Page 31 of Amaros
“I have a feeling they won’t be that far away,” Amaros replied.“Is there a large city anywhere nearby?”
“New York isn’t far away,” she replied.“It’s one of the most well-known cities in the United States.”
“Lots of movies are made there,” Grace agreed.“There should be tons of bad guys left, so your enemies will have plenty of goons to recruit.”
Amaros had the prickling sensation in the back of his head that meant they were on the right track.“Hopefully, Zoe will have a vision about my team, which might narrow down where they are,” he said.
“They don’t work on command, but I’ll do my best,” the cambion promised.
“Have you ever been to New York?”Grace asked Zoe.
“I’ve never been anywhere,” she replied ruefully.“Mom took me on a religious retreat two years ago.It was three towns over and we only stayed for one night.That’s the furthest I’ve ever been from home before I met Amaros.”
“I’ve been to New York a few times, but I’ve never stayed there long,” Grace said.She glanced down at a badge pinned to her sneaker.It was shaped like the Empire State Building.
“Why not?”Amaros asked.
“Too many cops,” the kid joked.“You can’t even turn a corner without bumping into someone who wants to arrest you.”
“It’s bound to be bedlam in the city,” Zoe warned Amaros.“Manhattan is the center of New York.I have a hunch that’s where we’ll find your men.It’s on an island, with a bunch of bridges and some tunnels to get there.”
“Let’s hope we can make our way there without too much trouble,” the knight said.“Was the city busy at night?”
“The City That Never Sleeps is literally what people called it,” Grace said.“We won’t know how much it’s changed until we get close enough to see it for ourselves.”
They both looked at Zoe to see if she’d seen any visions of New York.“I’ve got nothing,” she told them.“We should start lugging our gear inside,” she suggested.
The girls carried their belongings to the room Zoe had chosen.Amaros picked a room nearby, so he would be close enough to go to their aid if anything happened during the night.
Once everything was stored inside, they gathered in the ancient kitchen.“We can set up the grill in the fireplace,” Zoe mused.“It’s big enough and the smoke will be sucked up the chimney.”
Amaros had filched a folding table and several folding chairs from the sporting goods store.Grace set them up, while he figured out how to attach the propane tank to the grill.Zoe heated up some patties Grace had cooked at the café and toasted a couple of buns.She had to use a portable halogen light to see, since there were no windows.
Patrolling outside, Amaros couldn’t sense anyone else in the vicinity.He was confident that their base wouldn’t be discovered by his enemies anytime soon.Still, he wished he could erect a ward on his own.Unfortunately, he needed at least a few members of his unit to pull that off.
It quickly became cold once the sun went down.Tired from their long trip, the females retreated to their room.Tomorrow, Amaros intended to search the area to see if he could find a stream.They had plenty of bottled water, but they would need a far larger supply once more people were added to their group.
Finally feeling tired enough to turn in, the knight glanced into Zoe’s room as he passed the doorway.Both females were tucked safely inside their sleeping bags.Zoe opened her eyes, saw it was just him checking on them and smiled sleepily.His heart kicked in his chest, then began to beat hard and fast.
“Good night, Amaros,” she murmured.“Have pleasant dreams.”
He nodded, afraid to open his mouth in case he blurted out something stupid.He faintly heard Grace snickering as he made his way to his own room.
“That warrior wants you bad, Zoe,” the kid whispered.
“Go to sleep, Gracelyn,” Zoe ordered.He wasn’t sure if the longing in her tone was real, or just his imagination.
