"Oh my God."

Reegan rushed past him, around the tipped couch, and dropped to his knees, disappearing from Saul's sight. Hissing his name, Saul took two steps forward, keeping his gun trained on the kitchen doorway, and glanced to where Reegan was crouched on the floor.

Next to Cammie.

A full-body shudder overtook him, and he lowered the gun before he pulled the trigger accidentally. "No," he breathed, frozen. "Reegan?"

"She's alive." Reegan ran his hands over her head. They came away bloody. "But she looks pretty beat up."

Saul sprang into action, sweeping into the kitchen, caution a dim memory. Empty. He made a rapid search of the rest of the apartment. The intruders were gone.

And so was Silvia.

Saul yanked his cell phone from his pocket, dialing 911 as he ran back to the living room. "She's not here," he said as the operator picked up, inquiring about his emergency.

The way Reegan hung his head, there was no need to clarify who was missing.

Saul gave brief details on the situation, demanded an ambulance, but cut off any further questions when Cammie gave a soft, mewling whimper and blinked her eyes open. The phone clattered to the floor as Saul dropped to his knees next to her. "Cammie? Hang on, okay? There's an ambulance coming."

She lifted a blood-streaked hand. Saul grasped it, shushing her when she tried to speak. "Shh. It's okay. It's okay." He brushed hair, sticky with blood, off her forehead. More blood dotted her blouse and skirt. One of her slippers was missing, revealing dainty pink polished toes. Saul couldn't tear his eyes away from her bare foot.

"I did this," he whispered.

"Don't be stupid." Reegan's hand closed on his shoulder.

"I brought you here."

The fingers jerked, then settled more firmly. "Then it's my fault, not yours."

Saul dropped his head between his shoulders and tried to pinch away the moisture in his eyes. He couldn't keep anyone safe.

"Saul." Cammie's voice startled them both.

Grabbing a throw blanket from the floor, Reegan shook it free of debris, balled it up and slid it under her head. "Don't talk, sweetheart. Just lie still."

"Can't." Her brown eyes fluttered open. "They took Silvia."

Saul scrubbed a hand over his face. "I know."

"You have to go after them."

"Not until I know you're okay."

"No time." She turned unfocused eyes on Reegan. "I'm so afraid for her. You have to go now. Go now."

Fist pressed to his mouth, Saul shook his head.

Cammie uttered a weak cough that ended with a moan. "Saul, go." A low whine rose in the distance, growing in pitch and volume. She patted his hand with her bloodstained one. "See? They're coming." Her fingers curled, digging into his skin. "Don't let them hurt her, do you hear me?"

"They won't," Reegan soothed.

She dismissed his words with a grunt. "I know what they said. Now go before you get stuck here dealing with this mess."

It was more than a mess. It was Cammie's whole life destroyed. Nothing had been spared. There'd be little to salvage. A lifetime of memories and mementos, gone in a heartbeat. "I'm so sorry." He spared the ruined room another glance. "I didn't mean for this to happen."

"I know that." Her eyes fluttered as a shudder racked her body. "Go on now and make this right."

Even flat on her back, hurt and bleeding, she had no trouble delivering a scolding. The siren grew to a shrill scream, then cut off. Doors slammed outside. Every part of him felt stretched to the limit, pulled in two directions. He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "You better be okay when I get back."

"I will be." Her eyes fell shut, and Reegan's strong arms came around Saul, lifting him to his feet.

"It's now or never."

He was right. If the police found them here, they'd be stuck for hours. Maybe longer. Silvia was in imminent danger, and Reegan's window narrowed by the minute. They couldn't stay. "Okay."

Vision blurred, he trusted Reegan to guide him out the front door and down the steps. They met the EMTs on the way up. Reegan pointed out the way, pushing past with an air of authority the other two men didn't question. "Third floor. Living room."

They cleared the front door as the first cruiser turned the corner onto Cammie's block. Head down, Reegan kept his arm around Saul and walked away in the opposite direction.

Chapter Nineteen.

They caught a cab three blocks away. "Do you think they'll go back," Saul asked. "To the future, I mean. Now that they have her?"

Reegan pursed his lips. It was a consideration. "If they do, it would be a hell of a gift. I could follow and get there before they do. It won't be so easy to kill me once we're back in 2145." He winced. "At least, it won't be so easy to get away with it. So I'm guessing it depends on how badly they want me dead."

"Can you track her with the bracelet?"

"If we get close enough." That'd been the first thing he'd tried upon learning she was gone. "I've got no signal right now. She must be out of range."

Or dead. Neither of them put the thought into words.

Saul's complexion had taken on a gray cast. A bead of sweat worked its way down the side of his temple. "What's your plan when you make it back to the future?"

"I like your optimism."

Saul grunted. "I don't hear that very often."

Reegan had yet to work out the particulars of keeping her safe once they made it to Blast in the Past. But flying by the seat of his pants came naturally to him. He'd have to trust in that. "I won't let her get hurt."

Their cab turned onto a broad avenue and St. Brendan's rose in the distance. The church had once been beautiful. Still was in the way holy relics often were, broken but proud, infused with mystery. The keeper of a thousand stories. Hallowed ground for those in search of a miracle.

Reegan could really use a miracle at the moment.

Saul had the cab drop them north of the church, and they covered the remaining distance on foot, taking cover one block up. The road twisted into a gentle curve as it approached St. Brendan's, giving anybody who might be watching from inside an unobstructed view of the street. But if Saul and Reegan could reach the apartment building next to the church without being seen, they stood a chance.

Saul jerked his chin at Reegan's wrist. "Are you picking her up on that thing?"

"Yes." Silvia's yellow dot blinked steadily, but never budged. "She's not moving."

"Probably restrained. At least we know she's in there. Which means the others are as well."

He braced his hands against the brick wall of the restaurant where they hid, trying to disguise their shakiness. They were both running on empty, but while Reegan had been hobbled by a series of less serious injuries, Saul was dealing with a grade three concussion and dislocated jaw. Watching him battle the pain stirred a deep feeling of foreboding. "Are you okay?"

"Fine." He signaled Reegan to hang back. "I'll go first. Give me about a ten second lead."

"No. I want you to stay here." The words rushed out before he could stop them.

"That's not happening."

"Please." He didn't beg often, but never before had he wanted something so much. "I don't want you hurt any more."

"I'll be fine. Worry about yourself." Saul shot a glare over his shoulder, drawing Reegan's eye to the lurid bruise covering his cheek.

"I-"

Saul slipped away, and Reegan gritted his teeth. Damn stubborn bastard.

If he made it to the apartment building that abutted St Brendan's side garden, he could shelter in the shadows of the first floor terraces. But just because he succeeded didn't mean Reegan would.

He counted out the seconds, forcing himself to wait the full ten. Even that short delay caused him to lose Saul in the crowd of pedestrians. Having him out of sight ratcheted Reegan's tension even higher, until his shoulders were hunched high around his neck and his hands clenched convulsively into fists. At the appointed time, he stepped around into the open and began walking. As tempting as it was to rush, he kept pace with the other people on the sidewalk.

The fifty yards felt like fifty miles. His breath hitched as he walked, expecting a bullet's impact with every step. Miraculously, the shot never came. Finally, he turned the corner and blended into the shadow of the apartment building, but the sheltered alcove formed by the overhead terraces held only empty cans and bottles. He faltered, choking on his alarm.

"Reegan, over here."

He spun, catching sight of Saul. He'd tucked himself into a natural niche made by two intersecting walls. Reegan squeezed into the narrow space with him, praising the building's modern architecture. "Thought I'd lost you for a minute."

"Told you that wouldn't happen until you were ready." Saul's eyes conveyed more than his words did, and Reegan's throat closed. So much for leaving his heartache behind at Cammie's apartment. They'd said goodbye in the cab. A lingering, emotional parting that Reegan hadn't fought. It hadn't felt sufficient, and here was proof that no goodbye between them ever would be.

He had to physically shake off the despair, but at least the shudder loosened his taut muscles. "Did you see anything suspicious?" He peeked around the wall, and Saul caught him and eased him back out of sight.

"No. It looks deserted."

That fit, but trouble lurked beyond the thick stone walls and stained glass. Reegan had no doubt about that.

Saul pointed. "The side door you showed me looks unguarded, at least from the outside. They could be inside waiting. They probably are."

Reegan expected no less. "So now what? Try a different entrance?"

"Nope. We get their attention and hope they take the bait."

"What bait-Saul, no!"

"It's the only way."

"You're in no condition to do that."

"I can take care of myself." Saul edged to the corner and leaned out slowly. "It's our best chance."

"They'll expect that." If their positions were reversed, and Reegan was guarding the portal, he'd prepare for such a trick. Anything to get him to leave his post.

Saul took a stuttering breath and nodded. "I know, but it's our best shot. We don't have time for anything fancier." He stepped into Reegan's space and braced his hands on the wall to either side of his head. "You be careful. No stupid risks. I'll get them out of the church. You find Silvia and get the hell back home."

No gentle goodbyes for them. Saul's mouth slanted over Reegan's, and all the control and distance he'd managed up until that moment evaporated. He could've demanded the same. Be careful. Be cautious. But in the end, Saul would do what he thought he had to in order to pave the way for Reegan and Silvia. The truth of that terrified him, because his lover's fate remained a mystery. Saul might die when he was an old man. He could die today.

Losing him was already painful, leaving scars on Reegan's heart that would ache forever. But knowing Saul's life might not be the long, happy one he deserved made the pain unbearable.

Reegan yanked him close, breathing him in one final time. "Don't forget me."

"Never happen," Saul answered.

Two backward steps put an entire world between them. Soon, if their plan worked, they'd be separated by more than a century. Saul flashed him one last smile as he backed away. "See you around."

He dodged out of sight, and Reegan pressed a hand to his stomach, fighting a wave of nausea.

The wall jutted out at an oblique angle, forcing Reegan to stretch out into the open to watch Saul creep through the garden. They were invisible from the street. The door stood hidden around a protective wall edged with cherry trees and box hedges. Just inside, Reegan remembered, a set of narrow and dark steps led up to the narthex, where the three main doors were closed and locked.

The seconds ticked by, each lasting an eternity, stretching the moment in comical ways, so that Reegan became aware of every little sound. The tiniest movements drew his eye. He quivered, tense and ready to spring. Regret haunted him, that he hadn't been louder with his protests. Their plan was too risky, with too many variables.

Saul edged up to the side entrance and put his ear to the wood, then reached for the handle and pushed it down. The door swung inward. Heart thumping, Reegan watched Saul's shoulders disappear into the darkness, and suddenly it took all his willpower not to call him back out of obvious danger.

He never had the chance.

Saul reappeared within seconds, wrestling with Pigtail, and Reegan jerked forward before he could stop himself. He came to a halt in full view of the fight, frozen in place. Every instinct demanded he rush to Saul's rescue, but interfering carried a lot of risk too. Distracting Saul from his plan, making himself a target, might do more harm than good.

Saul threw Pigtail off, punched Emilio, who was rushing through the door to join the fray, and took off running, moving much faster than he should've been able to, considering his physical state.

Reegan held his breath and ducked back behind the wall.

No way would they fall for it. It couldn't be this easy. All these thoughts, and others just as pessimistic rushed through Reegan's head, but his predictions proved false. The two men jumped to their feet and gave chase, sprinting through the side garden and into the street.

Saul had done his part. Now it was Reegan's turn. He waited until Emilio and Pigtail were halfway down the block, running hard after Saul. Turning his thoughts away from his lover, he rounded the corner of the apartment building and dashed through the garden to the side door.

Inside the stairwell, the air was cool and still. He rushed upward, footsteps echoing in the vacant stone stairwell, emerging into the spacious narthex. Inky black in the corners and rainbow-colored where the afternoon sun filtered through the thick stained-glass, it turned back the sounds from the outside world with its thick stone walls. Reegan careened to a stop. Silence greeted him.

It had been too easy.

A niggling unease prickled at the back of his neck, but he had no time for paranoia disguised as intuition.

He'd given the stone and glasswork a passing appreciative glance on the way in, but what had appeared hallowed and grand several days ago appeared sinister now. He couldn't shake the feeling they weren't alone.

Remnants of restoration work long abandoned littered the main aisle to the altar, forcing him to slow as he navigated wood beams, workhorses, and haphazard piles of rotting wood. He'd left the eerie silence behind in the narthex. The nave teemed with sound and life. Birds fluttered in the rafters above, beating their wings at the intrusion. The rickety scaffolding surrounding the statues creaked and groaned in counterpoint to his rapid, muffled footfalls. Reegan's heart slammed against his ribcage.