by JL Terra
“We’re going to get struck by lightning if we stay here.”
Amelia crouched between two trees like Bryn hadn’t said anything.
The earth rumbled in tandem with the sky. Another spark of lightning flashed. The clouds lit up, a backdrop for the show. Rain pelted down even harder. Bryn shivered beside a woman who was turning out to be a whole lot stronger than her. And why wouldn’t she be? Fear came when the mind overwhelmed the senses. When reality was extinguished in the face of what could be.
Rain.
Thunder.
Lightning.
Wind.
That was all. Nothing to be scared of.
Bryn shut her eyes. “What do we do?”
Chapter 7
Amelia tugged on her hand. Bryn had no choice but to run or fall down on her face. The thought of Amelia leaving her alone in the woods made her grip the hand in hers and force her legs to move. One step at a time. Breathe. Run.
“This way.” Amelia darted left, and they climbed a hill.
The sensation of being chased crawled like fingers up the back of her neck. Her entire body jerked. A shiver wracked her and a moan escaped her throat.
Torrents of rain fell from the sky. Trees bent almost double against the onslaught of wind. Bryn could barely see three feet in front of her, but apparently Amelia knew exactly where they were headed.
It felt like half an hour but was probably only minutes before they darted into some kind of tunnel. A cave in the mountain. Amelia slowed. “Come on. It’s safe in here.”
Bryn had to force her body out of flight mode. She stopped and hung her head, sucking in breaths.
Movement by the entrance drew her attention. Lightning flashed.
“Whoa.” She took a step back before she even registered the two wolves. Slender, gray bodies shifted as they stalked into the cave. “Get back, Amelia.”
“It’s—”
“Back.” She said it as much to the wolves as to Amelia.
“Bryn.”
She took a step back. Amelia touched her elbow, then moved around her. Bryn tried to grasp her, but Amelia waved her off. “It’s okay.”
“What…” How could this be okay? There were wolves in the cave with them. This should have been a safe place to hide.
She peered around Amelia. The wolves had stopped. Amelia held out her hand, and one stepped forward. It licked the skin on the inside of her wrist.
What…
The wolf that had hung back whined.
The one with Amelia shifted to look back. Ears pricked. Its nose twitched as it scented the air.
“What is it?” Amelia’s question was soft.
Rain continued to pound outside. The night sky was dark, obscuring the scene. Lightning flashed again.
A dark figure stood at the entrance.
Bryn squealed and stepped back. He’s here.
The wolves turned as one to face off with the figure in the entrance.
Amelia said, “They’re protecting me.”
“They’re wolves.”
The two animals growled and took a step, closing in. They stood sentry just in front of Amelia. Yes, protecting her. Bryn stood by her side. Ice ran through her veins, not just from the cold and the fact she’d been drenched by rain.
Lightning flashed, illuminating that figure in the doorway.
Amelia stiffened. “Who’s there?”
She took half a step forward. Bryn grabbed her arm. “Don’t.” The last thing she wanted was for the young woman to be drawn into her nightmare.
The wolves growled.
Amelia said, “Who is that?”
The figure didn’t move. The only sounds were the rain and the animals. Bryn yelled, “Go away!”
Lightning flashed. The figure didn’t move.
“Go. Away.” He couldn’t be here. She didn’t…
Her thoughts stuttered.
Come to me, Bryn.
Her whole body shuddered at the memory of his voice in her mind.
She gripped the hair behind her ears, elbows up in defense. Amelia touched her shoulder. “Bryn.”
She shook her head. Not again. “No.”
You are the key to the end of everything.
The missing piece.
Chapter 8
Daire pulled the car off the highway and headed into town. Paradise Valley was a bustle of people and vehicles. Power lines were down. Damage to the cell tower made cell signal spotty at best. Most of the town had no electricity. Trees had fallen over. One huge old oak now lay in the middle of a decimated house.
He slowed the car to a crawl and wove his way through the center of town. The bed and breakfast was on the far side, to the north. He’d chosen that edge of the mountain because it was shielded from the majority of weather moving in from the coast. Of course, that also meant it was exposed to every element that swept through the valley.
Had Amelia managed to remain unscathed from last night’s storm? He’d taught her to be resourceful. The dojo in the basement had an adjacent storeroom that doubled as a panic room. Or a storm shelter. Even if there was damage, it shouldn’t be physical. Just structural. But the storm wasn’t what worried him.
He is alive.
Maybe. He couldn’t be sure.
Daire checked his cell phone. A weak signal. Probably there was also an overwhelming influx of calls right now. People trying to contact loved ones were jamming up the airwaves with too much traffic. Still, he had nothing.
He dug the satellite phone out of his duffel with his free hand and paused at a stop sign to call Remy.
When she answered, he said, “Anything?”
She was the only person he worked with, apart from Ben, who knew he had a niece. He’d only read Remy in on the situation so she could keep tabs on Amelia when he was tied up on missions. It’d come in handy. Plus, she didn’t ask too many questions about the fact that every time they had more than two days off, he wanted a roundtrip flight to the same place. Just via a different city each time.
Remy said, “By which you mean have I successfully hacked into NORAD’s satellite system and accessed images of the area? In which case, the answer is a resounding no.”
Daire was having a day of long shots. One that had started with Penelope Silver’s death, and more questions than he needed right now. Was it going to end even worse? He hit the gas, worry for Amelia rolling through him. He hoped it didn’t end with more death. Life was far too full of that as it was.
“However…”
“Yes?” A spark of hope lit in him.
“I found YouTube footage from a drone that I think flew over the area close to where the house is.”
“And?”
“You only see a corner of the house in the video, but it’s intact. Not sure about the rest of the place. There was a tree laid down in the yard.” She paused. “I’d send it to you, but you wouldn’t get it until you have signal anyway.”
“Okay, thanks.” He knew she got frustrated when she didn’t find much. “I really appreciate you checking. How’s Mei doing?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I’m scared to call and ask.”
Daire chuckled. “I know what you mean.”
“I sent her a text. But I know she got where she was going because I hacked the airport security cameras. She looked okay. I’ll let you know when I hear from her.”
“Thanks, Remy.”
“No problem. Gotta go.”
Daire hung up. There was possible damage at the house. He’d known it was likely, but now he knew for sure. If New York really had been a distraction to keep him away from Amelia, what was his enemy’s endgame? Daire wasn’t sure he even wanted to think through the possibilities. None of them were pleasant.
Was it even possible that he could be alive? Or somehow able to orchestrate events from wherever his spirit lived?
“What’s going on?” He asked the question of the quiet car.
If his enemy was somehow alive, then it wasn’t like he could hear it anyway. T
hat wasn’t the point. Some things just needed to be said out loud. Words had weight, far more than mere intentions. Like his intention to protect Amelia. He’d worked hard to make sure she could care for herself. But in the end, it might not make the difference.
If he really had come, there wasn’t much Daire could do to stop him.
Killing him hadn’t worked.
Daire gritted his teeth and turned onto the lane that wound up to the bed and breakfast. He’d been hesitant at first about her opening up her personal life to complete strangers. All kinds of crazy people could book rooms here. Not to mention the usual customer dissatisfaction when people didn’t read the terms and conditions and thought laundry service was included, instead of a nominal additional fee. Amelia was determined to make it work, though. She’d done a good job keeping it low key—with a little help from Remy.
Daire pulled through the gate and tapped the brake pedal. His eyes widened.
The front door was off its hinges and lay haphazardly in the doorway. Two windows had been smashed. Debris covered the yard and porch. The tree Remy had probably seen in the video was overturned on the front lawn, the trunk broken off. The end a mass of splinters.
He parked, used the side door, and found much the same scene inside. Things had blown about. Curtains hung at odd angles, the rail pulled out of the wall. Dishtowels on the living room floor. Napkins all over the place. Mail. Papers. Water pooled in spots on the hardwood floor. Even the hallway runner squelched under his boots.
“Crazy, isn’t it?”
Daire spun. His fingers flexed at his sides in the second between realizing there was another person in the room and examining the young man. A year or two older than Amelia, maybe. His jeans and T-shirt were uncreased, and his hair appeared to have been styled with gel. Maybe mousse.
Not a guy who’d spent the morning helping people in town repair damage to their homes and livelihoods. Not with those shoes.
“Who are you?”
The young man’s eyebrows lifted. “I was going to ask the same about you. A guest here?”
Daire shook his head. “You?”
“Amelia is a friend of mine.”
Daire figured that meant the young man wanted it to be more, but Amelia had been putting him off. Maybe.
Good for her. Not that anyone in the world would’ve made the cut. Or been able to handle what she brought to the relationship. He didn’t even know if it was possible for her to have healthy attachments after what she’d gone through as a child. Still, it didn’t mean Amelia needed to settle for some prissy guy who lived in a mountain town wishing it was the big city. Now there was a can of worms Daire didn’t want to get a look inside.
He’d warned her about boyfriends. Did she listen? Of course not.
“What’s your name?” Daire tried not to sound like he’d rather be anywhere else in the world.
“Is that more important than where Amelia is?”
“You’re worried about her?” Not something he had time to deal with. It could just be friendly concern, or it could be the one thing he’d been worried about since Amelia came under his care.
Right now Daire needed to go downstairs and look for her. The idea she wasn’t here—that she was who-knew-where instead—wasn’t something he was willing to comprehend at this point. Moving—looking—would focus his thoughts.
“Aren’t you worried?” The young man’s brow furrowed.
“She knows how to take care of herself.” He moved to the basement stairs and trotted down. The dojo was a mess.
And the door to the storage room was open.
“You thought she was down here?” The young man looked around, apparently not thinking much of Daire’s idea. “I’ve searched this whole place and haven’t found any sign of her. She must’ve taken off when the storm started. Maybe she headed into town.”
“Is her car still here?”
The young man was quiet for a second. “She could’ve walked.”
Daire gave him a look that probably matched the one he’d been given just a minute before. “Yeah, maybe.” It was as much consent as he was prepared to give. But in what reality did that make any sense? Why go outside when there was a storm raging? Amelia knew what could happen in situations like that.
He moved past the guy and went back upstairs to where Amelia’s computer was. He booted it up and checked to see if she had any guests last night. One woman, Bryn Calamari.
Daire had used fake names enough times to guess a Norse first name coupled with seafood was likely not real. It almost made him chuckle thinking about it…and now he was hungry.
So where had Amelia and this Bryn person gone? And how long ago had they left? He checked all the rooms, even though the “friend” said he’d done the same thing. Daire pretty much ignored the guy’s presence as he searched through the house. Then outside, in the garage. No one was here. Just the debris from the storm, and a weird feeling in the air that had begun to permeate his skin.
Daire rolled his shoulders. He tried to shrug off the sensation as he made his way back inside. He refused to let his mind go to the worst-case scenario. That wasn’t what Amelia needed right now.
He walked to the back door and stared out at the trees and the mountains that backdropped them. If she’d been forced from the house for some reason, Amelia would’ve headed for the cave. Had she taken this Bryn person there?
“Where else can we look for her?”
Daire turned to the young man. “Don’t feel like you have to stick around. I’ll find Amelia. And I’m sure she’ll call you to let you know she’s all right once I do.”
The young man’s expression gave nothing away, but he took a step forward. Shoulders square. Daire had seen the signs of someone preparing to go to battle a million times.
“So you’ll be the one to ‘rescue’ her. Like some kind of hero sugar daddy?”
Daire said nothing. This kid needed to back off, or things were going to go badly for him. And not just because Daire was annoyed.
The younger man puffed out his chest. “I’m going to find her.”
“Any idea where to look?” Like that wasn’t the question the young man had just asked him. Daire needed to know the extent of his involvement in Amelia’s life.
“I was going to wait for the cell tower to come back up and then find the GPS on her phone.”
Daire pointed at the dining table. “That phone?”
The one she’d left here and not taken with her when she’d presumably fled the house.
Or been forced from it.
But what could have happened that was sufficient enough to warrant that? Amelia and a guest of hers had left on foot. There was a mess in the house. Possibly the sign of a struggle. No blood that he could see. It didn’t seem like either of them had been injured.
“Maybe you should tell me your name.”
The young man sighed. “Roy Halson. You?”
“Nice to meet you.” Daire strode through the house. He pulled his phone out and texted Remy to get him everything she could on Roy Halson. He also sent her the picture he’d managed to take of the younger man without him noticing.
Footsteps followed him down the hall. “Hey, man. If you’re looking for her, then I’m coming with you.”
“I don’t require your assistance.”
“O-kay, but you could use it. Right?”
Wrong. Daire stepped off the porch and turned back. “I’ll be faster alone. But thanks.”
“I’m coming.”
“No offense.” Even though he really didn’t care if Roy got offended. “But, no. You aren’t.” Pushing wasn’t going to endear the kid to himself, or make Daire change his mind. Like he needed the help of this child?
“What is your problem? I want to find Amelia, just like you.”
“And the time I waste standing here talking with you means I’m delayed in doing just that.” He started to walk away.
The kid grabbed a handful of the leather jacket on Daire’s right
arm. First mistake. Daire fisted his left hand and swung around. He planted his knuckles in the guy’s sternum.
Roy doubled over and coughed.
Daire strode toward the trees in the direction of the caves. The rustling behind him didn’t bode well. He flicked a glance over his shoulder in time to see Roy run toward him. Daire kicked back with his right leg and caught him in the same spot.
More coughing.
He kept walking.
Roy cried out in frustration. The sound moved again toward Daire. He turned to meet the next attack and tripped the young man with a swipe of his leg, then elbowed him between the shoulder blades.
The kid sprawled on the ground. “You can’t have her!”
Daire had been afraid this would happen. You could protect them with everything you had and all the resources available, but not from everything and everyone in the world.
“She’s mine!”
“No,” Daire said with a sad shake of his head. “She isn’t.”
Amelia wasn’t Daire’s either, not really. Though he’d claimed her. Watched over her. Protected her from the world, and the world from her. Or so he’d thought. Honor had carved this role for him and he’d done what he could. Maybe it hadn’t been enough.
Roy yelled again. He clambered to his feet and pulled a knife from his pocket. Flipped out the blade.
“Watch it, boy.” Daire didn’t like where this was going at all. He didn’t need the added complication of having to take care of Roy Halson. It was only going to burn time that might mean the difference between finding Amelia and her guest. Or being too late. “Put that down before you hurt yourself.”
Teeth flashed in his mouth. Roy lunged forward.
Daire swiped the knife aside and punched. Roy’s arm swung in an arc, an undisciplined attempt to slice at his shoulder. Daire sidestepped and kicked out his leg, then grabbed Roy’s wrist and twisted his arm behind his back. Squeezed the wrist. He pulled the hand up, far enough it popped.
Roy cried out. His fingers flexed and the knife fell to the ground. “I’m going to find her, not you! She’s mine!”
Daire saw no point in arguing with this obsession. It had clouded the man’s judgment—if he’d even had any in the first place. Even that was debatable. He had no idea what Roy’s intentions had been when he’d first met Amelia. They could’ve been honorable. Or not. Did it matter either way? It wasn’t her fault what had happened. She hadn’t asked for any of this.
