In fact, another text buzzed in as he switched the power off on that phone and tucked it into his backpack with his computer.
Figures the first time I leave the country I have to sneak out and can’t even enjoy the trip.
Peyton
“Do you think he’ll tell anyone?” Jake asked Peyton.
They sat hunkered in the open back of a pickup truck currently bouncing along a rough country road. A hand-knitted watch cap hid Jake’s bad haircut, but he now looked more like a typical scruffy backpacker tourist than a horror-movie villain.
“Ken?” Peyton asked. “No. As long as he follows my instructions and Dewi doesn’t grab and Prime him before he leaves.”
They’d found a farmhouse around two a.m., a guy home alone. Jake had shifted back, dressed, and knocked on the door, feigning an injury from a car wreck while Peyton hid to the side. When the guy answered the door, Peyton immediately grabbed his arm and took control with his Prime powers.
Fortunately, the man not only had a cell phone, he had an Internet connection, too.
Even better, he had a reliable vehicle. After Peyton’s conversation with Ken, he and Jake set about taking care of a few immediate needs.
Like a hot meal and showers. While Peyton took a shower, Jake used a pair of kitchen scissors to whack at his hair and trim down his beard so he didn’t look quite so out of place. When he took his shower, he shaved the rest of his beard off. Once both men put on clean clothes courtesy of their unwitting host, Peyton Primed the man to drive them to the airport.
Peyton made a mental note to send the guy some cash once he made it back to the States.
“The guy really killed a Prime Alpha, huh?” Jake asked. “A human? Killed a Prime?”
Peyton chuckled. “I know, right? Wait ’til you meet him. Super-nice guy. I couldn’t have asked for a better mate for Dewi, but I’ll be the first to admit I was worried in the beginning. He’s more than proven himself, though. Multiple times.”
“Why have him come meet you? Instead of Duncan or Badger, I mean.”
“Because people know Badger. And I don’t want to expose Duncan’s identity if I don’t have to. He’s my secret weapon. Hardly anyone knows what Ken looks like. He’s not a shifter. He’s got a reputation now, sure, but that adds to his mystique. Ken also handles our computer systems and can help in ways Badger and Duncan can’t. Besides, I want Duncan and Badger at home to protect our pack. And Badger’s currently acting Pack Alpha.”
“And keeping your sister under wraps?”
He grimly nodded. “Except for Ken, Badger and Duncan are probably the only ones who can.”
“You have doubts?”
“I have…concerns. The sooner I talk to Ken in person, the sooner I can talk to Dewi, and then talk her down.”
The truck slowed for a turn, and they now traveled on a paved road, headed northwest.
“You have any ideas how to get us on a plane without raising alarms?” Peyton asked. “I mean it—everything from immigration to plane manifests are computerized and integrated now. It’s not like the old days, where we could slip someone money and make things happen. Not easily. And I’m ashamed to admit I can’t speak anything but English.”
“Let me do the talking,” Jake said. “Shake hands with whoever I’m talking to, turn on the Prime charm to make them do and believe whatever I say, and I’ll handle the rest.”
“Maybe we should try taking a train to a ferry,” Peyton suggested. “Can’t we walk onto those without an ID check?”
“I don’t know. Remember, I’m the wrong guy to ask. Flying will be faster. The sooner we get to London, the fewer chances of us running into problems. Besides, if your sister is as strong as you say she is, the faster we get to London, the sooner you can speak with her and calm her ass down.”
“And talk to Gillian. She’s gotta be terrified.” Peyton stared at the countryside passing by. “I hate that I’ve put her through this.”
“You didn’t put her through this,” Jake reminded him. “The fuckers who did this to us put her through it.”
“True.”
When they reached the airport it was nearly dawn. They thanked their driver, and Peyton made him forget all about the two of them and their excursion. As far as the man would remember, he drove two stranded hitchhiking tourists to the airport and left them there. Since there wasn’t much they could do about appearing on CCTV, Peyton decided it was pointless to further obfuscate their arrival by looking suspicious walking to the airport from town.
He kept his mouth shut as he followed Jake inside the terminal, where they stopped at the arrivals and departures board. Jake studied it for a moment, looked around, located the ticket counter he wanted, and headed off again.
They waited their turn behind three people and, fortunately, no one had queued behind them by the time they reached the counter.
