As the last of Jacob’s blond hair disappeared, I stopped and pressed myself solidly against the wall. The sudden silence was almost deafening. I huffed in and out, gathering my strength, searching for a speck of bravery. Damn, I was not cut out for this cloak and dagger, save-the-world missions.
Before I either cried or freaked out, I turned and sprinted back the way I just came. I needed to get back inside that building before shift change started again and the portal was closed. I didn’t stop or hesitate, tracing the same steps right back to the water inlet, and thankfully the side was still clear. I could hear voices coming closer and I knew it was time for them to start their circumnavigation of the perimeter again. I crossed the wide space, staying low to the ground to blend into whatever shadow I could find, sprinting at full force.
I reached the convergence spot and sighed in relief as my hand entered to the other side. The portal still existed. I licked my dry lips, and without pause leaned forward to dive in headfirst. My hands had just entered when something gripped my ankles and yanked me backwards.
Chapter 12
I was dragged for about five meters before the grip loosened on my legs. I flipped over immediately. I couldn’t fight what I couldn’t see.
I froze. Well, I was in some big-ass trouble.
Four guards stood above me, the gray of their uniform indicating they were part of the perimeter patrol. I swear to freaking God I had not even heard them approach, and even this close I could not scent any of them. They were cloaked somehow and deathly quiet as they stared down at me. Two of them clutched whips in their hands, the others had batons. I could see guns on their hips, but at least they didn’t have them drawn yet.
The stare off continued, and I wondered what they were waiting for. Then a fifth came into view, holding a struggling Mischa in his arms.
“Let me go,” she snarled.
Wow, little kitty had some wolf claws after all. I wanted to tell her struggling was useless, these were highly trained guards and we were outnumbered. Plus, they’d seen us, and everyone knew who we were.
One of the vampires lifted his head in my direction. “On your feet, hands behind your back.” His thick bushy eyebrows narrowed under the brim of his gray cap. “And don’t try anything stupid. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if you push me.”
Mischa had stopped struggling at this point. She was breathing deep, her eyes wide and shocked as she stared at me. I placed my hands flat on the ground and pushed myself up to stand. I winced as some of the grazes on my legs protested; that drag across the ground had knocked me around a bit. I placed my hands behind my back.
One of the guards crossed behind me and I felt the straps clips across my wrists. Immediately, a buzzing sensation flowed down my body, like a veil had fallen along my skin, and I couldn’t touch my energy inside. My wolf and demon were still there, but they were muted. There was a barrier between us now and I knew I wouldn’t be able to shift.
The sensation had me wanting to cry my eyes out. But I didn’t, this was not the time to fall apart. Mischa put up no more resistance as they cuffed her also, as if she had stopped fighting the moment she saw me. Or maybe it was my own lack of fight that had paused hers. The five guards surrounded us and we were marched at a rapid clip back across the space and through the tunnel.
Weird. They were taking us into the forest.
We emerged in a different section than where we had entered. The forest was thinner, less dense here. And there was a man waiting for us in a small clearing. Kristoff.
Awesome.
The guards marched us across, and the entire way I stared at the smirking features of the sorcerer. Evil bastard.
His hands were clasped across his chest. He lifted one of them and halted us about four feet from him. “I couldn’t quite believe it when the guards contacted the council to let us know they’d detained you two. It seems as if this might be my lucky day. The Lebrons are going to prison.”
I didn’t say anything. My mood was somewhere between depressed and shitted off. Not only had I not managed to save those prisoners, I was now in a truckload of shit. And so was Mischa.
“How I wish I could just throw you in there and let everyone think you’d disappeared, but I swore an oath from the council, and you will get your trial. Of course, I can resign myself to the fact that you’ll be spending at least a week in Vanguard. Knowing how popular your father is, well, someone will probably take care of my little problem.”
Jonathon had spent many years capturing supernatural crims and throwing them into the prison. Fear flooded me; there was every chance that if I went into Vanguard I would never come out again. Adrenalin replaced the fear; the urge to fight or flight was strong. But with my hands cuffed there wasn’t much I could do.