Authors: Cindy Paterson
Kilter crossed his arms and stood hovering at the foot of the bed. Balen glared. Kilter glared back, refusing to budge.
“Leave or I don’t do this,” Danielle said. She would win her own battles, even if this one was with the most dangerous dickhead she’d ever met. And she once thought Keir was controlling. This guy’s name was controlling.
“I want a full report.” Kilter was furious, but he knew when to back down. Dangerous and intelligent; a deadly combination.
Danielle waited until the connecting door shut before closing her eyes. She felt Balen on the other side of the room, lending her his strength with his steady rhythm of his heartbeat, but he kept his thoughts blocked, which lessened the impact to her head.
“
Ryker?”
Relax. Breathe. Feel him.
She pictured him leaning up against the counter, Hannah in his arms, a grin on his face. Relaxed, comfortable and besotted by the woman he held.
“
Ryker?”
Those dark-brown eyes, sharp and inquisitive.
Like he knew everything about what was to come. She sensed that he was a strong telepath. His voice deep and soft, soothing when he spoke to Hannah. Filled with love and kindness. They not only shared a connection physically, but also in minds.
“
Ryker?”
His voice wa
s different as it reached her with a sharp agonizing pain.
“Who are you? No Senses can reach me in this place.”
“
It’s Danielle. And yes I can. We’re close and need to know—”
“
Leave me,”
Ryker said.
“Do not risk lives for mine. It is not worth it. Blow this place sky high.”
Danielle gasped as a sharp pain shot through her body. His pain. His loss. Hannah was dead and he wanted to die.
“She would want you to live.”
“
You know shit about her or me.”
Okay, that hurt. Danielle tried to remember that this man had just lost his love, his life and what he said was a reflection of how he was feeling, not how he felt about her.
“We have Hannah’s amulet,”
she said, wondering if he knew about the . . . whatever it was, slab of gold maybe.
“
Tell Kilter to leave. He owes me nothing. Tell him to take the amulet and leave.”
“
He will refuse,”
Danielle said.
She heard him groan and then a fierce growl of pain.
“Ryker? Ryker what’s happening?”
“
Do . . . not . . . come . . . for . . .”
“
Ryker? Ryker?”
“Crap,” Da
nielle said, opening her eyes to find Balen sitting on the bed beside her, holding her hand. She hadn’t felt him. It was as though she was away from her body when the telepathy was so intense.
“He wants us to leave him,” Danielle said. “He is so hurt with loss that I don’t think he really cares about much at the moment. But
—” she hesitated and sighed, “—they were doing something to him. I don’t know what. He had trouble speaking and . . . well, I lost him. I don’t know whether he passed out or what.”
“Where’s he being held?” Kilter demanded from the doorway.
Asshole had been listening. “He didn’t say. He wants you to take the amulet and leave. He said that you owe him nothing.” She watched Kilter’s expression and it pissed her off that he could remain so impassive. She tried her newfound ability and noticed that Kilter’s mind was a blank slate.
“He would say that,” Kilter said. “We will survey the compound today. Tomorrow we get him the fuck out. I expect you to have a location by then.” He turned and walked out.
She felt like sticking her tongue out at him. She wouldn’t put it past him to cut it off if she did.
Balen sat on the bed beside her and pulled her up next to him, smoothing her hair back from her face. She closed her eyes, shivers coursing over her skin at his gentle caress. His lips kissed her temple and his hand pushed her head onto his shoulder.
“We’ll sleep for a few hours, while we can,” Balen said.
She curled up next to him, her head resting on his chest, her hand over his heart. She thought she heard him say
“I love you” as she drifted off to sleep.
****
Danielle woke with Balen’s arms around her waist, his head nestled in the crook of her neck. Kilter’s annoying, demanding voice came blaring like a car horn into her mind.
“
Get hold of him now. I’m in.”
She sat up in bed, all sleep vanishing.
“What?”
“
Which building?”
Kilter demanded.
“Ah crap,” Danielle said. Balen woke beside her and was instantly on alert. “Kilter went in. He wasn’t supposed to go yet.”
Balen ran his hand through his hair. “Fuck.” He yelled to the next room, “Keir, get your ass in here, we have a problem.”
“
Ryker? Ryker, answer me now. Kilter is in the compound.”
Nothing.
“Ryker! Wake the hell up!”
His voice was weak and ragged. She hoped it was because he was resting, not from anything they might be doing to him.
“I told you . . .”
“
Yeah, well, Kilter doesn’t listen very well, so where are you? Which building?”
“
I was drugged. I don’t know where the hell I am,”
Ryker said.
“
When they took you out of the vehicle, which way did you go?”
She waited. Silence. Was he thinking? Had he fallen back asleep? Passed out?
“Right,”
Ryker replied and Danielle breathed a sigh of relief.
“Then straight, then we stopped. A six-digit code was punched in and then we entered a building. Then . . . I fought them and they injected me with more drugs.”
Danielle relayed the information to Kilter.
“The amulet. It’s in the other room behind the nightstand in the wall. Get it,
” Kilter demanded.
“
Kilter, sundown is in two hours. There’s not enough time for you to get out before the sensors are put on again.”
“
I don’t intend to get out today. Get the amulet. I need you close. I’m not sure how far away the amulet will work. Go to the cliff on the east side of the compound. Keir knows where it is.”
“
But what am I supposed to do with the amulet?”
“
When I tell you, uncover it, put it around your neck, and hold it between your palms. Think of Ryker and Hannah.”
“
But what does it—”
Kilter’s voice was harsh.
“Typical fuckin’ woman. Don’t question. Just do it.”
Fine. Did she have a choice?
“Kilter . . . be careful.
” No clue why she said that. She hated the overbearing control freak.
She felt him leave her mind and fell back against the pillows. Balen was up and pacing the worn
-out orange carpet, his expression grim.
“What the hell does he think he’s doing?” Balen said. She had no answer and Balen didn’t expect one. “How on earth does he expect to get him out on his own?”
“The amulet,” Danielle said. “He says it will protect Ryker somehow.” She revealed the conversation and by the end, Balen was fuming.
“I don’t want you anywhere near the compound.” His voice rose just as Delara, Jedrik and Keir ca
me through the adjoining door.
Jedrik’s blond curls were in complete disarray. “What’s all the commotion about?”
“Kilter has taken it upon himself to get Ryker out himself,” Balen said.
Jedrik shrugged. “Could’ve guessed he’d do something stupid like that. He works alone.”
“He’s a fool,” Keir said. “And he may have just screwed it up for all of us.”
Balen repeated the conversation Danielle had with Kilter.
Delara was uneasy. “The cliff is the only hiding place, but if they discover her, she’ll be toast.”
“If he manages to get out quietly
, we won’t have to worry about it,” Jedrik said. “But I highly doubt that’ll happen. Kilter’s a cowboy.”
Balen thought about it. Having Danielle anywhere near the compound was a risk, one he would choose not to take. Shit, he hated to be the one to sit and wait. He’d expected to go in with Jedrik, Keir, Kilter and Delara, get Ryker out, plant the explosives and extract. Simple. Kilter fucked up the plan because he had to do things his way. Didn’t trust them, or whatever was going through that stubborn head of his.
Kilter might be right about the security during the day. No one would expect them to attack in daylight. If Kilter could get Ryker out of the building, then they could be waiting with tactical diversions.
Balen looked at Keir. “We don’t have much choice,” Keir said. He pulled out his cell. “I’ll contact Galen. If he’s managed to hack into their computer system, he could set up a good distraction.”
“So what’s the deal?” Jedrik asked.
“Delara, attempt to track Kilter’s movements and keep us posted
on what he’s up to. Jedrik, use your sight to get us as much data as you can around the perimeter. We have one day to get a lock on this place.” He noticed Keir get off the phone. “We’ll regroup . . . eleven tonight.”
“Galen needs more time to get into their system. We can’t rely on his assistance,” Keir said. He slammed his fist into the wall, leaving a crack of plaster. “Damn Kilter.”
“I’ll watch the gate, if there is any suspicion of us, I’ll smell it a mile away,” Balen said.
“I’ll go with you,” Danielle said.
Balen scowled. “No argument. You will remain where it’s safe. Period.”
“I can’t risk you getting hurt. This is what we do, Danielle. Understand that we have trained since children to fight. To conceal ourselves, to use our senses. If you are surrounded by all those people in the compound, their thoughts will be overwhelming.”
“Fine,” Danielle said aloud. “But I don’t have to like it.”
Kilter grabbed her from behind just as she finished punching in the code. His arm came around her waist and he pulled her up against his chest with a harsh jolt. “Keep your mouth shut,” he said, as he pushed his knife to her throat.
“Open the door,” Kilter growled in her ear.
Her back stiffened, but she obeyed without question. He kept her locked against his chest as he went inside, his eyes searching the long white corridor. A camera hung up in the far corner. It slowly turned in their direction and he shoved her against the wall, keeping their bodies out of sight of its range.
He
perused the ceiling and then along the length of the wall. There it was. Vent. The camera swiveled in their direction; he reacted, shoving her forward with his knife still on her jugular. She had yet to try to scream. Actually, she didn’t fight him at all.
He kept them close to the right side of the sterile white hallway. He guessed he had seven seconds. He reached the vent and pushed her to the floor. “Scream and I’ll snap your neck.” He pushed his knee into her back. “Don’t move,” he growled. He concentrated on the screws on the vent
, using his telekinesis, and slowly one by one they began to move. He heard her slight gasp and he nudged her in the back.
Kilter yanked the cover from the wall. “In. Now.”
“If I’m missing, he will—”
He grabbed her arm and shoved her frail body into the gap in the wall. She climbed inside and he grunted at the echoing sound she made moving down the polyurethane hose. He jumped in after her and then put the cover back in place. He focused on the screws and each one hovered in the air and then inserted back in place.
His body moved soundlessly along the air duct as he followed after her until he reached where it divided into two directions. The woman sat waiting. Obedient, wasn’t he lucky.
“Don’t speak. And don’t make any bloody noise.” He sat with his back against the side of the spiral duct,
legs bent and one elbow resting on a knee. He glanced over at the woman, who had her arms locked around her knees and her head resting on them. Her face was gaunt, pale with dark circles under her eyes. Pretty pathetic looking, he thought.
The jeans she wore clung to her nonexistent body. No breasts, ass or thighs. God, he could snap her in half.
The next words that came out of him were a surprise. “What’s your deal? You sick?”
Her head raised and he stared into blank void brown eyes. Even her lips were thin.
“Answer me,” Kilter said. He was used to others doing exactly what he requested—okay, demanded.
“No,” she replied.
He kept his expression cold and words abrupt. “Why do you look like a skeleton that got the living shit kicked out of it?”
She opened her mouth to speak and then shut it again. He could be patient when need be and they did have all night. He watched her, the slight movement of her fingers as they clasped together, her eyes staring at the silver duct.