Avril made an excited noise. “The treasure’s close by, we need?—”
A low howl echoed down the tunnel and into the cavern.
All the security team spun, pulling their weapons.
“Whatever killed Chapman can’t still be alive,” Avril said.
“Perhaps.” Nik stood, tucking the journal into his backpack. “But its descendants could be.”
“Its mutated descendants,” Nera added.
“Let’s get out of here.” Galen waved them out of the cavern.
Nik hurried down the tunnel. As soon as their group stepped out of the cave and back into the jungle, he knew something was wrong.
Nera drew her sword and was scanning the jungle, tension radiating off her body.
“What is it?” he asked.
“No animal noises. No insects. No birds.”
It clicked. There was an unnatural silence around them.
“We need to go,” he urged Avril and the others.
The astro-archeologist nodded. “All right, let’s?—”
Howls echoed through the trees.
“Zombies?” Solomon clutched his laser pistol.
Nera shook her head. “No. Animals. Headed this way.” She glanced at the group. “Run.”
They took off, stumbling over vines, leaping rotting logs. They stayed close to the cliff face, where the vegetation was thinner and it was easier to run.
“Should we climb again?” Niklas shouted at Nera.
She leaped a log, her arms pumping as she ran. She shook her head. “Not until we know if what we’re dealing with can climb.”
Damn, she was right. If it was some sort of cat, they could live in the damn trees.
Behind them, someone screamed.
Nik spun, and Nera did the same. They both sucked in sharp breaths.
A pack of mutated…cats—or they could be dogs—raced out of the forest. They were smaller, faster and more agile than thegiant cats they’d faced before. The pack pounced on a fallen security team agent. They tore into the woman viciously, lifting bloody muzzles, their gazes fixated on the rest of the team.
“Run!” Nera yelled. “As fast as you can.”
The team was firing at the animals. Nera’s pistol whined, and Nik fired his own over his shoulder as he ran. “Hurry!”
The pack had abandoned their downed prey and was loping after the rest of them. Nik thought they moved like cats, with an elegant kind of grace, but they were hunting like a pack of dogs. They just looked like beasts from hell. Tough, leathery skin, misshapen bodies, and wide, teeth-filled jaws.
Nik pushed for more speed. If they could get back to the ship…
The ground suddenly disappeared beneath him.
He plummeted down a steep slope, and a second later, Nera tumbled into him. They slammed into the muddy ground, the air rushing out of his lungs. Damn, it was a hard landing. Nera’s legs were tangled with his. She sat up, looking a bit dazed. A second later, Galen fell in after them. Nik looked around.
