The rogue squinted, staring at my belly. “Lift your shirt.”
I folded my arms. “I assure you, I’m pregnant.”
“Yeah? What else are you hiding in there? Lift it up slowly. Nothing funny, or I’ll shoot your friend.” He swung the gun at April and my heart skipped a beat.
Holding my hands up, I said, “I’m armed, but you look a little trigger-happy, and that makes me nervous about reaching for my belt. Can you lower the gun while I do this?”
“I’m supposed to kill you after I search you for weapons, phones, and notebooks.”
“And that’s supposed to make me want to disarm a little bit faster?” I said, irritated.
His hand lowered, and he snarled, “Does this make you feel better?”
He’d barely finished the words when an arrow sliced through his neck from left to right. His gun fired, and a clump of dirt exploded to my left. April flashed at the man, blasting him with energy and putting him out of his misery.
Melody appeared from a thicket of trees, a black hat pulled over her head and bright strands of blue hair peeking out. She had on brown stretch pants and a pair of camo shorts. She’d hand-painted the pants with dye so they resembled the bark of a tree when she stood up against it. I never thought a girl who liked to sew would be of much use. After all, Melody was just a kid.
But she stalked forward like a proud warrior, and I realized my human upbringing had hindered me in some ways that these children would never experience themselves, growing up in a Shifter household.
Melody lowered her left arm, still gripping the bow. “I was supposed to stay with the boys, but I lost them,” she said, her voice detached.
“Mel, are you okay?” I moved to her side and tucked the ends of her hair into her hat.
But she had that look in her eyes—one I knew all too well. It was something all Shifters had within them, a resilience that allowed them to fight through all the emotional battles that would have broken the spirit of a human.
April lifted our packs and rushed past us. “We need to keep moving.”
“You’re coming with us, Mel.” I smiled and coaxed her along. “I’m sure the boys are fine. You know how clever they are with good hiding spots.”
She kept her eyes alert to our surroundings, periodically circling around to look in all directions.
None of us spoke. It was the very thing that had distracted April and me to begin with. We paused when a dove cry sounded off—a long note followed by two short ones.
“That’s Austin,” I said under my breath.
I stopped and repeated the sound for anyone who might be nearer to us than they were to Austin.
He wanted us to head north. April had an innate sense of direction because she was a Mage, so she changed our course and we kept moving. We weren’t in the clear, or else Austin would have followed up the call with a high-pitched cry.
I found myself considering how fragile Melody was. Not in the sense that she couldn’t take care of herself, but in that she couldn’t shift. She was in the same position as I was. These kids wouldn’t be true Shifters until their late teens or early twenties. Until then, they were just kids with Shifter blood coursing through their veins.
Melody pulled an arrow from her quiver so fast I almost didn’t see it.
April turned in a circle, her hands out. “I can feel someone,” she whispered. “Just one.”
Melody kept her aim sharp, her arm trembling slightly from holding back the bowstring.
“Ease up, Mel,” I said, thinking about April opening the hatch. “It might be one of ours.”
In the distance, we heard a rapid burst of gunfire. This time, it didn’t stop. Not only that, but it started up to our left.
“Holy smokes, there’s more,” April announced.
The trees were tall, and a few of them clustered together would provide security. “There!” I said. “Hurry.”
Three large trees twisted together, creating a hollow in the middle. April stepped inside and leaned back against the trunk. I squatted on the ground to make myself less of a target, holding my gun and aiming it up.
“Tree stand up ahead,” Mel whispered, pointing near a mess of bushes and vines. “I’ll give you cover.”
I nodded, knowing she’d be safer up there than down here.
April and I faced each other, only she was standing.
How many? I mouthed.
My question was about to be answered when four men in black entered my line of vision.
But April’s response chilled me to the marrow.
“Three,” she whispered, looking behind me.
Chapter 25