Talons (10 page)

Vivvie gathered up all her things and
rejoined him in the room. She ate the container of eggs and sausage
gratefully. Ty brought her a can of Coke too.

Ty looked up at the sight of her,
speaking quietly into his phone. He wore a slight frown and
finished his call quickly. Those golden eyes held a look of concern
in them as they met hers.

“
What is it?” she asked,
fear clutching at her.

“
We tracked the GPS in
Ryken’s phone, Vivian,” Ty whispered and his expression was
ominous. “He called Eli an hour of this place. We have to move and
quickly.”

Vivvie gathered up the rest of her
belongings hurriedly, sliding on her flip flops as she followed him
out the door.

“
Why would he call this Eli
dude?” she asked as she hurried to keep up with him.

“
He warned him that we break
our own rules by keeping you from him,” Ty said and swung his bag
into the hatch and tossed hers in behind it.

“
Is…is that one of your
rules?” she stammered, fear filling her gaze. “Do you have to give
me to him?”

Ty didn’t answer her as he clicked her
door open.

“
Answer me!” she cried as
she got into the truck. “You owe me that!”

He got in and started the SUV, his
expression tense. “Technically he’s right. By rite of blood, you’re
now his responsibility, but given what he is doing; Eli won't wish
to honor it.”

“
What does this mean?” she
asked as he punched the vehicle and left the motel.

“
It means we have to hope to
hell he doesn’t catch up with us before we get back to the
compound,” Ty snapped as he drove at a high rate of speed to get
back to the interstate.

Vivvie was tense and worried as they
drove, seeing how Ty was brooding. She knew he blamed himself for
stopping now. He could have never known how close they were behind
them.

“
Will we make it?” she
asked, her face filled with fear.

“
We don’t stop for anything
but gas from here on out, Vivian,” he said harshly. “He’s picked up
your scent by now.”

“
I’ll be fine, don’t worry
about me,” she said.

Vivvie could hardly relax as the hours
passed with agonizing slowness. Ty stopped and filled up, filling
four large ten gallon containers he put in the back of the truck.
He assured her they had enough gas to get back and encouraged her
to drink very little on the road.

She went to the bathroom dutifully and
returned and hurried to get into the SUV while he still filled the
truck. Ty got in and they made Texas within the hour. He installed
a radar detector and most of the trip was uneventful through the
state. Vivvie could hardly relax in the seat, knowing Ryken was
fast on their heels.

She dozed lightly and woke, looking at
Ty and seeing the tight set to his jaw.

“
How much further now?” she
asked.

“
We can make it in six; but
I’m trying for five hours,” he said, never taking his eyes off the
road.

Vivvie bit her lip, her gut knotted in
worry.

“
I won’t let him have you,
Vivian,” he told her softly, not looking at her. “You needn’t
worry.”

But Vivvie did worry and her anxious
expression never left the road signs. She knew Ty was more worried
than he let on and that scared her more, what he didn’t say. Sleep
was impossible. She was troubled. By now, everyone back home would
think she was missing and shared the same fate as Dina and
Rachel.

Vivvie thought of her father and felt
tears in her eyes to think of his grief thinking his only child was
dead. It wasn’t fair, these rules they expected her to follow now.
This wasn’t her choice, but some sick plan of Ryken’s.

She resolved once she was settled she
would contact her father to let him know she lived. Ty didn’t
understand how she felt. After losing her mother, it would kill her
father to endure this. No way would she put him through unnecessary
worry.

~~~~

Hours passed. Ty stopped on the
roadside to fill the tank and Vivvie was forced to run behind
bushes to relieve her discomfort. She hastened to get back into the
SUV, seeing his fierce frown. They made Colorado when it was near
dark. Vivvie could feel the change in elevation immediately,
knowing they were headed into the mountains.

Every time Ty saw headlights in their
rearview, he tensed. Vivvie realized every vehicle behind them
could be Ryken now.

“
We have over an hour left,”
he said, handing her a bottle of water from a small cooler at his
feet. “I’m not going to stop. There is a bucket in back if you need
to use it, Vivian. I’m sorry, but I don’t dare stop
again.”

Vivvie shivered from the look in his
eyes and nodded, accepting the water and not daring to drink
it.

~~~~

They were high in the mountains and
climbing when Vivvie saw Ty grow tense. Her hair on her arms stood
up as he rolled down the window. She heard the creature’s roars
outside and went white. He looked at her and his eyes glowed in the
dark, deep and golden.

“
They’re here, Vivian. Try
to stay calm. Eli knows we’re close. He has doubtless sent out a
patrol to wait for us.”

Vivvie was sitting on the edge of her
seat, her fingers digging into the seat. They travelled another
couple of miles and Ty cursed as he saw the shapes of the huge
animals loping along the side of the shoulder of the mountain
road.

Vivvie let out a cry as one of the huge
cats sprung and hit the side of the SUV, bouncing off. Ty drove
faster but the cats pursued, ten or more, running alongside the
vehicle. Vivvie gasped as she saw their glowing eyes and snapping
jaws.

Up ahead she saw headlights and watched
as the cats ran off to the shoulder. Ty eyed them in the rear view
grimly as they continued to pursue them. The vehicle ahead of them
was a truck. The truck flashed its lights and swerved, honking
loudly.

Vivvie’s heart was in her throat as she
saw three men jump from the bed of the passing truck, eyes wide in
shock as they suddenly shifted into huge beasts before her eyes.
They met the pursuers without missing a beat, their clothes falling
into tatters upon the road.

She turned and watched the animals
fighting and rolling on the side of the road, gasping to see
several continue to pursue them.

“
Hold on Vivian!” Ty
exclaimed as the largest of the cats hit the side of the vehicle.
Ty struggled to keep them on the road from the impact. Vivvie
screamed as a backseat window shattered, sending glass shards
flying everywhere.

The big cat rolled off the road and
rebounded, joining the others quickly.

Another vehicle sat on the side of the
road up ahead with its flood lights on. Men in the road held rifles
and shot into the air as they passed. The cats slowed and stopped.
Vivvie watched as the men began shooting at the six beasts,
dropping two of them before they were engaged. Terror filled her
when the cats got back up after being shot and kept
going.

Watching the other men shift before her
eyes was startling. It sent a shockwave of awe through her. They
were evenly matched now as the other three joined them. Ryken’s
remaining four cats fought them viciously, jaws snapping and claws
flying as they rolled around the highway.

“
Are you alright?” Ty asked
as he turned off the road on a dirt two-track lit up with
flares.

“
Yeah, I’m ok,” she said in
a quavering voice, her heart thumping in her chest. The biggest cat
still pursued them. She turned, seeing the yellow-green eyes of the
cat, and knew it was Ryken. She shivered and looked away from the
sight, knowing those eyes were the ones in the sliding glass
window.

“
Eli waits ahead with the
others,” he told her soothingly. “Ryken will turn back before too
long.”

Vivvie watched as Ryken finally slowed
and stopped, standing and staring at the fleeing SUV with a loud
roar before he turned and lumbered back the way he came.

Vivvie breathed a sigh of relief. They
entered a clearing within the trees where she saw the shapes of
several of the large beasts moving about. She heard the growls and
tensed. Knowing these were supposed to be the good guys wasn’t a
comfort.

She didn’t see much difference between
these creatures and the ones who pursued them. Ty stopped the SUV.
Vivvie shivered, seeing dozens of glowing eyes in the dark. He
looked over at her, patting her clenched hand on the
seat.

“
We’re here. Home sweet
home,” he drawled with a grin. He got out and several cats toppled
him to the ground. They pounced on him, pinning him, licking his
face.

Vivvie was frozen, unable to get out of
the truck, fear keeping her in the seat. She watched Ty roll to his
feet, swatting the cat away at last. He grinned as he came back to
her.

“
You can get out,” he said
warmly, his golden eyes glowing. “They won’t hurt you.”

“
That’s ok, I’m fine right
here,” she replied and trembled.

“
Vivian, you have to get
out, we’re here,” he informed her.

“
We’re in the middle of the
woods, Ty! I don’t see any compound,” Vivvie said in rising
hysteria, seeing dozens of the creatures standing ahead of the
vehicle in the headlights.

“
Were standing on it,” he
said, leaning inside the window to flip off the lights. “We go down
underground now.”

Vivvie couldn’t bring herself to get
out. Ty went around and opened her door. She had no choice but to
get out or look foolish. She stepped out of the vehicle and endured
the sniffing from the creatures as he led her away from the SUV.
The nudges from their heads and slapping from their tails made the
color drain from her face. The hissing and the growls made her
shake in fear and clutch the edge of Ty’s sweatshirt as they
walked.

“
What about my stuff?” she
asked dazedly. She looked back at the dozens of huge cats trailing
them. Fear clutched at her despite his assurances they wouldn’t
hurt her.

“
Somebody will bring the
truck down in the service elevator,” he said and squeezed her arm
reassuringly.

“
It took you long enough,” a
deep voice said from the trees.

Vivvie jumped as a very tall,
heavily-muscled dark haired man approached from the shadows. She
was careful to keep from staring, but hey, when do you see a naked
dude in the woods? He looked like Playgirl’s finest too, and seemed
oblivious of his nakedness.

Vivvie was nearly hysterical now. She
had a death grip on Ty’s arm as the man came to stand before them,
his bright glowing blue gaze taking her in with an obvious look of
displeasure before he addressed Ty.

“
Ryken has at least twenty
with him now, Ty,” the man said and shook his head in anger. “They
aren't leaving. Gideon radioed back to say their making camp here.
It’s obvious he’s not leaving without his female.”

Vivvie snapped out of her daze at that.
“I’m not his female!” she said indignantly, fuming the man had
rudely not even acknowledged her. She shivered as she met those
glowing blue eyes for the first time, wincing to know she was
addressing Eli.

“
Our law says you are, Miss
Collins!” he growled back at her, blue eyes lighting up with anger.
“Be lucky I don’t toss you into the woods and give you to him! I
lost two of my men tonight saving your ungrateful ass!” Eli raged
and glared her into silence. “Fortunately for you, I’m not really
happy with Ryken right now.”

Vivvie felt Ty tense at her side during
the exchange. “I’m not ungrateful, just overwhelmed by all of
this,” she said meekly and looked away from those glowing eyes. Her
submissiveness seemed to please him and he softened.

“
It’s not your fault what’s
happened to you, Miss Collins,” Eli said in understanding. “We will
offer you asylum here on the condition you adhere to our laws. I
trust Ty has brought you up to speed on all of those?”

“
Yes, he did,” she said
nervously, now surrounded by a huge group of hulking beasts, their
swishing tails brushing against her in the darkness and making her
jump.

Eli looked at her without expression in
his glowing gaze. “Break just one of them, Miss Collins, and you
deal with me, is that understood?”

Ty stiffened at her side. She met the
soulless gaze of the leader, the blood draining from her face. Eli
offered her sanctuary, but she was on thin ice off the bat.
Obviously Eli wasn’t happy to take her in. She felt the man’s
displeasure.

“
Yes, I understand,” she
said nervously, her hand gripping Ty’s sleeve nervously. “I won’t
be a problem.”

“
The females will help you
during the change,” Eli said coolly, his blue eyes meeting hers
with little emotion in them. “My advice to you; do what you’re
told, Miss Collins.”

“
Her name is Vivian, Eli,”
Ty said in amusement. “Can you lighten up? She’s scared enough as
it is.”

“
I’m glad to see you back,
Brother,” Eli said with a grin, completely ignoring Vivvie now. He
embraced him, clapping him on the back. “Seeing you back here takes
the edge off me being pissed you brought a damn female with
you.”