Breaking the Nexus (Mythrian Realm) (12 page)

“I won’t. Let’s keep digging on him for now. I don’t want to leave her alone, and I have a feeling she’ll be out for a while. I want to see if there’s anything at all linking him to any of the cases.”

They worked in silence for several hours, striving to find any connection between Corvelli and the murder victims. The entire time, Connor battled the urge to check on Sha every five minutes. She was fine, he told himself. Contenting himself by looking in on her every half hour was a study in willpower. Every time he glanced in the room, she was in the exact same place, a testament to her exhaustion. When they’d awoken earlier, he’d seen how tousled the bed covers were; Sha was
not
a quiet sleeper by any means. Given her energy and vibrancy while awake, he’d expected nothing less. That she didn’t move a muscle for close to three hours was a bit alarming.

As the sun began to peek up over the horizon, the men began to make calls to Corvelli’s known associates. His patience was wearing thin, and his tone must have conveyed this because the people he spoke to were far less combative than he’d expected. Or maybe something else had them on edge, it was hard to say exactly. He got the impression they knew something, but no matter how hard he pushed, nobody would talk.

“We’re not getting anywhere with this,” Connor said, frustrated at the runaround they were getting.

“I can’t confirm he’s still at the address we have and it’s about four years old, but worth checking.” Ian’s phone began to chime and he took it out, checking the display. “Captain Morrison wants an update. How much should I tell him?”

Connor considered it, debating himself. Until they could confirm Corvelli’s role, he was hesitant to reveal everything for fear of increasing the pressure from the higher ups. “Tell him we’re pursuing a lead, but try to leave out the part where she made contact with the killer until we know more.”

“He’ll want all of the details eventually.”

“And he’ll get them. Just—” Something felt like it was pushing at his brain. Confused, Connor focused on the sensation, trying to understand what was happening.

“Everything okay?” Ian asked.

“Shut up, give me a minute.” Instinctively he closed his eyes, concentrating. Another push, this time the impression of words formed.

Connor? I don’t know if you can hear me, but if you can, come upstairs. He’s back, talking to me.

One minute Sha existed in a dreamless slumber, content to remain adrift in a sea of nothingness. The next, everything began to shift, morphing from swirling shadows to a landscape eerily similar to Fire Falls. As the surroundings became more and more focused, she realized it didn’t just look like Fire Falls; it
was
the city of her childhood.

It started identical to her memory, the idyllic town nestled on the island amidst towering waterfalls. Children laughed and played, everyone went about their business, walking the cobblestone streets between the beautiful stone shops and houses. A pang of homesickness swept through her; she missed those days, missed swimming in the endless pools and the carefree, sheltered life she’d had as a child.

Slowly the dreamscape changed, the vibrant greenery shriveling, buildings crumbling, roads cracking. Instead of crystal clear water pouring from the falls, it began to darken and run red, the thick metallic scent of blood and decay permeated the air. The sound of sobbing and screaming echoed throughout the basin.

This is what will come, what you can’t stop.

Fury welled up. That bastard was in her head again.
What do you want?

I told you what I wanted.

Yes, you said you wanted me to suffer and die. How unoriginal.
Her mind raced as she tried to figure out what was going on, how to warn Connor of what was happening.

He can’t help you. He’s weak, nothing compared to me.

The bastard was reading more of her thoughts than she intended and was trying to get under her skin.
 
Not for long
. She dove into the depths of her memory for the tricks she’d been taught so long ago. Burying herself under layers of protection, she pictured herself in a deep, endless ocean, the waves drowning out the sound of the voice. It wouldn’t last, but it’d give her time to contact Connor.

Connor? I don’t know if you can hear me, but if you can, come upstairs. He’s back, talking to me.

Sha paused for a moment, waiting for an attack from Nightmare that would signal he’d picked up on her effort to contact someone. None came.

Are you trying to hide from me, little bitch? I thought you were better than that. Come out, come out wherever you are.
Sinister laughter rang through her mind.

She had to surface before he grew too suspicious, but she was sure her message had gone out without alerting him. It wasn’t much of an advantage, but something was better than nothing.

Why are you showing me this? Why bother taunting me?

I’m bored. The humans are pathetic and chasing their tails. Even with that little name you pulled out, they won’t find me. You could prove to be an interesting diversion with your misguided sense of honor.

You’ve said it yourself, you want to kill me. Why should I play your game if I’m going to die anyway?

You won’t be able to stop yourself. Even knowing it’s futile, you’ll want to try to stop the cataclysm, try to save the world.
He said it as distastefully as if he were discussing saving a disease-infested rat. She hated to admit he had a point; she wouldn’t be able to resist trying to save everyone she could.

The bed shifted, a light touch on her arm. He’d gotten the message. She battled to stifle the wave of relief at knowing he was here, that she had an anchor to keep Nightmare from pulling her down with him. Pressure on her shoulder distracted her for a moment. Was Connor still picking up her thoughts? Another squeeze. Okay, no idea how
that
was possible since she hadn’t been trying to communicate, but there were other things to worry about. Enough time had passed that her power had begun to regenerate and she began to mount an attack of her own.

I find it interesting that you’re spending so much time trying to scare me. Are you compensating for something?
Insolent whore. I could crush you with little more than a passing thought.

Yawn. You got in a lucky blow because I was drained; it won’t happen again.

Ah, yes. Your battle with my pet. Pity you vanquished her, but worry not, I have more presents for you.

Drawing on energy from the connection to Connor, Sha was almost ready to give him a present of her own. It relieved her that Nightmare hadn’t seemed to react to any of the thoughts she didn’t direct his way because it meant her safeguards must be holding. The proximity to her detective could have been adding weight to the buffers.

I look forward to sending the rest of your presents straight to the Seven Hells. You may think you know all about me, but you’re wrong. If you did, you’d know better than to underestimate me.

Taking a deep breath, she focused on the path to Nightmare, and sent a ball of pure fire hurtling his way. She felt the instant when he realized what she’d done, his attempt to deflect, and her lips curled in triumph. Exactly as she’d predicted he would react. Without hesitating, she unleashed the real attack, a series of concentrated bursts of raw power designed to explode into molten waves upon impact.
 

Nightmare bellowed in pain and rage, the sound reverberating beyond the confines of her mind and echoing off the walls of the bedroom, before the connection to him cut off abruptly. Her eyes opened to meet Connor’s startled gaze.

“I do believe I won that round,” she said and pulled him down for a hard kiss.

*******

Rather than feeling drained after the assault on Evil Bastard, she’d decided that was a better name for him than ‘Nightmare,’ Sha felt energized. She didn’t fool herself into thinking it was anything more than a temporary victory; he’d be back, of that she was sure. But she’d surprised him,
hurt him
, and after having her ass handed to her earlier, she relished her revenge.
 

The kiss had been impulsive, but toe curling in its heat. She shivered even now with the memory of it. Had it not been for Ian waiting downstairs, she’d have been tempted to pull Connor down onto the bed to continue their…celebration. Ah, well, time enough for that later. She may have been energized, but she was also ravenous. Over a bowl of some sort of sweet, crunchy bits that Connor had called ‘cereal,’ Sha listened as they brought her up to date on what they’d learned about Corvelli.

“Evil Bastard gave me the impression he was using Corvelli as a pawn. He considered him dispensable and was more annoyed I’d slipped past his defenses than anything.”

“‘Evil Bastard’?” Ian asked, amused.

Sha shrugged. “He wanted me to call him Nightmare. I think Evil Bastard fits better. I do think it’s worthwhile to go to Corvelli’s address because it could give me another thread to use to track him down. He kept saying I couldn’t stop what was coming and that he wanted us to die in agony.”

“So the usual, over-dramatic bullshit,” Ian said.

“Am I the only one
not
blasé about the blatant threat to her life?” Connor looked incredulous.

Sha rose and walked over to him, letting every bit of her determination show. “Oh I’m taking it seriously, but he thinks I’m going to scurry off and hide like a coward, and that is something I refuse to do. I’m the first to admit I can be impulsive and probably should keep my mouth shut more often, but I’m not stupid. We’re going to find out whatever he has planned and stop him.”

He wrapped his arms around her in a fierce embrace for a moment. “That simple, huh?”

“Doubtful, but one can always hope.”

“Did your dream give us any indication of what we can expect?” Connor asked.

Before she could answer, Ian’s pocket chimed and he took out his phone to read the screen. “Great. All sorts of bad shit is going down again. You’ll probably get the message in a second.”

On cue, Connor’s phone buzzed on the table. Apparently his was an actual call and not a message because he picked up the phone and went outside.
 

“So, uh, crazy how he knew to go upstairs,” Ian said awkwardly.

“I called him and I guess he was able to hear me.”

“His face lost all color and he raced up to the bedroom, so I’d say it’s a safe bet he did.”

She didn’t know how to respond to that, but was saved from answering when Connor walked back inside.
 

“Captain gave us the all-clear to check in on the lead and didn’t ask too many questions. I could tell he wanted to, but he said he’d followup with us later. Ian, he said there was a disturbance at the site of last night’s murder and he wants you to make sure nothing was compromised.”

Ian nodded, already packing up the bag he’d brought with him. “The text said as much. I’ll let you know what I find.”

“Is there any way I could visit the scene?” Sha asked. “Maybe being there would help me locate Evil Bastard faster.”

“I don’t like it since it could be a trap, but I’ll see what we can do,” Connor said.

A little burst of happiness accompanied his words. He was beginning to trust her skills rather than seeing her only as a witness needing to be protected. “Thank you.”

After saying goodbye to his partner, Connor returned with a predatory gleam in his eyes. “I know you want to go to Corvelli’s right away, but I’d feel more comfortable waiting a little bit longer, at least until it’s lighter outside. Takes away some of the advantage of the creatures hiding in the shadows, you know?”
 

Sha glanced outside, noted the pale, watery sky and calculated it would take perhaps half an hour for the morning sun to finish rising. If they left now, it would be light enough by the time they reached the address. But that wasn’t what he wanted. Tricky man. She approved. Her blood began to warm, heat gathering between her legs in anticipation. It had been a close call and she thought they both needed the reassurance. Plus, she wanted to block out the memory of what Evil Bastard had done to Fire Falls in the nightmare.

She pretended to deliberate over his words. “Hmm, you may be right. Better to be safe than sorry. Since we have so much time on our hands, what should we do to occupy ourselves?”

“I’m sure we can think of something.”

He seized her shoulders and pulled her against him, the action taking her off balance and making her head spin. Or maybe it was his mouth moving over hers, his tongue dancing over hers, his teeth nipping her lip.

“Why can’t I resist you, temptress?” Connor broke the kiss and met her eyes, heart pounding beneath her hands.

“I don’t know. Same reason I can’t stay away from you. It’s getting stronger.” A nagging suspicion crept over her. Could they have bonded? It occasionally happened in Mythria, two people forging a connection so deep, they were linked at all times. It was based in magic though and both individuals had to have some power, even if it was latent. Connor was human…wasn’t he? Those eyes of his…

His mouth brushed over her cheek, travelled down her neck, to her collarbone. She tilted her head to give him better access as shivers ran through her. Figure out the connection later, and focus on this now. Best idea she’d had all day.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered as he began to undo the buttons on her shirt. “I think this will belong to you now, it looks much sexier on you than it ever would on me.”

“I don’t know, Detective, it looked pretty damn good on you.” Hands closed over her breasts and she moaned, back arching into his touch. Gods she needed his hands on her.

“We rushed things before, but this time, this time I want to take my time, savor you.”

“No—no arguments here,” she managed to gasp out as his mouth followed the trail of his hands and closed over her breast, tongue lashing over the throbbing tip.

Frantic now, she yanked his shirt up, desperate to have his skin under her fingers. Her ivory complexion stood in stark contrast to his darker tone and she loved his sharp intake of breath when she scraped her nails lightly over his nipples.