Grant took the lead bike, Lokan swung onto the second and Carol climbed on behind him, her arms wrapping tightly around his waist. Camden and Dougal took the third.
The engine rumbled to life beneath him.
"If you drop me off this thing, I'm filing for divorce," she said against his ear.
"We're not married," he pointed out, revving the engine.
"Then I'll marry you just so I can divorce you."
He laughed. "We are getting married when we get to the village. That's a promise. Now, hold tight. This is going to be rough."
She pressed her soft body to his back. "You have to ask me first, lover boy, and tempt me with a huge diamond ring."
"Done."
They set off across the steppes, following tracks that were barely visible in the sparse grass. The bikes handled the terrain better than expected, though Lokan could feel Carol's grip tighten with every bump and dip.
The split rock appeared exactly where their contact had said it would, a massive boulder cracked down the middle as if struck by a giant's axe. They turned east, and the terrain began to change almost immediately. The grasslands gave way to scrub, then to bare rock as they climbed.
"How are you doing?" Lokan asked.
"Peachy," she said, though her death grip suggested otherwise. "Contemplating the life choices that led to this moment."
The path, such as it was, wound between increasingly large rocks and steep drop-offs, but Grant led them well, choosing routes that the bikes could handle while maintaining decent speed. They'd been climbing for perhaps an hour when Camden, who along with Dougal was bringing up the rear, suddenly accelerated past them.
"Company!" he said into the comm. "Two bikes, coming up fast!"
Lokan risked a glance back and saw them—two motorcycles kicking up dust clouds as they pursued.
"How did they find us so quickly?" Carol asked. "Do those drugs induce precognition?"
Lokan wondered the same thing. There was no way his father's goons could have found them so fast out here without inside information. He hadn't even seen any drones hovering above that could have been collecting and transmitting information.
"Questions later," Grant said. "Camden, you and Dougal are with me. We'll try to lead them away. Lokan, maintain course. The pass levels out in about three kilometers. We'll regroup there."
Before Lokan could protest, the Guardians peeled off, heading down a side trail that led back toward the lower elevations. The pursuing bikes split up, one following the Guardians, one continuing after Lokan and Carol.
"We can handle one," Carol said.
Lokan reached out with his mind, trying to connect with the pursuer's, a move he'd done countless times before, but this time, he hit a wall of chaotic energy that nearly made him lose control of the bike.
"I can't get into his head," Lokan said through gritted teeth. "It's like trying to grasp smoke filled with broken glass."
The pursuer was gaining on them, close enough now that Lokan could see some details of who the biker was, and what he saw wasn't good. The guy was big, dressed all in black, and when their eyes met in the mirror, the Doomer smiled, and it was not a sane expression.
"I bet it's one of the enhanced ones." Lokan revved the engine, going maximum speed.
Carol's hold on him tightened. The distance between them and the pursuer grew longer.
The trail ahead forked, with one path continuing up toward the pass and the other disappearing between two massive rock formations. Lokan made a split-second decision, yanking the bike toward the rocks. It was a risk since the path might dead-end, but they needed to break the line of sight and give themselves options.
The passage between the rocks was barely wide enough for the bike. Stone scraped against their thighs as they squeezed through, the engine's roar echoing off the walls.
They burst out into a small canyon, perhaps fifty meters across, with walls too steep to climb, but there were boulders scattered throughout, and the remains of what might have been an old shepherd's shelter.
Lokan killed the engine behind the largest boulder, and they dismounted quickly.
"Options?" Carol already had her weapon out.
