Lethal Game

by Christine Feehan

  The child studied him and then shook her head. “I don’t think so, Malichai, but Mommy sews on a machine. She could make you one.”

  He nodded. “That sounds perfect. I’ve needed one for a while. Maybe she could make me one and I can do dishes until the dishwasher is fixed. That’s a fair exchange, don’t you think?”

  Jacy thought it over and then agreed. “Yes.”

  Malichai gave Marie a triumphant smile. “Looks like I’m your official dishwasher in exchange for an apron I can take home with me. The girls will get a kick out of it. If you can, would you mind putting pockets in it so I can put some things in it for the girls to find when they’re helping me?”

  “Do you really want me to make you an apron?” Marie asked.

  “Yes, please, if it’s not too much trouble. I can do dishes, since I don’t have the first clue how to do this vacation thing. I’m having fun just getting to know the three of you.” For him, it was far better than sitting alone on a beach.

  Amaryllis put her hand on his arm. The moment she did, a tingle of awareness crept down his spine and entered his bloodstream, like tiny little champagne bubbles. He felt them moving through his veins, spreading through his body, a slow assault that just kept growing.

  “If we’re really going to do this and we want time to enjoy it, we’ll have to leave now,” she said.

  Even her voice seemed to stroke along his nerve endings. He wasn’t so certain being alone with her, even in the light of day with people around them, was all that good of an idea. He turned his hand and caught hers, threading their fingers together.

  “You’re right, let’s go.” He waved at Jacy and let Amaryllis lead him into the open air.

  The moment they stepped outside, the view was amazing. “The bed-and-breakfast has the perfect location. No wonder Marie has a waiting list to get in half the time.” He nearly groaned aloud. That was a big mistake. The investigation had turned that piece of information up. He’d gotten a reservation because there had been a cancellation.

  “It is lovely, isn’t it?” Amaryllis said. “Marie loves it. If Jacy wasn’t so ill, she’d be doing great financially. She works hard all the time. She doesn’t have relatives that can help her, so since her husband was killed, she’s done everything alone.”

  “Will Jacy live?”

  “She has a good chance. Marie is very careful with her. She keeps her away from most people at the inn to cut down the chances of her getting something that her immune system couldn’t handle right now. Jacy’s very inquisitive and it’s hard on her not to interact with so many people. Marie didn’t look so defeated this afternoon, the way she did this morning, so I’m assuming the visit to the doctor went well. She texted me twice and said things were looking up, so hopefully Jacy was just struggling a little like she does in the mornings and isn’t really sick.”

  “I don’t get sick,” Malichai assured her, feeling guilty that he’d gotten so close to Jacy. “Even when I was a kid, I didn’t get sick like most kids do. I must have a very strong immune system. Either that or my brother beat me up so often it scared any illness out of me.” He laughed when he said it and was happy when she laughed with him.

  They walked along the sidewalk, sand stretching all the way to the ocean waves on one side, brightly painted buildings on the other. The sun was hot, but it wasn’t the perfumed, humid heat of the swamp, it was different. He would have said dry, but the slight breeze carried salty mist from the sea with it.

  Amaryllis didn’t seem to notice that they were still holding hands, so he didn’t make the mistake of calling attention to it. He’d never walked anywhere holding hands with a woman and he found, with her, he liked the feeling.

  “Now that I think about it, I don’t get sick either,” she said. “That’s kind of weird, isn’t it? That neither of us was prone to childhood illnesses.”

  He shrugged, not wanting to think too much on that coincidence. “My brothers tell me that just means when I get sick as an adult, I’m going to get whatever it is far worse than anyone else. They usually laugh like hyenas when they inform me of what I have to look forward to.”

  “Your family sounds . . . nice.”

  He heard the wistful note in her voice. “They are.” He followed her up the stairs to the little café sandwiched between two larger stores. One store sold all kinds of gifts for tourists, and the other catered to locals with a beach-themed clothing line. He noted the buildings, exits, entrances, stairs, rooftops and escape ladders as well as the cars in the lots and the various people walking along the sidewalk. Filing each small bit of information away, his gaze drifting quickly over faces and clothes, Malichai was able to make a mental map of the area and those working, playing or residing in it—and he did that in seconds.

  The café was efficiently run. The space was small, so rather than have tables and chairs everywhere, the café utilized the area by giving their employees the ability to move around and be fast. The majority of the seating was outside under a very large covered patio. Customers ordered, took a number and went outside to sit at one of the tables. The moment he was seated, Malichai stretched out his leg, trying not to groan at the relief he felt being off of it.

  “What happened?” Amaryllis asked.

  Malichai figured there was no need for pretense. Clearly, he hadn’t been nearly as good at covering up the injury as he thought he’d been. It didn’t make sense that it hurt so much when by now, it should be almost completely healed. He reached down to rub along his thigh where the cramping was the worst. Most of what he did was classified. Or, he was classified, along with the other members of his team.

  “I’m in the Air Force—in pararescue. A medic. Got into a little scrape during a rescue operation and my leg took the brunt of it all. Nothing big, but annoying nevertheless. Had to take a forced leave and here I am.”

  She leaned her chin into the heel of her hand and stared at him with her sapphire eyes. “What does pararescue do? I haven’t really heard of them.”

  He put his hand over his heart. “That just kills me, honey. A knife, right through the heart. Mostly, we’re doctors and nurses trained in combat rescue. We go in when our troops are shot the hell up, stabilize them enough to allow them to travel, and then cover them while we run to the helicopter hoping we don’t get shot.” He gave her a little grin. “I was too slow.”

  “That’s your job?”

  The smile faded and he nodded. “They’re wounded soldiers. Our men. We’re not going to leave them behind or leave them for the enemy to get. We sometimes have a couple of escort helicopters who try to keep the enemy off us. More often than not it’s a hot zone, so we know ahead of time there’s going to be bullets coming at us. When we have soldiers down, they need care immediately and some have to be flown to Germany or other places to be operated on, although a few of the docs have had to do that kind of thing right there in order to save a leg, an arm or a life.”

  “You aren’t anything like I thought you’d be.”

  “What did you think?” He was curious. He noted a couple a few tables from theirs arguing, but very quietly. She was upset, insisting that she wanted to “tell” the cops, and he shook his head adamantly and said he didn’t want to get involved. They really didn’t know enough to “tell” anyone. He wanted her to shut up and change the subject.

  “You look tough. Your body could be a bodybuilder’s although you have definition. You don’t have the large bulk; still, you’re in very good shape. There’s a look about you that says not to mess with you.”

  He gave her a faint smile, allowing his gaze to drift past the arguing couple and touch on others. He recognized the three from the bed-and-breakfast who had been in the hallway. The two men were talking about the best place in San Diego to surf, while the woman looked bored. A trio of men in suits with briefcases sat at another table. They’d been at the bed-and-breakfast working in one of the r
ooms designed for just that purpose.

  “That’s implying you think medics can’t be tough. We have to be. We’re doing fieldwork with bullets flying around us. We’re sometimes packing the wounded out by ourselves. Running with them while carrying blood and fluids in bags to helicopters and leaping in as they’re already in flight.”

  “That sounds so crazy. I never thought about the men and women who rescue the soldiers when they’re wounded. In my mind, I guess I equated rescues with Rangers and SEALS, teams like that.”

  “I’m trying not to be insulted.” He gave her his full attention. “We rescue them.”

  The sun shone down on her hair, turning the streaks of colors wheat, caramel and a silvery snow. She even had a little gold mixed in. Her hair color was as intriguing as her eye color. He loved both, but he thought her eyes were just a fraction ahead in the race. The more he looked into them, the less he thought she wore contacts.

  She gave him a smile that melted his insides and told him it wasn’t a good idea for him to fall too hard for her because one smile like that and she’d get her way in all things. He’d never hear the end of that shit from his brothers or fellow teammates.

  “I wasn’t intending to insult you, it’s just, I never actually thought about it. Medics seemed to be held out of harm’s way, at least in the movies. They come in after all the fighting is over.”

  Malichai shrugged. “I never thought about how we’re portrayed in movies, nor does it matter to us. It’s about the soldiers and getting them home in one piece and alive if at all possible.”

  He indicated the three businessmen. “I saw those three at the bed-and-breakfast as well as the two men and woman at that table. They were arguing in the hall and they still seem to be arguing. Are they always like that?”

  “The three businessmen came in the day before you. They all work for the same company, Lanterns International, but each came in from a different country. One is from Texas, one is from Hong Kong and the third is from India. They apparently meet in person every six months. They’re waiting for a fourth and fifth member, one from Switzerland and the last from Japan. They’ve met here before. The company is called Lantern International because it’s all about bringing together ideas to spread peace and understanding among people of various countries. People with opposing beliefs and politics.”

  “That seems like a very unattainable goal,” Malichai stated.

  She drew back a little. “But surely you can see all the unrest in the world. Maybe if people weren’t so busy judging one another and tried to be more understanding . . .” She trailed off with a little frown on her face.

  Without thinking, he reached across the table and rubbed the pad of his fingers over her lips as if he could erase her frown. “I didn’t say it wasn’t an admirable idea, only that it seems unattainable, which it does. There are peace talks going on all the time, and no one seems to get anywhere.”

  Her lips were every bit as soft as they looked. Full, curved like a bow, they gave a man too many fantasies. She didn’t move for a moment, but her eyes went an even deeper shade of blue, taking on that jeweled tone he’d first noticed. Then she pulled back slightly, and he dropped his hand as if just realizing what he was doing.

  “Those talks don’t work because every country is out for itself, to strike the best deal. Their idea is people getting together. They’re planning a huge conference in a couple of weeks, at least that’s what Marie told me. It’s been in the works for several years. I haven’t been keeping up, but I do know that’s why the five of them have flown in this time. The San Diego Convention Center isn’t that far from here, and the convention’s sold out.”

  “Well, I hope they’re successful. I’ve pulled enough of our young men, dead or dying, without arms or legs, sometimes both . . .” He pressed his fingers to the corners of his eyes, thinking of Tim and Jerry. They were too close. Good men, both, one gone and the other with a very long road ahead of him.

  She put her hand on his arm. “Don’t think about it, Malichai. Whatever happened to your leg, whatever is making you sad, don’t think about it.” She looked around the patio. “Half the customers staying at the B and B are attending the conference. You know the three in suits already. The couple at the table across from you are staying on the first floor. This is their first time with us, according to Marie. Bryon and Anna Cooper have been here a week and are staying another week. Both are very nice. They leave good tips and are extremely polite.”

  The waiter brought their food out and put it in front of them. Malichai had thought his stomach was going to go into a full mutiny if he didn’t eat soon, so he tried not to look like a starved man when he picked up his hamburger and took a bite. It was delicious, or maybe he was just that hungry, but it could have been the best burger he’d ever eaten.

  Amaryllis laughed softly. “You have this look on your face of absolute ecstasy.”

  He scowled at her, lowering the hamburger to his chest, but not relinquishing it for a moment. “Woman. You can’t use that word. I would only look like that if I was having sex. The right kind of sex.” He knew it was inappropriate, but he couldn’t help himself. He was a little shocked that she would equate eating food with ecstasy.

  She laughed again. “I can’t help how you look. Maybe you get the same look on your face when you’re having sex. Do you like food that much?”

  “As much as sex?” He took another bite and chewed thoughtfully, pretending to weigh the two in his mind. “You need to eat to keep up your strength for sex, so food is important, and you may as well enjoy it. Nonny is an amazing cook.”

  “Is she attractive?”

  Was there just a little hint of jealousy in her voice? He hoped so. “I would say men would always find her attractive. She is eighty, but the woman is a legend in the swamp. Stayed true to one man her entire life though, even long after she lost him.”

  She nodded. “I see. Well, on with it. Which wins, sex or food?”

  “Depends on who’s cooking and who I’m having sex with.”

  “That’s cheating. Totally cheating.”

  Malichai grinned at her. “You didn’t state the rules, so I slipped right through the loophole.” He indicated the two men and one woman he knew were staying at the bed-and-breakfast. He had to find something safer than sex to talk about with her. “Who are they?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Tania and Tommy Leven are brother and sister. Billy Leven is their cousin. They are difficult. We always have one or two, but it isn’t a big deal.” She took a bite of her own hamburger. She hadn’t gotten the double burger like he had, so hers was a much more delicate bite.

  “What’s difficult about them?”

  She shrugged. “Nothing big. The usual kind of thing. They don’t want their rooms cleaned, but they pile wet towels on the floor in the hall. Then they ask for new ones but won’t let me clean their bathrooms. They insist on room service when we don’t offer it. They’re always calling down for me to bring them coffee. I’ve told them a million times they can get coffee on the corner, or use the coffee maker in their room, but that isn’t good enough. Nothing big, and those things aren’t uncommon, but when I’m working like a crazy person, it can be annoying.”

  He could understand that. “The women in my family would probably hit them over the head.” Cayenne, Trap’s wife, would bundle them up in a silken cocoon and hang them from a tree, but he couldn’t say that.

  “I shouldn’t complain about them. They were really nice to Jacy. They even brought her back a coloring book and crayons when she was upset one day and they heard her crying. Tania said she has a younger sister, a girl about ten years younger than her, but she adores her. She hated the fact that Jacy was upset, so even though they have annoying ways, they can be sweet. Everyone else heard her crying as well, I know because Bryon and Anna Cooper inquired about her the next day and so did one of the men from Lantern Interna
tional, but only Tania thought to do something for Jacy.”

  Malichai had nearly finished off his burger and was working through his fries, trying not to eye hers. She hadn’t touched one. In fact, she was the slowest eater he’d ever seen. She chewed each bite a hundred times or more.

  “Tell me about your friend’s little girls. You said he had five daughters. I’ve never seen actual triplets.”

  He felt the instant stillness in his body. None of the team members talked much about the girls. They protected them, just as they protected Pepper, Wyatt’s wife. The triplets had been slated to be terminated by one of Whitney’s followers, who had been head of a laboratory until Malichai’s team killed him.

  “I don’t know that much about kids, but they’re pretty damn cute. Probably wouldn’t know what to do with one, but they make you want to have children. They smile at you and you just kind of melt.” He held her eyes across the table. “You want kids?”

  She nodded and pushed the little woven basket containing half her burger and all of her fries toward him. “I’m saving room for lasagna and sourdough bread.” She indicated the basket. “I sit on the beach and watch the kids play in the sand or make castles. Jacy definitely melts my heart. Yeah, I’d like to have children someday.”

  Malichai watched the couple, Bryon and Anna, get up together. Bryon slung his arm around his wife’s shoulders, and they took the stairs heading down to the beach. The day was beautiful, clear, feeling to Malichai as if he could see all the way to the other side of the ocean. The waves rolled in gently to the sandy beach, where dozens of bright umbrellas were set up and families played or read or just enjoyed the late afternoon sun.

  There was peace in being there. Or maybe it was just spending time with Amaryllis. It wasn’t like he spent time with a lot of women. He usually picked one up in a bar, spent a few hours with her and was gone. His life was about service to his country, being with his teammates and building a fortress out in the middle of the Louisiana swamp in the hopes that they could protect themselves from any attack on them.