She ran as fast as she dared, Dimitri, for all his weakness, matching her pace with no problem. She tried not to panic, knowing that would make things worse, but they were still some distance from their safety zone. The ground beneath her vibrated with the footfalls of the Lycans. They were incredibly fast, streaking toward them from different directions.
She had heard they were fast, but hadn't conceived of such a pace. Already they had fanned out in hunting formation. They were attempting to circle around and get in front of them. If they managed to do that, they would have to fight their way through that line in order to gain entrance to the sacred spot waiting to protect them.
She was tiring. She didn't have the physical stamina the other two did. Even with Dimitri in such bad shape, he wasn't faltering. Her lungs were already screaming.
Paul's just ahead, Josef said. In those trees.
Call him down, Dimitri instructed. I need to know exactly where the clearing is, what's there and how far away it is.
Skyler showed him the information in her memory, but she was trying to puzzle out how the Lycans knew which direction they'd taken. They ran silently, Mother Earth making certain there was no scent to follow. Their footsteps were muffled. There had to be something she was missing.
Wait. Wait. Skyler breathed the words. Just for a moment, we have to stop. While we do, Josef, give Dimitri blood. Not too much, you have to be at full strength.
Dimitri put his hand on her shoulder, urging her forward as she began to slow down. Not yet, Skyler. We can't be caught out here on the trail.
That's the point, they already know exactly where we are. How?
They're Lycan. Hunters.
There shouldn't be a trail for them to follow, yet they know our location, Skyler insisted. She halted abruptly and turned to face Dimitri.
"Clever, clever Lycans," Josef said aloud, extending his wrist to Dimitri. "I offer freely," he added the formality. He tried not to stare at Dimitri's burned body, but it was difficult to look away. He took a deep breath, let it out and got back to the business at hand. "They must have put a tracking device on their prisoner, and it's been activated."
Dimitri took the offering, knowing they had very little time. He bit down and allowed the rich Carpathian blood to flow into his starved body.
"We have to find it, Josef. You can take it in another direction and buy us time. The moment they get close to you, drop it and take to the air. Don't let them see you," Skyler cautioned.
While Dimitri drank, Skyler searched through the rags of his clothing and came up with a tiny bug that had been placed in the pocket of his trousers.
Josef reached for it with his free hand. "I'll bring Paul down from the tree and get moving, and then see if I can lead the pack away from you." He winked at her, his grin wide.
"Be careful, Josef," Skyler cautioned. "Don't play hero. This isn't a game."
Dimitri closed the wound on his wrist, but retained possession. He looked Josef in the eye, his gaze icy. "You will not take any chances, do you understand me? You're not expendable, not matter what you think. You are our family and we stick together."
Josef swallowed hard and nodded. "I'll be careful."
"Get back to us the moment you can," Dimitri said. "We'll need you." Reluctantly, he released Josef. The boy did think himself expendable. Skyler hadn't come to that realization yet, but Dimitri saw it in his eyes.
"I'll get Paul. You start running." Josef took to the air before either of them could say anything else.
Skyler set the pace again, a steady, but fast speed, Dimitri on her heels. She tried not to think about what she'd gotten her friends into. If they hadn't found Dimitri when they had, he would be dead. She knew that with certainty, but she didn't want to sacrifice Josef or Paul for her own happiness.
Josef set Paul down directly behind Dimitri on the narrow path that muffled their footsteps. Without another word, he veered away, moving fast, taking the tracking device with him.
At first, Skyler was certain the ruse wasn't going to work. The pack seemed to stay on course. Her heart accelerated and she felt her mouth go dry. She wasn't going to be able to get Dimitri and Paul to their safe haven. She'd chosen the meadow for the richness of soil. Nothing had disturbed it in centuries. The earth was rich with minerals and healing agents, everything Dimitri would need when he went to ground.
Ordinarily, it might take weeks to heal his terrible burns, both inside and outside his body, but they didn't have weeks. Mother Earth would see to it that her son was in the best shape possible for fight-or flight-if Skyler could just get him there.
Abruptly, she felt the shift of the pack, moving away from them, circling around, following the tracking device they'd placed on Dimitri. Josef was leading them away. He'd veered closer to the Lycan pack then she would have liked, obviously to make certain he had their attention, but now he was in full flight, giving them the opportunity to make better time and reach their goal.
Do you know how many there are? Paul asked.
Dimitri glanced at the boy over his shoulder. No, not a boy. Paul had turned into a man. He was family to the De La Cruz brothers, some of the most lethal of Carpathian hunters. They swore fidelity to the prince and Dimitri didn't have any doubts that all five brothers would defend him with their lives, but they answered to the eldest, Zacarias. His reputation was well deserved. He was a dangerous predator, untouched by civilization, a hunter renowned for his skill and relentless pursuit. These were the men mentoring Paul.
Too many, Dimitri said.
So basically an entire army. There was a faint note of humor in Paul's voice.
You could put it that way, Dimitri agreed. I didn't realize you were telepathic.
Josef exchanged blood with me. He enabled me to speak to Skyler and him. Otherwise, I'm not really, Paul admitted.
But you do have psychic gifts after all. Dimitri made it a statement. Paul might have exchanged blood with Josef to start the process, but he was too good at telepathy not to have some natural talent. I knew you and your little sister had some jaguar in you, which can pass on psychic abilities, but I was told you didn't have them.
Ginny is a lot like Colby, Paul said, sidestepping the issue. She has a gift with animals, not just the horses, but all animals. She can talk to them. At first I just thought she was a horse whisperer, but it's much more. She can communicate with animals, and they understand her just as much as she understands them.
When did you first start noticing the ability in her? Dimitri did his best to keep Paul's attention away from the fact that they were running for their lives, and Skyler from thinking too much about Josef's safety.
Still, Dimitri was genuinely intrigued. Gifts expanded or showed up as human children got older. Was that why Skyler was becoming so powerful? Was it her age? Or her acceptance of who she was and the acknowledgment of what gifts she actually wielded?
She always had a way with horses, Paul said. But since we've been in South America, she's really thrived. This last year we all started noticing her abilities.
Dimitri suddenly became aware of another heartbeat. He caught Skyler just as she paused. Paul ran into him, nearly knocking them all off the path. He signaled Paul to crouch low and go still. He slipped his arm around Skyler's shoulders.
There is only one heart beating that I can hear ahead of us, he said. Probably a sentry left behind to warn the pack if he came across your trail. They know someone had to aid me.
Skyler let out her breath, her hand on the path, pushed into the soil to gather more information. Just one in our way. He's nearly directly in our path. Even if we're super stealthy I don't see how we can get past him without detection.
Dimitri could, but even if Skyler cloaked her breathing and muffled her footsteps, the Lycan was on high alert and he would feel them. Skyler tried to think of a spell, anything at all to misdirect the wolf.
Dimitri's fingers went to the nape of her neck, massaging, easing the tension out of her. Give me a minute. I'll be back.
Skyler caught his hand, shaking her head. No, the pack will know the moment he's down. They communicate through some kind of psychic network. Not telepathy, but when they hunt like this, they have some kind of ability to know where each member of the pack is. The formation is crucial to them. Give me a minute to figure this out.
We don't have a minute. Josef can't run against them for long. Once the pack catches up to him, he's going to have to get out of there fast. Even if he takes to the sky, they leap impressive distances.
Skyler bit her lip hard. Can you give him a sense of how high? Josef takes chances. I know you told him not to, but he always is proving something to himself.