Dark Defender (5 page)

Jarvis did a great imitation of a man trying to make amends for his clumsiness. One of the women came out from behind the desk to help, but Jarvis waved her off, dragging his victim around the corner into the men’s room. Trahern doubted the would-be orderly would be coming out anytime soon, especially under his own power.

Then he noticed that Brenna was no longer hiding behind him. She was standing off to his side, glaring at Jarvis as he disappeared from sight.

“What was that all about? That poor man was just standing there. You can’t tell me that Jarvis didn’t spill his coffee on purpose. There’s no way he’d ever be that clumsy.”

Good God.
To shut her up, Blake kissed her. His temper was running hot, but he gentled his lips over hers as he teased her lips apart with his tongue. And damn, her sweet taste had his prick sitting up and begging for attention. He’d been too long without a woman, and it didn’t help that Brenna was kissing him back.

Brenna moaned as her hands fluttered up his chest to settle around his neck. She pressed against him, making him painfully aware of the soft crush of her breasts against his chest. He wanted to drag her to the floor and bury himself in her sweet heat, but the hospital lobby was hardly the place.

He ripped his mouth from hers, his breath ragged as he stared down into her bewildered eyes. Her confusion faded as she remembered where they were and what Jarvis had done, and the stubborn set to her jaw told him she wasn’t going anywhere until he convinced her that Jarvis hadn’t lost his mind. Keeping her inside the circle of his arms, he whispered near her ear, “That guy was watching for us.”

“You couldn’t possibly know that. No one could.”

He saw red, tired of her arguments, tired of her doubts, and just plain tired. “Listen closely, Brenna. It’s my job to know such things. Jarvis is going to come out of that bathroom alone with an extra gun tucked in his belt and a transmitter that he’s taken off that guy you’re feeling so sorry for—who would have started shooting as soon as he recognized us.”

“But—”

“Chew my ass all you want later. Right now, either you walk out of here on your own or I’ll carry you out. Your choice.” He glared down at her, his teeth clenched in frustration.

She must have realized that she had pushed him as far as she could, because she backed down. “Fine. Lead on.”

He released his hold on her and walked close by her side, ready to pull his gun or respond to a physical attack. Jarvis caught up with them just as the doors slid open. Judging by the extra energy in his step, Trahern knew they had been right. For Brenna’s benefit, though, he asked, “What was he carrying?”

His friend grinned, even as his eyes began an automatic sweep of the hospital parking lot. “Picked up a nice little Glock. I’ve wanted one for my collection for some time. His transmitter was a piece of crap, so I just flushed it.”

The fear in Brenna’s eyes was back, but maybe now she’d follow their orders without arguing. Once she was feeling better and the memory of the past few days faded a bit, she’d be right back to standing toe to toe with him and arguing. He couldn’t wait; the defeat in her slumped shoulders was painful to see.

“Let’s get her to my rental car. Your car sticks out like a sore thumb, and we don’t want to draw any more attention to ourselves.”

Jarvis shook his head. “I don’t know how many more insults I can take from you about my car, Trahern. I think you’re just jealous.”

“Yeah, right. Keep her here while I check things out.”

Blake approached his rental slowly, watching for anyone who might be paying too much attention to their actions. He could hear sirens approaching. If they didn’t hurry, they could end up trapped in the parking lot by the emergency vehicles. Dropping to the ground, he checked the undercarriage for any telltale signs that someone might have left them an unwanted present.

Nothing.

He checked all four doors, especially the driver’s side, noting the small piece of grass he’d left over the bottom edge of the door was still in place. It didn’t guarantee that no one had been in the car, but he had also left a hair across the edge of the hood in two places. When he spotted both of them, he felt reasonably certain that the car hadn’t been tampered with.

He opened the door and turned the key in the ignition. For a brief second he held his breath, wondering if it would be his last. But the engine caught and ran smoothly. Jarvis hustled Brenna across to the car and guided her to the back door.

“Get in and lie down, Brenna. Once you’re away from here, you can sit up front. But if anyone is watching the exits, they’ll be looking for a woman in a hospital gown, not a man alone.”

She winced in pain as she obediently stretched out across the seat.

“Where are you going to take her?” Jarvis asked Blake.

“I don’t know.” Even if he did, he wasn’t going to tell. The fewer people who knew where Brenna was, the better.

His friend nodded. “Call me when you get settled, and we’ll plan our next step. Keep your head down, Ms. Nichols, and trust Trahern to protect you. There’s no one I’d rather have at my back.” He took one last look around the parking lot before slapping his hand on the trunk of the car to signal all was clear.

Blake backed out of the parking spot. As he started for the nearest exit, a couple of men charged out of the hospital, their heads turning from side to side. Luckily, other vehicles driving through the lot had two people in the front seat, and by the time the searchers had checked them out, Blake was safely out of the parking lot.

“We’re on the street now, Brenna, and I’m going to stick to side streets for the next mile or two to see if we’ve picked up a tail.”

He wasn’t used to explaining his every move, since he normally worked with men used to urban combat. The Paladins were natural-born killers, but fortunately for the rest of mankind, they came hardwired with a strong conscience and a need to protect. Each time they were badly wounded or killed, they healed quickly, but at the cost of becoming more like the Others—the human-like creatures that tried to invade Earth every chance they got.

He’d killed his fair share of Others while protecting the barrier that separated their world from his, but he’d died at the end of their swords way too often over the past couple of years. He and Dr. Laurel Young, the Handler who oversaw his care, knew that his test scores were rapidly reaching the point at which he could lose his humanity and become a danger to anyone around him. She was intensifying her research into what kept her Paladin lover, Devlin Bane, alive and stable for longer than any other of their kind in recent history. Blake didn’t hold out much hope that she’d find answers soon enough to save him, but he wished her luck.

“Trahern, can I get up now?”

He had driven several miles without realizing it. Damn, he couldn’t afford to lose his concentration now. After checking the mirrors, he glanced back over his shoulder.

“I’m going to pull into the discount store parking lot just ahead. You’ll have to wait in the car while I pick up some clothes for you.”

“Okay. I wear a medium in most things.” She pushed herself up into a sitting position. “My shoe size is eight and a half.”

“And your bra size?” The question probably embarrassed her, but he wasn’t about to guess.

“I take a 32C. I prefer a front clasp, but either kind will do.”

Sweet. More than a handful: just what he liked. He remembered all too clearly the feel of her breasts crushed against his chest back at the hospital—not that he should be having such thoughts about her, especially now. “Is there anything else you need, other than a few toiletries?”

“Some ibuprofen would be appreciated. Otherwise I’m fine.”

He pulled into a space near the busy main door. In the unlikely event they’d been followed, it would be harder for anyone to make a play for Brenna with so many people around.

“I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes.” He got out, taking a casual look around the lot. “Stay in the car and lay low.”

“All right. And Blake…”

“Yeah?”

“Please hurry.”

I
can’t believe you didn’t find the judge’s files.” He let silence express his displeasure with the bumbling fools.

Detective Swan shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “We just got back from searching Brenna Nichols’s office at the university. We didn’t find much because she’s taking the summer off, evidently to work on her next book. We plan to return to the judge’s house later today to continue our search. No one will question the detectives of record reexamining the crime scene alone, especially with Brenna Nichols’s mysterious disappearance from the hospital.”

He rolled his eyes, although that fiasco was his fault, not theirs. “What makes you think you’ll have any better luck searching his house this time?”

Detective Montgomery shot his younger partner a look meant to shut him up. It didn’t work.

“Last time we had half the department swarming around. If we’d started tearing out walls looking for a hidden safe, there would have been questions we—and you—don’t want to answer. And if we’d actually found the files, we’d have had the devil’s own time keeping them from being collected as evidence.”

Montgomery stepped in. “He’s right about that, sir. From what you’ve told us, the last thing you want is the judge’s files coming to light. And if we go down, you’ll be right there with us.”

So they had teeth and weren’t afraid to show them when cornered. As long as they served their purpose, he’d ignore the little display of bravado—for now. He wasn’t one to leave loose ends un-clipped when his mission was accomplished, and their deaths had always been a part of the plan.

A whisper here, a rumor there, and their precious reputations would be ruined. Despite their greed, their images as good cops were important to them. He’d burst that little balloon for them, right before he took them down. It would be a shame to let them keep all that lovely money he’d promised to pay them, but it might come in handy when Internal Affairs started their investigation.

Brenna Nichols was also on the short list of collateral damage. It was really too bad. By all reports, she was both lovely and brilliant. While beauty was common enough, genius wasn’t. Oh, well.

“Gentlemen, I expect better results for my money.” He ticked off their instructions on his fingers. “First, get back into the judge’s house. Burn the damn thing down if you have to, but no one—and I mean no one—gets their hands on his files.”

Both men nodded.

“Secondly, find out where Blake Trahern has stashed Ms. Nichols.”

“Do you want us to take him out?”

The insolent young pup actually sounded excited by the prospect. Of course, in his world, when a man died, he stayed that way. Trahern and the others like him would be quite a shock to these cops, who probably thought that they’d seen it all. It might be amusing to let them shoot a Paladin, just to teach them a lesson. He’d love to see how these two would react when Trahern showed up, pissed off and very much alive again.

But now wasn’t the time for games, no matter how amusing. “No, just locate them. It shouldn’t be hard for two of St. Louis’s finest.”

Swan nodded happily, oblivious to the hint of sarcasm in his voice. His partner didn’t miss the small jab, nor did he appreciate it.

He stood, signaling to his unworthy companions that the interview was over. He had his own agenda for the rest of the day. “Gentlemen, you have my cell number. Don’t call it unless you have good news. You’ll find I have little patience with failure.”

“Yes, sir.” Detective Montgomery heaved his considerable bulk up out of his chair. While his words were respectful, his attitude definitely was not. He might have more control over his mouth than his younger partner, but he was just as much an insolent fool.

They left the nondescript hotel room, closing the door with a little more force than was absolutely necessary. As soon as he knew they were really gone, he began packing. He’d already made reservations at another hotel for the night. The two cops were hardly his biggest fans and Trahern must hate him, even if he didn’t know his identity yet. It never paid to be where your enemy expected you to be.

Once he was settled in his new room, he would study the pieces in this chess game and decide on his next move.

“How did you know about this place?” Brenna eyed their surroundings with suspicion.

Blake had rather fond memories of this isolated roadside park. Not much had changed, except the old picnic table had been replaced with a plastic one that wouldn’t leave splinters in your naked ass—not that he’d been paying attention to the rough surface at the time.

Kelly’s particular talents had kept him focused on other things the night she’d introduced him to sex. He’d had a hell of a time getting those damn splinters out of his knees and backside the next day, but the pain had been worth it. His mouth tugged up in a grin at the memory.

“I’m not sure I like that smile, Blake.” Brenna eyed him with dubious suspicion. “You’ve been gone for twelve years. You never wrote, never called, and yet you remember one out-of-the-way little park.”

“I lost my virginity right there on that table. That’s the sort of thing a guy never forgets.” Honesty made him add, “Well, not that exact table. It was wooden and painted dark green.”

“Who?” She slapped her hand over her mouth. “Never mind. I don’t want to know.”

“I wasn’t going to tell you anyway.” Even though curiosity was eating her up, judging by the way her eyes kept darting to the table and then back at his anatomy. “Why don’t you change into your clothes so we can get a hotel?”

“Where should I change?” She looked around for some kind of shelter, other than the surrounding trees.

“This is no time for modesty, Brenna. If we walk into a hotel lobby with you in your hospital gown and slippers, they’re going to know something is fishy. We can’t use a public bathroom for the same reason. I promise I won’t look.” Unless he was sure he could get away with it.

To give her some semblance of privacy, he walked over to the picnic table and stretched out on top of it. He thought about closing his eyes, but as tired as he was, he couldn’t risk it. Exhaustion was playing hell with his concentration already. The sooner they found sanctuary for the night, the better off they both would be.

The sound of a car door opening startled him into sitting up, then he realized that Brenna was using it as a screen to change behind. It worked pretty well; in fact, too damn well. He could see her shoulders and a tantalizing hint of her cleavage, then nothing at all until below the door, which revealed her lower calves and bare feet. Who would have thought such glimpses would be so erotic?

Despite his promise, he couldn’t pull his eyes away as she slid the straps of her bra up her arms, then leaned forward to adjust the fit of the cups before fastening the front clasp. It was like a reverse striptease, but with the same effect on his body. When had putting on a T-shirt turned into a seductive dance?

First one foot and then the other disappeared into the lightweight running pants he’d bought her. When she stood to tug them up to her waist, there was a quick flash of white, no doubt the plain cotton panties he’d picked out. He didn’t think she would have appreciated getting skimpy, lacy ones from him, but he’d had a hard time reining in the urge to buy them.

The car door slammed shut. “I thought you weren’t going to watch.”

No use in denying it. “I lied.”

Looking thoroughly disgusted, she stuffed her hospital gown and robe into the shopping bags. Turning her back on him, she used the brush he’d bought to work the tangles out of her dark brown hair. If she thought she was shutting him out by facing away from him, she was sorely mistaken. She looked damned fine from any direction.

As if sensing his continued scrutiny, she glanced back at him. “Don’t stare.”

“Sorry.” Not that he was. The genetic anomaly that made a man a Paladin had also gifted him with a very healthy sexual appetite, and he’d been on a starvation diet for far too long. Still, one look at the fading bruises on her arms had him banking the fires.

“Let’s get out of here.” He stood up and stretched, trying to get the kinks out of his back and neck before climbing into the car.

Brenna winced as she settled into the front seat and fastened her seat belt. He had to admire her stamina. She’d been through hell the past few days, with no end in sight, yet she didn’t complain and kept going. It shouldn’t surprise him. She had a lot of her father in her, including a similar, frighteningly powerful intellect.

“There’s a hotel not far from here.”

She opened one eye and gave him a suspicious look. “Another vivid memory from your past? If so, pick another hotel.”

Her tart remark startled a laugh out of him. “Back then, the backseat of a car or a picnic table were the fanciest accommodations I could afford.”

She didn’t look convinced.

“I spotted this place on the way here.” He held his hand up in a mock salute. “Scout’s honor.”

“You were never a Boy Scout.”

“True, but I wouldn’t lie to you about this.”

“Which means there are some things you
will
lie about.” She turned to stare out the window.

Just that quickly, his good mood was gone. Because she was right: he would lie if necessary. And when she found out about her father’s lies, it might just destroy her.

Trahern checked them into the hotel with his usual efficiency. Brenna wasn’t happy about sharing a room with him. She still felt hot, flushed, and embarrassed from his earlier kiss. But short of pitching a fit right there in the lobby, there wasn’t much she could do. Once they were alone, he was going to get an earful—if she could stay awake long enough.

“Come on, honey, let’s go on up to the room. I can bring in our luggage later. Right now I’ve got other plans for us.”

The cad actually winked at the cute little blonde behind the counter. Lord save her from women who giggled. Then he had the nerve to throw his powerful arm around her shoulder and nearly drag her toward the elevator, as if he couldn’t wait to get her alone.

Once the elevator doors closed, she jerked free. Some of the makeup she’d slathered on to disguise her bruises had left a streak on his shirt, which pleased her.

“What was that all about?”

“Hotels find it odd when customers have no luggage. I don’t have anything but the bare essentials with me, and you have nothing. If she thinks we’re in a hurry to get to our room, she won’t wonder why I’ve only got this one small bag.”

Logical, but that didn’t mean she had to like it, or him leering at some sweet young thing in front of her. A flash of what felt suspiciously like jealousy burned through her. Intellectually she knew she had no right or reason to feel that way, but Blake’s reappearance in her life was too new for her to want to share.

When the elevator doors pinged, Blake pulled his gun from his waistband and checked the hallway outside before he’d let her come out. She didn’t like the unspoken reminder that she needed his protection.

A few seconds later, he pushed the door to their room open and tugged her inside. She was
so
ready to shower and crawl between clean sheets and sleep for hours. Trahern stopped abruptly, blocking her view of the room. She tried to shove him out of the way.

“Brenna, I swear I didn’t know.”

“Know what?” She leaned over to look past him, at the bed.

THE bed. As in a single place to sleep. If he didn’t look so shocked, she might have suspected this was another of those things he felt safe in lying about.

“So ask for another room.”

He sighed. “She said it was the last room available. I suppose we could go someplace else, but…”

“Never mind. I’ll sleep on the floor.” If she didn’t get horizontal soon, she’d probably fall asleep standing up.

“Like hell.”

“Fine, I’ll sleep in the chair then. Right now I don’t care.”

She headed for the bathroom, only to realize that she had nothing to sleep in except that hideous hospital gown. If they’d gotten separate rooms, she would have slept in her underwear, but that wasn’t going to work with him in the room.

No matter how battered she was, he managed to stir up thoughts and feelings she had no business having. Like how it had felt to be held so carefully in his arms, and the spicy male taste of his kiss. Desire, hot and liquid, settled at the apex of her legs. She couldn’t remember the last time, if ever, that she’d had such strong reactions to a man. She wanted him, plain and simple.

Eyeing the queen-size bed, she had a wayward thought. Sharing that mattress with Blake would be a heck of lot more comfortable than that old picnic table.

“Here. Thought you might want something clean to sleep in.” Blake tossed her a white T-shirt as she went into the bathroom.

“Thank you.” She blushed at the thought of wearing his clothing, but the alternative was unthinkable.

As much as she would have enjoyed a long soak in the tub to soothe her aches and pains, there wasn’t time. She wasn’t the only one in need of sleep. At least she’d had a decent night’s rest at the hospital; Blake had spent it in a chair. Skewing the water to the hot side of comfortable, she stepped into the shower and let the spray wash away some of the day’s problems.

The bandages on her arm got soaked in the process, and once she dried off, she carefully pulled them off and checked the stitches underneath. The wounds looked as if they were healing just fine, with no hint of redness.

All in all, she’d gotten off pretty lightly, considering how close she’d been to the explosion. Her poor father…NO! She was not going to think about him. Not yet. If she allowed even one tear to fall, she might not be able to stop.

She toweled her hair dry before pulling on Blake’s T-shirt, happy that it came to midthigh on her. Thank goodness he was as tall as he was. Feeling a bit shy, she hesitated before opening the door. When he’d lived in their home, she’d thought nothing of running around in not much more than what she had on.

But that was then, when he was a teenager and she was in most ways still a little girl. He had always acted older than most of the other boys his age, probably because of the hard times he’d experienced before her father had rescued him. Neither of them had ever told her any details, but she’d done what she’d always done when she had questions—she’d gone to the library to do research. She hadn’t learned much, but it had been enough to give her nightmares for a week.