Amber Eyes (Amber Eyes #1)(38)

K-man and Dierks disappeared from sight while the other team members moved noiselessly left and right. Keeping their weapons up, Hunter and Jericho crept forward.

No noise emanated from the encampment. Only the sounds of distant predators filled the night. The eerie laugh of a hyena sent a shiver over Hunter’s skin.

Something wasn’t right. It was all too pat.

Jericho moved ahead before Hunter could motion him back. Jericho laid aside his rifle and hauled the makeshift trap door up a few inches so he could peer inside the pit.

“Hunter, the west guard tower is empty.”

The words echoed in his ear just as Jericho made a slashing motion to indicate the pit was also empty.

Christ. “Pull back,”Hunter hissed into the receiver. “Get the hell out. Now!”

Jericho dropped the door. Before he could pick up his rifle, the world around them lit up.

“Get down!”Hunter shouted as he lunged to cover Jericho.

The two men went down as a blaze of orange filled their senses. Heat. Then pain. Then nothing.

Chapter Twenty-One

Kaya stared dully out the window over the newly reawakened earth. The snows had melted and in their wake, green burst from the ground and the trees.

And still Hunter and Jericho hadn’t returned.

She folded her hands over the swell of her belly, reassured by the steady kick of her daughter.

Her supplies were exhausted and with the ability to shift gone until her baby was born, she had no way to feed her or her child.

Left behind.

Abandoned.

All the feelings of her childhood bubbled up, only these were sharper. They cut. They made her bleed.

She dropped her head and closed her eyes. Why hadn’t they kept their promise? The days had turned to weeks, and the weeks into months. Winter had given up its stranglehold on the mountains, and wildlife was on the move all around her.

Her belly had swelled as the life within her grew. How she’d longed to share these moments with Hunter and Jericho, but they hadn’t come back, and now she was forced to face the uncomfortable truth.

They weren’t going to.

She would have to venture down to the town below. The idea terrified her. While she’d walked among humans, she’d never had to try and play by their rules. She needed food and clothing, and she had no idea how to go about getting either. All she knew was that she couldn’t get it here.

Knowing she was only putting off the inevitable, she moved from her position at the window. She took special care in her appearance, or as much as she could manage. She used the men’s brush and worked the tangles from her hair until it sparkled and shone.

The sweatpants fit her a little better now that her belly had grown larger, and the flannel shirt hit her at mid-thigh instead of falling to her knees. She looked somewhat normal.

Then she looked down at her bare feet. She had the boots that Jericho had made her wear, but they were far too large for her and would look ridiculous if she tromped into town with them. Maybe she could find shoes later. For now she would make do.

She let herself out of the cabin and looked sadly back at the place she’d considered her home if only for a short period of time. She wouldn’t be back. There was nothing here for her any longer

“Help me, Maker,”she whispered. “I’m so afraid.”

***

Jericho opened his eyes and blinked when everything stayed blurry. His head ached like a bitch. Then he realized that he couldn’t feel much more than the vile ache at the base of his skull and the burning of his eyes.

He looked down, trying to see the rest of him. His arms, his legs, something.

“Ahh, you’re finally awake. You had us worried, Mr. Hartley.”

He turned blindly in the direction of the voice. “Jericho. No one calls me Mr. Hartley.”

“Okay, Jericho.”

“Who are you? Where are you? I can’t see you. Where am I?”

“One question at a time.”The voice was soothing. Feminine. “My name is Susan. I’m the nurse assigned to your care. Give yourself a few minutes to orient yourself. Your vision should clear soon.”

“Hunter,”he croaked. “Where’s Hunter?”

“Your friend is alive.”

That didn’t say a whole lot. What the hell had happened? He strained to remember, but all he could summon was an image of fire. An explosion so loud it had split his ears. And then nothing.

“Oh, look, someone is here to see you.”

Jericho turned again, blinking, furious that he couldn’t make out more than a fuzzy shape moving toward the bed.

“Hey, man. God am I glad to see your ass awake. I was sure you’d decided to take a permanent vacation on us.”

“K-man.”

“Yeah, in the flesh. Can you see me?”

“Move closer.”

The blur came into sharper focus, and some of the burning in his eyes eased. He could make out K-man’s face. See his eyes even. They looked worried.

“How long have I been here?”he asked. “What about Hunter? The others.”

“Several months, dude. You’ve been out of it for a long while. We weren’t sure you were going to make it.”

Months.

Panic kicked him in the gut and crawled up his throat until his chest felt like it was going to explode.

“Months? Months? Tell me you’re joking, K-man. Don’t bullshit me. This is too important. I need to know exactly how long I’ve been here.”