Alien Romance: RETURNED: An Alien Warrior Romance: (Acarnania Warriors Book 1) (15 page)

Back in the car, I
directed Daniel to drive away from the city, in the direction opposite our old home and Redmeadows Forest. We'd driven about ten kilometres, approaching the hills, when I asked him to turn off onto a dirt road. Without hesitation, Daniel did as instructed. The track wound through thickets of trees and over bluffs until it petered out in front of an outcropping of rock.

“What now?” Alrik inquired from the backseat.

“We walk.”

“I can't help but notice you're still carrying the doctor’s hand,” Daniel pointed out. “They could be tracking us.”

“You're right. But we still need the good doctor to help us out.”

Slinging our bags over our shoulders, we split the load of guns, food, clothing, and bedding between us. It took us over an hour of hiking through the rocky hillside before we came to a halt in front of an overgrown outcropping.

“This is it,” I announced.

“This is what?” Daniel looked around, bewildered. “There's nothing here but rocks and salt bush.”

“There's a door behind the bushes,” I said. “Like a bunker door. It leads to tunnels that’ll take us under the dome, to the outside.”

“Are you sure about this? About leaving the dome, I mean? Can you guarantee we're not going to die?”

“I can't guarantee it. What I can guarantee is that we can’t stay in here. We will be hunted and found, and then? More experiments, or simply death. I'd prefer to face my death on my own terms, wouldn't you?” I crossed my arms and looked at him pointedly.

Daniel didn't answer. Instead, he began pulling the bushes away from the rock face. Sure enough, a large bunker door appeared.

“How the hell do you know this stuff?” Daniel demanded. “I've lived here forever—under the dome for twenty-one years—and I had no idea this existed.”

“I had the doctor bring up the blueprints for the dome and a few buildings of importance,” I said.

“And you memorized it all? Just like that?”

I grinned at him. “My brain is a little enhanced these days. We don't have time to get into it now. I’ll explain everything once we're safe.”

Pulling the medical bag from my backpack, I waved it over the panel in the rock face and the door clicked open. Alrik grabbed the handle and pulled. The door was big and heavy, and it screeched in protest, but it stayed open long enough for us to pass through. Inside, lights began to flicker along the passageway, activated by the door opening. The passageway itself was crude, little more than a tunnel with dirt floors and rock walls. The lights were attached to a long cable overhead.

It was another two hours of walking before we reached the end. We were greeted by another door.

This was it. The exit to the dome. On the other side of this door, the wide world awaited. Whether the air was full of toxic gas, radiation, or clean oxygen, who knew? I had a hunch, and it was worth the risk. Plus, I was pretty sure I was right.

With a deep breath, I held the bag containing the doctor’s hand against the panel and the door clicked. Alrik stepped forward and pushed. It stuck. I joined him, throwing my shoulder against the cold metal. We could feel the debris on the other side slowly moving, and soon the door was open wide enough for us to squeeze through.

Alrik led the way, crouched with gun drawn. I followed, with Daniel bringing up the rear. No one was waiting outside to attack. The air was breathable. The sun didn't zap us into ashes.

The door banged shut behind us.

We stood for a moment, taking in the view before us. To our left was an old highway, now buckled, with vegetation growing up through the cracks, but you could still make out the ghost of the line marking the centre of the road.

Abandoned vehicles, old and rusted, served as markers. But the thing I noticed the most was the breeze on my face, the rustling of creatures in the grass. In the distance, I could see birds flying overhead. Earth was not lost. There was still hope.

With tears in my eyes, I turned to Alrik and threw my arms around him. I felt Daniel at my back, trapping me in a group hug. We'd made it. We were safe. And Earth wasn't doomed.

Not needing the doctor’s hand anymore, I quickly buried it beneath a mound of rocks.

Slinging our packs onto our backs, we set off, following what was left of the road. We'd have to set up camp soon, but I wanted to put some distance between us and the dome, just in case we were followed. Daniel was tiring, his steps plodding. We slowed our pace to match his. I had to admit I was feeling weary, too.

“You two wait here while I scout for a place to setup camp.” I'd barely nodded my head before Alrik set off. He was in full armour, his body suit locked and loaded and sexy as hell.

Dropping my pack to the ground, I sat on it with a weary sigh. Daniel followed suit.

“What do you think?” I asked him, gesturing at the forest around us.

“I'm blown away. They had us convinced there was nothing out here but arid desert. Why would they lie?”

“Maybe they don't know,” I said.

Daniel shook his head. “They'd have to. Although that tunnel hadn't been used in a long time, if at all.”

“I figured the dome had sensors built in, to monitor the atmosphere and stuff.”

“You would think so.” Daniel shrugged. “I was never that interested in the dome. But now I can't help wondering if they deliberately constructed it so we couldn't see out.”

We both turned to look at the massive structure looming behind us. From the outside, it was clearly visible, the diamond patterns black on a white background. Solid. The weather, day and night, all fake. No wonder there had been no sunset or sunrise; you couldn't actually see the sun through the dome. Even the light was artificial. The question remained—why?

“Found a spot.” Alrik's return put an end to my musings. We pulled ourselves back to our feet and followed him a short distance into the forest, well away from the road. He led us to a small clearing surrounded by dense foliage, but there was enough room for us to spread out and get some sleep.

I couldn't see the sun through the trees, but the light was fading. The day drawing to an end. It was good to be out from under the dome, to hear the birds roosting in the trees. I was even happy to slap away the insects that were buzzing around my head. It felt normal. It was what I remembered.

Alrik had disappeared again into the woods around us, and now he returned with an armful of branches for a fire. He set them up in the middle of the clearing, using one of the silver balls from his belt to light it.

“Is it safe to have a fire?” I worried we'd be spotted if they had followed us.

“The trees will shelter it from view. We're safe.”

He was right. The foliage was thick and lush, untouched for decades. It was breathtakingly beautiful. The trees towered around us, their branches merging with the ones next to them, creating a natural, impenetrable screen.

“I'll take first shift keeping watch,” Alrik said. “Whoever wakes up first can take over.”

He settled himself on the ground with his back against a tree, long legs stretched out in front of him, his dark eyes settling on me. I wished I could fall asleep in his arms, but he was right. Someone needed to keep watch.

Daniel grunted in acknowledgement, burrowing in his sleeping bag, his back to the fire. Within minutes, the sound of his snores filled the air.

Setting up my bed next to the fire, I blew Alrik a kiss before closing my eyes. Sleep was instantaneous.

* * *

The following morning, we packed up the camp in silence. Alrik and I had taken turns keeping watch, although nothing had come near, not even wild animals. Assuming there were even animals out here. I figured there must be; if there were birds and insects, then there had to be bigger predators about. We also had no idea how living creatures had been affected by the fallout from the bombs. Alrik had told me his suit monitored our conditions and so far had detected no radiation, which was great for us. But then why was Redmeadows living under a dome to protect them from radiation that didn't exist?

“Daniel,” I said as I zipped up my bag. “It's been bugging me and I have to ask ...”

He turned to look at me, pausing in the process of tossing his own bag over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised.

I forged ahead. “The doc had our DNA. Said you provided it to her. I'm wondering how that came about?”

He blew out his breath on a sigh. “I pulled hair samples from the shower drain and took them to be analysed. I just needed to be sure you really were—are—my sister.”

Alrik's eyes met mine briefly before he returned to kicking dirt over the camp fire. It sounded plausible, and in all honesty, I probably would have done the same.

“I understand.” I smiled, letting it drop. What was done was done. We'd been captured, but had prevailed, finding a way out of the dome.

Now it was time to look to the future, to work out where we were going to go, how we were going to survive. We knew nothing of the world beyond the dome. Were there survivors? Were there cities and towns out there, thriving? Or was there nothing? We knew there were other domes. Did they live the way Redmeadows did, with rules and restrictions and secrets?

We made our way back out to the road and continued along the same path as yesterday, following the fractured highway.

“I was thinking we should head for Kathryn Springs,” I said. “It's about ten kilometres from Redmeadows. We can walk that in a few hours. We’ll check it out, see if anyone is still there.”

“If survivors lived at Kathryn Springs, wouldn't they have turned up at the dome by now?” Daniel pointed out.

“How would they have known, though? No one can see out of the dome. Even you had no idea any of this—” I waved my arm around, “—existed. Though if survivors did turn up, I can't help but wonder if they would have been taken to quarantine for experiments.”

Alrik changed the subject. “Tell me about Kathryn Springs.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Population?”

“Around three thousand, based on when I was last here,” I said. “It's this beautiful, historic, picturesque little town with friendly people. There were a few very successful B&Bs operating there.”

Alrik raised an eyebrow at me. “B&B?”

“Bed and breakfast,” I explained. “A place where you can pay for accommodation and a meal while taking a break—a holiday—from life.”

“Ah, downtime.” Alrik nodded, understanding. “So Kathryn Springs is along this road?”

“We have to turn off. If we keep following this road, we'll arrive at Adelaide, which is a hundred kilometres away. Adelaide is bigger than Redmeadows.”

“Not anymore” Daniel grumbled. “Adelaide was blown to smithereens, remember?”

Of course. That was where mum and Emily had been when they were killed. A morbid curiosity made me want to see the city—or what was left of it‚—but I also had a healthy appreciation for my own health and well-being. The city ruins were bound to be contaminated, poisoned by radiation. Plus, it wasn't worth a week of walking just to satisfy my curiosity.

“Any other civilisations?” Alrik's question jerked me out of my thoughts.

“Devil's Bridge,” I said. “That's probably a day or two's walk. They had a population of around ten thousand.”

“It makes sense to walk to Kathryn Springs first, since it's closer,” Daniel said. “We can most likely find shelter there, even if it is abandoned or in ruins. We may be able to find something useful, too.”

We continued on in silence, each lost in our own thoughts. I was still shell-shocked by the turn my life had taken over the past month. Life as I'd known it had changed irrevocably, and there was no clear plan for the future. That was tough for a girl who always had to have a plan, who’d always had a clear direction for where her life was going.

“Look. A sign!” Daniel rushed off the side of the road. He was right; an old post was leaning at an impossible angle, a rusted sign that read 'Kathryn Springs' still attached to it. I could just make out the smaller road leading off the main highway.

Smiling at Alrik, I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the side road. But as we stepped through the bushes blocking the road, we froze again, shocked by what we saw. The road had long ago been consumed by the elements, and in its place was a dirt track. A dirt track with very visible tyre marks. Tyre marks that wouldn't be there after twenty-one years of disuse.

Someone in a vehicle had been here recently.

Alrik engaged his suit, his armour covering him and his helmet snapping into place. Alarmed, I pulled my gun. What had he seen?

“It is just a precaution,” he assured me. “We can't be certain of our welcome. We need to proceed with caution.”

“Okay.” I replaced my gun, blowing out a calming breath.

“These tracks are a few days old, so it is doubtful anyone is here now, but it indicates this area is populated,” he went on.

Daniel had dropped his bag and was digging around inside it. Crowing in triumph, he pulled out his phone, a clear piece of plastic that lit up at his touch.

“What are you doing?” I demanded. Why did he have his phone? It wasn’t supposed to work outside the dome. I was surprised he'd brought it with him.