by Eliza Gayle
She did breathe. Short shallow breaths. She would be of no use if she couldn’t keep her wits about her. Escape had to be the top priority.
“Jessie, look at me.”
She tilted her head to meet his cool, cobalt blue gaze with fire burning deep inside. If she didn’t watch herself she could get lost in those sexy eyes of his, and that would be a very bad thing.
“There is an infrared laser grid up ahead, lying between us and the exit out of here. We can use some magick to disable parts of it, but if we take down the whole thing everyone will know we’re here and will be waiting outside for us. So it’s this or the front door. Your choice, darlin’.”
“I’ll take door number one.” She smirked as she turned back toward the corridor and headed in the direction they’d been traveling.
“Oh uh—”
She turned the corner and ground to a halt. There on the dirty floor, with his hands bound and mouth taped up, laid her guard. The same guard who’d treated her like shit for weeks. She bent down slowly so that her mouth was not far from his ear when she whispered. “You should be afraid. Very afraid.”
“I was about to warn you that this ass was lying here, but it looks like you’re doing just fine without it. I know what you’re thinking and I don’t disagree. Revenge is sweet, but come on, Jess we definitely don’t have time for this.” He grabbed her gently by the shoulder and lifted her up and propelled her forward. “We don’t have time to play with him right now, no matter how much he might deserve it. Besides, I have a feeling he is going to get what is coming to him a lot sooner than he thinks.”
Before Noah, could drag her away, Jessie whipped out of his grasp with strength fueled by pure adrenalin and rage. She clenched her fist and struck, landing a right hook to her guard’s jaw. With a superior smile, she watched him slump against the wall.
“Nice shot. Now let’s go before someone finds us.” She gave one last hard behind her as Noah picked her up and pushed her back on her way. If only she still had her power. That ass deserved more than a sore jaw. She wanted him to regret ever touching her. Nausea roiled through her as the memories of torture and pain reared to the surface. Dizziness threatened her as she stumbled a few steps.
“God, Jessie, you’re never going to make it like this.”
She ground her teeth together as she wrenched her arm away from his hold. “I will make it. Don’t worry about me. Just get us where we need to be.” She didn’t want to admit to her flagging energy.
“Fine. Keep going about fifty meters ahead and you’ll see what we need to do.”
She trudged on, one heavy step after another until the pain squeezing her chest began to ease, and traveling through the tunnel became bearable. The corridor widened and Jessie stepped into a large open room. For the most part the room was pretty dark, but sure enough, there in front of her on the other side of the room stood a door she presumed would take her out of this wretched place. Now all she had to do was traverse her way through the myriad of red laser beams that criss-crossed each other to reach out and touch nearly every available surface.
“It’s not going to be as bad as it looks.”
Noah had stopped just behind her. Even though he wasn’t quite against her, she felt the heat radiating off of him as he stood scant inches from her back. His breath tickled her neck as it slid through her hair. She fought the urge to squirm or, even worse, the need to lean back into him, taking refuge and strength from the one man she knew she couldn’t have. In that quiet moment when she should have been coming up with a plan of escape, she couldn’t think of anything except Noah’s large, strong hands roaming her bare, heated flesh. The man knew his way around a woman’s body, that was for sure.
Her erratic heartbeat thundered in her ears, as warmth coiled in her belly. All the ground she thought she’d gained from their many months apart slipped from her grasp as her entire body ached for his touch.
“In about fifteen seconds we should be able to go for it. I can already feel Denn’s power in the room.”
She marveled at his connection with his twin. At first she had thought they could communicate telepathically, but it had turned out to be just a really strong connection between their magick. They could call out to each other, feel the other’s strong emotions at times, and lend each other their magick when necessary. The connection was truly amazing.
She forced her mind back to the present. She didn’t belong in the past and Noah didn’t belong in her future. The sooner they got out of here the sooner they could get away from each other.
She watched the lasers blink a few times, and then weaken before finally about half of them went out. It left them a difficult but much more manageable path to the door.
“You sure about this?”
She nodded her head. What choice did she have?
“Jessie, if you touch even one of those beams with a piece of hair, the alarm will go off and we’ll be done. I want you to take your time, just keep in mind that they could discover you missing soon.”
She took a deep, steadying breath before letting it out on a quiet exhale. “I know. Let’s go, today is my last day here either way I go. I’d rather die trying.”
He grabbed her hand and squeezed. “You aren’t dying on my watch.”
His confidence made her want to laugh or cry, she was never sure with him. He never could accept any situation would be impossible, no matter what it was. If he knew the truth, would he finally falter? Accept that some things could not be overcome?
She traveled over the first couple of beams before banishing Noah from her thoughts to concentrate on her task. Getting killed because she couldn’t stop thinking about a man like him would really piss her off.
Sweat broke out on her brow as she watched each beam get closer to her body as she passed. Over, under, and around she went, through streak after streak of red light. She dared a glance at Noah and saw one of his beams move. “Noah!” she shouted.
He froze and she watched the area for any other movement. “I saw your beam move.”
“Are you sure?”
She didn’t even dignify that question with an answer only a smirk.
“Then run.” He took off himself, cutting a path through the beams as though no longer concerned about the alarms.
Running behind him, she heard as well as sensed the energy crackling in the room. Pressure in the air built, depriving them of the fresh oxygen they needed. She held her breath and watched him fling a burst of flaming power at the door, breaking it open wide.
Drawing on a reserve of power she didn’t know she had left, she pumped her legs harder, jumping through the flaming doorway right behind him. She was prepared to drop and roll but found it unnecessary as she had escaped the flames untouched.
The dark of night enfolded her quickly as she stumbled, unable to see, to her hands and knees onto the wet grass. Her eyes were still dilated from the bright energy flash and would likely take her a few minutes more to adjust before she could continue on.
“Grab my hand, Jessie.”
Noah’s voice was right in front of her and she couldn’t see a thing.
“Now, Jessie. You have to trust me.”
She blindly reached toward his voice, seeking his hand. When their fingers grazed, Noah roughly grabbed and pulled her toward him.
A strange popping noise sounded behind them as he clung to her and moved quickly over the uneven terrain.
“Stop!”
Someone yelled, but Noah didn’t even break stride. Her eyes adjusted in the dark as things went from blurry shapes to sharper, more normal vision where she could at least see where they were going. She surveyed the area, taking in the fact that they were totally in the open, no cover at all. When a small spray of rocks and grit flew up into their faces, she realized the popping noises she heard were gunshots. Shit. The bastards were hoping to pick them off with no dirty work.
Up ahead was a dense grove of trees. If they could make the last twenty yards without getting
shot, then they could disappear. More commotion and angry voices called out for them. If they didn’t make it now, they never would. Jessie’s racing heart roared in her ears, and her blood pumped adrenalin through her body. Time seemed to stand still as they raced towards the treeline, the cover they needed to get away.
Electricity buzzed around Noah as they moved. She could feel him open himself to his power and without her own—it spilled over to her, suffusing her with added strength. She absorbed it like a sponge, craving even more. Her stomach tingled and her breasts tightened with the dangerous sensation of his darker magick. Oh yeah, this is what her body had called out for all these many months since she’d left him. It was dark and delicious and oh so addictive.
More…More…her mind whispered.
Despite the danger they ran from, her mind swirled with thoughts of hard driving sex and something even darker…pain. Her senses sharpened around her. Her mind filtered out the voices and noises behind them and instead focused on the breath sawing in and out of Noah’s lungs, the energy buzzing through his blood.
Something deep inside her stirred once again, a longing she thought she’d gotten past. Seeing Noah—feeling his magick—brought it all back. Power or no power, her beast still wanted him, now more than ever. Her stomach clenched with need for him, and the fear coursing through her only fanned the flames.
With a quick burst and thrust of his right hand behind her, Noah unleashed his heat, engulfing some of the pursuers in a burst of flames. Screams tore through the night and the urge to turn and look filled her.
“Don’t.”
Noah’s one-word demand halted her distractions, reminding her just how in control he was of himself and every situation. Not to mention they couldn’t spare a second if they wanted freedom. Trees swallowed them as they ran into the dark thicket surrounding the estate, their feet pounding against the uneven terrain. He squeezed her hand and pulled her to the right, indicating she should follow him. Jessie complied, her lungs nearly bursting from the effort to keep up with him.
Minutes later, the ground became spongy and wet. A few steps more and her shoes were sinking into mud. They were headed to the swamp.
“Noah, where are we going? I don’t think anyone is chasing us anymore.”
“They’re following us, all right. At the very least, magickally. I can feel Scott’s power touching both of us.”
She cursed under her breath. Of all the times she could really use her power, this would be it. Instead Reverend Scott was using her own stolen magick against them, making it all the more difficult for them to escape.
The deeper into the bayou they moved, the deeper the water became until it was up to her knees. She was forced to move slowly and methodically, trying to avoid the pitfalls of the area that could hurt her. She shuddered to think of what wildlife they might encounter.
She stumbled when Noah stopped unexpectedly, and was headed for the water face first when a large, strong hand shot out to catch her.
“Let’s save the swimming for the pool, okay, babe?”
She turned her head to give him an idea of what she thought about his sarcasm and looked into the depths of his dark blue, snappy eyes and the wry grin on his face. Her heart stuttered and her stomach flipped. She let the words she’d been about to slap him with die on her lips. Instead she smiled back at him and let him pull her upright again.
“Thanks.” Her voice was barely a whisper.
Steady on her feet again, she finally noticed the boat sitting on the water twenty feet in front of them. The small, dark green boat looked big enough to hold two people—just the right size for not only maneuvering around some of the tight spaces in the swamp—and also easy to hide if they had to.
“Get in the front.” Jessie rushed into the boat while Noah hurriedly untied the rope from the tree before jumping in behind her. A flick of the switch on the small motor hanging on the back, and it hummed to life. If anyone was close by they would definitely hear, but they’d lost contact with their pursuers at the edge of the swamp, so it likely wouldn’t matter. She hoped. At this point she could use some luck on her side.
“How are we going to keep them from just following the magick?” She was worried they wouldn’t get far.
“Well, Denn is working on something, but for now it’s up to us to stay one step ahead of those bastards back there.”
Jessie struggled with the emotions that his voice at her back called up. She needed to get away from him and fast, before she did something they’d both regret. Apparently even a few weeks in a fucking dungeon didn’t put a damper on her libido when it came to one Noah Scott. Unfortunately, she suspected now more than ever if he found out what she was, things would go bad—very bad.
“How far are we from the city proper? I have a suggestion.”
“Probably about six or seven miles, cherie. Without any further trouble it shouldn’t take us long to get to where I have a vehicle stashed up river.” His easy slip into a local accent did funny things to her insides.
“There is a place down off Charles Street that could easily confuse anyone looking for magick. Some of the Voodoo shops down there that cater to the locals have such a strong resonance of dark magick anytime of the day or night, we should be safe there, at least temporarily,” she spoke eagerly.
“Do I even want to know how you know that?”
“Probably not.”
She felt the heat of his eyes boring into the back of her head. He might let her explanation go for now, but he was a hunter through and through. He would eventually circle around back to it.
Chapter Two
A couple hours later, Noah’s black SUV stopped in front of one of the seedier no-tell motels on Charles Street. She surveyed the area for any sign of trouble and found only a few streetwalkers roaming the area looking for johns.
“Wait here.”
“But—” she started to protest.
“No. I want no potential witnesses seeing any sign of you around here. Voodoo whispers in the night, giving away your secrets when you least expect it. So, you will stay right there and wait for me to return.”
She sighed, realizing he was right. She had no protection against that kind of thing, and if Scott was still using her power he would have a definite edge over them. A fact she’d have to share with him sooner or later.
“Don’t worry, Jessie. I won’t be gone more than a few minutes and we won’t be staying here long. I need a little time to make a few arrangements and you look like you need the rest. What did he do to you anyways?”
“Just go do what you have to do, Noah, we can talk about me later.” She relaxed into the comfortable leather seat, letting her head fall back against the headrest. He was right, she needed to rest, recharge. Come up with a new plan. Seems like a new theme for me, she thought. Rest and plan. Rest and plan. Problem was, she hadn’t come up with any good plans in a long while.
* * *
Goddess, he hated seeing her like this. His every instinct to protect and shelter her had kicked into high gear, and it was pissing him off. He shouldn’t care. The woman had left him without a backwards glance eight months ago, turning her back on his loyalty and love. If he was smart he’d walk away now before things got worse between them. A heavy sigh rolled through his shoulders. He couldn’t do that, either. He had made a promise to his brother and hers that he would see her safely back to them, and he never upped and quit on a commitment like that. Never.
Shaking off his thoughts, he surveyed the lobby area before throwing open the door. The clerk at the desk jumped at the sight of him. Noah gave himself a cursory glance in the reflection of the window glass and laughed. Black T-shirt, black cargo pants, and black boots all caked with mud and smelling like swamp. Well, the night man was just going to have to get over it. He and Jessie needed a quick temporary place to hide, and this was as good a place as any.
“I need a room for tonight.”
“That will be—uhh—I will need state ID and a credit c
ard.”
“Noah pulled out a fat wad of cash from his pocket and laid it on the counter. About one hundred more than the usual fee he would guess. “Will this do?”
The clerk hesitated for a second. His tongue darted around his lips and he gave Noah another quick glance. “Sure thing, but I don’t want no trouble here.”
“No trouble, just some rest and a shower. Can this place handle that?”
“Sure can.” He handed a key over the counter. “Room 204, round back, second floor and two doors down from the stairs.”
“Thanks.” Noah palmed the key and headed back out the door. His hands paused on the handle and he turned back to the clerk once again. “Any place around here open this time of night to buy some clothes?”
“No, not around here. This neighborhood scares most folks at night.”
Noah chuckled. “I’ll bet it does. I guess you don’t get too many Wal-Mart shoppers coming through here.” He stuck his hand in one of the cargo pockets at the side of his legs and the clerk went positively white with fear. When he pulled out another stack of money the frail man relaxed and perked up once again. “You know anyone who would be willing to deliver something.”
The clerk didn’t even hesitate. “Sure do. What is it you want?”
Noah strode back over to the desk and scratched out a short list on the notepad on the counter. Without another word he handed it and the stack of money over and headed outside. He would bet the man was on the phone to his wife or girlfriend or whatever before he’d even gotten out of sight. Some people were just too easy.
When he slid back into the car the first thing he noticed was that Jessie—or Jessica, as he’d known her—was fast asleep. The next thing he noticed was a bandage peeking out from her t-shirt sleeve, and it was turning red.
He pulled his vehicle around the back and surveyed the area before opening her door. He grabbed the small first aid kit from his glove compartment and shoved it in a pocket. Being careful not to jostle her too much, he slipped his hands underneath her and lifted her gently from the seat. Dear Goddess, she was light, a lot lighter than before. White-hot rage bubbled up inside him as he once again wondered what the hell his Uncle Scott had been up to. He had a feeling when he found out, he would be hunting again. Family or not, if he hurt Jessie he would have to die.
