The Forbidden Trilogy(189)

He jumped up behind the lizard with such grace that he almost flew, and drew his sword from his pack. It extended into full size and cut off the lizard's tail in one clean cut.

The beast's roar filled the valley, and it spun with a viciousness that scared the hell out of Lucy, but Hunter dodged and stayed low. When the lizard turned back toward him, he jumped on it the way a cat might jump onto a fence—so fluid and graceful.

He scurried toward the reptile's head and raised his sword. Just as he was about to impale the lizard's brain, it shook its head and sent Hunter flying forward, over Lucy, where he landed with a thump.

No no no no no! No one could have survived that. No one.

Lucy cried, and the lizard locked its gaze with hers and stalked forward, ready to finish what it had started.

She tried to crawl away, but couldn't move. Her hands felt swollen and slow as she reached for her gun. Blood pooled around her, leaving her dizzy and weak.

The lizard charged with another roar, and Lucy knew the end had come. She didn't want her last thought to be of a giant, mutant, tailless creature bent on killing her, so with the last of her strength, she forced herself to turn toward Hunter—the man she might have fallen in love with, given just a little more time.

Instead of his crushed body, she saw him running toward her, sword in hand. As he approached, he leaped into the air in a way that no human would have been capable of, and landed in front of her right as the lizard's mouth opened to eat her.

The sword glinted in the sun as he thrust it into the beast's pulsing red heart.

The earth shook as the lizard crashed to the ground with a moan. Then it was still.

Hunter pulled his blade free, wiped the blood onto the grass, and minimized and re-sheathed it. He did it all so fast, Lucy could barely track his movements before her eyes closed.

She heard him approach. "Lucy. Oh Lucy."

Her shirt hung in tatters, and somewhere in her mind that should have bothered her, but she didn't care. And Hunter, for once, didn't notice.

He pulled off his own shirt and draped it over her chest, then lifted her in his arms and carried her back toward camp.

With each step and bump, the pain tore into her, but she refused to make a noise. "Hunter...." She tried to speak, but couldn't finish the sentence. Everything seemed so far away, so....

Hunter looked at her, his eyes normal now. "You'll be okay. I'll make sure of it."

Her eyes closed, and she smiled. She believed him, and despite the burning, never-ending pain, warmth flowed into her—not just from the sphere this time, but from something else. Someone else.

She felt Hunter's presence inside her as she surrendered to the darkness.





Chapter 90 – Drake



The purple liquid coated Drake's throat as it made its way down and through his body, recharging the small spark of power still buried deep inside of him. His strength surged, muscles firing up, and the cobwebs in his mind cleared away to give him greater focus. No high accompanied this dose, unlike the blue drug, but he relished the natural high that came with his powers.

The truck he hid in shook, and he braced himself against the metal walls. They should be near the quarantine area now. He'd easily found a truck heading in with supplies. A small sip of the drug had been enough to give him the power to compel the driver to let him in the back and forget about him.

They'd been on the road for about thirty minutes. Canned goods rattled around him, and Drake took a deep breath and willed his body to relax. He wanted to jump out of the truck and hitch a ride to Washington to be with Sam, but he had to help Toby first. The CDC had announced that, tonight, they'd move everyone from the quarantine zone to a more secure location—a more secret location.

Drake had to get Toby out now. He owed the boy that much.

The truck ground to a halt, and Drake tensed again, listening to the voices outside. He'd known they'd probably inspect the trucks as they came in, but the interruption still unnerved him. He moved to the door and waited, prepared to do what it took to avoid detection. If he had to hurt them... well, he hoped that wouldn't happen.

The door slid open, and light from the sunset filled the space, nearly blinding Drake. Two armed military guards held automatic rifles inches from his chest. Their eyes widened in surprise, but Drake slipped into their minds and took control.

'Close the door and tell your superiors that no one is in here.'

They stepped back, ready to do as instructed, and Drake realized his mistake. They'd have to check the truck before they could clear it.

'Enter the truck.'

Someone at the gate called out. "Is everything okay?"

'Tell him everything is fine.'

A guard obeyed. "Yeah, just checking the truck. Everything's fine."

The guards walked in and stood on either side of Drake, completely ignoring him. They scanned the canned food and walked out. "It looks good," one of them said. "Send it through."