by Anise Eden
“These uniforms.” He pointed to his shirt. “Cate? You can follow me.”
I wanted to kiss Ben when he took my suitcase and accompanied us. We turned every which way through a maze of corridors. “Sorry you’re so far away from the others,” Hector said over his shoulder, “but space is tight around here. We didn’t have much to work with.” Stopping in front of a door, he said, “Here we are, home sweet home.”
“Thanks,” I said, trying and failing to sound grateful.
“No problem.” He addressed Ben. “We have a briefing at 1400. I’ll come and get everybody.”
“Got it. Thanks, Hector.” Ben opened the door and we walked inside. The room was small and starkly utilitarian, with a set of bunk beds, a dresser, and a desk with a chair. Everything was steel and tile, hard and cold. Someone had painted the room yellow at one point, but the color had faded into a depressing tan. Rough-looking white sheets and towels were stacked on the desk. I stepped over to an open door that led into a bathroom. It was small and spare, containing a bathtub but no shower.
Seeing the look on my face, Ben put my suitcase on the desk and drew me into a tight embrace. “I’m sorry your room isn’t closer to the others. It’s only for sleeping in, though. You won’t be spending much time here.” He placed his hands on my cheeks and kissed me tenderly on the forehead. My body warmed as though I’d been standing on a cold, overcast beach and the sun had just come out. Ben slid his fingers down and tucked them behind my neck, his eyes searching mine. “I’m really sorry about the way things played out back there. Are you okay?”
The whole situation had put me in something akin to a mild state of shock. I had no idea how I was going to feel when that wore off. “Yeah, I’m okay,” I replied, with the same uncertainty I’d felt when I first tried sushi.
“You don’t look it. Let’s sit.” Ben sat on the bottom bunk. I joined him, conscious of the lumps in the plastic-covered mattress.
He took my hands in his and began stroking my palms with his thumbs. Some tight thing inside of me began to loosen. I scooted closer to him and rested my head against his shoulder. “How much time do we have until Hector comes back for us?”
“Not enough,” he said in a low rumble. He tilted my chin up and pressed his warm lips firmly against mine. He lingered there just long enough to send me to the edge of squirming—and to make me feel that the universe was a cold, unfair, and uncaring place when he pulled away. “Never enough.”
I dropped my head against his shoulder again and nestled in closer. Ben had always been so secretive about his time in the Marines, but given the circumstances, I decided to venture a question. “So how do you all know each other, anyway?”
“Pete and I were in boot camp with Nessa, Kevin, and Hector.”
“Oh.” I tried to hide my amazement that he’d actually answered me. “Well, I was surprised when Nessa outed us.”
“Yeah.” Ben looked down and slowly rubbed his jaw. “Actually, that’s my fault.”
“What?” I jerked away from him. “How?”
“I completely forgot that she knew about the ring.” Ben slid closer to me until our legs were touching. “I used to keep that ring in a box with my personal effects. Nessa spotted it and asked me about it once. It was just so long ago that I forgot.”
The mystery deepened. Once again stunned by its beauty, I twirled the ring around my finger. “What did you tell her?”
“That it’s a family heirloom, and that my mother gave it to me in case I ever met anyone really special.”
We both sat perfectly still, the meaning of his words vibrating in the air between us. I swallowed hard. “A family heirloom? How old is it?”
“We’re not sure exactly, but it’s been in the family for at least four or five generations. My grandmother gave it to my mother when she left Scotland to come to school in the States. My mother only wore it on special occasions, though. She said it wasn’t her style.”
I could imagine that. From what I’d seen of Dr. MacGregor, she went for a classy but understated look. The ring wasn’t ostentatious, but it was memorable, as Nessa had demonstrated.
As though anticipating my next question, Ben took my ring hand in his. “You’re the only person I’ve ever offered this ring to, Cate—or wanted to give it to.”
“But, Ben….” Suddenly self-conscious, I felt my breathing quicken. “Your mother said if you met anyone really special. I’m not…. I mean, are you sure?” I stammered. “It must mean a lot… and it must be worth, I don’t know…. And we practically just met….”
Once I ran out of words, I began to slide the ring off of my finger. Ben stopped me, taking a firm hold of my hand. I looked up and was astonished by the passion I saw swimming in his eyes. His voice was soft but intense. “Cate, you are special, so much more than you realize. Not only are you incredibly special among people in general, but you’re also special to me, in particular. And you’re the one I want to wear this ring—the only one. Do you understand?”
As his words washed over me, I felt my own emotions rising to meet his. “Yes,” I whispered. He released his hold on my hand, and I slid the ring back to the base of my finger.
“I’m not sure you do, but I’ll keep working to convince you.” The gold flecks in Ben’s eyes flashed like firecrackers. He slid his hand behind my neck, leaned down, and kissed my temple. His lips were like the source of a waterfall pouring warmth into my body. I felt his chest expand as he took a deep breath, nose buried in my hair. “I’m very sorry, Cate. I wanted you to be in control of when, where, and with whom we shared our relationship.”
“I know you did. There’s no need to apologize, though. It’s not your fault.” Given what Nessa knew about the ring, I understood why she’d jumped to the conclusion that she had. “Part of me was nervous about how our friends would react, but obviously that wasn’t an issue.”
“Yes, they seemed quite happy,” he said wryly. I smiled, remembering the ribbing they’d given him.
We sat in silence for a few moments. When Ben spoke again, there was devilment in his tone. “Well, at least now you don’t have to worry about any of the guys down here hitting on you.”
I gave him my driest smirk. “Right, because I was so worried about that.” I made a sweeping gesture that took in my rumpled outfit and unruly braid. “No one’s going to hit on me, Ben. No one will even notice that I’m here.”
Ben arched an eyebrow at me. “I’m certain the guys will notice little else.”
I shook my head and laughed. Ben was definitely delusional if he thought I was that much of a man-magnet. “There is a positive side, though.”
“What’s that?”
I stretched out my arm and tilted my head to one side, casually examining my fingernails. “At least we got to tell everyone that we just started dating so they know there’s nothing serious going on.”
“True.” Ben ducked past my arm and placed an archipelago of kisses along my neck, starting just below my ear and heading south. I suppressed a moan as his lips on my skin set off a chain reaction throughout my body, an explosive reminder of the chemistry between us. “Definitely nothing serious,” he murmured.
Even after I cleared my throat, my voice came out as a husky whisper. “Good. I’m glad we’re agreed on that.”
I could feel Ben’s lips smiling against my neck. I groaned in complaint as he pulled away. “Right now,” he said, “all I really want to do is focus all of my attention on how incredible it is to kiss you. However, I’m afraid that if I do that, we’ll never leave the room.”
My sigh was wistful. “That’s a reasonable fear.”
“And Hector’s going to be back any minute.” Ben put his hands on my shoulders and began to massage. “Listen, Cate, in spite of everything, I’m really glad that you’re here—not only because we might need you, but also—and I know this is selfish on my part—because it would have made me very unhappy to spend any time away from you.”
“Same here,” I quietly
admitted, as the warmth from his hands spread through me.
There was a knock at the door. As though on cue, Hector’s voice asked, “You guys ready?”
“Be right there,” Ben called out. He placed his hand gently on my cheek, locked his eyes onto mine, and whispered, “Thank you for coming.” Then he stood up and offered me his hand. It was time for the briefing.
Chapter Four
Stepping into the briefing room was like slamming into a wall of high-octane energy. It reminded me of the transformation Pete and Ben had undergone the night they came to my house to protect me from my client’s gun-toting boyfriend. All at once they had become sharp, focused, full of purpose—on a razor’s edge of readiness for anything that might happen. Now I was entering a room with about ten people wearing Charlies seated around a large conference table, and the effect was multiplied exponentially. Our welcoming party was there, all busily engaged in conversations.
The other members of our group sat along one side of the table, but Ben pointed me toward two empty chairs near the front of the room. Among the parade of spotless uniforms, I felt utterly schlumpy. There was nothing creased, pressed, or remotely businesslike in my suitcase. I was wearing yoga pants, sneakers, and an extra sweatshirt Ben had brought along. It was way too big for me, not to mention navy blue, which wasn’t my best color. But the subbasement was chilly, and in my hurry to pack, I’d forgotten to bring a sweater.
Vani had used our few free minutes to freshen her make-up and let down her cascade of long, black hair. Asa hadn’t changed, although I noticed for the first time that his T-shirt read Triple Nerd Score. Eve was punk-gothed out with clothes worn in artistically torn layers of black, grey, and red. Several people stared openly at Kai, who basked in the attention. He had put on dramatic black eyeliner and changed into leather pants and an emerald green silk blouse—definitely a peacock amongst pigeons. Kai preened and chatted while Pete sat back and pretended not to notice that his boyfriend had become the star attraction.
Maybe because the military had a reputation for being such a macho group, I’d worried that Pete and Kai might get a cool reception from some corners. But I sensed nothing in the room but camaraderie. “No one seems to mind that Pete and Kai are together,” I murmured to Ben.
“No, they wouldn’t,” he replied in a low voice. “These guys never cared about that kind of thing. Besides, Pete’s saved the lives of enough of the people in this room that he gets maximum respect no matter what they might think of his lifestyle. And Kai is well respected and somewhat feared in his own right. He’s pretty vicious in a bar fight.”
Bar fights? I took another look at Kai as he flipped his hair back. I tried unsuccessfully to imagine him doing anything that might risk breaking a nail.
All at once, the significance of something Ben had said dawned on me. “Wait a minute, Pete saved their lives? Is this your old Marine Corps unit?”
But before he could answer, someone shouted, “Attention!” Everyone in uniform instantly shot to their feet and stared straight ahead.
“As you were,” a gruff voice said. A large tree trunk of a man passed behind us and took his place at the front of the room. His skin was tanned, his features chiseled and hard, and he wore the same khaki-and-green uniform as the other marines, but with silver bars on his collar.
Everyone else settled back into their seats. The tree trunk shook hands with a pale man in a white lab coat and tortoiseshell glasses who was sitting across the table from us. He had the easy confidence of a salesman, and although he appeared to be in his fifties, he had a boyish face. I hadn’t noticed him before, but when our eyes met, I felt a strange connection between us. He gave me an odd smile as he sat back down.
Tree-Trunk Man stood at the head of the table and glanced sharply around the room as though taking inventory of every wrinkled shirt, every hair out of place. Hands clasped behind his back, he filled the air with the gravelly power of his voice. “For those of you who don’t know, I’m Captain Abbott, the officer in charge.” I didn’t doubt that for a second. Authority rolled off of him in waves. His penetrating blue eyes turned on Ben and me, and my breath caught in my throat. “For the benefit of the MacGregor Group, who recently joined us—” to my relief, he looked away again—“I will remind you that while this officially became a military operation several days ago, we are trying to keep the environment as casual as possible so that the civilians feel comfortable in their work. Nonetheless, no one is to leave this floor without my express permission, a marine guard, and a damn good reason. Is that understood?”
“Yes sir!” the marines barked. Captain Abbott gave Ben a questioning look, as though inquiring as to whether the members of the MacGregor Group understood. Ben nodded, and Captain Abbott continued. “All of the civilian personnel in this room have undergone the necessary background checks and been given limited Top Secret clearance strictly confined to the purposes of this mission.”
As Eve and Asa quietly high-fived one another, I glanced nervously at Ben. I hadn’t heard anything about a background check.
“Yes, you too, Miss Duncan,” the captain said. “Your clearance came through this morning, in spite of the questionable company you keep.” He gestured toward Ben, who rubbed his face to hide a smile. “Ben will fill you in on what your security clearance means, but here’s the short version. Rule number one: whatever happens here, stays here—forever. Rule number two: if a marine gives you an instruction, you follow it immediately. Your lives and the lives of others may depend on it. Understood?”
I took my cue and murmured, “Yes sir,” with the rest of the staff.
“Very good. I’ll turn the time over to Dr. Gastrell so he can give us an update on the patient’s situation.”
Captain Abbott took his seat as the man in the white lab coat stood up. “Hello, everyone. I’m Rex Gastrell, but everyone calls me Skeet.” He gave me a strange smile again, making me even more uneasy. “I’m head of the Paranormal Division of the National Institutes of Mental Health, or NIMH, which is a sub-division of NIH. In other words, I’m in charge of everything here that the Marine Corps isn’t. Is that fair to say, Captain?” Captain Abbott nodded.
The answers to questions I hadn’t been allowed to ask until then began to coalesce in my mind. Ben had told me the previous week that the MacGregor Group had an ongoing relationship with NIMH. NIMH quietly did research on sensitives, and the MacGregors treated their subjects when the need arose. So they were all colleagues, in a very real sense; at least that explained what we were doing there.
Skeet continued, “As most of you know, five days ago, one of our visiting neuroscientists, Dr. Braz Belo, collapsed in his lab. At first, the doctors at Walter Reed Medical Center thought it was a simple case of food poisoning. But when his heart rate slowed and he developed convulsions and trouble breathing, it became clear that something else was going on. On Tuesday, they began to suspect aconite poisoning and administered an antidote. It had some positive effect, and we believe that Dr. Belo should live for several more days. Unfortunately, unless a miracle happens, we were too late to save his life.”
There was a heavy silence in the room. Skeet looked down and shielded his face with his hand for a moment before continuing. “We’ve brought the MacGregor Group in for additional assistance. Vani and Eve are here to help support Dr. Belo’s health through aura healing and acupuncture. Test results have led us to believe that Dr. Belo’s mental faculties may be completely intact, along with his hearing and his sense of smell, so we have been keeping him abreast of his medical situation. Asa, of course, will be the key there. If Asa can communicate telepathically with Dr. Belo, then we can discern his level of cognitive functioning, and hopefully learn as much as possible about what happened to him. Meanwhile, Kai has been working with some Buddhist meditation experts, putting the finishing touches on a trance state that, once achieved, should allow Asa to work without getting the migraines that the use of his gift usually causes.”
Kai reached o
ver to rub Asa’s head, but Asa quickly ducked to the side.
“Thank you for the update, Dr. Gastrell,” Captain Abbott boomed as he and Skeet changed places again. “And now, MacGregor Group, allow me to introduce the hard-charging marines of Yankee Company!”
His words inspired a shout of “Oo-rah!” from the marines, a sound so forceful that it nearly blew me out of my chair.
“This elite Marine Corps Security Force unit is tasked with the highly sensitive mission of protecting whistleblowers and other individuals believed to be at risk from elements within the United States government. A warm welcome to Pete and Ben, our former members.”
I glanced at Ben and Pete with new respect and a little awe. So that’s what they had done in the Marines—guarded whistleblowers? That certainly fit much of what I knew about them, like their willingness to put themselves in harm’s way to protect people who were under threat, and their strong sense of integrity. A knot that I didn’t realize had formed in my stomach began to untie itself. I glanced across the table at Kai, who cast me a sly wink. I had asked him once what Pete and Ben had done in the Marines, but they’d kept it a well-guarded secret, and Kai hadn’t known a thing. I could tell that he was just as glad as I was to finally learn something about our partners’ mysterious pasts.
Still, it was shocking to hear that the Marines had to devote a unit to protecting people from our own government in the first place—especially whistleblowers, people who were presumably trying to do good. I would have to ask Ben about more that later.
“You may be wondering how Yankee Company came to be a part of this mission,” Captain Abbott said. “Dr. Gastrell, would you like to give us the background?”
“Certainly.” Dr. Gastrell leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and speaking intently. “At first, foul play was not suspected. Aconite is a common remedy for nerve pain in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine. Aconite poisoning most often happens via accidental overdose. However, I knew that Dr. Belo was a hard-core skeptic when it came to herbal remedies. He wouldn’t even take melatonin for sleep due to what he believed were inconsistencies and lack of oversight in the manufacturing process. Doubtful of the accidental overdose story, I asked the FBI to investigate.”
