“The work is finished and the portal is secure. We’ve set up a schedule of sentinel duty, but we need to figure out a way to hide the obvious fact that we’re protecting a hole in the desert floor.”
Rock looked over at Blade. The warrior stood there with his arms crossed, his jaw set, and eyes constantly watching everything around them. The scar that ran along his cheek pulled the right side of his face down into a permanent scowl. Blade remained there with Rock and watched Jag dance out his frustrations with Rock.
A warrior’s dance was a way to prepare for battle and keep their body in prime shape, not like the dancing men they’d seen in this world who had an obsession with grabbing their own cocks. Rock would rather move in a dance and entice a woman into grabbing it.
“What about Eddie?”
“He’s decided that he’d rather stay in our world. Something about an Arthur Rye-tus leaving him alone…I don’t know who he is, but we should keep an eye out for him.”
“Agreed.”
“Has there been any sign of the Kimil insurgents?”
“Nothing so far. If they get into this world it won’t be through our portal.” Blade’s scowl deepened. “I wish I knew for certain if this was the only one.”
“If they knew of another opening we’d have heard about it by now.” Shadow and his twin, Raven, who had a natural ability to decipher the electronic communications of this world, had been watching the Internet and security channels. “So far there hasn’t been a large enough spike in violent behavior in one single area that would make us worried.”
Jag suddenly stopped in the middle of a dance step, freezing as the shadow from the pyramid mountain stretched over them as the sun dipped below its peak. Rock felt his lips curl up into a smile. Jag looked at him with the grin of a hunter about to take down his prey.
“It’s time.”
Rock turned and clasped arms with Blade. “Be careful, brother.”
“Hunt well and bring back your prize,” Blade replied and then clasped arms with Jag.
“Keep our world safe,” Jag replied.
The moment Blade released their arms, Rock and Jag took off at a dead run in the same direction, out into the desert. The nagging feeling inside of him blossomed into exhilaration. The moment they had waited their lifetimes for was near. He could feel her, smell her on the air, and hear her soft breathing. She was so close to them. The temple scrolls had warned him of this time. If they could sense her then so could others, and that was what he and Jag feared the most.
If one of the others got to her before them, they would kill her slowly as punishment for their exile and to prevent the rising of their people again. But he and Jag wouldn’t allow it. They couldn’t. Their very sanity relied on finding this woman and claiming her. They settled into a steady, loping rhythm, eating up the space between them and their prey.
“We need a plan once we get there.”
“We have a plan,” Jag replied. “Find her, grab her, and take her home.”
“Simple but effective.” Rock hoped that it would be that simple, but nothing ever was. Rejoining this world had been trickier than they’d anticipated. To be honest he hadn’t expected Earth to be as technically advanced as it was. He wasn’t completely convinced that someone or something hadn’t had a hand in advancing them faster than they should’ve on their own. The last six months he and his warriors had had to catch up on thousands of years of history, the language, and cultural habits. All leading them to this moment.
He and Jag been born moments apart in the same village, with matching marks on their forearms, a sign from the gods that they were meant to be warrior brothers. But, when no girl child had been born in their village or any surrounding one on the same day, it meant they were meant to walk alone until the moment they found their Atan. A woman chosen for them but born to this world, kept safe from their enemies by a portal that would only open on a specific day. He and his brothers knew that each of them had an Atan somewhere in this world and all they had to go on was a feeling resonating deep in their soul that she was near.
The legends wrote that they would know her as soon as they found her, but it didn’t mean that she would know them. They had to win her love and earn her trust and only then would she allow them to claim her. The problem was the people from their world who’d been left behind to teach these women their place were lost in the sands of time. Earth had changed and so had the people. The old ways had been lost. Only a few rocks and signs remained behind to tell the story, a story that the Earth historians had continually gotten wrong over the years.
The truth was he didn’t want an Atan. Not at this exact moment anyways. Their world was in turmoil. They were still fighting the Kimil, and bringing his Atan into their world meant more complications. He and Jag could take care of themselves, but how could he expect to keep her safe while continuing to fight? They would have to take their place as leaders of their world and bring in the time of light. He might’ve been born to rule, but he wasn’t ready. He and Jag wanted to keep their hand on the pulse of the people and that meant fighting side by side.
“I don’t know if it’s right to take her like this,” Jag said, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. “She knows nothing about our world and we’re going to take her from the one home she has? Do we have that right?”
“We’re Maya, Jag. Yes, she is ours by decree of the gods. I don’t want our life disrupted any more than you do, but to leave her here would be tantamount to torturing her ourselves. If they were to capture her, you of all people know what they would do to her.” Jag flinched at Rock’s words and glared at him before picking up speed. He’d lost a sister to the hands of the Kimil. She’d disappeared one day and her lifeless, broken body had been dumped on his family’s property a week later. He didn’t want this any more than Jag did, but he knew that Jag would never allow another woman in his life to suffer at the Kimil’s hands.
“If we can sense her that means they can, too. How long do you think we have?”
“I don’t believe they’ve found a back door into this world. I’m hoping they’re far enough away that we will get to her first.”
* * * *
Destiny woke with a start, goose bumps rising up along her bare legs at the echo of thunder overhead. Disoriented, she looked around, trying to establish how long she’d been asleep. Everything was black as night around her and she tried to move, but her legs cramped up and protested the least bit of movement.
“Ow, dammit!” She dug the heels of her hands into her thighs and rubbed at the cramp in them as she looked around. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest as she assessed the situation. She was cold…really cold, and her body felt as though she’d run a triathlon. I’m in the middle of the freaking desert with god knows what wild animals around me!
“You’ve done some stupid things in your day, woman, but this might top the cake,” she said out loud, more so because the silence around her was terrifying. She listened closely for the slithering of snakes or the howls of coyotes, or scorpions…What sound do those things make?
Lightning flashed in the distance and a couple seconds later the thunder rumbled. She looked carefully around her in case she’d been surrounded by the creepy dangerous creatures as she slept. Snakes would curl up with a warm body and near warm rocks at night. Her breathing came fast and furious as she tried to move her shaking hand slowly around her body to see if something had decided to use her for a hot-water bottle.
The half moon appeared out from behind a cloud and gave her enough light that she could make out the ground around her. It didn’t look like anything was there, and thankfully there wasn’t anything but sand behind her back. Somewhere out in the desert she could hear the roar of truck engines but had no idea which direction it came from…or was it a chainsaw? Suddenly the thought of being struck by a rattlesnake paled in the face of Leatherface chasing after her. I can’t run.
A loud rustle sounded in one of the bushes a few feet away from
her and she whipped her gaze in that direction. The moon slid behind another passing cloud, impeding the little light she had. A loud thump and then another rustle and Destiny felt the adrenaline kick into her system. A flash of light lit up the sky and the thunder followed closely. Whatever it was, it was huge. A mountain lion maybe? The temperature and pains in her legs forgotten, she pulled her knees closer to her chest and put her hand on the rock at her back. If it was a lion, she was fucked. There would be no outrunning it. All she could hope was to fight it off. Maybe jab her thumbs into its eyes when it attacked. Pepper spray! Her fingers wrapped around the cylinder in her pocket and tears pricked her eyes with relief. Whatever it was, she would spray it and pray it ran away in pain. The bush rustled again. She took a deep breath and got ready to scream and fight.
A large lump of fur burst out from under the bush, directly at her. Every square inch of Destiny’s body froze in fear, and her breath caught in her throat. Her fingers gripped the spray as her mind screamed for her to move, but her body refused to budge. The animal jumped again as the moon emerged from behind the clouds.
It was a jackrabbit.
The biggest fucking rabbit she’d ever seen, but nothing but a bunny on steroids. “Oh, my god, you scared the shit out of me, Bugs.” The moment she spoke the rabbit leapt away. She pressed her hand against her ribs, her heart pounding rapidly under her palm. Stupid bunnies.
Her stomach growled low and long and she thought of a giant bunny roasting over an open flame. “I should’ve eaten you when I had the chance,” she muttered. Bracing her hand on the rock, she moved and pulled her legs under her. Her thighs screamed in defiance, and she gasped in pain. As she shifted forward, a low hissing sounded behind her head.
She turned, ever so slowly, and glanced over her shoulder. “Please be a bunny,” she whispered. But, it wasn’t. Lightning flashed and highlighted a long, thick black body with bright orange stripes. The creature sat on top of the rock she’d been leaning against, staring at her with black, evil-looking eyes. Its tongue flicked out to taste the air before hissing at her.
This time the scream didn’t get caught in her throat and she was running before the conscious thought registered in her brain. She tripped over her suitcase and hit the ground hard, gasping for breath before pushing herself to her feet and running again. Her sandals slapped against the asphalt of the road as she ran screaming like the hounds of hell nipped at her heels.
A shadow flickered in her peripheral vision, and then another one. Suddenly, a number of shadows fluttered around her. Lighting ripped through the sky overhead. Bats! Rabies! Vampire bats! Destiny screamed again, waved her hands wildly around her head, trying to prevent them from burrowing into her hair and biting her. Tears coursed down her cheeks as fear gripped her throat and she envisioned being surrounded and killed.
Her flight path took her straight down the middle of the road running blindly as she screamed. When she impacted against something large, for a moment she thought a truck had hit her. Hands wrapped around her shoulders and she realized it was a man. She looked up, way up. The top of her head might reach his shoulder, but the shadows blocked his face. His breathing was harsh as if he’d been chasing her.
It is Leatherface! She screamed again and tried to break his hold, but he gripped her arms painfully tight. A sound behind her alerted her to the fact that they weren’t alone. Another man was coming up behind her and he was as huge as this one. There was no way she would be able to fight them off. They’re going to rape and kill me.
She did the only thing she could in the situation. A part of her brain kicked into self-preservation mode and in a move much smoother than she ever imagined she could do it, she brought up her leg and buried her knee between his legs as hard as she could. He squeezed her arms making her cry out but then he let go. Dropping to his knees in front of her, he cupped his hands protectively over his groin and curled forward as he coughed out a groan.
She felt more than saw the other man move toward her. Another flash of light allowed her to see his face was twisted into a chilling image of rage as he reached for her. Swinging her hand up, she pressed the release button on her pepper spray and the stream launched at his throat and up over his face. He hollered, the noise almost drowned out by the thunder, and covered his face as he whipped his face away from her.
Run! She didn’t wait another millisecond and took off. Her legs pumped harder than they ever had as she ran for her life. She knew they would recover and prayed they’d retreat instead of exacting revenge. She’d rather be eaten by a coyote than face their fury. A large outcropping of rocks caught her attention. She needed to hide and hide fast. Maybe she could wait them out and they would move on. Clutching the canister of pepper spray in her hand, she ran off the road and across the uneven ground. The dark night and wildlife didn’t scare her as much as the two giants she’d managed to get away from and the threat they posed. Animals would kill her and be done with it. The men could torture her and make her wish she was dead for as long as they wanted. The moon slipped behind another large cloud and the night became even darker. A flash of light behind her lit up a hill of boulders and rocks as a rumble shuddered the air around her. She felt a couple splatters of cold drops against her skin. Thank god! The rain would cover her tracks and hopefully make it harder to find her. Maybe they’ll give up and search for cover, giving me a better chance to hide. She dodged into the shadows of two rocks and headed for the incline as the skies opened up around her.
Chapter Two
Jag’s lungs spasmed as he attempted to take a deep breath. His eyes burned as if he’d been thrown into a pit of fire. Cool rain poured from the sky and he turned his face to the soothing droplets that pounded down on him. He’d never felt such an agonizing feeling as he had when she sprayed him with whatever was in that canister she held. It stole his breath and forced his eyes to water so severely he couldn’t see. Thankfully, it didn’t feel as though any permanent damage was done. The rain lessened the agony and he could already feel his breathing easing.
“That is our woman?” Rock gasped, the horror in his voice apparent as his friend rubbed his balls.
“Are they still intact?” Jag asked. The humor of the situation hit him hard enough he almost laughed out loud. They were supposed to be the best of their warriors, future leaders of their people, and they’d both been dropped to their knees by a little human whose screams could shatter glass.
“I’m going to kill her,” Rock muttered as Jag sat down next to him.
“She was frightened.” He’d gotten close enough to her to see the blind terror on her face, before she blasted him with that vile spray. He’d been angry at Rock for ignoring her fears and grabbing her like he had. No wonder she reacted by fighting back. She’d been babbling and screaming so fast Jag hadn’t completely understood what she’d been saying. Something about a leather face? Was that a comment on our physical appearance? The woman’s actions and behavior could be blamed on the storm and her already terrified state when Rock frightened her further. A woman from their world would’ve recognized them for what they were and expected protection, which they would’ve given without thought. They’d learned a lot in the past months about this world. A lot of it bothered them. The Earth women weren’t as protected and were often abused by those who they should’ve been safe with. She wouldn’t have known him and Rock from any other male and he could understand her fear.
He tilted his face to the sky and rubbed the remaining burning substance from his skin. He was impressed that the little female was strong enough to attack through her fear. Lightning ripped through the sky, the thunder rolling over them before the flash was gone. He’d seen storms like this come hard and fast before continuing on its path, but it could still be dangerous. Especially if this storm wasn’t natural. The Kimil had the ability to control the weather around them and were known for using it in battle. Being able to create shadows to hide in was a great advantage to the deadly creatures.
Unease
washed over his senses. “We need to find her.” He held out his hand to Rock and his friend gripped it and Jag pulled him up.
“I’m glad to see that her survival instincts are strong, but I’d rather not go thought that again.” Rock huffed out a breath and coughed as he rubbed the front of his pants. “Did you see which way she went?”
Jag nodded to the right. “She headed into that outcropping of boulders, but she’s running wildly. I’ll bet her first instinct will be to hide from us in hopes that we leave her alone.”
“That’s not such a bad idea,” Rock muttered as they jogged in the direction the woman had run. “The last thing we need to deal with right now is a violent shrew.”
“Right, because scaring the woman out of her mind will bring out the best in her. Why don’t we find her and take her somewhere safe. Then we can go back to the fight.” Lightning lit up the sky again and exposed the rocks ahead of them. The thunder rocked the air around them a moment later. At least the noise from the storm would cover the sound of their approach. If she was hiding from them, he hoped that it would hinder anyone else from finding her.
“Do you think that the legends are true?” Rock jogged next to him as they headed in the same direction she went. Another bolt of lightning ripped through the air, thunder roaring overhead a split second later. “What’s the possibility the Kimil were lying in wait, all this time, waiting for the portal to open? Chasing her could be a mistake.”
Davies, Corinne - Claiming Destiny [Midnighter Seductions 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 2