Page 29 of Bloodline Unbound

“I’m cool with that.” I checked out the map on my phone. “It looks like after a solid day of driving we’ll end up around Denver, Albuquerque, or Bismarck, depending on where we branch off on the way.”

“My personal vote is the Denver route,” said Caden. “If we have to go farther I know there’s a permanent nest near Portland if we get desperate. Once we get past Salt Lake City, we can blast up I-84 all the way there.”

Plus, trees. Seth thought, perking up his head. I’d rather keep Lo near forests if the trees are telling her when that thing is getting close. Speaking of, what the hell was up with that?

“I have no idea. It’s never happened before.”

I wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth if the trees wanted to keep us alive. I gave Seth a deep tummy rub and triggered his air biscuits, his little paws curling happily as his purr rumbled. Caden rolled his eyes, but I saw the tiniest upturn at the corner of his mouth.

That spot is mine when we switch off.

I reached over and ran my nails over the back of his neck, toying with the short hairs until he relaxed under my fingertips. Touching them both relaxed me far more than the distance we were putting between us and the hunter. I wanted to fall asleep with one on each side, caged and protected. But I didn’t want Caden to be uncomfortable.

The further we got, the more exhaustion crept in. Caden put the radio on low and I pushed my chair back, letting the sway and gentle rumble of the vehicle lull me to sleep.

Caden’s hand in my hair woke me and I blinked into the late-afternoon light.

“Where are we?”

Seth yawned and stretched, shaking himself awake.

“Lexington. I figured we could do with some food and a short walk.”

“Sounds like heaven.”

Seth hopped into the back seat and I righted myself so he had room to wriggle back into his clothes. We swung through a drive-thru for some burgers and stopped at the Lexington National Cemetery to walk.

“Interesting choice,” I commented as we pulled into the parking lot.

Caden shrugged. “Walking trails and trees. I figure it’s closer to a forest than an open park.”

“Fair enough.”

I actually loved cemeteries, especially old ones. We wandered through, passing ornate gravestones and monuments. It was beautiful, and if I didn’t think too hard, I could pretend we were here as tourists. I’d always wanted to do a cross-country road trip, but these circumstances were less than ideal.

Trees cradled more than a thousand graves, some dating back to the Civil War and others far more recent. If we weren’t on the run, I’d have wandered through to find the most interesting stone, researched names I came across, enjoyed the winding paths and careful landscaping. We couldn’t linger, though. By the time we’d finished eating, Caden was already tensing again and glancing around.

The hunter wasn’t here, at least that I could see, but no sense in sticking around if we couldn’t enjoy ourselves.

Seth took over the driving when we got back to the car and Caden took up his spot in my lap. I couldn’t help but laugh when he stood, putting his paws on my chest to rub my face, scenting me with his cheeks before staring at Seth.

“Jealous boy.”

Caden didn’t disagree with the statement and instead curled up on top of my boobs, forcing me to cradle him so he didn’t slide down. I cuddled him close and scratched under his chin.

Seth was a lot more reckless at the wheel than Caden. He zipped around other vehicles, flying down the highway as we left the city limits.

“We’re going to get pulled over,” I protested.

“Nah. I never get pulled over.”

Caden rubbed his head under my chin. His phone pinged and I fished it out of his discarded jeans in the back seat. My thumbprint was coded in so I unlocked it and held it in front of him, clicking on the notification.

Someone responded to my post.

I scrolled to the newest response for him.

I think it could be a witch wraith. Haven’t heard about one showing up for centuries, but it’s the closest I’ve come across based on what you’re saying and what’s been recorded in the past. No idea how to get it off your tail or how to kill it. Someone did some fucked up magic to make it and you’d have to find out how and who to have any luck.

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