The EMT’s hand came over his to take hold of the oxygen mask and ease it back into place. “Please,” he said to Dragos. “He’s already arrested once. You’ve got to go.”
Constantine released the EMT he had evicted as he climbed out of the ambulance. He stood, face white and hands clenched, as Graydon and Bayne jogged over. He said through white lips, “He thinks she was alive. He said they shot her.”
“Ah shit,” said Graydon as he blanched.
Constantine gripped Dragos’s arm hard. “Don’t go making her all dead in your head,” he said. “Remember, they drugged and kidnapped her the first time—they didn’t kill her. They want her alive.”
“You’re right,” he said. He looked at them, his eyes bloodshot. For the first time he managed to articulate what she had told him earlier. “She’s pregnant. Urien has my pregnant mate.”
The gryphons stared at him in equal measures of horror and dismay.
Then Tiago said, We found the Lexus. They crossed over in here.
Galvanized, the four raced away from the human scene and took to the air to join the others. Good news: the Lexus didn’t have any traces of blood. The constriction in his chest eased. He started to breathe again.
They located the passageway and crossed over to the Other land. Dragos had hoped against hope, but the tracking spell laid on her braid didn’t survive the disconnect and crossover. They would have to track her and her kidnappers by land.
Good thing they had one of the best trackers of any species on their side. Tiago loped across the ground in wide arcs, studying the ground, until he took off running in one direction. Rune and Graydon scouted farther afield while the others kept to the ground with Tiago.
Dragos kept to the air, shielding his presence as he scouted in circles, projecting ahead of Tiago’s trajectory.
Death was another good friend of his and flew in his shadow.
Pia had no idea where she was or where she was going. Story of her life, apparently. She had one goal: to run as far away from Urien as fast as she could get. She hoped he didn’t have any of those dragonfly thingies with him. If it came down to a ground race, she had a good fighting chance.
The rolling countryside was carpeted with thick clusters of forest and open areas carpeted with riotous profusions of wildflowers. She paused at the edge of a wood and ran her gaze quickly over the scene behind her. No sight or sound of pursuit.
Gold and purple and scarlet dusted the emerald green field she had just traversed. Her gaze landed on a brilliant purple flower with fluted petals like a lily as it spat out a long, feathery, stamenlike stalk, whip fast, and it caught a buzzing insect on the sticky end, which then retracted into the flower with its prey.
She recoiled. Let’s not consider that a metaphor for anything.
She slung the crossbow on her back and plunged into a forested area for ground cover. She avoided anything that looked like a path. If she managed to get far enough away, she would start thinking about how to hide her trail better, but right now she didn’t have time to consider finesse.
A light rain started to patter in the treetops, the occasional drop making it far enough to land on her. Maybe she’d get lucky and it would start to pour. A heavy rain would help to dissipate her scent.
The newly released Wyr in her was eager to stretch out her legs and dig into a hard run, but Pia’s human mind couldn’t help but be frustrated. Six months from now she would have had a chance to practice many of the tricks her mother had tried to teach her about how to obscure her path from pursuers. As it was, she didn’t dare try to tap into her Power in case she made a mistake and gave away her position.
She got maybe fifteen minutes of peace and quiet. Then Urien hissed in her head, You have just made a very bad mistake, Pia Giovanni. What I did to your boyfriend is nothing compared to what I will do to you when I catch you.
Snot, snot. Threat, threat.
The lunatic inhabiting her body said to the Fae King, I can beat any pace you set, asshole. Catch me if you can.
Okay, let’s face it. It wasn’t the smartest thing she’d ever done. But she had so had it up to here with mean people today.
The rain started to come down harder. She ran faster.
Her awareness narrowed to what was around her, watching for obstacles, plotting her course ahead through the trees, and working to keep her footing on ground that became increasingly slippery. Soon she was soaked to the skin. The forest grew more shadowy and treacherous.
Then she saw a break in the trees ahead. She managed to skid to a stop before she went tumbling head over heels down a rocky incline.
Oh, that’s not so good. Ahead of her stretched a very large expanse of rolling meadow. It wasn’t the size of the plain where she and Dragos had been trapped, but it was still far too large and exposed for her liking.