Fated, A Timeless Series Novella (A Timeless Series Companion Novel) (17 page)

I can’t rush her
, Callon
.
Please, just half an hour
, and then I’ll try and get her back to the truck
.

His words should have reassured me, but instead my unease became worse.
I s
canned
the area
carefully
. There was nothing that suggested danger. I knew better than to ignore my instincts, though.
Whatever was out there would show itself soon, and I needed to be prepared.

Colt and Cheyenne moved out of view.

They’re on my side now,
Daniel piped up.

Keep me posted,
I said
. Something is waiting out there to make their move
.
I climbed down the tree
,
brush
ing
off
the
l
o
ose pine needles.
I had to be ready for anything.

It’s all clear,
Daniel finally replied.
They’re now in Koda’s territory.

I gave Koda a quick heads-up
, before exiting the park.
I was about to head towards the end of the displays
when
a movement caught my eye. I looked up, and spotted
a woman running
in the distance
.
I frowned, and then
my phone vibrated.
Two seconds later and my eyes widened at the text.

Soul-shards! Colt and Cheyenne are walking straight towards them!

M
y heart leapt in my chest and I mentally
called out to Colt
.
Bailee
was the closest to them, I had to reach her
.
Finally
I rounded the corner
, and gasped.
Bailee
was
latched onto the railing
, her arms covered in the dancing lights. She was desperately trying not to follow the shards
; she
’d
tak
en
the
hit for
Cheyenne. Colt and Cheyenne were just feet away
, heading in the opposite direction
.

They’ve got her
!
Colt’s voice dimmed.
You’ve got to figure out where the Ghoster is!

Bailee
coughed, and began
shivering
.
Suddenly she vanished, and I cursed.
This Ghoster
had to be
strong
if
t
he
y
could
take another Timeless and hide her from
witness
es
.

Get Cheyenne out of here!
I headed towards my
truck
.
Daniel
,
keep watch over Colt and Cheyenne. Koda and I are going after Bailee.

A million scenarios ran through my mind.
The Ghosters wouldn’t have come here if they didn’t know Cheyenne was also going to be around.
This was a trap, a set-up, and we’d walked right into it.

Koda
appeared, and
grabbed my arm.

“Bailee
, she’s in trouble
!
”

“I know. We don’t have much time.
” I grabbed the tracking device and turned it on. “You have her new phone number?”

Koda ra
tt
led
it
off and I
punched
it
in
. I was never more grateful than now that I had access to
this
technology.

“You got her a smart phone, right?”

“Yeah, of course.”
Koda began pacing back and forth nervously.

I stared at the device impatiently.
Come on,
w
ork!

The screen flickered
,
followed by a solid red light that began to flash.

“We’ve got her!”
I started running back to the truck.

“Where?!” Koda growled
, hurrying after me
.

“
On
the other side of the lake
, towards the forest
.”

Did you find her?
Colt’s thoughts broke through mine.

We
’ve
just located her. Have you and Cheyenne left?

We’re driving back now, Daniel and Bree are following. Bree’s a mess…

Get her back, Callon
!
Daniel added.

We’ll get her.

The engine flared to life and I put my foot down.
There wasn’t a second to lose. I needed to get Bailee back, and stop this Ghoster reporting to Marcus.

“Turn right!” Koda
yelled. W
e entered the main road and headed south.
There didn’t seem to be any exits to where we wanted to go, though. I gripped the wheel, my knuckles turning white as we counted the distance.
Eventually
we
found an access road. The snow was deep and I had to
switch to
four-wheel
drive
just to continue
.

“Up ahead!” Koda bellow
ed. He didn’t wait for me to stop the truck and jumped out the door
.

Koda
,
stop! We don’t know who else is out there
!

Koda
took a few more steps before he
paused, his body shaking. If the Ghoster was alive, it wouldn’t be for long.
I hopped out of the truck and joined him. Without the grumbling of the engine, I
could hear
c
rackling snow
from beyond the tree
line
. Someone was nearby.

Go to your right and circle around
, I said
. Wait for me to see wh
o’s there
.

Koda nodded.
We parted ways,
and
I followed the sound of crunching ice.
I entered the trees, and began weaving through the branches.

“Now what?”

The deep voice made me jump,
and I
immediately
backed up against
the nearest pine
.
Though it was dark, I was able to pinpoint their location.
They were
just a few feet ahead, hiding in the shadows.

“Nothing,
we’re done
. Let’s get out of here,” another
voice
replied.

“
Bah,
I never liked her anyway.”

I
snuck around the back of the trunk
,
watching
as
they passed.
The soft crunch of snow caught the edge of my hearing.

Be careful, Koda!
They can still hear you.

I knew my words were futile; Koda wouldn’t have cared either way.
I wound through the forest
,
t
rac
ing Koda’s steps.
Eventually I spotted him, kneeling down
beside an unconscious Bailee
.
Beside her slumped someone else, who I didn’t recognize.

“
No
,” Koda whispered.

I ran as Koda lifted
Bailee
in
to
his arms. Her head flopped to the side.
Automatically I told him to drop her, tilting her head back and lowering my cheek to her face
as I pressed my fingers against her neck
. A faint breath tickled my skin
, along with a thready pulse.

She’s
still alive
. Get her to the truck, I’ll be right behind you.

Koda
scooped her into his arms and
disappeared
.
As I stood up, I
glanced to the other body.
From the way her hands were splayed, I guessed she must have been the Ghoster. But why had th
os
e men killed her? It didn’t make any sense…

Sighing, I was about to head after Koda, when I
spotted something in the patch of snow where Bailee had been lying.
Puzzled, I picked up the item.

A syringe.

Frowning
, I began a thorough search over the ground. Eventually I came across a broken glass vial
close to the Ghoster’s body
.
Heart racing, I fumbled for my phone and used the backlight to take a look
at the tiny label
.

Potassium chloride.

Oh no…

I turned and
sprinted back
towards the truck
. Koda had laid Bailee on the backseat.
She looked so lifeless.

“She’s
so
cold
,
and barely breathing.
”
His voice cracked
.

“Move!” I shoved him out of the way and began removing Bailee’s coat.
“She’s been poisoned,
get my bag from the
front seat
.”

“What?!”

“Just get my bag, Koda!”

That seemed to snap Koda from his shock
.
He jumped into the
front
of the truck
and fumbled for my medical bag.
I snatched it off him, breaking the lock as I searched for the right
antidote
.
I
needed several, as if this stuff stayed in her system too long, her heart would stop.
Once I found what I was looking for, I removed a needle and jabbed it into Bailee’s arm.
She didn’t
make a sound, not even when I injected the second and third lots
.

“Start the truck and get driving!” I
f this didn’t work quickly, we’d have to take her to a hospital.

Koda
all but leapt into the driver’s seat
.
The engine screamed, and we began moving.

Come on
,
Bailee!
I
flung off my coat and jacket, covering her
body
.
I needed to warm her up.
Her chest moved; she was still breathing, but only just.
My hand rested on her wrist. Her pulse was slowing.

“How is she?” Koda asked, turning to peek a glance at her.

I didn’t reply.
A long breath left her
, and
her head
rolled
to one side
.
Her next breath didn’t follow.

No!

I threw the coats aside and tore open he
r shirt.
Koda could scream at me later.
Pressing my hands against her breastbone, I started compressions
.

“Callon!” The truck began slowing.

Keep driving! I won’t let her die!

How could I make such a promise? This was just like…no! I snapped back to the moment and continued on.
Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four...

Once I got to thirty
I tilted her head back and blew in two deep breaths.
Her chest filled with air, but her breathing didn’t resume
.
Snarling,
I jumped back to chest compression again.
My arms were
shaking
, but I knew I couldn’t stop.
I’d counted up to twenty-seven again when
Bailee
suddenly howled
.
My hands flew to her neck. Her pulse was back!
She groaned, coughing, and her eyes slowly opened.

Exhausted,
I wrapped her in
my coats
. S
he
started shivering
.
Koda managed to shrug out of his jacket, and he threw it back.
He cranked the heating on to full, so much that the windows misted.
Gradu
a
lly, Bailee’s shaking ceased, and h
er eyes fell closed again.

I sank into the seat beside her
, watching her calming breaths
.
I’d brought her back, but it
had been much, much too close.
With trembling fingers I reached for my phone
and typed out a text to Colt and Daniel.