Berating himself for being seven kinds of fool, he trailed her down the hall. At the very least, he could train her people so they had a fighting chance. And who knew, maybe watching her from afar would be enough.
He rolled his eyes at his own idiocy. As if watching Rain Mauri from afar would ever be enough. He hadn’t banged his head that hard.
She turned around, tilting her head to the side, pursing her lips in a way that made his stomach tighten and his heart race. “Are you coming?” She all but tapped her foot with impatience.
“Uh, yeah. Sorry. Thinking.” It was all he could do to keep the smile off his face. He didn’t think she’d take too kindly to his amusement.
She gave him an arch look. “Staring at my ass, you mean.”
He burst out laughing. Crazy. The woman was going to drive him bat shit crazy. No doubt about it.
Chapter 14
“STEP FORWARD. THRUST up. Withdraw. And again. Step. Thrust. Withdraw. Excellent. Once more.”
Rain sat, tucked back in the shade of one of the parking bays watching the training session. They were all in their early- to mid-teens, full of energy. Too much sometimes. Micah kept them separate from the rest of the trainees, drilling them until they nearly dropped from exhaustion. He claimed it not only kept them out of trouble, but that at their age they were more likely to develop useful skills than the older trainees were.
It had been three weeks and things were progressing nicely. The trainees were getting more skillful and Micah was nearly healed. Clara thought his manipulated DNA allowed him to heal faster than a normal person.
She eyeballed Micah as he marched up and down the line of boys and girls, adjusting a grip here, correcting a stance there. Damn, he was beautiful. Every line of him tightly muscled, he moved with a grace and agility that was almost superhuman.
She frowned at that. She supposed it really was superhuman. Thanks to Dr. Barnes.
She bit into the tomato she’d stolen from Padre Pedro’s garden. The tangy juice gushed over her tongue. It tasted of sunshine and fresh things. A rare treat in this wasteland of a world.
Padre Pedro often told tales of the time before the Wars when food was plentiful, and water gushed freely at the turn of a tap. She could hardly reckon it herself, but the Padre wasn’t known for lying. Exaggerating maybe, but never an untruth. She’d have to ask Micah if it were true. He’d know.
The warning bell clanged, startling Rain out of her reverie and snatching her attention from Micah’s truly excellent backside. She scrambled to her feet, eyes scanning the wall.
Joey Turrow’s blond head popped out of the lookout box. “Marines!” he screeched in his cracking, teenage voice. “Marines coming!”
“Crap.” Rain wolfed down what remained of her stolen tomato and headed toward Micah at a run.
The trainees had scattered. They knew exactly what to do when the Marines showed up. Micah gave her a baffled look. “What’s going on?”
“The Marines. We’ve got to hide. Come on.” She took off for the entrance to the underground, trusting he’d follow her.
Normally she’d face the Marines alongside El, but the last thing she wanted to do was give away the fact that their former female captive was from this compound. And now there was Micah to think about. No way in hell was she letting them take him back.
She led him down through the main body of the compound and into one of the storerooms. At the back of the room was a row of wooden shelves bolted onto the wall and packed with heavy crockery and large, steel pots. Her fingers fumbled under one of the shelves until she found the hidden catch.
The entire shelf along with part of the wall swung out leaving just enough space for them to wiggle through into the gap beyond. Rain quickly lit the hurricane lamp tucked into a niche inside the space, and swung the secret door closed behind them.
“A secret door. Are you kidding me?”
She glanced at him. “We’ve got them all over the compound, but this is the best one. Keep moving.”
She led him further down the tunnel, following several twists and turns until it spilled out into a natural underground cavern. It was a small space, but it had been cozied up with the addition of bottled water, tins of food, and bedding. A person could easily hide undetected for weeks.
“This is the safest place in the compound. We stay here until Padre Pedro gives us the all clear.”
He frowned. “Don’t you think this is overkill? I know these guys, fought beside them for years. Worst they’ll do is grab some food or beer and be off.”
“You knew them on equal footing. As a Warrior. Not a civilian.” Her expression hardened. “Things have changed. It’s too soon since their last raid. They’re not here for food or beer. They’re here for you.” Maybe her, too. “They’re your friends. You should know how they operate.”
“They’re not my friends. Warriors keep to themselves. No emotion, therefore no interest in attachments. Besides, they think I’m dead,” he pointed out.
She frowned. “Maybe they went back to the site and found your body gone.” She mentally berated herself for not having thought of that before.
“I suppose. They don’t bother usually, but Barnes is nuts enough to want my body back. Bastard probably thinks he can resurrect me again.”
“This is the closest compound to the base from the south. Maybe they’re going from compound to compound trying to find you.”
He ran his fingers through his hair. “How many more experiments can he run on me? This is fucked up.”
“True.” She nodded. “Which is why it’s doubly important you stay hidden.”
“You mean we stay hidden. They won’t be happy you escaped, even if you were incompatible.”
She laughed. “Why
