by Debra Webb
Waylon Galen smiled. It was 2:00 a.m. She had allowed him to stay the night. Already the bond was reigniting, like fire in their souls. These two Enforcers were different from all the others. He had set aside risk analysis and pushed the envelope all the way, had overlooked nothing. Ensuring that their potential was far greater than any of the others, but only if they chose to hone their talents. The ability to turn down or off those dangerously elevated senses was absolutely essential.
Aidan and Eve were created to be together. Their combined talents would be awesome. The male would show her the way. That needed to happen first. Too many years had passed for her to willingly accept her destiny. She would require prompting since her memory had likely been displaced. Galen knew how to make that happen regardless of whatever plans Center had. He would set a trap she could not run away from, one her protector could not ignore. To ensure his future success, he would need to show her how to tap into that special gift.
Galen wasn’t foolish enough to believe he could control the two of them. The male would be entirely too powerful, too well-trained. But she would be easily contained, easily influenced. He knew answers to questions she hadn’t even asked herself as of yet.
Answers that would change all that she believed to be right and true.
Aidan moved. Swung over the balcony railing and quickly climbed down the trellis. He faded into the darkness like a shadow, like a part of the night. Galen slipped back through the gate, hurried to his car and took off before the Enforcer could reach his position. He would not risk being caught now. He needed time to set things in motion, time to devise an infallible plan.
AIDAN WATCHED the gray sedan fly through the night. The headlights remained off until the driver had turned onto St. Charles. But he needed no license plate number or visual contact to identity his enemy.
Dr. Waylon Galen had made his first appearance.
Aidan performed a quick search of the grounds around the building. Though he was not particularly concerned that Galen had left anything behind, it was necessary to be certain. Galen would not want to harm the woman. His plans would require her to be alive. Aidan’s fate would be another matter. But that did not concern him, either.
He sensed no other presence in the courtyard. A brief call to O’Riley was in order. Aidan withdrew his cellular phone from its clipped position at his waist and opened it. He entered O’Riley’s number and waited for an answer. The man rarely slept. He was always on call.
“Galen is here. He knows her location.”
O’Riley ordered him to carry on with Operation Prophecy as previously outlined.
Aidan put his phone away and checked the small handgun strapped to his ankle. Enforcers not primarily used as assassins only carried weapons when absolute necessity required it. Their powers of stealth and unparalleled strength allowed for disabling their targets with other methods.
O’Riley had deemed an external weapon necessary for this operation.
A rush of energy slammed into Aidan, then receded, dragging his mind back to…her. His gaze went immediately to the balcony, to the open French doors. She was dreaming…reaching out to him with her mind.
He scaled the trellis in seconds, hopped over the balcony railing and moved through the wide-open doors. He crossed the living room, stood in the open doorway of her bedroom. Closing his eyes he braced himself against the wood frame and opened his mind to her…allowing her access. He could not see her dreams unless she showed him, but he could feel her distress, her desperation. She needed him and she didn’t know how to connect on that level yet, didn’t know how to touch him the way he could touch her. She’d let him in all the way that once. He had no choice but to wait for her invitation now.
Let me in, Darby, he whispered silently. Let me in.
SHE TRIED TO WAKE UP from the dream. Darby kept telling herself not to look, to open her eyes and wake up. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t find her way back.
He was there…somewhere. She could hear him calling to her. But they weren’t alone.
She felt the evil. Felt it trying to seep into her pores. She had to fight…to run. She ran harder…faster, but it was like everything had lapsed into slow motion. The faster she ran, the slower she moved through the dream.
He was going to catch her.
There were trees all around her…a forest. The route she followed was dark and foreboding.
Voices. She heard voices. Crying. The children were crying for her. They wanted to go home. She could take them home. All she had to do was find them.
A face zoomed into focus right in front of her. She stumbled…fell onto her hands and knees. She screamed at him to leave her alone but it was Jerry Lester and he wouldn’t listen.
One, two, I’m coming for you. Three, four better lock your door. I’m coming for you, Darby Shepard. You can’t hide from me. We have a score to settle. These children belong to me!
She scrambled to her feet once more and started to run…had to run. He would catch her if she didn’t run. His face faded, but another image took its place. The men in white coats. They poked and prodded, tested her, made her keep trying…but she couldn’t. She couldn’t do what they wanted or she would never get away. They would keep her forever.
She never wanted to go back there.
Never. Never.
She had to find the children. They wanted to go home. She could find them…she’d found the others. Not now…another time. She wasn’t strong enough now. Run…she had to keep running.
She saw him from a long way off. Standing in the mist, moving toward her. He was tall and dark, the white mist swirled around his long legs. He came closer and closer and she couldn’t move.
Aidan.
Her dream man.
He had said he could protect her. He would keep her safe. She could trust him. He’d kissed her and she’d felt something strong…something familiar.
In her dream, he stopped a few feet away and held out his hand.
She moved toward him. It was only a few feet. But the faster she ran the farther away he looked. She called his name. Reached for him. But he only moved farther away without actually moving at all. He was so far away now she could scarcely see him. Her heart hammered in her chest. She felt too tired to keep running; yet if she lost sight of him, she knew she would not survive the coming battle. She needed him. But he was just out of reach.
“Aidan!”
Darby bolted upright and fought to catch her breath. Her side ached as if she’d run a marathon. Perspiration dampened her skin.
Aidan was at her side before her eyes could adjust to the dark. “It was only a dream,” he murmured.
She hugged her arms around her knees and rocked herself gently. “I need to see where the children are,” she whispered, her mind still reeling from the images in the dream. “They want to go home.”
The tears would not be denied. It didn’t matter how hard she tried. She couldn’t stop it, just like she couldn’t stop the things that were about to happen. He had escaped. He knew her name, what she looked like. With every fiber of her being, she knew he would not just run; he would want his vengeance first.
Better lock your door.
But Aidan was here.
He would protect her.
Strong arms went around her and she felt safe.
The FBI had sent him here. Though she knew that there was more involved here than his job…an attraction…a bond. He wanted to keep her safe. She knew that as surely as she knew Lester would come for her. He would find her…reach her somehow.
“Would you like me to get you a glass of wine? Something to help you sleep?”
Aidan’s gentle voice, so deep and alluring, made her want to sink into his arms, to be one with him completely. He felt so familiar…like a part of her. She pushed the unrealistic concepts away. Stress, she told herself. It was playing havoc with her ability to reason.
She needed someone and all her friends had deserted her. He was here, willing and ready to hold her
, protect her. That had to be the connection she felt. She needed him…that was all it could be.
“Wine would be good, I think.”
He drew back, smiled down at her.
Her heart thumped against her sternum. He was so beautiful.
Her eyes had adjusted to the dark now. Still, it seemed odd that she could see the details of his handsome face so well. A hint of moonlight filtered through the sheer drapes, but not much.
He pushed up from the bed and left the room. She sat very still for a time, completely disarmed by the way he moved. She closed her eyes and remembered the way he’d kissed her. Had shown her the depth of the connection between them. Not for a second had she been able to deny how he’d touched her. It felt right…safe…like home.
“Get a grip, Darby,” she muttered. Getting any more deeply involved with a stranger, no matter how right it felt, was not a smart move.
She’d already asked him to spend the night…on the couch, of course. She didn’t usually behave so irrationally. Not once in her entire life had a man spent the night in her apartment. She tried to remember when was the last time she’d had sex. Too long ago to recall. At his place and she’d left immediately afterward, regretting the act even before she had her clothes back on. The two times she’d allowed herself to become physically intimate with a man had felt wholly wrong. She told herself it was all those Sunday mornings in church with her parents, but she was beginning to think now that maybe she just hadn’t met the right man.
She had a feeling she would not regret anything that happened between her and Aidan. But, erring on the side of caution was always the smartest route to take. She’d learned that long ago as well. Had made it a steadfast rule.
Though she didn’t always manage to stick by her golden rule.
She threw back the covers and went in search of her robe. She had one that matched this gown, the only sexy one she owned, somewhere. Throwing on the terry cloth one would ruin the look entirely.
A single lamp lit the living room as she went in search of her brave protector. A chill shivered over her and she tightened the sash to her white silk robe.
Aidan emerged from the kitchen, two glasses of wine in his hands. He offered her the one in his right, then sipped the other.
“Thank you.”
She took her wine and settled on the couch. He settled in a chair directly across from her, his dark form nearly disappearing into the deep navy of the upholstery.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
She considered saying no for a while but then decided it couldn’t hurt.
“Lester was after me. The children were calling for me.” She shrugged, then took a long swallow of her wine. “Then you showed up, but I couldn’t reach you.”
“That wasn’t on purpose, I can assure you,” he said with a smile.
She smiled back, then stared at the pale liquid in her glass. She’d once read a book about the meaning of dreams. Too bad she couldn’t recall any of it now.
“Anything else?”
She met his gaze once more. Those dark, dark eyes sparkled with challenge. He wanted to hear more, dared her to share the whole truth with him.
Somehow she couldn’t resist.
“There were other men.” She thought about the men in the white coats. “Doctors, maybe. They wanted something, but I’m not sure what they signify.”
“You’ve dreamed of them before.”
She nodded, wondering how he could know. Or maybe he’d just made a good guess.
“Are you afraid of these men?”
His tone never changed, placating, soothing. He made talking to him so easy.
“Terrified,” she admitted. “I think they have something to do with my past.”
“Your past?”
There was an utter stillness about him, yet there was also an energy emanating that made her feel warm, secure.
“I was adopted when I was ten. I can’t remember much before that. But those men in the white lab coats are a part of it somehow.”
“Have you tried regression therapy? Hypnosis of any sort?”
She shrugged. “I’ve thought about it. Even read up on self-hypnosis. But I just never followed through.”
“You don’t remember anything else that might be relevant?”
“A place. I think it was called Center, but I’m not sure.”
“Have you researched what it could mean?”
Suddenly she felt uneasy. There was something different in his tone now, a subtle edge that disturbed her.
“You think I should?” she asked, certain that she must be mistaken. Lack of sleep was obviously taking its toll.
“Not really. It could mean nothing at all.”
“Or it could be some place where I stayed before being adopted,” she countered, surprised by his change in attitude on the subject.
He leaned forward and braced his forearms on his widespread knees. He looked straight into her eyes, his own surprisingly unyielding. “Some things we’re better off not knowing.”
For the first time since she’d met Special Agent Aidan Tanner, she felt uncomfortable in his presence.
“Some things are too painful,” he added gently, his gaze softening as well.
Setting her glass aside, she planted her elbow on the arm of the sofa and rested her chin in her hand. “You’re right. It could be very painful. Instinct tells me that it all means something. I just don’t know what.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I learned to trust my instincts a long time ago.”
He deposited his glass onto the table and stood. Her gaze followed his movements as he came to sit on the sofa with her. Anticipation shivered through her.
“And what do your instincts tell you about me?” He draped one arm on the back of the sofa behind her and waited for her answer, that piercing gaze never leaving her face for an instant.
“Do you always get this close to your suspects, Agent Tanner?” she asked frankly.
“This is the first time.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “And, for the record, you’re not a suspect.”
She had to smile. “Are you sure you haven’t let things get personal before? You seem awfully good at this to be a…virgin,” she suggested. Whatever possessed her at that moment to be so bold she would never know, but she couldn’t slow the momentum. This was headed way out of control and she just didn’t possess the willpower to stop it.
He lowered his head, bringing his lips so close to hers that she could feel their sensual pull. “You’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted to break the rules for,” he whispered. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to stop this without your assistance.”
Her throat constricted with yearning. Her whole body heated, longed to feel his lips against hers. “I’m afraid you’re out of luck, then, because I’m completely vulnerable where you’re concerned.”
He kissed her slowly, tenderly. She wanted more. He drew back at the same instant that she decided to throw caution to the wind.
“We both need sleep,” he murmured against her lips. “We’ll finish this another time.”
He rose and strode to the French doors. He opened the doors wide and went out onto the balcony. The breeze moved around him, played with his hair, reached all the way into the room to whisper across her skin.
Maybe he was right. Sleep was what they both needed. And just maybe she’d get lucky and dream about him. This time she would find a way to reach him.
Center
Ghost Mountain
GOVERNOR REMINGTON did not look pleased.
He didn’t like the way this was going.
“What if that psycho gets to her first?” He paced the length of O’Riley’s office once more. “What then?”
“He won’t.” O’Riley knew the psycho he referred to was Lester, the serial killer who’d escaped lockup less than twenty-four hours ago.
“How can you be so sure?” Remington threw his hands up, then planted them firmly at his waist. “Can we tak
e that chance?”
“We have to.” O’Riley settled one hip on the corner of his desk. “Aidan will protect her.”
“But this is his first solo operation,” Remington argued. “He’s different from the others. He uses the power of his mind more than his physical strength.”
“That’s right,” O’Riley agreed. “But that’s an advantage, not a disadvantage.”
The governor paused and glared at O’Riley. “If she remembers everything, this whole operation could blow up. She might become unstable.”
“Aidan knows how to handle the situation. He’s prepared for every scenario.”
“Meanwhile we just wait it out,” Remington countered. “We don’t send in anyone else. We don’t do anything. Galen is there. We have to stop him. To hell with Lester. It’s Galen we really have to worry about.”
O’Riley clasped his hands in front of him and strove for patience. “That’s true. But it’s also the most important reason to leave things just as they are.”
Remington finally collapsed into a chair. “What the hell does that mean?”
“There’s too big a risk that Darby Shepard would sense the presence of a second Enforcer. We can’t take that chance. Aidan can provide sufficient protection.”
“But what about Galen?” he demanded. “Who’s going to stop him? Aidan can’t play protector and aggressor at the same time.”
O’Riley smiled. Some guys just didn’t see the forest for the trees. He’d just have to spell it out for him. “Our ultimate goal is to get Galen while protecting Center.”
Remington made a dramatic “go on” gesture.
“He’s a slippery bastard. We might not ever be able to catch him in the usual manner. He knows too much…knows the Enforcers. But we have him at a disadvantage right now.”
“How’s that?” Remington asked, his curiosity piqued now.
“He wants our girl. She’s the only vulnerable link to Center. He’ll come after her, no question. If we wait, lure him in on our terms, we’ll get him.”
“Use her as bait,” Remington stated for clarification.
“That’s right. What better way to catch a man who thinks he’s God than with his own creation?”
