Page 17 of Keeping Sarah

I smiled at her, but it was guarded. “What I mean to say is, I know how you feel about Rex Terian—"

She scowled. “You don’t want me to think about that right now. That bastard slaughtered my family in front of me when I was a helpless child. The fact that helping you means I will also be saving Sarah from him…” She took a steadying breath to calm herself before continuing. “Saving one more person from Rex is the best reason to do anything.”

I nodded in understanding. “If you think we’re far enough to start up the onworlder, how long do you think it will be before we get to Faithless, assuming the onworlder’s batteries are charged.”

“Twelve hours, according to the map.” She pulled up the red glowing holomap on her gauntlet driver. “So I suggest we switch drivers every so often, to keep us as fresh as we can. It’s going to be a long night.”

CHAPTER 7

Sarah

“We’ve been walking for hours,” I whined in my head, “where is your alleged shortcut, Rex?”

“Ahead, shortly.”

A wave of apprehension fluttered through me. But it wasn’t mine and it put me instantly on alert. “What was that?”

“What was what?”

“Why are you nervous about something?” I asked him.

“I don’t get nervous.”

“You can’t lie to me. You’re in my body.”

He sighed for dramatic effect. “You are not going to like the conditions of the shortcut.”

“There are conditions?”What the hell did that mean?

He hesitated for a moment before giving me his thoughts. “We will come upon a cave, and in said cave is a man who does not like conduits. He will not look fondly upon one who has captured his friend, so you will need to let me do the talking.”

I shook my head. “Like hell I will.”

“I said you wouldn’t like it,” he grumbled.

As the trees parted ahead, a cave came into view. It was almost as though the cave shot up from the ground—there was no mountain around it. Inside, a fire made shadows dance on the walls. Vines dangled at the top. Blue smoke poured from the sides of the cave, not floating upward like normal smoke.

“That’s the cave?” I asked Rex in my mind.

“It is, indeed.”

Something about the air nearby felt like static. My mouth went dry. The power beneath my skin slid through my muscles, like a caged animal looking for a way out. Something was not right here, and I had no idea what it was.

“You said your friend is a man.”

“He is,” Rex confirmed.

“Whatelseis he?”

“You are far more clever than your companions allude to.”

“What else?” I insisted.

“Tolkabern is a magician.”

I stopped walking. Omen had warned me about them. “I’ve heard conduits and magicians don’t mix.”

Rex laughed. “You mean, since conduits hunted them down like dogs and slaughtered them? Quite right. However, since we are out of better options, I thought some American open-mindedness would let you do this.”

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