I braced, sheltering her the best I could from the impact. The world spun as the vehicle rolled into the ditch instead of plowing through the barrier. Her body was thrown out of my arms.
Before the dust could even settle, I was pulling myself out of the vehicle, my weapon drawn. Two men were already approaching. They were not human by the aura that surrounded them. I ducked out of sight behind the vehicle and inhaled deeply, trying to filter out the stench of rubber and asphalt. Wolf shifters. This confirmed my suspicion that this was a totally different group from before.
Meera whimpered, still strapped to her seat in the SUV. I scanned her form through the tilted windshield. I didn’t see any blood, but she was human and much less ruggedly built than I. Her eyelids fluttered.
“Meera? Trouble? You okay?”
She grimaced and tried to speak, but all she got out was a groan.
Peering around the side, I aimed my weapon at the approaching figures and fired. I only managed to take one down. The other dove to the ground and scrambled back to the barrier.
The door on Meera’s side was stuck, wedged against the side of the ditch, and I made my way back over to the driver’s side, which was much more exposed. Gunshots rang out immediately, hitting the vehicle, and I ducked back behind it. Even if I could get back into the SUV without being shot, I wouldn’t be able to get Meera out safely.
I made a split-second decision. Fuck the whole no-casualties rule. I’d have to ask for forgiveness rather than permission. I needed to get her and the egg to safety now.
“Meera, hang on, okay. I’ll be right back.”
I sent several more shots toward the barrier, forcing my opponent to duck for cover again before diving into the ditch. Under the cover of darkness, I ran on silent feet toward the barricade. There were two males. One human and the other a shifter. They were discussing how to get through me to the egg. I also caught the mention of reinforcements being on the way.
With their attention on the vehicle, I snuck in close before I lunged with a roar, my eyes on the wolf. He was sprawled on the ground before the other could even aim his weapon. I dodged the shot and quickly eliminated him too.
Then I was running back to the SUV. If they said reinforcements were coming, then they were coming. I didn’t have time. Meera was fully alert now and trying unsuccessfully to open her door.
“It’s stuck,” she said.
“Climb over to me. I’ll pull you out.”
She did, and when I wrapped my arms around her and hauled, she let out a pained yelp.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, pausing.
“I’m sure it’s just some sprained muscles. Get me out.”
I did, but more carefully. She was disoriented when I placed her feet on the ground. She clung to me and let out a small sound when I tried to step away.
“As much as I love your body against mine, Trouble. I need to get to Omelet. Hold onto the door.” I placed her hand on the door, and she crumpled against it instead.
“I’m sorry. I’m so dizzy.”
Shit. It could be whiplash or a concussion. “It’s okay, the ground and vehicle are tilted. Sit here.” I guided her to sit on the ground.
I opened the back doors to retrieve the egg. With the vehicle at an angle, it was difficult to lift the seats up and get to the secret compartment. But howls of wolves drove me to work faster. There were more shifters out there, and I recognized those howls. They were broadcasting the location as they got into place. Even now, they could be surrounding the vehicle, cutting off our escape route. But there was one escape route they could not jeopardize.
With a grunt I tugged the armored case out of its nook. It hadn’t been sideways for too long, and I hoped it hadn’t sustained any damage. The case was too unwieldy, and there was no way I could safely carry both Meera and it while in the air. I dug around for the backpack she’d used before and carefully laid the egg inside, upright, transferring some of the stiff padding from the box to protect it.
I found her wallet, which was in the front pocket of her other bag. I didn’t find her phone though. I didn’t know if Mateo had deleted her video of the egg or not, and I didn’t want any of them getting confirmation that she’d indeed had the egg. Until they had absolute proof, they were working on intelligence and assumptions, and those could always be incorrect.
“Meera, where’s your phone?” I asked loudly, hoping she could hear me.
She cleared her throat and managed a shaky, “I had my phone with me.”
I glanced over the front seat but couldn’t see anything. Shit. Every second was time wasted.
I reached across, trying to feel for it with my hands. Aha! Jackpot. I grabbed it and shoved it into the front pocket of the backpack along with her wallet. It was all I could save, but everything else could be replaced easily.
“Do you think you can hold Omelet?”
She nodded and reached for the bag. I slipped it through her arms instead so that she wore the backpack on her front.
