detailed accounts of how horrible it was walking through the between , but she couldn’t help but feel excited and curious rather than nervous. She was definitely her father’s daughter, complete with affection for the unknown—danger be damned.
“The trick will be not only to reach the nearest portal, but also to make it to the other side where there are Klatch guards to discourage our ‘friends’ from following us.” He took one hand off the steering wheel to chuck a thumb over his shoulder toward their “friends.”
She craned her neck to look behind them and saw the dim glow of headlights through the thick forest that lay between them. A quick glance down at the backseat showed Shiloh laying flat on his stomach clinging to the leather seats with all four paws, claws extended and dug deep into the material. His expression seemed more irritated than scared, which brought a small smile to her lips. “Hang in there, Shi,” she said and was rewarded with the most pitiful hangdog look she had ever seen on the feisty cat’s face.
A flicker of blue caught her attention, and she looked up in time to see another energy beam bearing down on them.
“Hold on,” Ryan warned, letting her know he had seen it, too.
The Humvee jarred to the side, barely avoiding the blast of energy.
The sudden jolt banged Kiera’s temple against the headrest and brought back her earlier bout of dizziness.
She faced front and closed her eyes as she sucked deep breaths into her lungs, hoping to clear her head. “How far?” The Humvee swerved again, and the high-pitched screech of branches scratching the doors screamed through her like nails on a chalkboard.
“I can sense the portal point getting closer, but I’m not sure if this little trail we are attempting to drive on will cooperate.” He risked a quick glance in her direction before turning his attention back to the road just in time to steer around a large boulder and into a wider part of a small ravine. “After I emerged from the portal, I used actual roads to find you.”
Kiera snorted at his deadpan attempt at humor. She could definitely navigate. The familiar comfort of taking charge surged through her, and her confidence poured back with a vengeance. “Describe the general location of the portal point to me.”
“It’s just next to a small pond with many ducks. There is a natural clearing near it with ankle high grasses and a natural stream. I had to walk through the forest for about five minutes from there to reach the main road.”
A mental map of the area formed inside Kiera’s mind, and she knew the “pond” he referred to was Kinnikinick Lake. There were a few possibilities as to the road, depending on which side of the half-mile-wide lake he emerged from. “Was the road you found paved or dirt?”
“Paved.”
Crap. That ruled out only two sides of the lake.
“Close to the portal are two pine trees with twined trunks. There were orange strips of cloth tied to them.”
Relief and excitement burned through her. She knew those trees and had seen those strips of orange the hunters left to mark the area. Her gaze scanned the moonlight-dappled scenery that bumped and sped by as she tried to get a fix on exactly where they were now and how best to get them to where they needed to go.
The front of the Humvee dipped into a large ravine, and she gripped the door and dash, grateful her seatbelt held her in place. When they reached the bottom of the ravine and started up the other side, gravity pushed her back against the seat just as another blue beam of energy engulfed the Humvee.
Sparks flew from the dash panels, and the smell of burning electrical wires filled the car.
Kiera coughed as the acrid smoke filled her lungs. Icy fingers of panic crawled down her spine.
She shielded her face with her arms as the sparks continued to fly from the dash panels.
Sparks hit her arms like dozens of angry ant bites, and she yelped.
Her fingers groped for the button to roll down the window. When she found it, she jabbed it so hard she was surprised the small lever didn’t break off in her hand.
One tense moment later, the window shakily complied with a high-pitched whine. The crisp night air stole the acrid smoke from the cab of the Humvee, and she leaned toward the open window and breathed deep.
Ryan slammed on the gas, and somehow the Humvee made it to the top of the hill and sped forward, leaving their followers to fight their way out of the ravine.
After mouthing a silent thanks to the universe that the Humvee was still running, she spared a quick glance backward and then turned to Ryan. “I should be driving. Switch with me.”
“What?” His eyes left the road long enough for them to hit several large bumps that made her nervous.
“Watch the road!” When he complied, she huffed out a breath and restated the obvious, while she held on through the bumps and twists of the road. “I know the surrounding area and can’t shoot energy beams. You can, I assume, shoot energy beams and don’t know where we’re trying to go.” She stared at the side of his face, daring him to disagree, although the effect was most likely lost since he was staring straight ahead. “I should be driving, it just makes more sense. If you want some extra firepower to distract any humans in their group, there’s a duffel under the hatchback floor. Switch with me.”
Not bothering to wait for his approval, she unhooked her seatbelt and laid her seat down into a reclining position to give him room to maneuver his bigger frame when they switched. She gripped the steering wheel with her left hand and slipped her leg over his and onto the gas pedal. When he reluctantly moved his foot from the gas, she lifted her butt off the seat and slid it onto his thigh.
“This would be much more interesting if we weren’t being chased by a team of assassins,” Ryan said against her ear through gritted teeth.
Gooseflesh from his hot breath against her sensitive skin marched down her neck.
Now was not an ideal time to allow herself to become distracted.
He moved out from under her, and she slid into the driver’s seat, lifting her butt again so he could retrieve his left leg.
Kiera snapped her seatbelt into place and spared a quick glance for Ryan, who was had already climbed into the backseat. “Hold tight, and try not to land on the cat.” She zigzagged through the forest, careful to avoid fallen logs and ravines, while keeping the gas pedal as close to the floorboards as possible without crashing. The Humvee definitely didn’t handle like her PT Cruiser, and it took her a several minutes to get used to driving the larger vehicle through forest terrain.
“Bollocks, what don’t you have in this bag?” Ryan’s voice held grudging respect rather than censure.
Apparently he had found her stash of weapons. She heard a thud as he transferred them to the backseat. When no offended feline screech ripped through the car, she knew the bag hadn’t landed on Shiloh. If she had any doubts, they were dispelled when the cat jumped into the front passenger seat and then plopped down on his stomach and dug his claws into the leather upholstery.
“I don’t see them behind us anymore. Keep an eye out—” Ryan’s words were cut off when a large truck careened out of the forest and directly into their path.
A
