Twisted Metal Heart - Eve Langlais Page 0,58
thicket. Two people leaped from the boggy water itself, and Titan had nothing but his hands to defend them. He managed to grab and wrestle the first wiry body, but the second got past him.
Busy, he could only listen to the thumps of flesh hitting flesh and the grumble of a woman with a deep voice saying, “Would ye fockin’ stand still, ye slat?”
He might have worried more if a body hadn’t sailed past, Riella chasing it a moment later.
Titan wrenched the neck of the one attacking him then took his knife.
“Behind!” Alfred yelled.
Before Titan could finish pivoting, he saw Riella standing over a body smoldering at her feet, the hole in her assailant’s chest the size of a ball drone. It explained the smell of burning meat. Didn’t help the guilt he felt kind of hungry.
Alfred had dropped the guise of a bird and hovered close to Riella. “That’s the pair of greedy bastards who followed you over the wall.”
“It’s not greedy. The kind of bounty the queen is offering is life altering. I don’t blame them for trying,” Riella said.
Titan eyed them both. “You say you understand them, yet you don’t seem bothered they’re dead.”
“Why would she? They’d sell their own children if the price was right.” Alfred harrumphed.
Riella rolled her shoulders. “Understanding doesn’t mean letting them use me.”
“We should get out of here,” he said. “Even if Alfred didn’t see more, they’ll be coming.”
“The vehicle I was telling you about is in there.” She dug into the thicket and emerged wheeling a sleek vehicle. Four wheeled, and the tires sported a rugged tread. The engine was roughly covered by a few sheets of metal. The seat barely large enough for two. “Do you know how to drive one of these?”
“Can I write my name with pee?”
She stared at him.
“That would be a yes. I take it the Enclave don’t take pride in their skills.”
“Most of us pee in a toilet.”
He grinned. “Not on this road trip you aren’t.”
“This is not my first rough voyage.”
“You call this rough?” He snorted as he checked out the bike. “Princess, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
“Do you even know where to go?” she asked as he swung his leg onto the rugged motor vehicle.
He examined the controls to get a feel for its abilities before turning it on. “I was going to follow this road and see where it led.”
“It turns into a fork a half-mile off,” Alfred offered. “Left goes to a hamlet, right meanders through the swamp.”
“See, already a plan is coming together,” he said as the engine began to hum.
“That is not a plan,” she grumbled as she straddled the machine behind him.
“Got anything better?”
“Nope. Just making an observation.” She slipped her arms around his waist. He didn’t mind that at all. “Wake me if you need me to fight. I need a nap.”
“No naps for you, concussion princess.”
“I’m fine. Just tired. It’s my way of healing.”
With that said, she leaned against his back, showing way too much trust in someone who still struggled with how to classify her. Enemy, lover, mother of his child…
Okay maybe not the first. But he could replace enemy with Bait. She might provide the key to achieving his goal of vengeance. Problem being he wasn’t sure he could put her in danger.
With Alfred leading and scouting the way ahead, guiding him around problem spots, Titan motored the rest of that night. There were splashes and sounds of things on either side of the road, but nothing bothered them. Might have been lucky. Perhaps Alfred, during his jaunts ahead, was practicing his body-punching defense system. Whatever the reason, they survived the night, and the only trouble he had was with some kind of strange insect that thought to use him as its lunch when he stopped to refill the tank with water. By the time Riella stirred, a forest of some kind was up ahead.
She woke, squirming against his back. When she stretched, he slowed and barked, “Hold on. Don’t you dare fall off.”
Leaning forward, she spoke against his ear. “Or what?”
“Don’t test me, woman.”
“Afraid you’ll fail?” Her laughter teased him.
“We’re out of the marshes.”
“Could you be more obvious?”
He gunned the machine, and her joyous exclamation was carried away behind them. He didn’t slow until they were parked under the boughs of the tall trees, hidden from sight should someone have eyes in the sky. After all, if Alfred could see, so could everyone else.
He took a glance around and noted the strange mix