The Lasaran (Aldebarian Alliance #1) - Dianne Duvall Page 0,71

something to eat.”

Chapter Twelve

Taelon’s heart began to thump harder in his chest as they turned off the highway several nights later. It had taken much longer to reach North Carolina than he had hoped, but after seeing how exhausted Lisa was that first night, he had insisted they make the drive in shorter stretches.

He turned his gaze away from the darkness outside his window and glanced at Lisa.

Brow slightly furrowed, she concentrated on the road.

His patience had paid off. Her pale skin was a healthier color now. The dark circles beneath her eyes were gone. Her face and arms looked less gaunt and boasted a little more weight.

She seemed much better despite the pains that continued to plague her.

Though he tried to hide it, he had not fared as well. If anything, he felt weaker than he had before. His eyes burned with fever. His incision looked even more inflamed.

The car’s headlights illuminated a well-paved two-lane road surrounded by dense forest. Bioluminescent insects Lisa called fireflies sparkled amid the tall trees like tiny flames.

His labored breath quickened as adrenaline flooded his bloodstream. They were close. He knew it. He could feel it.

Four eyes gleamed in the darkness up and to the right. Taelon tensed until enough ambient illumination from the headlights revealed four-legged mammals with hooves and impressive antlers.

“Deer,” Lisa murmured. Her knuckles whitened as her grip on the steering wheel tightened. Her frown deepened as she nibbled her lower lip.

Taelon redirected his gaze through the front windshield. He was nervous, too. He had no idea what he would find at the end of this road and feared for Lisa. He would’ve preferred to leave her safely ensconced in another motel room and brave whatever he was about to without endangering her further. But she had refused to let him come alone.

It scared the srul out of him—how much he cared for her and how much she was willing to risk for him. It would kill him if she came to harm.

A large iron gate rose up before them, blocking their path.

Lisa brought the car to a halt. An electronic keypad waited outside the driver’s window. “Now what?”

Taelon reached into the back seat, grabbed the weapon they had confiscated at the base, and set it between them. Prying one of her hands off the wheel, he kissed it and placed it on the weapon. Then, thrusting his car door open, he stepped out into the night. Pain shot through his chest as he straightened. Clenching his teeth, he did his best to ignore it and approached the gate.

He studied it. Too little space separated the heavy vertical bars for him to slip through. No horizontal bars provided footholds at convenient heights. But he could still get over it if he could muster up enough of his former upper body strength.

He grabbed one of the bars.

“What are you doing?” Lisa asked, poking her head out of the driver’s window.

“She’s in there.” His voice emerged as a guttural rasp as he gripped a second bar and began to pull himself up. “I know she is.”

“You can’t climb that,” Lisa protested, her concern clear.

He borrowed an Earthling phrase. “The hell I can’t.”

The gate shifted back and forth a bit as he pulled himself up the bars, hand over hand. Each tug, each flex of every muscle, sent greater agony through his chest and abdomen, so much so that he began to fear the drekking stitches would fail and spill his insides out. Though he wanted to bellow from the pain, he’d had enough experience with torture since his arrival on Earth to restrict his response to muffled grunts that would keep Lisa from diving out of the car and racing to his side.

Clanks and clunks disrupted the usual night sounds. The top of the gate bore dull points shaped like the narrow leaves of a kihmueca tree. Slipping over them without poking himself in the abdomen or groin wasn’t easy as his strength rapidly waned. Once he hung from the top on the other side, he glanced down, calculated the pain a slow descent would cause, and opted instead to just let go.

The ground rushed up to meet him.

His drekking knees buckled upon impact, landing him in an inglorious heap. I’m okay, he called to Lisa through their mental link before she could jump out of the car and try to come to him. He didn’t want those inside to know he was not okay. He was actually pretty sure he had just