Fated, A Timeless Series Novella (A Timeless Series Companion Novel) (16 page)

Was s
he upset about leaving
Colt?

A
soft
murmur
suddenly
reached
my ears. It was ba
rely audible, but definitely
there. Cheyenne’s head tilted to the side, and a small breath from her lips steamed the window again. She was humming.

I was transfixed
. Neither Gene nor Colt had mentioned
Cheyenne
had a musical streak within her.
She didn’t keep any instruments at home, either. Except for that piano downstairs.

My eyes widened.
Another piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.
Could this be
the final clue I’d been looking for
?

No, it
had to be
a coincidence.
So what if Cheyenne was pitch-
perfect.
It could’ve meant anything.

Still, I wondered…

“Are you ready?” Daniel asked
, appearing in
the back office. I’d been doing
the final checks on
the GPS systems
, ensuring they
were synced together.
We needed to make sure we kept in close contact.
With the Christmas rush, it would be hard enough knowing where
we’d
end up, let alone Cheyenne.

In a minute.
I handed over two of the
GPS
systems.
Put the
se
in your
trucks
.
Nodding,
Daniel disappeared with the devices and I pushed my laptop
shut
.

R
oad conditions
were
pretty rough
, but passable
, so I couldn’t bank on the weather to change Cheyenne’s mind
.
Daniel and Bree
would be
driving ahead
, making sure
everything was clear
,
while Koda and Bailee followed behind. I’d be in the third
truck
behind Koda.

Cheyenne’s about ready
, Colt said,
Daniel and Bree need to take off now.

Bree and I are on our way
, Daniel replied
.

I
jogged
to the front room
,
grabbing my jacket and cell charger.

Koda, you and Bailee need to be ready. Colt will tell you when to leave.

I headed
outside
, passing Koda and Bailee as they sat inside their own
truck
.

“Got it,” Koda called out
.
H
e then backed
the truck
out
,
waiting for Colt’s
cue
.

It was going to be a challenging day to say the least. I liked having things lined out, but with Cheyenne leading the charge on her shopping trip
,
anything could happen.

The drive was
thankfully uneventful
, and
once we entered the city limits,
we had to wait on
Cheyenne
to know
where our first stop w
ould
be. Koda and I
kept a safe distance,
waiting for
Colt to relay
destinations.
It was tricky, as
the range for our telepathy was only
a mile
, and we hadn’t a clue where they were going
.
I hoped
Colt
didn’t end up having to text us. It would be something else for Cheyenne to notice.

We’re stopping at Silver Lake Mall,
Colt
said
.
Bailee and Bree need to be ready. Cheyenne hasn’t told me if I’m allowed to come into
the
stores with her yet.

Got it.
Let me know when you find out where she’s heading first.

I followed Koda into the mall parking lot and we quickly located Daniel and Bree.
We
parked next to them, then
gathered at the front of their truck
, waiting for Colt’s answer.

We’ve parked near the south entrance
, Colt said
at last
. Send Bree and Bailee in, but tell them to keep their distance. We’re heading towards Macy’s and I have to wait outside
for her
.

“Bailee, Bree, you’re up,” I said
. “Macy’s is your first stop.”

“Ooh, I
love their Christmas displays!” Bree squealed.
“And the s
ales will be in full swing, too. I’ve been looking for a pair of boots you know…
”

“You’re not here for a shopping spree,” Koda reminded her. He squeezed Bailee’s shoulder. “Good luck.”

Bailee nodded. We
watched as
she and Bree
disappeared through the
rows
of cars. With only five days before Christmas, the stores were going to be packed.
I swallowed, trying to keep calm.
There were so many things out of my control,
I didn’t know if we’d be able to pull this off.

“It’s okay, Callon,” Koda said. He must’ve seen my concern. “
We can do this.”

We began a slow walk into the main mall area.
As expected, it was overflowing with shoppers.
It was all we could do to keep together in the sea of people.
The discomfort in my chest grew stronger.
This was the perfect setup for an attack from the Sarac
. I knew they didn’t usually like to make public scenes, but w
ith the
aisles
packed, they could easily plant some sort of tracking device on Cheyenne
,
or literally take a stab at her and disappear without being noticed.

How much longer, Colt?

Not sure. This crowd is making me nervous. I might go find her now…

Don’t!
Daniel cut in.
It’s going to be fine. Bree and Bailee are nearby. They won’t let anything happen. Give her the freedom she needs Colt, pretty soon it won’t be like this for her. Pretty soon it’ll…

Daniel,
enough
.
I
rested my hand on his shoulder
.
Daniel kept his eyes on the ground.
I know why you feel like this.
But this is a little different.

She’ll only turn on you in the end,
Daniel said, still not looking up.
You’re not her warden, Callon.
Please, just let her be.

I didn’t answer, though I did not
ice
his arms trembling slightly.

The hours dragged on endlessly
.
Koda suggested we do a little window shopping to pass the time, but I couldn’t settle my nerves. Every flashing Christmas light, every sparkling decoration was a threat, and
I was sure people
wondered why I kept glancing around so frequently.

Finally, after a few coffees and a quick sandwich dinner, it seemed Cheyenne had had her fill
of sales and
promotions
.
However,
as it turned out,
she wanted
to visit the lake, as they always had a
pretty light display around the docks.
My heart dropped to my stomach.
Wandering around in
a huge
open
space
in the dark, surrounded by lights
and water
?

This couldn’
t have been any more disastrous.

We arrived at the lake
as dusk approached
.
Colo
rful lights
had been
dangl
ed
around
the
wharf
and boats
, brightening the cloudy evening
.
I surveyed our surroundings, and blew out a breath. It was worse than I thought.
The dock itself
was
tiny; i
t would be impossible to
walk
around without being seen.
T
here
were also
spots
blocked by the
displays
, meaning we couldn’t see down
the
entire length
of the
shore
.
Worst of all, the place was totally unfamiliar to me and I had no idea what exactly they had planned for the evening
.

I think you need to change
her
mind, Colt.

Colt took a little while answering.

I can’t, she’s
too
excited about it, Callon. Besides, we haven’t seen any soul-shards.
There’s too many humans around for them to know if they’ll get the right target. Anyway, I know what to look out for. We’ll be fine.

I have a bad feeling about this, Colt.
This is far too dangerous.
You better make it a quick trip.

I’ll try.
Get everyone set up. We’ll be there in a few minutes.

I glanced back to the others, and nodded. Quickly we spread out
in
pairs
, setting up
our surveillance areas
so we could watch as unnoticed as possible
.
Daniel, Colt, and I could talk freely, but with Koda he’d have to text to reply.
Not ideal, as
any delay
when dealing with the Ghosters w
ould be deadly
, yet we’d have to manage
.

Get through this quickly, Colt.

Steam poured
out my
mouth and I moved closer
. I was close to a
park full of dark pines
.
That would give me a much better vantage point, as I’d be a
ble to see most of the docks
apart from the blind spots, which I’d got the others to cover for me.
Sighing, I slipped inside and began climbing the nearest trunk.

From the uppermost branches, I had a clear view as
Cheyenne and Colt slowly meandered through the dock, admiring the artistic
displays on the boats
. I
watched for as long as I could, trying not to check my watch
too often
. In the end I caved and snatched a
glance
. I groaned. O
nly twenty minutes had gone by and they’d hardly made a dent in circling the
displays
.

You’re taking too long, Colt.
A
n unsettling feeling grew
in the pit of my stomach.
Something wasn’t right.