The second woman stopped and turned around. It was Jan, as he'd half expected. "You okay?" he asked, over Lyssa's head.
Jan nodded but wrapped her arms around her body, as if in an effort to stop her sudden shivering. The bushes to his left rustled. He tensed and then relaxed as Karl stepped through. Jan ran to him. Karl hugged her so tightly Gabriel thought he'd squeeze the life out of her.
He stepped away from Lyssa, holding her at arm's length, his gaze searching her pale face. "Tell me what happened."
"A police officer freed us. She told us to run up this hill."
Relief coursed through him. Sam, surely. "She's still down there?"
Lyssa's blue eyes regard him curiously. "You know her?"
"We're working together." As Lyssa would have known, had she actually been the shifter who'd spent the last few months at his brother's side. He glanced at Karl. "We have to get them out of here." Before Kazdan came looking for them — before Sam got caught again.
He touched Lyssa's arm and helped her up the slope. Karl all but carried his wife. Maybe the sudden relief of seeing him had sapped all her strength. But it seemed to take forever to reach the top. He bit back his impatience, his need to go find Sam, and helped Lyssa over to the car. Family came first, and Lyssa, the real Lyssa, was family.
When she was safely settled in the back seat, he closed the door and leaned on the top of the car, watching Karl help his wife into the front.
Karl met his gaze once she was in. "Thank you," was all he said.
They'd been friends for a long time, and Gabriel knew that the simple thank you encompassed a whole lot more — like, thank you for letting me help, thank you for trusting me again. He nodded. He'd confided in Karl on all but his brother's secrets for nigh on ten years, and his brother had trusted Karl with the one secret that mattered. Now that Karl had proven to be vulnerable to attack, they'd have to arrange for the information about Stephan to be wiped from his mind. But that didn't mean he was no longer worthy of trust or friendship. And had the situation been reversed, had it been him in Karl's position, he would have done exactly the same thing. Most men would have. And most men would not have taken the risk of bugging his threateners. That more than anything told him where Karl's allegiances truly lay.
"I want you to get the rest of your family and get the hell out of Victoria. Go to New South Wales or Queensland or wherever for a while. Tell no one — not your company, not Jan's folks, not your folks." He hesitated, then got out his cell phone, handing it across. "I'll call you when it's safe to return."
Karl took the phone and nodded. "What about your lady friend?"
"I'm going down to get her."
"Not Sam — I mean the woman in the car."
"Lyssa?" He'd never told Karl about Lyssa. She was part of Stephan's life, a secret his brother wished kept for safety's sake. Only Mary and Martyn had known. And one of them had betrayed her to Kazdan. "Take her with you. For now, that's best."
He bent and lightly tapped the window. Lyssa wound it down and studied him expectantly. "You're not taking me to Stephan, are you?"
He shook his head. "Not yet. Not till it's safe. Stephan will kill me if I lose you now."
"Is he all right?"
"He's fine. Don't believe the news reports, no matter what they say. I'll let him contact you as soon as I can." He shifted slightly to let Karl climb into the car. "You're safe with Karl and his family. I'll see you in a couple of days."
She nodded solemnly. He glanced back to Karl. "Be careful."
"I'm not going to lose anyone else to that creep," Karl muttered. "And you're the one who should be careful. He seems to know an awful lot about your family and your friends."
He nodded. As they drove away, he shapechanged, winging his way down the mountain after them to ensure they got away safely. Then he wheeled around and headed back to the camp.
Kazdan was on the move.
He saw two men carry Sam to a large white van and put her inside. Kazdan climbed in after her, and the van moved off. Several other cars were lined up in the parking lot. Men scurried ant-like from the buildings to the vehicles, carrying all manner of equipment. No one made any attempt to fight the fire.
Fire trucks were approaching fast, but he doubted if they'd be in time to stop the clean out. And while he'd love to know just what Kazdan was up to down there, Sam had to be his first priority, because she seemed to be Kazdan's first priority. With a flick of his wings, he headed east, after the first van.
They drove for about an hour. The wind grew stronger, buffeting his wings and carrying with it the salty tang of the sea. He studied the horizon. Beyond the dusting of house lights, beyond the trees that danced and swayed to the music of the breeze, he could see the ocean — a blanket of foam washed blue-black. They were nearing Western Port Bay.
Kazdan turned before he got to the beach road, heading inland for several miles, finally slowing as he approached an isolated farmhouse.
Gabriel drifted closer. A familiar tingle ran through his limbs, a warning that he was approaching a changer shield. Why would they have something like that way out here? It was the sort of device used to protect military installations, not isolated farmhouses. He flicked his wings, soaring left, wondering just how large the shield was. A blue-white light speared out of the darkness below him. Before he could turn away, before he could react in any way, it hit, flaring bright against his chest.
He couldn't move. Couldn't fly.