Chapter 16

SIXTEEN

Samantha

I'm standing beneath the shade of a tree at the side of the road, far enough away from the truck where Captain Evander was changing the tire that I thought he wouldn't hear me make my call.

I was wrong.

Not only had the bastard heard me, but, apparently, he had a problem with me talking to my friends, which was like red flag number fifty with this guy. At this point, he has enough red flags to wave down a spaceship, and I'm planning on getting as far away from him as possible, as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, as much as I want to head back to Granger and Aydan at the institute, I'm not willing to run into the green dragon again. I need to get off this mountain… and my friends need to too, which means meeting up in town and getting the hell out of here.

But that plan will be a hell of a lot harder if I can't get in contact with Granger and Aydan.

"Give me back my phone." My gaze moves to the phone clenched in the asshole's hands, and I try to embrace my anger so my fear doesn't take over. " Right now."

His dark eyes hold mine, and a flicker of hatred rises inside of me. This man oozes arrogance and a deep desire for control unlike anyone I've met before, and I've spent a lot of my time around Fire Science majors, so that's saying something. "No one can know what you are or where you're going. It's not safe, do you understand me?"

My gaze slides from his dark hair to the black shirt and military vest covered in pockets that seems to fit him too tightly. His thick arms are left bare, but they're covered in tattoos. One tattoo is of a threatening looking gray dragon that hugs his entire arm, shifting in the shaded sunlight as his muscles move. As much as I hate it, I don't think I can take him. I don't want to play nicely either, but I do need to be smart rather than impulsive.

Not my greatest strength, but I'll give it a try.

"Fine. Give me back my phone, and I won't call anyone again."

Humor is there and gone in a flash. "I'm afraid I don't trust you not to call your boyfriend again."

He says the word "boyfriend" in a possessive manner, like he's some guy I'm on a date with who feels jealous of a man from my past. Like he has a right to feel possessive over me, which is yet another red flag. Wherever this man wants me to go… I'm staying the hell away from. If he's already treating me like an object he owns, I can't even imagine what his bosses will do to me.

I'm about to snag the phone from him when a large shadow passes overhead. I flinch, ducking down further instinctually. The green scales of the dragon are so close that I can see them flashing in the sunlight. My heart races, and I picture those big claws. The naked man. For a terrible moment, I think he's found me, but then he keeps flying past us.

"We need to get to the safety of that town. Now." He slips my phone into one of the pockets of his vest, then spins around and heads for the truck.

I sprint ahead of him and slip back into the driver's seat, slamming the door right before he reaches it, and lock the lock. He gives me a look, knocks on the window, and then when I ignore him, circles around and climbs into the passenger seat. Before he even closes his door, I put it in drive and take off.

He slams the door. "You know it'd be smart to have the trained military officer driving, right?"

"For who?" I ask.

"For both of us," he responds without hesitation.

I shake my head. "No. Contrary to popular belief, it is not a good idea to let a strange man drive you wherever the hell he wants."

"We're going to town. We both have the same goal. You're being illogical and stubborn."

Letting my gaze flick away from the road for the briefest moment, I say, "I'm concentrating. Do you think you can stop with the yappity yap? You're worse than Boba Fett."

His mouth pulls into a thin line.

Silence descends between us. My hands are clenched on the steering wheel. There are abandoned vehicles every so often, and the evidence of frequent accidents. Whether it's due to the earthquake or the dragon, I don't know.

"The dragon is keeping close. You better hope he hasn't scented you."

"I can see why you have a position of authority. You say so many helpful things. You really know how to keep a person calm. You're so good at it, you should be called Captain Xanax," I say, sarcasm dripping from every word.

He seems to ponder that for a minute. "Sorry if you don't strike me as a wilting flower."

Is that supposed to be a compliment?

The shadow crosses over us again, and this time the vehicle seems to sway under the force of the dragon's powerful wings. My pulse races in my ears, and I get the terrible sense that the dragon is about to perch on our truck, or maybe just rip the top of our vehicle right off. I hate that I'm not entirely sure what the fuck its planning.

Suddenly, there's a loud crashing sound, and I crane my head to see that something has exploded on the side of the mountain above us. Rocks are tumbling down, and my heart seizes as I push the gas pedal all the way down and start flying around the twisting, dangerous mountain road, praying there's no debris ahead of us.

"Jets!" Evander says.

"Jets?" I shout back.

"Yeah, they're firing at the dragon."

As if to confirm it, we hear the roar of the beast, shaking the very air around us, and then I see them, two jets squaring off with the dragon. Hell. This is not where we want to be. In the middle of their fight. But I can't safely go any faster.

Fuck. I'm not being very safe right now, even.

The truck skids as I round another corner, but only for a second before we keep going. I decrease my speed by a drop when flames go roaring overhead, slamming into the jet. It maneuvers out of the line of fire, disappearing into the clouds, but I know things aren't over yet.

"Just stay focused. Slow when you round the corners. I'll focus on them. You focus on the road."

I snort.

"What?"

"It's just, I'd have to trust you to listen to that dribble, and I don't."

"I'm military personnel who has been in countless dangerous situations. You should trust me."

My mind starts working, even while my focus remains on the road. "Then tell me more about Specter Inc."

He's silent.

"So I can trust you, huh?"

He's choosing his words too carefully. "It's the most powerful corporation in the world. It owns every kind of business you can imagine, has fingers in every industry, but funnels most of its resources into science."

"Why? What's in it for them?"

"The pursuit of knowledge."

What crap. "And what knowledge are they after? Why dragons and earthquakes?"

"Just focus on the road. You can't afford to be distracted."

"You can't afford to be distracted," I mock.

Suddenly, a jet crashes into the side of the mountain in a fiery ball of smoke and flames. A scream catches in the back of my throat, and I watch as the dragon perches on top of the jet that's lodged in the mountain, throwing back his head and roaring as rocks and flaming pieces of metal rain down on us from above.

"Eyes on the road!" he shouts, grabbing the wheel and turning it as we nearly go barreling over the edge of the cliff.

I slam on the brakes, and we stop in the middle of the road, the sound of our breathing the only noise in the car.

"We have to keep going," he says.

I'm shaking, but I nod and slide my foot back to the gas.

A piece of the wing hits the road beside our truck. My hands tighten on the steering wheel, and I keep going. Because what the hell else can I do? Once that dragon's done with the jet, is it going to notice us? I don't want to find out.

"You're doing well," he says, his voice soft, almost soothing.

I chance a glance at him. There's something in his eyes I don't understand. Respect maybe, even though I'd nearly killed us. Still, I know I have good reflexes. I always have. Maybe I'm doing better than I thought.

Everything quiets in my mind. I think of Granger and Aydan. This is the only way to town from the institute. If they're coming after me, they're going to go this way. On a dangerous road. With a dragon.

Man, I hope they don't come after me.

But even as the thought hits me, I know there's no chance they're not coming for me. We're family. I just need to get my phone back, warn them, and find another way to safely reach them.

"Town!" he says at the same time I see the sign.

I release a breath I didn't even know I was holding and start plotting my next step.

"So where is ‘base' located for the Specter Company?"

"Just a few hours from here in SeaFront Landing. They actually own a huge chunk of the shoreline. They have a big facility, mostly underground, just a half hour outside of OceanView. It's a really beautiful place. You'll love it. A lot of the staff enjoy their morning coffee on the wall surrounding the facility. They watch the sunrise over the ocean. They go for walks on the beach."

"So I'll be able to do all those things?"

"You'll like Specter Corp," he says, clearly avoiding my question.

I'll be a monkey's butt if they aren't already fixing up my prison cell.

"Stop here," he says, pointing to a small store with some covered parking.

I take several deep breaths, feeling out my body, making certain I've fully healed after my encounter with the dragon. I have. Strangely. So, now I just need to be faster and smarter than this asshole.

Parking, I turn to him.

He says, "We'll hide out here while I call my bosses and update them on our RV location."

"Sounds good," I reply lightly. I grip the door handle, and then reach over and grab my phone from his open vest pocket, then throw open the door and run.

The element of surprise worked for me once already today. I pray my luck holds. Almost a full minute passes, with me running as fast as humanly possible, before I hear the other door fly open. I don't look back. I can't afford to slow down.

I duck down an alley, then maneuver down another one, paying attention to exactly where I'm going. Up ahead there's a group of men with guns marching down the road. I know I should be afraid of them, but somehow I know exactly what to do.

"Help! Help! He's trying to hurt me!" I scream, pointing behind me as I race past them.

Their attention immediately focuses on whoever is coming behind me, and I glance to see Evander right on my heel. The men immediately surround him, pointing their guns, aggression and anger in the air. Guilt worms its way into my stomach. I hope they don't hurt him . But I push the thought aside as I circle a different way back to the truck.

He has a gun. He's in the military. He tried to trick me, and wants to throw me in a prison cell and let scientists poke at my brain. He'll be fine.

Most of the town is empty. There's a sense of fear that permeates the air. The dragon is nowhere to be seen, but I know he's just on the other side of the mountain, close enough to be here in minutes should something draw his attention this way.

Reaching the truck once more, I get in and get the hell out of there. I need to get somewhere Evander won't find me and call my men. I'll warn them not to go down the road. Then I'll head out of town and as far from here as I can get.

I just hope my plan works.