“So what are those?” Rand pointed towards the ravine. The glasses showed some smaller red spots that were moving towards their position. He dropped the glasses and peered into the darkness. “Rats?” It was the only logical answer. Still, he had yet to meet a rat that wore spurs.
The noise was getting louder. They could see nothing, but they heard small rocks tumbling down the ravine. The moon was behind the clouds so it was difficult to see. Though without a doubt Rand knew something was there. He’d learned several years ago never to ignore the feeling of being stalked and he drew his gun. Shay dropped her pack and did the same.
“What is it?”
“Since I have to guess, I’m going with some sort of steam-powered guard dogs,” Shay said. “Let me take them out.”
Rand cocked his pistol. “You’re kidding, right?”
She stood and took aim at the ridge. “Nope. You’ll make too much noise. They’ll know we’re up here.” Shay fired her gun and a blast of blue light came out of it. It made a buzzing sound, like a swarm of angry bees. He had to admit it was much quieter than his .45yet he hated not being able to fight back. Especially since there were more things swarming towards them.
It looked as if the ground was alive and moving. The moon suddenly split a cloud and Rand saw what was stalking them. There had to be a hundred or more, metal scorpions, as big as cats, with hinged legs that moved across the rocks and pincers raised and clacking together. They were looking for targets.
“Don’t let them touch you.” Shay was blasting as quickly as they came at her.
“Yeah . . . right.” Rand slid his pistol into the holster and picked up his rifle. He swung it like a club at the things and they flew apart with the impact. They kept on coming and he was soon breathing hard and his arms ached. Shay kept on firing until her weapon died on her, then all she could do was kick them in Rand’s direction and let him finish them off. She danced away from the last one as its claws nipped at her ankles. She bumped into Rand who had just launched one into the canyon and they stumbled backwards. He slammed his rifle into a boulder and the stock cracked. He lost his balance and they both went down. Rand caught her in his arms and twisted so he took the full impact of the fall.
She was sturdy. The impact of their bodies hitting the ground made him grunt and they lay still for a moment as they caught their breath. Shay’s body lay on top of his, chest to chest, thigh to thigh, and hip to hip. She was a perfect fit and his body recognized it. He could not help but tighten his hold on her. Her head lay up under his chin and the scent of her tousled curls filled his nostrils. The aroma was unlike anything he’d ever experienced and a vision of blue skies and a grassy meadow bursting with flowers of every colour filled his mind. Was it heaven? If it was it was as close as he ever hoped to get and there was only one thing missing.
“Are you OK?” he asked.
Shay raised her head. Her eyes held the moon in them. She parted her lips to speak but before she could say anything he kissed her. Rand moved his hand into her hair as his lips touched hers, and he was surprised, yet grateful, when her lips moved against his and her hands framed his face. She gasped, enough so that her lips parted, and he took advantage of the opportunity to trace her bottom lip with his tongue. She responded and it felt like a kick in the gut. The feel of her body against his, her hips pressing against him stokedthe fire. He rolled her over quickly, and she moved against him. His hand found her breast and she sighed as their tongues caressed.
“Five-one come in. Five-one are you there? Shay!”
Rand raised his head and looked at her in confusion. Her eyes glinted silver in the moonlight before she closed them, her face clenched in frustration, a mirror of his, he was certain.
“What is that?”
She pushed him aside and he rolled, painfully, away.
“It’s base,” she said. She touched her arm. “This is five-one. Check three.”
“Thank God,” the voice said. “We thought we’d lost you.”
“I hit a bump.” She stood up and ran her hand through her hair.
“Yeah. Any side-effects?”
Rand sat up and took a long drink from his canteen as Shay looked down at him. She handed him her flask. “Drink this.” She mouthed the words then continued with her conversation. “One. No make that two. One down. One with me.”
“You’ve got a local with you?”
“Affirmative. Status one-oh-one A. Rand Brock. Texas Ranger. Can you verify for me?”
“Affirmative. Rand Brock. Got a date of birth?”
“December 22, 1849.” Rand looked at her in confusion as she repeated his birth date back to whoever she was talking too. Why did she need his date of birth?
Instead of answering she held her hand up and walked away. Her voice dropped enough that Rand knew she did not want him to hear any more. Not that it mattered. It wasn’t as if anything that happened from here on out would change a thing.
“Topher,” Shay said after she stepped away from Rand. She shifted the communication to her headpiece. “I’ve got the machine in my sights. Can you run some parallels for me? How bad is the rift?”
“As of now there are three. I think we’re still safe as far as the time line. There’s no effects either way. Not even with your Texas Ranger. Did you get a name on the one who expired?”
“It was a horse.”
Topher laughed. Shay looked over her shoulder at Rand who still sat on the ground, sucking back the energy drink from her flask. Hopefully it would keep him going for a while longer. Being splitwas a bitch. She was surprised he’d been able to keep up. She’d only been with him a few hours but she knew without a doubt that Rand Brock was one hell of a man.
