“She’s worried about you,” Hannah pointed out. “And she’s right to worry. Remember what happened to Pushnell’s group, back at Midlands? Pushnell put those poor bastards under for days at a time with an IV and a catheter and pee bag. Every single one of them got brain burn and went to the shredder. Remember Malachi? And Aaron?”
“Yes,” he said savagely. “Nothing wrong with my memory.”
“Aaron tried to claw his own face off in the cafeteria, remember that?”
Simone tried, unsuccessfully, to hide her flinch.
“Goddamnit, Hannah,” he flared. “There’s no reason to dig up grisly shit from our past. It’s all behind us now. And I’m not like Aaron.”
“I hope not.” Hannah wouldn’t back down. Her eyes had that pinpoint laser focus she got when she was using her implants, manipulating or blocking wavelengths.
In fact, when he reached out to sweep the trawler bots, he hit dead air. Not a wave to be found, at least not any wavelengths useful for his purposes.
“You’re shielding,” he growled. “Quit that right now. This is my house and I own these waves. Stop throwing your weight around or else get the fuck out of here.”
Hannah shrugged. The interference deadening his wi-fi winked out and connectivity hummed around them once again.
“I was just wondering how often the obsessive bot-checking was going on,” Hannah said. “My conservative estimate is once a minute. My fear is that it’s three or four times a minute. Which means that you have a problem.”
“I am fine,” he said savagely.
Simone put the tortillas on the table. “I invited a family member over for carne asada and beer, not a brawl,” she said. “Be polite. Both of you.”
He gave Simone a betrayed look. “You sicced her on me? On purpose?”
“Somebody had to come down on you,” Hannah said. “Simone’s too sweet on you to be effective. You need a stronger hand. Usually Noah keeps you on the straight and narrow, but God forbid we bother him on the art geek honeymoon for the ages.”
“He deserves a break.” He was startled to hear himself defend Noah. The guy was a royal pain in the ass who’d made Zade’s life complicated for years. Still, Noah had masterminded the escape from Midlands. Noah would also lay down his life for any one of them. He owed Noah big. He owed all of them.
“Maybe, but things are weird without him,” Hannah said, frowning. “I can’t wait for him to get home and zap your ass back into line. Because you are scaring us, Zade.”
Zade looked from Hannah’s angry eyes to Simone’s worried face. Simone’s mouth had that tight-lipped, determined look he had come to know too well.
He let out a long, controlled breath. “I’m sorry if I scared you,” he said evenly to Simone. “I’m just being focused. I swear. I’m OK.”
“Too focused,” Hannah said.
“I’m not talking to you,” Zade said without looking at her.
“I suggest we eat before this food gets cold,” Simone said.
Hannah flounced back to the kitchen to grab the salad and the silverware.
They’d just gotten well into it, and he was savoring a blend of savory meat, sour cream, salsa and guac when he felt it. Clear as a knock on the door inside his head.
A trawler bot signaling a hit.
He and Hannah stopped chewing, eyes locked.
Zade swallowed the food in his mouth, and wiped his fingers. “You feel that, spy girl?”
“Sure did,” Hannah said, her eyes keen with excitement. “Felt the bump.”
“What bump?” Simone asked. “Damn it, you guys. That’s not fair.”
“Sorry. I got a hit with one of my bots. One second while I check it out.” Zade found the flagged file and ran it through his processor. Then he ran it again.
“Stop staring into space, Zade,” Hannah said. “You’re killing me. For God’s sake, put it onto something with a screen. Is it good?”
“Yeah. It’s good. Hang on.” He transferred the data to a tablet that lay on the bar and grabbed the thing, thumbing the app open. “A police report. A guy came into a Kwik Stop convenience store on the Cardinal Ridge Highway today, near Goforth, California. Wanted information on some girl who’d been through there. Then a black Porsche Cayenne approached the store with no driver inside. The man got in and drove away at high speed.”
The silence at the table was absolute.
Zade got up. “I’m out.” He looked at Simone. “Sorry, baby. I have to go see if that place has video footage.”
“I’ll go with you,” Simone said.
“No,” he said. “Not a good use of your time. I love your company, but you’re better off here, working out the sequences for Luke’s code scrub.”
Simone looked hurt. “Don’t dive while you’re driving,” she said. “Not even a shallow dive. Swear it on your life.”
Zade sighed. “Simone, we’ve been through this—”
“I don’t give a shit how big your monster processor is or how good you are at multi-tasking. If you’re speeding on an interstate in the dead of night, don’t dive.”
“Fine,” he said. “I promise.”
Hannah snorted under her breath. “Good luck keeping that promise. Bot junkie.”
Zade ignored her, moving quickly to the weapons safe. He buckled on a shoulder holster for his Glock and an ankle holster for the Ruger six-shot and shrugged on his jacket, buzzing inside. Excitement and fear. Bright side, if this panned out, Luke was alive, ambulatory, functioning. There was no way to know if he was in his right mind, but hey, that kind of judgment call changed with the fucking weather.
But on the dark side, what the fuck? Why hadn’t Luke called them? What was he running from? And this kidnapped girl? And the police, looking for a killer?
The dark side just kept getting darker.
It was weird that Luke had revealed his abilities to a convenience store clerk. He must have known the guy would yammer about it. Luke had always been super careful about secrecy. And he never lost control or showed fear. He’d always considered it his job to make everyone else feel safe. Just not himself.
Simone’s eyes stopped him at the door.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he begged. “You know I have to go. Work on the scrub program while I’m gone. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Of course,” she said. “And I’ll be ready. Just go find him.”
He seized her and held her so tight, she squeaked. Then followed up with a fierce kiss, which had the unfortunate effect of making him hard and jacking his ASP all the way up to the stratosphere.
Now he was jittery and buzzed. A fine way to start a long road trip at night.
He backed away into the freight elevator that opened off his apartment, Hannah’s laughter in his ears. Simone’s smile made him melt. He wanted to grab her again.
“Look at you. Mr. Bedazzled,” she said, pointing. “All ready for the prom.”
Aw, shit. He stared down at his sparkling coat and sweater as the elevator doors closed, punching the button for the ground floor. The reflection of the glitter glow lit up the battered steel walls as the elevator ground noisily down.
Hannah needed to invent a goddamn cloak of invisibility to go with it.
* * * *
Luke hated leaving Dani alone, even for the few minutes it took to go into the housewares store and buy a UV light. Then a run into the drugstore for some more gauze and disinfectant, and a faster run back to the car where Dani waited, wrapped up in her blanket. He’d been scouring travel databases for a hotel that fit all his security criteria and finally found one, but they had to drive farther than he liked to get to it.
He wanted Dani tucked up in a quality bed with clean sheets under a pile of blankets. Preferably sipping something hot. Safe and warm and protected.
That last-minute res
cue had turned him into a churning black hole of rage. The sight of her crouched in the back of that van, half-naked and bloodied and terrified…fuck.
He wanted to bring that piece of shit back to life and kill him again. At closer range this time.
He didn’t know what to do with all this wild energy. He’d lost the knack for dealing with powerful emotions. Maybe he’d never had it. Who the fuck knew.
That burned his ass, too. Not knowing. He was sick of it.
They got to the hotel, the Larsen Pines Lodge, and claimed their small cabin way out in the back. He parked the car under a thick stand of pine trees that were sure to drip sticky pitch all over his SUV, but it was worth it to have cover against satellites or drones or whatever else those pricks might have in their arsenal.
The cabin was simple. Bedroom, kitchenette and bathroom. He carried Dani inside, setting her gently on her feet by the bed.
He got an eloquent eye-roll when he tried to help her sit down. “I’m OK, Luke.”
“Good. Going to grab the stuff from the car,” he said gruffly. “Be right back.”
He came back loaded up with bags. The UV light, the stuff from the pharmacy to patch up her cut, the long-forgotten food from the steakhouse, her new clothes, her burner phones. He immediately pried one out of its packaging and put it to charge.
She looked puzzled. “What’s with the phone? I thought you said I shouldn’t—”
“Yeah, I did say that. And yes, it’s still a shitty idea to use this for anything but a dire life or death emergency. Use it once, dump it, get the hell away from it. That’s the rule.”
She nodded. “Speaking of which. I have to call Dorothy, my supervisor at the hospital, and tell her that I’m—”
“No, you don’t.” He snarled the words out before he could control himself.
She sighed. “Luke. Please. All I want to do is to let them know that I’m not—”
“You still don’t get it,” he said. “You can’t call anyone, Dani. Not anymore. Not ever. From this day onward. Understand?”
“But…but can’t I at least explain to Dorothy what—”
“How the fuck do you think Obsidian found you today?” His tone made her flinch, but he was too wound up to soften it. “You made calls with that dumbass store clerk’s smartphone, right? And you told people where you were?”
“Ah…yes,” she said, tentatively. “I called the police detective, and my neighbor Millie to tell her that I was all right, and I left a voicemail for Colleen, who handles the staffing at the clinic, but I…” Her voice trailed off. A look of horror came over her face. “But they had no reason to be monitoring Richie the Kwik-Stop clerk’s phone!”
“They weren’t,” Luke said grimly. “They were monitoring the detective’s phone. And Millie’s. And Colleen’s. And everyone else you fucking know. Everyone, Dani.”
“But…but how could they—”
“You say the shit I can do is science fiction. Well, they’ve made hundreds of me. Thousands, maybe. They’ve got a fucking army of bioengineered freaks and there’s nothing they can’t track or monitor. In the blink of an eye.”
“But I can’t just disappear,” she whispered. “That’s so awful.”
“That’s exactly what you have to do,” he said. “I’m sorry. But get it through your head. Your life as you knew it is over. You can’t go back. You can’t contact those people again. If you do, you’re putting them in danger. Do you want Obsidian to focus down on Dorothy? Or Colleen, or your neighbor lady? Or anyone else you give a shit about?”
“No. No, I don’t.” She waved her hand at him. “I get it, Luke. You’ve convinced me. No need to keep lecturing. But…why buy the phones at all?”
“That’s in case they get me. In case you have to make a run for it on your own.”
“Oh, fuck’s sake.” She shook her head, closing her eyes. “Later for this.”
Shit. “Come on,” he growled. “Let’s get into the bathroom and dress that cut.”
Dani sat down on the edge of the tub and let him sponge the blood off with a wet hotel washrag. Her attacker had made one long, straight cut. Not as deep as he’d feared. By now the bleeding had slowed to a coagulating ooze.
“Looks pretty clean,” Dani said as he sprayed on the disinfectant. “I don’t think it needs any stitching or staples. It should be fine.”
“I’m the one who heals quickly, not you,” he said. “I wish I had some antibiotics for you. I don’t ever need them, so they’re not in my stash.”
“It’s a superficial cut,” she said. “Just the skin. That’s all he wanted.”
He applied an adhesive wound-closing device that pulled the edges of the cut closed with transparent surgical-grade tape, sealing it. Then he laid a nonstick bandage pad over the closed wound, and ripped open the nonstick paper tape.
“Wait.” She put her hand over his. “Don’t cover it up yet. Don’t you want to look at the barcode matrix first?”
“No. I can wait a little longer. Lie down. Warm up. I don’t want you going into shock.”
“Didn’t happen, won’t happen. Come on, Luke, I can’t stand the suspense. I went through hell for this thing and I want some goddamn satisfaction.”
Her soft, luscious lips curved into that persuasive smile. Her eyes were so luminous, even shadowed with exhaustion. The light in them blew his fucking mind.
“Luke?” she prompted softly. So on to him. Fully aware of her power. “Hello? Anybody home in there?”
“Yeah, sure,” he muttered. “OK. Whatever. We’ll tape it down after.”
She took the pad off and followed him out of the bathroom, sitting down on the bed while she waited for him to pull the UV light out of its plastic and plug it in. He pulled down the blackout shades, turned off the lights, and switched on the UV light.
The complex symbol glowed brightly on her leg, barely dimmed by the transparent tape that covered it. Luke knelt down in front of her and studied it.
“Take a picture,” she said.
“I already did,” Luke said. “With my processor. It links to a site that has a password. I’m entering it now, and I…here we go. Oh, yeah. Yeah. It’s all here.”
A deluge of data poured in on him. Streams of files downloading into his databanks. His brain lit up like a pinball arcade. ASP flashing and scrolling wildly.
“Can you put the files onto a regular computer so I can look at them too?”
“You sure, Dani? Once you know this stuff, you can’t unknow it. You’ve seen what those evil pricks are like. You really want to know their business?”
“Would you rather I didn’t?” she asked. “Don’t you trust me?”
“It’s not a question of trust. The key is yours. You paid for it in blood.” Luke opened the laptop, copied and dumped the files. “Look through it, if you’re interested.”
“OK then.” They gazed at each other in sudden silence.
“I have to start processing these files,” he told her. “I’m going to dive. Just so you know, I’ll look like I’m stoned but I’m not. I’m awake and aware, just grinding through data.”
“Cool.”
“And I’ll still be monitoring us every second,” he assured her. “In every direction.”
“Luke, saying stuff like that creeps me out more,” she teased gently. “Just don’t divert any fighter jets or helicopters, or mess around with the space shuttle, or redirect any intercontinental ballistic missiles. Promise?”
“Sure,” he said, distracted. “Sure, yeah. I’ll keep it real simple. Real focused.”
She laughed, to his bewilderment, and then leaned over and kissed him. A hot, soft, lingering kiss.
The contact sent a bolt of frantic heat stabbing into him. It cracked him wide open. His dick swelled to stone-hard readiness and his body thrummed. Now, now, now.
�
��Don’t,” he said harshly. “Back off, Dani.”
Dani shrank back, startled. “Sorry,” she murmured.
“It’s cold. Get some clothes on. Some blankets. Warm yourself up.”
She looked down his long, limp black T-shirt. “Well. I would, but—”
“I got clothes for you. When I went down the hill to the steak house, remember? I was paying for them when I saw you leave. They’re in the plastic bags by the door. And the food’s in the brown paper bag on the desk, when you feel like eating something. There’s a microwave in here. We can heat stuff up if you want.”
Dani went to the door and hefted the two shopping bags he’d brought inside. “Wow,” she murmured. “That’s a lot of clothes.”
“Wasn’t sure about your size,” he said curtly. “Use what you like. Dump the rest.”
He wished he hadn’t got that lacy lingerie. Gimme gimme gimme please.
Too late to take the stuff out of the bag now. He had to just shine it on.
“I’m diving now,” he said. “Going down. Talk to you later.”
He turned away so she wouldn’t see the flush that was burned into his face.
Chapter 16
Dani fled to the bathroom just in time.
Pull it together, LaSalle. After everything the guy had done for her, he didn’t need to see her fall to pieces. And just because he was being so sweet to her.
To her credit, she didn’t make a sound while coming apart. She sat on the edge of the tub and hid her face. Cried. A lot.
When the tears stopped flowing, she found herself staring down at the bags of clothing at her feet. Clothes. What a novel concept. She’d been in scanty house rags or borrowed mismatched scraps for this entire bloody nightmarish adventure. Ever since Naldo showed up at the back door. It was like a classic anxiety dream, never being able to get dressed. Always exposed, shivering, barefoot, vulnerable.
She blew her nose, dabbing at her face with tissue. The closed wound on her leg throbbed nastily. At least it wasn’t oozing. She and everyone else needed to keep their remaining blood inside their bodies for a while. Enough was enough.
In My Skin (The Obsidian Files Book 3) Page 16
