by Zoe Forward
Bryce cleared his throat before asking hoarsely, “When do you expect her back?
“I don’t know. She doesn’t seem to have control over her power. It’s not like she gave me her itinerary before she popped away.”
Bryce leaned forward. “She is our seventh, isn’t she?”
“It’s likely, but we didn’t exactly clarify that.”
Bryce crossed his arms. “What exactly did you talk about, then? Eli said you spoke with her.”
Matt resented Bryce’s tone that suggested he was an adolescent one screwup away from being grounded. Matt said, “Being Pleiad isn’t exactly a simple subject to broach, especially since she doesn’t seem to know anything. Now, why is that, Bryce? Why is a Pleiades lost in her alternate and doesn’t know what she really is?”
Bryce remained silent.
Matt continued, “Besides, why didn’t she gravitate toward lover boy over there when she’s in this dimension? Aren’t destineds usually attracted through some sort of greater force or something?”
Bryce cocked an eyebrow questioningly at Jason.
“I don’t know. I thought I brought this up to you already. I mean, I think we’re supposed to be together.”
Something was going on and Matt didn’t like not having full intel. Who the hell was Jason, and why hadn’t he met her if he was claiming to be her destined?
“You should’ve called me, Matt, when you were suspicious she was the one I sought,” Bryce said.
“Your lost girls aren’t my problem. Why isn’t she here in the Sourceworld full time to begin with?”
Bryce hesitated and blew out a long breath. “Her mother jumped her away at a young age to protect her. Katherine comes from the mind-bender line. Seems that her mother mind-wiped her before depositing her in the other dimension. That was right before the OLM killed her mother. We need Katherine here to complete the heptagon. If she comes back to you again, I want you to bring her to us. We need to prepare her for the Confirmation this weekend.”
Mind-wiped? Kat really had no clue what was going on. How he wished he could take back how he handled yesterday and perhaps be gentler in his questioning. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I don’t do favors for you anymore. Not my problem. Besides, if Jason is her destined, then he should be her focal point to entering this dimension. Not me. So your problem is solved. This meeting is over. I’m sure you two can find your own way out.” He rose and headed for the door.
He pulled it open, but it pulled away from him, slammed shut, and locked. “Bryce, I’m in no mood for games. We’re done here.” A tickle of fear entered his mind. Bryce’s mental power was unique, and lethal, when he chose to use it.
Bryce rose. “You and I are not done.”
He turned and narrowed his eyes. He thought, Bring it on, old man, even though he was pretty certain Bryce couldn’t read thoughts—just telekinesis and the mind crunch. Fuck, he hoped the old bastard didn’t resort to that.
Bryce turned to Jason. “Leave us.”
“But you said—”
Bryce turned the full force of his anger on the kid. “Get. The. Fuck. Out.”
Jason scurried around Matt. The door unlocked for him.
The energy in the room sizzled. Matt’s head buzzed.
Bryce was revved up. “You are going to hear me out. I don’t know why the gods chose you to be her focal point. Frankly, I don’t give a flying fuck. You will do whatever you need to in order to get her to me. If you have to charm her, then—”Bryce sucked in a deep breath and whooshed out, “Do it. You are not allowed to sleep with her. There is no long-term for you and her. As a deserter, you aren’t worthy of her. She’s got her destined arranged. All I care about is that you ground her here and bring her to me. Don’t hide her. Don’t take her to bed. Bring her to me.”
“Go to hell.” Spikes of white-hot fury lacerated his mind. Bryce considered him as unscrupulous as Grant Ryan, who’d regularly crossed that ethical line to accomplish anything that needed to be done. Sex, threats, murder, blackmail…none of it mattered to Grant, just as long as he got what he wanted.
Matt had never crossed that line. And he sure as hell wouldn’t now.
“If you don’t, I’ve prepared a full disclosure packet and will present it to your sister. How do you think that frail thing would react to knowing about Quinn? To discover Grant wasn’t your father? That you’re a druid bastard?” He clucked.
Matt backed against the door, aghast. Was he bluffing? Bryce revered women, protected them. He whispered, “You wouldn’t.”
“You’ve put me in a tight spot, Matt. I’d do just about anything to get her back at this point. To get her to safety. We’re coming down to the wire on the Confirmation. The OLM has teams hunting for her. It’s my job to protect this world, and her.”
Matt exploded across the room, going for Bryce’s jugular. “Stay away from Allison.” Bryce didn’t move. Before he could get closer than a few inches from Bryce’s body, he was thrown backward by an invisible force. He crashed into the wall. A crushing pain consumed his brain. He slithered to the floor, clutching his skull. The overwhelming pain stopped.
Bryce hovered above him. “If you don’t get her to me when she reappears, the packet goes out. Do we have an understanding?”
Matt remained silent.
The pain inside his skull resumed. He moaned. Reluctantly, he gritted out, “Yes.”
Chapter Fourteen
Matt slid into the booth at the Long Beach diner. He massaged his head, which still throbbed from his encounter with Bryce.
Eli grinned. “You look like crap.” Eli’s worn ball cap, wrinkled button-down shirt, and jeans suggested many days of wear. His new laissez-faire attitude on life grated on Matt. But ever since Eli quit MI6, his care for the little things had become nonexistent.
“Did you find out where Kat went when she left my office? Anything about where she’s from?”
“That recording of her…” Eli whistled low and did a hand outline of an hourglass silhouette, rewinding over the chest part.
“You are headed for a bloody nose.”
Eli shook his head. “You got it bad, bro. Bad. She must be good, especially in hallways.”
“Asshole. You weren’t supposed to watch the whole recording.”
“Did she start it or did you or was it kind of a dual attack? I had a tough time telling. But…kind of disappointing that you pulled back.”
His neck heated. “Did you even shower today?”
“Interesting deflection.” Eli shrugged. “Can’t remember.”
“What is going on with you? You’ve spent more nights at my place in the past month than yours. You drink until you pass out…”
“Chasing demons.” Eli adjusted his baseball cap and wouldn’t meet Matt’s gaze.
“All right, fine, don’t tell me. I just want to know if you completed Kat’s background.”
Eli grabbed a laminated menu from behind the napkin dispenser. “I wonder if they serve breakfast twenty-four-seven. I could really go for some waffles.”
“It’s dinner time. You can ask.” Matt scowled. “Background…”
“Sure. It’s done. It’s thin, but for most cursory glances it’ll hold. The only image I could isolate off the video that didn’t have you in it was an awful picture.” Eli stared intently at Matt for a few seconds, and then his laughter rippled through the air. His white teeth presented a startling contrast to his tanned skin and ear-length, dark hair.
“Now what’s funny?” Matt asked, only briefly glancing up from the menu.
“She left your ass. There’s no other reason for you to be so bloody peevish. Was it before or after you and she…? You two were headed for it based on the security footage.”
Matt’s jaw tightened. “I’ll knock out those expensive teeth you just had fixed if you don’t lay off this right now.”
“You are so fucked.” Eli went back to chuckling to himself as he looked at the menu.
“What exact
ly is that supposed to mean?”
“Fate’s a fickle bitch, Matt. I’ve warned you that one day she was going to creep up and bite you in the ass. You live in denial. Eventually, you’ll come to terms with the fact that you are one of us. And, apparently one with a big destiny.” A slow smile spread across his face.
“You sound like Yoda.” The coolness of Matt’s tone suggested he wasn’t amused.
“The truth me see.” Eli tented his hands in front of his face. “I just can’t believe that you’d get chosen for one of those girls.”
“I am not her destined.”
“Really? She’s popping in and out of your life. You practically boffed her in a hallway. If you’re not destined, then how would you feel about someone else, a different druid, with his hands on her? Licking her?”
His mind hazed red. He shot over the table and jabbed Eli in the throat. Not enough to kill him, but a warning. “Stop this right now.”
Eli coughed and grabbed for his tea. “I might’ve deserved that, but that woman is driving you nuts. And I’m right.”
He glared at Eli, hating how well his brother knew him. His level of freak-out over Kat and potential bonding only fueled his short fuse.
Eli shrugged off the attack. “How’s she doing after Acquisitions went after her?”
Matt gave the waitress his order. Then resumed, “You’re not the first person today to ask me about her.”
Eli frowned and cursed under his breath. “What did Bryce do to you?”
Matt massaged his temple, somehow comforted that if he ever faced off against Bryce, his brother would be on his team.
“He didn’t,” Eli said. “A mind crunch? What else?”
“Threatened me with Allison. To reveal you and Quinn.”
“That’s…not Bryce. He’s about protection, not threats. This situation must be driving him to the edge. You know we need her, well all seven of the girls to be in attendance… Cripes, it’s in two days or something, I think.” Eli took a sip of ice tea.
“What I can’t figure out is his angle with that Jason kid.” He gritted his teeth against renewed violence when he imagined Jason touching her.
“The one Bryce claims is matched with Kat?”
He nodded.
Eli smiled. “Uh, right. Whatever on that one. I know his family. They’re a good bunch. Excellent druid powers in that line, but I think it must skip a generation because Jason is kind of a dud. He’s got some mediocre precog skills, but that’s about it. He’s in training for Sentry, but I’m not sure he’ll make it. I think Bryce wants them to be matched because he can intimidate the kid into doing what he wants. What I don’t understand is why Bryce doesn’t get that he can’t play God. Just because you go along with some bullshit this kid claims he saw in a random dream, and you want it to happen, doesn’t mean it’s going to work.”
“What exactly are Kat’s supposed powers?” asked Matt.
“You don’t know?” A slow grin spread on Eli’s face. “That’s rich.”
“Bryce mentioned mind-bending. What exactly does that mean?”
“Not that Bryce has publicly divulged this, but as a mind-bender she should be able to read minds, change minds, coerce. That type of stuff. She try anything on you?”
“No.” At least not that he was aware of.
“You probably wouldn’t know if she did her magic on you. But since you and she are probably you know what to each other, that means she might not be able to use her stuff on you.”
“We are not…” he paused and gritted out, “destined.” His tone suggested that pushing this topic would result in more pain.
Eli raised his tea glass in silent acquiescence and took a sip.
Matt observed two men enter the diner. In a quiet voice he said, “Two guys just came in and scanned this place. Trained operatives. Maybe Acquisitions. They’re at your back in the booth close to the front door.”
Eli stood and sauntered in the direction of their waitress who was at a table close to the entrance. He slid into a gentile Southern accent. “Ma’am, hate to bother, but could I get a refill on the tea.” He smiled charmingly through her bubbly consent, then returned to the table.
Eli leaned back in the booth and threw his arms wide. To the world he appeared to be enjoying himself immensely. He slid back to his British accent. “OLM. No doubt. They’re carrying and I saw a zip tie hanging out of a pocket. Probably Acquisition shites. There are two more of them outside in the navy SUV. What protection you packing?”
“One piece. You?”
“Ankle, but it’s more of a toy. If we can get to my truck, then we’re good. Suggestions?”
“They won’t take us in here. Too many witnesses. We need to get out before they snap photos. I do not want to be on the OLM’s bulletin board of Most Wanted Weirdoes.”
“The real question is what they’re doing here. Do they seem to you like we’re their targets?” Eli swirled the ice in his tea.
He watched the men covertly for a minute. “No.”
Bryce’s supposition that he was Kat’s focal point to enter this dimension slid through his mind. In this one instance, he hoped she wouldn’t come to him. Not here and definitely not now.
…
Nine twenty-five p.m. according to the stove clock. Kat kicked off her shoes next to the kitchen counter and slid her keys onto the slick surface with a bit too much momentum. They slid off the other side and clattered on the floor. Great. Perfect ending for a too-long day.
Her head still howled in complaint over the memory bursts from earlier, and the argument she’d had with Riley to ensure him that she’d be fine if he dropped her off.
Her stomach growled, and she stood at the open freezer contemplating the slim selection of microwave dinners and four wild-berry popsicles. She read the nutritional information on a chicken concoction that would probably taste like salty garlic and slid it back into the freezer. She snagged an apple and pulled out the cutting board. Three slices and the knife slipped, its point slicing her wrist. The laceration had penetrated the tip of Matt’s swirly triangle mark. Damn it.
She pressed a towel over the laceration and wished for Matt. Maybe he could fix this. The last thing she wanted was an ER visit right now. Her thumb rubbed over the mark to the point it created a heated friction in addition to bleeding. She thought desperately, Get me out of here. Take me to him.
The world spun.
…
Matt sipped coffee. His taste buds cringed and he resisted the urge to spit the swill back into the cup. His phone vibrated across the table. Without checking the number he answered gruffly, “What?”
“Matthew, she needs you. She’s coming back. It’s up to you, now,” said a young woman.
“Nicole?” Alarm vise-gripped his gut. Maybe the nineteen year-old Pleiad precog had a vision.
“Ground her to this world. Protect her and bring her to us. Don’t let them get her. She won’t trust anyone else.”
Matt gripped the phone tighter. “Your voice sounds funny.”
Silence came from the other end.
“You still there, Nicole?” Matt pressed the phone to his ear, detecting breathing.
She asked in a small voice, “Who am I on the phone with?”
“Matt Ryan.”
“Why are we on the phone?”
“You tell me. We haven’t spoken since I left the Society. I think you had one of your episodes. Can you remember?”
“How did I even know your number? This precog thing is embarrassing. What did I say?”
“I think you suspect the missing Pleiad is about to be found.”
“Really? Then why would I call you and not Bryce? I’m sorry I bothered you. We miss you. You must come visit.”
“Bye, Nicole.”
The mark on his wrist burned a few seconds after he disconnected the call. A sharp sting evocative of a knife blade penetrated the area. “We’ve got to leave. Now. There’s about to be a situation.”
Eli set do
wn his ice tea and tensed. “Was that our Nicole on the phone?”
“She had a vision. Something’s about to happen.”
“What’s the plan?”
“Your truck. You’re going to lose the Acquisitions guys while I take care of our extra passenger.”
“What extra passenger? What about that POS you drove down here.” Eli squinted through the window.
Matt threw two twenties on the table and headed for the exit with Eli on his hells. “Forget the car. We need to stick together.” The buzz of psychic energy surrounded him. “You feel it? She’s coming.”
Kat’s form materialized ten feet in front of him on the asphalt as they exited the diner. His mind froze at the sight of the blood-soaked towel she pressed to her wrist. Had she tried to suicide herself? Holy shit.
Disoriented green eyes scanned the area. Her lower lip trembled. She squinted at him as if she couldn’t quite make him out.
He swallowed hard in an attempt to put a lid on the fear powering through him. With a bit more force than necessary he asked, “What happened?”
“Matt?” she croaked out in a barely discernible whisper. “God, my eyes hurt. I had a bit of an accident.”
Relief that she hadn’t been suiciding herself calmed his mind. “You picked a really shitty time to pop in.” He eyed the Acquisitions Team. They were on the move with weapons in full view. He scooped her off the ground and sprinted toward Eli’s double-cab truck. A bullet pierced the side of the truck just as he slammed the door. A second one grazed his shoulder as it pierced the truck’s metal.
Eli squealed the tires on his rush out of the lot. “Hang on. They’re following. Goddamned Sighter must’ve predicted this.”
“What the hell!” he bellowed as he shot off the seat with Kat in his lap. “I just got ass-fucked by an orange soda can. Did a garbage bag explode back here or something, Eli?” He threw the offending can at the dashboard.
“Watch it!” Eli yelled as he ducked the ricocheting can.
The car swerved, throwing them tight against the passenger side of the rear seat.
“Who’s chasing us?” she asked.
