Moon - New Moon Part 10

"You should be lying down."

"I'm feeling well enough to get up, but not well enough to chase you around the cave." When he saw her face go tense, he added, "That was a joke."

She nodded tightly, then turned toward Haig. But it was several seconds before she spoke. And not to Logan. "Did you offer him something to eat."

"No."

"Give him some of the soup you made."

The old man scowled, then took a crude mug from a shelf along the wall and dipped it into a pot that sat on a burner. He held it out to Logan, who crossed the stone floor and accepted the food from the old man.

Probably it wasn't poisoned. Still, Logan's first sip was cautious. He found the soup was made from vegetables and meat stock and expertly seasoned. The first taste made him realize he was starving. He wanted to gulp down the whole cupful, but he drank slowly because he hadn't had anything in his stomach in days.

The door in the rock had closed, and he drifted casually toward where it had been. As he drank the soup, he leaned his shoulder against the wall. It felt solid, yet he could detect a background buzz that vibrated against his nerve endings.

On some level he could feel where the doorway was. Now he just had to figure out how to get through it.

He looked up to find Haig watching him.

"You're a good cook," he complimented.

The old man only grunted.

Rinna handed him the rabbit, then tidied up the cooking area. They had a working rhythm that spoke of long a.s.sociation. Logan wanted to know more about what they meant to each other, but he was sure neither one of them would appreciate his prying.

Haig began to expertly skin the rabbit, probably with the same knife he'd intended to use on their unexpected guest.

Logan edged closer to Rinna, but she avoided eye contact and headed for the bathroom, perhaps as a way of getting away from him.

He'd never ambushed anyone at the bathroom door before, but he lurked just outside, resting his shoulder against the rock wall again because it was an effort to stay on his feet.

FALCONE had repaired to the dining room, determined not to let the household know that he was upset. That was one of the disadvantages of living with people who didn't have your best interests at heart. As they went about their daily business, a lot of his slaves were probably giving out reports on his activities, and he wanted to make sure that they were positive.

So he and Avery sat at the table, waiting while servants brought choice morsels from the kitchen.

His chief cook knew that he liked the tender breast meat of doves, so she had cooked up a plate of the delicacy for him. And Franz had gone to the greenhouses and brought back ripe tomatoes and basil.

Falcone politely handed the plate of dove meat to his guest and waited while Avery served himself.

Then he took a portion. He was was.h.i.+ng down a bite with some white wine when Calag came to the door.

"Excuse me," Falcone said to Avery. Getting up, he left the room and stepped into the hall.

"Have you found her?" he asked.

Calag shook his head. "There's a new development," the man said in a low voice.

"Spit it out."

"It looks like she wasn't alone."

"What?"

"We've taken another look at the trap. It appears that another shape-s.h.i.+fter was caught. And Rinna got him out."

"G.o.ds! How could that be true?"

Calag shrugged. "That's the only conclusion-if you're sure that the trap only catches shape-s.h.i.+fters."

"I am," Falcone answered. At least, that was what he'd been told. Perhaps the maker had lied to him. He'd have to question the man carefully.

"You're saying she wasn't injured?" he asked.

"We don't think so. But the other person seemed to be in physical distress. She had to hold him up so he could walk."

"How do you know it was a man?"

"His feet are large. And his weight dragged her down. We were able to follow their trail back through the portal and into the badlands. Then we lost the trail."

Falcone clenched and unclenched his fists. "I suppose they were going to some hiding place where the old man was waiting for her." When Rinna had escaped from the city, she had taken Haig with her. He looked toward Calag. "How far did you follow the trail?"

"Half a mile into the badlands."

A plan began to form in Falcone's mind. He went back and explained the situation to Avery. "I want you and Brusco to close that portal so she can't get back to the other world."

"If we close it, it may not open again."

"I don't need it," he said, keeping his voice even. "I want her trapped here so I can scoop her up."

WHEN Rinna finally opened the bathroom door and focused on Logan, he saw her draw in a quick breath. "Didn't your mother teach you manners?" she snapped.

"Of course. But she also made it clear that I have to protect myself. We have to talk."

She glanced over her shoulder at the old man, who stuck the rabbit carca.s.s onto a spit and inserted it into the metal box that looked like a portable oven.

As Haig stared at it, the interior glowed red. He didn't appear to be paying any attention to the other two people nearby, but Logan was willing to bet he was hanging on every word.

Rinna must have had the same thought because she jerked her head toward the back of the cave, then turned and walked into the shadows.

He watched the rigid line of her back. A very smooth and feminine back, as he remembered.

Grimly, he followed her until they turned a corner into a part of the cave where there was almost no light.

Logan looked back, seeing the old man focused on the cooking rabbit. Gesturing toward him, he said, "I don't see any flames. Or any electric outlets. Or any portable gas tank. Where does the power come from?"

He felt Rinna's gaze on him, and the look in her eye made his stomach clench.

"The power comes from his mind."