Runner's Moon: Yarrolam (3 page)

            “No, I’m not joking. I don’t use credit cards. I pay cash for everything.”

            “How is it possible not to use a credit card in this day and age?” she questioned. “What about big purchases? How did you pay for your car?”

            “I paid in cash.” He grinned. “Got a nice discount that way.”

            “Sir?” The valet ran up to them. He was out of breath and appeared concerned. “Sir, there’s a man who wishes to speak with you.”

            Liam glanced around. “Where?”

            “In the parking lot. He wouldn’t let me bring your car around. He said it was urgent.”

            “What did he look like?” Liam asked.

            Cherron gasped. Like him, her first thought was it could be Aaron. But then a hundred more questions followed if it was.

            “Tall man. Heavy build,” the valet told them, holding out the keys.

            Her concerned lessened slightly. It wasn’t Aaron.

            Liam took the keys, holding out his free hand to stop her from going with him. “Stay here. Stay inside the restaurant.”

            “Why?”

            Anger flared in his strange eyes. Eyes which, she noticed, reflected the light like a thousand stars. A thousand fiery stars.

            “Just do it, Cherron. I’d rather be safe than sorry. I’ll be back momentarily.”

            He strode away, believing she would stay behind, but she couldn’t. With her worry for Aaron’s safety no longer an issue, she worried for his. When he disappeared around the corner, she slipped off her shoes so he wouldn’t hear her, and followed him barefoot.

* * *

Yarrolam’s curiosity was piqued. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Who would want to speak to him, using a tactic one normally saw in a spy movie? It was ludicrous. Normally, he would have no compunctions about facing whoever it may be, but a new element had entered the equation, raising the stakes.

He had to protect Cherron. Having discovered her, having realized she existed for him, meant his focus had shifted. It was no longer a matter of keeping himself from being detected. Now he had to keep her safe. Whether or not this little clandestine meeting involved her or not, he couldn’t take the chance of putting her in harm’s way. More than that, he had to watch out for himself, so he could always be there for her if she ever needed him.

There wasn’t one man standing by his car. There were three, but the other two were out of sight. It didn’t matter. His alien senses could detect their presence where they were using two other vehicles as cover. If this was to be an ambush, despite their numbers, they wouldn’t win.

He didn’t recognize the man, who came straight to business once he was within earshot.

“Mr. Vost.”

“And you are?”

“Doesn’t matter. I need you to give Aaron Shulcrist a message.”

“Why don’t you tell him yourself?”

The man’s attention suddenly diverted. At the same instant, the wind carried her lilac fragrance to him. Yarrolam inwardly groaned. He had assumed she would obey him, and his mind had been too preoccupied for him to detect her. He mentally debated rather or not to turn away from the man, but to do so would put more weight on her being there. If he ignored her, maybe the guy would think she was someone curious to see what was going on. Maybe.

He should have known better.

The man made a gesture with his head. Yarrolam whirled around as one of the men grabbed her by the arms and jerked them behind her. Cherron gave a little cry. He turned back to the guy standing by his car.

“Let her go. Give me the message, and then get the hell away from here.”

The burly man chuckled. “I have a better idea. I’ll give you the message, and we’ll leave.” He waved a finger at Cherron. “But we’re taking her with us.”

“Not wise,” Yarrolam told him in a dark voice, trying to hide the tightening in his gut.

“You don’t have a choice. Tell Shulcrist his first payment of thirty-five thousand is due tomorrow at noon. He knows where to make the drop.”

Yarrolam felt his body go on the defensive. His outer skin on his hands slid away, and he extended his talons. He kept them close to his body to prevent them from being seen. He could keep the rest of himself in human form to prevent detection. The single street lamp illuminating this area of the parking lot would also help cover his actions. The only unknown factor was the number and types of weapons these men were carrying.

“Apparently you have a hearing problem. Why tell me? Why not tell him yourself?” he demanded again. He double-checked the man holding Cherron. Adversary number three had finally emerged from his hiding place and moved over to stand beside them. The man held a gun by his side and pointed at the pavement. Yarrolam turned to their leader, who wasn’t holding a pistol, although he could smell the weapon on him. He judged the two distances.

“We tried to,” the man replied. “He’s gone into hiding. Since he has no next of kin, you two are the next best thing.” This time he made a circular motion in Cherron’s direction. “If we suspect correctly, the little lady is Shulcrist’s bride-to-be. That makes her perfect tender. Tell Shulcrist as soon as we get his first payment, we’ll let him know where he can find her.”

Yarrolam couldn’t argue with them. Neither could he plead with them to reconsider, or to let her go. No matter what he said, it wouldn’t change these men’s minds. They’d been sent to do a job, and they were going to go through with it.

Time was running out, leaving him with no other choice.

Chapter 4

Flight

            Yarrolam launched himself at the two men holding Cherron, slamming sideways into the man with gun. Both Cherron and the man who held her fell backwards under the impact. Turning slightly, he slashed down with his thick claws across the first man’s wrist, severing the hand holding the pistol. Before the second man could worm his way free from underneath Cherron, Yarrolam twisted his body and brought his Ruinos hand down on the guy’s Adam’s apple. The man released his grip on her and clasped his neck in a vain attempt to staunch the flow of blood.

            All of this happened within a handful of seconds. The man by the car stood there in surprised shock. By the time he realized what was happening, Yarrolam had managed to bring his feet underneath him. With a single lunge, he closed the nearly twelve foot gap between himself and the guy, ramming him against the car. The impact knocked the man out, and he slipped to the ground like a sack of soft putty.

            Yarrolam turned to Cherron. “Come on! Get in!”

            She took one look at the two men lying bleeding by her heels, and hurried over to jump into the car. Yarrolam found the man’s gun and dropped it into his pants pocket before sliding under the wheel.

            They sped out of the parking lot, taking the feeder road, where he merged onto the interstate and headed north. Neither of them spoke as Yarrolam forced himself to keep to the speed limit. Eventually, they reached the outskirts of the city. By that time, he allowed himself to relax. As far as he could tell, no one was following them, but it didn’t mean they were out of danger. If anything, the worst was just beginning.

            “Who were those men?”

            He glanced over at where she rubbing her arms with her hands. The red marks on her wrists would soon turn a bruised blue.

            “Are you cold?”

            “No. I’m terrified. Who were those men? Why did they…” Her voice broke but she didn’t cry. She was fighting back fear with anger. Trying to find reason and sanity after what she’d witnessed.

            “I don’t know, Cherron. I have no idea what the hell is going on, but we’re going to find out. I promise.”

            Once they reached Mississippi, Yarrolam pulled off the highway and into the first small town. Finding an ATM machine, he withdrew the maximum amount allowed. Getting back inside the car, he held out a hand.

            “Give me your phone.”

            “Why?” she asked, but dug inside her purse and relinquished it to him. She watched in disbelief as he left the vehicle and walked over to the small trash receptacle next to the bank machine. He deftly broke the cell phone into pieces with his bare hands, dumping the remains, then returned to the car.

            “Was that really necessary?” she asked.

            “I don’t know, but would you want to take the chance?”

            Their next stop was at a local Gas-N-Go where he filled up the car, bought a disposable phone, and withdrew more money from the store’s ATM machine. He also got a few snacks and some bottles of water. Getting back under the wheel, he handed the bag of items to Cherron. Once he pulled the car up to the side of the store, he took the cell from the bag, activated it, and placed a call.

            “Aaron? It’s Liam. Call me at this number.”

            Hanging up, he dialed a second number.

            “Aaron? It’s Liam. Call me at this number,” he repeated and hung up again.

            She gave him a questioning look.

            “I called his personal cell and the office,” Yarrolam answered. “You probably noticed he didn’t answer either one.”

            She gave a loud sigh. “What do we do now?”

            “Well, we can’t go back to Aaron’s place. Or mine. They’re probably under surveillance.”

            “By whom? Who’s watching them?” Cherron drew a hand through her hair. “This is unreal. Who were those men? What did they mean, thirty-five thousand? That man said Aaron owed him thirty-five thousand dollars.”

            “And they said it’s his first payment,” Yarrolam reminded her. He looked at his hand resting on the steering wheel, the other holding the disposable phone in his lap. In the semi-darkness, they were human hands again. Although he couldn’t see any blood on them, he could smell it. The human-like skin was covering the worst of it.

            “Liam?”

            “What?”

            “Let’s find some place to spend the night. Hopefully we’ll be able to think more clearly come morning.”

            He nodded. She was right. They could keep running, but it wouldn’t solve their problem.

            “Liam, we need to tell the police what happened.”

            “That…may be a problem.”

            “Why? How?”

            “I attacked those men. For that alone, they could arrest me.”

            “They attacked us first!” she countered.

            “The police may not see it that way. Besides, if they find any of those men, it’ll be my word against theirs. Cherron, if they arrest me, it could leave you vulnerable for someone else to come after you. Plus, we have no idea what kind of trouble Aaron is in.” Yarrolam gripped the phone so tightly, he almost crumpled it. Looking her full in the face, he dropped his voice. “You have to trust me when I tell you, going to the police isn’t going to help Aaron. Or us.”

            “Oh, and you think just the two of us are going to be able to do what the cops can’t? What do you suggest we do, then? Keep running?”

            Rubbing a hand over his face, he glanced out the front windshield. “For now, let’s go with your idea. Let’s get a room somewhere and let clearer heads prevail in the morning.”

            “I’d rather go to the police station now,” she insisted. “Aaron could be dead in the morning!”

            “I don’t think so. Cherron, the more I think on it, the more I believe he deliberately sent me to pick you up at the airport to keep us out of harm’s way.”

            She scowled at him. “Are you saying he knew those men were coming after him?” She reached for the door handle to exit the car. He reached out and grabbed her by the upper arm. Not hard, but enough to detain her momentarily.

            “Cherron, wait.”

            “We have to help him! We have to tell the police!”

            “Tell them
what?
” Yarrolam almost yelled. “That three men accosted us in a restaurant parking lot with a cryptic message?”

            “They were going to kidnap me!”

            “Yes, and I crippled one of them and nearly killed the other one! Who do you think the police are going to make their number one person of interest when they can’t find Aaron? Say Aaron’s already dead. No, no,
listen
to me! Hear me out. What if Aaron’s already dead? I was the last person to see him alive. You don’t think they won’t hold me for questioning? Those men who came after us because someone sent them. Someone who is out thirty-five grand, and then some. If I’m held for questioning, it will leave you wide open to another attack. And if those people get their hands on you again…” His throat suddenly closed up, and he felt his heart shrivel at the thought. “Cherron, it’s been a long and terrifying day for both of us. Let’s get a room, talk it out, and make a decision tomorrow morning. Please.”

            Several long seconds passed as she studied his face. “Okay,” she finally relented. “Okay. You risked your life to save me. The least I can do is allow you the benefit of a doubt.”

            Relief washed through him. “Thank you,” he whispered, and started the engine.

Chapter 5

Call

            They found a small Triple AAA motel several blocks further into town. Yarrolam chose it, rather than one right off the interstate, in case someone was looking for them. He checked them in, telling the clerk they were siblings. Because both he and Cherron had dark hair and were similar in build, the man appeared to believe him and gave them a room with two double beds. Yarrolam made sure to park the car in an area where it would be difficult to spot from the road.

            Cherron opened the motel room door and stepped aside to let him carry in her suitcase. He waited to hear her make a derogatory remark about the place. To his surprise, she bounced on the end of the bed closest to the bathroom.

            “Dibs!”