Rebel Heart

by Young, Christine

  "What if I disagree?" she questioned, trying to step by him. In her haste to dress, not all of the buttons on her tunic had been fastened and the gaps left some of her flesh bare. Her hair cascaded all around her in a curtain of brandy, and he was reminded of their time in the cave. Then she had been in similar disarray, yet she was beautiful to him. She pleaded with him, trying to convince him of something he wanted desperately to deny her. Yet he knew he could not.

  This woman of his could be restrained, mellowed, but he had already decided against that.

  He would not change Tori. In doing so, he would take away the most vibrant, vital part of her. He couldn't stand to see her chained in any way. All he could do was love her.

  "Cameron!" she protested softly and her voice was earnest. Her lower lip trembled and her eyes simmered with unshed tears as she gazed at him. "I've not lied to you. I have immunity from most diseases just as the Outsiders. My mother was a physician, not really an Outsider, but she was never acclimated into the City, nor were her parents before her. So you see--"

  "Tori, yes, I understand and I won't deny you access to the patients. Only I would see you use caution and if it becomes life threatening, I want your promise. I want you out of the city away from the sickness and the death."

  "What about you? I thought you had no immunity, yet you plan to be in the middle of it all."

  "Hush, you heard wrong. I've never been tested but I know my system is fully functional and completely barbarian. There now, are you satisfied or must I waste valuable time convincing you more thoroughly?" Gazing at her, Cameron felt such horrible misgivings and a terrifying pain in his heart. She was so stubborn, damn her sweet little hide, and way too courageous. This wasn't necessary, he knew, and she knew it too if she would stop to think. "I'm going to use the machine on everyone who asks for the treatment. And when I do, all hell will break loose. There will be war, and I'm afraid, terribly afraid for what it will bring. But for now, we're going upstairs to meet Jonathan."

  She had an incredibly stunned look on her face. Perhaps this time she had listened to his words, perhaps she understood he didn't mean to take anything away from her. He only meant to protect her.

  Tenderly, he touched her cheek with the tip of his finger. He felt her warmth and the softness that he loved so well. Then he adjusted her clothes, repositioning the buttons. "Will you heed my warnings?" he asked her. "Will you give your heart and soul for this cause yet always keep your own well-being first and foremost in your thoughts? If nothing else, Tori, will you please protect yourself when I cannot!"

  She paused, brought her chin up, and nodded slightly.

  He caught her arms and brought her swiftly against his chest. His mouth touched her eyes, the tip of her nose. The heat of her flesh seared his own. Her scent filled him.

  A spring meadow..." he murmured. "You always smell so sweet and delicate, my love. You remind me of dancing wildflowers, and a soft summer breeze, unrestrained, unfettered, carefree. And I promise I will never take that from you.

  There was a hesitant cough on the telemonitor. Tori pushed away from him in dismay.

  Jonathan laughed. "Does this mean all your differences are resolved?"

  "Not yet," Tori whispered softly and Jonathan leaned closer to the screen as if that would help him hear. "But we're working on it."

  "I thought I turned you off."

  "Well, you didn't," Jonathan said, laughing. "But you two need to hurry. I've patients up here who have volunteered for the transplant and they don't have much time left. As you both know, once the virus reaches its tertiary stage there isn't much hope or time. Hurry."

  "I'll get my equipment and be right there," Cameron told him. His eye remained on Tori. For the first time in their relationship, they hid behind no elusive barriers.

  He pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

  By the urgency required, the kiss was swift. Yet with it he tried to convey the hungry desire and passion he felt for her, a blazing liquid heat and the promise he'd given her.

  She pulled away and whispered. "Go and see to the patients and send Luke up to help. I'll get the equipment."

  "I'm a very good physician," he told her seriously.

  She smiled and met his gaze. "Yes, everyone I've come in contact with sings your praises. But still, you are mortal, my dear Phantom."

  "You care?"

  "Perhaps," she told him, but the love he saw in her eyes told him the truth.

  He didn't want to let her go. He pulled her close. He wanted so much more from her. "Tell me, Tori. Tell me that what has gone on before this day doesn't matter. Tell me you don't care that I lied to you, deceived you, because you played the same game. Tori--tell me you love me."

  His mouth found hers in a tender kiss, so soft and light he prayed she would be unable to resist, prayed she would surrender her love but not her soul. "I never loved the fairy tale, never loved The Phantom," she explained. Then her words fell to an innocent whisper. "I love you, Cameron, because you are real, not a myth. I love you because you care so deeply. You are my hero and my lover. My husband too. I love you, Dr. Cameron Savage."

  "I never thought..." His mouth touched hers again then he was grinning at her. "I'm sure Jonathan heard all of this and has already sent Luke ahead. Go on now. Bring the equipment and we'll see what we can accomplish here."

  He let her go, and she whirled from him, almost racing to the outside corridor.

  But when she reached the entrance to the room, she hesitated. She didn't turn all the way, and her words remained soft, but they meant the world to him.

  "Thank you. I won't let you down and I will protect myself at all cost, but you must also promise to do the same."

  "Of course," he murmured, and watched her go

  Aisling

  Aisling stood in the courtyard at Reding, watching as lab technicians hustled between buildings. They carried an assortment of medicines and supplies, all headed in different directions. This was the only the beginning; time would separate the survivors from the weak. War was inevitable.

  Now Dr. Savage had something to prove.

  Aisling hesitated on the brick pathway. A cloud passed over the sun and despite the heat of the day, she felt a coldness enshroud her, penetrating to the very bone. It seemed so strange that these people would fight over the way to save a human life. It made no sense to her. She had spent her entire life healing, seeking knowledge that would ease the pain of sickness and prolong life. Now men battled among themselves for the right to decide how this should be done, and she could see no reason for it. Greed was the one component that eclipsed all others, but the City people had lived with it for many years. They understood where she did not. Understanding what drove these men would not make death easier. People would still die.

  She heard the winds as they whispered words of war. She'd felt the shadow of doom sweep across the continent. Drake had seen it coming too, and that was why Drake had sent her here. As if she could protect Dr. Savage and his lady from that which threatened them, but she couldn't. They could only protect themselves.

  Fire and light, blinding flashes of color, composed her thoughts when she thought of the battles yet to come. It would be war, and many would die, but they would not perish from diseases. There was so much light, blood red in its color, the spectrum never varying. In the middle she saw two figures, Victoria and Cameron Savage. She'd foreseen a betrayal. Yet she was convinced Victoria loved her husband. She was positive Cameron's wife was a woman of strong convictions with an ardent desire to see the end of human suffering. Albeit she often acted without thinking, but that would not be sufficient evidence to assume she would betray her husband.

  When she closed her eyes, she felt the betrayal and she could not shake the darkness from her heart. She heard the wind calling out to her of the deception yet to come, cautioning her to give fair warning.

  Yet she knew what she heard was wrong, understood there was something she missed. So she listened and watched. All a
t Reding were suspect. No one was spared her piercing glaze.

  She knew the facts as well as Savage. Victoria had betrayed Cameron. Yet the circumstances were all wrong, and it was as much Cameron's fault as Victoria's.

  Danger and subversion still threatened and Aisling didn't know which direction to look.

  As her gaze swept across the flowerbeds then over the laboratory walls, the sun burst from behind the cloud, bathing the earth in a fiery heat. She turned to the garage that housed the sleek, fast gliders and the more sedate medical vans.

  Her breath caught in her throat.

  A small figure moved through the men loading supplies, slipping quietly through one of the garage doors. It was someone who blended in with them, someone who worked with them.

  Her eyes narrowed in concentration. Zaria?

  Everyone stopped to talk to Zaria, laughing with her. Then because Zaria had always been one of them, they let her go about her business. Deadly business if Aisling's guess was correct. Zaria had always been at the top of her field, indispensable and meticulous. She had found a place in the entourage coming from the mountains. No one would have stopped her. Until this moment, there was never a reason to doubt Zaria's loyalty.

  Even if Aisling had known her intentions, she wouldn't have stopped her either. There was simply no reason. Yet now when Aisling looked at Zaria, she recalled bitter words spoken by Zaria, understood Zaria's resolve and the selfish purpose. Zaria would do anything to have and hold Dr. Cameron Savage.

  A silver land glider moved slowly from the garage, hovering a moment, the engine humming. It floated. Then Zaria revved the engine and taxied it along the road that led northward into the forest. She was leaving, thank God. Perhaps she had thought she'd be able to seduce Savage into her bed.

  Well, it seemed she'd given up on that ploy. Zaria could not compete with Victoria Savage for Cameron's affection. If Aisling hadn't guessed wrong, Cameron was completely in love with his new wife. Aisling had seen Victoria pack, had known where she was headed and she'd smiled when Cameron followed.

  Perhaps Zaria was following them...

  Aisling continued to gaze after Zaria for a long time. Then the wind seemed to shift; it no longer came from the west. It blew hot and dry across the earth and the ground shimmered with the light and heat from the sun.

  She was a foolish woman. There would be hell to pay for her stupidity. The treachery had only just begun.

  And it wasn't Victoria Savage that Cameron had to fear, it was an impostor.

  Victoria

  Victoria raced up five flights of steps to the glider landing on the rooftop. When she pushed open the door, a blast of heat slammed against her face, the stench of death filling her nostrils. She grimaced then made herself step forward, looking to the glider. Luke was bent over the storage vault, searching through various supplies, picking and choosing the most important.

  When he heard her, he looked up from what he was doing, greeting her with a warm smile. She walked quickly and in a few steps, she was able to help Luke. They moved efficiently and with little to say, stacking the boxes into piles for swift delivery to the floors below.

  "I see you've been delegated to packing and storage," she said cheerfully. "Dr. Savage has told you what he needs first?" she asked. Then she surveyed the boxes in front of her.

  "He said you weren't to do any of the lifting. Three more orderlies are on their way up to help."

  She almost laughed at that but shook her head instead. "So, Luke, what do you suppose I can do here? Stand and watch?"

  "I suppose. I can't think of what you might do that doesn't involve lifting. There isn't anything to supervise."

  She paced for a few minutes, mumbling some choice words under her breath. Sweat began to bead on her forehead. The men Cameron had sent were gone now with their first load.

  "This heat isn't going to help the sick," she said to Luke.

  "True, but if you look out over the mountains, it seems as if thunderheads are growing. We should hurry with this."

  Victoria agreed but her main concern was five stories below. She meant to stay here until nothing was left in the van. Then she meant to see that Dr. Savage kept his word.

  She wiped the sweat from her forehead. Already the wind had stilled to nothing. Even the updraft that the unbearable heat should have created had stopped. It seemed as if liquid sunshine boiled and simmered on the roof making everything hotter. The air smelled wretched.

  "Go on down, I'll finish here," Luke told her.

  She shook her head and stepped forward to take a load from Luke's hand. "We'll both finish."

  A mysterious whistling sound filled the air. She felt a shiver of fear engulf her, and she trembled not knowing what it was that caused the sensation.

  A huge black shadow covered the medical van.

  Speechless, she swallowed her next sentence. Shielding the sun from her eyes, Victoria looked up. Wind surged around her but the noise of it was overpowered by a loud thrumming cadence high above.

  Suddenly she was surrounded by sleek land gliders. Ten of them set down on the roof. Ten guns pointed directly at her. One man stepped out of his glider. Quentin Morray. His eyes were predatory and his smile turned her blood cold.

  "We meet again," he said, the tone harsh. "Take her."

  Acting on instinct, Victoria turned, racing to the door, but Morray's men cut her off. She dodged both the vehicles and the men in her desperate bid for the shelter of the hospital and Cameron's protection.

  Luke was inside the med-van, unaware of what was happening. He clamored from the small opening in the hold. "Damn..."

  Victoria heard the muffled oath before she ran into one of Morray's men and was knocked off her feet. Tori, stunned by the fall but otherwise unharmed, fought off her assailant with her fists and her feet, pummeling the men unmercifully.

  "Leave her."

  Tori looked up.

  Quentin Morray held a gun on her.

  "My chariot awaits," he said smoothly.

  "Go to hell, Morray."

  "Then Luke dies." She gasped, knowing Morray meant every word and would threaten her with another man's life. Luke stood beside the van, his hands high in the air with a gun pointed at his back. She had little doubt Morray would not hesitate to shoot Luke.

  "If she isn't happily inside my glider in two seconds, Griffin, shoot him," Morray commanded harshly.

  "My love?" Morray extended his hand.

  As if seeing her life flash before her eyes, she remembered her promise to her husband. She wanted to fight, wanted to battle still. When she looked at Luke, she knew he felt the same. But she had promised. She didn't accept Morray's hand though. Ignoring him, she walked forward, and as Morray grabbed her arm, she turned from him.

  Morray nodded. Griffin's finger tightened on the trigger.

  "No!" she cried out, closing her eyes as she watched.

  "A little more docility might insure his life for the rest of the day, Tori, and a little sweet innocence between the sheets might prolong it even longer. Luke would like that, I think. But not until I've secured your lab and your research. Tonight."

  "You may get into the lab. You may have access to the computers, but the programs are password protected with an algorithm you can't break. It will do you no good." Her voice was trembling with rage and loathing.

  He pushed her roughly into the passenger seat, slamming the door after her. He walked around the vehicle then settled into the pilot's seat. The engine roared to life. Before she could breathe, they were in the sky, far above the hospital and the City.

  They followed what seemed to be a direct line to Tower City. Morray said nothing until they set down in a small parking lot just outside the laboratory.

  "You will open the computer to me, show me the files."

  "Hardly."

  "Would you see Luke killed for your stubbornness?"

  "Nessa is the only one with access to the fourth level security files. I've no idea how to bypass the algor
ithm. It will change nothing if you shoot him."

  They stepped from the vehicle and the men from the other gliders including Luke surrounded her. She was escorted to the Visitor's center and from there to her tower apartment. Luke was left below, tied to a chair in the dining room.

  "Cooperate, my love, and all will go well."

  "Shoot me, it will save you time."

  Morray began to laugh. The sound sent shivers throughout Tori. He was insane, the devil incarnate. "Cameron will come for me."

  "I'm counting on it, sweetheart," Morray said smugly. He touched her cheek with his fingers and she flinched back. Her head spun with worry and fatigue, thinking suddenly that she could stand it no longer. She swayed on her feet.