The Forbidden Trilogy (74 page)

"Awesome!" The kid jumped up and down and whooped.

They checked out, stopped for a very filling Mexican dinner,
and each picked up a few changes of clothes and backpacks at the store. With
the cheap car Drake had picked up using Steele's cash, they started their drive
to Washington.

The sun set and Toby, finally clean and full, fell asleep in
the front seat.

So far, they were in the clear. Steele hadn't called yet, so
he must still trust Drake. He must not know Drake was on his way to Sam. But it
would be a temporary reprieve. He'd call eventually, and if Drake didn't
answer, or didn't do what Steele wanted, then Ana would pay the price.

They had to act fast to put an end to it all so he could
bring his family back together and be the kind of father he'd always wanted.

A sign to the right of the freeway caught Drake's attention,
and he pulled off to follow it. Before he saw Sam again, he had one more stop
to make.

The sound of pigs mating woke Lucy.
No wait, did I just
dream that or hear that?
She wiped sleep from her eyes and took a moment to
relieve herself and freshen up, then did a light stretch routine to keep the
skin on her back from shrinking as it healed. She wished for some lotions or
creams to use. Maybe she could find some aloe vera plants, or ask Mr. K if
there was an equivalent around here that would help. She really didn't want
horrible scars across her back forever—especially from a lizard.

Now a wolf mark, that would have some dignity. But
lizard? Didn't the Native Americans believe that if you were scarred by an
animal and survived, it became your animal guide?
She wasn't sure, but she
really didn't want to get stuck with a giant mutant lizard for hers.

On a patch of sand near the water, Luke and Hunter sparred
with each other—the source of the grunting that had woken her. Topless and in
shorts, with their bare skin reflecting the sun and white waves crashing on the
smooth beach, they looked like a PlayGirl Calendar photo shoot. But one of
those hot bods belonged to her brother, so it didn't quite have the same impact
on Lucy that it might have had on others.

They moved a bit slower than normal, with controlled speed,
but still.... "Aren't you two supposed to be resting from your
injuries?"

Hunter shrugged, and the muscles in his chest flexed. Lucy
flushed at the sight of it, and he smiled a lopsided grin, as if he knew what
she was thinking. "We were."

"We might have healed," said Luke.

Hunter winked. "Only one way to find out."

He hopped around like a boxer, back and forth between the
balls of his feet, fists up and ready, and made a few jabs at Luke. His
natural, fluid grace was almost animal-like, yet despite his grin and playful
attitude, Lucy knew the lethal speed and ferocious skill that lurked
underneath. He was a natural fighter, and had been well trained.

But then, Luke was no amateur, either. He dodged the jabs
easily enough, and didn't seem to be favoring his foot—much.

Lucy sat on the grass and studied them, noting the small
tells they both had that revealed where the next attack would come from. This
was her specialty. Rarely could she overpower an opponent with strength, but
she was fast, skilled, and could read a fighter like the Sunday Times. Maybe
her lie-detecting abilities gave her a heightened sense for it, but wherever it
came from, it made her just as dangerous as the two hopping around in front of
her. She smothered a smile at the thought of sparring with Hunter.

Weeping willow branches rustled and shifted in the still air
around her. Through the parting curtain, Mr. K filled the valley with his
booming voice. "Who you rooting for, Lucy?"

Luke guffawed and took a swing at Hunter. "Her brother,
of course."

Hunter ducked and brought his right fist up toward Luke's
jaw in a powerful uppercut. "Pfft. If she had half a brain, she'd root for
the better of us two. That's me, naturally."

The fist missed Luke by a fraction of an inch. He cocked his
head. "So the question is, does she have half a brain?"

"Oh thanks, Luke," Lucy huffed and crossed her
arms. "You helped me make my decision. I'm rooting for Hunter."

Hunter pumped his fist. "Woohoo! That's my girl."

Mr. K smacked us all with his branches. "Wait, wait,
wait. Is this fight with para-powers or without?"

Luke jabbed Hunter in the gut in a mostly friendly way.
"The bastard has no powers."

Lucy felt Hunter's eyes on her, and her brow wrinkled in
thought. She doubted his lack of powers—there was more to him than he let on.
Still, she didn't say anything. Not without proof. Besides, he probably had a
reason for not telling anyone.

"Okay," Mr. K said. "No powers? I'm going with
Hunter."

Luke scowled. "What?"

Hunter laughed.

"Come on." Mr. K whipped his branches around and
knocked them both gently in the head. "Let's get this show on the road.
Hunter, show this kid why he shouldn't have skipped class back in the
day."

Hunter saluted. "Yes, Sir."

"Lucy and I have placed our faith in you."

Lucy nodded. "Yup." She shifted uncomfortably and
battled the guilt she felt about last night. Mr. K either didn't remember
anything that happened, or this was his way of smoothing things out between
them. Either way, she'd play along for now.

"Ready," yelled Lucy, with a finger raised in the
air like a gun, "set, go!"

They resumed their fight.

Hunter and Luke both jabbed at each other, clearly just
feeling each other out. From the set of their eyes, Lucy could tell that the
fight had gotten serious.

Tired of the quick jabs, Luke took the fight to the next
level with a right cross that just missed Hunter's chin.

Hunter blocked a series of aggressive blows, but refrained
from counter-attacking, trying to figure out Luke's patterns.

Luke must have noticed because he changed up his style,
relying more on kicks now.

Hunter blocked low, then threw a few jabs back, but didn't
really connect.

"Come on," Luke swung wide, trying to taunt him,
"is that all you got? The old woman and the tree will be
disappointed."

"If I could walk," Mr. K said, "I'd be over
there right now, kicking your ass."

Luke threw a few more jabs but spared a glance at Mr. K.
"Stick to drawing."

Hunter blocked, but Luke didn't let up in his attacks—jab,
punch, uppercut—a relentless push to tire Hunter out and land a blow. His
persistence paid off with a direct punch to Hunter's cheek.

Lucy winced as if he'd hit her. "Ouch." She could
imagine the pain all too well and hoped it didn't bruise.
It would be a pity
to mar such.... oh blah! This isn't some sappy romance novel. Besides, a guy
with some bruises could also be hot.
She put her mind back on the fight and
not the one sexy fighter.

Luke continued to rain blows, but as he tired, he began to
favor his uninjured foot, based on the subtle shift in his body weight.

Even through Luke's relentless attacks, Hunter seemed to
compose himself and gain strength. His back straightened and shoulders squared
as he dodged blows with more speed. Ten points to Luke for enthusiasm, if
nothing else—though he did keep impressive form. They circled each other, and
Luke's limp became more pronounced. Hunter could take advantage of that—trip
Luke, or get him off balance. Luke had to be getting tired after his jackhammer
approach.

But Hunter didn't do any of that. He just kept pulling his
punches.

Uh-oh.
Lucy figured out Hunter's tactic. Luke was
getting too comfortable, too complacent. When he leaned in for another punch,
Hunter countered by blocking and then landed a hard punch on Luke's ribs.

Luke stumbled back, and braced himself against a rock to
keep from falling.

Mr. K didn't miss the chance to taunt Luke. "Ooh, the
tree thinks that hurt. Maybe I'll draw a picture of the big bruise you'll get
on your face."

Luke laughed it off, then focused and charged Hunter.

He tackled him, and they tumbled to the ground. Luke put
Hunter in an arm lock, but Hunter gave Luke one good kick in the ribs, and
knocked him off.

They both scrambled to their feet. Luke charged again, but
Hunter countered and scored a hit on the chest.

Luke retaliated with a pair of vicious kicks.

Hunter dodged one, but the second swept his leg and planted
him face-first in the dirt
.
He spat and wiped his mouth. "Is this
what you eat, Mr. K? I feel sorry for you." Hunter hopped back onto his
feet, again adapting a purely defensive posture.

Lucy felt the fatigue radiating from both of them. This had
gone on too long; they needed to end it.

Something about Hunter's stance shifted, and a new heat came
from him. He closed his eyes as if meditating.

Luke attacked with the last bit of speed he possessed.

Hunter dodged to the side and opened his eyes. He'd clearly
seen Luke's bad leg, and could have easily tripped him up and won, but he
didn't. He just stood there.

Luke, oblivious to the subtle exchange, twisted and landed a
hard punch on Hunter's jaw.

Hunter fell to the ground and stayed down.

Mr. K counted, "One, two, three, four...." all the
way to ten. Hunter pushed himself up, but stumbled back to the ground.
"Knockout!" Mr. K shouted, then added, "Rats. I rooted for the
wrong guy."

Luke's face split into a huge grin, full of cocky arrogance,
and he raised his fist in the air like Rocky.

Lucy clapped and whistled. "And the winner is... Luke
Rivera."
Hey, it's a win-win. My brother or my boyfriend. Well, wait,
not boyfriend per se... ah crap.

Hunter stood—without any trouble at all, Lucy noticed—and
shook hands with Luke. "Good fight, bro."

Luke grasped his hand. "Same here, man. You sure know
how to move. I needed that. Thanks."

Neither was too worse for the wear, though both had their
fair share of bruises. A dark purple circle had already formed on Hunter's jaw,
and, as Lucy suspected, this only added to his hotness. She shook her head.
What
is wrong with me? And speaking of, what's the deal with Hunter? He didn't have
to take that abuse. He could have won. So why'd he let Luke kick his butt?

Lucy stood and walked over to the guys. "I want
in."

"What?" Luke frowned. "You serious?"

"Yeah, I need the exercise." She stretched and
flexed to prove her point.

"You're still healing, though."

"So are you. I'll be okay."

Luke cocked his head, then shrugged. "I suppose we
could." He lifted his fists.

Lucy laughed and held up her hands in mock surrender.
"No. There's no way I'm facing the champion. I'm not
that
okay."

"Whatever you say, Sis." He moved aside and bowed
dramatically to Hunter. "She's all yours. Don't bruise her, or I'll whoop
your ass again."

Hunter shook his head. "My father taught me never to
hit a lady."

Lucy stuck her tongue out and danced around him, throwing
mock punches. "Come on. Or did your father also teach you to be a
spineless wimp?"

Luke laughed. "Don't worry, man. She's vicious. I
wouldn't blame you for not fighting her."

Perfect!
Her brother gave Hunter just the push he
needed to fight—though it was never really a question. He wanted this as much
as she did. His body relaxed as he considered his options, and Lucy couldn't
help but taunt him just a bit more. "Besides, I don't fight like a lady, so
don't worry about hurting me. And ignore my overprotective brother. I'm not a
banana. I don't bruise as easily as some."

His eyes turned into slits, and Lucy knew she had him.
"You asked for it," he said in a low voice, and then sprang at her.

Lucy swayed side-to-side, dodging the blows with minimal
effort. "You're not even trying. This is sad."

Hunter moved fast but without the same passion that he had
with Luke—or maybe with a different kind of passion. He swung at her again, an
open-palmed smack that struck only air.

"They say the turtle wins the race, but you haven't
even made it to the event yet."

Hunter harrumphed and muttered something about stubborn
women, then finally whipped a series of blows at her in quick succession.

His torso gave away each move, and her muscles responded
reflexively, blocking easily as he attacked. A trickle of sweat ran down
Hunter's chest, and Lucy couldn't keep her eyes off of it.

"You're pretty good," he said with a mischievous
grin.

"Thanks."

"I wonder what else those hands are good for?"

Just what she'd been thinking about his hands. She blushed,
then scowled at herself for being so silly.

Before she could retort, her brother butted in. "Watch
it. Or it'll be my hands you'll be worried about."

Oh, Luke, stay out of this.
I can take care of
myself.
"My hands are skilled at many things. Not the least of which
is putting cocky boys in their place."

Another jab. "That may be, but I'm no boy. Perhaps you
need to be reminded of that." He kicked, and she dodged, but not fast enough.
His foot grazed her shoulder.

Crap. Damn him for getting me all flustered. Focus, Luce.
She just had to concentrate and be patient.
Hmm... that's a thought.

She relaxed, and breathed in to steady herself, just as she
did while meditating. Only this time, instead of focusing inward, she focused
on Hunter.

Her energy connected to his, and she felt his every
movement, every breath, every flex of muscle.

His right hand flicked back—his giveaway. No one else would
have noticed it, but she had caught it while he fought Luke.

She moved a fraction of a second before he punched, sliding
past his hand. She used his momentum against him, wrapping her leg around his
and tripping him, and used her arm as leverage to throw him to the ground. Lucy
dropped onto him and pinned his chest with her knees close to his throat.