The Dark of Other Skies (The Others Book 2)

by V. E. Lemp

  She met his steady gaze with a smile that held all the love she’d ever felt for him, transmuted into something more than memory, more than desire.

  “And now”—Alex turned his gaze back to Vance—“I think you should take a seat. Because I’m going to walk out of this office and I’m going to leave this building.” His voice resonated throughout the room. “And I’m taking Karen and Ariel Tarrow with me.”

  Vance opened his mouth as if to protest, but no sound emerged. Fire flashed in his amber eyes before he turned and walked like an automaton to the chair behind his desk and sat down, placing his hands flat against the metal desktop.

  “You’ll be unable to call for assistance for some time, so I suggest you make yourself comfortable. Come, Karen and Ariel. We’re leaving now.”

  Karen shoved the door open. Ian Vance’s face contorted in helpless fury as he stared at her.

  Alex walked over to Karen. “Happy to see you both. I believe I’ve given Mark and the others sufficient time to enter the facility. If all goes well they’ll soon be available to assist in your escape.”

  “Good to know.” Karen rose up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you,” she whispered in his ear before lowering back down. She then turned to face Vance. “Oh, and by the way, Dr. Vance, unexciting as you may find me, I’m a person, not some prize for you to barter.”

  Alex took her by the hand. “Come along, no use wasting your breath on someone incapable of comprehending such an idea.” He grasped Ariel’s outstretched fingers with his other hand. “Goodbye, Ian,” Alex said, leading Karen and Ariel out of the room. “Hopefully we won’t meet again. I do thank you, though, for my most thorough education at the hands of the Oneiroi. It’s proven useful, on more than one occasion.” Alex kicked the door shut before they walked away.

  He led them down several corridors and past an open warehouse area filled with boxes, to a small storeroom. He motioned them inside and closed the door. “We need to wait here. Mark, Sam, and Myron will be looking for us. I told them to meet us close to this location.”

  “How did you know enough about this installation to do that?” Karen asked.

  “Alice has someone working here. Secretly, of course. Her contact also gave Mark directions on how to enter the building without being seen.” Alex glanced at his watch. “We have a few minutes before they reach us.”

  “Alex, thanks for your help.” Leaning against the metal wall, Ariel slid to the floor and hesitated a moment before continuing, “I knew there was something different about you, but I didn’t realize you could do that. What you did to Dr. Vance, I mean.”

  “I’ve had some special training over the years.” Alex placed a hand on Karen’s shoulder. “How are you holding up?”

  “I’m fine.” Karen shot a warning glance at Ariel.

  Alex surveyed her critically. “You’re very pale.” He looked at Ariel, who was staring at the floor. “Something I should know?”

  “No,” Karen said.

  Ariel picked at a loose thread on her jeans and refused to meet Alex’s eyes.

  He intently examined the girl for a minute, then sighed and glanced away. “So you’ve learned to shut me out.” He met Karen’s stubborn frown. “Both of you. Makes me wonder.” He turned his attention back to the young psychic. “I do need your help. Can you tell when your father is nearby?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Let me know when he and the others approach the door, would you?”

  “Because otherwise they won’t be able to come in?” Karen asked.

  Alex smiled at her. “That’s correct. Just like at the cabin.”

  “Vance had no idea, did he?” Karen frowned. “But now he does. You’ve blown your cover.”

  “Can’t think of a better reason to do so.” Alex kissed her temple. “I’d do whatever it takes to save you, you know that,” he whispered in her ear.

  Ariel leapt to her feet. “Dad’s in the corridor, with Mark and Mr. Lester.”

  Alex cautiously opened the door, revealing Mark and the others. Alex stepped aside, allowing Mark and Myron to enter. When Sam indicated his intent to stay in the hall, Alex nodded, leaving the door slightly ajar.

  Myron scooped up Ariel and hugged her tightly to his chest. Mark crossed to Karen, his gaze never leaving her face.

  “Hello, darling.” Karen threw her arms wide to allow Mark to walk straight into her arms. He took her in a tight embrace, before kissing her with a passion that left her breathless.

  “We should get out of here,” Alex said.

  Karen glanced at him over Mark’s shoulder and realized he’d turned his gaze aside.

  “I agree. Listen, Ariel”—Myron looked down at his daughter—“you and Karen go with Alex. The rest of us are hanging back to make sure no one follows.”

  “No,” Karen said. “I’m not leaving Mark.”

  “You are,” Mark said. “Alex can protect you, but he can’t be aware of everything at once.”

  “Yes. I can only control a certain number of variables at any one time.”

  “So he’s going to lead you out of here, and we”—Mark motioned toward Myron and Sam—“are going to make sure those variables are kept to a minimum.”

  It was then that Karen realized Mark and the other two men were carrying guns.

  She laid her hand on Mark’s arm. “I’m not leaving you in danger. Alex can get Ariel out. I’ll come with you. I don’t suppose you have another of those I could use?”

  Mark shook his head. “You don’t know how to fire a gun, and this certainly isn’t the time to learn. We aren’t debating this. You and Ariel are going with Alex, and that’s final.”

  She faced him, matching his implacable expression with her own stubborn gaze. “If you get killed I promise I’ll never forgive you.”

  “I’ll bear that in mind.” Mark leaned over to kiss her swiftly on the lips. “Now go.” He motioned for Alex to open the door. “Get them out of here. We’ll meet you at the designated location.”

  Alex nodded and held his hand out to Ariel, who took it with hesitation, looking back at her father.

  Myron gave her an encouraging smile. “See you soon, honey.”

  Karen stared at Alex’s other outstretched hand and shook her head. “I’ll walk behind you. Just in case. The main thing is to keep Ariel safe.”

  Alex met Karen’s gaze. “My plan is to keep both of you safe.” He guided Ariel into the corridor. “I hope you’ll comply with that,” he added under his breath, as she joined them in the hallway.

  Karen glanced back at Mark, who was heading in the opposite direction with the other men. “We’ll only be a few steps behind you,” Mark said. “Don’t worry.”

  “Sorry,” she said, fixing him with a look she hoped would convey all her love, “but I can’t promise that.”

  “Then promise me a kiss,” he said, as he moved off, “as soon as we meet again.” She caught his smile before he turned around.

  “That I can promise,” Karen replied, although she wasn’t sure Mark could hear her. She swallowed hard and followed Alex and Ariel down the corridor.

  They passed several empty rooms. Obviously Alice’s informant knew which corridors were not heavily guarded. Alex kept a tight hold on Ariel’s hand and pulled her along, forcing the girl to jog to keep up with his longer strides. Karen followed, falling behind. Alex glanced at her over his shoulder and jerked his head as if to urge her to walk faster.

  “Don’t make me stop to let you catch up,” she heard him say, and realized he hadn’t spoken. At least not aloud.

  She frowned. “Get out of my head, Alex,” she thought, and wondered if he could hear her.

  He shot her a sharp glance. “Pick up the pace and I will. I know what you’re up to.”

  “Out.” She sent the thought forward with as much force as she could muster.

  He shook his head and slowed his stride. “If you want Ariel to get to safety, do as I say.”

  “Damn it.”
Karen jogged to catch up with Alex and Ariel. “You shouldn’t use a young girl as a bargaining chip.”

  “I’ll do whatever I have to”—he spoke aloud now but kept his voice low—“to keep you both safe. I made a promise. Now hush, I think we’re moving into an area with patrols.”

  They’d reached a point where the narrow corridor opened onto a wider hallway. Alex leaned against the wall and glanced around the corner. “It looks clear,” he whispered, pulling Ariel closer to him. “Stay at my side, between me and the wall, as we move out. You too, Karen.”

  “So that you can do what? Throw your body over us in a shoot-out? I don’t think so. You keep your eye on Ariel and let me worry about myself.”

  He gave her a look that would have wilted anyone else. “Don’t argue with me. This is difficult enough as it is.”

  “So allow me to assist you,” Karen said. “I’m not helpless, you know.”

  Alex looked her up and down. “No wonder Mark’s turning grayer by the day. Very well, follow us then, and alert me if you notice any movement behind us.”

  They moved into the hallway. At the far end were what looked like exterior doors. Alex put his arm around Ariel and held her close to his side as they walked swiftly down the hall. When they reached the doors he exhaled and slowly pushed the bar that opened the doors outward. Karen saw a small paved area surrounded by the rise of a hill.

  “Come along,” Alex said.

  The sound of gunshots echoed behind them, causing Karen to spin around. She broke into a run, retracing their escape route.

  Alex shouted at her, at least in her mind, but Karen ignored his demands to return.

  “Get Ariel out. You must. You promised.” She forced the thought forward, hoping he would receive it. She knew in her heart he wouldn’t abandon Ariel to pursue her, no matter how much he might desire to do so.

  Following the sound of the gunshots, she rounded a corner and realized she was back in the open warehouse area. Directly in front of her, Mark, Myron, and Sam were sheltered behind a tall stack of boxes. Mark caught sight of her, and his expression shifted from determination to fear, then anger.

  “Get down!” He grabbed her by the arm and forced her to kneel on the floor behind the barricade. “What the hell are you doing here? I told you to leave.”

  “I heard shots,” she said as a three-man Exocorp security team dashed out from a dark area across the room and slid behind another set of boxes.

  “That’s why I wanted you out,” Mark said under his breath. He didn’t look at her. His focus was on the security detail.

  “Ariel?” Myron, confounding Karen’s expectations, was handling a gun with agility.

  “She’s safe,” Karen whispered. “She and Alex got out. At least, when I left them they were exiting the building.”

  “Which is where you should be,” Mark said through gritted teeth. He took aim and fired off a round of shots.

  A barrage of bullets flew back, some hitting the metal walls and ricocheting around the room. Karen put her hands over her ears as Sam lifted his gun and returned fire. There was a scream and the sound of something heavy hitting the floor. “One down,” Sam said.

  “We need to disable the other two,” Mark said, “before they call for reinforcements.”

  Sam nodded and slid to the floor to reload his gun. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  Mark gave him a rueful smile. “Well, you’re more likely to succeed than me. I’m not much for guns.”

  “Not bad for a desk man.” Sam reached out and pulled Karen closer to the floor. “No matter what happens, keep your head down.”

  She crept a few inches toward Mark as he took another shot. A yelp of pain erupted from across the room. Peering through a crack in the pile of boxes, she saw one of the guards hit the floor, holding his leg. Then a bullet whistled over her head, and she instinctively shrank back, almost bumping into Mark’s knee.

  “Careful, don’t throw me off balance.” Mark finally looked down at her. “You’ll have to wait for that kiss.”

  “That’s fine. I wouldn’t want to distract you right now.” Karen’s voice was shaking.

  A flicker of a smile crossed Mark’s face. “Be ready to run when we get that last man down.”

  The final Exocorp security guard stepped out from behind a column, and Myron stood for a second to take aim. Karen, crouched so low she could only see the floor, glanced to one side and noticed another pair of shoes rounding the corner. “Myron!” she shouted. “On your right!”

  Sam wheeled about and fired a round at the new attacker, knocking him backward, but not before another shot rang out. Karen looked up as Myron grabbed at his left side and slid to the floor. Mark swore and took aim at the guard across the room, dropping him to the ground.

  “Time to go.” Mark turned and noticed Myron slumped against the boxes.

  Karen scrambled to her knees and crawled over to him. He was clutching his chest, his fingers outlined in the blood spreading under his hand. Karen pried his fingers away from the wound and pressed her hands against his chest. “I don’t know if he can walk.”

  “We need to get him out of here,” Mark said. “Sam and I will carry him. Can you manage on your own?”

  “I’ll make it.” Karen kept her hands against the crimson liquid blossoming over Myron’s white shirt and rose without letting up pressure as Mark and Sam lifted Myron to his feet.

  “Let go.” Mark replaced her fingers with the palm of his free hand. “We’ll get him to safety, then deal with his injury. Now go. Run ahead and keep a lookout. If you see anything, yell and drop to the floor. Understand?”

  Karen nodded and ran down the corridor she’d traversed earlier. There was no one in sight, although at one point she noticed several uniformed figures in a side corridor. They stood completely still. Turning away from them, she saw a dark-haired man standing at the end of the hall, near the exit. Alice’s agent. He must have immobilized the guards in the other corridor. “Come on,” she called back to Mark and Sam, “I think we can make it.”

  As she approached the man, his odd, dark eyes locked on hers. “Your friend is seriously injured.”

  “Can you help?”

  “Only to get you out,” he said. “I cannot do anything else, I’m afraid.”

  Mark and Sam appeared, holding Myron under his arms, dragging his feet along the floor. The dark-haired man provided an additional set of hands as they moved past the doors and braced Myron against the outer wall of the building.

  “A hill?” Mark sighed. “Karen, move out first and find Alex. We may need his help.”

  Karen nodded and scrambled up the hill, pausing for a moment at the top to catch her breath.

  It didn’t take her long to locate Alex and Ariel standing some feet away, hidden by shrubbery. Karen motioned Alex to her. “Don’t bring Ariel.” Hopefully he could still pick up her thoughts.

  He said something to Ariel and then slowly made his way to Karen. “Problem?”

  She met his concerned gaze. “Myron’s hurt. Need another pair of hands to get him out of there.”

  “Go to Ariel.” He touched the back of her hand briefly as he passed her. “Glad you’re safe.”

  Karen moved quickly to Ariel’s side, blocking her view of the exit doors. She watched as Alex leaned over to help pull Myron up the hill.

  Ariel was frantic. “What’s going on?”

  Karen put her fingers to the girl’s lips. “We need to whisper. There could still be guards about.”

  “My dad...” Ariel tried to step around Karen, who grabbed the girl by the shoulders and held her in place. Of course Ariel would know something was wrong with her father. Even someone without her gifts might have sensed that.

  “It’s okay, we’ll get him to safety. He’s been hurt, but I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

  Ariel lifted her head. The expression in her wide gray eyes brought Karen to tears.

  “No, it’s bad. It’s very bad. Let me go. Let me go to him.”
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  She needed to be near him, Karen could understand that. Her love demanded it. Despite her desire to protect the girl, Karen couldn’t keep her from her father.

  With a sigh, Karen released Ariel, who ran to the spot where the men had placed Myron on the grass. Even from the shadows, Karen detected blood darkening the entire front of Myron’s shirt.

  Ariel dropped to her knees, weeping openly. Mark reached down and pulled the girl to her feet. She fought him, writhing against his grip, but he simply swung her up into his arms. “Enough,” he said in a tone of command. She instantly stopped struggling and turned her face into his shoulder. “No time for this. We need to get your father to a hospital as soon as possible. Alex, would you help Sam carry Myron to the van?”

  “Of course,” Alex said, joining Sam at Myron’s side. They lifted him and followed Mark and Ariel to a dark van parked behind a hedgerow. Karen trailed them and stood by the side door as the men carefully lowered Myron into the back of the van.

  Mark deposited Ariel in the back with Sam and Myron and walked around to stand in front of Karen. “I’m driving, and Sam will stay with Myron. Sam has some paramedic training, so I think that’s best.” His voice was very steady, but Karen detected stress in the deep lines bracketing his mouth. “You go with Alex. He should be able to get you home safely.”

  Karen laid her hand against his chest. “Be careful, my dear, we may still be followed.” When she pulled her hand away, a bloody handprint was imprinted on his shirt.

  “I know. Tell Alex to be on alert, would you?”

  “I will,” she replied. “Do you think Myron will live …?”

  Mark shook his head. “No thinking now. Just doing what we must. Get home and rest. You need to take care of yourself. This ordeal can’t have done you any good.” He kissed her swiftly but firmly on the lips. “See you soon, sweetheart.” He turned and strode around to the driver’s side of the van.

  Karen backed away as the van rocketed off down a narrow service road.