered here and there. The driver got out of the white van when it stopped and motioned for Denise to come over.
“I’ll be right back.”
She walked over and opened the side door. “The town is not very large, but everyone there will be friendly towards you. We are taking this road a little further to my sister’s house where you will be leaving from on your own when you decide to leave. If you still wish to make it to Mexico City, it is longer but will be safer if you take this route,” she said, handing Denise a map she drew.
“Thank you. We will follow you.”
A few miles further down the secondary road they came to a two-story house overlooking a gorgeous valley with mountains reaching to the horizon.
The van parked away from the house under a shade tree. The girl who was riding in the passenger seat of the van got out and ran over to the Mustang. “Follow me. You can park behind the house. It will be safer.”
Layla followed her to a grassy spot behind the house. There was ample room to park, and get away if necessary. “Nice place, what do you think?”
“I think we’ll be alright,” Denise said.
They got out of the car, locked in up and followed the young girl around to the other side of the house.
“Maria, you’ve brought guests,” a woman shouted from the doorway to the house.
“Si Marilyn, very special guests. Where is Anna?”
“She is upstairs. Bring your guests inside.”
“She will serve us something cool to drink. She always has fresh juice when I come over,” Maria said.
They followed her into the house where they sat down to a delicious blend of mango and orange juice. Anna came down the stairs and smiled at them. She looked like she was in her late teens, with long straight black hair to the middle of her back. Denise could tell she was conversing with Maria mentally.
“Denizen, it is a pleasure to finally meet you,” Anna said.
“You saw us coming I take it.”
“Yes. The information highway has been busy since you started your adventure. I am pleased to see the worst part is over, but you are by no means safe yet.”
“I kind of figured that.”
Anna said something to her mother in Spanish. “It’s a beautiful day. Come, take a walk with me.” They walked with her to a spot away from the house with a marvelous view of the valley and surrounding mountains. “Have a seat, please,” she motioned to an area of thick grass under a large tree.
“Has Maria told you about the problem I am having?” Denise asked.
“Yes, right after you agreed to follow her here.”
“Can I be fixed?”
“Yes, she can fix you,” she smiled pointing to Layla. “First, let me welcome your guest and friend from the heavens.” Anna reached over to Myla and gave her a hug.
“Thank you,” Myla said.
“So many visitors from other worlds have come to this part of our world. We are an extraterrestrial magnet,” she laughed.
“Our mechanical means of finding our friends is out of order,” Denise said.
“As Maria explained to you, Layla dampened your ability to communicate. The solution is quite simple. She need only remove the force field, but if she never has done so before it can be tricky.”
“What do I have to do?” Layla asked.
Myla watched with utter fascination.
“You must find the shield before you can remove it. What you did was very powerful, and it is still in place.” Anna threw a rock as hard as she could at Denise’s head and it careened off the shield in another direction.
“Well now, that is fascinating,” Layla said.
“Now the way to remove it is to join her inside of it.” Anna motioned for her to get close to Denise. It is like refreshing the page on a web browser. You cannot refresh it until you go to it and know it is there. She threw another rock at them both and it bounced off the shield. “Now, remove it.”
Layla stood there for a moment wondering how to do that. She remembered thrusting her hands out to create it. She smiled nervously and swiftly moved her hands in a downward motion.
Denizen.
Anna.
You are back online, Anna laughed.
You’ve given me my mind spirit back.
Ha. That Maria.
Chapter 56
Fixed
Nola, Mari, Cyn, Aren, ANYONE.
Nothing.
It’s not like a cel phone connection is it Anna?
No. Keep trying.
Don’t let Myla out of your sight, Denise said to Layla.
I won’t.
“Come on darlin’s, I’m back online,” she said to herself, standing on a large rock facing west.
Anyone from the Tyrine. Anyone at all.
Denise?
Mari? Mari is that you?
Denise. We thought you were. We have not been able to reach you or see the Mustang.
Yes, well it got hairy and we took some automatic weapons fire getting away but we have Myla. I say again, we have Myla.
There was silence for nearly a minute. She guessed they might be rejoicing at the news.
Is everyone safe?
Yes, we are all in one piece. Mustang is damaged. Myla suspects the hits we took damaged your ability to track us, and the stealth feature.
Where are you?
We are in Mexico.
Can you tell us where?
I could tell you exactly where if there was such a thing as a satellite signal where we are. We are in a remote part of the country, about 200 miles northwest of Mexico City near a very small town called Zomquizomquipan. It is a very mountainous region.
Denise, can you stay where you are? We will find you?
Oh does t
hat sound familiar. Yes, I think we can if nothing changes.
What can change?
We were being tracked. They know we are somewhere in this region. There was a tracking device in Myla’s clothing. We have since discarded it far from here, but when they find it they will start searching, and I don’t know how many there are.
Try to remain where you are. There is a way to pinpoint your exact location, but it is a drastic measure I would rather not take.
How drastic?
It would leave you without your vehicle.
We will try to stay here. If we have to move I will keep you informed.
I will keep checking in with you. Denise, be careful.
Yes.
She walked back to the house to find Anna explaining something to Myla holding an ear of corn in her hands.
“She is so easily entertained,” Layla said.
“Innocent, like a child.”
“Yes. I wonder how old she is?”
“I made contact. They are on their way I hope. I gave them the region and the name of that little town we passed.”
“Well as fast as they travel they should be here any minute no?”
“NO,” Denise shouted wearing a painfully disturbed look on her face.
Denizen, we have unwelcome company heading towards the town, Maria said.
Denise could read the look of panic in the face of Anna who was trying to keep it from Myla.
How many?
Dozens Denizen. They are on motorcycles.
How soon?
Fifteen to thirty minutes at the most.
“Baby we got company coming and lots of it. Bikers.”
“Fucking bikers again?”
“Fucking bikers again.”
Chapter 57
Meeting
Denise stood under the large shade tree with Layla and Myla. “We must flee,” she said. “But before we do, we have some decisions to make.”
“Oh yeah.”
“Speak, please,” Myla said.
“Well, we cannot get out of here going back the way we did without a battle. It may be safe to assume that more of them are coming this way on mountain roads from the south. These are ruthless people. Undoubtedly there is a large price on our heads since that is just about all that motivates these people.”
“How do they know we are anywhere near here?” Layla asked.
“They stopped at the bakery where we met Maria and beat someone badly who works there. The other person working there told them we left following Maria. Apparently they know where she is from.”
“And my people?” Myla asked.
“They will undoubtedly be in this area very soon if they are not already searching from up there, but they have no way of pinpointing our location unless.”
“Unless what?” Layla asked.
“Unless we destroy the Mustang,” Myla said. “It will emit a very strong signature that can be detected showing them the exact location.”
“There’s that,” Denise sighed before continuing. “I don’t want to leave these kind people here, alone. There is no telling what they will do to them to get information.”
“So, do we turn their home into the Alamo and fight here?”
“I cannot do that to them. If there is that many and they are heavily armed as I suspect they will be, the risk is too high that someone will be harmed or dies. Then there is the damage to what little they own and the memories of it all to carry with them.”
“Myla, do you know how to destroy the Mustang to make this work?” Layla asked.
“Yes. May I offer an option?”
“Of course.”
“Unless it too is damaged, and I suspect it is not since we have used it, we do not need to take roads to make our exit.”
“If the vehicle can fit through a space without anything blocking its path like a tree or a rock, we can travel where there are no roads.”
“Can we fly?” Layla asked.
“No. As a safety precaution, they did not build that option into this vehicle. We can, however, travel roughly as tall as we are standing off the ground if necessary.”
Denise stared out at the mountain range and pondered what Myla had just said.
“Damage to their property, to their belongings, this can all be replaced, but we cannot allow them to be harmed.
“You’ve still got me,” Layla said. “The car is visible and slightly crippled, but Myla seems to think we can get out of here. Let’s leave our medallions with them. Kinsa told me that if I was holding someone and activated it, they too would be in stealth.”
“A perfect suggestion,” Myla said.
“There are five of them. Come on, time is wasting,” Denise said.
“Time is wasting?” Myla asked.
“We should act and stop talking because this time could be better spent.”
“I understand.”
They headed back to the house where everyone was gathered inside.
Chapter 58
Getaway
Anna and her family led Denise to an area behind their house that would have made it hard enough for anyone to find them. She put a medallion around the neck of Maria, Anna and her mother Magdalena. “It is important that you hold onto each other when this is activated to be cloaked, invisible,” Denise said.
“What are you going to use?” Anna asked.
“We have other plans,” Denise said, handing Maria six envelopes she had pre-filled with hundred dollar bills. “This is for you. It should be more than enough to cover any damages these bastards might do to your property. Consider it a gift.”
“Gracias Denizen,” Maria said.
“It is we who owe our thanks to you, and Anna.”
“What will you do?”
“We will leave. We have a plan that we think will be successful. Forgive me for not giving you the details.”
“We understand,” Anna said.
“If we get a chance, we will stop back to make sure you are ok.”
Maria simply nodded and smiled. “You have your mind spirit back. It is the fools on bikes that should be worried.”
“Yes, and thank you. Ok, Maria, you hold Jackie, and Magdalena you hold Paulo. Anna, you get your own since you can be most mobile.”
“Thank you Denizen.”
She showed them how to deactivate the medallions when it was safe. “It is important you hold onto each other tight, and be perfectly silent until they leave. Since you will be able to see each other it is easy to forget and speak or make noise.”
“Go now, they are very close,” Maria said.
Denizen gave each of them a hug before activating their medallions one at a time.
“Remarkable,” Anna said as she watched her family members disappear from view.
“You’ll be able to see them when I activate yours.”
“I hope to see you again Denizen.”
“I have a feeling our paths will cross again,” Denise smiled before activating Anna’s medallion.
“Remember, hold on and be silent.”
“Good luck Denizen,” Anna said.
She ran back to the house where Layla and Myla were waiting by the Mustang. “Come one, we got to go. Maria said they are very close.”
They could hear the roar of large bikes in the distance.
“Myla once again slipped into the back seat. Layla pulled out from behind the house and continued further up the road that brought them to it.
“If you notice a good spot to do this just say so. We want to head that way,” Denise said pointing west.
“This looks like a good spot, not too steep or cluttered,” Layla said.
“Myla, what do you think, does it look doable?”
“Yes.” She opened the console and activated the control that moved them roughly three feet off the ground. “A safe height to start with.”
“Feel like I’m on a ride,” Denise laughed.
“Or a boat,” Layla said once they started moving.
&nb
sp; “Take it nice and easy Supergirl. We just need to get far enough away, hide, and let the Tyrine know where we are.”
“Yes Captain,” Layla giggled.
Myla looked genuinely amused watching the two in the front seats.
“Make it so,” Denise said before cracking up.
It was the first time either of them had heard anyone from the Tyrine laugh.
Chapter 59
Invisible
Maria and her family could hear the deafening roar of the motorcycle engines pulling up at their home as they remained cloaked and hidden behind the house.
“Six of you continue down that road and make some time. Search the house, search that van. The rest of you, search the woods,” a biker shouted in Spanish.
The family was close enough to the house that they could hear glass breaking as the bikers searched for them.
“No one in this van,” one of the Bikers shouted.
“Check under it.”
A few bikers came out of the house, one of them eating a piece of bread. “No one here,” he said.
“Well they didn’t pass us, they’ve got to be around here somewhere.”
“No sign of the Mustang, but there are tire marks leading down the road you sent Pepe down.”
The lead biker sat on his bike assessing the situation.
“Call everyone back,” he barked.
There was a clamor to get everyone back. The lead biker walked over to another and removed his assault weapon from his shoulder.
“Sense, stop eating and get out of that house,” one of the other bikers shouted.
The lead biker walked over to the side of the house and opened fire on the thick vegetation beyond it in a sweeping motion from right to left and back. “Callate,” he shouted before pausing to listen. When he heard no one he loaded another extended magazine and walked toward the back of the house.
“Down, get down on the ground everyone. Lay as flat as you can,” Anna said.
They heard rounds zipping through the vegetation, whizzing over their heads as he emptied another magazine before stopping to listen.
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