“Through here,” Maia said, leading the way down a worn path between the tall trees. He hoped to find a gate soon. Then they could be out of the church and off to their next place, hopefully somewhere safe and out of the rain, where they could hide for a while.
He hadn’t slept much last night, not with his activities with Maia keeping him awake. That and the stress of being chased was tiring. Luckily adrenaline pumped inside him helping to keep his feet moving. Soon, he would need to crash.
But first things first, he had to get Maia somewhere safe. Then they could rest together.
A wrought iron gate blocked the path in front of them. They quickly passed through it then made sure to latch it behind them as it had been. Maybe at first glance it wouldn’t look like they’d come this way. With any luck, the rain on the wet path would be enough to blur their tracks.
They came to another crowded street corner, the congestion on the New York streets as busy as always despite the rain. A sea of yellow cabs whooshed by them in the rain, all of them full.
“We’ll never get a taxi,” he said. “We need to head for the trains.”
“Which way?”
“That way,” he shouted, pointing north along Lexington Avenue. “There’s a subway stop not too far from here.”
They took off at a sprint again. Lexington was a quieter street, which made it easier to run around pedestrians without having to duck and swerve as much as they had on Fifth. In a few short minutes, they darted down the subway steps and into the station.
Maia ran to the turnstile and doubled over as the crossbar hit her square in the gut, unmoving. “Ouch.”
“You have to pay for transportation here, honey. Us Earthlings don’t get to magic ourselves everywhere we want to go.”
“Nice. Make fun of me while I’m in pain.”
Zander swiped his metro card and she eased through the gate. He swiped his card again and passed through himself. Glancing over his shoulder, he peered back up the steps to the street, praying he wouldn’t see Orion.
Nothing.
Zander caught up to Maia as she stood on the platform looking at the overhead signs. “Which one, Zander? There are three trains in this station.”
He checked his watch. “The six. Head to the six. I take that one all the time and it should be arriving right away. Look for the downtown train.”
“Where will that take us?”
“Does it even matter? It will take us away from here.”
“Good point,” Maia said, taking off again.
They sped down the stairs to the lower level of the subway station just as the downtown number six pulled into the station. The doors opened with a hiss, allowing the eager occupants to step onto the platform. People bustled past them on all sides, hurrying up the stairs to fresh air and other subway lines.
Zander followed Maia onto the train. They collapsed into the hard plastic seats as the doors slid closed across from them. The platform blurred beyond the window as they lurched forward on the tracks.
Orion and Jude were nowhere to be seen.
“Maybe we finally did it,” he said, leaning his head back against the window and letting his eyes close. His body relaxed into the comforting and familiar vibration of the train. If he wasn’t careful, he could fall asleep right here, right now.
“Did what?” Maia asked from beside him.
He twisted his head to the side to look at her. She lay with her head back and eyes closed as he had. The temptation to relax for the few seconds they had was too great to ignore. “I think we might have actually escaped Orion and Jude.” Saying his friend’s name almost seared the back of his throat with the betrayal. “I didn’t see them on the platform when we pulled out.”
“That doesn’t mean they aren’t still coming for us. Just because you didn’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t still close by.”
“How is that even possible? I would have seen Orion on the platform for him to get on this train. I didn’t take my eyes off those stairs.”
“Doesn’t matter,” she said with a shrug. “He’s a master at this. You’ve never seen anyone like him here on Earth. His skills, his talent—it really is otherworldly. And if he ditched Jude at some point, he’ll be even faster.”
“I’ll take your word for that. They were still together at the church.”
“Good, maybe Jude will turn out to be a benefit to us by hindering Orion.”
He allowed himself to ease back into his seat. He’d much rather be in a bed, with Maia cuddling by his side, but unfortunately that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
What were they going to do? Orion didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would give up the fight and stop searching for Maia. So what options did they have? Give up? Stay on the run forever?
He knew the answer.
Find a way to send Maia back home where she would be with her family and safe from Orion.
Safety. One very important thing he couldn’t offer her.
Damn it. He wanted more than anything to keep her with him, to keep her safe. Hell, he’d wanted that more than he’d wanted to achieve his own personal success by sharing her with the rest of the world and claiming the fame that would come attached to a discovery like Maia. He’d given up a life-long friendship with Jude for her.
And all so he could turn around and send her back to where she came from so that she would be safe. He couldn’t keep her safe here on Earth when there was someone as powerful as Orion after her.
He’d failed her.
But he wouldn’t fail getting her home. He’d protect her long enough to keep her as many steps ahead of Orion as he possibly could until they figured a way to get her back to the stars.
And then he knew what would happen next.
If Orion didn’t find him and tear him a new one, and if Jude didn’t find him and turn him over to the authorities for withholding information about extraterrestrial life—a matter that would be viewed as a breach of national security—then he’d shrivel up and wither away from a broken heart.
Still, that was a better scenario than handing over Maia to Orion or the FBI.
They rode in silence for a while, listening only to the hum of the people in the subway car around them. When the train pulled into the station at City Hall, Zander pulled Maia from her seat and out the door onto the platform.
“Why are we getting out here?”
“This is a transfer station. They won’t know if we hopped on another train or went to the street.”
“So let’s get on another train then. One that takes us as far away as possible.” Maia looked around frantically. “We’re as good as sitting ducks here.”
“I have a plan. Come on.” Hopefully a plan that would buy them enough time to regroup and figure out what to do next. Zander ran up the stairs to street level. They were right in the heart of the financial district. Not exactly a prime spot to hideout. “This way,” he said, heading further south.
Maia fell into step beside him, her anger at getting off the subway still radiating off of her like a furnace in the dead of winter. This was a different side of Maia he hadn’t seen before. He wasn’t sure if he liked it or not. Here he was trying to help her and she was being resistant. Didn’t she understand everything he was giving up to be here with her right now?
“I do have a plan you know.” He sounded a little bitchier than he’d intended to.
“Well, I wish you’d fill me in,” she snapped back.
He stopped walking, commuters brushing passed him on all sides, mumbling complaints as they went. She stopped too, staring at him with hardened eyes.
“I gave up a lot to help you, Maia, the least you could do is go with it when I’m trying my best to keep you safe.”
“I told you not to come with me. I’m fine on my own.”
“What are you saying? You want me to walk away from you right here and now and let you go on your own? Is that what you really want me to do?”
“Maybe it would be best. I don’t want you giving up your life for me.”
He laughed. “It’s a little too late for that, don’t you think? I gave up everything the second I picked protecting you over telling Jude the truth. I’m in this now and you can’t get rid of me that easily.”
“I can’t be with you, Zander. At least not in any lasting way. That doesn’t happen for my kind when they get involved with people from Earth. So if you’re thinking we’ll ever be anything more than we are right now, I’m sorry to burst your bubble.”
“I don’t have a bubble. I have you and I’m not going anywhere until I know you’re safe from Orion. So get used to me being here. And since I know the city a hell of a lot better than you do, maybe you want to trust me a little more.”
“Standing on the sidewalk out in the open like this, not moving, isn’t going to help us. So if you have somewhere for us to go, then let’s go already,” she said.
Damn she was feisty when she was pissed off and nervous. It would be a turn on if it weren’t so infuriating. “You know you’re really cute when you’re pissed off,” he said, tucking a strand of loose hair behind her ear. Maybe it was a turn on after all. “If we weren’t in so much danger, I might want to piss you off a little more just to see this fire in your eyes.”
He brushed his lips against hers, hovering for only a few seconds. If only there was more time. If he wasn’t mistaken, tears pooled in her eyes before she blinked them away quickly, leaving only an expression of deep confusion behind.
So the softer side of Maia he knew and liked so much was still there, hiding under a blanket of stress and fear. Fair enough. Time to move and ease those worries from her.
They hurried down the sidewalk as quickly as they could until reaching Water Street, then turned south toward the very tip of the island. He glanced at his watch. If they hurried, they would make it just in time.
“Can you jog?”
“Can you keep up?” She fired back, running down the street. He sprinted to catch up. When he fell into step beside her, she spoke again, her breath not at all impacted by the extra exertion. “Where exactly are we hurrying too?”
“Up ahead. There.”
Chapter Twenty
-One
Maia looked ahead as she jogged to where Zander pointed. She saw nothing but city streets, then water with a park to the right. Where exactly was he taking her? For a swim in the Hudson River? A picnic in the park? Neither were good options.
Then she saw it.
The Staten Island Ferry dock. In the dock, a ferry rocked gently on the water. It looked full. In fact, it looked like it was about to push away judging by the glances at the watches and the last minute people running for it.
They sped toward the boat as quickly as they could, just making it on to the dock before the ferryman moved to pull the gate closed behind them. Once on the boat, she walked to the rail and leaned on it, peering into the water while trying to catch her breath from the sprint she’d just done.
She needed to exercise more. If she got out of this stupid situation unharmed, she was making a pact to start jogging regularly.
Who was she kidding? She hated jogging and not even the threat of being chased by Orion or anyone else was going to make her start liking it.
Zander wrapped his arm across her shoulders, pulling her tight against his body. His warmth felt wonderful against the light spray of water coming up from the boat cutting through the river. She leaned into him, taking a deep breath of his scent as she did. He smelled wonderful. He smelled comforting.
He smelled like the future she wanted but couldn’t have.
She closed her eyes and let herself daydream about a life with Zander—one where he was able to come back to Pleiades with her and live a happy life. They would wake up each morning and swim in the lake beside her house. Every day he could study the stars and learn more than he’d ever known possible. And every night they’d curl up in her big, soft bed together and spend hours awake in each other’s arms.
It sounded better than she could ever hope to have.
Which is why she needed to smarten up and stop daydreaming about a future with Zander that could never be. He couldn’t come to the stars, and even if he could, his mind would go crazy with her reality, which was his universe.
They would never work. Cuddling with him was only going to make it harder to say goodbye.
“I meant what I said back there,” she said softly, still leaning against his chest. “I can’t be with you. This isn’t going to work. Kissing me is a bad idea for you.”
“I don’t really think you believe that. You didn’t kiss me like you believe it.”
“I’m serious,” she said, pulling back from him enough so she could peer deeply into his eyes. “You know what I am now. You know I can’t stay here.”
He looked down at her with softness in his eyes that she hadn’t seen before. His hand grazed her cheek. “What I know is that you are the most amazing person I’ve ever met and I’m not letting you go so easily just because of a long distance relationship.”
She laughed. Long distance? “It’s more than that and you know it.”
“I know I really care about what happens to you, Maia. I’m not ready to say goodbye yet.”
“Better start saying your goodbyes now, because I’m taking you home.”