Part 53 (1/2)

FALCONE gave the old man a hearty slap on the back, then watched him struggle to keep his footing. ”You found her, even in her bird shape. That's good news. Very good news.”

The old man licked his lips. ”She got away.”

”But you can lead me to her again.”

Ruthlessly, Falcone cut him off. ”Take me to her.” He paused and looked around, dragging in a breath of the morning air. It was cool and fresh. Cleaner than at home.

The old man gave a curt nod, then started off at a deliberate pace. Falcone followed, gesturing for the soldiers to do the same.

Haig came to a wide ribbon of blacktop, remarkable for its smooth surface and uniform texture.

The old man looked back for instructions.

”Go ahead and cross,” Falcone told him.

A vehicle was rus.h.i.+ng toward them. As Haig hesitated on the gravel beside the road, a loud blast sounded from a horn as the carriage hurtled past, leaving wind blowing in its wake.

Behind Falcone some of the soldiers gasped, and he turned to give them a stern look.

”What was that?” one of them was brave enough to ask.

”An automobile,” he answered promptly.

He knew that much. He had taken pains in the past to learn about this world by sending men through the two existing portals. Some of them had never been seen again. He didn't know if they had met some horrible fate or if they had decided to take their chances over here without the guidance of their master. If so, when he came here permanently, he would hunt them down and make them sorry they had dared to defy them.

But most of them were loyal to him, and they had come back with reports of wonders that, he never would have imagined. Still, it would be better if he had more information now.

Two more automobiles rushed pa.s.sed. When no more appeared, he stepped onto the blacktop, boldly striding across the road, then motioned for his adepts and the rest of the troops to follow.

They sprinted across, quickly a.s.sembling on the other side.

Haig was almost out of sight, but Falcone didn't call out to slow the old man down. He wanted Rinna, and the sooner they took her into custody, the better.

So he hurried to catch up with his tracker, the rest of his party following in his wake.

He turned and looked back, feeling his throat tighten. They were far from the portal, and he didn't like that. One portal had closed. This other one was his lifeline back to his own world. He had come through and set up a base of operations fairly close to the gateway, in case it was necessary to retreat back to his own side.

But now Rinna was flying away from him, and the only way he could be sure of getting her back was to capture her himself-and kill the man with her.

CHAPTER TWENTY.

RINNA HAD NEVER flown so fast, but panic set her wings beating the air.

Then she almost fell out of the sky when something large roared past her. Something shaped like a bird, but as she craned her neck upward, she saw it was man-made. And very high above her.

Perhaps it was that airplane thing they had talked about on the television set. But even far away, she could see it was much larger than a car.

Orienting herself, she found her own course again.

As she approached Logan's home, her arm muscles ached and the breath burned in her lungs. The wind stung her eyes, but when she looked down, she spotted a figure standing in front of the house.