InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Passion Flowers and the Moonlight Path ❯ Heaven Is Where You Least Expect It ( Chapter 6 )

"I don't like this . . . I don't like this at all . . ."

"Relax, Inuyasha," Torie murmured, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Once we get to the village, we'll be all right. We can call for help."

"I'm not talking about that," he murmured. "I'm talking about him being so close. Did he even know we were going to be here?"

"No," she shook her head. "Hammond wouldn't do that to us. He wants to stop Peter. Come. Rest while you still can. The Gods know you need it, Inuyasha."

"Where are you going to be?"

"Right here. Next to you. Now hush and get some rest. Roland will be back soon."

She settled herself next to a tree, being careful not to sit on the muddy ground. Inuyasha settled next to her, resting his head in her lap. Idly, she brushed his hair from his face with her fingers, rubbing his temples lightly. The last twenty-four hours had been hell. Pure hell. What had started out as an observation mission had turned into one of survival. If Roland hadn't taken the infant T-Rex, it wouldn't have been nearly as bad as it was. They wouldn't have had to treat the infant's broken leg and the adults wouldn't have attacked their trailers. The two teams had to merge together just to ensure that no one else died. And everyone sorely needed the rest. They had marched with only one actual rest break since last night.

'And Inuyasha needs the sleep. More than what I do.'

"Everything all right, Torie?"

She raised her head then nodded.

"Yeah, Ian. I'm fine. Just like old times, huh?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "How's your friend doing? He looks a little exhausted."

"All right, under the circumstances. He wasn't about to let me come here by myself, not after what I had told him about four years ago. But, for some reason, I get the impression he's seen a lot worse than this, Ian. He's more ready to fight than to flee and it's just weird, y'know?"

"That is odd," he agreed. "But anyway, how've you been doing? I haven't had a chance to talk with you lately. How's life been treating you?"

"I've been okay as well, Ian," she smiled softly. "It's just been a long time since I've let any man get this close to me."

"Probably burning Peter in his ass."

"Would serve him right. Anyway, you should get some rest, Ian. We'll probably be moving soon as Roland gets back."

"Get some rest yourself," he told her. "You're not going to do him or yourself any good if you pass out."

"I'll try, Ian," she murmured as he walked away. "I'll try."

She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, peripherally aware of Roland coming back without the man they had set out to find. It didn't surprise her that the compies had gotten a hold of him. Most of the time, they scavenged off of larger predators but that didn't mean they couldn't hunt on their own. Their diminutive size gave them an advantage over an injured animal. They could swarm over anything and anyone the way a swarm of army ant could take down an elephant.

However, a moment later, after Roland and R.J. went to get some rest, the ground vibrated slightly underneath them. Torie opened her eyes as Inuyasha stirred.

"They're coming," he whispered. "I can smell them. They're not that far off. We need to get out of here."

"No. We need to stay still. They may be fierce, Inuyasha, but they can be outsmarted. They can't see us if we don't move."

"Are you sure?"

"Hai," she nodded."We'll be all right so long as we don't attract attention to ourselves."

Before too much longer, the female T-Rex came into view and headed straight for the tent that Sarah and Kelly were sleeping in. Torie tensed up as she watched. Inuyasha slowly pushed himself up, his own body tensed, as if to attack.

"No," she whispered. "Don't . . . Kelly and Sara are okay . . . So far. So long as they don't move and don't cry out. Just stay right here. You don't have to like it, Inuyasha, but please . . . trust me on this. Okay?"

"Okay," he nodded just as one of Roland's men woke up and started screaming in Spanish. The entire camp woke up and pandemonium ensued. Inuyasha had her on her feet and they were running. Somehow they managed to catch up with Nick, Kelly, and Sara and another scientist, and found a cave behind a waterfall to hide in. The Rex followed them, trying to reach them with its tongue.

"Snake! Snake!"

Torie turned her head just as the other scientist started panicking about snake going into his shirt. Before anyone could reach for him, he disappeared from their view . . . in the jaws of the Rex. Inuyasha's arms wrapped around her tightly. It sounded like the Rex was coming back but, instead of the large predator, Ian came through the water. He relaxed slightly but seemed rather adamant about keeping a hold of her, even as they left the safety of the cave and headed for the village.

"I'm so sorry, Inuyasha," she murmured. "I shouldn't have brought you here . . . I should have Hammond put you up somewhere."

"No . . . I told you I wasn't going to leave you," he stated firmly.

"But you wouldn't be running for your life . . ."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better, Torie? Because if it is, spare me. After what you told me, I wasn't about to let you face any kind of danger by yourself. And if it comes right down to it, I can make sure nothing catches any of . . ."

He was cut off when they came to a stop, and Torie looked at Ian. That's when she noticed where they were at. She paled then tightened her grip on his hand.

"What's wrong?" he whispered.

"We need to run . . . Run as fast as we can," she breathed. "If you thought the T-Rex was bad, what's in this field is much worse. And before you ask . . . you remember what I told you about velociraptors?"

"Yeah . . ."

"We're in their domain . . . We have to run . . . NOW."

Ian had pretty much said the same thing to Nick and Sara then they were off and running. She didn't know how long they ran, couldn't have been more than a minute at the most, until they came to a sudden and tumbling stop.

"Okay, I'm ready to get out of here," she moaned, picking herself up from the ground. Then she offered a hand to the dark-haired man she landed on top of . "Inuyasha? Are you all right?"

"Hai. I'm all right," he nodded, taking her hand. "How much longer before we can get out of here?"

"We should be out of here soon . . . I hope."

`And the sooner the better,' she hoped as they helped Ian get to his feet. Nick had already taken off to the village to radio for help. She just hoped that they wouldn't be too late.

* * *

"How's this?"

"Mmm . . . feels good . . ."

"Glad you like it."

Inuyasha smiled as he massaged the knots out of Torie's back. They were in her Philadelphia home, far away from San Diego. For that, he was grateful. Getting off the island had not been easy. They'd had to outmaneuver the velociraptors Torie had told him about. To Inuyasha, they hadn't looked that scary. Their tactics had what scared him. They hunted like wolves but hadn't. If anything, they were smarter than wolves. Wolves he could've understood and predicted their movements and where they were going to attack from. These creatures had been sly and trickier than a kitsune. But they had proven to be smarter and trickier . . . Even Kelly, Ian's daughter, had gotten rid of one of them. Before he knew it, they were on a helicopter, retreating from the island. Torie had insisted that they head straight to Philadelphia. She wanted to be home and Inuyasha couldn't blame her for that. No TV, no radio . . . the silence had been blissful.

`But that Peter got one of those animals off the island . . . We all saw it. How can he get away with it? I don't understand it.'

"Something wrong, Inuyasha?"

"Hmm?" He blinked then met her gaze.

"You have this far-away look," she stated. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh," he laughed nervously. "Just thinking . . . just wondering . . . how Peter can get away with taking that animal off the island when the consequences are so obvious."

"I see . . ."

"You don't seem too concerned anymore," he frowned. "Why is that?"

"Because Hammond called this morning, while you were still sleeping . . . Peter's dead now . . . The adult Rex got loose in San Diego, caused a lot of havoc. Ian and Sara found the infant and used it to lure the adult back to the ship . . . Peter chased after them and had no chance of escaping the adult in the ship hangar. He wasn't that intelligent of a man. If he would have been, this whole thing never would have happened."

"So he isn't going to be coming after me anymore?"

"No. He won't be coming after you anymore," she smiled warmly. "Now all we have to worry about is helping you get your memory back. I'm sure you have someone who cares about you very much, worried about where you're at and how you're doing." She brushed her hand against his cheek.

"Maybe," he shrugged non-committally. "Do you think that it'll ever happen?"

"I believe that it will, yes. We just need to give it some time and patience." Torie winked at him then kissed him lightly on the nose. "It all depends on you. Especially since I don't know that much about you and your past."

"Yeah . . . I guess you're right." He pulled her into his arms. "But I do intend to enjoy my time here, with you."

Inuyasha held her in his arms as they settled onto the couch. While he wanted his memories back, he wasn't in any hurry. He never felt as content with his life as he did right then and he didn't want to lose it.