Free Soul Deep: Dark Souls, Book 2 by Anne Hope Page A

gas pedal in an attempt to stay ahead of their pursuers. The Watchers swiftly surrounded them, boxing them in from all sides but the one straight ahead. If Marcus fell behind in speed, all escape routes would effectively be cut off.
    Regan’s heartbeat went into overdrive. “How the hell did they find us so fast?”
    “Guess Thomas is a better tracker than I thought. Must’ve picked up my trail at the campground.”
    Marcus gained an advantage, zipping between the lanes in an effort to keep the others from passing them. A black Escalade rear-ended them, and Marcus cursed. “That better not be my set of wheels he’s driving.”
    Along with everything else, he’d left his Escalade behind when he’d decided to champion her cause, a vehicle Thomas had apparently commandeered in order to improve his chances of finding them. In the business of tracking, a physical object belonging to the person being sought was a definite asset.
    Another bump, followed by another curse.
    The two SUVs on either side began gaining on them, vaulting across the road to hem them in again. Metal screeched as the drivers simultaneously rammed into the Jeep in an attempt to slow them down. Marcus pushed the motor to the limit, and the Jeep issued a disturbing groan.
    The Explorer on their left shot ahead of them, then veered at cutthroat speed to cut them off, while the other SUV remained at their right side, a faithful shadow keeping them from avoiding the collision.
    The Jeep hit the Explorer, bounced back but kept going. The Explorer lurched forward and engaged the brakes, forcing Marcus to swerve to the left to avoid a head-on crash.
    “Hang on,” he called to Regan, violently spinning the steering wheel in an attempt to get around the roadblock.
    The Jeep picked up speed, rode the shoulder until it steered clear of the Explorer ahead and pitched into the open road. But the other driver was not easily dissuaded. His vehicle roared and flew across the blacktop. When he caught up with them, he slammed into them again, pushing them into the shoulder, then onto a rocky patch of dirt and grass. The Jeep kept rolling as Marcus fought to regain control. The interlaced network of hemlocks and dogwoods suddenly appeared bigger and more menacing, a live barrier, ensnaring them with their brambles of thorn-like branches and scattered blooms.
    There was nowhere to go. No escape route. No naked patch of grass or gray sliver of road. The Jeep slowed to a crawl. One by one, their pursuers came to a shrieking halt. The sunlight took on a silver, blade-like quality as doors flew open and the Watchers poured out of their vehicles.
    Regan’s pulse raged out of control. She looked at Marcus, thought of everything he’d sacrificed for her, thought of all the years they’d stood side by side, taking on the world together. She gazed upon Ben, who glanced about in confusion, his small brows furrowed, an unvoiced question dangling from his parted lips. He didn’t deserve to be executed in cold blood. He was just a little boy who hadn’t asked to be different any more than she had, any more than Marcus or Jace had. A little boy who’d never stood a chance in an intolerant universe hell-bent on eradicating anything that didn’t fit into a neat little category.
    The Watchers advanced on them, a steady parade of blank-faced soldiers she’d once considered her brothers. She knew without a doubt that they wouldn’t hesitate to cut them down if they put up a fight. But Regan was no more ready to surrender Ben today than she’d been yesterday. Everything within her rebelled at the thought, swelled like a balloon to choke her.
    Up ahead, where the street met the horizon, something flickered. The shape of a man appeared, haloed by the pulsing sun. She couldn’t see his face clearly, but his clothing stood out in stark detail against the whitewashed sky. He wore a dark suit beneath a black trench coat and carried himself with a sense of dignity befitting nobility.