Wild Things (BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance): Shifter Lovers Romance (10 page)

Gabriel
crouched low, the machine screaming in protest. She’d never experienced
anything like this, flying over the hard-packed desert, the wind tearing her
hair loose, pulling at her tattered silk clothes. It took all her concentration
to hang on as they raced across the sand.

After
a minute she dared turn her head, looking behind. The three aliens were
following them, plumes of dust marking their course. But there was too much
dust. Something was wrong.

“Gabriel!”
She screamed his name, but she could barely hear her own voice. She hit his shoulder,
leaned forward as far as she dared.

“There
are more of them! More aliens.”

Gabriel
nodded, tensed, then quickly looked back past her quickly. She leaned forward,
and he turned his head, his lips against her ear. Even so, the wind tore the
words away, almost before she could hear them.

“Ottway’s
men. Shifters. Three.”

Her
blood went cold. She knew what that meant. The Ottway knew they’d escaped. And
now his men were after her too. Somehow being brought back to the Ottway was
more frightening than the unknown aliens. She knew what he would do to her.

They’d
been headed away from the setting sun, trying to catch their shadows, but they
only grew longer. Somehow Gabriel got the machine to go even faster. She clung
to him, hiding her face behind his back. She didn’t know how they could
possibly outrun both the aliens and the Ottway’s men, but she had to trust Gabriel,
had to believe he knew what he was doing.

She
risked a peek over his shoulder. The desert had been flat, featureless. Now she
saw a dark shape on the horizon, a lump that could only be a rock formation.
Bouncing on the back of the machine she had no idea how close it was. It seemed
so far away, but maybe that was just an illusion, like stories she’d heard of
travelers, lost, seeing water where there was none. A mirage.

The
rocks grew larger very quickly. It gave her the courage to glance back. The
aliens were closer, but the Ottway’s men were gaining, closing the distance far
too fast. But she had to trust they had time, to trust that Gabriel knew what
he was doing. But as she watched one of the riders broke away, machine flying
over the sand, rider bent low over the handlebars. It was one of the Ottway’s
men; even from here she could see the gold and yellow trim on his tunic, the
flash of silver off his gleaming machine. He was gaining so quickly it seemed
like she and Gabriel were standing still.

Then
they were flying through a field of broken red rock, pieces the size of camels
flashing by. Gabriel drove with confidence, swerving and dodging. It gave her
hope that they would lose their pursuers, but only for an instant. She was
certain any driver of one of these machines would be able to follow them, be
able to navigate this maze of rock.

And
as she had the thought she heard the sound of a machine roaring behind them,
gaining on them. She turned her head and looked into the eyes of one of the
Ottway’s men. He wore brass goggles, and something like a mask over the rest of
his face. The effect was frightening, inhuman.

The
man reached for her, but his hand closed around nothing but fluttering silk. It
tore away, and she thanked whatever Goddess was with her for the cheapness of
the Ottway’s gift. The rider held the silk an instant, then flung it away. He
reached again, and she knew she wouldn’t have the same luck.

Gabriel
gunned the machine, and they pulled ahead a few yards. But the other man closed
the gap easily, swerving around rocks, keeping pace with them. It was up to her
to stop him, or he’d pluck her from the back of the machine.

Letting
go of Gabriel, she let the handles of the travel bag slide down her arm, and
into her hand. Holding them tight she swung at the man. Beneath her, the
machine wavered as she seemed to hang in space for an agonizing moment, the bag
flying in a wide arc.

It
hit the man in the head with surprising force, almost tearing the bag from her
arm. She cried out in pain, but held on as he disappeared from her view. Held
on as the momentum carried the bag forward, almost swinging into Gabriel. She
jerked her whole body back, clutching wildly at Gabriel. Their machine
screaming, wobbling violently, missing a rock by mere inches, a piece of silk
catching on it, tearing away. Instinctively she hugged Gabriel tightly, felt
more than heard him grunt something,

“Too
tight.”

But
she didn’t care. Her heart hammered so loudly, she thought it would drown out
the sound of the machine, that it would explode in her chest.

But
it all happened so fast she’d lost track of the Ottway’s man. She looked back,
the travel bag swinging from her hand. There was a cloud of smoke rising behind
a rock, and as she watched a fireball exploded from behind the rock, flames
shooting into the air. A strange sense of exhilaration washed through her, and
she tipped her head back, screaming into the wind.

Suddenly
Gabriel leaned the machine hard to the left. She clung to him, arms tightly
wound around him, legs tensing around his hips to keep from falling off. Ahead
was what looked like a sheer cliff face. And they were headed straight for it.
The wall rose up, blotting out the sun. She wanted to close her eyes, or get
off the machine, but she hugged herself against Gabriel and waited.

She
saw it an instant before they shot through the tiny opening in the rock face.
The world went dark and cool with shadows and she was blind after the blinding
sunlight. The machine shuddered to a stop, slewing to the side. Gabriel was off
the machine, and it fell to the side, almost pinning her beneath.

“Gabriel…”
She fought her way out from under the hunk of metal, ending up on hands and
knees. Gabriel had run back to the opening, disappearing in the dark. Her eyes
were slowly adjusting, but she couldn’t see him. But she could hear a grinding
noise, the sound of rock moving against rock. She stood, running toward him.

Through
the narrow slot, she could see the aliens, what seemed like only yards away.
They were flanked by the Ottway’s remaining men, on shiny new bikes. They were
too close; they’d be through the opening in a heartbeat.

Gabriel
was to the side, pushing hard, straining to roll a huge rock. In that instant,
she realized what he was doing, and she ran to him.

“It’s
too heavy for one person…” He was grunting with the effort. She set her
shoulder to the rock, her feet slipping on the sand. But the rock moved, rolled
forward, and then, gaining momentum, slid the few remaining feet with
ridiculous ease. It banged across the opening with a thunderous crash. Gabriel
was a few feet away, hands on his thighs, breathing hard. He looked at her,
frowning.

“You’re
bleeding, Senna.”

She
looked down at her arm. “I’m fine. It’s stopped. It looks worse than it is.”
Truth be told, it hurt more than anything she’d ever known. But she was proud
of her war wound, proud that she’d survived. Proud for a moment, that she’d
killed one of the Ottway’s men. But then it hit her; she’d killed a man.
Suddenly, her body was wracked with shivers so severe she thought she’d faint. Gabriel
grabbed her, eased her to the ground.

“I
killed…someone…” Her words were lost. She buried her head against his chest,
great choking sobs coming from deep inside.

He
held her close, rocking her back and forth. Finally, she sat up, wiping her
face on one of the few pieces of silk still left on her body.

“Are
you okay?”

She
nodded. “I suppose it’s just routine for you, to kill someone.”

He
shook his head. “It’s never easy. I would never want it to be easy. But you did
what you needed to do, to save your life. And mine.” He kissed her softly. “And
for that, I am profoundly grateful. Now, we need to get going. We have a bit of
a walk ahead of us.”

She
let him help her to her feet. Every muscle in her body seemed to hurt, and she
wanted to get wherever they were going, to be welcomed, to sit down, be safe.
Be fed. She hefted the travel bag. It felt like it weighed a full ton.

“Lucky
for the wine in the sleeve. You dispatched the Ottway’s man, and didn’t break
the bottle.”

She
managed a smile. “Small favor. I’m certain the wine will be substandard.” At
that Gabriel laughed.

“You’re
feeling better I take it. True to your form again. You’ll be safe soon, with my
people.”

“Is
this your home?”

He
nodded, looking up at the walls around them, at the slim sliver of blue sky
overhead, darkening with the coming of night. “It is. Our little kingdom.”
Nodding at the wall behind them, he wiped sweat off his forehead.

“The
elders created this, many hundreds of years ago. It is to be guarded, has been
guarded. It takes more than one man to set the rock in place.” Suddenly he grew
still, staring at the rock barricade, head cocked.

“Where…”

He
held up his hand. “Quiet. Listen.”

From
the other side she heard the muffled roar of engines. She looked at Gabriel in
horror.

“They’ve
found the slot opening.” His voice was cold, ominous.

“Can
they find another way in?” She whispered, certain they could hear her. Gabriel
shook his head, then shrugged.

“I
don’t know. We need to find my people, find out why there are no guards.”

She
heard worry in his voice, but turned when he did, quickly moving deeper down the
narrow canyon. The sound of the machine ceased almost instantly, but she didn’t
know if it was turned off, or if the walls of the canyon blocked the sound. It
was cool, dark with shadows, only small patches of fading light, reaching the
depths. The canyon twisted and turned, and after only a few minutes she felt
they were in a different world, totally foreign to anything she’d ever known. Gabriel
slowed down to a steady walk.

After
a time, she noticed that the walls were covered with carvings, symbols. She
trailed her fingers along the wall.

“Gabriel,
what are these?”

He
looked over his shoulder, but kept walking. “Directions, stories…records of
battles. A history, of sorts.”

“Are
there books? Do you have those?”

He
stopped, turned. “We have no need. We have lived here since before time.” With
obvious reverence, he touched the wall, tracing the lines of what looked like
words. “This has been our way of tracking history, remembering our dead. Of
keeping their memory alive. But come…we need to keep moving.”

They
kept going. Senna’s feet were bruised by the stones and rocks on the ground,
but the alternative of being barefoot was not appealing. She kept pace with Gabriel,
with his long strides. Until he stopped abruptly, and she banged into his back.
 

“What
is it?”

“Look.”
He pointed to the ground at her feet. “Tracks. Machines.”

“Your
people had machines?”

In
the dust at her feet, were regular, even tread, of what could only be machines
that the shifters used. Gabriel knelt to look at them, and she peered, curiously,
over his shoulder.

“There
are two sets of tracks. Those with new tires, well-maintained. And these…” He
pointed to a track running beside the first. “These are old tires…worn.”

Side
by side, it was very easy to see the difference. “Shifters, and aliens. In the
canyon.”

Gabriel
stood, looking ahead. Senna shrank back, worried. “You mean they’re in here
now? How did they get past us, if that’s the only way…”

“No,
don’t worry. They aren’t here now. They’ve been here before, though. Many
times.”

“Why
on earth would they have come here? I don’t understand.”

Gabriel
stood. “I don’t know, Senna.  But it can’t be for any good reason.”

There
was a sense of urgency about him now, and she followed him further into the
canyon.

Suddenly,
the narrow canyon widened, opening onto a flat circular area, with cliff walls
rising above them. The machine tracks fanned out, the dust on the canyon floor,
a welter of tracks.

Walking
up behind him, she saw small buildings nestled into the cliff face, looking for
all the world like a huge beehive. The small domed buildings looked to be made
out of earth, sharing walls, connected by short walls and walkways. Only a few
were more than one story tall, but all had only a few windows, arched openings
covered in wooden shutters. Senna had feared the sound of roaring machines
would greet them, but it was silent, too silent.

Gabriel
was silent as well, and even without asking she could tell he was deeply
worried. He stood, hands on hips, scanning the cliff walls. After a moment he
put his hands to his mouth and made a cry, something that sounded like a bird.
It echoed around them, then faded. He waited, then repeated the sound. Again
there was nothing.

“Something
is very wrong. Come.”

He
circled the flat open space, coming to an area cut into the cliff face. It was
a series of steps, with wooden handholds set into the very rock. Even so, the
climb was daunting. There was nothing between her and a fall to the canyon
floor. And the higher they climbed, the greater that distance became.