Rogue (Relentless Book 3) (4 page)

“As long as it’s not a total roach motel.” She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and pulled out a thin wad of bills, which she handed to me. “Here’s four hundred. It’s all I could get.”

Roland leaned forward. “I have five hundred. I found a bank machine at the airport.”

“I can’t take that. It’s your car money.”

He laughed and sank back against his seat. “I don’t think a car is very high on my list of priorities right now.”

“I have two fifty,” Peter chimed in.

I opened my mouth but Roland spoke first. “We’re in this together.”

Jordan pulled away from the building. “See, we’re better off than we thought we were.”

Ten minutes later, we parked outside a Motel 6. Jordan and I went inside to get two rooms, and the boys stayed with the car. I leaned wearily against the front desk as I waited for the clerk to finish whatever she was doing and check us in. It had been a long, stressful day, and all I could think about was how good it would feel to lie down and close my eyes.

The featherlike touch against my mind was so faint I thought I imagined it at first. It came again, and I jolted away from the counter. Nikolas was here. Not at the hotel but definitely close-by. And if I could sense him...

I grabbed Jordan’s hand and pulled her toward the door. “We have to get out of here.”

“What? Why?”

“Nikolas is here.”

She scanned the parking lot as she ran after me to the car. “I don’t see him.”

“You know that bond thing? He’s here, trust me.”

“Shit!”

Roland and Peter were in the front seats so Jordan and I dove into the back. “Get us out of here, Roland,” I cried, sinking low in the seat.

He turned in his seat to look at me. “What’s wrong?”

“Nikolas,” I gasped as the sensation grew stronger. Roland continued to stare at me, and I yelled, “Drive, damn it! Nikolas is here.”

“Fuck.” He started the car and eased out of the parking spot.

“Hurry,” Jordan barked. “I’d rather face a couple of hungry vampires than Nikolas right now.”

“If I drive too fast it’ll draw attention.” He pulled out onto the road and slowly picked up speed. “And I’ve seen what Nikolas is like when he’s pissed.”

“You’ve never seen him like this,” Jordan muttered.

I didn’t speak because I was too busy trying to sense Nikolas’s presence. It disappeared and reappeared several times, and each time my breath caught in my throat. His nearness awakened a storm of emotions inside me, and my Mori moved restlessly. It hadn’t even been a day, but I missed him so much. I hated the way things had been between us before I left, and part of me wanted to tell Roland to stop the car and let Nikolas find us. Shaking it off, I reminded myself why I was out here and what was at stake if I didn’t do what I’d set out to do. There would be no future for any us until the threat of the Master no longer hung over our heads.

“We’re clear,” I said at last.

Roland merged onto the highway. “How do you know?”

I swallowed past the small lump in my throat. “I just do. I’ll explain it later.”

“How the hell did they find us so fast?” Peter asked.

Jordan harrumphed. “My guess is they tracked the cell phones you were supposed to ditch in Boise. There’s no way they could have guessed we’d come to Salt Lake City.”

“But how’d they know we were at that motel?” Peter wondered out loud.

“I don’t think they did. They were probably driving around checking out motels.”
And seeing if he could sense me nearby.
It had almost worked. Another twenty minutes and I would have been asleep in my hotel room, unaware he was anywhere close by until he showed up at the door. Something told me he wouldn’t have knocked either.

It was just past four in the morning when Roland pulled into a roadside motel and declared that we weren’t driving any farther tonight. I had no idea where we were, and I didn’t care as long as there was a bed. I paid for a room with two beds at the front desk, and the four of us said good night. I didn’t even bother to undress. I fell on top of the covers and was out within minutes.

*     *     *

I leaned against the car, sipping the hot coffee Roland had brought back for me along with breakfast. The morning air was cold, but I was enjoying my first real view of Utah too much to sit inside the hotel room with the others. We were in a town called Green River, which the motel clerk told me was popular with outdoor enthusiasts. Watching the sun slowly turn the peaks of the distant rock formations to gold, I understood why.

I stared at the laptop sitting on the hood of the car, which was my other reason for being out here alone. I dreaded making the call, dreaded the worry and anger I would hear in Nate’s and Tristan’s voices, but I had to call and let them know we were okay. I wasn’t sure if Tristan would even be there or if he was out looking for me, but Nate would be there for sure. Kelvan had warned me not to use the cell phones to call home because they could be traced, but he’d assured me the software on the laptop would prevent the Mohiri from tracing my location.

I hope you’re right, Kelvan.
I opened the app and typed in the number to Tristan’s office phone. There was a short delay before it began to ring. I held my breath until I heard someone pick up on the other end.

“Hello?”

“Tristan?”

“Sara! Is Jordan with you? Are you girls okay?” The relief in his voice brought tears of guilt to my eyes.

“Yes, she’s –”

“Where is she? Is she alright?” Someone demanded in the background, and I knew it was Nate before Tristan put me on speaker. “Sara, what the hell were you thinking running off like that? Where are you?”

I took a deep breath. “I can’t tell you that. I’m sorry I worried you, but I had to do this.”

“Worried? I’ve been half out of my mind that one of those monsters will find you.” I had never heard Nate so upset. “I know you’re angry about the decision to take you away, but this is not the way to handle it.”

“His decision, not mine.” I squeezed my eyes shut. “I know you all want to protect me, but I can’t live that way, to be constantly guarded and never allowed to have any control over my own life. You know me, Nate. That would kill me.”

His tone softened. “Then we’ll figure something out. Just come home.”

The plea in his voice made my stomach knot, and I tried to think of something to say that wouldn’t cause him more pain.

“Tell us where you are and someone will be there in hours,” Tristan said, mistaking my silence for concession.

I stared at the ruggedly beautiful terrain and steeled myself to say what I had to say. “I can’t do that. This is about more than controlling my life. I’m tired of hiding and watching people I love get hurt. I don’t want us to spend our lives looking over our shoulders.”

“What are you saying?” Tristan asked slowly.

“I’m saying that as long as the Master is alive, none of us are free.”

Tristan sucked in a sharp breath. “Sara, you can’t mean to go after him alone? That would be suicide.”

“I know that. I’m just going to find the person who knows his identity.”

“Madeline.”

“Once I find out what she knows, I’ll tell you and you can take care of the rest.”

“What makes you think you can find your mother when Tristan’s people can’t?” Nate asked. “She could be anywhere in the world.”

I heard clicking in the background and knew Tristan was on his computer, most likely asking his security guys to trace the call. I sent up a silent prayer that Kelvan’s software blocked them from tracking me.

“I have my sources too, and according to them, Madeline is a few hundred miles from where I’m standing. If they’re right, I’ll be paying her a visit tonight.”

The clicking stopped. “Sara, if you know where Madeline is, tell me and I will bring her in.”

“She’ll see you coming, but she won’t expect me.” I let out a short laugh. “Who knows, maybe she’ll be curious enough to meet her daughter that she won’t try to run.”

A door opened behind me, and I turned to see Roland leave our room and start toward me. It was time to get on the road again.

“Listen, I have to go.” Nate and Tristan began to protest, but I cut them off. “I only called to let you know we’re okay. I’ll call again in a day or so.”

“You haven’t asked to speak to Nikolas,” Tristan said. I suspected he was trying to keep me on the line as long as he could, which meant he was having trouble tracing the call.

“That’s because I know he isn’t there.”

“You should call him.”

“I’m in no mood to be yelled at right now.” I bit my lip. I did want to hear Nikolas’s voice, even if he was yelling at me. I just didn’t trust myself to speak to him yet.

I changed the topic. “By the way, how are Seamus and Niall?”

“Furious they were tricked so easily. It may take them a while to live it down.” Tristan released a slow breath. “You can’t go around using your power on the warriors, Sara.”

“Nikolas taught me anything is fair in a fight. They use their strength and speed against me. My power is my strength, so why shouldn’t I use it to level the field?”

“I don’t think that is how he intended for you to use it.” Tristan was stalling now, trying to keep me talking. Kelvan’s software was obviously working as he’d promised, but I didn’t want to take any chances.

“Tell Seamus and Niall I’m sorry.” My hand hovered over the keyboard. “I have to hang up now. I love you both and I’ll talk to you again soon.”

“Sara, wait –” Tristan said, but I ended the call before he could finish. I swallowed hard and closed the laptop with a shaky hand.

Roland leaned against the car. “Rough call?”

“It was a lot harder than I thought it would be.” I picked up my cup and drained the last of my coffee. “Do you want to use the laptop to call your mom? She must be worried.”

“I called her from the Boise airport and told her we were staying a few more days with you. She wasn’t happy, but she said she’d let the school know.” He made a face. “She’s going to flip when I tell her it’s going to be more than a few days.”

“Who knows? It
might
be only a couple of days if we find Madeline,” I said hopefully. “And if not, you can always go back.”

“Stop trying to get me to go home. We’re in this together, and that’s it.”

I smiled and gave him a quick hug. “I’m really glad you’re here.”

Jordan walked up to us, jiggling the car keys. “We ready to get this show on the road?”

“Yes.” A thrill went through me. Today we would reach Albuquerque, and I might finally get some of the answers I was looking for.

Peter joined us, carrying his and Roland’s packs. “What if we find Madeline and she won’t talk?” he asked, dampening my excitement.

“She’ll talk.” Madeline owed me that much, and she was going to help me whether she wanted to or not.

We were leaving town when I spotted a sign for a thrift store. It didn’t take us long to find two small backpacks, coats, and a few needed toiletries. I moved my stuff from Roland’s pack to my own, smiling when the laptop fit easily inside. Tucked in with my clothes was a silver necklace, and I fastened it around my neck, letting the plain silver cross settle on my chest. It had been my grandmother’s and a gift from Nate on my sixteenth birthday. Wearing it made me feel like he and my dad were with me in a small way.

Eight hours and two pit stops later, we reached the Albuquerque city limits. I wasn’t the only one who released a happy sigh. Jordan and Roland had switched places at the last stop, and he glanced over at me as we drove into the city. “Where to?”

“Let’s get something to eat before we do anything else.”

“Really? I mean, I thought you’d want to go after Madeline as soon as we got here.”

“I need to check in with David first, and we’re all hungry.” We’d only been on the run for a day, but they all looked worn out and in need of a break. Spending so many hours in a car is tough for anyone, and it didn’t help that we were all a bit on edge. “Just make sure it’s someplace we can afford.”

I wasn’t the least bit surprised when Roland found a little mom-and-pop burger joint. When it came to burgers, he and Peter had built-in radar. We filled a booth and the waitress took our orders. While we waited for our food, I stepped outside to call David, using one of the prepaid phones.

“You made good time,” he said when I told him where we were. “I didn’t expect you to get there until tomorrow.”

“We were motivated to move quickly.” There were things David didn’t know about me, so I was vague on the details of our near run-in with Nikolas.

“This is good actually. We’ve been keeping a close eye on Madeline’s movements, and she’s still in Albuquerque, but for how long I don’t know. Since we’ve been tracking her, she hasn’t stayed in a place longer than a week.”

My pulse quickened. “So she’s here now, for sure?”

“Yes. Do you have your laptop with you? I’m sending you something.”

I tucked the phone between my ear and shoulder and opened the laptop. It powered up in seconds, and I opened the browser and logged into the new email account David had set up for me. Before I’d left home, I’d wiped the computer in my room as he’d instructed, but I had no idea what Tristan’s security guys were capable of.