Shadow, page 14
“I loved it,” she says an hour later after I pull over. “I should learn to drive.”
“Walking and running first. Riding a motorcycle last.” Her tongue slips out and more than anything I want to kiss her. I grab our lunch from the saddlebags instead and hand Marinah the small blanket I brought along with a pair of shorts she had me stow away before we left. I ignore the sounds of clothes rustling after turning my back and giving her privacy to change. “Come on,” I say after she hands me her jeans. “We have a hike, but it’s worth it.”
She gives me a skeptical look as she gazes around the area. Cliffs decorate the landscape on the right side of the road, the ocean cresting about a hundred yards down. There’s a trail that’s hard to see if you don’t know it’s there. I begin walking and she follows until we meet the steep decline.
“You seem to have trouble remembering I’m not exactly a gazelle when it comes to navigating down anything.”
I turn and place my arm out. “Boot says your balance is improving daily. Take my hand and I won’t let you fall.”
She places her fingers in mine and Beast jumps. It’s an odd reaction when we touch, and I’ve spoken to Axel about it. He thinks Marinah challenges Beast for some reason, which is stranger still.
Boot gives me daily updates on Marinah’s progress and he’s impressed. He actually thinks she could defend herself if needed and he’s confident she’ll at least fight back and not wait to be slaughtered. They’ve moved onto working on kickboxing and endurance. He thinks she should begin training with weapons, but I have my doubts. Picturing Marinah with a sharp object in her hands when she falls is not a pretty thought.
Her progress with Boot shows on the way down through the cliffs when she doesn’t so much as stumble. The closer we get to the ocean the louder the sound of crashing waves and seagulls. There’s a cove around the next outcropping of rock that we’re heading for and it should give us a bit of shade and a nice view.
“Wow, this place is amazing,” Marinah says after we wade through about six inches of water and make it around the rocks.
“I found it during one of my many explorations around the island.”
“So,” she says after we have the blanket set up and we’re relaxing, “what’s this about?”
I place my hand over my heart and wink. “You wound me.” Her laughter sends a jolt through my insides. Beast remains quiet and I enjoy the view of Marinah, not our surroundings.
“You haven’t told me you’ll kill me in at least a week. Bringing me to a desolate hideaway doesn’t exactly reassure me.”
I rest back on my forearms with sand under my left hand. The light makes her hair more of a golden brown, the slight breeze ruffling a few wisps not caught up in the scarf. “Tell me about your job before you became defense secretary,” I say because I refuse to answer her ridiculousness.
She rolls on the blanket until she’s facing me. “I had the job up until the day I became defense secretary. It was unimportant really. We compiled information and forecasted success ratios. Most of it had to do with the number of people we believe are alive. Four of us handled a job easily done by one. We are all children of someone important, though I’m the only one who no longer holds that status now that my father is dead. The job was a way to make us feel semi-useful even though we knew the truth. Honestly, I don’t think they thought I would survive five minutes after my arrival here. The only thing I’ve ever done as defense secretary was fly on that plane to meet you. If I go home, there’s a good chance I’ll be demoted even if I gain a peace treaty. I seriously doubt that I’ll go back to my analytics job.”
Her honesty always amazes me. Her father was like that too. “What will your new job be?”
She doesn’t hesitate. “Red stripe.”
I’m well aware of their red stripe system. The hellhounds slaughter in mass and the Federation needs enough fodder to keep the hounds occupied while the military wipes out as many as possible. There’s always a high death toll. As soon as the “killing supply” runs out, the hounds burrow beneath the ground again. The red stripes are brainwashed to think their job is to die for the Federation. Marinah would never stand a chance.
“Is there a special Kool-Aid you drink before you take on that duty?”
Her laughter peels through the wind. “It’s called giving up if you must know. Many of our young people put in for red stripes. Living in fear is tiring and sometimes it’s better to go out knowing you’ve been useful.” She looks away again and stares pensively at the water.
I can’t comprehend her thinking. My warriors and I will fight to the death, but we won’t sacrifice ourselves needlessly. Forward or die might be our motto, but we’re smart about it and the most important thing we can do is live to fight another day, even if it means retreat. I’ll never understand humans. “Here,” I say as I hand her a sandwich. “I hope you don’t mind chicken.”
She smiles and takes it, brushing my hand with hers and sending sparks of awareness between us. Which, after many evenings of practice, we both ignore. “You have no idea how good meat tastes after so long without it. I’m craving it morning, noon, and night.” She bites into the sandwich and sighs as she chews.
“Having very little meat was hard for us when we fought. Shadow Warriors are carnivorous and we get cranky when we don’t get the right type of protein.”
She finishes chewing. “Cranky?” She smiles at that. “I’ll make meat a priority if you’re willing to fight with us. And since we’re negotiating, what else would you like?”
She’s wiggled her political position into the conversation once more. We’re back to the cat and mouse games. I decide to play this time. “We want an embassy run by our own people near your capital.”
Her eyes grow a little larger at my willingness to negotiate. “I don’t think it would be a problem. I’m sure you could have negotiated that before you took over the island.”
I can’t help the unhappy grunt that fills my throat. “We came here to keep ourselves from annihilating humans. Taking time out to do more than leave was not in the forefront of our minds. We have no interest in taking over your country. We do, however, have an interest in our own well-being and to do that we must find a way to work with the Federation.”
Her body tenses slightly and I doubt she’s aware of it. “I have the liberty of offering pretty much anything you ask for. I’m probably not to tell you that, but I think you should shoot for the moon and see where it gets you.”
“You sound like your father.”
She looks up from the blanket thread that’s held her attention and looks into my eyes. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” She looks away and Beast grumbles. She can’t win when it comes to Beast and whatever it is going on with him has my patience running thin.
We finish the remainder of our sandwiches and drink the water I brought. Marinah stands up after I do and grabs the blanket to shake out the sand. One of her feet catches in the material and she falls into my arms. If she didn’t try to jump away so quickly, I would think she planned it. My arms tighten around her and I bring her closer, smelling her sun-warmed hair.
“You can let me go now, I’m fine,” she mumbles against my chest.
“Do you ever wonder what it would be like if you stayed here?” I have no idea why I’m asking.
She raises her head and looks deeply into my eyes. “I wish I could.”
I lower my head and she tips hers up meeting me in the middle as our lips touch. I want to ravage her mouth. I want to lay her back on the blanket and take over her body. I don’t. Her taste consumes me and I drink from her soul, fighting the conflict of emotions she kindles.
The women who come to me on the island aren’t interested in romance. They want safety and security. It doesn’t include standing at the edge of the ocean and kissing and maybe that’s why they’ve never satisfied me. My parents were in love and had a solid marriage. I’ve always wanted the gentle teasing, frequent stolen moments when they thought I wasn’t aware of them, and a special woman to share it all with. The war changed that, or so I thought. With Marinah, I want to explore the possibility.
She tastes like a mixture of sunshine and longing. Beast’s power sparks but he isn’t breaking ribs or causing pain. He’s tasting her and soaking in everything unique about her. The innocence, her almost non-existent clumsiness now, and her strength.
When we break apart, her eyes hold a question before she verbalizes it. “Why did you request a woman?”
I twirl a piece of her hair between my thumb and forefinger. “To keep Beast from killing the emissary.”
“I thought Beast didn’t like me.”
I glance over her head at the ocean. “I think Beast protests too much, he’s just not sure what to do with you.”
“You don’t plan to kill me, do you?”
I look down and capture her eyes. “I don’t think so.” I grin slowly. “I’m like Beast and haven’t figured out what I should do with you.”
Her eyes show the same need I feel, but her sense of honor holds true. “I need to return home and help my people prepare for the hellhounds with or without Shadow Warriors.”
I cup her jaw and kiss her again. I swipe the scarf from her hair after our lips meet and move my hands so the tangles are caught around my fingers holding her in place. I explore her soft, warm mouth and I wonder why I didn’t kiss her sooner. Beast remains calm, drinking in her taste, wanting more. I want more. She got under our skin the first time she fell. The entire situation is impossible and I shouldn’t have allowed it to go this far.
“It’s not happening between us, is it?” she asks softly when I reluctantly let her go.
“No,” I breathe loudly in frustration.
“I didn’t think so, but thank you for this,” she looks down at the blanket and bag that contained our lunch before looking at me again.
“We need to leave.” Wrong time, right place. Maybe someday we can come back. Even I know making personal plans for the future is a recipe for disaster and keep it to myself. We hastily gather the blanket and bag and begin the hike out. Neither of us has anything to say and we stay in our own thoughts.
During the steepest part of the climb I have Marinah hold my belt. She’s winded when we reach the top, but her training has paid off and she never grumbled about the exertion. My gaze sweeps the area, a strange feeling in my gut. The bike hasn’t moved but for some reason it feels like it’s been disturbed. Beast rumbles inside me as I take a second look around and I hold up my hand when Marinah tries to say something.
“We need to get out of here,” I say with urgency.
“Okay,” she replies and follows me to the bike. I quickly stow the bag and blanket and swing my leg over the seat. Marinah swiftly settles behind me and I start the engine. The sharp pop of gunfire sounds and a bullet takes me in the shoulder, maybe catching my lung. It feels like someone hit me in the chest with a bat.
“Hold on,” I say as I rev the bike and turn us away from the gunshot. There’s another pop, but thankfully this one misses. I don’t take the road because we’re sitting ducks if I do. I head the bike in the direction of the cliffs.
“You’re hit, there’s blood everywhere,” Marinah cries when we hit a rock, swerve, continuing downhill.
“I’m getting us out of here, don’t let go,” I shout. There’s no time to worry about my shoulder. Beast absorbs the pain and tries shooting K-5 into my system so I’ll shift. I need a clear head right now and fight him. Beast grumbles, but he also understands. I keep my legs out and push us off rocks while I try to find placement for the tires. We fly over the last large boulder and hit sand, which slows the wheels. I need to keep us closer to the cliffs, where the dry sand is more treacherous and they can’t pinpoint our location from above us.
“Keep your feet up,” I caution as the bike loses traction and I forcefully keep us upright while picking up more speed.
Marinah’s worried voice sounds close to my ear. “We need to use the scarf to slow the bleeding.” She put the scarf back on her hair before we started the climb.
“We’ll have more bullet holes if I don’t get us out of here.” She doesn’t say anything more as we put distance between us and whoever shot me. We hug the cliffs for about thirty minutes before I move out of their safety, hitting the wetter sand and gaining additional speed. I’m dizzy and there’s a whooshing sound growing louder in my head. I need to shift but doing so will endanger Marinah.
I head back to looser sand and steer the bike to an outcropping of trees that juts from the cliffs. “I’ll turn on the bike’s beacon and my team will pick it up. We’re stashing the bike here and traveling up to see if we can find a place in the rocks to hunker down until my men arrive.” I don’t remind her the beacon could attract hellhounds. We’ll worry about guns first.
Pushing the bike, Marinah helps me get it as far into the bushes as we can. “What about the tire tracks?” she asks once we have it buried in the tree line.
“Not much we can do about it. They won’t be able to track us in the rocks and it’s the best we have right now.” I do everything I can to keep the pain from my voice.
“They?”
“Him, her, they. I have no idea.”
I take the saddlebags and we head uphill. “I can carry those,” Marinah says and tries to grab one.
“Stay upright and don’t fall. I have the bags.”
We make the climb in near silence after that. About a hundred yards from the bike we find a small cave that fits the bags and us with a little extra room. The sun will be going down in an hour and we’ll be safer when we’re in the dark.
“Marinah,” I say, looking at her while she fearfully watches the trail behind us. When her gaze meets mine, I see defeat in her expression, which won’t do. “We’re safe here, but I need to shift. I’m losing too much blood.”
She stares at me for a moment, grappling with what I’m saying. “Then shift. Do whatever it takes.”
She doesn’t understand and I need to spell it out for her. “There’s a chance Beast will break away from me. He has a problem with you and he’s hard to control immediately after I shift.” I’m telling her more than we’ve ever admitted to humans because I have no choice.
“What do I need to do?”
It’s her father’s no-nonsense, just do whatever it takes approach. “Don’t look into my eyes even if I speak to you. Don’t move suddenly or run if you’re frightened. It takes time for me to gain full control.” I don’t tell her that if I run it helps the chemicals level in my system faster. I don’t have the luxury of running right now. The amount of pain I’m in should help, but really, I’m unsure if I can control Beast. If the person after us arrives, there’s little I can do in my current state, whereas Beast can handle just about anything so there’s really not much else I can do.
“Find a comfortable spot and stay as still as you can.” I grab a knife from the saddlebag and use it to cut away my shirt.
“Should we take the bullet out first?” she asks with concern.
“No, shifting will help and the bullet will push its way out within a few hours. Nothing major was damaged and I’d be in worse shape if it nicked my lung. It’s blood loss I’m worried about right now. Stay still and quiet,” I tell her as I allow the K-5 to flood my system. I was hoping to see how the new secretary of defense handled Shadow Warriors in their beast state, but this was not how I planned to do it.
Bones crunch and pain shoots through my head as my skull reforms. My teeth extend at the same time my arms and legs reshape—larger, more powerful. The bullet causes excruciating pain as the muscles twist around it trying to expel the foreign object lodged in the bone. A low growl rumbles through my chest as the transformation progresses slower than usual. Once I’m on the other side, the colors around me are more vivid, my hearing more pronounced, and a noise far above our cave makes me move quickly to the entrance.
You cannot fight them yet, I tell Beast. Must protect woman. Rest.
The sound of rustling bushes and loose rock fades as the search party moves on. There is more than one. I want to kill. Must kill. Stay safe. Woman.
Beast’s eyes go to the woman and she immediately looks down. Woman must die.
No. Protect woman.
Beast is in control. He squats and looks back outside but turns suddenly at a sound from inside the cave.
“We need to stop the bleeding. I’m using the scarf and wrapping it around the wound. Bite my head off if you need to.”
The stupid woman didn’t listen to what I told her. Beast’s growl and the tightening of his body shows his intent to leap the few feet separating us and…
She removes the scarf from her hair and walks closer. Beast’s snout goes into the air and he sniffs.
“I’m not going to hurt you if I can help it. I just need to stop the blood, which should help you feel better.”
She steps to the side and my claws wrap around her upper thigh. Soft skin. Beast dips his head and inhales her unique scent—wild, sweet, dangerous. The woman’s fingers trail across skin as she wraps the scarf. Pain. Kill. No, I push against his idiocy.
“There,” she says. “I’ll just go back to my corner and be still while you adjust or whatever it is you need to do.”
“No,” Beast grumbles and pulls her leg closer. Marinah sits down and leans into Beast’s side. He relinquishes a lung full of air and slowly relaxes. Safe. Woman safe.
She pats Beast’s chest at his rumble. “You’re not as scary as I thought you would be.” She turns her head slightly and rubs her cheek against Beast. “I wouldn’t go so far as to say you’re a big baby, but you need to understand I probably couldn’t hurt you if I tried.”
Stupid woman.
“My, what big teeth you have,” Marinah says with a laugh. Beast’s answering rumble as he pulls her closer is actually part laugh.
