His heart sank as he recognized it for what it was—a Scourge fighter. They used a kind of black hole technology that made their ships impossible to actually see, although his ship’s sensors could spot them well enough. To the naked eye they showed up more as an absence of light than any real, definable shape that the eye could trace. How many of them? And why do they want us in the first place? Aloud he said, “Hold on, Sophia—we have company.”
“What? Who?” Her eyes were wide as she peered at the viewscreen.
“Scourge ships. You can’t really see them.” Sylvan began evasive action, forcing the wounded shuttle through all kinds of maneuvers, trying to make them a more difficult target. “But they’re there. I’m just telling you to be prepared in case—”
Before he could finish the ship jerked and something metal scraped the outside of the hull. There was no sound in space, of course, but the impact reverberated through the pressurized flight compartment making a hollow clang they could hear clearly inside the ship.
“What was that?” Sophia’s voice was high and breathless.
Sylvan cursed. “They’re using grappling hooks to try and pull is in. Hold on.” He twisted the yoke again, flying as wildly as possible while still keeping Earth in his sights. Suddenly, though he hadn’t touched it, his communicator crackled to life.
“Warrior,” said a cold male voice from the central speaker. “Know this, we do not seek your life. We only want the girl—Sophia Waterhouse. Surrender her and you will be allowed to go back to your ship unmolested. You have my word as a commander of the Scourge that it is so.” The words were spoken in English rather than the Kindred universal language—proof that the Scourge had been studying their prey.
Sylvan bared his teeth, his fangs punching out in sheer rage. This time he didn’t try to hold them back. “Never,” he snarled, squeezing the yoke as though it was the Scourge commander’s neck. “Sophia is mine. I’ll never give her up—to you or anyone.”
Sophia gave him a wide-eyed look but he didn’t care. He was too busy avoiding the grappling hooks that were clanging off the weakened hull at regular intervals.
“Don’t be foolish.” The cold voice sounded angry now. “You can find another female. The planet below is full of them.”
“I have given my word to keep her safe.” Sylvan dived and swerved as Earth grew bigger in the viewscreen. “But what would you know about that, you motherless bastard? You Scourge filth have no females and spawn in tanks like bacteria. What would you know about protecting and caring for a female?”
“It is because of you, because of the Kindred that we have no females! For that insult alone her torment will be all the more.” The words were filled with fury and Sylvan could almost see the Scourge commander’s dark face twisting with hatred. “We will strip her naked before we take her to the AllFather. Strip her and take her in front of you where you stand, helpless to do anything but watch as she begs for release.”
“The hell you will!” Rage was like a red cloud in front of his eyes. Normally in battle he was as cold as ice but not now. Not when they were threatening Sophia. Threatening his female. “You listen to me,” he told the Scourge commander as he flew toward Earth. “You’ll never have her. And if I ever meet you face to face I’ll make you pay for those words. I’ll fucking rip your throat out with my teeth.”
Angry laughter filled the small cabin. “With your teeth, eh? You must be a Blood Kindred to speak so, warrior. I’ll be sure to pull your fangs out by the roots and bring them to the AllFather as a trophy after I finish with your female. I—”
Sylvan took one hand from the yoke and punched the speaker. There was a crunching sound and his fist made a surprisingly large hole in the metal console. His hand hurt and he started bleeding at once but he felt immediately better. He and Sophia might die—they probably would—but he would be damned if he’d go down with that sick bastard’s voice in his ears.
He became aware that Sophia was staring at him, her face as white as new fallen snow, but there was no time to explain. There was another clang against the side of the hull and the ship jerked alarmingly. Sylvan felt sick. One of the hooks caught! There was only one thing to do—keep going.
Praying to the Mother of Life for help, he forced the crippled ship into a roll, hoping to lose the hook. Earth was looming before them now, filling the entire screen. They were close…so close…
With a grinding screech, the little ship jerked free of the grappling hook and catapulted forward. They were in the upper atmosphere now and barreling down fast toward the ground, leaving the Scourge ships far behind. The smart metal hull was holding so far, but they weren’t in the clear yet. When Sylvan tried to slow their descent the ship was sluggish and unresponsive.
“Uh, Sylvan?” Sophie’s voice was a whisper of pure terror as the ground rushed up to meet them. “We’re, uh, going awfully fast. Any chance of slowing down?”
“Not much, sorry.” He flashed her a grim half-smile. “Part of the landing and guidance system is out. Either it was burned up by the net or that last grappling hook ripped it off. Either way it looks like a crash landing.”
“Oh,” she gasped. “Can…can we survive that?”
“If we’re lucky and I can find a big enough mountain.” He had managed to level off and was heading for a ridge right now. If they could just hit hard enough the ship’s maximum impact safety cushioning would be activated. If not…well…
Clearly Sophia didn’t know about the cushioning. “A mountain? You’re trying to hit a mountain?”
“Not trying to—about to,” Sylvan told her. “Hang on.”
He saw her eyes grow wider as the craggy wall of sheer rock filled the viewscreen. She opened her mouth to scream and…
Impact.
I’m sorry, Sophia. Sorry I didn’t have time to tell you I—They were both jolted forward…into a seething wall of blue gel that gushed from every crack, crevice, and cranny in the console. As the hull of the shuttle crumpled the cushioning gel filled the cabin, cocooning them both as it absorbed the force of their impact.
Despite the gel, Sylvan managed to hit his head on something hard—maybe the ceiling of the ship which had folded in on itself—and everything went black.
* * * * *
When he came to it was dark and silent. The ship’s systems were gone, clearly damaged beyond repair and the gooey gel was just beginning to melt and foam away. Sylvan struggled out of his restraints, thanking the Mother that the hull had, for the most part, kept its integrity. There were scattered pieces of metal and glass everywhere. But though the top of the ship had been pealed up and out so that the night sky was clearly visible, the walls and floor were still together.
The hole in the ceiling was actually quite fortuitous—now he wouldn’t have to try to force a way out of the damaged shuttle. It would save some time since he and Sophia would have to get to safety on foot. Sylvan wasn’t sure, but he had a feeling they had a long way to go. He didn’t even know the name of the mountain range he’d crashed into—only that it was far north of their original intended target of Tampa, Florida.
Wherever they were, they had to go and quickly. He didn’t know how long he’d been out but he was sure of one thing—the Scourge were going to be after them. They might not be able to get their ships through the protective grid the Kindred had placed around the Earth, but they had other, smaller probes which probably could get through. And if they sent down some of their hellish sniffers… Sylvan shook his head. He had to pack some supplies and get Sophia as far from the crash site as possible before they were found.
“Sophia?” he said, freeing himself from the last of the gel and turning toward her. “Soph—” Her name died on his lips—she was gone.
For a moment Sylvan stared blankly at the empty straps. There was a smear of blood where she’d been sitting but no other sign of her. He couldn’t even smell her—the air was still filled with the acrid reek of scorched metal and the sharp scent of the cushioning safety g
el.
Had she been thrown clear of the wreckage somehow? Or had the gel not been enough to cushion her impact? He realized with dread that the safety features of the shuttle were geared for a Kindred warrior who would naturally be piloting it—not for a fragile human female like Sophia. Was she lying crushed and mangled somewhere? Or had the Scourge already gotten through while he was blacked out, leaving her helpless and unprotected? Fear filled him like black water. Goddess, please no. No!
“Sophia!” Her name broke from him a full throated roar. “Sophia! So—”
He nearly tripped on her prone form. She was lying on her face near the back of the cabin, crumpled into a small heap. Gasping in relief, Sylvan knelt beside her. “Sophia,” he murmured, running one hand up her back and neck to check the alignment of her spine. Nothing seemed damaged or out of place, but she didn’t respond to his voice or touch. Troubled, he shook her shoulder gently. “Sophia? It’s time to wake up. We have to get out of here quickly.” Still no response.
Dreading the worst, Sylvan reached beneath her to turn her over. His seeking fingers found something warm and wet. Hesitantly, he brought his hand up to his face. The liquid on his fingers looked black in the starlight and he didn’t have to smell it to know it was blood.
Sophia’s blood.
Chapter Six
Kat was supervising the clean up after the reception—when the Kindred partied, they really partied—when a deep male voice behind her startled her.
“Excuse me, my lady?”
“Huh?” It took her a minute to realize that whoever was speaking was addressing her. Turning, she found herself face to face with the two Twin Kindred warriors Sylvan had introduced as his ‘second brothers.’ “Oh uh, hi,” she said, smiling. “Deep and Lock, right?”
“Yes, my lady.” Lock made a courtly bow while Deep simply nodded his head. There was a scowl on his face that seemed to center in his jet black eyes and Kat wondered if he ever smiled. It was easy to see that he must be the “dark twin” and not just from his coloring. She’d had to listen to enough of Jillian’s prattling to know a lot more about Twin Kindred than she ever wanted to. Besides the fact that they always came in pairs, she knew that they also had very different temperaments—hence the “light” and “dark” classification.
The brothers were dressed in the tight fitting black flight pants all the Kindred warriors favored and they were wearing dark green uniform shirts that buttoned up to the chin with shiny gold buttons. The color looked outstanding on both of them but Kat couldn’t help thinking that any color would. Both green uniform shirts were obviously hiding six pack abs and arms of steel and they had muscles to match everyplace else too. Yum.
“Nice to see you both again. Did you come over to help clear tables?” Kat motioned to the refreshment pavilion, where over half the tables were still stacked with empty plates and half filled glasses.
“Regrettably no, my lady.” Lock, obviously the “light twin” of the pair had a handsome, open face. With his wheat colored hair and big brown eyes he was what Kat’s grandmother had always called ‘an October blond’—but now he looked troubled. “We have…bad news,” he said, hesitating as though he didn’t know how to say it.
“Very bad news.” Deep crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Our Flight Control has lost contact with Sylvan and the human female he was taking back to her home on Earth.”
“With Sophie, you mean?” Kat felt her heart freeze. She’d seen the two of them leaving together earlier—much earlier now that she thought about it—but she’d been too busy keeping the reception on track to think about it.
“The twin of Baird’s bride, yes.” Lock nodded. “There was a disturbance in space—a kind of energy field we’d never seen before—shortly after their shuttle left the docking bay. Flight Control couldn’t tell what it was and it masked all other signals. By the time it cleared, Sylvan’s ship was nowhere to be seen.”
Kat felt sick. “But couldn’t they have already landed in Tampa?”
Deep shook his head. “Tampa HKR reported no shuttles have docked in the past twenty-four Earth hours.”
“So that’s it? They’re gone? Poof! Just like that?” Kat demanded.
“Not exactly.” Deep frowned. “We actually believe they may have landed somewhere else on Earth. A forced landing, perhaps. If the energy field was generated by the Scourge, as we believe, they may have had to change their flight plans considerably.”
“My God! Sophie is somewhere down there, who knows where, lost and alone—”
“Not alone.” Deep’s black eyes flashed. “Sylvan is with her. Our second brother would not abandon a female placed in his care—not even if his life depended on it.”
“Look,” said Kat, beginning to feel exasperated. “Nobody’s disputing that Sylvan is a great guy. But he’s just one guy. What if the Scourge send a something or someone after them—or a whole bunch of someones? Even Sylvan, as big as he is, can’t hold off a dozen attackers.”
“Then he will die trying,” Lock said quietly. “I don’t think you quite understand the depths of a Kindred warrior’s devotion, my lady. Sylvan has been charged with Sophia’s safety. If need be he will gladly lay down his life to protect her.”
Kat frowned. “Even though they’re not dating or engaged or anything like that? I mean…I’m sorry, but I don’t even think she likes him very much. And to hear her tell it, he’s not her number one fan either.”
“That doesn’t matter,” Lock said. “When the safety of a female is at stake the warrior shielding her will go to any extreme to be certain she is protected.”
Kat tried to smile. “It’s nice to know chivalry isn’t dead, at least among the Kindred.”
Deep raised one black eyebrow at her. “Chivalry?”
“Never mind.” Kat shook her head. “Look, the main thing is, what’s being done to find them? I mean, why doesn’t somebody put on a Think-me and bespeak them?”
“We’ve tried that already,” Lock said. “Either something is blocking their thought signals or…”
“Or what?” Kat put a hand to her throat.
“Or they’re dead,” Deep said harshly.
Kat sucked in a breath, feeling like someone had punched her in the stomach. “Oh God, no,” she whispered.
“Deep!” Lock rounded on his brother angrily. “Did you have to put it so bluntly?”
Deep shrugged his broad shoulders. “Just stating the facts, Brother. It’s time we all faced them—Sylvan has been out of contact for hours now.”
Kat glared at the black haired warrior. “I don’t care how long it’s been since anyone saw them or spoke to them, we can’t just give up!”
“We’re not going to,” Lock said quickly. “We still have hope no matter what my brother says. You must forgive him, my lady—he always looks at the worst possibility first.”
Kat looked at Deep speculatively. “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, huh?”
“Indeed.” He made an overly elaborate bow.
Kat frowned. What is it with these guys and the bowing, anyway? “All right, fine,” she told Deep. “But just because you’re a pessimist doesn’t mean you have to be an asshole.”
Deep frowned. “Excuse me? A what? I’m not completely familiar with Earth vernacular yet.”
Lock grinned. “I think you’ve just been insulted, brother. And by one of the elite, no less. You should feel honored.”
“By one of the who?” Kat waved her hand when he started to answer. “No, never mind—whatever. Just tell me what we can do to find them.”
“There is actually another way to locate them,” Lock said. “Deep and I are seeker/finders.”
“Excuse me, you’re what?” Kat asked.
“Seeker/finders,” he repeated. “We have the gift of far-looking.”
“Okay, sorry boys, but it still does not compute. In English, please—what does that mean?”
“It means we can use the power of our combined minds to locate peopl
e who are lost,” Deep drawled. “Is that clear enough for you?”
Kat gave the brothers a skeptical look. “Sounds kind of ‘psychic network’ if you ask me. But okay, I’ll bite if we don’t have anything else. So why don’t you two just go to it?”
“We would but we need someone who knows either Sylvan or Sophia intimately in order to get a lock on them,” Lock said. “To act as a focus.”
“But don’t you know Sylvan well enough to contact him?” Kat looked at both of them. “I mean, you’re step—er—second brothers, aren’t you?”
“We are, but since we’re providing the means of location, we need someone else to help focus in on their energy,” Lock explained. “We were hoping you might know of someone close to Sylvan or Sophia who is familiar with the way they think. Of course, Baird would be the best candidate, but he left the after party with Olivia some time ago and we didn’t want to bother them.”
“Not bother them? Of course you have to bother them!” Kat put her hands on her hips. “Liv needs to know what’s going on. You can’t imagine how close she and Sophie are—they’re twins.”
Deep and Lock looked at each other and something seemed to pass between them. “Actually, yes we can.” Deep gave her a sardonic smile. “We’re twins too, remember my lady?”
“Right.” They looked so different and seemed to have such different temperaments that she’d almost forgotten. “Well then, you two should understand. No matter what she’s doing, Liv will want to know that something’s happened to her sister.”
Lock looked pained. “My lady…I don’t think you understand. You see, Baird and his bride have retired to their suite.”
Kat gave them a blank look. “Yes, and? That was ages ago. I know they were probably, uh, celebrating but they have to be done by now.”
The two men exchanged looks again. “Not necessarily,” Deep began. “You see with the Beast Kindred—”
Kat made a come on already gesture with her hand. “Yeah, yeah, I know—you Kindred guys are all stellar lovers and it takes awhile to do the deed. Whoop-de-do, lucky Liv. But she and Baird have been gone for hours—they’re bound to be done having sex by now.”