Hear No (Hidden Evil, #1) (20 page)

Should he feel bad about sleeping with her at a time when she probably didn’t need the added complication?

No. There were some things in life he wouldn’t trade for a clear conscience, and bedding her was one. She’d proven to be as exhilarating in bed as she was out, the perfect mix of challenge and submission with a wanton lack of inhibition, once her guard melted away.

His gaze went over her, and he was unable to suppress the flare of desire at the sight of her naked body. Her aura was clear and sparkling, a sign she was at peace for the first time since they’d met.

His restlessness returned quickly, though, as he began to realize this was likely to be their only time together, if he didn’t figure out to save her. He didn’t want to leave at all but spend as long as it took in bed with her for him to feel fully satisfied. There was an encyclopedia of things he could think of doing with her, enough to keep them in bed together for weeks straight.

With regret, Nathan carefully worked his limbs free from her warm, soft body and rolled out of the bed. He pulled on his jeans with a glance at the clock. It had been afternoon when they started making love and past dark when they stopped to sleep. After a few hours of rest and his body relaxed from lovemaking, he was ready to roll.

He exited the bedroom and closed the door behind him. His otherworldly senses picked up the fact that Shadowman had returned at some point. Guardian angels were like small bursts of sparkles and light, like distant stars twinkling in the sky.

Shadowman was like a cold, dark splotch in comparison, a tiny black hole.

Nathan rinsed his face with cool water to wake up the rest of his senses then left the bathroom. He paused at the entrance of the living room. While he knew Shadowman was there, he wasn’t expecting the creature to be in its human form, seated on the couch.

“Good morning,” Nathan said casually. “You waiting for me?”

“Yes.” The demon spoke with a low hiss.

Nathan sat in a rocking chair, the only seat close to the Shadowman he was comfortable sitting in. He waited, sensing a demon didn’t seek him out, if it didn’t have a message of some sort.

“You must stay away from her,” Shadowman said.

“Why?”

“Because I say so.”

“You’re warning me. I’ve dealt with enough demons to know they normally just attack.”

Shadowman said nothing.

“Which leads me to believe there’s a reason you didn’t rip me a part in the alley and waited patiently like a dog for me to face you here.”

Shadowman rose abruptly, and Nathan assessed he was right. He remained in place, sensing he’d almost provoked the creature enough for it to talk.

“Why?” he asked.

Shadowman made an unpleasant sound like a hiss.

“Let’s start with an easier question. I know how stupid you demons are,” Nathan said. “Are you being told by the bosses in Hell not to kill me?”

“No.”

“So they want me dead.”

“Probably.”

“Okay.” Nathan paused to think again briefly. “Is Kaylee right? Did you not hurt me because she told you not to?’

Shadowman gave a snort of derision.

“That answers that. The only thing I can think of is that you
can’t
kill me.”

“Soul agreement.”

Nathan froze. “Absolutely not.”

It was Shadowman’s turn to be amused. At least, Nathan interpreted the strange gurgle it made as a laugh.

“Shit.” Nathan rose and paced. “That’s worse news than you are.” His attraction to her and his hesitation to kill her began to make sense in that light.
No wonder it felt like her body was made just for me.
“But if true, the worst you can do is try to scare me off. You can’t hurt me, can you?”

The grating sound emerging from Shadowman was one of pure frustration.

“No offense, but I refuse to believe this nonsense about a soul agreement. I do not – nor will I ever – settle down with one woman. Ever.”

“Then leave,” Shadowman snapped.

Right now, that sounds like a great idea
. Nathan went still again, his insides churning. He always walked away, and the demon was telling him that he’d no longer be able to, not if he had an OTL.

He left the demon in the living room and returned to the bedroom. He refused to look at Kaylee, instead snatching his clothes, shoes and socks.

He strode through the house, collecting his wallet and keys. The cold streaking through him was something he hadn’t felt since the day he agreed to take on the role of a spirit guide. He hated the idea of some part of his world being outside his control, of the soul agreement that marked him as the OTL that the guardian angels had chosen for Kaylee. It was a special, sacred honor, one he didn’t know what to do with – one he didn’t really want.

After all his work and dedication, the Other Side conspired against him.

Then again, a woman fated to die soon might be the perfect kind of wife to have.

You’re a cold bastard sometimes, Nate.
He shook his head. He couldn’t let that happen, even if he didn’t know what to do about her.

Shadowman remained in the living room, restlessly shifting with the fluidity of the shadow he resembled.

“You should probably stay here,” Nathan advised it. “If 3G found her at her office, they’ll find her here.”

Shadowman said nothing.

Nathan left. He didn’t realize until the cold night air hit him that his heart was racing and his hands clammy.

Of all the things he’d seen over the past three thousand years, he never expected to see a fallen guardian or have a demon tell him that he had an OTL, the sickeningly sweet phrase the angels had coined. He stopped, halfway to the car, and tossed his head back. His breaths drifted upward in a thin fog towards the star-studded sky. It was almost five. He’d planned on meeting Maggy last night and realized she was probably pissed.

He had to fix this thing with Kaylee. After Zyra died, he swore never to settle down with any woman. He wasn’t about to stick around long enough to fall for this one, even if she was gorgeous and witty. And scared. Great in the sack with a body he could see himself spending every night exploring.

Shit.
Nathan rubbed his face hard.

At least with Shadowman around, she was safe. He could walk away for now and figure out what the hell he was supposed to do next.

He left and drove back to the townhouse in Arlington. Dawn lit up the eastern sky by the time he pulled into the driveway.

Maggy was up, if the lights glowing in every window were an indication. He turned off the car and got out, not letting himself dwell on Kaylee, not when thinking of her was stirring up emotions he didn’t want to feel.

He walked in the front door and glanced around. Maggy had called in Randy and a few others who were on the main level, eating breakfast cooked by a large African American man Nathan knew as Jordan.

“Nate!” Maggy exclaimed. “Where the hell have you been?” She leapt up from her seat at the table with another guide.

The others in the room glanced up, waving at him.

“Long story.” Nathan waved back. He tossed his keys on the counter.

Maggy frowned at him. “We thought you’d been kidnapped or worse after the sinkhole incident.”

“No. Just had to take her somewhere safe.” He grabbed a plate and went to the makeshift buffet, filling his plate with ham and scrambled eggs. “No hot sauce, Jordan?”

“You don’t need that death sauce,” was the offended response. “I cook damn good, Nate.”

Nathan smiled and sat down at the breakfast bar.

“Nate!” Maggy was pissed. She pushed his shoulder. “You just disappear for half a day then waltz back in with no explanation?”

“Just doing my job, Mags. Took her up north. Not sharing the location with anyone,” he said firmly. “Before the sinkhole, 3G tried to kill us all by collapsing the building. You wanna tell me what’s going on? I’m pretty sure you know.”

She sat beside him. “They’re a little more active and uh … assertive than I initially told you.”

He glanced at her, not at all pleased with the news.

“They seem to have made Kaylee the justification for their cause. I guess I didn’t want to tell you because … well, they’re led by someone you know. A guide. Or former one.”

“He convinced a bunch of ex-angels to commit violence. Whatever he is, he’s dangerous,” Nathan said. “You know where he is?”

“It’s a she. Not a he.”

He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. We still need to find her.”

“You may be better situated to helping than us.” Maggy pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket and unfolded it. “This particular cult leader knows you. I really hoped you could come here, do the job and leave. I never wanted to show you this.”

Nathan sat back, chewing while he waited. He doubted anything could surprise him after his discovery this morning.

“Jordan, this is fantastic,” he said after swallowing. “You’re right. Don’t need the death sauce.”

“No shit,” Jordan replied.

Maggy was glaring at him.

“I’m listening,” Nathan said.

“Good. Because if anyone can fix this, it should be you.” She slapped the paper down in front of him.

His appetite fled. Nathan stared at the paper, unable to believe the grainy photograph was real. The last time he saw the woman in the picture, cameras hadn’t existed. Modern technology hadn’t either.

It was the day before he became a guide, the day he thought she’d died.

He picked up the paper, gazing intently at the face of Zyra, the woman he left the Roman armies to marry and settle down with, the only woman he’d ever loved. They made it a year before the spark faded and the problems began. He went back to the army, the only other thing he really knew. It was three years after they married that she died, killed by a routine raid from invaders trying to take the peninsula. Such raids weren’t uncommon when one lived on the Sea. He’d been pondering the offer from Pedro, ready to turn it down in order to stay and work on his failing marriage.

When she died, he had nowhere else to go.

“I thought this would be hard,” Maggy said quietly, studying him. “You burn through women for three thousand years then find out your wife is still alive.”

“Pretty sure a three thousand year old separation qualifies as divorce,” he said, tossing the paper. He tapped his fingers, deep in thought.

“There must be something special about her. You never let any of the rest of us you dated get close.”

“I like things simple,” he replied. He went back to eating.

“That’s it?” Maggy demanded. “I tell you your dead wife is still alive, and you’re going to sit and eat breakfast?”

He nodded.

She gave an exasperated sigh. “I’ll admit, I’m kinda glad you’re taking this well. If we can’t handle the situation, we might have to take her out. I wondered how they were able to track Kaylee, but it makes sense, if she’s one of ours.”

Nathan paused in his eating. For a few precious moments, he’d forgotten about his biggest problem. Or maybe, had Kaylee just become his second biggest issue?

“Where is she?” he asked, glancing at the paper.

“Why?”

“You didn’t tell me who she was so I could sit around.”

“True,” Maggy said. “But I need to know what your stance on her is.”

“Professionally, she’s an issue. I’ve probably got the best chance of reasoning with her, which I’m assuming is why you told me. If I can’t get her to back off, we go to plan B.”

“You’re determined not to kill Kaylee,” Maggy said, puzzled. She leaned closer to him, until only he could hear her words. “Nathan, what if Zyra is right? What if the best way – the only way – to do this is to get rid of her?”

Nathan sat back. He’d wanted to find a way to help Kaylee before, because years of preserving innocent lives made him want to adhere as much as possible to the spirit guide credo. Now that he knew there was another reason why he hesitated, he was faced with a better understanding of what was really at stake. He couldn’t operate with his normal disregard for the rules.

“I know that look,” Maggy said. “We need to talk, don’t we?”

He smiled mirthlessly at the familiar words. Normally, he was the one to say them.

“Yeah, we do,” he said and stood. “In private.”

He walked away from the kitchen and trotted up the stairs to the level with the bedrooms. A small sitting area was at the top of the stairs, between the two wings of rooms.

Maggy sat, but Nathan couldn’t. He was starting to feel wired. Thinking too much.

“Zyra’s probably right,” he started. “The simplest solution, the easiest one, is to get rid of Kaylee. Poof. Problem solved. No more Shadowman, no portal to Hell.”

“Yeah,” Maggy agreed.

“Devil’s advocate. No pun intended.” He faced her and flashed a grin.

She rolled her eyes.

“Tell me why this solution won’t work.”

Maggy hesitated. “Well…” she trailed off, pensive. “Her death won’t get rid of this new group of Zyra’s. It might give them a good recruiting foundation, which could cause an issue with us down the road.”

“Okay. What else?”

“No one knew about Amira and the gateway until a few weeks ago. I assume now that it’s close to being common knowledge, especially since Zyra has been one step ahead of us all this time. If we and Shadowman can track the girls, others can, too.”

“All valid points.”

“But not the reasoning you’re looking for,” she said. “What am I missing?”

Nathan was quiet for a moment. He sat down on the couch, thoughts on Kaylee, Zyra and the horrible timing of running into both. His life had been relatively simple for so long.

“You’re the last person I thought would shy away from pulling the trigger. Why, Nathan?”

“Taking Kaylee out of the equation is a band-aid, a temporary fix,” he replied. “You’re right. Her death won’t help us deal with Zyra or prevent others from targeting Amira. We’ve entered a new era. We can’t go back to the way things were last week, which means, Kaylee may be the first person we have to deal with this, but she won’t be the last.”

Maggy was quiet.

“We need to find a way to deal with what’s coming in a way that allows us to maintain our work as guides,” he continued.