Beneath a Darkening Moon (21 page)

Lust doesn’t count. It’s quite possible to hate someone and still want them sexually, you know
.

Ladies
, he wanted to scream,
I can still hear you
. But the words in that part of his mind never reached the two women.

Do it
, Neva said.
It’s getting harder to hold him
.

Do what?
he wondered.

Then he knew, because Vannah was in his mind, in his soul—invading his very essence as she called to the wolf within. He wanted to rage against the intrusion, but his thoughts were still held in that cocoon of silky steel, and he could only scream in silent frustration as his body obeyed. Muscles and bone became fluid
as his flesh reshaped itself. He’d barely even achieved wolf form before Vannah was calling to the magic in his soul once again, restoring him to human form.

Sleep
, she whispered, somehow making it an order he had no choice but to obey.
Sleep for now. We’ll talk later
.

You bet we will
, he thought, then sleep overtook him and he knew no more.

S
AVANNAH TOOK A
deep, shuddering breath and sat back on her heels. Forcing him to change shape had several advantages. For one, it had proved there were no white ash barbs remaining in his flesh. And second, it had stopped the blood pouring from the wound. And the hole in his leg, while still bad, had at least partially closed. Another change or two and he’d be able to put some weight on it. But for now, it was enough to get him to the hospital—because she wouldn’t put it past the bitch who’d fired the weapon to have tipped it in poison, just for the hell of it.

She brushed the sweaty strands of hair from her forehead and mentally reached for her sister.
Thanks for the help
.

Anytime. But he’s going to be angry
.

Nothing new there
.

Neva’s sharp snort made Savannah wince. She hadn’t gone that deep into someone’s mind in ages, and it had taken a toll. Her head was booming, she felt weak as a newborn kitten, and sweat still trickled down her forehead. All she wanted to do was go home and sleep, but she couldn’t see that happening for a while.

Take care
, Neva said.
And remember to have your shields up when he wakes
.

I’ve had my shields up since he arrived
.

Good
. Neva faded from Savannah’s mind, and she glanced at the slightly shell-shocked Tane. “Thanks for helping.”

“I didn’t do much, except hold his leg steady.” Tane’s gaze skated down her body, then leapt away again. Heat flushed across his cheeks. “Damn, Savannah, you should dress like that more often.”

“Hardly practical for a ranger, is it now?” she said, gently reminding him of her position. She reached for the coat he’d retrieved for her only minutes ago. “And since my reason for being here is an official one, I’ll have to ask you to keep my presence to yourself.”

He glanced past her for a moment. “We’ve drawn a crowd. Someone will figure out who you are.” He smiled slightly. “Especially given the way you yelled at them all to shut up and get back.”

She smiled. “Or, since I’m dressed like a nasty biker chick, maybe not.”

He grinned. “You might be right. Do you want me to do anything else?”

“Yeah, call the ambulance and find out what’s taking so long. And tell the crowd to piss off before the sheriff gets here and decides to arrest them all.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Would she do that?”

“If she’s angry enough.”

His grin widened. “Tell me again why we never went out?”

“Because you preferred Genny with the legs that didn’t end.”

“More the fool me, then.”

He trotted off before she could reply, which was probably just as well. Glancing down, she brushed the sweaty hair from Cade’s forehead, smiling a little when she saw the streaks of red staining his skin. The hair dye was coming out already, which was good, because she really did prefer his regular color. She let her fingers trail down his still heated cheek. Even in his sleep, he looked angry. Didn’t the man ever relax?

Her fingers dropped to his lips, remembering the way he’d kissed her, devoured her, only hours before. What was it between them that always made sex so good it was almost off the Richter scale? Hell, she’d always enjoyed sex, but with Cade there was something else. Something special.

Lights swept into the parking lot and she looked up. Relief ran through her when she saw the ambulance. A second car followed it in, and she recognized the gray Ford. Trista. As Cade’s assistant climbed out of the car, Savannah rose, getting out of the paramedics’ way as they tended to Cade.

“Could you cordon off the area?” she asked before Trista could say anything. “A square up to that blue car should do it.”

Trista’s eyebrows rose. What that meant, exactly, Savannah wasn’t sure.

“Cade called me here to check out a crime scene. Didn’t sound like he was a part of it at the time.”

“At the time, he wasn’t.”

“Someone shot him?”

Savannah nodded. “With white ash.”

Trista’s gaze flickered to the bloodied arrow, which lay on the ground next to a gleaming pool of Cade’s blood. “He or she means business.”

“It was a she. And she didn’t mean to kill him, just maim him.” She pointed to both the crossbow and the specks of blood still gleaming wetly on the roadside. “I tore that from her grasp as she sped off. The blood is hers.”

Trista glanced at the weapon. When her cool, golden gaze met Savannah’s again, it was tinged with surprise. “You attacked a moving car in wolf form?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because wolves are faster.” A fact Trista undoubtedly knew.

“Then you weren’t in the immediate area?”

“No.” Savannah bit back her impatience as her gaze followed the stretcher bearing Cade away. “I was heading back toward town.”

“Then how did you know he was in trouble?”

She hesitated. How
had
she known? She shouldn’t have, not with her shields on full. Yet she’d felt his desperation, his fear, and had almost fallen in pain the moment the arrow had rent his flesh. Only anger and her own fear had kept her going. And the worst of it was that she would have killed the woman if she’d had the chance. Would have ripped out her throat as easily as she’d torn through the woman’s arm. A wolf defended its mate at any cost, and she’d been more than ready to do just that.

Except Cade wasn’t her mate. Not in
that
sense, anyway.

She shrugged with a casualness she didn’t really feel. “I just did. Do you want to go with your boss to the hospital while I seal off this area?”

“No, you go. I’ll start proceedings here.” Trista
reached down into the bag she was carrying and pulled out the crime scene tape.

Savannah climbed into the back of the ambulance and studied Cade as the doors were closed and the ambulance took off. If she was certain of anything, it was the fact that she wasn’t anywhere near over the man.

So the question was, like Neva had asked, what was she going to do about it?

Fight for him
, the wild part of her said.
Fight to keep him, and don’t let him go. Not this time
.

But the part of her that had offered him her heart only to have him abuse it trembled in fear. Was she really ready to do that to herself again?

I don’t know
.

Was that the truth, or was she just lying to herself?

She braced herself as the ambulance sped around a corner, wincing a little as the siren’s howl seemed to echo through her aching head. But it couldn’t stop the questions tumbling endlessly through her.

Was she lying to herself?

Maybe.

Was she ready to be hurt again?

Not really.

But if she didn’t open herself up to the possibility of hurt, how could she open herself to love? She’d spent the last ten years cocooned in the safety of Ronan’s arms, but the time had come for her to take a risk again.

And maybe the simple truth was that she had to take that risk with the one man she’d never been able to forget. While Cade might not feel anything more
than simple lust, she owed it to herself to find out. No matter how much the end result might hurt.

Because she still loved him. She could lie to her sister. She could even try lying to herself. But her instinctive reactions tonight showed the truth.

Despite the ten years that had passed, despite her anger at his actions—then
and
now—her heart still lay in his hands.

Fate
was
a bitch; there was no doubt about it.

A
WARENESS RETURNED SLOWLY
. Pain hit first—not a sharp pain, but a muted, constant ache that thumped in time with the throbbing in his head. But gradually, sounds impinged and he stirred. Somewhere to his left came the soft ticking of a clock and, from directly ahead, the squeak of a trolley and the murmur of distant voices. Close to his right came the slow inhale and exhale of someone sleeping.

It was a sound Cade would have recognized anywhere. He’d once spent his nights lying beside Vannah, just listening to her sleep. Wondering when the job had become a dream come true—and when it would all come crashing down.

Which it had, all too soon, because of the lies that had stood between them. Because of who he was and what he had been there to do.

He opened his eyes. She was curled up in the chair next to him, wrapped in a blanket that covered her from neck to toe. She’d taken off the black wig, and her golden hair fell around her face, a silken shower that made his fingers itch with the need to touch her.

Even though ten years had passed, in sleep she
was still that innocent-looking woman he’d met so long ago. And she was just as beautiful, even with the scar. Only when she was awake could you see the real change. Once, her green eyes had been filled with life and laughter. Now the only thing there was wariness and distance. And that made him sad. He might have been at Rosehall to do a job, but he’d tried to shield her as much as he could, even if she’d thought otherwise.

Part of him wished they could just start over—wished the history between them could be swept away so that all that was left was their intense attraction. It would have been wonderful to explore just where that attraction might have led. But he was who he was, and she was who she was, and the way they now interacted was never going to change. He was too hotheaded, too possessive, and she was too free-spirited. It wouldn’t have worked back then. It probably wouldn’t work now.

He forced his gaze away from her and looked around. He saw white walls, white-sheeted beds, and white-coated men and women walking past the door. He was obviously in a hospital … but why?

Memory hit even as the question went through his mind, and he realized what had happened. What she’d done.

Anger surged through him, and his gaze jumped back to her. As if sensing his fury, her green eyes opened and she stared back at him. And the defiance so evident in her gaze only fueled the fires of his anger to greater heights.

“You had no right to do what you did!” Though he tried to keep his voice carefully neutral, anger crept
through. Raiding his mind was one thing—he could hardly rail against the intrusion when he did it for a living himself—but raiding his psyche, his very soul, was another matter entirely.

“I did it to save your life.” Her voice was as cool as her eyes, yet he sensed an anger that was equal to his own.

As if
she
had anything to be angry about! “You accuse me of mind-rape, yet all I did was read your mind. What you and your sister did last night was far worse.”

“You didn’t just read my mind, Cade. You broke through several shields to do it.”

“And you didn’t?”

“We didn’t break anything. We merely eased them aside.”

“There’s a difference?”

“There most certainly is.”

He snorted. “And you’re sure you’re not trying to justify your own actions?”

“No. And I can show you the difference, if you want.”

“I hardly think you could invade my mind now that I’m awake and fully aware.”

“Cade, what you know about telepathy is laughably small. The golden pack has had centuries of training behind them. We’ve forgotten more than your instructors at the academy will ever learn.”

The academy had some of the best telepaths in the States. Granted, none were from the golden pack, but that didn’t mean they were any less capable. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Her eyebrows rose. “Meaning you’re willing to partake in a little demonstration?”

“Anytime, babe.”

She snorted softly. “If you weren’t still recovering, I’d give you a lesson right here.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m feeling fit enough not only to repel an intruder, but to give her a lesson in true psychic strength.”

Her gaze narrowed, her beautiful eyes becoming little more than green slits. “Maybe I should have let you bleed to death.”

“So why didn’t you? At least then you’d be free of the moon promise.”

She flung the blanket away and stood up. He caught a brief flash of long golden legs before the black leather coat she was wearing fell into place.

“You know, you’re right,” she said. “I’m a fool for not thinking of that.”

“I’m surprised it wasn’t your
first
consideration.”

She stopped near the window and crossed her arms. The rising daylight warmed her skin and made her hair shine. “My
first
consideration was actually marking the bitch who’d shot you.”

“And did you?” Hopefully, something good had come out of this mess after all.

“Of course.” The look she threw his way was almost caustic. “I shredded her arm and retrieved the crossbow. Trista is running a check on the prints she pulled off it.”

“Has anyone come into the emergency room with wolf bites?”

“No. And Ronan’s contacted the local doc and asked him to inform us if anyone comes his way.”

“Good. Do we have a line on either of the trucks or drivers yet?”

“Not from my people. But your people are hardly likely to inform me if they have, are they?”