Max glanced toward the entrance to the courtyard. Beyond it, her family, her clan, were defending their home and loved ones. "They're needed here. Besides, I don't want to take them into danger with us."
"Just you and me," Gio said. "Together."
As they were meant to be. Max loved the feeling of being on the same wavelength. "Can you take me there?"
He swept an arm around her and looked down into her face, smiling. "My lady's wish is my command."
As the stone closed over them, Max realized that she wasn't afraid, not even a tiny bit. In the darkness, when everything else went away, she was still aware of Gio—his arms around her, his presence beside her, making sure that she knew everything would be all right.
They broke out into clouds, rain, and wind. Max staggered a little and then got her feet under her. Gio still had her in his arms. They remained locked together in an embrace as they looked around at rain-washed rocks fading into mist.
"I think we're close," Gio said into her ear. "I tried not to bring us out right in the middle of them this time."
As they separated and checked their gear, something occurred to her. "Is this the first time you've stonewalked without shifting?"
"Huh," Gio said, looking surprised. "Yes, you're right. I didn't even notice. It was much easier, too. I did it without having to think about it."
Max grinned. "You and your lion are getting used to each other, it seems."
"I think it's you," Gio said sincerely.
"Me?"
"Ever since we stonewalked together the first time, it's been easier."
Max wondered if the mate bond could do that. She had heard it could work miracles. And it certainly seemed to have done wonders for her relationship with her jaguar, bringing it out of hiding and reconciling the two of them so that they were one being and one soul, as they were meant to be.
Sinking our fangs into Nacio helped too,her jaguar supplied.
Hush, you. I'm having romantic thoughts here.
Whatever the cause, it was clear that Gio and his lion were unified as never before.
And she and Gio were also working together in perfect harmony. Together, they hurried from rock to rock. Max thought about shifting, but it would mean taking off her clothes and tucking them into one of the pouches of the harness. Damp as she was getting, she didn't relish being naked out here if she could avoid it.
"What's your plan when we get there?" Gio asked quietly.
"Throw bomb in cave, make big boom."
"Eloquent. I'm going to ask you more questions next time—"
He stopped, because in the valley below them, abruptly a commotion had erupted.
It was hard to see through the fog, but in the mist and rain, they were in the middle of it before they knew it. Black-robed cultists and jaguars were running everywhere.
"How did they get here?" Gio marveled, but then he saw the rip in the air and laughed aloud. There was a thin sliver of the hacienda courtyard visible through it.
"Javic," Max said. "He's portaling our people through."
"Nice to have him back on our side."
They ran past yelling cultists and galloping jaguars. In the commotion, hardly anyone paid attention to them.
"That looks like about where the Source was on Javic's map," Max said, pointing.
They ventured into an unguarded cave mouth. Darkness closed around them. Max was just wishing she'd thought to bring a flashlight when she saw a red glow from up ahead.
They emerged into a large open space, as if part of the mountain was hollow. A catwalk ran around the edge, and the middle, like a great gullet, went down and down and down. The red glow was coming from below.
