While he might not have some of his teammates’ enhanced skills, he could still make out the sounds of footsteps and adjusted his pathaccordingly. He was going to need to take them all out quickly and silently because otherwise they’d get off an alert to their colleagues of his and Indigo’s location.
Then he’d have no choice but to grab her and run.
Moving closer to the sounds, Voodoo made sure he stayed out of sight, keeping each step he took silent. Grunts and muttered words soon began to filter through to him, and as he took another few steps closer, he saw them. Four men moving together through the forest. From the annoyed scowls on their faces, he assumed they had long since lost interest in this pursuit. Not that they’d give up because he had no doubt that if they didn't produce Indigo, every single one of the guards would be punished.
Between all of them he’d already killed, and the ones he knew his team had taken out, Voodoo was a little surprised that any were left out there. Dr. Gardner must have more contacts than they’d been aware of. Or the man was just buying teams of mercenaries much the same way he’d put out contracts on Cassandra and Rose.
Regardless of whether they were permanent members of the scientist’s team or not, they were going to die tonight, and Voodoo couldn’t deny that it was bloodlust pumping through his veins as he moved into position. Maybe he couldn’t slay his girl’s dragons yet, not until he knew who they were, but he could damn sure slay the men out there determined to find her and return her to hell.
January 21st
8:50 P.M.
Hot.
Why was she always so hot?
Sweat was dripping from her body, pooling beneath her, and when Indigo shifted slightly, it suddenly felt too cold against her skin.
Great, chills were coming.
At least she was snuggled into her warm bed, that should help her feel better.
Only … if she was in bed, why did the mattress feel so hard?
And didn't she … not have a bed since her husband decided to divorce her for someone better and kick her out of their house?
Another rush of heat flooded her system, followed immediately by a chill that had her shaking. Her bony body bounced off the hard surface that she now realized wasn't a bed, wasn't a park bench, wasn't even one of those bumpy and uncomfortable beds at a shelter she sometimes slept on.
It was stone.
Because she was outside, but outside in the forest, not in a local park. Because she’d been sprung by a team of men who were altered like her. One of them had refused to leave her side, and she knew he’d been there through the raging fever dreams, and the chills that threw her body into a tailspin as it moved too quickly from hot to cold and back to hot.
Throat dry, lips cracked, she shifted a little.
“Voodoo?”
He didn't answer, and panic hit her like a ton of bricks. Had he gone? Got tired of her being too sick to move and decided ditching her was the better option after all?
Indigo wouldn’t blame him if he had left her, but still, the thought of him not being there left her almost in a panic. It didn’t seem to matter that she’d practically begged him over and over again to walk away and leave her behind. Or that she’d asked him to kill her on more than one occasion.
“Maybe he’s not gone,” she murmured. Blinking open heavy eyes, she found herself staring at a blanket. Two of them it turned out when she shoved the offending material off her as more heat washed over her in wave after wave, until she wanted to rip off her own skin just to find some relief.
When she glanced around the cave that had been their home for however long it had been since Voodoo and his team found her, she saw it was empty.
Worse, Voodoo’s pack was gone as well.
If he was leaving, he would definitely take it with him, but as she looked down at the two blankets, she couldn’t help but feel that he wouldn't have taken the trouble to cover her in blankets if he was planning on ditching her.
There’d be no point.
She was too weak to take care of herself. Without someone else there, she’d just wither away and die, so the blankets would be pretty much pointless.
Maybe he’d left, but he was planning on coming back soon?
Gritting her teeth, Indigo planted her palms on the rough floor of the cave and pushed herself up. A horrific shaft of pain tore through her broken leg the second she was standing on it, but it passed quickly and as she used the wall of the cave to help her balance, she realized that the leg felt more stable than she’d been anticipating.
Not fully healed, but not like a relatively fresh break should feel either.
