Redemption (14 page)

“Adriano,” she called out and stopped moving.
Oh, God.
She reached out with her free hand and tried to feel her way around the edges. Bile rose up in her throat. It was a smooth waterworn hole about three feet in diameter. “It’s small.”

“How small?”

She knew what he was asking. She swung closer, missing her first chance and then with the next pass, managing to brace her knee against the mouth and get a better feel. She could hardly see her own hands. She felt back as far as her arm could reach. It didn’t narrow, at least not right away.

“Big enough,” she called up, reluctantly released her death grip on the vine and forced herself to duck her head inside the black, slimy hole before she had a chance to think about it too much. She gagged on the smell and crawled forward on her elbows. She was not going to be some weak-ass woman who couldn’t save herself. She would get through this crap, literally, and then exfoliate a layer or two of skin off her body until she was scoured clean. She would get back to work and forget about mercenaries, lost treasures and shape-shifters. About Adriano. When he was gone…She sucked in a mouthful of air, then choked on it. When Adriano was gone, dammit, she would forget about him too.

She pulled herself forward, screaming when a hand closed around her ankle.

“Sophie. It’s me. They’re halfway across the bridge. I pulled the rope down after me but it won’t take them long to figure this out and they might have the exit covered. We need to move.”

Did he think she was sightseeing? She shook his hand off her ankle and pulled herself forward. Her panting breath echoed off the stone. She was sweating like she’d run a marathon and it might be her imagination—she hoped it was just her imagination—but the tunnel seemed smaller here.

Just when she’d made up her mind that
this
was not the way she wanted to die, Adriano said, “Light up ahead.”

No matter how much she squinted she couldn’t tell the difference but she trusted him and that faith made her push herself further. After a few minutes she could see it too. Rather, she could see something, the pale movement of her hand when she reached forward, a slight difference between the shades of black. Fresh air touched her face and she inhaled deeply, scenting rain a moment or two before she reached out into open air and felt a cold droplet hit her skin.

“We made it.”

“I can’t get past you,” Adriano said, his voice pitched low. “Move quickly so I can get out.”

She did, helped along by his hands on her ass, pushing her out of his way so he could leap out to meet any threat. There was none, even she could tell that with her dull senses as she climbed to her feet. She even recognized this place. They were well below the site, in a ravine where the canals were believed to have drained down to the river. She lifted her face to the sky, letting those fat drops of water wash the grime from her face. She shivered and Adriano curled an arm around her shoulders, pulling her up against the flat, hard plane of his chest. His heartbeat thudded beneath her cheek, completely at odds with how calm he seemed about their whole situation. He was scared too, she realized.

“We need to move.” But when he started walking, it was away from the camp.

She dug in her heels. “We have to warn the others.”

He tugged her arm. “They’re in no danger. But we are and I need to call for help.”

She shook her head and had just opened her mouth to argue when she heard the gunshot. Adriano’s lips parted on a startled cry and he crumpled to a heap on the ground. She’d never be able to erase that image, Adriano collapsing in front of her eyes, the puddle of blood radiating from where his face pressed to the dirt, mixing with the mud and rainwater. She crawled over to him but his body was limp. Before it even registered in her brain that she should be running for her life, hard hands were hauling her back.

“They’ll have heard that.” It was the American. The one Adriano said was a wolf, talking to someone over a mic. One hand locked on her arm just above the elbow, completely encircling it, tight as an iron band. His other held the gun. He didn’t even glance at her as he pulled her along beside him, nearly jerking her shoulder from the socket when she stumbled. “Send in the equipment and the team. Push the stone back. We’ll wait at the base until they find the fucking rock.” A pause. The wolf looked right at her, pale eyes cool. “He’s dead but I’ve got the girl.”

During those first hazy moments of consciousness when it felt as if his spirit was floating free of his body, Adriano remained very still. He’d lost a lot of blood. Sophie was gone. Either she’d put up enough of a fight that the wolf hadn’t taken the time to make sure he was dead or the humans coming to investigate the gunshots had scared him off.

It was possible, too, that Adriano’s heart had actually stopped beating for a few moments. He felt half-dead. Groaning, he rolled to his side and dragged himself back to the mouth of the tunnel to hide until the search party passed through the area. He heard Sean’s voice but couldn’t take a chance on calling out to him. There would be wolves in the search party disguised as his men, ready to finish the job if they found him alive.

By the time he’d recovered enough to move, the search party was gone. He didn’t know where the wolves had taken Sophie and it would only be a matter of time before they recovered the stone, even if it was in pieces. So he did the one thing he should have done in the first place. He went for help.

Whether the wolves were mercenaries or making their own play for power, Adriano didn’t know. But the king needed to be informed. Adriano circled the site to a spot where he’d stashed some clothes and a phone. Prior to shifting, he called to report the information and was told that the king and his guard had gone hunting in jaguar form that morning with at least one sat phone but hadn’t been in contact for hours. The woman assured him this was not unusual and told him to sit tight, that she’d relay the message as soon as possible. Fuck that. He was not sitting around with his fingers crossed hoping Gabriel found the time to return his call.

He wanted to track Sophie but lost her trail at the road. He couldn’t save her anyway, not from a pack and not by himself. Gabriel’s hunting party was less than two hours away at a hard run. So he ran, knowing that he was breaking the restrictions of his exile and not caring if it meant his life was forfeit.

He ran until the pads of his feet bled. Down the rocky mountain paths until he reached the edge of the forest, stopping to hunt only once when his strength began to flag. Mist rose from the water and as he drank, the rain fell in fat, hard drops that made the water bounce and cooled his heated skin. He found a sluggish pool formed by the river and snagged three fish with his claws, eating them raw and running again before the food settled in his stomach.

He should have contacted the king in the first place. He only prayed that Sophie wouldn’t pay the price for his pride and his mistake.

Sophie. Smart. Stubborn. A survivor.

He was so distracted, he didn’t hear a thing before the warrior pounced on his back, hooking sharp claws into his shoulders and bringing him down hard. Before he could roll, fangs gripped his nape and a warning growl vibrated through his skull.

“Sloppy, Adriano. You’re losing your touch.”

Adriano shifted his gaze to see a man step from the shadows. The jaguar on his back retreated a safe distance to allow his shift to human form. Exhaustion or awareness of the time slipping away from him, made it seem like the change took forever. “The king,” he growled, before his mouth fully transformed. “I need to see the king.”

“Welcome home, traitor.” The warrior dug his booted foot into Adriano’s side. “You’re a dead man.”

Sophie tried to focus but it was hard with all the screaming in her head. Adriano was dead and she was alone with his killers. A part of her kept seeing the image of him crumpling to the ground over and over like some sort of hellish replay. She wanted to curl up into a ball on the floor but the wolf wouldn’t let her.

“You could help us,” the American said. His name was Cody and he had a nice voice, rich and deep with a faint, seductive drawl. She tried to block out the sound. “You’ll be well compensated for your time. We’ve got someone who can read Mayan but it would help to have someone familiar with Chavín art. I understand that’s your area of expertise. We don’t even need the whole thing translated, just verification on the location of the cities.”

She closed her eyes and swallowed the lump in her throat. Adriano. She needed to stay focused but her mind was numb. These men were dangerous. She’d seen light from a flashlight bouncing around in the woods behind them and tried to yell out, but Cody had clamped a hard hand to her mouth and carried her off at a run. A human man couldn’t have accomplished it but Cody wasn’t even winded when he paused after a few minutes, slammed her to the ground and gagged her. She’d glared murder at him but he’d only grinned, white teeth flashing in the darkness.

“I was prepared to play nice. You don’t want to play games with us, sweetheart.”

His eyes had been bright, almost eager for her to struggle and that scared her more than anything as he led her off through the scattered trees to an old Jeep they had hidden in the brush on an abandoned back road. One of his men waited there for him. Twenty minutes of being bounced and jostled between those two hard bodies and then they were here. Wherever
here
was. It looked to be an abandoned ranch, primitive but intact.

They’d dragged her inside, pushed her down into a corner and started asking questions. About herself. Adriano. The obelisk. At first she’d thought she was being clever by only answering the simplest and refusing the rest but now she saw that they were able to piece together quite a bit by her half answers and silences.

“He’s dead,” Cody said flatly. “Nothing you can do to change it. You need to think about yourself now.”

She glared at him but didn’t respond. The other man, Cody’s driver, was named Jack. Tall and skinny, he couldn’t have been much older than eighteen. He didn’t seem entirely comfortable with the idea of an interrogation and sat slightly apart, propped on a bench with his back against the wall, long legs stretched out in front of him. Jack was the one who’d given her a change of clothes when they’d arrived at the cabin. The only one who’d turned his back while she dressed. Now, his eyes were sharp and narrowed on Cody. She wondered if Cody knew his partner didn’t trust him.

Could she use that against them? It seemed unlikely. Even if Jack disapproved of Cody’s methods, he’d decided not to interfere. So, she recognized the weakness but couldn’t quite make herself throw Jack in Cody’s path. He was young and hadn’t done anything to hurt her. Not yet.

Cody was pacing now. Three strides back and forth across the room, as slow and graceful as a tiger in a cage. He moved like flowing water. Just like Adriano had.

“Help us decipher the stone and we’ll let you go.”

She gave a short, hard laugh and shook her head. “You must think I’m an idiot.”

“The Yaguara guard their secrets closely and we haven’t found anyone else willing to translate. You can’t tell me you don’t want another look at it, and you’re no danger to us. It’s why we took you instead of the cat.”

She swallowed hard. A chance to study the stone. Even Adriano hadn’t promised her that much. Cody paused in his pacing and regarded her through narrowed eyes. “I can tell it appeals to you. You help us. We help you.” His calloused fingertip stroked the side of her face. “I’m asking nicely here, Sophie. We could force you, you know that, don’t you? Remember what I said about playing games with us, sweetheart.”

“Cody,” Jack said sharply, speaking for the first time since they’d walked through the door.

“We don’t survive out here by being soft.”

“You think it makes you strong to threaten her?” Jack’s eyes glittered, tension in every line of his body. A fight would be dangerous in this tiny room with an oil lamp perched on the rickety table and two wild animals tearing at each other’s throats. They had the same coiled violence in them that she’d sensed in Adriano although Cody’s seemed to simmer much closer to the surface. It would take very little to push either of them over the edge. “A pack wolf—”

Cody grunted. “I’m not your pack, boy.”

Jack’s frown deepened. “We’ve got men searching the tunnel. They may have already found the stone. If the cat told us the truth, then we don’t need her anyway.”

She didn’t like the sound of that.

Cody shook his head but the brewing confrontation was interrupted by the sound of Jack’s cell phone ringing. “Fisher.”

Cody cocked his head as if listening to the conversation. Maybe he was. He grinned at her and she knew. Even before Jack disconnected the call and said aloud, “They’ve got it.”

“Why bother the king with this piece of shit? I say we kill him now.”

“Luis,” Adriano spat, gaining his knees and staring into the yellow eyes of the jaguar who’d downed him, a young black he didn’t recognize. He’d been gone too long. The jaguar turned, flicked her tail in Adriano’s face and padded into the shadows to change. He stood to face Luis. “Still as much an asshole as ever.”

“Better an asshole than a dead man.” Luis grinned. “I was there when the queen delivered your sentence—exile upon pain of death. It’s a standing order. There’s no need to wait for the king.”

“I will bare my neck for you,” Adriano said, “after I speak with Gabriel.”

“You always did have a flare for the dramatic.” A young woman stepped to his side and this time, Adriano recognized her as his youngest cousin, Mariah. Five years ago she’d only begun her training. Now she was a member of the king’s guard and, judging by the ache in his skull, a very capable sentry. Her eyes danced with mischief. “I took you down a good three feet before you hit the border.”

If Mari had let him take just another step or two, even Gabriel would have had no choice but to kill him. Pulling her into a quick one-armed hug, he pressed a kiss to her temple. He’d forgotten what it was like to have someone there to watch his back. “Thanks, little owl.”

She pushed him away, rolling her eyes at the old nickname. “Gabriel let me have your quarters after the twins were born. It was truly excellent timing on your part and I never got the chance to properly thank you for it.”

That’s right, his aunt’s surprise pregnancy. Mari was no longer his youngest cousin. He’d never met the babies who would be half-grown by now.

“Twins,” he echoed. Her mother had already had six children. No wonder Mari was grinning at him for leaving his fully furnished quarters.

“The sixty-inch flat screen in the bedroom was a nice touch. We’ll call it even. I keep your quarters and you keep your neck.” Her smile faded a bit when he didn’t laugh and she cocked her head to one side, eyes narrowing on his face. “So why exactly did you risk your life to come back now, cousin?”

He shook his head. “I need to speak with the king.”

Adriano watched while his king took the call, amused that Gabriel thought it safe to expose his back to him. The king had welcomed him into the camp as a friend, listened to his story and then used a sat phone to contact Miguel, whose team happened to be stationed close to the Chavín site. Not the reception Adriano had expected, and he still didn’t know what to make of it. Of course, Gabriel had a vested interest in recovering the stone.

The most galling thing about their conversation was that Gabriel had already known exactly who’d hired the mercenary team. He was in the process of negotiating a treaty with the wolves. One of their ambassadors had been murdered by old guard supporters while en route to the city. The wolf’s family wanted revenge. Their alpha wanted the treaty more. He sat on the board of a large pharmaceutical company and was willing to ally himself with the Yaguara in exchange for the opportunity to set up a research base in the Amazon. Gabriel was trying to keep a lid on the negotiations which is why Nic hadn’t heard anything about it. Two weeks ago, the alpha found out the dead wolf’s family had hired a mercenary team. He contacted the king with a warning but Gabriel had been expecting a more direct attack.

Carlos must have sold them on the plan to go after the Bloodstone. Bad luck all around but in the end it was his fault for being careless and giving Carlos that lead in the first place. Gabriel was grateful that Adriano had come to him to report the threat. Not only had he saved the Yaguara from possible exposure but he’d also salvaged a sensitive treaty negotiation. Adriano didn’t give a rat’s ass about the politics of it. He didn’t care who’d hired the mercenaries and fucked up his plans. He didn’t care about the Bloodstone. He wanted Sophie safe, alive and in his arms again.

Gabriel hung up the phone. “We’ve got the stone.”

Adriano felt a brief flare of triumph. “Good. And Sophie? The girl?”

Gabriel shook his head. “The wolves were heading north with the stone when Miguel intercepted them. There was no sign of the men you described or the human woman.”

A chill washed over Adriano, tightening his chest. Until that moment, he’d been telling himself that he’d done the right thing, the only thing that would save Sophie and complete the mission. He never should have left her. He clamped his lips down against a howl of pain. Gabriel clapped him hard on the shoulder to draw his attention and Adriano forced his eyes to refocus on the king. “You did everything you could do.”

“I couldn’t have stopped them by myself.” His voice sounded hollow to his own ears. Even if that was the truth, he’d abandoned her. “She’s dead then?”

Gabriel didn’t answer immediately. He scratched his jaw and stared into the jungle. “Maybe, maybe not. If you killed the only Yaguara on their team, they might have held on to her as a translator.”

“They can find another exile for that.”

“It’s rare for a mutant to know how to read the glyphs and they already have her. They must know who she is otherwise they would have worked harder to take you alive. Probably decided she would be more manageable.”

Cruel of Gabriel to feed such a meager hope. Still, Adriano couldn’t help but grasp it. He would find Sophie even if it was just her body.
Let her be alive.

“Now that they’ve lost the stone…” He swallowed hard. He couldn’t even make himself finish that sentence.

“We’ll go with you to find her,” Gabriel said. “Either way, we’ll need her silence.”

Adriano’s head snapped up as if Gabriel had punched him in the jaw. The king’s brows lifted and he shook his head. “That’s the way of it, is it?” He stepped forward and lowered his voice. “Think hard before you claim this woman, Adriano. If she lives.” He tipped his head to indicate the gathered warriors, standing a respectful distance apart awaiting their orders. “You’ve earned your way back into their circle, won their trust by the way you nearly killed yourself coming to warn me.”

“I didn’t do it for you.”

Gabriel held his gaze a moment and then smiled. “I know. Even if she lives, you can’t bring her back with you.”

Adriano’s hands tightened to fists. “I know.”

“What exactly do you plan to do with her? I managed to keep you alive the last time. If you—”

Adriano scowled. “That’s how you see it? You think you saved my life.”

Gabriel rubbed his jaw. “Dammit. I did what I had to do to keep you alive and hold the guard. You know what it was like. You made them all look bad. They would have killed you as soon as they caught you alone.”

“I would have taken my chances.”

“If you hadn’t been so bullheaded, ignoring my messengers, we would have had you home by now. It was a political ploy. You should have trusted me.”

Adriano eyed him warily. “If she lives, just remember that you owe me.”

Gabriel’s jaw clenched. Clearly he was no longer accustomed to being addressed in such a manner. The kingship had gone to his head. But he gave a jerky nod and held out a hand which Adriano clasped.

Without waiting to see who would follow, Adriano shifted and slipped into the shadows. He clung to the slender hope that Sophie lived, bracing himself for the likelihood that she had not. Another death on his head.
Not Sophie.
He ignored the sting from his abused paws as he began to run. One way or another, he was getting her back.