I thought you said you could fly!
All hawks can fly, but you have to remember this is my first flight. It will take a little getting used to.
Getting used to! Shintara hadn’t said anything about having to get used to flying. Oh, God, Ria was going to be sick. She looked up as a large object appeared in front of them.
Tree!
I see it. Calm down.
Branches!
I see those, too
Could hawks vomit? Why the hell hadn’t she read up on them? Anyone with half a brain would have googled hawks if that was their animal guide. But noooo, she’d never thought she would have to shift into one.
She could feel the wind on her face. That wasn’t bad. Kind of like when she went running. She glanced down as they flew over the town. Oh, God, she was going to die!
Drama queen. You’re not going to die. And if looking down bothers you, then don’t freaking look down.
You’ve really copped an attitude lately, you know.
And you’ve let something that happened when you were a child consume you with fear. All your life, it’s held you prisoner. Now we’re both free.
She was right.
Of course, I’m right.
You heard my thoughts?
You didn’t block them.
I can do that?
Sometimes, Shintara reluctantly admitted.
Ria would file that away for future reference. She didn’t want Shintara knowing everything she was thinking.
There’s the van, Shintara said. She swooped down closer, flying near the window on the driver’s side.
Truck! Ria’s mind screamed.
Shintara swooped up and out of the way with barely a feather being ruffled. I saw it. Remember, my eyesight is superb.
I’d just as soon not play chicken with oncoming traffic if you don’t mind.
I’m a hawk, not a chicken.
Whatever. But she was glad Shintara had found Kristor. Now she would be able to free the man she loved. Well, as soon as she figured out how she would go about doing it.
Kristor thought about Rianna, wondering if he would ever see her again. She was special. His family would like her—that is, if she decided to make the journey to New Symtaria. A deep throbbing pain ripped through him. He couldn’t imagine life without her.
Adam turned slightly in his seat, glancing back at Kristor. Kristor returned his gaze with stoic indifference. Adam’s eyes narrowed before he faced front again.
The man was taunting him. It was a maneuver meant to intimidate the opponent. Kristor had used it. By the time they arrived at their destination, he was supposed to be ready to tell them whatever they wanted to know. Adam’s ploy wouldn’t work. Not this time.
According to the clock on the dash, they’d been in the van two-and-a-half hours. Kristor shifted on the bench, but no position helped ease his discomfort. Jack looked even less comfortable and had already loosened the tie around his neck and removed his jacket.
They passed a sign that said Dallas was twenty-five miles away. He’d been there when he searched for Rianna. It was big. Much bigger than any town on New Symtaria. Would Rianna or her father be able to find him among so populated a place?
But they turned off the main road a few minutes later. Jack sat straighter.
“This isn’t the way to the office.”
A tingle of worry crept up Kristor’s spine.
Jack tapped on the glass. Adam turned, sliding the partition open.
“Did you make a wrong turn?”
“We’re not going to the office. Like I said, I’ve been in this business a long time, and I’ve seen a lot more than you have.”
“So where are we going?” Jack asked.
“You’ll see.”
Kristor knew he would have a better chance of escaping from a place with fewer people. They’d just made it easier for him. But ten minutes later, he wasn’t quite as sure as they drove up to a small building with glass windows surrounded by a twelve-foot fence.
A guard stepped from the building as they approached. The driver of the van slowed, then stopped, his window sliding silently down.
Adam leaned forward. “Agent Adam Richards,” he said, then handed his identification to the guard.
His words were muffled on the other side of the glass partition, but Kristor could understand what was being said.
“One moment, sir,” the guard told him.
He went inside the building. Kristor watched as the man raised a phone to his ear and spoke. He put down the phone and returned to the van, handing Adam his identification.
“Once inside, turn to the right. The buildings are lettered. You’ll be going to C Building. Someone will meet you there.” He went back inside. The metal arm rose in front of them to let them through.
Kristor looked at the buildings as they drove past: cold, stark-gray buildings. They pulled in front of Building C and parked. Maybe he could make a run for it. Woods surrounded the perimeter. If he could get loose of the metal bindings, he could shift, then escape.
But when the back doors of the van opened, Kristor saw that two guards stood on either side of the doors. Jack grabbed Kristor’s arm, and one of the guards grabbed the other. They didn’t let go after he jumped to the ground. As they walked inside, Jack moved away and the other guard took his place. They didn’t say a word.
“There’s a cafeteria down at the end of the hall,” Adam said as they went inside.
“Where are you taking him?” Jack asked, nervously looking at Kristor.
“It’s classified,” Adam said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Someday you’ll get to play with the big boys.”
“Ass,” Jack mumbled, but Kristor thought he was probably the only one who heard. He agreed with Jack.
Adam, Kristor, and the two guards turned and walked down the corridor opposite to where the other men were going.
“What do you think you’ll find out about me? I’m nothing special,” Kristor said.
“I don’t think I’ll find something, I know I will. Oh, yeah, I know exactly who and what you are.”
They put him in a small room with a tiny window in the door. Chains were bolted into the back wall.
“Chain him,” Adam said.
“You would treat me like an animal?” Kristor jerked away from the guards.
“But isn’t that what you are—Symtarian?” Adam cast a fierce glance toward the guards. “I said chain him!”
Kristor fought against the men, but he was handcuffed and they were two to his one. Still, he managed to kick one on the shin. He would have felt a lot better if it had been Adam instead of the guard, who was only following orders.
His efforts were futile as two more guards came running at Adam’s command. They managed to chain each wrist and both ankles to the wall. But they didn’t do so without taking some bumps and bruises. At least they didn’t look quite so stiff and stoic, and they were panting.
As soon as Kristor was secure, Adam waved the guards from the room and stepped in front of him.
“You might as well have just let us chain you, alien. What did you get for your effort? Pain?”
“I am a warrior.” He stood tall. “That was not so much pain as it was gratification.”
“I’m glad the thought of pain doesn’t seem to bother you. Over the next few weeks, you’ll have a chance to experience much more than what the guards gave you.”
Kristor would not let Adam see that his words bothered him. He would find a way to escape. They could not hold him.
“Aren’t you even curious to know how I guessed you’re Symtarian?”
People like Adam enjoyed bragging about how much they knew. Kristor understood his kind well. They liked to push weaker men around, or men in chains. But when it came to real fighting, they were the first to run away.