The Bodyguard

by Adair, Cherry; Showalter, Gena; O'Clare, Lorie

  “Get us out of here,” he told Rowan when the agent claimed the wheel, “and let Bill clean up the rest of the mess.”

  The Tahoe shot forward, tires squealing.

  “And to hell with waiting,” Sean added. He glared out the window. “The abduction happens now. When she wakes up, I want to be with her.” Earning her trust and keeping her safe from attacks like this.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Present day

  Warm—but hardly safe—in a sedan Sean had stolen in front of a grocery store after ditching the one he’d “found” in the forest, Gabby clutched her arms around her middle and peered into the night. Where they were headed she didn’t know. She didn’t recognize the expanse of fenced pine or the tar-topped roads.

  She had willingly stuck with him up to this point, numb from everything that had happened. Being kidnapped, watching a man die, hearing Sean’s confession: I’m the one who abducted you. Now, her adrenaline was crashing, her mind was clearing, and a sense of dread was settling in the pit of her stomach.

  “Explain what you meant back there when you said you were the one who abducted me,” she demanded, finally facing him. “Why would you abduct yourself, too?”

  His profile was carved from steel, his neck rigid, his jaw clenched, his lips pulled down. “I’ll tell you only if you promise to remain calm.”

  “I’m not promising you a damn thing.” Not until she had answers. And even then, that didn’t guarantee she’d keep her promise.

  “Then I’m not telling you a damn thing.”

  She gnashed her teeth together.

  “You may not know this, but fear is detrimental to your health. More so than with normal people.”

  Normal people, he’d said, which meant he knew she wasn’t normal. He also knew about her headaches, then. If she allowed herself to wallow in fear, or any negative emotion really, she would develop a migraine. And only when she calmed herself down did that migraine go away.

  Thankfully, she hadn’t reached that point. Yet.

  “I’m getting more scared by the minute, so you had better tell me what the hell is going on. How do you know about me?”

  There was only a moment of silence before he said, “I work for an agency called Rose Briar, and if you dare try to open that door and fling yourself out, I will follow you and you won’t like what happens when I find you.”

  Didn’t take long to read between the lines. “You’re government,” she gasped out, paling. She’d lusted after the man, for God’s sake, and he’d been out for blood.

  “No. We aren’t officially with the government. We’re . . . independent, though national security is the reason we were formed.”

  “Unofficial.” A very dangerous word. “You think that makes you better? Well, news flash. It doesn’t. It makes you worse. ‘Unofficial’ means there’s no red tape to get in your way. You have no rules, no regulations. And you and I both know there’s no such thing as independent. Someone on the inside has to have their fingers in your pie.”

  He flicked her a dark glance. “We do government work when asked, yes, getting into places their people can’t, getting information, apprehending terrorists, but our duties do not include experimenting on people with unusual abilities. And you and I both know that’s what you’re thinking. We actually protect people from that.”

  Please. She liked to think she was too smart to believe him. At least today. No use arguing about it, though. There were other things to discuss. “What do you want with me, Sean? If that’s your real name.”

  “It is.” A sigh pushed from him, seeming to drain his tension. “Look, when you were a little girl, your parents died in the car accident and you went to live with your aunt and uncle. Six months later, you bolted.”

  Tiny ice crystals formed in her bloodstream, cutting at her veins. “Yes. So?”

  “So you were living on the streets.”

  “Again, yes.” She heard the unspoken question in his voice. What had happened at her aunt and uncle’s house to make the hunger and unmerciful elements of the streets easier to bear?

  “Tell me,” he beseeched. “The truth, please.”

  After everything he’d done, he expected her cooperation? “Why should I?”

  “Because I just got you out of that house. Without getting shot.”

  “Yeah, well, I could have done it on my own.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Because you’re bored, then.” He reached out and placed his hand over hers, his skin as warm and callused as she remembered. “Please, Gabby.”

  Maybe she still wasn’t thinking straight. Or maybe the tenderness in his voice mixed with the gentleness of his touch was too much to resist. Either way, the story spilled from her before she could stop it, the details of her terrible past dragged out of the shadows and into the light.

  “They couldn’t have children. They were so happy to have me, made me feel so welcome. But every day he seemed to watch me more. Then, when it was just the two of us, he started touching me. Innocent touches at first, as if he was trying to console me.”

  Sean’s hands tightened on the wheel, his knuckles bleaching white. “Shit. I hate him already.”

  Sean’s anger on her behalf spurred her on. “I told my aunt he was creeping me out, and she told me I just misunderstood his intentions. She also told me to watch my mouth, that accusations like that ruined people’s lives. She loved me, I knew that, so I believed her and felt guilty for almost getting my uncle in trouble for something he hadn’t really done. After that, he was distant with me and I felt even worse about it. About how wrong I’d been. Then, I came home from school one day and he was the only one home. He’d been drinking. He barged into my room and told me I owed him. That he was the reason I had a place to stay, food, and clothes, and how could I have almost destroyed his life like that? He unfastened his pants, told me to get on my knees and kiss him all better and that he’d kill me if I told anyone.”

  “What happened?” Sean croaked out.

  She shrugged. She’d expected this unveiling to hurt. Strangely, it didn’t. The memory was distant now, like watching an old movie unfold. “I got on my knees and bit him until I tasted blood. He had to backhand me to dislodge my teeth. While he was stuffing himself back into his pants, I bolted, as you said. Only had the clothes on my back, but I didn’t care.”

  “If he’s still alive, he’ll be in custody by morning.”

  Sweetest. Words. Ever. “I meant to go back, to tell the police what had happened so they could stop him, but then . . .”

  “You were taken.”

  “Yes.” And those first few days, locked away by a stranger, blood taken every few hours, she’d wished to God she’d just stayed with her aunt and uncle. That thought had angered her, though, and that anger had given her the strength she’d needed to survive. “You know what happened to me there, I’m sure.”

  He nodded stiffly. “You were experimented on, your brain turned into a computer.”

  “Basically.”

  “A long time ago, Bill found the guy who did it, and he’s been looking for you ever since.”

  “But how did he finally find—my arrest,” she said, understanding dawning.

  “Yeah.”

  Stupid temper. It always got the best of her. “And the doctor?”

  “He escaped. No one knows where he is. I’m sorry.”

  So many times she’d dreamed of killing the guy. Slowly, painfully. The moment she saw him, that dream would become a reality. She knew herself well enough to know she would attack. So maybe it was best no one knew where he was. It certainly saved her from committing murder.

  “You’re here to what, Sean? Take me in, lock me up? Earn my trust and convince me to do something for you?” She pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth. That’s why he’d kidnapped her, she realized. To save her and earn her trust. God, she was a fool.

  “No. No!” he added with more force. “We just want you to work for us. Willingly.”

  Willin
gly. Ha. She knew how these agencies worked and that’s why she had ruined her life in an effort to avoid them.

  “Rose Briar agents are very much like you, Gabby. They’re different. We can do things other people can’t.”

  “Oh, really. What could Bill do?”

  “Photographic memory.”

  “That’s not an ability.”

  “Actually, it is. But anyway, Rose Briar is the only place I’ve found where those like us are accepted rather than condemned.”

  Yeah. Right. He was just trying to relate to her, to get her to do what he wanted. He was trying to lure her into a false sense of security. Trying to get her to crave that kind of acceptance. Well, she already craved it; she just didn’t believe it was out there. Some people might pretend to admire her ability, but the moment she invaded their space, learned their secrets, they would turn on her with claws and fangs bared.

  “And what’s your power?” she asked dryly. “Putting innocent girls in dangerous situations?”

  Tensing, he rubbed at one of his tattoos. “I . . . I control the shadows.”

  “Oh, please,” she said, but then she thought back to their kiss, there in the club. Shadows had enveloped them, blocking them from view. Then, back at that house, shadows had again enveloped them and kept them safe from prying eyes. While she was locked up in that bedroom, shadows had thickened the air, preventing her from seeing anything.

  Her stomach twisted. Dear. God. Sean was telling the truth.

  Though she hadn’t asked for more proof, he said, “Come to me,” in a seductive whisper. The shadows rose from the ground outside the car and floated swiftly to the windows, keeping pace.

  Suddenly she couldn’t see out. A gasp escaped her. “Sean!” They were going to crash!

  “Go,” he said.

  She thought she heard a moan of disappointment as the shadows whisked away, clearing the window and allowing her to once again see the road. “You can . . . you just . . .” Her jaw dropped.

  “Yeah. I did. And now that we’ve established that, let’s get back to you. There were nine other kids taken and experimented on.”

  “You’re changing the subject? Seriously?” He was the first person she’d ever met who was as different as she was. She wanted to know everything about him. Had he been teased as a child? Chased and tormented? When had he first learned of his ability, and how had he mastered it? What did he do when there were no shadows present? Could the rest of his family manipulate the darkness?

  “I’ll tell you about my power later. Now, did you know others had been taken?”

  “No. I never saw anyone but the doctor. Never heard anyone but the doctor. So this power of yours . . .”

  “The man who operated on you guys set everyone free,” Sean continued, ignoring her. “We don’t know why. We found one right away, but it took a long time to find two others and when we did . . .” His shoulders slumped. “All three are dead. Extreme fear caused some kind of self-destructive reaction in their brains.”

  “They died?” The knowledge caused fear of her own to spark in her chest, and she forgot all about questioning him. If he was telling the truth, and she thought that he was since the emotion had always elicited headaches, this fear could kill her.

  On cue, her temples started throbbing and she moaned.

  “Stop,” Sean demanded.

  “Stop what?” she rasped past the sudden lump in her throat. People just like her had died. Probably painfully, horrifically.

  “Don’t think about the past. Think about the future.”

  But he’d been questioning her about the past. And . . . “Do I even have a future?”

  He flicked her another glance, this one so intense she shivered. “You sure as hell do. It involves you, me, and a bed. After that, there’ll be a few repeat performances. And by the way, where’s the quiet, nontalkative Gabby I know and like?”

  A lie. He liked her better this way. Why else would he have asked her so many questions? Information. Duh. Well, she could see the excitement in his eyes. Excitement she suddenly shared. Sean. Naked and in bed. With her. Touching, kissing. Oh yes . . . kissing. For more than a night, too. That’s what “repeat performances” meant, she was sure.

  But did his desire spring from his mission, or for her?

  Damned common sense, not letting her enjoy a moment’s reprieve. She ran her tongue over her teeth, anger sparking, growing, replacing both her excitement and fear. “If you kissed me because they told you to—”

  “Stop right there. I kissed you because I wanted to. And to be honest, I wasn’t supposed to do it. I just couldn’t help myself.”

  That mollified her somewhat. She desired him more than she’d ever desired another man. If he’d merely kissed her to soften her, she’d . . . she’d . . . still want him, she realized. Damn him. She was drawn to him. To the contradictions of him. Darkness swirled inside his eyes and was proof of his dangerous nature, yet he’d never once hurt her. Had been nothing but gentle with her. Had protected her.

  Sighing, she studied her surroundings. The vast expanse of forest had thinned, and there wasn’t a soul or car in sight. Lamps were posted along the sides of the road, their light providing a pretty golden glow. She had to stop thinking about kissing him and wanting him and concentrate on answers.

  “You were there, when those two men drew me out and attempted to kill me,” she said.

  “Yes.”

  “Did you kill them?”

  “No. I injured them. In fact, I need to get ahold of Rowan and find out if they talked.”

  Rowan. She should have known he was in on this. “He’s an agent, too, isn’t he?”

  An abrupt nod.

  And she’d never suspected. Seriously. How dumb was she? “Well, that stupid love quiz now makes sense. When asked what he liked most about a woman, he said a positive outlook and an appreciation for moonlit strolls, yet he struck me as the big boobs and no underwear type. I was supposed to fall for him, wasn’t I?”

  Another nod.

  God. The balls on these men, thinking that passing a few “Is He Worth Taking Home to Mom” quizzes and she’d melt. “So what’s his ability?”

  “Charm.”

  She snorted. She was dumb, yes, but not completely brain-dead. “You don’t want to tell me the truth about your friend, fine.”

  Sean merely smiled.

  Frustrating man. “Do you trust him? Could he—”

  “I trust him with my life.”

  Which meant she was supposed to trust him with hers, but she wasn’t sure she could. She didn’t even trust Sean. Not fully. More than she should, yeah, but not fully. “So why did you kidnap me? And yourself, for that matter? I asked before, but you never answered.” Yeah, she’d figured it out on her own, but she wanted to hear what kind of lies he would weave.

  He flicked her another glance, this one smoldering. “I wanted to spend a little alone time with you.”

  Now she was the one to roll her eyes, hopefully drawing attention away from the pulse suddenly hammering away at the base of her neck. “Nice try.”

  “Fine. It was the easiest and fastest way to gain your trust.”

  The truth from him. Wow. How unexpected—and warming. “Did you think I’d just smile and thank you when I found out you’d lied to me and used me?”

  “Yeah. If you hadn’t noticed, lying is part of our relationship.”

  She couldn’t refute that, so she didn’t try. “So why exactly does Rose Briar want me to work for them? And who were those guys back there?”

  “You’re kidding, right? With the first question? You can steal information in the blink of an eye. As for the men . . . the one who’d been shot was Bill, my boss, as I told you. The others, the ones with the guns.” He shrugged. “I don’t know, but I plan to find out. With your help.”

  “And if I don’t want to help? What are my options?”

  “You can live your life as you are now, but someone will always be watching you because too many
people know about you. If you ever tried to lose that someone, well, you would be deemed a rogue and killed.”

  Wonderful. He wasn’t lying this time. There was too much dread in his tone.

  Gabby wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She only knew she was tired of running, so tired, and that she’d been found—by two separate agencies, it seemed like—so all that running had been for nothing, anyway.

  She uttered another sigh. “I’m sorry. About your boss, I mean.”

  “Thank you. He was a good man.”

  They lapsed into silence, and a short while later they reached civilization again. There was a gas station, a few drive-thrus, and two motels. Sean parked in front of the motel closer to the road.

  “This where we’re spending the night?” She eyed the brownstone that formed a half-moon around a crumbling parking lot.

  “Nope. We’re getting a room, yes. But all we’re doing in it is making a call and ditching the car. Then we’re finding someplace else to sleep.”

  Sean had chucked his cell phone the moment they reached the highway, allowing oncoming traffic to run over it. There was an activated GPS in it, so anyone at Rose Briar could access his location. Besides Rowan, he didn’t know who he could trust right now, so he hadn’t wanted that information so freely available.

  He procured a motel room, as promised, and while Gabby sat at the edge of the bed, he called Rowan. There was no answer, which wasn’t like the agent. Shit! Was Rowan on the run, too? Hurt?

  Sean left a message, telling his friend what had happened to Bill, that he had Gabby and would call again soon. Not for a moment did he doubt his friend’s loyalty. Rowan had known where he and Gabby had been “locked up”—hell, Rowan had driven Gabby there—and if Rowan had been the culprit, the man could have easily done the hit there.

  So . . . who did that leave?

  The scientist who’d operated on Gabby? Bill had considered that a possibility before the mission had ever begun. The government? But why wouldn’t they have contacted Rose Briar directly? They always had before. A foreign government, perhaps?

  Whatever the answer, this was a bad deal.