Moon - New Moon Part 22

"Yes," he said, still trying to grasp where this conversation was going.

"We don't have that kind of science. Something happened here to make us develop differently."

"What?"

"I can't give you a history lesson right now. The important point is that a lot of people have more psychic powers than in your world. Some of us have... psychic jobs."

"Like what?"

"Like running machinery. The way Haig did with that oven. But psychic powers are also used as weapons. That's how everything turned into such a mess. People like Falcone wanted to rule, so they got groups of psychics together to fight each other."

She stopped abruptly, watching his face. "That's the truth. But it looks like you don't believe me."

"It's hard to take in. You said something about a change. Are you saying there's a specific time when your world changed?"

"After 1893," she said promptly.

"Jesus! You have the same dates we do?"

"Yes."

"And you can pinpoint it that accurately?"

She nodded. "Our historians can."

"What happened in 1893?"

"Eric Carfoli started the psychic revolution."

"Okay," he answered, since there was. no way to prove the a.s.sertion either way. He was sure as h.e.l.l going to dig up more information about this Eric Carfoli. But the present was more important at the moment. "I haven't seen any evidence of... psychic wars," he challenged. "The soldiers who have come after us seem like ordinary guys."

"A lot of the psychics killed each other off. Which is why most of the fighting is done by conventional troops these days. The men you saw are Falcone's private army. A few of them would have talents, though. Like communications officers who can relay messages over long distances. Or men who could sense the presence of an enemy."

He looked from her to the store of clothing. "And Falcone is bringing them into my world?"

"Yes. Haig never wanted to believe that there were portals to other worlds. But I read a lot about it... in the vaults at Sun Acres. Scholars debated about it, and I wanted to believe it. I looked for ways to prove it. And I found them. First we saw the monster, Boralas, in your world. Then I showed Haig that there were ways for people to cross from one... time continuum... to the other."

"What were you doing in my world when you found me in the trap?" he asked.

He saw her features tighten. "I was looking for a place to hide from Falcone. I thought he didn't know how to open a portal. But he must have figured it out. Or, more likely, one of his advisers did-maybe Avery. Falcone knows this is a horrible place to live. He's thinking he can set up an outpost in your world, then conquer your people and enslave them."

"Aren't you making a lot of a.s.sumptions?"

"I've known him for a long time. I never underestimate his power-or his greed."

She was about to say more when they both heard a noise on the upper level.

Rinna sucked in a sharp breath. "They found us."

He wanted to deny it, but as troops crossed the floor above, he was pretty sure she was right.

"There are two ways out," he reminded her, but even as he spoke, he was afraid that wasn't going to do them any good because he could hear footsteps coming from both directions, "I'm sorry. I trapped you," he bit out, wondering how long they had before the bad guys came down here.

"Maybe not. Maybe he closed that other portal because he knew there was another one here. If he's stockpiled supplies for an invasions, this is the logical place for him to go through."

She looked wildly around, then moved quickly to the wall, running her hand along the rough stones.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"How?"

"When I was in the cave, I felt the entrance, like a tingling against my skin."

"Okay. Yes. Search for that," she said hurriedly as she moved from one section of the wall to another.

He stepped into the next room, braced for the soldiers to pounce on them at any moment.

Moving to a dark corner, he pressed his palms against the rock and felt nothing besides cold stone.

Unbearable tension coursed through him. He had to find the opening. But at the same time, he had to be prepared to whip around and fight off an attack from trained soldiers. He would have to kill again. But he had come to realize that this was war.

He thought about changing to wolf form. That was a better fight mode for him. But he had learned when they fought Boralas that, a wolf didn't have all the same abilities and vulnerabilities as a man. In that fight, the monster had been able to reach into human minds, but the wolves had been immune.

That made him think he might need to be human to sense the hidden doorway. So he kept working-all the time listening for the sounds of the soldiers bursting through the doorway.

Methodically, he moved around trie room, until he felt that strange tingling sensation that he had experienced when he'd leaned against the hidden opening in the cave.

Because he couldn't risk a shout to Rinna, he darted back to her and closed a hand over her shoulder.

She whirled, ready to attack, then saw it was him.

"I think I found it," he told her in a harsh whisper, then heard men coming down the stairs.

Quickly they both turned and rushed back to the place where he'd been searching.

He stared at the rough walls and fought panic when it all looked the same.

d.a.m.n! He should have marked the spot.

But Rinna began sliding her palm against the stone, then stopped and gave him a quick, grateful look.

"Here," she whispered.

When she'd brought him from his world to hers, he'd been too sick to watch what she was doing. Now he tried to follow the steps, but it looked like she was working mumbo jumbo.

He listened to the footsteps coming closer, wanting to yell at her to hurry.

But he knew he'd only distract her-and alert the bad guys.