The Adversary

by Lindsay McKenna

  “A vendetta? Revenge? Is that why he wants to kill you?” Her heart pounded momentarily. Colt was a vital man, a man of nature and hard work. There was nothing lame or weak about him. Shelly couldn’t envision Colt being overpowered, much less killed by a Navajo witch.

  “Something like that,” he said. “I feel him around. I always know how close or far away he is from me.” Colt decided not to tell Shelly the rest of the terrible story, about the loss of his sister. He didn’t know her that well. It was a wound that would never fully heal until he confronted the Skin Walker and killed him.

  Shivering, Shelly said, “That’s awful! I don’t know if I could live with that kind of knowledge. To be stalked day and night, a witch just waiting to jump inside my body and kick me out…”

  “He’s after me, not you.”

  The hardness of his words didn’t make Shelly feel any better. Without thinking, she reached out and touched his arm. “That wasn’t what I meant, Colt.” The moment her fingers touched his flesh, his eyes flickered with desire—for her. Was she crazy? Shelly no longer trusted herself or the signals men gave to her. In the past, she’d completely misread them. Instantly, she lifted her fingertips off his arm. The muscles leaped where she’d grazed his skin.

  “You said a Skin Walker is a coyote?” she asked, gulping.

  Nodding, Colt tried to ignore the ripple of energy her touch had created up and down his arm. “Yes. They come out at dusk and stalk the reservation until dawn. They can’t handle sunlight. They hide and wait and plot during the daylight hours.”

  “So, we’re safe during the day?”

  “No.”

  Tilting her head, she gave him a questioning look.

  “Yellow Teeth is in spirit. My father killed him years ago. When a Skin Walker’s in spirit, he can come at you day or night.”

  Real fear ate at Shelly. “That’s awful. You’ve suffered a lot of trauma,” she said.

  Her ability to empathize touched Colt’s heart as nothing had in a long time. Who was this woman? Gazing into her glistening eyes filled with compassion, he found only innocence and trust. The blanket of freckles across her cheeks and nose made her look more like a teenager than the young woman she really was. It brought out Colt’s protectiveness. “Yes, my family has suffered greatly because of Yellow Teeth.”

  Shelly sighed. “I wonder if my dream about the sorcerer is really about Yellow Teeth?”

  “I would think it was, but it was your dream. You tell me.”

  Pushing some strands of hair away from her brow, Shelly shrugged. “This is all new to me. I get prophetic dreams, but nothing like this one. Frankly, I’m surprised you’re sitting here with me. I doubted the dream from the beginning. I really didn’t think I’d meet anyone here in the park today.”

  “Me either.” For the first time, a hint of a smile curved the corners of his mouth. “I’m used to dealing with the Other Side, but this is a new one to me, too.”

  “Do you think that Yellow Teeth sent us the dreams?”

  Colt digested her question. “I didn’t think he could do something like that. I have a lot of barriers up that he can’t breach.” Looking over at her thoughtful expression, he said, “Maybe he got to you. But that wouldn’t make sense. No, I think someone else sent us these twin dreams.”

  “But who?” She opened her hands, exasperation in her voice. “Are we being guided by someone evil, Colt? Right now, I’m really scared. Vortex work can be dangerous upon occasion, but nothing like this. And I’m really out of my element.”

  Without thinking, Colt moved his hand to her slumped shoulder. When his fingers met the soft fabric and he felt the warmth of her flesh beneath it, something happened. The doors of his heart flew open. It caught him off guard. For so long, Colt had resisted women on an emotional level. Oh, he’d had his fair share of liaisons with women, but nothing permanent. He didn’t want Yellow Teeth to kill the woman he loved. And as he connected with Shelly, Colt felt all his resolve melt away. There was something so clean and untouched about Shelly that he had no defense against it—or her.

  “Don’t be afraid,” he coaxed in a low voice. His fingers brushed her shoulder as he might caress a fractious, frightened horse. “I’m here. I’ll protect you. I have a lifetime of dealing with dark beings here or in any other dimension. We’re here for a reason, that I know. And I don’t feel that trying to find this green sphere is a bad thing. I feel Yellow Teeth nearby and that means he’s going to be stalking me as usual, not you.”

  Leaning into his cupped hand on her shoulder, Shelly absorbed the strength and unexpected warmth from Colt. She closed her eyes briefly, whispering, “Thank you.” She absorbed his continued touch. “You scare me, Colt, in some ways. In other ways, I feel like you’re a knight from the Round Table here to protect me.”

  If he didn’t remove his hand now, Colt wouldn’t be able to resist touching her graceful neck, threading his fingers through that mass of gleaming red-gold hair and then finding her mouth to kiss her. Never in his life had he been so mesmerized by a woman. In the past, he could remain immune to their charms, their guile, their bodies and the way they swayed when they walked. But not Shelly. Forcing his hand away, he managed a slight smile. “I’m no threat to you. I want to protect you, Shelly.”

  Searching his face, she realized that something magical had happened between them. Shelly didn’t know why, but it had, and now Colt’s rugged face was readable. She felt his sensitivity, his awareness, his raw need of her. And then, just as suddenly, Shelly watched him bring down a steel wall between them. All his warmth, his desire for her, vanished. In its place came an implacable look coupled with strength.

  “You’re not an easy man to understand.”

  “I’m complex,” he agreed. But so was Shelly. Colt wanted to ask her a hundred questions. “But what about you? I don’t feel you’re an uncomplicated person, either.”

  Laughing, perhaps from the strain of the connection building between them, Shelly said, “Oh, compared to you, I’m quite simple.”

  Colt knew that wasn’t true. Right now, he had to remain alert and stay focused on the mission. “We need to study the maps back in our hotel room and get an idea of what we’re going to do tomorrow,” he told her.

  “I agree,” Shelly murmured, somewhat reassured that Colt’s defenses were not aimed at her, but rather his wanting to protect her. Shelly had never been trained in the art of psychic defense. Vortexes for the most part were simple, straightforward and not really dangerous at all—unlike spirits or men.

  Colt stood up and motioned to the hotel. “Let’s go to our rooms and rest for a while. I’d like to catch some quick shut-eye.” He entertained the thought of one room, but said nothing. Understanding that Yellow Teeth hovered somewhere unseen yet watching, Colt wasn’t about to leave himself open or Shelly defenseless, should the evil witch decide to take advantage of a romantic moment between them.

  “Good idea,” Shelly said, standing and smoothing out the fabric of her slacks.

  Colt moved to her side. To hell with it. He slipped his hand beneath her elbow and guided her along the sidewalk. He wanted to touch her. He wanted her. All his training as a medicine man warned him not to engage her and yet he couldn’t stop himself completely. Threading through the happy, chatting tourists walking along beside Lake Louise, Colt understood as never before that he was a shield for Shelly. Whatever was going to happen next, he had to be aware. There was no room for error.

  Chapter 6

  “Where are they going?” Victor growled. He stood up on a slight knoll above the canoe wharf the next morning. Fog slipped silently across the emerald lake at 6:00 a.m. Few tourists were up and about at this hour. He’d felt the Taqe awaken and watched as they had breakfast in the Wildflower Restaurant at the hotel. Then they’d donned their hiking gear and taken off long before the sun climbed above the peaks. At his side were Jeff and Lothar.

  “They’re bypassing the wharf,” Lothar said.

  Frowning,
Victor rubbed his chin. They stepped off the path and began to walk slowly along the edge of the lake. “They’re looking for something.”

  Shrugging, Lothar said, “Let them do the dirty work. Then we’ll swoop in and take the sphere at the right moment.”

  Victor nodded. “Exactly. We have cell phones as well as mental telepathy in order to stay in touch. Jeff, you do the tailing. Don’t let them see you. Stay back. Note what they do. It won’t take more than half a day to go around most of this lake.”

  “Yes, my lord,” Jeff said. He had on a day pack, wore jeans, a green T-shirt and sturdy hiking boots.

  “The only part of this lake that doesn’t have a trail is down there,” Lothar said, pointing beyond the wharf.

  “And my guess is they are going to scour the shoreline on this side first,” Victor said. “And if they don’t find it there, they’ll come back and pick up that canoe they rented yesterday.”

  “I’d give anything to see them find it,” Jeff said.

  Turning, Victor glared at him. “Don’t lose your head, boy. If you think they’ve spotted it, you get a hold of us immediately. You don’t take this into your own hands. Too much is at stake.”

  Riffling beneath the Dark Lord’s censure, Jeff lowered his eyes. “I only meant, my lord, that the sphere probably isn’t sitting on the shoreline of this lake. If it was, someone would have found it. I think they’re looking for a sign as to where it might be located. Remember, the woman said she was would look for flowers along the shore?”

  Victor decided Jeff wasn’t as stupid as he’d assumed. “I believe she was lying, but I agree with you that they’re looking for some kind of sign that might point them in the direction of the sphere. What, we don’t know yet.”

  Jeff felt his anger cool as Victor treated him with more respect. “What about looking around specific rock formations? There’s plenty of rock promontories around this lake.”

  Raising his brows, Victor gave Jeff a look of satisfaction. “Smart thinking, my boy. So, keep your binoculars handy and let’s see what they stop and look at. Maybe we’ll pick up a clue that way.”

  “Yes, my lord,” Jeff murmured, feeling as though he was vindicated to a degree. The last thing he wanted was to be seen as stupid by the Dark Lord. He hadn’t been in the Tupay realm that long and he had no wish to start off on the wrong foot with the boss.

  “WAIT, COLT,” Shelly cautioned. They had made a quarter of the circuit around Lake Louise. The sun climbed in the sky and the coolness of the morning disappeared like the fog that had hung across the lake earlier. She’d put out her hand and he stopped.

  “You’re feeling a vortex?” he asked.

  “Do you feel it?” she asked, turning and giving him a smile. Colt looked focused, his eyes narrowed with intensity. She was beginning to realize he could never relax with the threat of the Skin Walker spirit. Her heart ached for him.

  “Of course.” Colt looked up and opened his senses more. “I’d say we’re on the edge of it.”

  “I think we’re right to assume that the emerald sphere could be near a vortex on a lakeshore. We just need to find those two boulders along with it.”

  “Right,” Colt agreed, coming up to her shoulder. He peered over the lush grass bank. Below it were many pebbles and some rocks of varying sizes, shapes and colors. The lapping sound of the water soothed him. “I don’t see two big boulders together. Do you?”

  “No, darn it,” Shelly said, frowning.

  “Maybe there’s more than one vortex on this lake?” he wondered. “Sometimes, because of the way the land formed,” Colt said, gesturing around the lake, “there can be more than one.”

  “Local and regional vortexes can be anywhere,” Shelly agreed, looking around the curve of the lake. As the sun moved higher in the sky, the water slowly turned from emerald to turquoise in color. The beauty all around her and having Colt so near was enough to make her yearn to throw her arms around his neck and kiss him. Last night had been a special hell for her. She’d done nothing but dream of kissing Colt and making love to him. As withdrawn and unapproachable as he was, she’d awakened at 3:00 a.m., gasping, with an ache in her lower body. She tried to tear her thoughts from the heat of her dream. “You see how those two mountains are situated above the lake?” she asked.

  Colt looked to where she pointed. “Yes, I see them. That’s a low point between them and often energy will run through such an area.”

  “They look like a saddle and are U-shaped.” She turned and with her index finger pointed to the opposite side of the lake and the mountains in the distance. “And there’s a low point between two mountains over there. In geomancy, low elevation areas between peaks are natural openings for earth energies to flow without obstruction. And that could give us more than one vortex here on this lake.”

  “Right on,” Colt said. There was nothing to dislike about this woman who seemed to be such an idealist. The opposite of him. But then, Colt reminded himself, she came from a different world than he did. She had no training or defense knowledge of the dark side of the other worlds and dimensions. He did. Still, he allowed himself the pleasure of losing himself in her green, gold and brown eyes. They shone with an excitement and joy that infused him. In that moment, Colt realized Shelly was able to touch his heart as no other woman ever had.

  “Well,” she sighed, “it’s possible that another local or regional line, called a Hartmann line, could be crossing this large corridor of energy. Where they cross, there’s always a vortex.”

  “Reading the land is tough,” Colt said, looking around. “We don’t call these lines of energy by any name, but we feel them and know they are there.”

  “My father is a geomancer. He came by the skill naturally through our Irish bloodlines. All of his family ‘walked the land’ in Ireland. He taught me everything I know.” Shelly smiled up at him. Colt wore his black hat. He had traded in his Western footwear for hiking boots. Reluctantly. There was something warm and simple about him that drew her like a magnet. She saw the heat banked in his blue eyes as he held her gaze. Oh, how badly she wanted to kiss that mouth of his! Shelly was glad he couldn’t read her mind.

  “I can see it would take years and a lot of travel to understand how ley lines worked with local Hartmann lines,” he told her. “My father began teaching me about the energy patterns and lines when I was six years old.”

  “A dowser can easily locate them with dowsing rods,” she told him. “And, yes, it’s a lifelong learning.”

  Taking his hat off, Colt wiped his brow and settled the Stetson back on his head. He had a hard time keeping his eyes off Shelly. She was fetching in her jeans, a white long-sleeved blouse covered with a hot-pink nylon jacket. The color set off her red hair, tamed to a degree beneath her pink knit cap. Even July mornings were in the mid-forties in the middle of the Canadian Rockies. By noon, the temperature would bring a lovely seventy to eighty degrees and they could tuck their jackets and hats away in their day packs.

  Pulling a bottle of water from her belt, Shelly drank deeply. Already she could see tourists coming out on the path around the lovely, long glacial lake. Fortunately they were far enough from the hotel that few people had wandered their way yet. Capping the bottle, she snugged it back into a net holder on her belt. “With this energy flowing through these mountains, I think the next vortex we might run into will be on that opposite shore.” Shelly pointed to an area where there was no trail.

  “We’ll take that canoe when we’re done hiking here and check it out,” Colt said.

  “Wouldn’t it be lovely if the emerald sphere was over there?”

  Colt grimaced. “Yes, it would. But if we find it, what do we do with it?”

  “Well, I’m hoping you or I will have a dream that tells us those things,” Shelly said, skimming her thumbs beneath the straps of her pack.

  “I like it here,” Colt said, falling into step with her as she continued forward. “This is a great place to visit.” If only the threat of Yellow
Teeth weren’t in the background. Colt felt himself wanting to open up, to allow his defenses to drop and simply enjoy time and space with Shelly. She infused him with joy, a rarity in his lifetime.

  As they walked along the lakeshore, Colt shortened his stride for her. Sometimes, by accident, their hands would graze as they walked the narrowed trail. Each time, Colt absorbed that fleeting touch like the starving animal he was. Shelly reminded him of just how much he ached for a real relationship with a woman—to be able to open up, be vulnerable and share. But then anger rifled through him and he thought of Yellow Teeth. The Skin Walker had ruined his life in so many ways. Colt wished the cowardly witch would confront him once and for all. Only one of them would survive that confrontation. And Colt was tired of waiting. With a woman like Shelly around him, he wanted—needed—to have a real life, a love, a dream of a future with a woman who made him happy and vice versa.

  Colt felt the telltale rippling sensation that told him a small vortex was nearby. As he drew closer to the center of it, about fifty feet up the bank, he stopped. “This is a male vortex,” he told Shelly. “Let’s look carefully around the bank here.”

  He got down on his hands and knees to look below the overhang. Searching the shoreline, Colt saw only small, colorful pebbles. They had been ground smooth and were slightly rounded or made oval by the sheer weight and force of the Ice Age glaciers. “Nope,” he grunted, sitting back on his heels, “they’re not here.”

  “Bummer,” Shelly muttered, holding out her hand to Colt. “I feel like we’ve just begun a long search.” Her fingers curled around his and he stood up. He didn’t want to release her fingers but he knew he had to. Any reason to touch Shelly was a good one. He asked himself where this was going. His life had been indelibly stamped out for him. As he watched Shelly remove her knit cap and her red hair fell softly against her shoulders, his heart ached. What would it be like to tame that red hair of hers? Shelly quickly ran her fingers through the strands and smoothed them into place.