Page 21 of Eclipse Bound (Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides #7)

Chapter Twelve

"Don't move," a voice commanded.

From the darkness, a figure materialized, literally flowing out of the shadows like liquid night. Lunar grabbed Rowan by her arm and pulled her to the side. Solar’s light illuminated a hole she had almost tripped over.

"Lunar," Solar growled, his form brightening again. "Where have you been while we fought for our lives?"

"Observing," Lunar replied coolly. "And preparing an escape route." He turned his night-dark eyes to Rowan. "Where is Eclipse?"

The question hit her like a physical blow. "He stayed behind to hold them off."

Something shifted in Lunar's expression. Concern, perhaps? Though it was difficult to read emotions on his shadowy features.

"Milano has deployed energy-dampening technology," Solar explained. "They found us at the Desert Suite and attacked in force."

"I am aware," Lunar said. "Poppy and I witnessed their deployment from the canyon rim. She's securing transportation while I tracked your energy signatures to find you." His gaze returned to Rowan. "You left a rather obvious trail."

"I'm sorry I don't have shadow-walking powers," Rowan snapped, her fear for Eclipse making her irritable. She started to turn back, but another distant rumble shook the cave, this one weaker than before.

"We must keep moving," Lunar urged. "An exit suitable to your dimensions is this way."

He led them through a series of increasingly narrow passages, at times seeming to merge with the shadows completely. Rowan struggled to keep up, her wet clothes heavy and her muscles aching from the cold and exertion.

"Wait," she gasped as they climbed a particularly steep section. "I need to catch my breath."

"There is no time," Lunar insisted. "Milano's forces are deploying throughout the canyon. They have devices that flash with light when they detect our energy signatures."

"Energy scanners," Rowan mumbled to herself. "Like the ones they used to find us at the retreat."

"Precisely," Lunar confirmed. "We must reach Poppy's vehicle before they establish a perimeter."

Solar helped Rowan up a particularly difficult section, his touch leaving her skin tingling with residual energy.

"What about Eclipse?" she insisted again. "We can't just leave him."

"Eclipse is capable of defending himself," Lunar said, though his tone lacked conviction. "And he would prioritize the mission over his individual safety."

"This isn't a mission anymore," Rowan argued. "This is survival."

"Same objective, different terminology," Solar said.

The aliens’ dry, matter-of-fact personality traits were more annoying when coming from these two.

They climbed in silence for several minutes before emerging into a narrow crevice where natural light streamed down from above. Lunar pointed to a series of handholds carved into the rock face.

"This leads to the surface," he explained. "Poppy will be waiting with transportation approximately half a kilometer north of the exit point."

Rowan took a deep breath as she looked up. This was not going to be fun.

She began the ascent, her arms trembling with fatigue. The climb seemed endless, each handhold requiring more effort than the last. Just as her strength was about to give out, a human hand reached down from above.

Poppy's face appeared at the opening, her expression a mix of concern and determination.

"Hurry," she urged. "Helicopters are coming back around."

With a final effort, Rowan pulled herself out of the crevice and onto the sun-baked red rock of the canyon rim. Solar emerged next, his golden form immediately dimming to avoid detection. Lunar flowed up last, barely distinguishable from the shadows cast by the rocks.

"Where's Eclipse?" Poppy asked, noticing the missing alien.

Rowan was really tired of that question. None of them seemed worried whenever she told them what happened.

"Still in the caves," Rowan said, her voice tight. "He stayed behind to fight off Milano."

Poppy's eyes widened. "We need to go back for him. No one gets left behind."

Finally!

"No time," Lunar said, pointing skyward.

A black helicopter appeared over the canyon ridge, its rotors slicing through the desert air. Below it, dust clouds rose from multiple vehicles traversing the off-road trails.

"They're preparing to flush us out," Lunar observed.

"This way," Poppy urged, leading them toward a cluster of boulders where an ancient jeep was hidden.

"That's your transportation?" Solar asked skeptically.

"It's better than walking," Poppy shot back. "And it knows these trails better than any fancy SUV."

They piled in, Rowan in the passenger seat with Poppy driving, the aliens squeezed in the back. Poppy threw a silver blanket over the guys. The jeep roared to life, its engine loud in the canyon’s quiet.

"What about Dani?" Rowan asked. "She was supposed to warn you about the attack."

"We found her in the caves looking for you," Poppy explained, throwing the jeep into gear. "She escaped the retreat in an alien flash mob of all things. She's meeting us at the rendezvous point with supplies."

The jeep lurched forward, bouncing over the rugged terrain. Poppy drove with surprising skill, navigating between rock formations and along barely visible trails.

"Where are we going?" Rowan asked, clinging to the roll bar as they hit a particularly rough patch.

"Off-grid cabin," Poppy replied. "About twenty miles into the backcountry. No electricity, no cell service, definitely no non-biological thermal signatures for them to track."

The helicopter appeared again, sweeping low over the canyon. Poppy immediately swerved under an overhanging rock formation, cutting the engine.

"Down," she hissed.

They huddled in the jeep as the helicopter passed overhead, its shadow sliding over the rocks. Rowan held her breath, expecting to hear shots or see troops rappelling down at any moment. But the helicopter continued on, apparently not spotting them.

"They're scanning for energy signatures, not vehicles," Lunar observed. "Solar and I must minimize our emissions."

"Stay under that silver blanket," Poppy ordered.

Solar grimaced, his form dimming further until he was barely brighter than a human. "This is uncomfortable."

"Maintaining physical form without full energy expression is difficult," Lunar agreed, his own shadow form condensing into something more humanoid.

Poppy waited until the helicopter was well past before restarting the jeep and continuing their escape.

As they bounced along the trail, Rowan kept looking back toward the caves, hoping to see a familiar twilight form emerging from the rocks. Nothing.

"He'll find us," Poppy said, noticing Rowan's backward glances. "Eclipse strikes me as the type who always finds a way."

Rowan nodded, not trusting herself to speak. The cold, wet clothes, the adrenaline crash, and the fear for Eclipse were all catching up with her. She shivered despite the desert heat.

The jeep rounded a bend and descended into a dry wash, forcing Poppy to slow down. The trail here was barely discernible, marked only by subtle differences in the rock coloration.

"There," Lunar said suddenly, pointing ahead.

A figure stood in the middle of the wash, waving urgently. Dani.

Poppy pulled up beside her, and Dani immediately climbed in, squeezing into the back with the aliens.

"Thank god you made it," she said breathlessly. "Milano teams are swarming everywhere." She looked around. "Where's Eclipse?"

The question hung in the air, unanswered but for a slight shake of Poppy’s head.

"We need to keep moving," Lunar said after a moment. "Milano will expand their search perimeter once they realize we've escaped the caves."

Poppy nodded and accelerated down the wash, following it until it joined a slightly more established jeep trail.

"I've got water, food, and some basic first aid in my pack," Dani offered, passing a water bottle to Rowan. "And we managed to grab these from the suite."

She pulled out a small metal object that Rowan recognized as Eclipse's energy stone, along with a few other alien devices.

"How did you know to take these?" Solar asked, surprised.

"I figured they might be important," Dani explained. "When Milano started closing in, one of Rowan’s alien enthusiast friends figured they shouldn't get their hands on any more alien tech. They gave it to me for safekeeping."

Rowan took the energy stone, cradling it in her palm. It hummed faintly, almost as if responding to her touch.

"Can we use this to contact him?" she asked.

"Possibly," Solar replied. "The energy stones are attuned to their owners. It might respond to Eclipse's signature if he's within range."

Rowan held the stone tightly, willing it to connect with Eclipse, to show some sign he was still out there. The stone remained inert, its soft hum unchanged.

"We'll try again when we're settled," Poppy reassured her. "Right now, we need to focus on getting to safety."

The jeep continued its jarring journey across the backcountry, gradually leaving the more traveled areas behind. The terrain became increasingly rugged, the trail sometimes disappearing entirely before reappearing hundreds of yards later.

"How much further?" Solar asked, his form flickering slightly with each major bump.

"About five more miles," Poppy answered. "We'll be there before sunset."

Rowan stared out at the passing landscape, the red rocks and scrubby vegetation blurring together. Her thoughts kept returning to Eclipse—his twilight energy expanding to protect her, his voice urging her to continue without him.

Had it only been this morning that she'd awakened in his arms, feeling more connected than she ever had to another being?

And now he was gone, possibly captured by Milano, all because she'd suggested that ridiculous reconnaissance mission.

"This is my fault," she said quietly. "We should never have left the suite."

"No," Solar responded firmly. "Milano was already tracking us. They would have found us regardless."

"Solar is correct," Lunar added. "Their technology is advanced. They were hunting us systematically."

"Which brings us back to how they got that technology in the first place," Dani pointed out. "I mean, energy weapons specifically designed to counter alien powers? That's not something they developed overnight."

"The missing Milano founder," Rowan remembered suddenly. "Darren reminded me of the rumors that Milano's founder disappeared after claiming aliens had abducted him."

"Perhaps not a claim," Lunar suggested. "Perhaps fact."

But none of that really mattered right now. The fact was Milano had the tech and they were hunting aliens.

The implications hung heavy in the air as the jeep bounced onward, deeper into the wilderness, the sun sinking lower toward the horizon, casting the red rocks in deepening shades of crimson and purple.

Twilight was approaching. Eclipse's time.

Rowan clutched the energy stone tighter, whispering into it, "Find us. Please feel me and find us."