stilled, arched, and flew back from Natalie’s raised hands. Baojia was already on top of him when he felt the quake. The rush of energy mushroomed out from the prone immortal as the earth beneath his feet groaned and shuddered.
He reached out, slicing off Tio’s head with one clean stroke as the ground opened up and a chasm appeared in the desert sand. He heard Natalie cry out as she disappeared into the dark slash of earth. Baojia roared as his enemy’s body fell lifeless onto the sand, blood soaking the earth that was still shifting and rolling.
“Natalie!” He looked for her, but saw nothing. The ground around where she had been lying was an open wound, sand and rock pouring into it. He dove after her.
Landing in a roll, he spotted her crouched in an odd cavern that seemed to bloom beneath the desert floor. The earth around them still quaked, but though the sand and rock rained down, the cave appeared stable. In the blink of an eye, he bent over her and wrapped his arms around her body, shielding her from the falling debris until the earth stilled. She trembled underneath him, and he could smell the blood that stained her skin from cuts and scrapes.
He said nothing when the earth finally stopped moving, uncurling from around her body to clear the sand and hair from her face. His senses reached out, searching for any threat, but no energy reached him. The gash where they had fallen had caved in and was covered by tumbled sandstone. The cavern narrowed into a small passageway that led into the unknown. Was it a mine shaft? An old tunnel?
Baojia could hear her heart beating furiously, so he lifted her in his arms and carried her toward the narrow opening that led farther down. It was pitch-black, but he sensed a familiar energy, a trace of scent and amnis that still lingered under the earth. Tulio. This passage, whatever it was, must have belonged to the old hermit.
She began coughing, and he could smell the salt of her tears and the teasing metallihatever c scent of her blood. He followed Tulio’s scent farther into the black, but could feel nothing and no one else. They were utterly alone beneath the earth.
Eventually, he could feel the air grow fresher and the sound of his steps echoed as he entered a wider part of the passageway. From the right, he caught the distinct smell of wax. Carefully, he set Natalie on her feet, reaching out until he could feel a niche in the wall. A stack of candles lay there, next to a box of matches. With steady hands, he lit one and looked around the room, carefully keeping his eyes on anything but the woman who was shaking only a few feet away.
He lit another, then another, placing them at intervals around a room lined with small alcoves. It had to have been an old hiding place. Or maybe the earth vampire kept many passages such as this one. Burrows carved from the earth to make for easy escape or shelter.
Whatever it was, it was safe.
The floor was dusty, but wool rugs were scattered over it, and a soft pallet sat in one corner. Wordlessly, Baojia picked up Natalie and laid her on it, carefully surveying her for wounds as his tension shifted from survival to anger.
“Where are we?” Her voice was scratchy and hoarse. “Is there anyone else down here?”
“No.”
He ran careful hands over her legs first, checking her ankles for twists or breaks. He bent and rotated the joints, carefully watching for signs of pain. There was a cut in her right calf but it wasn’t deep. He quickly ripped the lower part of her jeans away and bent down, piercing his tongue to clean and heal the wound before he checked her knees.
“Baojia—”
“Be quiet,” he muttered as he continued his examination. Her arms were next. He performed another cursory examination of her wrists. The right appeared to be slightly swollen, but not broken or seriously sprained. Another cut marked her left forearm. He ripped away the sleeve of her shirt and healed that wound as well.
“Are you going to talk to me?”
He still didn’t speak, just pushed her back on the pallet to gently run hands over her torso and ribs. Though there were more scrapes, particularly on her lower back and left shoulder from where she must have fallen, there appeared to be no sign of internal injuries