“Lovers don’t get carried,” Rachael reminded. His ear was close to her face so she leaned forward and nibbled. “Only brides do.”
“Well then, consider yourself married. And stop doing that thing with your teeth because I’m having one hell of a reaction to it.”
“That sounds like it has possibilities. But I’ve been thinking. Why wouldn’t some horrible reptile have discovered your handiwork and made a little nest inside your cave? If I were an alligator I’d be happy to use your hideaway. And if you came to visit, all to the good. Meals are hard to come by sometimes.”
He laughed. “You have no faith, woman. I put in a plug to keep the creatures out. I unfastened the locks and opened the door, that’s why we were in the tube so long.”
“You didn’t close the door.”
“I’m taking you to high ground first. That’s the gentleman in me.”
She nuzzled his neck. “I do appreciate it, Rio, I really do, but in this one instance, I’ll be happy to sort of stand here while you go back and secure the tube. I’m not ready for visitors yet, especially reptilian ones.”
Rio caught the little tremor in her voice. “I’ll do that immediately, Rachael. We’re already in the cavern. Fortunately we’re back far enough and the cave opens up into a wide chamber here so we can light a lamp. I brought several with me over a period of time.” He set her down on a flat surface.
Rachael waited anxiously while he lit one of the lamps and hooked it above their heads for maximum coverage. She looked around her. The chamber was fairly large. Roots protruded and water dripped continually from several walls. There was no sign of alligators. Rio had quite a supply of items in the cave.
There was a large plastic container she assumed was waterproof inside a cage of roots. She could see there were several blankets and one of his many medical kits inside. She was sitting on a flat slab of stone. It was the only rock she could see in the entire cave. The floor around the walls was damp, but most of the water ran back toward the river. Rio had hollowed out a ditch to keep the water from dampening the floor of the cave.
“So what do you think?” Rio returned, soaking wet, sweeping his hair back with careless fingers. “Not too bad.”
“I think it’s wonderful,” Rachael said. She was soaked and uncomfortable. She looked down at the shirt and realized it didn’t do her much good. As wet as her shirt was, it was nearly transparent. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of these clothes. You should too, Rio.”
“I’ve got a few things packed in waterproof bags for us,” he said. He opened the container and rummaged through the supplies until he found a towel.
Rio knelt beside her and unbuttoned the shirtt, dragging it off her wet skin and tossing it aside. “Come on, sestrilla, stand up so I can get rid of these jeans.”
His voice was gentle, tender even. Rachael allowed him to help her up, leaning into his body as he peeled the material from her hips. He wrapped the towel around her and began rubbing the drops of water from her skin. She swayed with weariness and it embarrassed her. He was the one who had jogged through miles of forest with her in his arms. He had been the one to use his strength to keep them from being swept apart in the river. And he was as soaked as she was.
“I’ve never met anyone like you,” Rachael said. “Sometimes I’m not certain you’re real.”
Rio wrapped her in a dry shirt. “I have my good side,” he teased. “Unfortunately, it just doesn’t come out that often.” He laid a mat on the slab of rock and covered it with a thick sleeping bag before helping her to sit down. Rubbing the thick mass of curls, he studied her leg. “The green gunk held up. We want to get that off the puncture wounds in case they still need to drain.”
“It does feel better,” Rachael said. “I’ll have to remember to tell Tama he’s a miracle worker.”
Rio made certain she was comfortable before he peeled off his own clothes and rubbed the towel over his body.
“How long do you think we’ll have to stay here?” Rachael asked.
“I’m going to use the rest of the night to hunt the shooter. He’s leaving his own trail and he was injured. It will be easier for me to find him. I’ll know you’re safe and won’t worry about him circling back and finding you alone in the house. Franz is already scouting for me. He’ll pick up the trail, and he knows how to stay out of sight.”
Rachael’s eyes widened in shock. “You can’t do that, Rio. Not after what you told me.”
“He’s hunting us. The only way to stop him is to go after him. Did you think we were going to live in a cave for the rest of our lives?”
“No.” Rachael wanted to pull the covers over her head. There was no way to shield Rio from her past. “But before you go out and risk your life maybe you’d better find out who you’re risking your life for.”
“I know who you are.”
“No you don’t. You have no idea who my family is.”
“I don’t need to know about your family, Rachael. We’ll talk about it when I get back. Wait here for at least forty-eight hours. If something goes wrong, head upriver toward Kim and Tama’s village. Ask them to take you to the elders. The Han Vol Dan is your first changing. You can’t allow it to happen until your leg is strong enough to stand up to the change. You’ll have problems with sexual feelings. Emotions will continue to heighten, the heat, the need, the edgy, moody feelings you can barely control. You have to stay in control, especially if you haven’t gone through the Han Vol Dan. The combination of the two passages can be explosive.”
“Do you know how completely ridiculous that sounds? If I was watching a movie, I’d burst out laughing.”
“Except you know what I’m saying is true. You’ve felt the animal roaring to get out. I’ve seen you come close to the change.”
“Why wouldn’t my mother tell me? In all the stories she told me, she never once mentioned I could assume another form.”
“I don’t know, Rachael, but I’m certain you’re one of us.”
“And if I’m not?” Her dark eyes moved over his face. “If you’re wrong, would that mean that we can’t be together? Are you allowed to be with someone that isn’t a part of your people?”
His palm cupped her face, his thumb sliding over her skin. “I’ve been banished, sestrilla, no one can tell me what I can or cannot do.” He leaned down to kiss her. “I’m coming back for you.”
“You’d better come back for me. I don’t want to wrestle alligators by myself.” She tried not to cling to him, although she wanted to hold him to her. There was nothing she could say or do to stop him. Rachael knew how stubborn he could be. It was impossible to argue with him when he made up his mind to do something. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. Whatever past they may have had seemed to intrude at the worst times. She knew him. She knew what he was like. “Just go, now, while it’s dark. Remember, if you’re right and he followed us, he could already be searching the riverbanks to see where we came out.”
“You’re upset.”
“Of course I’m upset. I’m stuck here with this stupid leg and you’re going to risk your life to stop this hit man.” She shoved her hand through her hair, angry and near tears. “Don’t you realize he’ll send another? And one after that? And another and another? He’ll never stop.”
Rio nodded. “I figured as much. It doesn’t matter, Rachael. We’ll take them one at time and if necessary, I’ll have a little talk with him.”
Her face drained of all color. “No. No, promise me, Rio. You can’t ever try to get near him. Not for any reason. You can’t hurt him. And you can’t try to see him.”
The anxiety on Rachael’s face twisted at his insides. “Rachael, I’m coming back.”
“I know you will.” He had to. She couldn’t stay in a cave beneath the riverbank forever—unless he was with her. She might be able to live anywhere with him. The thought was frightening. She’d never considered that she might want to spend her life with someone. A lifetime seemed a long time to want to be with someone, yet, if she could have him, she would want more than one lifetime with Rio.
Rio forced himself to turn away from her, from the look on her face, so lonely, so vulnerable, so much pain in her eyes. He didn’t dare gather her to him, he’d never let her go. He waded away from her.
“May all the magic of the forest be with you and may good fortune be your companion as you travel.” Her voice was rough with raw pain. “Good hunting, Rio.”
He stopped, keeping his back to her. He had glimpsed pain in her before. Knew the signs of trauma and betrayal. Was familiar with rage born of helplessness. The anguish went deep and left scars. He couldn’t look at her. Her suffering was harder to bear than his own. “I don’t know anything about love, Rachael. Meeting you was unexpected, but everything about you makes me happy. I’m coming back for you.”
He continued to wade out into the water. She was crying. Her tears would be the end of him. He’d rather face the entire bandit camp than face her tears. There was no way to change what he had to do. He couldn’t comfort her. There had been violence in her life. He recognized the signs. He could only hope that by doing what was necessary he didn’t lose his chance with her.
Rio went under the water, swimming through the narrow tunnel he had painstakingly scooped out and shored up with an artificial tube. It had taken several years to find the chamber and secure an entrance. He had several places scattered around the river and forest he could use if necessary. His people were a secretive, cautious species and he had learned over the years the value of preparation.
Once under the small falls, he swam underwater to the center of the river and allowed it to sweep him farther downstream. He didn’t want to leave tracks or scent for the hunter after he’d taken such careful precautions to keep Rachael safe. It was a risk leaving her in the chamber injured as she was. She had the weapons and light and food for several days, but still she could easily panic being underground. They were arboreal, preferring the high branches of the trees to the ground.
Rio spent many hours lying perfectly still, backup for his men. The others entered the camps to retrieve the victims. He remained outside from some vantage point, a marksman few could surpass, the last line of defense for his unit. He was used to the solitary life, living alone the way he did and carrying out his job, but unlike the leopard, his species were not meant to be alone. They mated for life and beyond. Rachael was certain to have a difficult time alone.
He exited the water a mile downstream from the waterfall, shifting into his animal form, happy to feel the full strength and power of his kind. He lifted his muzzle and scented the wind. At once he was flooded with information. He stretched languidly before springing easily over a fallen trunk. Dawn was beginning to break in the forest.
The thick, haunting mist shrouding the forest began to lift, slowly evaporating as the warmth of the sun penetrated the clouds. A chorus of birds began, each trying to outdo the other as the strange music rang through the trees. The range went from melodious to harsh, even tuneless, as they all called to one another flitting from branch to branch. A burst of colors as birds took to wing signaled morning in the forest. Gibbons joined in, claiming territory with gurgling cries and whooping yells.
The leopard ignored the noisy flapping and whooshing of birds with great wings as he leapt into the lower branches of a nearby tree to make use of the overhead highway. The forest had stirred to life and Rio utilized the noisy chatter, hurrying through the trees back toward his home in the hopes of picking up the scent of the hunter. Rio made his way quickly back upriver, listening for calls of warning or sudden silences that would indicate an intruder was stalking through the territory of the pigtailed macaque. Timid and shy, the macaque would often leap to the forest floor and run when disturbed, another sign of trouble.
It was the barking of the deer that alerted him first. The short, harsh calls were used to warn members of the herd among the trees as tail flipping couldn’t be seen through the heavy shrubbery and thick tree trunks. Rio snarled and sank low on the branch, going completely motionless in the way of his land. The hunter had just become the hunted.
Because he wasn’t high up in the canopy, the leaves of the tree he was crouched in remained still, unaffected by the wind. The sunlight filtered through the breaks of foliage overhead to dapple the leaves and forest floor below. That provided more concealment for him, a natural camouflage. Insects buzzed around him; a green fence lizard shifted its color from bright green to dark brown as it settled against a branch just a few feet from him.
A bearded pig grunted and crashed through the shrubbery beneath his tree, startled by something. Spring-loaded muscles bunched in anticipation. The tip of his tail occasionally switched, the only thing to move. Piercing yellow-green eyes smoldered with fire and intelligence. The leopard waited, frozen in place. The spotted leopard, a fully grown male, emerged cautiously, pushing its head through a multitude of ferns. The animal limped as it padded across the forest floor, snarling at the troupe of gibbons screaming foul things at him from the safety of the canopy. Twigs and leaves rained down as the monkeys threw things in defiance. The spotted leopard maintained his dignity for a few moments, then in the mercurial way of their kind leapt into the lower branches with flattened ears and exposed teeth. The gibbons erupted into a wild, terrified frenzy, rushing through the trees in every direction in an effort to get away.
Rio never moved, not even when the evil eyes, two spots lost in a pattern of spots, appeared to be staring right at him. Rio locked in on his prey. His yellow-green stare became focused, all tension gathered in his eyes. With great patience, he waited and watched, completely motionless. The intruder leapt back to the forest floor, a silent lift of his lip indicating his contempt for the gibbons. Cushioned feet allowed nun to move in silence over the thick vegetation.
Rio stretched out on the branch, a slow belly-to-branch stalk, using incredible muscle control. He crawled forward a few inches, froze and repeated the crawl, going from cover to cover—gaining inches, then feet, pacing above the spotted leopard. He reached the end of the branch. The spotted leopard moved silently just below him, unaware of Rio stalking him from above.