Wild Tiger Chase | Book #2 (Complete)

40: a lit fuse (Part II)

— Léon —

There was a loud crack overhead as white energy arched across the sky. It crossed the darkness above like a bolt of energy and plunged in front of the group, ripping the thin fabric of reality before them. A wave of warmth and power came from the tear, crashing against Léon with something akin to familiarity. 

As the tear spread, Léon frowned. He could almost see the woven threads of reality being torn apart and pushed aside to show a dark, flicking tunnel that looked a lot like an undimension. A twisted undimension.

It was a beautiful sight if only a little violent; enchanting and destructive, like a meteor shower.

And that's when he realized it.

Goddess. Léon never thought he'd see the step-through from outside!

A hand shot out from the portal and found support on one of the metallic columns. Its owner, Antônio McCockay, left the dark mist of his undimension and crossed over to the cracked asphalt of the street outside.

Antônio looked nothing like the person Léon had seen in the Mayor's lab, four years ago. He was panting and pale; his lips, the bags under his eyes, and his hands were cracked and yellowish like an old, lifeless doll made of wax. And as if he really were one, his movements were hard and slow, a mix of limping and marching that accompanied the hard, unblinking stare of his cerulean blue eyes.

"Rob," he said. Toni's voice was a low, dangerous thing that reached them despite the shouts and the desperation in the city. "Robbie, where are you? I can feel you, husband."

And in answer to that voice—or those words—something stirred inside Léon. Without a word, he tugged on Rob's shirt and hooked Satina and Amma's arms, all but dragging them back inside the half-destroyed house. With a wave of his hand, he caught Rafa and Phillip's attention and motioned them to follow. They spread around the living room, hiding behind half-destroyed walls, sofas, and armchairs.

Toni laughed. It was a hollow sound, and it only stopped when his cracked voice said, "Why are you hiding from me? Please come back." He let out an exhausted sigh. There was a dull thud of knees hitting the ground before he said, "Don't make me come to you, Robbie. You... I want you to come to me." He lowered his head to his hands and rubbed his face with a long grunt. "I used to say I want you to come too, didn't I? Or I never said it, I don't know. What I—how did I—? Ugh, my head."

A knot formed in Léon's throat. He peeked over the edge of the broken wall and looked around, searching for a way out. The more he listened to Toni, the more certain he was they needed to get out of that place. More than the innuendo about Rob, the sheer wave of power coming from him made Léon's eyebrows knit together in a mix of anger and agony.

The portal waved, wobbled, and shrunk behind Toni, who raised his head and stared at it as if waiting for someone to come through. He sniffed, his shoulders trembling.

Rob's muscles bulged as he knelt and hoisted his body up. Like Léon, he studied Toni's figure.

Unlike Léon, there was sadness and shock in his eyes.

"You've been living in this city for a while," Satina said. She looked from Kali to Rafa. "Where can we hide? Maybe he won't notice us if we sneak away."

"Why bother?" Phillip whispered back. "The motherfucker can find Roberto wherever we go, can't he?"

Rafa frowned. "He shouldn't be able to. I don't understand; this connection, this... this thing that chains Beto and Toni, it's—it's not right." She looked at Léon. "Beto should've.... He should've broken that already."